Chapter Eighty-Three: A Repeated Proposal

  Zhao Jiong was after all a member of the clan, and once he took action, the reactions of the entire clan were extremely swift.

  Another clan meeting was held, and this time's agenda is to unite the strength of the whole clan, help each other, and overcome difficulties together.

  Those families who were affected by the disaster and had no power to rescue themselves naturally agreed with this proposal. The first and second houses were the initiators, so they did not have any objections. The third house was led by Old Master Ba, who always regarded himself as a pillar of the clan, so he would not oppose it either. As for the other houses, the direct descendants of each house had some thoughts, especially the outer sixth house. They had less land, more people, and a thick family foundation, so they were definitely not on the receiving end of aid. Wouldn't that mean they would have to take out money for nothing? The merchant's nature temporarily took over in the mind of the head of the outer sixth house, and he sharply questioned Zhao Jing: "According to your idea, each house has to take out money and grain regardless of their financial situation. How much do we need to take out? Who will be in charge of managing these funds?"

  "Each household is different in terms of wealth and the extent of damage, so it's only natural that everyone contributes as much or as little as they want. If a family is really struggling, they don't have to contribute at all - just help out more when they're better off in the future. Disasters aren't one-time things, there will be others in the future and those who benefited this time will return the favor next time their own household is in trouble. We're all of the same surname and clan, so we should naturally look out for each other - whenever any family encounters difficulties, the rest of the clan will lend a hand."

  The old man smiled and stroked his long beard: "Great! Cui'er, just this temperament and momentum, you are much stronger than your father! As the son of a clan, one should have the idea of planning for the well-being of the clan."

  Zhao Yun looked down, somewhat embarrassed, and smiled slightly. He did have a mind to plan for the welfare of his clansmen, but this method was actually suggested by Zhao Xuan from the second house, which made him feel ashamed.

  The old master's prestige was high, he opened his mouth, and Zhao Xiu, who was sitting on the side of the small second room, didn't say a word, but looked at him with an expression of approval. The family members whispered to each other for a few sentences, and there were no more objections.

  The master of the outer six rooms was somewhat unwilling, and asked again: "I just asked a question, but Zongzi has not answered yet. Who will be in charge of these funds? Who can guarantee that the person in charge will not embezzle them? If each house decides how much money to contribute on its own, what if the collected funds are insufficient? What if no one is willing to contribute? What if this time we contribute and next time our own family suffers a disaster, other clan members refuse to help? At that time, besides crying out in dismay, who can speak up for me?"

  As soon as he spoke, some of the clan members who had originally agreed began to hesitate. They were all from the main branches of various houses and had some family assets, so this disaster was not too severe for them. They thought Zhao Jing's suggestion was good, but the concerns of the head of the outer sixth house were also very real. They didn't mind contributing money to help their clan members, but they did mind contributing money in vain, only to benefit unrelated people and not gain anything themselves.

  The old man saw this and was somewhat displeased: "If everyone follows your words, no one will have to pay any more. Because no one knows whether someone will embezzle the money in the future, nor does anyone know when there will be another disaster or famine, and at that time, will there still be clan members coming to help you? Then what are we sitting here for?"

  The old man's face was still very big. He frowned, and the master of the outer six houses softened his tone: "Eighth uncle, the nephew didn't mean it that way, but thought that everything should have a clear program to avoid chaos in the future, and the ancestral hall would also lose face."

  The old man listened, his expression also relaxed a bit: "If you have any good ideas, just say them out loud, no need to be sarcastic or mocking. Are you worried that you'll lose money? Love it or not, who's begging you? But if you can't bear to take out the money, don't come here and cause trouble with your nonsense, delaying others from getting help. As for the money and grain each house contributed, of course, it's managed by the ancestral hall. Everyone in the clan knows what kind of person Cui is, do you think he'd embezzle? It's better to say fewer meaningless words."

  The master of the outer six houses was used to the smooth dealings between businessmen, and when he heard the Eighth Old Master's direct and unkind words, he almost choked with anger. His younger brother saw that things were taking a turn for the worse and hastily pressed him down, forcing a smile as he said: "Eighth Uncle is mistaken, my elder brother didn't mean it that way. He simply wasn't clear about the clan house's rules and wanted to ask for clarification. He's just straightforward by nature and not good with words, which has led you to misunderstand."

  Who is the master of Wai Liu Fang? Business is booming, but he's said to be a straightforward person who can't speak well. Who would believe that? Every household has its own calculations, seeing him at a loss, it's clear that Nei San Fang is going to get ahead this time. It's a good thing for the whole clan, what's there to oppose? Zhao Jiong's character is trustworthy, everyone's worry is only about Da Ye Lao Ye.

  The ancestral house had always been in the hands of Master Rui's ancestors, but it never really brought any benefits to the clan. Although they would say nice things like "one person has a problem, the whole clan comes to help", every time something happened, it was the people from the ancestral house who suffered losses outside. The clan leader would shout and call on the men in the clan to go and cause trouble for others, but if someone else from another clan caused trouble, the clan leader would drag his feet and not want to take responsibility. Even when he finally did intervene, as long as the other party was willing to pay a price, he would immediately abandon his own clansmen. Truly upholding justice for the clansmen happened at most two or three times out of ten, and even those times were just a simple matter of raising his hand, without any effort or trouble on his part.

  With such a record, everyone trusted Zhao Jiong but not his father. They were even more afraid that after Rui Dà Lǎoye returned, he would use filial piety to pressure Zhao Jiong and plot to take the money and grain that the clan members had contributed, with Zhao Jiong unable to resist.

