A Good Landlord in the Tang Dynasty: Emperor Yuan Cong

Chapter 681 Orphans in the Liyuan
Rejecting his sister-in-law's proposal to arrange for two newly arrived Turkic beauties to serve him, Huaiyu did not stay in Tingyulou for long.

Although Tingyulou is still the most famous restaurant in Pingkangfang, Chang'an.

"Those two Turkic beauties are only twenty-eight years old. They are the daughters of Qijin from the tribe. They are real Turkic nobles. They are not only good-looking, but also fierce. They are fierce horses that have not yet been tamed. Don't you men all like to personally Does it feel like a conquest?”

The aunt sent him outside the door.

Outside Tingyu Tower, many BMW cars were parked.

It's getting late, and there are more guests.

There was an influx of thousands of people from Chang'an, and more than 500 Turkic and Sogdian aristocrats were awarded official positions of fifth rank or above. However, there were also many former noble chiefs who were convicted and ruined their families, and their families were implicated. These were mainly those who were killed by Wu Huaiyu, Li Jing and others. During the Northern Expedition, those captured after conquering the tribe.

Under Wu Huaiyu's suggestion, in the end the court did not adopt Wen Yanbo's benevolence, but mercilessly liquidated these defeated people who had resisted the Tang army.

Those who are captured are slaves.

Even the tribal chief Qi Jin could not escape punishment.

The wives and daughters of the chief Qijin were thrown into a brothel or sent to a brothel. For a time, they were highly sought after in Pingkangfang because of their former status.

Gao Huitong arranged for Huaiyu to be a pair of sisters. His father was originally a Blue Turk Qijin from the Black Turk tribe. He was a fairly noble Ashina family, but unfortunately he became a king or a bandit.

Before Jieli was crowned king by Li Shimin, his family could only live in a hotel with poor conditions. Some of Jieli's concubines arrived late and did not even have supplies. His son Dieluozhi could only give his share of Give it to mother,

Even a great Khan like Jieli was treated like this, so one can imagine the other defeated prisoners.

Only people like Simo and Sili receive better treatment.

Many Turkic nobles came to Chang'an and lived a pretty good life indeed. They were able to buy big houses and slaves, live a worry-free life, and buy things everywhere. That was because they had different statuses. They were not defeated prisoners, and they even had their own families on the grasslands. Tribes who came to settle in Chang'an were given preferential treatment.

Foreign women in Chang'an seem to be very popular,

In the past, there were Persian orchids, and later there were Silla maids, Kunlun slaves, and later there were the new Bodhisattva products developed by Qiu He and Cheng Yaojin.

Another example is Dangxiang, Khitan, Tuyuhun, Kumoxi, and even Buluoji, Zunlu, Goguryeo, Linyi and other barbarians. It seems that many Chang'an people are willing to try new things.

The people of the Tang Dynasty used to hate the Turks with fear.

As much as they hated and feared them at the beginning, they now love the Turkic slaves.

However, Wu Huaiyu's current state has long surpassed that stage.
He had no interest in taming two fierce Turkic horses.

After bidding farewell to this charming sister-in-law who was becoming more and more charming, I rode horseback to my eldest sister's house.On the way, he was actually a little curious about his sister-in-law. After a few years outside the palace, this former swordsman in Prince Qin's palace had changed so much that Li Shimin was really willing to let her stay outside the palace.

Autumn is high and fresh,

The eldest sister Yu'e is making osmanthus jam and osmanthus cake. Although she is pregnant, it does not prevent her from always being such a good wife and loving mother.

Huaiyu felt that it was a pity that the three former brothers-in-law met such a good wife but died on the battlefield so short-lived, especially the first two brothers-in-law, who did not even have time to give birth to a child.

The third one is better, at least he left behind two daughters.

The two girls have now grown up and have become good helpers for their mother. When they saw Huaiyu coming in, they happily ran over to greet him.

"When did uncle return to Chang'an?"

"What gift did uncle bring us?"

