Because of this incident, Yan Dahe made fun of her and said that she was a successful landlord and had made a lot of money.
Yan Bingfa took a more serious view on the matter and repeatedly asked them not to joke about it or talk about it outside. Now their family was already on the tongues of the village women, and if they didn't pay attention, they didn't know what kind of rumors would spread.
Chun Xiao was quite impressed by this. She thought, "Let them say it. She lived far away anyway, so it wouldn't reach her ears. Rumors are just like the wind, they'll die down after a while." She was completely focused on her cotton crop right now. If she could successfully increase production, her future direction would be set.
On April 21st, the family distributed more silver, and Chunxiao's savings reached 210 taels. Thinking that there would be no idle time on the land after June, Chunxiao proposed to Yan Bingfa to rebuild the brick house.
Yan Bingfa also felt that he could take advantage of this time to build a house. Now that he had two sons and two young men taking care of the land, he was not busy, and the timing was just right.
"Do you have any idea of what kind of house you want to build?" Zhou had told him this before, and he looked at Chunxiao.
"Dad, I drew a blueprint." She went into the house and handed it to Yan Bingfa. "Since we're going to build it, let's build a good, big one. The main hall will still be in the middle, with two bedrooms on each side. The bedrooms can be used to store things if not for living. Two larger warehouses will be built in the back, and a large kitchen on each side, and two animal sheds on the other. The yard will also need to be wider after the house is expanded, and brick walls will be built in the front and back yards.
"You're building such a large building, and using bricks for everything. I'm afraid it'll cost forty or fifty taels of silver. Have you thought about it? Build a bigger storeroom to store things. You don't need to build four bedrooms, do you?"
"Dad, once this house is built, we'll live in it forever. Now that we have the conditions, we'll naturally build it to the best of our ability. I'll also pave the front yard and the ground inside the house with bluestone slabs. Isn't the purpose of building a house to live comfortably?"
Yan Bangfa nodded. Now that he had a lot of money coming in every month, it was understandable that he wanted to build a few houses. "Then tell me how big each room you want should be. And give me a copy of your blueprint. I'm going to find a bricklayer and ask them to estimate the materials so I can find someone. I'm also going to have to ask some villagers for help. The materials will be piled up here, and I'm afraid someone will need to watch over it at night."
"Dad, why don't you just outsource the materials to the brick and tile team? It would be troublesome and tiring to buy them yourself."
Yan Bingfa shook his head in disapproval. "You're young and don't understand. This package of materials is very complex. If they try to make money but the products don't sell well, the house will be ruined. We have to keep an eye on them. It's nothing serious. Just tell me where to buy what they want, and I'll buy it. I'll ask the villagers for recommendations on a reliable bricklayer."
Yan Dashan and Dahe came back from the fields and heard that Chunxiao wanted to rebuild the house. They agreed with both hands.
"It's time to build one. Not only Chunxiao's place, but I want to build one on my side too, Dad. Our house is too small now. It gets damp when it rains, and we're afraid it'll collapse when it snows. If it collapses, I'll be wasting my life."
"What nonsense are you talking about!" Zhou slapped him from behind.
Although Dahe's words were somewhat alarmist, Yan Bingfa took them to heart. He looked at Dashan and Tian, "What about you?"
Tian tugged at Dashan's clothes.
"Dad, Mom mentioned Chunxiao's plan to build a house before. We have the same idea as my second brother and his family. We also want to rebuild a brick house. Shuwen and Shufeng are grown up and still live in the same room. I want to build a few more houses at home."
"Okay, since you all agree, then let's build both sides so we don't have to look for a masonry team later. But it's impossible to build both sides at the same time. Your younger sister brought up this matter first, and her side is more important and needs a wall, so they will definitely build it first. You should also make preparations and draw a similar blueprint like she did, showing what needs to be built in each place, so that you can tell the craftsmen when the time comes.
"That's natural."
Dashan was looking at Chunxiao's drawings. "Let's ask Chunxiao to help us draw the drawings. I can understand her drawings at a glance."
"Then Dahe will still be in charge of the delivery. Dashan, come with me tomorrow to find a bricklayer team. We'll find as many people as they ask us to from the village. The fields are not busy at the moment, so we should get started quickly. Once the start time is set and everything is moved over, our braised meat will be there first."
"Dad, we must plan the division of labor well when the time comes. Those in charge of business, those in charge of the fields in the spring, and those in charge of building the house and guarding the night. There must be no mistakes." Tian was afraid of making mistakes when encountering such a big thing.
"Of course. You must do your assigned tasks conscientiously. If there are any problems, I'll find whoever is responsible. The braised meat has moved to the village, so you must do a better job of guarding the door."
So at night Yan Bingfa asked everyone in the village and found a bricklaying team with a good reputation. The next day he followed Dahe's ox cart to the town to visit them. The team had been repairing the courtyard wall for a master in the town in recent days and the work would be completed in two or three days. Seeing that they were going to build a brick house in the village, they looked at the drawings brought by Yan Bingfa.
"The house you are building is not small. The materials must weigh dozens of taels. Make sure to pave the ground with stone slabs like those houses in this town. They are more expensive than bricks." The master looked at him hesitantly. Even if the houses built by villagers are good, they have never been seen so big that they have to be paved with stone slabs.
"Master Zhong, don't worry about this. We are going to build it according to the blueprint. To be honest, my family has made some money recently. Besides this, we have more to come. I'm wondering if you will take it on and how you will calculate the wages."
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