Reclaiming Wasteland: Carefree Mountain Farmer

Chapter 255 Maid System
In the cold winter of 12 AD, the Northern Warlord issued an imperial edict.

To celebrate the unification of the realm, all households with more than ten registered children will be awarded ten taels of silver. All others, regardless of household registration, will be exempt from grain and land taxes during King Wu's reign if they own less than one hundred mu of land.

The more people there are, the more money there is.

All the profitable businesses in the Mountain Farming Kingdom are controlled by Arctic Martial, as is the market. They also hold the right to mint coins, allowing them to purchase large quantities of goods from abroad with their own currency. They truly have more money than they can spend.

The current birth rate has not yet reached its limit. When the post-war babies born after 20 AD enter their reproductive years, all women of childbearing age will give birth together, from seventeen or eighteen to thirty-six or thirty-seven years old, twenty age groups will give birth at the same time.

The population will rapidly increase from 100 million to 1 billion.

Arctic Martial Arts didn't care.

Anyway, it's no problem to feed eight billion people.

Now the entire world is basically under the control of the Mountain Farmer Kingdom, and steam trains and steamships have begun to be started and mass production has begun.

When the Arctic warrior issued an imperial edict to leave the capital and go south for a vacation, envoys from various countries lined up to present gifts to the palace.

Since King Wu first entered Luoyang, the treasury for storing treasures has been continuously expanded.

The national treasury contains countless treasures, and also collects royal treasures from all over the world.

Maids like 9526 get very busy at this time.

"9526, send this to courtyard number 15."

"Yes."

9526 was just a low-ranking palace maid.

Within the public maid corps, 9526 is an intern maid, responsible for simple errands.

There are several other levels of maids above them, all of whom are beautiful and capable young women.

Standing next to these people, 9526, whose skin is somewhat dark, would feel very inferior.

Not only is my skin dark, but because I ate persimmons a lot when I was a child, my skin is also a bit yellow, like beeswax made from honey.

9526 and the maid 9527, who worked with her, pushed a cart together, carrying boxes covered with cloth to the museum.

The box contained antiques, paintings, and treasures sent by governors from various regions.

However, no one cared about any of this.

The teenage girl, 9527, was pushing a stroller while chatting happily with her friends.

My family said they're coming over, and your family should be arriving soon, right?

9526 is also waiting for her family to come and visit.

As a palace maid, leaving Luoyang would present many inconveniences.

In particular, the numerous trainee maids were not allowed to go home to visit their families alone.

Being able to bring family members to the capital is a reward in itself. Many people may never leave their villages in their entire lives, let alone enter the most prosperous capital city.

Allowing family members to visit the capital for a day was one of the least remarkable of King Wu's many benevolent policies.

But for these little maids in 9526, it's more important than any national event.

"They're all together. The previous maids were all arranged this way. They can go out and meet their families on this day. If any maids are dismissed, it's also this time."

Upon hearing this, 9527 quickly whispered, "Do you think we'll be fired? If I get fired... my dad will definitely beat me to death."

9527's voice sounded frightened. "Last year, a maid was sent away. I heard that her family didn't want her anymore, beat her up, and abandoned her outside the city. She cried terribly."

9526 quickly asked, "What happened next?"

"How would I know?" 9527 pushed the cart, looking at the wide road in front of him. "I heard that if you do well, you can keep working and then you can go to the city to find an easy job to live on after retirement."

“Those who don’t perform well, steal, or break the rules will be fired, and their families will also be affected.”

9526 reminded them, "Let's just focus on our work. The work here isn't tiring, and the food is good."

"Hmm!" 9527 cheered up again, looking up at the road ahead with envy. "If I retire in the future, I'll sell newspapers like 498. 498, who sells newspapers in the city, is from the same hometown as me!"

498, who came from a rural background, quickly gained a group of female admirers because he became a boss, had a good relationship with the Wu family, and was very caring.

498, who is already in her twenties, is definitely an adult, and a young and promising woman from the mountainous region.

In an era when outstanding women were scarce, palace maids could not idolize Consort Wan or Consort Liao. Celebrities like Consort 498, especially female workers from public households, would naturally become idols for the public servants.