The older of the two girls is 11 years old, and the younger is more than nine years old. They are both slim and tall.

"There is a daughter in the Han family who has just grown up. It is hard to give up her natural beauty," Huaiyu asked the eldest sister with a smile, "Now the door of the family is about to be broken by the matchmaker, right?"

Yu'e also looked happy when she saw her brother coming.

"These two girls only care about having fun. They are not good at playing chess, calligraphy or painting, nor are they good at cooking. I am worried to death. Who can be good at it?"

The two girls suffered a lot with their mother in the early years. They were still young when their father died in the war, and their grandparents and uncles despised it. The eldest sister had to take the two children back to her parents' home. Fortunately, her parents and brothers felt sorry for her, and later met her again. Ma Zhou loves him.

Although the two girls followed Ma Zhou's house and did not ask them to change their surnames, they still regarded it as if it was already done. The conditions now are much better than before.
But it seems that the two girls are not used to reading.
"What do you want me to choose for them?"

It was almost the age to choose someone, and Yu'e also started buying dowries for them in the past two years.
In fact, given the current status of Wu Huaiyu and Ma Zhou, there are still many people who want to get married. No matter whether the two girls are named Han or Ma, their biological uncle is the prime minister Wu Huaiyu and their stepfather is Ma Zhou, the minister of Zhongshu. This is enough.

Not to mention the seven families with five surnames and the six surnames in Guanzhong, there are still many other nobles and upstarts who want results.

"No hurry, pick slowly."

"Your brother-in-law said the same thing. He also said that he would imitate the Qiu family and choose a son-in-law through a precious window. He even imitated the Cheng family and others to select a son-in-law."

"This is good, they think it is better."

Ma Zhou was busy with official duties and did not leave the office to go home in the afternoon. He often had to be busy until dark before returning, and he often even had to work at night.

He and Yan Sigu, the two ministers of the Zhongshu Province, actually presided over the affairs of the Zhongshu Province. As the prime minister, Zhongshu Ling Wen Yanbo spent more time in the political affairs hall.

"When you have the chance, please advise brother-in-law. You can't just take care of the government affairs, but also take care of your own health. Now you are so busy that you often don't even bother to eat. If you continue like this, you won't be able to eat."

Ma Zhou is the hard-working type.

We chatted for a long time at home, but we didn't wait for Ma Zhou to come back. Instead, we waited until the entourage he sent back said that he would be on duty in the interior tonight and would not come back.

"Hey, he, the Minister of Public Affairs, is busier than you, the Prime Minister." Yu'e was helpless.

In just a few years, Ma Zhou could go from a poor scholar to the current minister of Zhongshu. He was extremely grateful to Li Shimin for his kindness and wished he could repay it with all his heart. Therefore, he devoted himself almost wholeheartedly to his work and almost became a yamen official. For home.

I'll stay at my eldest sister's house that night.

In the morning, Ma Zhou still didn't come back, Wu Huaiyu didn't wait anymore, and left after breakfast.

He did not visit Li Jing and Wei Zheng again. With his current status, it was no longer appropriate for him to interact privately with them who were also prime ministers.

"Alang, where are you going?" Shi Shouxin asked.

"Go to the pear garden in the south of the city."

Qin Qiong gave him the Chengnan pear orchard long ago. It was a big pear orchard. The pears were very sweet in autumn. They were good for giving away and selling. They could also make autumn pear ointment, and even bee pear nectar could be raised in spring.

Later, Wu Huaiyu opened a wine shop in Liyuan, making autumn pear roast and pear fruit wine, both of which were quite good.

Now the pears in the pear garden are ripe again, but Huaiyu is not going to pick pears or watch the wine. He is going to the pear garden to take care of the children.

He built a courtyard in the pear garden and adopted many orphans in it.

When Wu Huaiyu came to the pear orchard with a good harvest, many children were helping to pick pears. When they saw him coming, they all came up to salute happily.

