After returning to the Lord Mansion, Ouyang Shuo didn't go anywhere but stayed in his office to read.
Gu Sanniang said from outside, "Your Excellency, there is a man called Wang Er outside looking for you!"
"Wang Er?" Ouyang Shuo was confused.
"Yes. He is a stonemason. He said he had an agreement with you before. "
Oh, he remembered. It was the stonemason he had met at the construction site. He must have come to see him as a witness. He didn't expect this young man to be so quick.
"I see. Bring him in!" Ouyang Shuo ordered Gu Sanniang.
"Yes!"
Wang Er followed Gu Sanniang into the office and said respectfully, "I am Wang Er. Greetings, Your Excellency!"
Ouyang Shuo nodded and said with a smile, "I already know why you are here. Tell me, when will the wedding be held? "
"Your Excellency, I will hold the wedding tomorrow evening," Wang Er said cautiously.
"Okay, I will be there tomorrow evening. Don't worry!"
Hearing Ouyang Shuo's agreement, Wang Er bowed to him happily and said, "Thank you, Your Excellency! Thank you, Your Excellency! "
Ouyang Shuo waved his hand and took a sip of tea from the teacup on the table. Gu Sanniang understood and pulled Wang Er, who was still in a daze, out of the office.
In the evening, Buttface from the Military Intelligence Department came with good news.
"Your Excellency, the Military Intelligence Department has completed their mission and finally found the mulberry sapling outside our territory," Buttface said hurriedly as he walked into the office.
Ouyang Shuo was overjoyed and said, "Good, there is finally a result! We are about to be promoted to a first-class town. If we can't find it, I will beat the Military Intelligence Department's board. "
Buttface chuckled. "Your Excellency, this is not the only good news. One of our scouts found traces of wild goats not far from where the mulberry sapling was found. At this moment, General Shi has already left with the cavalry unit. According to the general's plan, we will track them overnight for fear of missing them again. "
"Good, good things come in pairs. Quickly hand over the mulberry sapling to the Ministry of Agriculture! "Ouyang Shuo ordered with a smile. He was not worried about the cavalry unit's movements at night. The Intelligence Division had investigated clearly a long time ago, and besides the mid-level bandit camps that had already been annihilated, there weren't any other threats in the vicinity of the territory.
At ten o 'clock in the morning on February 13th, the cavalry platoon returned with a full load. More than a hundred cavalrymen drove more than fifty wild goats toward the village in a majestic manner.
Seeing these wild goats, Zhao Dewang, the Director-General of the Construction Department, was so anxious that he jumped up and down. He cursed and ordered the workers to hurry up and build the sheep pens.
Fortunately, wild goats were relatively docile animals. They did not run around but gathered together quietly. Seeing this, Du Xiaolan arranged for someone to bring over some fodder from the warehouse to feed them. Ever since the day the bison were domesticated, the Resource Division had consciously stored a batch of superior fodder. This time, it finally came in handy.
At one o 'clock in the afternoon, the sheepfold was finally ready. Ouyang Shuo was lost in thought as he watched the flock of sheep being herded into the pen. Back at the Lord's Mansion, he summoned Fan Zhongyan, Tian Wenjing, Cui Yingyou and Zhao Dexian to his office to discuss some matters.
Fan, Tian, and Cui were secretly referred to as the Big Three by the Shanhai Village's administrative staff. Following the Big Three into the Village Chief's office, Zhao Dexian was a little apprehensive.
Ouyang Shuo did not beat around the bush and went straight to the point. "With the further expansion of the territory's livestock industry, coupled with the construction of the mulberry garden, the agriculture industry in Shanhai Village is slowly getting on the right track. At this time, it is very necessary to establish a specialized department to coordinate and manage it. "
Zhao Dexian's heart skipped a beat and instantly became fiery. According to the Lord's words, he wanted to establish a powerful department that covered agriculture, forestry, fishing, and livestock. He looked at the few people present. Apart from him, everyone else held important positions. Could it be that this position was going to fall to him?
Fan Zhongyan casually glanced at Tian Wenjing and said, "My Lord, you mean to separate the livestock industry from the Resource Division?"
According to the general division of jurisdiction, industries like the livestock industry should be under the jurisdiction of the Administrative Office.
This was because the Resource Division during Cui Yingyou's time was too powerful and she was deeply trusted by Ouyang Shuo. In addition, the livestock industry was also very weak at that time and did not have much influence, so no one said anything. As time passed, it became a problem left behind by history.
After Fan Zhongyan took over the Administrative Office, although he wanted to take back these powers, he could not find a suitable breakthrough. This time, Ouyang Shuo took the initiative to raise the issue of adjusting the livestock industry's jurisdiction with the help of the wild goats. He naturally wanted to add fuel to the fire.
The newly appointed head of the Resource Division, Tian Wenjing, was expressionless. No one could tell what he was thinking.
Ouyang Shuo pretended not to know and continued, "Not only that. The fishing industry also needs to be separated. Apart from controlling strategic resources such as wood, stone, and ore, the Resource Division's responsibility is more inclined towards the management of the storage of resources and not the control of the source of production. This in itself is somewhat inappropriate. "
Tian Wenjing nodded and said calmly, "I agree with the Lord's opinion. With the flourishing development of the various industries in the territory, it is not time to establish a more professional and effective department. "
Cui Yingyou sat at the side and watched them argue. It was not good for her to interrupt. Moreover, the crux of these problems couldn't be separated from her. At this time, she could only maintain her silence.
