Chapter 155 A person who doesn't learn is worse than an animal.
Forty acres of wasteland, located near the edge of the village.
There is a low hill behind, and there is only one road leading in from the front. Building a house here can protect the privacy of the family to the greatest extent.
“The closest house here is Aunt Zhao’s, but it’s a bit far. Isn’t it too isolated?” the village head said with a frown. “If something urgent happens in the future, we won’t even have a neighbor to lend a hand.”
Cheng Wanwan asked, "My family has forty acres of wasteland here, so it definitely needs to be close to our own fields. Can we build a house on this land?"
“There’s sand in the soil, but it’s not a big deal. We can just dig the foundation deeper and it’ll be done in three or four days.” The village head thought for a while before saying, “Your family has four sons. Even if you add Cheng Zhao and Young Master Chen and his servant, if they work quickly, they can make five or six hundred adobe bricks if they work together all day. If your family wants to make eighty or ninety thousand adobe bricks, it will probably take close to two months.”
"So, that's why I've come to ask Uncle Village Head for help," Cheng Wanwan said. "I'd like to pay some hardworking people in the village to make adobe bricks and dig foundations. Thirty coins a day, meals not included, is that alright?"
"When it comes to hiring people to do the work, you just need to give the call, and plenty of people will come to help."
When the village head built the house, he bought some adobe bricks from other people in the village. He didn't think it was a waste of money. He also knew that Cheng Wanwan had money in his hands. The county magistrate must have done something big if he rewarded her with so much money. Building a house was the top priority for the villagers.
If it were really our own family members who were to do this, by the time the adobe bricks were finished in two months, it would almost be winter. In winter, the cold wind would be biting and freezing, making building a house even more difficult. It would be better to take advantage of this time and get this important matter done quickly.
Cheng Wanwan followed the advice of the village head and decided to hire someone to make adobe bricks tomorrow. After the bricks are made, they need to be dried in the sun for about seven or eight days before they can start building the house. The gaps between the bricks will be used to build the foundation. The foundation will naturally be made of blue bricks, which will be backfilled after construction. Then the dried adobe bricks can be used to build the walls, without wasting any time.
The village head paused and continued, "I found out about the floor tiles you asked me to inquire about last time. The cheapest kind of floor tiles are the ones used on the main street of the town. They are one foot long and one foot wide, and cost two coins each. The coarse tiles used for paving inside the houses are more expensive. They are two feet wide and two feet long, and cost six coins each. I heard that the tiles used in Master Wang's house are high-quality bricks from the kiln, and cost more than ten coins each. That's too expensive."
Cheng Wanwan silently calculated in her mind that her house and the yard were probably about six or seven hundred square meters. Of course, the chicken coop and duck shed at the back were not included. It turned out that it would require about fifteen hundred floor tiles, and the most common rough bricks in town would be fine. With this calculation, the cost was completely within her affordable range. The largest expense should be labor costs.
The matter was settled, and the village head agreed to help find the person when he returned.
On the way back, I passed by the Zhao Family Ancestral Hall, which was full of people.
After the autumn harvest was finished, the evening classes started an hour earlier, when it was already bright, and the children were more enthusiastic about learning.
Shen Zheng was standing on the stage, speaking: "I specially asked my father to approve a sum of money to buy fifty sets of writing implements. As long as you perform well and get into the top three in the exam, you can take one set home..."
The children in the classroom all cheered.
"Thank you, Your Excellency!"
"We will definitely study hard and learn to read, and live up to the county magistrate's expectations!"
Shen Zheng knocked on the table: "Hey, I bought this. What does it have to do with my dad? I'm the one you should thank!"
The children immediately replied in unison, "Thank you, Young Master Shen! We will never forget your great kindness!"
Shen Zheng was satisfied, raising his chin arrogantly and smugly.
Cheng Zhao then went up on stage to begin his lecture.
At the entrance of the ancestral hall, the village head stopped in his tracks and sighed, "I wonder how much longer Cheng Zhao can stay here."
Cheng Wanwan didn't know how to answer that question.
In this dynasty, the provincial examinations were held twice every three years. This year, the examination was scheduled for March. Cheng Zhao had to go to Huzhou, the prefectural city, to take the exam. Because he needed to find accommodation, familiarize himself with the environment, and make arrangements, he had to go at least one or two months in advance. That is, Cheng Zhao would leave after the New Year.
"I didn't expect so many children in our village like to read and learn to read." The village head took a puff of his pipe and spoke slowly, as if he had made up his mind. "Dashan mother, what do you say about building a school in Dahe Village? Every family can work together to make adobe bricks. Building three rooms will be enough. There's strength in numbers. I estimate it can be completed in five or six days."
Cheng Wanwan nodded: "Building a school is not difficult; the difficulty lies in finding a teacher."
"Hiring a teacher is not difficult. As long as you can afford it, there are plenty of old scholars willing to come." Shen Zheng walked over with his hands behind his back. "It's just that I think building a school with mud bricks is a bit improper... It would be better if every household chipped in to build a university with blue bricks..."
“Young Master Shen, if each family has extra money, they should save it for important things, not for building a school.” Cheng Wanwan said, “I remember Zhao’er once said a poem, ‘This is a humble abode, but my virtue is fragrant.’ It means that it doesn’t matter if the house is dilapidated, as long as the people inside love reading and learning, no one will think the house is humble.”
Shen Zheng pursed his lips. This Aunt Zhao was just like his father, except that she was reluctant to spend money to repair the school.
When he becomes an official, the first thing he will do is to build schools in every village so that all children can have access to education.
Silkworms spin silk, bees make honey.
"If a person does not learn, he is no better than an animal."
The sound of reading aloud came from the school.
Cheng Wanwan recalled that her initial ambition when she came to this dynasty was to buy several large cotton quilts. After becoming familiar with this dynasty, she discovered that cotton was not a widespread crop at all... She vaguely remembered that cotton had appeared in China a very long time ago, but it was not until the Ming Dynasty that it was forcibly planted by the emperor and truly promoted and popularized, becoming a winter-keeping artifact that every household could use.
At this time, cotton should only be grown in the border areas and the southern regions, and it should be used as an ornamental crop rather than an economic crop.
After digging her lotus pond, she also needed lotus root seeds, which are only available in the south.
In other words, she might have to arrange for someone to make a special trip to the south, otherwise many things would be difficult to explain.
Forget it, let’s build the house first.
After returning home, Cheng Wanwan announced the house-building project, and the four children were extremely excited.
In the past, three families of the Zhao family lived in one house. Later, they separated and lived in a dilapidated house left by the extinct family, which was leaking everywhere.
After living here for over a year, the fact that we're finally building a house is something that would make anyone so happy they couldn't sleep.
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