Chapter 245: Don’t Think It’s Unfair
When Yu Luo returned to Stone Mountain, Ye Jiamei immediately grabbed her, eager to ask about the people she had brought. Yu Luo glanced at Zhang Hu and the others before turning to her mother.
“Don’t worry, everyone. These people are the ones we encountered on Jiuzhong Mountain at the mining site.
They were captured by bandits and forced to mine for years. But now, the authorities have wiped out those bandits, so these people fled together and came to the wasteland.”
“What? Those miners?!”
The moment Yu Luo spoke, the crowd erupted into an uproar. Just thinking about that mine made their expressions change drastically.
“Yes, they’re also unfortunate people—taken away and forced to work for free for years. Now, they have no home to return to. In the future, they will likely live with us. I have already made an agreement with them: they will help me cultivate the land, and I will pay them wages every month.”
As soon as she said this, the crowd, who had been shocked by the miners’ identities, reacted even more strongly.
Hu Xia, a relative of the Bai family, hesitated before stepping forward anxiously.
“Xiao Luo, does this mean that since you have so many people working for you now, you won’t need us anymore?”
“That’s right, Xiao Luo. You promised us before that for every mu of land we clear, you’d pay ten taels. But now, with all these people working for you, doesn’t that mean we’ll lose our jobs?”
Hu Xia’s words made her sister-in-law, Liang Yue, quickly chime in.
Even though Hu Xia felt embarrassed asking such a question, survival came first. She knew it might sound selfish, but she had to speak up for herself and her family. How else would they survive in this wasteland?
“You all have about one hundred people—how much land can you clear in a day?”
“Five mu (~ 5 acres).”
Yu Luo didn’t answer Liang Yue’s question directly. Instead, she asked a question of her own.
The moment she finished speaking, Liang Yue immediately blurted out the answer.
And Yu Luo knew that most people here felt the same way as Liang Yue.
“At five mu a day, at the rate I was paying you, that’s fifty taels of silver per day.
That means each of you, working together, earns over five hundred wen per day.
Meanwhile, these new workers only require one tael of silver per month—that’s thirty-something wen per day per person.
Tell me, would I be a fool not to hire them?”
The moment Yu Luo laid out the numbers, everyone’s faces turned pale.
They knew their opportunity to earn money from Yu Luo was coming to an end today.
“Sigh, Xiao Luo is right. These people are willing to work for less, so why wouldn’t she hire them? Everyone, don’t be upset—it’s just common sense.
If any of you were in her place, would you really throw away dozens of taels per day just to keep hiring us?”
Seeing the somber looks on everyone’s faces, Yu Qiang sighed and spoke up.
Although no one openly argued, Yu Qiang could tell that many were unhappy about the change.
“But does kindness really turn into resentment like this? Has our family been too good to you? Are we supposed to keep overpaying you forever just to support you?”
Yu Luo noticed that even after Yu Qiang spoke, no one said a word—they simply stood there, unhappy.
So, she didn’t hold back, stating things bluntly, whether they liked it or not.
“Xiao Luo, I admit we’re upset. This morning, you said we would still have work. But now, you’ve suddenly given all the jobs to these new people. How are we supposed to survive now?”
Zhao Qiyue ignored her husband’s attempts to hold her back and stepped forward, speaking her frustration plainly.
Hearing her speak up, others in the crowd nodded in agreement.
During this time, Yu Luo scanned every face, carefully observing who was merely worried about the future and who was truly resentful.
Fortunately, it was mostly concern rather than hostility—only a few people, like Zhao Qiyue’s family, were visibly upset.
Perhaps they were genuinely afraid of losing their only source of income.
“Aunt Zhao, our family can’t be taken advantage of forever, can we? If you really want to keep working, you can become long-term workers for my family. I will pay you double what I pay them—two taels per month. But I won’t hire anyone under fourteen.
Actually, even before these new people arrived, my family already planned to stop paying you to clear land after the planting season. We had discussed it and decided to offer you long-term work instead. Because once the crops grow, someone will need to tend to them.
So, you don’t need to feel cheated—this change was always part of the plan. You probably don’t know this yet, but before we even arrived here, my uncles had already built a city wall in this area.
In the future, all of you who have endured hardships with our family will live in that city. We will build homes for you, and you will even have opportunities to start your own businesses there. These new people will help us build the city faster, which means more security for all of us. And once the city is up and running, there will be plenty of chances to earn money.”
“A… city?!”
Yu Luo knew these people would find out eventually.
Right now, they were anxious and afraid, uncertain of their future.
So, telling them a little about the city was a way to give them hope.
Without hope, how would they find the motivation to work hard?
Yu Luo had no intention of wasting money on workers who just sat around all day.
Even if she had to exaggerate her vision a little, she needed to give them something to strive for!
“What city? Xiao Luo, what do you mean? We don’t understand!”
The crowd buzzed with curiosity, pressing her for answers.
But Yu Luo had no intention of explaining everything just yet.
After all, she herself didn’t know if the city would succeed.
“You’ll see when the time comes. For now, think it over. Every family has adults who can work. I am offering a long-term solution. If you don’t want to become my long-term workers, that’s fine—I won’t force you. You can still clear land on your own to feed your families. If you need seeds and grain, I will sell them to you at a fair price. But I will only give you one day to decide.”
