“After I returned, I discussed it with Qing Xiu. Qing Xiu knows a bit about incense medicine, so she divided the making of incense medicine into five large areas. There’s the incense and medicinal herbs processing area, the mixing area, the half-finished product area, the finished product area, and the quality inspection and distribution area. Every large area was divided into many small districts. The small districts were also divided into processes.
There were separate people in charge and management…”
Yu Youyao listened carefully. “You’ve thought it through. Centralizing power to govern people and dividing power to govern matters is just right.”
Qing Xiu was still a little worried. “There’s one bad thing about doing this, and that’s that we need a lot of manpower. The people we’ve nurtured previously are far from enough. It’s not a problem for the scattered workers to only make some simple incense medicine. In the future, when they make some complicated incense medicine, it won’t work at all. In addition, the monthly salary of the contract workers is also a big expense.”
Yu Youyao said, “The incense shop needs to develop. This isn’t something that can be rushed. I think this batch of scattered workers is quite efficient. Take a look at who can be used and sign a long-term contract with them. The incense medicine production process has been refined, and the process has become simpler. Recruit some people with good personalities and skills, and nurture them according to their needs. I think they’ll be able to get used to it soon. When they do, their production will increase greatly. Making preparations won’t delay the work. This is a good thing.”
To be honest, Bai Kui and Qing Xiu’s actions had already exceeded her expectations. One of them managed matters and the other managed people.
There was no need to mention how they complemented each other. Furthermore, they had also grown up together and were like sisters. They understood each other’s personalities and had a tacit understanding of each other. They had also seen the world with their grandmother. They were simply too hardworking.
If it were her, she wouldn’t be able to do better than them.
Bai Kui changed the topic. “The first batch of incense medicine has been completed. Tomorrow, we’ll send someone to Longcheng. In the future, the incense shop will send goods every ten days until the refugees are completely settled.’
As soon as Yu Youyao returned to the Yu Garden from the incense shop, Shu Yun came over to report, “Young Miss, His Highness is back. He’s waiting for you in the main study.”
“My Nineteenth Brother is back!” Yu Youyao was pleasantly surprised. She quickly picked up her dress and ran to the main study.
The people in the Liaodong area were valiant and did not have so many rules and etiquette. However, Yu Youyao was a daughter of an aristocratic family. In the age of cardamom, men and women had to be more careful with the rules.
As a private residence, the Jiushao Courtyard also had to be avoided. The Yu Garden had arranged for a large study in the front courtyard. Usually, she interacted with her uncles and cousins, as well as external guests in the front courtyard.
Yu Youyao rushed to the main study excitedly. Suddenly, she lightened her footsteps and held her breath, wanting to give Yin Huaixi a “surprise.”
As soon as she approached the door of the study, she heard Yin Huaixi’s voice from inside. “Yin Yi, how’s the situation in the Longcheng camp?”
Yin Yi’s voice replied respectfully, “It’s still stable at the moment. The Imperial Court has supported us with a batch of food. External merchants and local nobles have donated money and food one after another. However, more and more refugees have been pouring into Longcheng recently. The consumption of supplies is too great. The supplies in the camp are not enough to deal with the consumption of nearly a million clueless refugees.”
Yin Huaixi was not surprised. “How long can the supplies last?”
“Five days at most.”
Yin Huaixi’s expression darkened. “Get the local government to ignore the Imperial Court. Say that the number of refugees is too large and there are insufficient supplies. Request the Imperial Court to continue providing supplies. ”
The food support was even less than he had expected.
Yin Yi did not understand. “But the Imperial Court has already gathered a batch of food from the land in the Huguang area. I’m afraid they won’t be able to support us anymore…”
Yin Huaixi said calmly, “Do you know why 1 placed the refugees who fled in Longcheng back then?”
Yin Yi subconsciously said, “Longcheng is beside mountains and rivers, and it’s rich in resources. It’s affected by the warm and humid climate of the Bohai Sea and the dry and cold climate of the highland in the north. It’s a half-dry and half-wet area. In spring and autumn, it’s windy and dry, and the temperature is low. It’s not easy for germs to breed.”
The corners of Yin Huaixi’s mouth twitched slightly. “Longcheng also neighbors Hebei and the capital. A large number of refugees have gathered in Longcheng, which will pose a certain threat to the capital and Hebei. The Imperial Court doesn’t have food, but…” He smiled meaningfully. “There are many people with food.”
Yin Yi was stunned for a moment before he came to a realization. “Do you mean that you want the Imperial Court to collect food from the commoners? Although the area in Hebei has suffered a disaster and the commoners have fled, Hebei is the land of food production in the three provinces of the capital. The food production in this land is more than enough to support the entire three provinces of the capital. There’s definitely no lack of food.” In Hebei, the wealthy families, merchants, and landowners who owned good farmland did not lack food. They hired a group of strong guards and symbolically donated a batch of supplies to the government to obtain their protection. After closing the door of their residence, they could stay at home and live well.
Yin Huaixi said calmly, “The people who are most worried about the lack of supplies in Liaodong are the officials and nobles of Hebei and the capital. As long as the news of the lack of food in Longcheng is released, the Imperial
Court won’t sit back and do nothing, and those large families won’t stand by.”
In the past, when the refugees fled everywhere, they posed a certain threat to the Imperial Court. However, the refugees did not become powerful. Although the Imperial Court had a headache, they were not afraid.
Now, nearly two million refugees had gathered in the Longcheng area, forming a large-scale gathering. Even the You army might not be able to suppress them.
Once the supplies in Liaodong were exhausted, millions of refugees would flood into Hebei, where there was food, and gather to threaten the capital. Yin Da was shocked.
The Imperial Court had never dreamed that His Highness would gather the refugees in Longcheng wantonly and threaten Hebei and the capital. He was indirectly forcing them to fork out money and food to unite the Imperial Court.
Yin Yi said worriedly, “Aren’t you afraid of angering the Imperial Court?”
Yin Huaixi smiled. “What has the obstruction of the national policy got to do with me?”
What bad intentions did King Yue Fei have?
King Yue Fei had only been forced to accept the hot potato thrown by the Imperial Court. He wanted to share the Imperial Court’s burdens, but if the nobles did not cooperate, he would also run out of steam!
Yin Yi was stunned.
The Imperial Court had clearly issued a national policy and ordered the nobles of the North to cooperate fully to settle the refugees.
Now that the implementation of the national policy had been obstructed, the refugees could not be evacuated and relocated, causing a large number of refugees to gather in one place. The local nobles would be the first to bear the brunt!
As a threatened Imperial Court, the first thing they had to take their anger out on was the local nobles. Previously, there was the death of King Li of Zhou, and it had yet to change. Later, there were a million refugees who threatened the country. When the new and old accounts were calculated, the nobles would suffer.
Yin Huaixi chuckled. “I’ve never liked to make myself suffer.”
The benefits of taking in refugees were obvious, but behind the benefits, it also represented countless troubles. The safety of the camp, the consumption of supplies, the prevention of the disease, and so on were not things Liaodong could afford.
The best way was to take all the benefits and leave the trouble to others to resolve, He only needed to sit back and reap the benefits..