  Zhaoyong knew this in his heart, but he didn't have any good ideas either. He just felt that his father wasn't so muddled after all, and as long as he and his wife carefully advised him, his father would naturally know what to do and what not to do.

  "So, in the past, our clan also had similar practices, such as raising orphans and widows, assisting poor clansmen, helping with funeral arrangements for those who died abroad, sending money, grain, silver, and rice to clansmen in need, and so on. However, these were all scattered and disorganized, without a complete set of rules, and somewhat inadequate. This time, I want to ask the various branches to work together to establish a good set of rules, which will be followed from now on, ensuring that no clansman falls into a state of destitution and helplessness."

  He said that the owners of various houses also remembered that in the past, there were similar practices, but they were not written down and there was no uniform action for the whole clan. It was just a few wealthy households who had a kind heart and spontaneously helped poor clansmen. Since the ancestral house had also done such things with its own money in the past, it would probably not embezzle public funds in the future.

  The villagers seemed to have no objections, but were still unsure about the specific clauses. Old Man Eight caught sight of Zhao Xiu sitting aside, her face calm and composed, with a hint of a confident smile, and couldn't help but feel a stir in his heart: "Sister Xiu, do you have any good ideas?"

  Zhao Xuan smiled and said, "It's not a good idea to say, but my niece has a few ideas. For example, just now the eldest brother of the sixth house asked how much money and grain each family should contribute. How should we set the standard? Brother Jing said that each family can contribute voluntarily. Of course, it's a good thing, but if everyone contributes the same amount, people will inevitably feel disappointed. Why not calculate the contributions from each family into points, such as ten taels of silver for one point. Grains, firewood, cloth, and other physical goods are also calculated at their value, and the more contribution points, the more respected this family is in the clan, and the higher their right to speak in clan affairs. If they accumulate a certain number of points, such as 100 or 1,000 points, then this family can have some special privileges. Let me give an example. In the new clan rules that were discussed earlier, isn't it said that one family needs to get the support of three households before they can submit their proposed matters for public discussion? If a family accumulates 100 points, they don't need the support of three households and can directly put forward their proposals for public discussion. Moreover, as long as the number of opposing votes does not exceed half, the proposal will be passed."

  The old man's eyes lit up instantly. If this proposal is passed, he will not need to get the support of the other three houses in the clan when he wants to establish a family school in the future, which would be convenient for him.

  Zhaoye also thought it was good and added: "Families that contribute more points, if they encounter difficulties in the future, will receive more assistance. If there are no contribution points, the troubled clansmen can guarantee a warm meal, but if there are contribution points, they can get more things. Each family should get what they deserve based on their contribution points."

  "It's not necessarily about spending money or grain to get contribution points, you can help out with tasks. For example, if there are many able-bodied men in the clan, they can help with managing affairs and maintaining order on the streets. If a family only has women and children, they can help others with needlework or other tasks within their ability. The elderly can help take care of children and offer advice to younger generations, who will remember the kindness of their clansmen and repay it when they grow up. The contribution points accumulated by parents and elders can benefit later generations, and the more one helps their clansmen, the more benefits their own descendants will receive."

  Zhao Zhuang nodded repeatedly in agreement. The old man patted his thigh heavily: "Great! Let's do it this way, according to this program, and discuss the details." After finishing, he looked at Zhao Xuan with an appreciative gaze: "Sister Xuan is indeed clever, able to come up with such a good idea."

  Zhao Xuan smiled wryly to herself, thinking that at the last clan gathering, the Eighth Elder had still been questioning her qualifications for attending, and now he was actually praising her - wasn't this a huge step forward?

  The people of the various tribes looked at each other in dismay, and the three inner houses had already made up their minds. What else could outsiders say? Looking again at the six outer houses, those brothers were all silent, seemingly having discovered the benefits of this new rule for themselves. Thus, everyone began to discuss it heatedly, and in the end, they came up with over a dozen rules to be voted on by all.

  The old man ordered his son to bring a stack of paper with secret patterns, which was numbered by Zhao Xun. Then he handed it over to Zhao Jing, who selected several cousins and nephews who had read some books, and they copied the more than ten clauses one by one on the paper, distributing them to each household head. If they agreed with any clause, they would tick it; if not, they would cross it out - this was at the suggestion of Zhao Xun.

  The voting is still in the adjacent storage room, but it has been tidied up and has become a dedicated voting room. Special voting tables and ballot boxes have been prepared. The ballot box was opened for each household to check that it was empty before the vote began, then Zhao Jiong personally locked the box and the voting started.

  Sixteen rules and regulations were passed, fourteen of which were approved, leaving two unimportant ones that didn't pass. Zhao Jiong immediately arranged the specific division of labor, and after lunch, the ten newly formed ditch excavation teams would be dispatched to the people's land. The team members included Zhao family members, servants, hired workers, and tenant farmers from each household. Each team had at least two representatives from Xiao Er Fang, as they were skilled workers who knew the correct methods.

  By the second day, further assistance to the affected villagers had also begun. Those whose houses were damaged, who had family members injured or ill, and those who were short of food and fuel, all received attention. The Zhao clan was united in a way that had never been seen before.

  Zhao Jiong's outstanding performance finally established his authority in the clan as a legitimate heir. Zhao Xiu also gained more respect for Xia Er Fang. She was very satisfied, with this foundation, she believed that one day, she would completely drive out Xiao Zhang Fang from the Zhao family tree!

  ps：

  (Old lady, when you're not at home, what has your granddaughter been up to? Are you aware of it?)