Chapter 230 – The Village’s Common Fund

The Young Scouts earned 84 Work Points. At the conversion rate of 2.59 wen per point, that came out to 217.56 wen. They were paid 217 wen in cash, with the remaining decimals carried over on the books.

Grinning from ear to ear, Yan Yu picked out a tael-weight silver nugget, plus 97 copper coins.

What followed was the dull routine of distributing money.

The elderly men and women who had helped out at Physician Cui’s house worked two and a half days each, earning 15 points apiece—38 wen in hand.

The Cui Family had earned the most. Physician Cui alone had 90 points, and Madam Cui, having completed three full days of work, had 18 points. Together, they received 279 wen.

Madam Cui was all smiles, grinning from ear to ear. Physician Cui, though just as pleased, pressed his lips into a tight line, trying hard not to let them curl upward.

Everyone else was watching with eager eyes. The amount each household received was fully transparent.

When Work Points were just numbers, even if people knew they might be converted into money, they hadn’t taken them too seriously—until the silver and copper landed in their palms.

Some families who’d gone into the mountains in groups brought back more wild vegetables and fruits than medicinal herbs.

In contrast, those truly grateful for the Yan Family’s kindness focused entirely on foraging herbs, only picking a few wild vegetables along the way. Their Work Points never fell short. While not as much as the Cui Family, their earnings still came to over a hundred wen.

It was more than what they could earn doing labor elsewhere.

And gathering herbs had meaning. Not only could they earn money—it also helped people.

Village Chief Luo asked Yan Xiangheng a few questions, then spent a while in discussion with several Village Elders. Once all the payments were distributed, the old man cleared his throat and raised his voice: “The payouts are done—don’t leave just yet, I’ve got a few words to say.”

Of course, no one left. All ears perked up to listen to Village Chief Luo.

“There’s a little bit of leftover from everyone’s payout—not even a single wen, too small to hand out. We old folks had a thought: why not keep those fractions each time and save them up? We can use the money to buy things for the village. The first would be a stone mill for the threshing yard.”

When Village Chief Luo brought up the stone mill, his voice was tinged with regret. The Village Elders around him wore matching looks of sorrow.

Their village was small and poor. Their entire family fortune, when fully tallied, amounted to little more than that immovable stone mill.

No one objected.

It was something every household needed, but no one could afford to buy on their own.

Placing it in the public threshing yard for anyone to use when needed—what could be better?

Village Chief Luo waited a moment, saw no opposition, and then declared loudly, “Since everyone agrees, then we’ll consider it settled.

“This year we’ve planted vegetables. Come spring, we’ll be able to plant grain, and by next year’s autumn, that stone mill will be essential.

“One year’s time, minus winter—not short, but not long either. Let’s all keep working hard, earn more Work Points, and exchange more for cash. It’ll not only add income for our families, but also help us get that stone mill for the threshing yard sooner.”

“There’s one more thing I need to bring up,” he continued. “About the mules and donkeys we’ve got—keeping them all together like this won’t work long-term. Our village doesn’t need so many. If any household wants to buy one, we can negotiate a price. The silver we get, minus the initial contributions from each family, will go into the village’s common fund.

“Right now, it’s us old fogies taking care of those animals. But we’ve been busy lately. I’ve noticed the younger ones from each family are pretty capable—why not hand this job over to them? We’ll record Work Points for them each day too. What do you all think?”

“Village Chief, will those Work Points be recorded under Physician Cui’s family, or the Scholar’s?” someone asked.

“This is a village matter—how could it be recorded under anyone else? It goes into the village’s common account,” Village Chief Luo replied.

Now everyone understood.

The village’s public fund didn’t have much silver for now—but it had mules and donkeys.

Whether or not the kids got Work Points didn’t really matter. What mattered was that the Village Chief and the Elders were getting old, and feeding all those animals was truly exhausting.

“Let the kids handle it, then. But an adult should still be nearby to supervise. Donkeys are fine-tempered, but mules are stubborn—they even kicked someone from the Scholar’s family…”

The moment that was said, laughter erupted.

Everyone looked around for the Scholar’s eldest son, grinning and teasing.

Yan Xiangheng kept his gaze straight ahead, pretending he hadn’t heard a thing. But the deepening red of his ears betrayed his turmoil.

Was there no escaping this incident?

How did everyone know about it?!

“With us watching, there won’t be a problem,” said Old Song firmly.

The other Village Elders nodded in agreement.

With the adults on board, the decision was finalized.

All the kids turned to look at Yan Xiao Er.

Yan Yu signaled them with a glance and a nod.

The mules and donkeys belonged to the collective. It was only right for them to help care for them—especially now that the Village Elders were keeping up with the times and had introduced the Work Points system.

Not only did they support this move—they were determined to back it fully.

They wouldn’t just do it—they’d set the standard.

A model for how to manage a village’s Work Points system.

Most likely, Grandpa Village Chief and the others had only a rough idea and no concrete plan.

Probably drawn in by the appeal of recording Work Points without having to immediately pay out cash?

That, Yan Yu guessed, was the most likely reason.

Village Chief Luo asked twice more, but no one stepped up to ask about buying the mules or donkeys. He had no choice but to let it go for now.

Older folks tended to sleep early. With no more business to attend to, the elders from each household headed home to rest.

The remaining adults chatted animatedly, comparing how many copper coins they’d received. The ones who got more were full of pride, while those who got less encouraged themselves to work harder next time.

All the children had gathered around Yan Yu.

There were a lot of them.

Not just the ones already in the Young Scouts—but also kids from other villages who hadn’t qualified before. They stood nearby, packed together, ears perked, eager to hear what Yan Family Xiao Er would say.

Liang Fengnian had been hounded for ages. He finally mustered the courage to stammer to Yan Yu, “Brother Xiao Er… they all want to join the Young Scouts. They’ve said so several times already…”

He had only managed to squeeze into the group by riding on his father’s coattails.

To be honest, Liang Fengnian completely understood how they felt.

He had been the same in the past—desperately wanting to “play” with them.

Yan Yu was surprised.

They wanted to join?

But the Young Scouts now weren’t the same as the Young Scouts from before.

Back then, they had tools in hand and carried themselves with real swagger. Now, they were just a group of kids heading into the mountains together.

And the effort they put in didn’t match the rewards. Take digging for herbs, for example—all the medicinal plants were confiscated for communal use. Personal harvests? Sorry, if it hadn’t been officially distributed, there was no such thing as personal gain—it all went toward military supplies.

Even the Village Elders had their eye on them, assigning them to manage the village’s livestock.

Kids their age could already do real work and help lighten the family’s burden.

Joining the Young Scouts meant their families would lose out on income.

Yan Yu figured the kids were too innocent to have thought all this through.

So she beckoned them over, intending to explain things properly.

If their families still agreed to let them join after understanding the reality, then Yan Yu would gladly welcome new members.

When it came to work, after all, there was strength in numbers.

(End of Chapter)