"Unload the supplies on the carriage," Huaiyu called the steward of the garden. "It's getting cold. Have you prepared autumn clothes for the children? Are you ready with new shoes and socks?"

"The chief steward has allocated the money in advance, and we have already purchased it,"

The steward reported the situation in the garden truthfully.

The children in the garden are relatively small. These people are basically orphans, and most of them are war orphans. Wu Huaiyu adopts them. This pear garden is equivalent to an orphanage.

The children have food and drink here, and teachers teach them how to read and write.

This place is funded by the wine shop of the Wu family. The children are raised here and educated in literature and arithmetic. When they are eleven or twelve years old, if they have good academic performance, they can go to a better school, and if they have average academic performance, they will go to a better school. Will be sent to a winery as an apprentice,

After completing three to five years of apprenticeship, they can choose to stay in the winery as a waiter or go out to make a career.

The Wu family does not force them to become employees of the Wu family in the future. Even though their current status is that they are orphans, they still retain their good status and are not members or slaves of the Wu family.

"My husband is such a good man, he gave them a second life. Without my husband, these poor orphans without fathers, mothers, and no one to rely on would have been dead a long time ago. How could they be so alive or even as long as they are now?" Well, I can still read and write."

Wu Huaiyu was very pleased to see the children helping to unload the goods, so full of energy.

Although there are more than a hundred children in this garden, which costs a lot a year, Wu Huaiyu thinks it is still worth it. The Wu family's Bingyutang wine shop is now quite large and very profitable.

He thinks it is very meaningful to ask the wine shop to spend a sum of money every year to do several charity projects, such as the Liyuan Orphanage and the Beitianfang.

It not only promotes positive energy, but also manages a good image. A good reputation and good image are actually advertising. Even from a certain perspective, this Liyuan Orphanage is equivalent to a targeted training class for winery technicians.

It’s just that they need to be trained from a very young age. Although it takes more than ten years to train them, and they can only enter the winery as apprentices when they are eleven or twelve years old. However, these children who are trained by themselves are more loyal, and they are exposed to learning culture from an early age. and related wine-making knowledge, etc., you can adapt and grow faster after joining the winery.
In one fell swoop, they have not only done charity, but also trained the needed workers. Even these children who have studied can quickly move into management positions in the future, and their loyalty will be even higher.

This model was designed by Wu Huaiyu. Many of the Wu family's current industries basically have orphanages funded by themselves. They are raising and cultivating them in advance, which can also become a steady stream of supplementary strength in the future.

Even various farms have adopted some.

In fact, many aristocratic families often do this kind of thing, but the biggest difference between the Wu family and them is that these children are adopted by the Wu family, not as subordinates or slaves, but as good friends. When they grow up, they will at most need to do things for the Wu family. An apprenticeship of three to five years,

After reaching the age, you can stay or go as you like.

To be honest, many managers of the Wu family were opposed to this idea at first. They thought that even if they were not treated as slaves, they should be given status and attached to the Wu family, instead of being raised and trained for many years by saying they could grow wings and fly. Isn't it not cost-effective?

Some people think that in fact, the orphanage is very good if it can provide them with food and clothing, and can keep them fed and clothed. There is no need to teach them to read and write. After all, paper, ink, pen and inkstone are not cheap, and hiring a teacher is also expensive.

If they grow up and serve as apprentices for three years before leaving, they will lose all their money.

But Wu Huaiyu still insisted on this plan despite all the differences.

However, the knowledge taught in the orphanage is different from that in ordinary schools. There is no collection of classics and history taught here, and students are not required to be able to master the classics in the future. Instead, they only select some chapters from the collection of classics and history. The most important thing is to learn arithmetic. , drawing, writing and other more practical and useful skills.

After all, these orphanages funded by the Wu family teach people how to make a living, rather than taking the imperial examination to become poets.
For example, in the orphanage funded by Qianjintang, the textbooks for reading and studying are mainly medicinal materials and prescriptions.
Learning literature mainly involves literacy and writing.Arithmetic is mainly about calculation and accounting.

