Chapter 203 The Situation of Tenant Farmers
Su Tai agreed, "Then how much should we buy?"
Chen Yi said, "One mu of wasteland costs 500 wen, and one hundred mu costs 50 taels. I want to get 200 mu, which will be enough to make up 100 taels. Then I can build a few courtyards on the farm for the tenants to live in. How do you think?"
According to his plan, he wouldn't even have to spend three hundred taels.
Su Tai had a deep obsession with the land in her bones, and she nodded frantically, "Your idea is good, I have no objection."
After the couple made the decision, Shen Yi immediately went to Dahe Town.
Buying land is not a big deal, but two hundred acres of wasteland caused quite a stir. Manager Li of the Jixiang Inn and Uncle Qi from the dyeing workshop had heard about it.
When Shen Yi went to deliver the goods, everyone had to ask some questions.
Shen Yi also asked them about some reliable workers in the town.
He actually asked dozens of questions.
These people are either the middle child in the family, with older brothers and younger brothers, not loved by their fathers or mothers, or they are the dumbest and least likable. When they reach a certain age, they cannot get married and their families don't care much about them, so they can only be self-reliant.
Either there are too many mouths to feed and too few people to work at home, plus there is a lack of farmland, so life is so difficult that they can barely make ends meet.
There are also a few who lost their parents at a young age and grew up relying on other people's families for food. They have no land at home and no one to rely on.
Most of these people are honest people.
Chen Yi asked Manager Li and Uncle Qi to help select sixty people and signed tenant contracts with them.
They had to clear the land and build houses before the winter snows, and there was a lot to do.
Shen Yi had to find other people to help build the house, and those people worked hard to open up the wasteland.
In the midst of the busy work, the first winter snow of this year fell.
Two hundred acres of wasteland on the outskirts of Dahe Town were reclaimed in time, and houses were also built, which were uniformly built stone houses. There were a total of sixty small courtyards on the three sides of the fields, each with a main room, two bedrooms, a kitchen and a firewood room. It was a typical small but complete house.
The sixty people were already in a bad situation, so they moved in as soon as this house was available.
Of course, some of the tenant farmers' relatives had some bad intentions when they saw how well they lived. Fortunately, Shen Yi had written in the deed in advance that the yard was only for the tenant farmers and their wives and children to live in. Only those whose parents had no brothers to support them could move in.
The village does not like outsiders to enter, even the tenant farmers' relatives, brothers and sisters are not allowed to enter.
With these restrictions, many people were disappointed and cursed Shen Yi behind his back.
The tenant farmers became more and more grateful to Chen Yi. They could finally get rid of their leech-like relatives. Although they could not sever ties with them, at least they could live a peaceful life without being looked down upon.
Fang Wei came to Shen Yi Manor to be a tenant farmer because he was ostracized by his brothers.
The old couple of the Fang family had four sons. The eldest was the most beloved, the fourth was the most favored, the second was sweet-mouthed and could coax people, so the old couple would take more care of him. Only he, the third son, was the least favored by the old couple, and the other brothers also excluded him.
There was a shortage of houses at home, so he could only sleep in the woodshed and in the kitchen in winter to keep warm by the stove. He worked harder than an ox but ate less than a chicken, but still could not get any money back. Now he is seventeen years old, and his parents have no intention of arranging a wife for him. Instead, they used the money they saved to build a house, saying that they wanted to use it to help his younger brother get married.
Fang Wei's heart was chilled to the bone. Just then he heard that Shen Yi was looking for tenant farmers, so he left Fang's house without saying a word, without taking anything with him.
Seeing that he was disobedient, the old couple of the Fang family even threatened to disown him as their son.
Fang Wei had really given up hope, so he went back to find the town official and asked for separation of the households.
Shen Yi allocated him a small courtyard, so his household registration would be settled and he didn't have to worry at all.
The old couple of the Fang family were furious and threatened that if he dared to separate the household, they would not acknowledge him as their son and would not give him anything.
Fang Wei still insisted on separating the households, and in the end he got what he wanted, and he also broke off completely with the Fang family.
No one knew how his second brother Fang You found out about the situation on the farm, but he actually brought his whole family over. When they saw that he was living alone in such a nice courtyard, they started to make a fuss, saying that he was unfilial and demanding that he hand over all the silver he had.
Fang Wei was penniless to begin with, so he was not afraid of their trouble at all. He even asked someone to invite the village chief and the township head over.
There were also people from the farm who testified for Fang Wei, proving that he really had nothing. The Fang family had no choice but to admit it and turned around and said they wanted to live in Fang Wei's yard.
When Fang Wei took out the deed, the entire Fang family was scolded by the town official and they dared not do anything rash again.
But I was resentful and unwilling in my heart, and the other party said many cruel words to me.
Fang Wei sought the town officials, township heads, village heads and other tenant farmers as witnesses, and asked them to seek justice on the grounds that his parents were partial to him and that he had been kicked out of the family when the family property was divided.
The Fang couple never expected that their honest third son would become so hard-hearted and heartless, and started to play the victim again.
Fang Wei was unmoved.
Because what he said was true, the town official only asked him to give the old couple of the Fang family 500 coins and two sets of clothes a year, and he was not required to take care of anything else.
The Fang family was not satisfied with this result, but they were reluctant to part with Fang, so they had to accept it.
With Fang Wei's tough measures and the attitude of the town officials, township heads and village chiefs, the families of the other tenant farmers finally calmed down.
After Shen Yi knew about Fang Wei's situation, he specially asked Uncle Qi to help inquire about him. After confirming that this person had no problems with his character, he promoted him to be the manager of the manor.
The decision was a pleasant surprise to the other party. He was so excited that he couldn't speak clearly. "Boss, I...I will do my best and won't let you down."
Chen Yi smiled with satisfaction, his expression becoming more serious. "I have agreed with you before. If you cultivate my land, I will collect two layers of rent. The remaining grain will be yours after paying taxes. Since you are managing the farm for me, I will naturally give you another salary. Five hundred coins per month for the first year. In the future, depending on your performance, if you do well, I will increase your monthly salary. If you can't bear this burden, I can only find someone else."
Fang Wei's heart sank, and he quickly assured, "Don't worry, Boss. I will definitely not let you down."
With this job, he could save at least five taels of silver a year, which would not only provide him with money for his parents, but would also allow him to find a wife in two years.
The more I thought about him, the hotter my heart became. I couldn't wait to get to work.
By the time Zhuangzi's affairs were arranged, it was November. Su Tai had harvested a crop of sugarcane in October and made a batch of brown sugar. Just as the twelfth lunar month began, Liu Ming, the steward of the prefect's house, arrived.
When he saw the brown sugar, he took it away without saying a word, and then bought dozens of baskets of greenhouse vegetables, fresh live fish, and cakes and bread from Chen Yi, filling up twenty or thirty carriages and returning home fully loaded.
This year, the number of businesses selling fireworks and firecrackers in Zhaohua County suddenly increased, and even street vendors had goods in stock.
Xu went to inquire about it specifically and found out that a large fireworks workshop had opened in the county town and that there were government officials watching over it. The products were very safe, and of good quality and low price.
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