That night, Xiao Hanzheng and Shi Qingluo drew a new blueprint for the county magistrate office.
They then talked about the situation in Heyang County and exchanged their opinions.
Eldest Grandson Xiao only returned home when it was almost dark after he was done tidying up the papers.
He was so tired that his back ached, and his body was also stained with dust.
His heart was even more bitter.
With Xiao Hanzheng and his wife here, he didn’t know what his future would be like.
He had only been running amuck in the county town for a short while, and it was about time for him to take orders from someone else.
He wanted to cry.
When he returned home with a darkened face, the old lady’s heart ached when she saw him like this.
“Dalang, what’s wrong with you? Did Zheng’er and his wife teach you a lesson?”
Eldest Grandson Xiao was silent for a moment
He smiled awkwardly. “No, I was just helping Hanzheng find the papers he wanted to read, so I came back late”.
The old lady was relieved. That’s good.
She couldn’t help but curse again, “Your second uncle is also useless. He had already got rid of the county magistrate, but he couldn’t get you there.
They had always thought that the eldest son would be the next in line, but who would have thought that it would suddenly be Xiao Hanzheng?
At the mention of his second uncle, Eldest Grandson Xiao was furious. “Grandma, it’s already good enough that my second uncle didn’t harm me. How could he still help me be the county magistrate? ”
Then, he told everyone what Xiao Hanzheng and Shi Qingluo had said.
After hearing this, the entire old Xiao family was furious.
“That heartless animal, I was wondering why he suddenly became so kind. So he was waiting here.”
Old Lady Xiao’s face darkened as she continued to curse, ” He even wants to harm his own nephew. No wonder he can’t give birth to a son. This animal…”
Hearing the old lady’s scolding, Eldest Grandson Xiao cheered in his heart.
He reminded her again, ” Grandma, Ge Chunru may come to settle the score with us. We have to be prepared.”
Old Lady Xiao’s face darkened, “What’s there to settle? ”
Eldest Grandson Xiao said, “We sent her brother to the mine and she said in the capital that she wanted to kill our Xiao family.”
He then thought of what Shi Qingluo had said, “After we left, Ge Chunru almost emptied the general’s office and gave it to her sister as her dowry.”
That woman had gone too far.
How could she ruin the Xiao family’s things like this?
When Old Lady Xiao heard this, she was even more furious, “That little b * tch had given so much money to her family and she still has the nerve to come after us.
“If she dares to come, I’ll slap her to death.”
Mdm Wang and Mdm Wu also couldn’t help but curse together with the old lady.
Giving that little hussy Ge Chunying so much dowry was as painful as cutting their flesh.
The dissatisfaction they had for Ge Chunru had gradually lessened after coming to the northern border.
But now, it was ignited again.
The next day, Xiao Hanzheng gave the blueprint to Eldest Grandson Xiao and asked him to find craftsmen to repair it.
Because the wages were not trivial and were settled every three days, all the vacancies filled up quickly and the people started to rebuild the county magistrate office.
Xiao Hanzheng began to read the booklet that Eldest Grandson Xiao had found.
Shi Qingluo did not follow them to the county office but went out with Xi Rong and the others.
It was necessary to travel around and understand the commoners’ lives to understand the place better.
Even though Nanxi County was not rich, it was much better than Heyang County.
There were only a few courtyards in the entire county that looked alright, and were built with green bricks and tiles.
Many of the houses had not undergone renovation for years, and most of the shops concentrated on one street.
The other streets felt deserted.
The pedestrians’ faces also looked bitter and worried, and many of them had patches on their clothes.
There weren’t many beggars, because everyone’s life wasn’t that good.
How could they have money or food to donate?
Xi Rui sighed after walking around.
It’s just like what Eldest Grandson Xiao said. It was too poor.
Liang Youxiao sighed, “I even said I’d see if there were any business opportunities, but after going for a tour, I know it is hopeless.”
The living conditions of the people in the county were not good, so how could they bear to spend?
If he did the business he wanted to do in the capital, how many people would be willing or able to afford it here?
He sighed again. “Qingluo, old Xiao has been assigned to such a poor county. I’m afraid it’ll be very difficult for him to accumulate merits.”
However, Shi Qingluo did not think so. “Why is it so difficult to accumulate merits? On the contrary, I think it’s easier than going to the rich counties in Jiangnan.”
“There’s nothing here, how to make a contribution?” Liang Youxiao asked, puzzled.
“By building city walls and dams? The county government has to be rich to do that.”
Shi Qingluo replied, “To turn a poor and underdeveloped county into a rich one. Isn’t this a pretty good achievement? ”
Liang Youxiao smiled and shook his head. “Of course it counts. It’s easier said than done.
“Let’s not talk about making the county rich. It’s a problem to make the trade caravans pass by here frequently.”
“Of course, I’m going to come up with something that can attract the caravans,” Shi Qingluo replied with a smile.
“You’re thinking of building workshops here?” Liang Youxiao asked.
