Chapter 311: Inspiration
Editor: Atlas Studios
Mu Yangling nodded. “That’s right.” Mu Yangling smiled. “But you don’t have to worry. It’s fine even if others find out. This place is different from the Hus’ territory. As long as you don’t occupy land to farm or build houses, it’s not illegal.”
“Actually, I’m not worried about our people. I’m worried about the Hu people from the Jin Kingdom. This place is close to their territory, and there aren’t many soldiers stationed here. If they come to steal or plunder resources, we’ll be in danger.”
Zhang Wu and Zhang Liu opened their mouths wide. They had never thought of this question.
“Little General’s horse farm is next door…” Zhang Liu immediately said confidently.
“That’s why thieves usually don’t dare to come. Those who do come are bandits.”
Zhang Wu and Zhang Liu looked at Mu Yangling eagerly.
“Now, they’re building a military camp in Lower Tree Ridge, but I don’t know how many people will be stationed here. If there are too many people, the Jin soldiers will also have some scruples. However, you should be more vigilant. Once something goes wrong, don’t worry about the cows. It’s more important to stay alive.”
Zhang Wu and Zhang Liu agreed.
The next morning, Zhang Liu drove the mule cart home to pick up Xiuhong.
Mu Yangling and Zhang Wu stayed in the cattle farm to supervise. The old women who came to cook washed the rice and cooked porridge under Mu Yangling’s command.
The porridge was cooked using 70% corn kernels. After the corn kernels were cooked, they added some rice in and let it continue simmering for another half an hour.
The old women in charge of food swallowed their saliva upon seeing the thick porridge.
However, Mu Yangling frowned as she scooped out the porridge and pressed upon it. She even pinched a corn kernel and placed it in her mouth to chew.
The old ladies were a little nervous. “Miss, we cooked according to your measurements. We didn’t cook too much.”
The others nodded, thinking that Mu Yangling minded that the porridge was too thick and was a waste of grains.
However, Mu Yangling said, “The corn kernels are still not soft enough. Cook them for a longer time next time. Most of the people here are old people and children.”
Everyone heaved a sigh of relief and agreed.
There were a total of 20 pots of porridge. The people in charge of the food would be in charge of scooping porridge for everyone later, so they ate till they were half full in the kitchen now. Perhaps because Mu Yangling was in the kitchen, they did not dare to eat to their heart’s content.
As the fragrance of the porridge wafted out, the elders and children who had been escorted over surrounded them. Zhang Wu picked up a gong and drum and beat it. He shouted, “Line up. All of you, line up for me. Take your rice bowls and don’t cut the queue or make a commotion.”
At this moment, the sky was still dark, and only the skies in the east were slightly brighter. When everyone saw the 20 steaming pots, they squeezed forward anxiously. However, when they saw Mu Yangling, who was illuminated by the fire in front of them, they still consciously stood still.
Pushed out from the side, a three-year-old child fell to the ground and looked around blankly.
His older brother hurriedly pulled him up and wanted to put him in front of him. Unexpectedly, he was pushed by the person behind him and got squeezed out himself.
At this moment, the brothers wanted to cry.
This scene fell into Mu Yangling’s eyes. Her eyes turned cold as she looked coldly at the noisy people below and shouted, “All of you, line up. If anyone dares to squeeze anyone out or make a fuss again, everyone can forget about eating breakfast today!”
As Mu Yangling’s voice was loud, everyone present heard it. The crowd instantly fell silent. Slowly, everyone shifted back slightly. Mu Yangling said coldly, “I’ll forgive what happened this morning. But from noon onwards, everyone will line up according to their age. The youngest will stand in front, the older ones will stand in the middle, and the elderly will stand at the back.”
Mu Yangling glared at the elders angrily and said, “I know you’re old foxes, but remember, I’m the one who calls the shots here. If anyone is unhappy, you can turn around and leave! The children under the age of six are the most important here. If I see you squeeze the children out again, I’ll throw you out.”
Although the old man’s expression was ugly after being shouted at, he did not dare to refute. After all, the boss was the one who fed them. Even though, all the elderly present felt that Mu Yangling was ill-mannered and did not respect the elderly at all.
Mu Yangling was about to go crazy from anger. The reason why she was willing to take in these old people was firstly because she pitied them for being old, and secondly because they were quite strong. Thirdly, they had so much energy after all and had plenty of life experiences. But what was wrong with these old people?
Yesterday, they tried to take her down a notch, and today, they were here to bully children?
Mu Yangling stood on top with a cold expression and watched as someone scooped a spoonful of porridge and some side dishes for them. The children watched eagerly. As soon as the scoop of porridge was placed in their bowl, they ran out. An old granny hurriedly shouted, “Children, come back. There’s still the side dishes.”
The side dish was pickled vegetables that Mu Yangling had bought. Although the 3,000 people consumed a huge quantity, because of the cheap price, this small expense was not worth mentioning compared to the various grains.
The children ran back together, took the side dishes, before running out again. Then, they gathered together to eat. As they ate, they looked around warily, afraid that someone would snatch their food.
Mu Yangling kept walking around the field to prevent anyone from snatching others’ food.
However, she couldn’t stay here every day to stop such things. Hence, she still had to get Qi Haoran to send a team of soldiers over to maintain order and suppress them. Only then would she feel more at ease.
Over the past two days, Mu Yangling had also seen clearly that not every elder was as adorable as her great-uncles and the others, especially these elders who had fled from their homes and even experienced life and death.
Almost all the children here were under the age of 12.
That’s right. She had said that she would be in charge of children under the age of 12. In the end, almost all the children Fan Zijin sent over were under the age of 12. Only 378 children were above the age of 12. Mu Yangling had carefully looked at the roster last night. Previously, some really young children were also in the mix—for instance, she saw that the youngest was only two years and three months old. Mm, the toddler couldn’t even speak complete sentences, but they had no problem running around.
Mu Yangling felt that she was not hiring laborers, but opening a kindergarten. Most importantly, when she thought about instructing these child laborers to work later, Mu Yangling felt guilty.
Looking at the child who had just reached her thigh, Mu Yangling sighed. Forget it, she would just treat it as playing with the child.
Mu Yangling squatted down and met these timid eyes. She asked, “Child, how old are you?” Mu Yangling really couldn’t tell if they were a boy or a girl.
The child looked at her nervously and gripped the porcelain bowl in their hand tightly.
Mu Yangling touched the child’s head. A seven or eight-year-old child scrambled over and looked at Mu Yangling in panic. Shielding the child behind him, he stammered, “M—my younger brother is three years old.”
Mu Yangling looked at the child and asked softly, “Is he really three years old?”
Perhaps because she had said this in a deep voice, she appeared more imposing. The seven or eight-year-old child’s eyes were slightly red as he replied with his head lowered, “He’s already one year and eight months old, but his nominal age is three. Boss, he can also work now. Really, he can carry a lot of pasture.”
Mu Yangling sighed and asked, “Where are your parents?”
The boy was stunned for a moment before he lowered his head and said, “They’re dead. They were beaten to death for snatching food from someone when we were fleeing.”