Back to the Beginning of Ming to do Charity

Chapter 21: Swineherd

The next morning Lin Yuan woke early. He went to open the window in his underclothes but shivered when the cold wind blew in. He pulled on his cotton coat quickly, not expecting the temperature to drop this drastically over night.

"Young master." Er Liang came in with a water basin and said, "master just asked me, where will you be eating breakfast, and has me tell you not to go to the dining hall."

Lin Yuan: "I know, I will eat at home."

Lin Yuan understood old father Lin's meaning. Being the landowner one must have a landowner's airs. If you were too friendly and approachable then no one would be willing to listen to you. It was much easier for people to offend a person with good temperament because this kind of person would not get angry.

This was true in the modern times too. Your boss could be friends with you in private but during work he was your superior. A good temperament did not mean others would obey you.

He could treat the tenant farmers well, but only through the land rent and the provision of food. If the tenant farmers crossed his boundaries then he must act according to his status as a landowner.

Similar to how emperors of ancient times refered to themselves as the son of heaven and claimed their birth was accompanied by auspicious signs. This would be a type of spiritual rule which was especially effective in the ancient times where most of the people were ignorant and uneducated.

Like Li Congrong, who actually sincerely believed every emperor to be the human counterpart of divine dragons.

Jiang Gui did not believe that they were dragons but definitely agreed they were not mortals.

Yang Zi'an thought that emperors were human beings but human beings with a fate destined for the extraordinary.

Lin Yuan told them: "The emperor is also human except he is able to sit on the highest ruling seat. Otherwise, how would you look at fallen dynasties? The emperor of a destroyed empire is still an emperor."

Li Congrong and the others replied sincerely: "That is because they did not do the job right so heaven punished them. How can you say they are mere mortals?"

Lin Yuan: ""

Lin Yuan felt that the path of rebellion was rather difficult.

The thing that most shocked him was when he found out Zhu Yuanzhang also believed that the emperor was the son of heaven, just not all emperors were true sons of heaven.

He thought that only the founding emperor was whereas all the rest that succeeded him weren't.

Towards this kind of thinking Lin Yuan could only admit defeat to.

Lin Yuan was born in modern China and grew up under its red flag. The education he received was also atheistic. He believed that there were things unexplainable by science but he did not believe in the existence of ghosts or gods. Time travel could also be explained by science.

When two time lines approached and become parallel lines and a magnetic field appeared between these two parallel lines, or due to some other reason, these lines would form an hourglass shape. Then certain people from the line on the top would fall down into the timeline on the bottom, essentially time or space traveling.

Lin Yuan had already forgotten where he saw the theory, maybe it was on CCTV science channel.

He thought that he was coincidentally an unlucky fellow who was in a certain place at a certain time. Indeed, the White Lotus was rather convenient, rebelling whenever they want, their faith not in the emperor but in the head of their sect. If their leader said the emperor was the son of heaven, they must support him, then the members would believe the emperor was indeed the son of heaven. Leader said no, everyone should overthrow him then the members would actually stand up and start a rebellion.

Just what kind of executive power was this?

Lin Yuan felt that only the army had such absolute speed and decisiveness in carrying out orders.

No wonder all the dynasties treated the White Lotus sect as a threat.

The food was all placed in the cellars, and not just one cellar, like a rat who would dig several holes, they stored the food in many cellars spread out across the farmstead.

"Set up a watchtower." Lin Yuan already gave up convincing them to rebel. Once the fires of war began to burn, even if they didn't want to rebel they would have no choice. Besides, convincing others to rebel was quite tiring.

There were some beliefs that were too deeprooted, not something he could change by just talking.

Brother Dao let out a relieved sigh, he said: "I will immediately have people on it, it will only take 2 to 3 days."

Lin Yuan asked: "Now, every night there is someone to keep watch?"

Brother Dao nodded.

Lin Yuan said: "This evening we'll have a meeting, call all the men."

Brother Dao asked: "What's wrong? Only men? Did something happen?"

Lin Yuan said: "I would like them to all to take up their own specific duty. Ten people in a team, one team will be responsible for patrolling and lookout on the watchtower. Another team will focus on cutting firewood, and a third for fishing and hunting. The last team will continue farming."

Brother Dao was surprised: "Fourth brother, you have such organized plans. Where did you learn this?"

Lin Yuan said: "In the books."

Specializing could increase production. Not only did modern people know this, the educated people of the current era must know as well.

Only in this era not many people were educated.

"What books? Let me have a look too?" Brother Dao said with an ingratiating smile on his face.

Lin Yuan did not make excuses, only saying: "I did not bring the books with me, and you know what happened to my old homenowadays where can we even buy books?"

Brother Dao: "..That's right."

"After the men have a meeting, women and the elderly will also have a meeting." Lin Yuan also said.

Brother Dao was even more surprised: "They..they can actually be of help?" He had thought Lin Yuan had only took them in out of kindness.

Lin Yuan: "Also separate them into teams, specializing in cooking, knitting, and farming."

Brother Dao nodded, in the countryside women and the elderly must also farm. When it was a busy farming season even children had to help in farming.

Every person was a source of wealth. The people Lin Yuan currently took in were not a lot so every one of them was valuable, and must perform their purpose.

Lin Yuan pressed his lips together, if the foodstuff still had surplus by early spring then he could add more people.

Next year in the winter, he wanted to besiege and capture Wu City.

The farmstead could only be a temporary shelter. It would not be realistic to live here forever, completely separated from the world.

The men had no problems with having a meeting in the evening, after all the work on the fields was currently not a lot. Besides, they were all eating communal mealsand in order to prevent the equal treatment from affecting their motivation Lin Yuan implemented a scoring system.

Every 10 people had a team leader who at every week could give the people under him a most outstanding score. In order for the team leader to get the most outstanding score all team members must agree. Getting the most outstanding score would mean that on the weekends the person would get two pounds of meat and a bottle of oil as well as salt and pickled vegetables.

The final audit would be agreed upon by both brother Dao and Yang Zi'an.

Every month there would be a most outstanding team and the team's members would all get a reward.

"Hei, that will definitely be our team!"

"Nonsense, the fishing team is also really capable! Don't be too quick in your words."

.

Even more people just swallowed profusely.

Two pounds of meat, two pounds. Not two taels but two pounds. They almost fainted in excitement.

Lin Yuan whispered to Jiang Gui: "Brother, where can we buy pigs?"

Jiang Gui: ".."

Bro, you dare to make promises when there wasn't even a sign of meat?

Lin Yuan smiled in embarrassment. He got too excited and forgot that he currently did not have any livestock or source of meat.

But he couldn't go back on his words so he could only think of a solution.

Raising sheep was not likely as herding was too dangerous now. Pigs were the best, once he bought some piglets he could then experiment how to raise them fatter. They could also buy some sheep meat to make bacon which could be used as rewards. But the pigs must be raised bigger so that there would be meat in the future.

Lin Yuan did not expect that his plans of rebellion had yet to have any signs of showing, instead he would likely first become a swineherd.

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