The Princess of Northern Land
Chapter 357: Reform (4)_1

Chapter 357: Chapter 357: Reform (4)_1

Forget it, she was just too kind-hearted and overlooked the fact that this place was not a lawful society under the red flag. Here, not to mention the Northern Land, but the whole of Daqin, or even the whole world, the servants were the lowest class of people. They had no private property.

At most, she would just give more wages to the servants at home in the future.

"When the weather gets a bit warmer, everyone can work half a day and take half a day off within a month. Of course, the wages and bonuses will be reduced accordingly. Those who wish to work half a day can do so, while those who wish to work full time can work for the whole day. They are free to choose," Lin Ziyin said.

"Yes, Miss." Qiaoqiao responded weakly.

Upon hearing this, Hong Ying and Lun Luo sighed inwardly. They thought Miss Lin was still too soft-hearted. In their opinion, it was better for the household to have private slaves. This would prevent the occurrence of villagers working while also worrying about their homes.

Moreover, if the villagers cultivated more land, they would certainly take time off in the future, whether to plant or harvest, focusing on their fields. If this was the case, it would certainly impact the workshop’s business over the year.

Master Lin and Lin Changshu agreed with Lin Ziyin’s approach, for farmers held their land in high regard. Their concern for the land was, in their view, perfectly reasonable.

The villagers who worked were always anxious. Honestly, if the Lin Family did not give everyone time off, the villagers might feel unhappy, but they would certainly not be willing to give up their jobs. One mu of land would yield only so much crops, but working for the Lin Family, disciplined work would bring in two taels of silver each month. Two taels of silver would be a year’s income from five mu of land.

The villagers knew what was more advantageous to them.

Luckily, the Lin Family was benevolent, willing to give everyone time off, and even provided two options for everyone to choose from.

"I think we should hire a few more people from the marketplace to cultivate the land. The wages from the workshop should be enough to afford this. Plus, it saves energy," said Lou Zheng as soon as he arrived home and was drawn into conversation by Mrs. Zhang.

"Yes, Dad, that’s what I was thinking too." Wu Dayou added, while Madam Wei was cautiously standing by, fearing that her father-in-law might insist on her cultivating the land. Cultivating land was tiresome and dirty. It was not that she was lazy, but why should they choose the tough work when there were easy jobs available?

"You two stop whispering, I’ve already thought things through," said Lou Zheng waving his hand. "There are seven members in our household, and altogether we can cultivate more than fifty mu of land. But I don’t intend to cultivate that much all at once. Everyone in the family should be working, if the land cultivated is too much, we won’t have time to handle it all."

"Exactly. Right now, we already have more than ten mu of land. If we add fifty more mu, even if we worked day and night, we wouldn’t be able to manage all of it," Mrs. Zhang nodded in agreement.

"Dad, as long as we have enough to eat, it’s fine. Cultivating land also requires us to pay taxes. New land doesn’t yield good crops anyway, it’s such a hassle," argued Wu Eryou, who was more inclined towards working in the workshop which was easier and paid more.

"I will ask Ziyin, to see how much land we should cultivate," Lou Zheng said out of habit.

"Are you senile?" Mrs. Zhang swiftly interjected, "Why are you involving Ziyin in our family matters?"

"What’s wrong with asking her?" Lou Zheng retorted unhappily, "You guys don’t understand, she’s very smart. Whatever she suggests to plant in our land will surely be the right choice."

"Fine, ask if you must, but don’t interfere with her important tasks. Haven’t you seen how busy she is, not even having time to celebrate the New Year?" Mrs. Zhang cautioned him.

"I am just going to ask briefly. It won’t take much time," said Lou Zheng, patting his clothes and then heading out.

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