Chapter 1392 - Charity School
Wang Rong'er was one of the Villa informants that Gou Chengxuan had handed over to Hao Yuan. Hao Yuan's instruction to her was simple: find a way to place Jia Le at Xihua's side.
Xihua was the "Huang Gai" in the bitter flesh trick—Hao Yuan had already judged this correctly. Yet based on all the intelligence gathered, Xihua still held potential for being turned. And Jia Le was the first move in his plan.
Jia Le was merely a little girl. Though loyal enough, the time had been too short and she was too young to exert subtle influence. Therefore, the task he assigned her was simply to try to lure Xihua into meeting with him. The actual work of turning Xihua would be done by Hao Yuan himself.
He was quite confident that Zhao Yingong, now eager to trace the mastermind behind all this, would very likely instruct Xihua to swallow this fragrant bait without hesitation.
"I'm a newly arrived child—won't it be very difficult?"
"It doesn't matter. Do as I instructed, and Xihua will definitely agree." Hao Yuan spoke with quiet confidence.
"All right, I'll do as you say, Uncle Hao." Jia Le nodded firmly, but worry immediately crept back into her expression. "Can this really work?"
"Definitely."
Hao Yuan thought to himself: Jia Le was actually transparent. Xihua had probably already guessed who she was—why else would she so readily agree to take her into the school? The moment Jia Le opened her mouth, Zhao Yingong would know as well. But none of that mattered. As long as Jia Le pretended to persuade her, Xihua would go along—otherwise, how could her bitter flesh trick continue?
Jia Le was Jiang Gan, cooperating with Master Zhao to act out the bitter flesh trick. But he, Hao Yuan, was not Cao Cao.
Jia Le encountered little difficulty getting into the Villa. Though Phoenix Mountain Villa did not lack labor, Zhao Yingong—drawing on his experience from later generations—believed certain benefits should be appropriately shared with local people, and that handling everything oneself was not suitable. Thus he also hired some locals.
Phoenix Mountain Villa employed quite a few local commoners. The vetting process was not stringent; having a shop or a Paijia as guarantor sufficed. All "hired laborers" were required to stay overnight in the Villa—specifically, in the dormitories of the refugee camp at the foot of the mountain. This was primarily for hygiene considerations. Hired laborers also had to undergo purification treatment. Though they did not need to shave their heads, procedures like bathing and being issued clothes were the same. If workers went back and forth daily, they would very likely bring parasites from outside into the camp.
However, these hired local workers could only serve in Cihui Hall at the foot of the mountain. They could not go up the mountain, nor could they enter any of the "restricted areas" at its base. Only a very few professional "skilled hands" and artisans could enter restricted zones to work, and then only with passes.
Jia Le signed her employment contract and was taken in for purification—bathing and changing clothes. To avoid shocking public sensibilities, hired workers were not shaved during purification here.
After bathing, she received a complete set of clothes from the inside out, as was standard, including replacements.
"These clothes are awarded to you by Master," the servant woman who brought her said. "After working a full year, these clothes become yours. If you don't complete the term and resign, the cost of the clothes will be deducted from your wages."
"Understood, Mama."
"Remember to change and wash clothes frequently, bathe and wash your hair often, and keep your nails trimmed—Master despises unclean people above all else. Someone checks every day. If you receive a bad rating three times, money will be docked. Be careful!" The servant woman leading her was only a level-five servant who could not even go up the mountain, yet she still carried herself with great authority before new hired workers.
"Yes, thank you for the reminder, Mama."
The Cihui Hall grounds were vast. The servant woman led her through passageways. Jia Le observed that most of the refugee camp's walls were bamboo fences. Through the gaps, rows of somewhat simple houses were visible—some with bamboo-strip walls, some with wooden-plank walls; only the wall foundations were brick and stone. But the roofs were tiled.
Though the houses were simple, they bore none of the hallmarks of slums—no sewage flowing across the ground, no garbage everywhere, no overwhelming stench. In an open space, many wooden stakes had been driven and ropes pulled taut, with rows of clothes and sheets hanging to dry, all neat and orderly. The people working and moving about the courtyard were also dressed cleanly and neatly—actually several degrees cleaner than the people in Nanxiawa. Though quite a few people were busy in the courtyard, there was no noise, no fighting or joking—only the serene rustle of wind through drying clothes.
"This is the poor relief station of Cihui Hall," the servant woman said, noticing Jia Le's interest. She pointed. "This is South First Station. Going north, there's Second Station, Third Station... divided into eight stations, north and south."
"So many—are there people living in all of them?" Jia Le asked with genuine wonder.
"Of course there are. Each station houses a thousand people. They're all basically full. You do the arithmetic!" The servant woman spoke with a trace of pride. "And that's not even counting these eight stations. Inside there's the Qingjie Hall, the Orphanage... nearly twenty thousand people depend on Master's kind heart for survival."
