Chapter 39: 39 Recruitment
Chapter Thirty-Nine
The next morning, Long Xiaoshan ran to the Xishan area to check it out.
Xishan was a large mountain; over the other side was Qingshui Village, and on the slope facing Longyang Village was a vast expanse of mountain land, about three hundred acres. However, due to years of neglect with no cultivation, it was covered in wild grass and overrun with weeds.
Below Xishan was Shieyan Rock. The scenery around Shieyan Rock was very beautiful, with a babbling stream flowing through, a large swath of rocky beaches, and bamboo forests lining the edges known for a huge rock resembling a stone goose.
In his childhood, Long Xiaoshan often came here to bathe and swim, climbing onto the stone goose's head to dive into the water. The villagers also commonly washed here.
Long Xiaoshan looked around, holding a 2B pencil and a piece of paper, sketching on it.
Although he wasn't a professional designer,
he had read books on the subject and, being clever, roughly planning things out was not a problem for him.
He was very satisfied.
As for the mountain wasteland, there was no need to say much; it just needed to be opened up for cultivation. The beach area below Shieyan Rock was also a great development area. First, they would dig a few large fish ponds, and later, they could start a breeding farm—after all, the water was readily available from the little stream.
Lily Hotel was even more enthusiastic about this.
Shen Waan first went to the provincial capital to register the trademark and other items.
Then she regrouped with Long Xiaoshan.
Initially, Shen Waan had hired a professional engineering team, but Long Xiaoshan said it wasn't necessary. The farm was in its early stages, and they didn't need that level of professionalism, plus he wanted the villagers to benefit as well.
For the initial work, there was absolutely no need to hire outside labor.
Thus, on this day, two vehicles drove into the village, both from Lily Hotel. One pickup truck equipped with a loudspeaker, was looping announcements throughout the village.
The village had its loudspeakers, but Long Xiaoshan and the village head, Long Fakui, didn't get along. Borrowing the village's loudspeaker would mean having to deal with him, so it was easier just to use their own. It wasn't like the village was too big.
The pickup truck circled the village, the loudspeaker continuously calling out.
It was said they were hiring labor.
All the villagers who were at home ran out, attracted by the novelty.
When had there ever been such an event in the village?
To think that a pickup truck with loudspeakers was recruiting workers! Whether they believed it or not, they all ran out to see what the commotion was about, following the sound of the truck to the rocky beach at the foot of Shieyan Rock in the west end of the village.
Longyang Village didn't have many able-bodied men; most of the young and strong had gone out to work elsewhere.
On the rocky beach, those who arrived were either men around Long Dashan's age, some women, unmarried girls, or a few teenagers.
Suddenly, more than a hundred people gathered.
They saw a black Mercedes-Benz off-road vehicle parked beside Shieyan Rock, Long Xiaoshan and a very pretty woman who looked like a city dweller, with fair skin, standing by the car. Couple Long Dashan stood nearby as well.
"Hey, little Xiaoshan, what's this about? Where's the hiring taking place?"
The villagers were very curious.
Seeing Long Xiaoshan and the pretty woman standing together, they didn't dare to approach the woman, so they asked Long Xiaoshan.
After noticing that most people had arrived,
Long Xiaoshan cleared his throat and said, "Fellow uncles, aunts, and everyone, you've come. Let me tell you, this area of mountain land and the beach below have been contracted out by me. Here's the contract, it's for thirty years."
Long Xiaoshan took out the contract that had been stamped and signed a few days earlier, waved it around, and said, "I'm going to start a farm here, and right now we need people to clear the mountain land and dig ponds on the rocky beach. We are recruiting workers. If you're available, come work for us. We'll pay daily wages, guaranteeing no less than fifty yuan per day."
The crowd below stirred with commotion.
She was stunned by the wages Long Xiaoshan had offered.
Standing beside her, Long Dashan's eyelids twitched, and he almost went up to cover his son's mouth.
The wages were to be settled daily, and no less than fifty yuan at that.
If one worked the whole month, wouldn't that be one thousand five hundred yuan?
In H County, that was pretty much the going rate for wages.
Not to mention the village, working at Long Fakui's sawmill meant slaving away for a whole month for just eight hundred yuan, and on top of that, wages were often delayed. A month's pay might not be handed out until three months later.
This kind of daily wage, you get money every day.
"Really? Is that true?" a woman from the village called out.
"Such high wages, little Xiaoshan, where are you getting the money from?" Some villagers were skeptical.
The average income in the village was still less than two thousand yuan; if the wages were that high, working for a month would exceed the previous year's earnings.
"How is this high salary? If my place gets up and running and we start hiring official staff, the wages will be even higher. Right now, it's just temporary work, so it's paid daily," Long Xiaoshan said with a smile, "If you don't believe me, you can ask Manager Su beside me. This farm isn't just mine; it's invested by the Lily Hotel from the county. Manager Su is the manager of the Lily Hotel. If you don't believe me, then hear what she has to say."
Long Xiaoshan pointed at Su Wan beside him.
Su Wan gave him a look. This guy held ninety percent of the farm, with Lily owning just ten percent. He spoke as if the farm was a part of the Lily Hotel, really pulling the tiger's skin for a banner.
However, the Lily Hotel in Niu Y County really was well-known.
Even the people in the small village had heard of it.
"I went to my son-in-law's place in the county for New Year's, and that hotel, it's ten stories high, the best in the county. I heard it costs several hundred for a night's stay," said an uncle from the village whose circumstances were rather good, and whose daughter was married into the town.
"Look at that car, I saw it in the newspaper, it's called a Mercedes; it goes for over a million."
Su Wan smiled lightly and said, "On behalf of Lily Hotel, I want to assure all the villagers of Longyang Village that what Xiaoshan has said is all true. You don't have to worry about the money. With daily settlements, you will definitely not be shortchanged."
The villagers weren't foolish.
Hearing Su Wan's words, they believed that was right—these were daily wages, at worst they'd only lose out on one day's work.
That was nothing like working in other places where the wages were always delayed, and sometimes a whole year's labor was for nothing.
Everyone's eyes suddenly lit up with eagerness.
Where else could you find such high wages? Even if you went to the county, for a migrant worker to find a job paying one thousand five hundred per month was tough; you had to pay for food and lodging, and saving half of it by the end of the month was doing well. Yet working at home had virtually no costs.
"Little Xiaoshan, do you think I can do it?"
"Xiaoshan, I may be older, but I'm surely capable of a bit of digging."
The villagers were both excited and worried.
They feared such a good job might have very high requirements.
After all, mostly the old, infirm, and women were left in the village, with very few able-bodied men.
"Xiaoshan, can I, can I work here? I might not be very strong, but taking half the salary is fine with me," said a somewhat timid voice.
Long Xiaoshan looked over to see Chun Tao. Since he had saved her last time, Long Xiaoshan had been checking in on her often. He had heard that Aunt Wu wasn't beating and scolding her like before. Chun Tao's attempt at suicide must have frightened her; if Chun Tao were to die, the blind old woman would have no one to care for her. It wouldn't be easy for her either.
"There's no distinction here; everyone is treated the same. Of course, you can come work, and the salary will be the same, not a penny less," Long Xiaoshan said.
Chun Tao's eyes sparkled for a moment, and she gratefully said, "Thank you, Xiaoshan."
This chapter upload first at NovelBin.Com