Learning to draw is mainly for learning to measure and draw.

There is also a compulsory course in each orphanage, which is abacus. Compared with the abacus calculation used by people in the Tang Dynasty, Wu Huaiyu had already come up with abacus and abacus formula, and promoted their use in various shops and industries of the Wu family.
Compared with playing with chip sticks for calculation, abacus is much more efficient.

As soon as this thing came out, it was immediately eliminated.

In these orphanages of the Wu family, abacus has been taught since childhood, and abacus has been taught to everyone since childhood.

They can read, write, and keep accounts. Wu Huaiyu dares to say that when these children leave to become apprentices at the age of 12, they are already half-talented. In the future, whether they stay in the Wu family or go to make a living outside, they will be Carry an iron rice bowl with you.

"It is better to teach a man to fish than to teach him to fish." Seeing that these orphans are growing up well, Wu Huaiyu is very pleased. "Before winter, remember to contact Qianjin Hall to give the children a physical examination."

Because of Wu Huaiyu's arrival, the Liyuan Orphanage had extra meals today. Huaiyu brought two fans of pork, stewed winter melon with pork bones, braised pork belly with potatoes, braised pig's feet with soybeans, and a braised lion's head.
Just like the Chinese New Year.

More than 100 children, the oldest one is eight or nine years old and the youngest one is only two or three years old, all lined up with their own rice bowls. Usually the food in the orphanage is not so good. It is enough to have three meals a day and food for every meal. Not bad, only one meal a day will be a bit meaty, and in three days, you can have a half-meat dish.
For these long-bodied children who are particularly good at eating, they always feel like they are not full.

Especially for meat and fish, an incomparable desire.

Today, when Mr. Wu comes, they can finally enjoy a big meal.

The steward of the opera garden personally prepared the dishes and said, "Everyone would like to thank Mr. Wu, who is our reborn parent."

These children know how to be grateful. Before they came to the kindergarten, they had basically gone through some unforgettable difficult days. Usually the stewards and teachers in the kindergarten would often give lessons about remembering the bitter and thinking about the sweet, and teach them to be grateful. They were truly grateful to Wu Huaiyu,
After all, the garden often takes them outside to do activities, such as sweeping the streets, helping some lonely elderly people clean, and they will also see some poor beggars.

"Thank you Aye,"

"Thank you, yeah,"

The children lined up to get a meal. Every orphan who received the meal would bow to Wu Huaiyu and say thank you Aye.

Wu Huaiyu confiscated any of them as adopted sons, but all the orphans in the garden called Wu Huaiyu daddy. Just as the steward said, Wu Huaiyu was their reborn parents and gave them a second life.

Huaiyu looked at these children and felt a little blocked.

There are many orphans in the world, but the Wu family can't raise many.
"Have you washed your hands? Xiong Kuo Hai, remember to wash your hands before eating," Huaiyu patted an eight or nine-year-old child on the arm, "Go and eat. If you don't have enough, come back for more."

"Luo Cheng, why did you get a black bruise on your face and get into a fight with someone again?" Huaiyu pulled out a tall boy, "Didn't I tell you that when you enter the garden, everyone will be half-brothers?" Brothers and sisters, we must be friendly to each other, and we must not show off our strength, let alone bully the weak.”

The boy named Luo Cheng lowered his head, "Aye, I was wrong, I don't dare to do it anymore,"

"Well, after dinner, you come to me and tell me what happened."

At this time, another almost older child came over and said, "Aye, it was Luo Cheng and I who fought. I know I was wrong. I was the one who started the fight. Please punish me."

Huaiyu looked at him, "You Junda, why do you always like to fight? You haven't gotten rid of your bad temper after so long. If you do this again, I will send you away."

"Aye, I know I was wrong, don't abandon me and drive me away."

"Go and eat first. After you finish eating, you and Luo Cheng come to me together,"

(End of this chapter)