Chapter 41 Resentment

Chen Fan began visiting various villages to persuade the residents to join forces for the autumn harvest. Backed by the conditions he had pre-arranged and the timely assistance of the villagers from the Xia Family Village, the matter was quickly settled.

Shortly after, having prepared the first batch of grain, he sent word to Master Du and his associates. Under Master Du’s arrangements, people from various villages began heading out to help with the autumn harvest.

Chen Fan met the workers sent from the county when they arrived at the Yu Family Village. Having received word beforehand, he waited at the village entrance, waving as he spotted the approaching group. Leading the delegation was Yu Qi.

"Brother Chen! It has been a long time! Here are the fifty workers coming to help in the village."

"Brother Yu, you came in person? How are matters at the yamen being handled? Aren't you short-handed?"

"Have no fear, Brother Chen! Right now, the most important thing in the county is the autumn harvest. If the crops in the fields are not gathered, all of us officials will be dismissed. The county treasury is currently as empty as can be; once the grain is harvested, everything will have room to turn around. Besides, isn't the county's primary problem poverty? Once we have money, everything becomes easy. Economic development must be at the core!"

Chen Fan smiled knowingly. Weren't these the exact words from the policy proposal he had submitted to the county magistrate? It seemed Yu Qi had read it thoroughly.

"Brother Yu speaks the truth! Let us work together and make money!"

"Hahaha! Rest assured, Brother Chen, Master Du and the magistrate are already in discussions! They plan to vigorously implement the ideas in your policy proposal, placing economic development at the center and vigorously boosting productivity! It has been decided that this will be the guiding policy for the county's work henceforth. It is not just the two of us anymore—the entire yamen will work together to make money!"

"Didn't the magistrate say we should test the waters first? Weren't they planning to select a single village for a trial run?"

"The magistrate and the others felt that one shouldn't be timid when getting things done; it is better to cast aside hesitation and act boldly."

In truth, Chen Fan himself was not entirely confident. These were merely theoretical knowledge he had studied back on Earth, and he had never practiced them personally. Moreover, the circumstances of different historical periods varied, and he could not guarantee whether his proposal would be applicable to Zeng County.

Yet, hearing Yu Qi say this set his mind at ease. Sometimes, getting things done required a bit of decisiveness.

"Rest assured, Brother Yu! I believe that by then, all the common folk of Zeng County will work together to make money!"

"Hahaha! Splendid! Absolutely splendid!"

Chen Fan led the fifty workers to the fields to familiarize them with the tasks. He assigned several women he had brought from the Xia Family Village to oversee these workers. Among the workers, forty-eight were women, and only two were men.

Chen Fan felt somewhat relieved that there were at least a couple of relatively diligent men. Otherwise, his expectations for the ideological awareness of the men in Zeng County would have been utterly shattered. Three men from the Xia Family Village were also designated to help Chen Fan arrange the agricultural affairs.

At the same time, they had prudently arranged for two female chefs who had graduated from the Kaixing Tavern to join them. They brought along plenty of ingredients, intending to conquer the stomachs of the Yu Family Village through food, promote the Kaixing Tavern, and win the hearts of the people.

Noticing three bailiffs among the group as well, Chen Fan felt these preparations were quite comprehensive and made the arrangements with peace of mind. Yet, for some reason, a vague sense of unease lingered in his heart, as though something bad was bound to happen.

After the lively evening banquet concluded, he took Yu Qi to find the village chief to personally arrange accommodations for everyone.

"Lord Chen, is there something amiss with the arrangements for the workers' lodgings? We already finalized that earlier."

"Village Chief Yu, the young women of this village are nowhere to be found, and the local men are as starved as wolves. Most of the people I brought are female workers; I am afraid they might fall victim to the men's harassment!"

Village Chief Yu belonged to the same generation as Village Chief Xia and still held a deep respect for women. "What Lord Chen says is entirely correct! It was indeed an oversight! However, there are only so many houses in the village, and it is difficult to change temporary arrangements on such short notice!"

"We can have the women squeeze together. Surely not all the women share a room with their husbands, do they?"

"That is true, but I feel the beds are still rather small. Besides, the women do not know each other well. I wonder if they would be willing to sleep together—more importantly, the beds are simply too small."

"Village Chief Yu! Beds are like water in a towel; if you squeeze hard enough, you can always sleep on them!"

"Ah! This!"

The village chief was left baffled by Chen Fan's remark, yet upon closer reflection, what he said wasn't entirely wrong. The phrasing was crude, but the reasoning held true.

"What my lord says is right. I will go and make the arrangements at once."

Still uneasy, Chen Fan followed along. He trusted the women; as vulnerable members of society, they would naturally understand one another and not mind sharing a bed too much. But the men were a different story—any man would naturally yearn to be around the opposite sex! Furthermore, these women had come from the county town—delicate and fresh. To the village men, this would undoubtedly be a tremendous and exciting stimulus.

Thus, the women were in danger, and the men were certainly harboring ill intentions.

"Everyone! Tonight, these female workers will be resting with your mothers and elders. Go back and get a good rest!"

"What? Weren't they supposed to be placed in our wives' rooms? All our wives are gone, and there are plenty of empty rooms!"

"Please understand, these women are already married. I hope none of you will tarnish their purity."

Hearing this, the men were deeply displeased. *And you still expect me to run errands for you after this?!*

The women, on the other hand, were deeply moved, realizing they had encountered a good official who genuinely looked out for them. When their husbands had initially dispatched them here, it was purely out of a desire for personal gain. They had felt at ease only because the yamen had specifically sent bailiffs to protect them along the way. Now, to have the special envoy consider their well-being to this extent filled their hearts with immense gratitude.

"Could that be Chen Fan?"

"He has become an official, and a high-ranking one at that now!"

"How wonderful it would be if a woman could marry a man like him!"

"Indeed! He considers women in everything he does."

The resentment in the men's hearts was written all over their faces. Seeing this, Chen Fan panicked internally.

*I mustn't let this ruin tomorrow's autumn harvest!*

Clearing his throat, he began to read aloud the autumn harvest mobilization decree he had written:

"The autumn harvest is fast approaching. This year, the people of this county have united as one to reclaim wasteland and till the fields. By conservative estimates, this will be a year of bumper harvest. When that time comes, the people of Zeng County will never have to worry about food and drink; subsistence will be secured! To rally all the people of the county in witnessing this historic moment, the yamen has resolved to mobilize the populace to partake in the autumn harvest together! Once the harvest is complete, everyone who participated shall receive a free-meal voucher issued by the yamen. With this voucher, dining expenses can be waived at all Kaixing Taverns across the county. Based on the productivity of everyone's harvest, the yamen will grant further welfare to the people and grandly host the year-end temple fair! To register, please proceed to the yamen's main hall! The yamen wholeheartedly considers the well-being of the people, and prays that the people will trust the yamen to build Zeng County together!"

Hearing this, the crowd's attention was diverted. After all, the most famous topic in all of Zeng County recently was none other than the Kaixing Tavern.

*Food and sex are the greatest human desires.* Food ranked even higher than sexual desire, and for these men who had rarely tasted fine delicacies, the discounts at the Kaixing Tavern suddenly mattered much more to them.

The looks they cast toward Chen Fan instantly softened.