Seeing that Tian Wenjing had taken the initiative to give way, Cui Yingyou asked with a smile, "Big Brother, what do you think this department should be called? Who should be the head?" She did not forget to glance at Zhao Dexian.
"Since it is in charge of agriculture, forestry, fishing, and animal husbandry, it should naturally be called the Department of Agriculture. In my opinion, there is no need to establish a new department. The original Bureau of Land Reclamation will be directly upgraded to the Department of Agriculture. The personnel appointments and subordinate relationships of the Department of Agriculture will remain the same, "Ouyang Shuo said with a smile.
Cui Yingyou nodded. She was not surprised by this arrangement. Thus, the Department of Agriculture became the most important department in the Administrative Office.
After the dust settled, Zhao Dexian stood up and bowed. He said loudly, "Thank you for your trust, Lord."
Ouyang Shuo waved his hand. "I believe in Director-General Zhao's ability. Whether it was in the Construction Department or the Bureau of Land Reclamation, your performance was very outstanding. I hope you will be able to achieve good results in the new department! "
Zhao Dexian regained his composure and said firmly, "I will definitely not let you down, Lord!"
Among the civil officials trained by the Shanhai Village, Zhao Dexian's ability was second only to Cui Yingyou and Gu Xiuwen. He was much more outstanding than Zhao Youfang and Zhao Dewang. He had even served as the Village Head before. When the time was right, Ouyang Shuo naturally had to give him a broader platform.
In the evening, Ouyang Shuo brought Second Child to the residential area to attend Wang Er and Cui Hua's wedding.
In ancient times, the wedding process was generally followed by six procedures: welcoming the bride, welcoming the bride, welcoming the bride, inviting the bride, and welcoming the bride. Welcoming the bride was a major part of the wedding. The groom's female relatives would personally open the sedan door and invite the bride down. Then, a fortunate elder of the groom's family would give a red rope tied into a concentric knot to the bride and groom.
The two of them would hold the red rope as they walked into the hall. They must not step on the threshold. The threshold represented the facade, and the bride must cross the threshold. A girl would hold a bronze mirror and shine it on the bride and groom to seek happiness.
The conditions in the Shanhai Village were simple. Most of the villagers were alone. They had no parents, elders, relatives, or friends. Therefore, the wedding ceremony was designed to be relatively simple. It didn't strictly follow the six procedures.
Fortunately, the Supplies Reserve Department had received Ouyang Shuo's instructions. Yesterday afternoon, they had sent people to deliver red silk, rice, fruits, and other items. The scene didn't look too shabby.
When Ouyang Shuo rushed to Wang Er's small courtyard, Wang Er was waiting at the door.
When he saw Ouyang Shuo, he hurriedly stepped forward and dryly said, "Sir, your presence brings light to my humble dwelling." It was a pity that he had asked Mister Gu to teach him these words in the morning.
Ouyang Shuo found it funny and nodded. Second Child scurried out from behind and handed over his gift with a smile. It was a high-quality piece of silk that he had specially bought from the market. As a lord, he had to personally attend the wedding of his subjects. Naturally, the gift he gave couldn't be too shabby.
This time, Ouyang Shuo didn't invite the various department heads of the lord's mansion to come with great fanfare. If he did, it would be too noisy, and it wouldn't be beautiful. Even when that little girl, Qing 'er, clamored to join in the fun, he didn't agree. He only brought Second Child with him to stand guard at his side.
Wang Er's new home was a typical peasant's small courtyard. After passing through the main entrance, there was a small courtyard. In the corner of the courtyard, there was a jujube tree. Next to the jujube tree was a well. On the east and west sides, there was a kitchen, a firewood room, and a poultry house. There were only three small rooms in the main hall. The one in the middle was the main hall, and it was also a place for the family to eat. On the left and right side, there were two bedrooms.
Although the courtyard was small, it had all the essentials. It could be seen that Wang Er was also a diligent person. He tidied up the courtyard neatly, and it gave people a good impression.
In the courtyard, there were already two tables of wedding wine. Those who came to attend the wedding were either from Wang Er's hometown, or stonemasons who worked together with him. It could be seen that this young man had good relations with others.
Wang Er personally led Ouyang Shuo to the main seat in the main hall. Second Child was smart. He didn't sit down with Wang Er, but took the initiative to run to the courtyard and find a seat himself.
Seeing Ouyang Shuo, Zhao Dewang, who had arrived first, quickly got up and greeted him. Wang Er belonged to a craftsman family, and was under the jurisdiction of the Construction Division. He was very resourceful, he actually invited the director of the construction department to attend the wedding.
Before coming, Zhao Dewang didn't expect that His Excellency would also attend the wedding, so he was very surprised. In his heart, he rejoiced that he came to the right place. His Excellency saw that he cared about his subordinates, he should value him more.
That was the truth. When Ouyang Shuo saw Zhao Dewang, his heart relaxed. Now that he had someone to chat with, he didn't have to sit alone at the main seat, which was too boring.
Before the banquet started, Wang Er brought the bride Cui Hua to pay his respects to Ouyang Shuo. Ouyang Shuo said a few auspicious words, and then let the bride return to her room. He knew that in ancient times, it was not appropriate for a bride to show her face in public on the wedding night. Only he, the lord, had such a big face.
The wedding was bustling with noise and excitement.
After the banquet started, Ouyang Shuo symbolically ate something, then got up and left. He also knew that with him around, the guests in the courtyard wouldn't dare to make too much noise. It was better to leave early, leaving them to play around.
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