On the Wei River, fifty hundred-shi boats were lined up in a row.
On the shore, there were gangplanks built where there were no boats. Boxes of dried shrimps, dried scallops, and shrimp paste were loaded onto the boats.
When a boat was filled, it would leave. It would go along the Wei River to the Yellow River and then upstream to the source.
At the Pujin Crossing, there were iron pontoon bridges connecting the two banks. Boats supported the pontoon bridges.
At a fixed time every day, the iron pontoon in the middle would be opened to allow boats to cross the river.
At the Hukou Waterfall, boats were already disembarking. It turned out that the boats upstream of the waterfall were going up the short distance.
When they heard that the waterfall could be crossed, they brought some local products and rowed to the location to ask about the price.
The price varied according to the size of the boat and the goods it carried.
The cheapest boat only cost ten coins. It was more than ten miles away. When it was on the track, animals would pull it to the other end and then let it down.
Even if they made a small raft, it would still cost ten coins to cross. It couldn't be any cheaper.
The workers were all hired from the local area to help pull the gourds. They relied on the waterfall for their livelihood.
Adding the cost of the animals' food, no one would be willing to work if there were no boats.
"I heard that the imperial court is sending a fleet to go up. I wonder if they will pay."
Below the Hukou Waterfall, a man wearing a conical bamboo hat looked at the rolling river water and said to someone beside him.
"Maybe they have to pay. They said that no matter what kind of boat we use, we will be paid for our work."
The people who were busy weaving baskets didn't even look at the baskets. They weaved the branches into the baskets based on their feelings.
"A hundred-shi boat, a hundred coins per boat. If there are a hundred boats, everyone can split it. It's not a small sum."
Another young man who looked to be 16 or 17 years old had an expectant look on his face.
He was holding a newspaper in his hand. The newspaper was from the early days and had Chinese pinyin on it. He was learning.
When the Hukou Waterfall was impassable, the locals planted a few acres of land on the mountain or by the river. There were mulberry trees on the mountain and silkworms were raised.
The young man herded sheep. Day after day, he went down the river to catch fish and shrimp like the other children.
When the Hukou Waterfall was equipped and there was work to do, he could earn more money.
The locals had an idea. The young man began to learn pinyin and read books.
He asked the literate passersby for each letter. He tried his best to remember how to read it and then spell it himself.
Sometimes, if he forgot or felt that his pronunciation was not accurate enough, he could find time to go to the county yamen.
There were many people in the yamen who were literate. When they asked them for advice, they patiently taught them.
They had no choice but to be patient. The citizens took the initiative to ask for improvement, but the yamen officials ignored them, and the evaluation was over.
"Once it's officially open to the public, you'll have to pay the Li Family Zhuangzi a sum of money every month. Once the official ship arrives, it'll naturally be officially open to the public."
The man in the bamboo hat shattered the young man's fantasy. Even if he had a lot of money, he wouldn't share it all with them.
There were people from the county overseeing the waterfall and keeping accounts.
Now, it was settled once a day. When everyone had more money, it would be changed to once a month.
The reason why they had to settle one a day was because they didn't have much income during the winter and needed money.
If he bought some rice, he wouldn't have to eat so much chaff and bran.
There was another benefit to the beginning of spring. There were wild vegetables, which could be cooked with rice to supplement vitamins. The commoners didn't know much about it, but it could fill their hunger.
The helpers all agreed that no matter if it was a daily or monthly payment, they would save the rest of the money except for what they had to spend on the day.
This was better than some parts of Africa in Li Yi's time. Usually, they didn't dare to settle a daily payment. After settling the accounts on the day, they took the money and went to have fun. They didn't come to work the next day.
When they ran out of money, they would come back.
The monthly payment was about the same. That was why many enterprises in Li Yi's country would rather spend more money to hire people from the country to work there.
This was especially true for projects that couldn't be delayed. Basically, the local people were only responsible for simple tasks.
The local people who were motivated would learn from them. The proportion of such people was very small.
Li Yi's country, including the current Tang dynasty, was the most hardworking nation in the world. There was no one who could compete with them. They were not on par with others.
"Give it to the Li Family Zhuangzi. With the Li Family Zhuangzi behind us, we can be at ease.
While there's no work, go pick wild vegetables, wash them, and throw them into the pot. We'll eat at noon. "
The basket-weaver put down the basket he just finished and took the lead to look for wild vegetables.
On the shore of the waterfall, there was a big iron pot at each end. Coal or firewood was burning underneath.
The water in the pot was from the well. They didn't drink the water from the Yellow River because there was too much sand.
The two pots were given by the imperial court. They were now at the subsidy stage. In the future, the tugboats would take out a portion of the money that was withheld from the Li Family Zhuangzi.
Early this morning, the person in charge bought two old hens from a nearby village. They didn't lay many eggs. They stewed one in each pot.
The workers and the people nearby who wanted to drink the free soup would pick wild vegetables and put them into the pot.
The chickens were chopped up and thrown into the pot for stewing. Don't expect to eat the chicken. The old hens were fat, so they could drink the soup.
They brought their own food and ate with the soup and free pickled vegetables.
They didn't need to be reminded to pick wild vegetables. Everyone took the initiative to pick them.
It was a national characteristic. Ordinary people couldn't learn it.
… …
"Who introduced Ke Guang here?" Bi Goo was also drinking soup. It was ginseng root soup. It was made of ginseng root and shredded ginger.
It was summer. He said that it was a bit cold to sleep at night. During the day, he felt cold in the sun and shivered.
He was given some soup. It was mainly made of ginger to force out the cold.
Otherwise, in his condition, he would get diarrhea from the sun.
At this moment, he asked his subordinates. He was starting to reorganize the Ministry of Revenue's noodle industry.
He specially called thirty noodle makers to come in and ask them. After asking, he organized them and looked for them.
"Doctor Duzhi, Xie Xin recommended him." The office clerk gave him the answer.
"Deduct three hundred dollars from him. Tell him that if Ke Guang steals home noodles, he can't be a doctor anymore." Bi Goo said with a sullen face.
"Yes."
"Who does Hou Li work for?" Bi Goo asked another one.
He asked them one by one. He deducted money from those who should be deducted and adjusted those who should be adjusted.
He was angry. It was just as Li Yi said. As long as the workers were introduced, none of them were fast.
When kneading the noodles, they deliberately added more water and then poured the water away.
Also, when making the noodles, they collected the so-called leftovers and threw them away.
In fact, the water that was poured away was put into a bucket and taken away. The leftovers were also taken away.
When the water went back and boiled in the pot, the noodles would come out. They could be taken out and steamed in the pot.
There were even people who brought in whole-wheat flour from outside and directly replaced a part of the noodle powder.
Bi Goo was about to cry. No wonder his cost was so high. Who could bear to play like this!
"When everything is ready, immediately do as Xiao Yi said. Send the noodles to each household and help them with their work.
If they don't do a good job, dismiss them. Chang 'an doesn't lack people. My Ministry of Revenue can't be laughed at. "
Bi Goo gritted his teeth and made up his mind. He picked up the bowl and gulped it down.
After drinking a bowl of soup, he smacked his lips. The aftertaste of the ginseng was actually a little sweet.
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