Though Hao Yuan had long since "educated" Jia Le that Zhao Yingong was a "hypocritical" villain, seeing with her own eyes the organized order here and the peaceful, prosperous scene, she could not help but feel a twinge of doubt.
She was led onward, walking straight toward the foot of the mountain. Here stood another large courtyard, similarly filled with rows of houses.
"This is the Charity School of Cihui Hall. You'll serve here from now on." The servant woman called out toward the interior, "Miss Xihua! Miss Xihua!"
"What is it?"
The door curtain lifted, and out walked a fifteen- or sixteen-year-old girl, her clothes and hair perfectly arranged, her face quite serious. Jia Le knew this was probably Xihua and quickly lowered her hands to stand behind the servant woman.
"Miss Xihua, this is the Jia Le recommended by Sister-in-law Wang..." The servant woman smiled broadly and bowed.
Jia Le was quick-witted. She stepped forward at once and performed a blessing. "Ten thousand blessings to Sister."
Xihua nodded. "You are Jia Le?"
"Yes, at your instruction. This servant is."
"Can you read?"
"I can read the Three Character Classic. I cannot write..."
"That's reasonably good." Xihua nodded. "You'll live in East Sixth Room. Put down your things and come to my quarters. There is plenty of work for you to do."
From that day on, Jia Le served in the Charity School of Cihui Hall. Though the school nominally employed traditional primers like the Three Character Classic and Thousand Character Classic, it was actually conducted according to Lingao's literacy education methods. The purpose was simply to give refugee children some basic reading, writing, and arithmetic skills during the waiting-for-transport stage, while also teaching the taken-in orphans a few "rules."
The sheer number of children in Cihui Hall astonished Jia Le. Every child looked well-fed and well-dressed, with clean faces and hands, free of the parasites and sores common among poor children. The happy, healthy glow on their faces as they ran and played in the open field during breaks was something she had never seen in Nanxiawa.
The dormitory for twenty people where she lived had clean bunk beds, one to a person; everyone had a sleeping mat, pillow, and quilt. Jia Le had lived twelve years without ever having her own pillow or quilt—she had always shared with her sisters. As for a pillow, that was something that had never existed in her life.
The food was also surprisingly good. Children here received three meals a day, with rice and mixed grains enough to eat, vegetables at every meal, and meat once every five days. Such fare was beyond even what most ordinary families in Hangzhou could manage, let alone Nanxiawa. No wonder Sister-in-law Wang had said that any refugee or beggar child taken in by Cihui Hall had essentially gone to heaven.
And this was not one or two children—there were several hundred! Jia Le marveled silently. How much money must Master Zhao have? Though Cihui Hall boasted quite a few "Benevolent Directors," everyone knew Master Zhao led everything; obviously, he paid the most.
This only deepened her confusion. What was Master Zhao seeking by doing such enormous good deeds? Uncle Hao had said that some evil people did good either to ease their consciences or to confuse the world, preventing people from seeing their true face of wickedness. But in Jia Le's limited understanding, such dust-in-the-eyes measures did not need to be so extravagant. Rich people who wanted to accumulate virtue and win a false reputation had plenty of ways to spend little money for great fame. Why commit to something like a charity hall, which consumed money year after year? And on such a scale! Though Jia Le had no mind for economics, she knew that a single day's expenses here would take an ordinary commoner a lifetime to earn.
Despite her doubts, Jia Le worked diligently and thriftily at the Charity School. She had come with a purpose, which naturally made her extra attentive. Though Cihui Hall's management was strict, under the Council of Elders' system, "more work, more pay" and "roughly guaranteed fairness" were ensured. As long as one worked earnestly, one would not be shortchanged. Jia Le's work enthusiasm was quickly mobilized. She was capable, small, and sweet-tongued, and soon established good relations within the school.
However, her crucial objective—making contact with Xihua—never quite succeeded. Xihua was always busy and had almost no free time that permitted approach. During rest hours at night, there was no excuse to go to her room to talk.
Uncle Hao had been explicit: even if Jia Le did not seek her out, Xihua would come looking for her. Yet there had been no movement at all.
Just as she was growing anxious, that very evening after handing off her shift and eating dinner, she had just fetched hot water and was about to wash when a servant woman arrived, asking her to go see Xihua immediately.
"Yes, I'll come right away." Jia Le's heart lurched; it began pounding. What matter could Xihua suddenly be summoning her for? Whatever it was, this was a rare opportunity to be alone with her. With this thought, she hastily wiped her face, tidied her hair, checked the clothes on her body, and left the dormitory for Xihua's quarters.
Xihua lived in the Charity School's Steward Room, a small courtyard. At night, only Xihua and several steward servant women stayed inside; it was very quiet. As the Master's side user, Xihua occupied the rear wing room alone.
(End of this chapter)