Tian and Dashan thought it would be very convenient to dig a well in the yard to use water, so they also wanted to ask a well digger to dig a well. After Yan Bing asked for the land, they went to ask a well digger. Dashan's yard was long, and there was a well on the east side. There was no suitable place in the front yard of Dahe's house, but there was one in the back yard. The two families immediately paid the deposit, and the diggers started working at Dashan's house.
Yan Bingfa had recently inquired about various places, and while there was some land available, it was scattered, with a maximum of 20 mu (approximately 20 mu) of land contiguous. He then discussed with Tian and Dahe whether one of them should buy 20 mu first. Both parties now had over 200 taels of silver, so if they bought all the land, they could buy 40 to 50 mu.
Just when they were tempted to buy, someone from the town's brokerage firm came with a message saying that a wealthy man named Wang in Zhoujia Village wanted to sell 80 acres of land, all of which were excellent farmland, and asked them to go and have a look if they were interested.
When the family heard that it was Zhoujia Village, they all looked at Chunxiao involuntarily.
"If it's Zhoujia Village, I won't go to see it. You guys go." She didn't want to have anything to do with that family anymore.
Yan Bangfa felt that this was a rare opportunity, so he took some time in the afternoon to take Zhou, Tian and Daha to the town. Since they didn't have an ox cart at home, they borrowed Yan Shiyi's ox cart.
The soybeans in the wheat field have already been planted. Chunxiao is going to sift out the remaining soybean seeds so that she can soak them later and start planting them here. Wangzu has gone to the mountains to chop firewood today, while Shufeng is helping Zhang in the kitchen. Shuduo is feeding the chickens with Pan'er in the yard.
"How is your schoolwork going lately, Xiaoqi?" she asked casually.
"Aunt, we don't live in the same courtyard with uncle now. I don't know why he goes out early and comes back late every day. You have to ask Sister Shufeng."
She had forgotten this, "Then you haven't learned to read?"
"Yes, if my brother is here, he will teach us. If he is not here, I will teach us. There is a lot to learn."
"Then let me test you. I'll say a few words and see if you can write them."
When the two saw that their aunt was going to test them, they immediately became nervous, but they still put down their things and stood up properly. Chunxiao gave each of them a branch and told them a few words to write. At the beginning, they had to think for a long time before they could write, but later they became more and more proficient.
Chunxiao took a look and found that except for a few that they didn't know or made some mistakes, they could actually write half of the questions. She tested them for almost two incense sticks before letting them go. The two girls were obviously relieved.
It was already dark when Yan Bangfa and the others came back, but he still gave Chunxiao a general account of what had happened today.
It was indeed 80 mu of land. When they went there today, another family was also looking at the land. However, they wanted a discount of 5.25 mu per acre. Wang Caizhu refused and said he would go back and think about it. The land was indeed good for growing crops. He just said that they had to make a decision quickly.
"This 80 mu of land costs 400 taels of silver. It's far away, so we'll have to hire someone nearby and build a house so we can live there when needed. Originally, it would have been best if you bought the 80 mu, but Zhoujia Village wasn't considering it. After some discussion, we decided to buy it. Our two families pooled their money and each person got 40 mu. Your sister-in-law can't make the final decision when Dashan is gone."
Chun Xiao nodded. "Now that you've decided, let's buy it quickly. Have you seen the land deed today? This land is indeed owned by the wealthy Mr. Wang, right?"
"Yes, the broker showed it to us. It belongs to the rich man Wang."
"As long as he's not a liar, it's fine." Chunxiao looked at his father, unable to conceal his excitement. "Then when will we decide? With so much land to cultivate and seeds to buy, I'm afraid it's too late to plant beans. Even if we plant, we'll have to postpone next spring's crop."
"We'll go there early tomorrow morning. If we're late with this kind of thing, the owner might change. Let's prepare the silver today and go there tomorrow morning after delivering the goods. We won't plant beans, we'll just treat the land as a maintenance. We'll have to consider manpower later. If we really buy it, it will be a lot of trouble. Today they said they'll use it to grow cotton, and the cotton seeds will be a problem later. Let's buy it first."
Early the next morning, Yan Bingfa took Yan Dahe and Tian to the town.
Wangzu followed Zhou and Chunxiao to the butcher to get the goods. It was Chunxiao's first time to go to a butcher's house. She smelled a strong smell of blood before she even reached the door, and she couldn't stand it.
"I told you to stay home, but you insisted on coming here. This is not a place for girls."
"Your back is too tired, so I will naturally help you when I have time."
As soon as she opened the door, she saw a pool of blood. She stood outside the door and did not go in. Soon Zhou and Wangzu came out, each carrying a full basket of things. "It's common for the place where pigs are slaughtered to be dirty and messy." Wangzu looked at her and smiled.
"Everything is ready and set aside. Once you pay, you can leave without delay."
Chunxiao looked at the butcher's house, a brick structure. It looked like whatever business he was in was better than just farming. Along the way, she and Zhou took turns carrying Dongsheng. Wangzu asked her where Dongsheng was, and she said he was helping sell cotton. Wangzu then stammered and embarrassedly said he wanted to buy 20 kilograms of cotton from her.
"A few days ago, someone from the village came to my mother to buy cotton. What's wrong with that? I'll weigh it for you when I get back."
"My mother told me a few days ago. I don't think it's good. My father also thinks it's not good. Today my mother urged me again." He touched his head. "We bought cloth at home. My mother said she needs cotton to make a jacket. The cotton in town is 60 wen a pound and it's all old. It's better to buy it here."
"Although cotton is expensive outside, we villagers should still take care of it. Besides, your father and my father have such a good relationship, so you are a little worried."
"Wangzu is an honest man. Being honest has its advantages. By the way, has Wangfu come back yet?"
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