The palace maids were divided into three groups: the Europa Group, the Hereditary Group, and the Public Group.

Now, only a small number of the maids from the Oberon group went on vacation with King Wu, while the remaining noble ladies appraised foreign treasures from various places.

The hereditary group is also responsible for some noble-related matters, while only the public group is responsible for personnel management and miscellaneous tasks.

9526 also had a very good impression of 498, whom she had only met a few times and had never spoken to.

As a maid, although there was a chance of being favored by King Wu, the probability of such a thing was too low.

Even if she is favored, her work tasks and status will not change.

Even if she bore a child for King Wu, she still couldn't become a concubine.

King Wu had only two concubines, both of whom were princesses from other countries.

The palace was not short of princesses; there were princesses from Japan, Goryeo, Nanzhao, and countless princesses from other small countries.

Those who aren't pretty, even if they're princesses, we won't accept; we've sent them all out.

"What are you two dawdling about for?! You've been taking forever to finish one thing! Get to work!"

Two maids who were working came quickly from behind, and after pushing the cart to catch up with the two girls, they quickly scolded them.

The two girls quickly quickened their pace, no longer daring to chat and delay the group's work.

Being a maid is not an easy job; you have to do a lot of work every day.

People who don't like to work will gradually be eliminated, leaving only those who are willing to work and obey orders.

The more rounds of screening one goes through, the higher their status becomes, and the better treatment they receive.

Most of those accompanying Beijiwu were young women who had been training for two or three years, and some of them stood out as suitable candidates who could easily handle various service jobs.

Even when it comes to serving others, some people can grasp the skills on their own without being taught, and they will have better ideas and actions.

Some people don't take it to heart, are absent-minded, and treat it just as work.

People are not the same. The maid corps needs maids, not female warriors.

Able to stand gracefully and quietly beside Arctic Warrior for half an hour without moving, able to proudly stand tall and accept inspection under Arctic Warrior's gaze, able to quickly memorize various names, and able to completely remember everything one has seen and encountered in the past three days, even every word spoken by others. Of course, one must also have a beautiful figure and appearance, and know how to use one's body to satisfy the master's pleasure.

This is something every full-time maid in the maid corps should do.

It would be virtually impossible for an ordinary family to raise a maid like that.

Others are going there to be young mistresses or wives.

When beauty, intelligence, and family background are all combined, it's normal to treat a man like a dog, since one's own family is no worse than the man's.

Even in feudal society, from empresses to commoners' wives, such powerful female examples were not uncommon.

There are countless emperors, generals, princes, prime ministers, and ministers who are afraid of their wives.

The Arctic martial arts can be cultivated here mainly because of the atmosphere.

First, it clearly blocks the highest path to advancement. A maid is just a maid. She can rise from an apprentice maid to a personal maid, but she can never become a concubine or empress.

Even the princes who were groomed to become crown princes had mothers who were still ordinary women from common households.

King Wu did not support the idea of ​​a mother gaining status through her son.

So, if you honestly work as a maid, even if you get taken advantage of, it's all for nothing. Serving is part of your job duties, and sleeping with your master is also part of your job.

Secondly, the benefits are good. Many of them came in after they became sensible to learn how to be maids, and there were also quite a few female prisoners of war. They all knew whether the treatment was good or not.

Thirdly, she came to serve as a maid for her family. In the palace, her every word and action in front of King Wu affected the lives and deaths of her family members, and even hundreds of thousands of people in her hometown.

Fourthly, since they had nowhere else to go, being maids was the best option. King Wu would also take care of what would happen to them when they got old, ensuring they could live a good life in Luoyang.

***
After another month of busy work, King Wu was still enjoying himself in Chuncheng when the Lantern Festival arrived after the New Year.

Despite living in the prosperous era created by Wu in the Arctic, 9526 was not truly loyal to the distant King Wu.

They are just normal people who are paid to do things and are governed by rules.

When the palace maids and guards led a hundred young maids to the dining hall, the maids met their long-awaited families in this large dining hall with five hundred tables.

"Father! Mother! Little brother!"

