Chapter 276: The Atmosphere Builds
Thirty-Two chided him playfully, "Look up at the sky."
Zhong Gaoliang looked up and saw the colossal golden hand in the sky give a decisive thumbs-up.
He might not have understood the exact meaning, but he sensed the gesture was one of encouragement and affirmation.
Well then, the Heavenly Lord had even given his approval.
It must be Heaven's arrangement. Heaven's will is absolute, after all.
Zhong Gaoliang could only agree. "Alright, I'll be the head jailer. But what about my sorghum fields?"
Thirty-Two chuckled, "Rent them to your neighbors to farm."
Zhong Gaoliang gaped. "Then won't I become a landlord? No way! Landlords are evil people."
Thirty-Two: "..."
Theoretically, renting out a small plot of land does make one a landlord, but to equate 'good' and 'evil' with such a trivial matter is simply too simplistic.
Thirty-Two threw up his hands. "The pay for being a head jailer is incredibly high, you know. Five taels of silver a month! Calculate how much that is in twelve months, and then compare it to the income from your few *mu* of sorghum fields."
Zhong Gaoliang pondered. "Twelve times five taels... how much is that again? I don't have enough fingers and toes to count it..."
Thirty-Two: "Pfft!"
Li Daoxuan: "Pfft!"
At that moment, a small child ran past. It was Gao Sanwa. He burst out laughing. "Uncle Zhong, first, figure out two times five taels—that's ten taels. Then, since twelve is six times two, twelve times five taels is like six times ten taels. See? You've got it now!"
Zhong Gaoliang exclaimed, "Six times ten taels is sixty taels, then! Sanwa, you're so smart!"
Gao Sanwa puffed out his chest proudly. "Hahahaha! My mother still says I'm dumb. She has no idea how clever I am!"
"Sanwa!" a furious shout echoed from the distance. Gao Sanniang stormed over, brandishing a bamboo cane. "The teacher said you skipped class again! Get over here for a beating!"
Gao Sanwa jumped in fright. "Mom's here! I'm out of here!"
With that, he took off like a shot. Gao Sanniang, bamboo cane in hand, gave chase, and the two vanished into the distance in a flash.
Li Daoxuan smiled. *The younger generation of Gao Family Village certainly has a bright future ahead.*
By now, Zhong Gaoliang had finally grasped the situation. An annual income of sixty taels of silver vastly exceeded the yield from his sorghum fields. He decided not to farm the land himself, nor to rent it out, to avoid becoming a landlord. Instead, he might as well lend it to his neighbors for free.
"If I'm to be the head jailer, what exactly will I need to do?"
Thirty-Two replied, "Organize these labor reform prisoners. Tell them what they need to do, what they have to look forward to, and so on. You've been in a labor reform camp yourself, so you should know what these prisoners need."
Zhong Gaoliang tilted his head in thought, then grinned. "Hey, I actually do understand that."
Thirty-Two continued, "You certainly won't be enough by yourself. You can't manage six hundred people. Gather all your old friends from your time in the labor reform camp and form a team—a large team capable of managing six hundred labor reform prisoners..."
Zhong Gaoliang jumped in surprise. "You want to go that big?"
Thirty-Two glanced up at the sky, then said gravely, "As our railways and cement roads continue to expand, the number of labor reform prisoners will likely keep increasing. Not just six hundred, but six thousand, even sixty thousand, are possible, Zhong Gaoliang... Your position might become increasingly important in the future."
Right as they were speaking, Cheng Xu arrived.
He had led the militia on a feint, pretending to have entered the Huanglong Mountain. After circling around, they returned to Gao Family Village and stayed hidden in the outskirts. Only after Fang Wushang's party had left did Cheng Xu appear before everyone.
"Zhong Gaoliang," Cheng Xu said, "until your team is properly assembled, my men will manage the prison for you. These Guyuan rebels have fierce fighting capabilities, and they won't be easy to manage."
Zhong Gaoliang was overjoyed. "Thank you, Instructor He!"
Li Daoxuan, hearing this, knew he didn't need to worry too much. This group would surely manage the six hundred-plus prisoners effectively. His current focus, however, should be on the county town.
With a single thought, he switched, and his view snapped back to the county town.
Chengcheng County was currently bathed in the golden light of the setting sun, the shadows of its walls stretched long and distorted.
Half a day had passed since the battle, but the common people were still buzzing with excitement. In every street and alley, countless voices discussed the miraculous deeds of the Heavenly Lord.
Li Daoxuan immediately spotted someone selling comic books on the street: the first volume of "The Heavenly Lord's Tale of Demon Exorcism." When the Chengcheng Bookstore had first released it, it cost only one copper coin and came with two taels of flour.
Yet now, someone was hawking it on the street for an astonishing ten copper coins.
The man had barely uttered a couple of cries when a wealthy man bought it, cradling the comic book like a precious treasure and studying it intently. After finishing, he was still not satisfied and shouted into the street, "Who has the second volume?"
The second volume had actually already been printed, but the first batch shipped to the county, only two thousand copies, had long since sold out.
Now, treasured in their homes, the common people were genuinely unwilling to part with them.
The wealthy man shouted for a long time in the street, but no one would sell him a copy. He had no choice but to rush to the bookstore, where he banged on the door and shouted, "When will the second volume be sold again? Hurry up and print more! You're printing so slowly, I'm going to report you to the authorities!"
Li Daoxuan's attention shifted to the City God Temple. He found it packed three deep, both inside and out. The side hall where Mrs. San resided, in particular, was now filled with kneeling worshippers.
All the original devout men and women were, of course, present, joined by many new converts. They packed the small side hall to the point of being impassable, and those who couldn't get in dared not make a sound, patiently lined up outside.
A well-dressed man was speaking eloquently before Mrs. San. "Reverend Lady, all the devout men and women here are willing to contribute money and effort to commission a statue of the Heavenly Lord, to enshrine it in the City God Temple. That way, everyone can easily come here to pray and offer their devotions daily."
Mrs. San smiled faintly. "Such a thing would naturally be wonderful, but I am merely a woman of the cloth, not adept at handling such worldly affairs..."
The well-dressed man immediately responded, "Such matters can be left entirely to me. My name is Teng Yifeng. Most of the artisans in Chengcheng County are well-acquainted with me. Thanks to the Heavenly Lord's blessing, I even established the Chengcheng Cement Factory; all the cement used for road construction now comes from my factory. You just need to nod, and I will organize the artisans to create a magnificent statue for the Heavenly Lord."
Mrs. San was delighted. "Then I'll leave this matter in your capable hands!"
Teng Yifeng was equally delighted. "Thank you, Reverend Lady, for entrusting me with such an important task. I will devote all my efforts to making this statue truly grand and majestic."
Li Daoxuan shook his head with a wry smile. *Great wonders can ruin a nation! Don't just build frivolous things! Focus on building those roads properly!*
Yet, upon reflection: road construction was for work relief, and building a grand statue could also serve as work relief. *Never mind.*
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