9526 looked at his family with excitement. He had been away from home for the past two years and always thought of his parents back in his hometown. Now he finally had the chance to meet them.

"Good girl! You've grown taller and look better!"

Aunt Gan happily grabbed her daughter's hand, looking at her outstanding daughter with tears in her eyes.

Uncle Gan asked, "Is working in the palace alright? You must work hard and be loyal to the Emperor."

9526 smiled happily, "The work is easy, the food is good, and I've always been loyal to His Majesty."

After chatting for a few minutes, the family of four sat down to eat. 9527, who lives nearby, also met his parents and sister, and they sat down and chatted with smiles.

This year, the Arctic Martial Arts Association was in a good mood, perhaps because the maids had received reminders from their seniors or their parents from their hometowns, and none of them were sent back.

The main reason was that Arctic Wu was in a good mood and had a lot on his mind, so he forgot about the matter.

If we don't weed out the workforce, it will become increasingly bloated.

However, if someone is eliminated, there will inevitably be endless wailing and pleading here.

Not being able to get a government job is an extremely troublesome matter.

Each maid can only give the family three round-trip train tickets. Some people come alone, and the extra two tickets can be sold to others to make some money.

These are all things that are explicitly permitted, allowing maids to live a good life.

“Your sister and the others are all at home and can’t come over. These are our persimmons, and your sister has already learned to write.”

Uncle Gan took out the letters from his other daughters, along with a bag of local specialties, and gave them to 9526.

Aunt Gan held her one-year-old son and said, "This is your younger brother, Xiao Hu. This year, our family registered eleven children. Although three of them did not survive, the team said that as long as they are registered, they are considered children. We received ten taels of silver before the New Year."

“Your younger brother and sister will have money when they go to school and learn to read. The money you sent back has also been used to buy new clothes for your sisters, and your father and I have also gotten new clothes and shoes.”

"Work hard, our family is counting on you now."

In an era when every household had more than ten members, if one child was successful, the whole family could live a good life.

9526 was raised with this kind of education: although Beijiwu was not filial, he never forbade others to be filial.

Especially since Beiji Wu is quite good to his own children, since his parents are dead, it doesn't show that he is particularly unfilial.

"Okay!" 9526 agreed earnestly, determined to be a good maid for her family!
Most women are willing to endure hardship and make sacrifices for their families.

Even if they do not approve of their family of origin, some selfish and self-serving women still have to work hard and make sacrifices in a place like the palace with its strict hierarchy and numerous rules.

Mountain farmers do not support lazy people.

Even the mother of his own son was left in the city to live as an ordinary person. All the other female prisoners, concubines, and palace maids had to work in order to continue their lives.

Consort Wan was responsible for managing the palace maids and maintaining order in the harem.

The Liao concubine also had to check discipline and attendance, and maintain her figure, leading the palace maids in figure training.

Even palace maids in their seventies or eighties were responsible for teaching new palace maids some things, and they were only allowed to retire to nunneries after their term of service was completed.

Eunuchs could retire to temples, return to their hometowns, or work until they died at schools. After all, working until death is a kind of happiness for many people who lack a sense of security.

Palace maids could return to their hometowns, run their own shops, become nuns in nunneries, or get married.

Maids have a different placement strategy and are treated better than the others.

The well-established system was not limited to the imperial palace; there were clear promotion paths in the public service ranks throughout the country.

Talented individuals in domestic affairs, such as Wang Qingsang and Yang An, all rose from humble beginnings to high positions through gradual accumulation.

The talent system is more comprehensive and has a longer history than the maid system.

Unfortunately, many people live in a peaceful and uneventful era, and Emperor Beiji Wu is no longer as concerned about progress in government affairs as he was a few years ago.

It's normal for talented people to be overlooked, especially those in domestic affairs; many of them don't even realize they have any real ability.

Wang Qing was like that, and so was Sang Yang'an; there were countless people like them.

You won't know you're actually capable of holding high-ranking positions and receiving generous salaries until you try.

However, the positions remain the same.

No emperor would disregard background, rules, or regulations, and would casually grant power to an unknown person to manage military and national affairs. Such a so-called talented person would simply be an ordinary person.

(End of this chapter)