Chapter 7 Preparing to Build a House
Deng and her two daughters slept on the floor in one room, and hung a simple piece of cloth on the door as a curtain.
There were no nails on the door to hang the curtain, but the earthen wall was full of cracks. I broke off two wooden sticks and inserted them into the door frames on both sides, tied the cloth to the sticks, and it was done!
Zhao Xiang, Hu Ling and Zhao Lin slept on the floor in the main hall and guarded the gate.
Hu Ling originally wanted Zhao Xiang and his son to sleep in another room, and he would just guard the door.
How could Zhao Xiang agree to that?
Since Hu Ling has been able to follow them all the way, their Zhao family already owes the Hu family a debt of gratitude. How could they treat Hu Ling as a servant and wrong him?
Along the way, including wanting to gain a foothold here, it would definitely make a difference if there was a young man in the family to support you.
The whole family slept soundly.
With something on her mind, Zhao Liya woke up shortly after dawn.
As soon as she moved, the others heard the noise and stood up as well.
There were two packages of snacks in the bag, and there was still water in the two teapots and water bags. When I borrowed Widow Qu's stove to cook porridge yesterday, I also made some tea and filled them up.
It's not cold today, so you can drink it cold.
After a simple meal, Zhao Liya instructed, "Dad, Mom, stay home and don't go anywhere."
Zhao Xiang smiled and said, "Don't worry, your parents are not that foolish, nor are they that easy to bully. This place is unfamiliar to everyone, so be careful when you go out."
"Well, we will!"
Zhao Liya and Hu Ling did not delay any longer and hurried out.
In order to facilitate government surveillance and management, Yan Village was not too far from the county seat. The two men were lucky enough to meet an ox cart heading into the city from somewhere else on the way. They spent a few cents to take the cart and arrived at Gaolian County in less than an hour and a half.
After entering the city, Zhao Liya asked Hu Ling to sit down in an old-looking teahouse in the downtown area and ordered a relatively expensive pot of tea and three snacks.
When she and Hu Ling came out of the teahouse, she had already found out from the teahouse waiter where she could buy bricks, tiles, wood and furniture at a relatively reasonable price, and where she could hire people who were strong and willing to work.
This is not the peak season for building houses, so bricks, tiles and wood are easier to buy and the prices are very reasonable. The brick kilns and tile kilns are very close, so I can buy everything in one trip. They are in stock and can be delivered to Yancun tomorrow.
Originally, Zhao Liya was worried that the locals were afraid of Yancun, and would deliberately ask for a high price or refuse to deliver the goods when they heard that they were from Yancun. However, she didn't expect that the other party just gave them a second glance.
Only then did Zhao Liya feel secretly relieved.
What Zhao Liya didn't know was that the locals were tough, both men and women. What had happened to Yancun? Would anyone in Yancun dare to buy something without paying? If anyone dared to do that, they would be beaten so badly that their parents wouldn't even recognize them!
As long as you can make money, what does it matter where you are from?
All the building materials have been arranged, and I have also ordered doors, windows, furniture, etc. - this is just a deposit, and the carpenter will have to come to my house to measure the dimensions before I can make it.
Zhao Liya planned to build a brick and tile house and a high courtyard wall. So many people needed a lot of rooms, and they wanted to live comfortably and spaciously, so they needed a lot of bricks, tiles and wood. It cost nearly thirty taels of silver in total.
Hu Ling felt a little distressed, but Zhao Liya thought it was worth it.
After a busy day, it was already noon.
The sun was hanging high in the sky, sweat was pouring down my face, and my throat was burning from the sun.
Zhao Liya wiped the sweat off her forehead and said with a smile, "Let's go eat something first, take a rest, then find a tea shop to fill up the water bag, and then go hire someone."
Hu Ling smiled and nodded: "Okay, Aya, you decide!"
Lingnan does not produce wheat, and Lingnan people do not eat noodles. There are no places selling noodles, dumplings, sesame cakes, buns, steamed buns, etc. on the streets. There are only rice noodles, meals, and porridge.
Except for Zhao Liya, no one in the family was used to eating rice noodles. After entering the Lingnan region during exile, eating rice noodles occasionally was fine, but eating them more than two times would make them feel sour and uncomfortable in their stomachs.
Zhao Liya took Hu Ling to a restaurant with a simple facade and probably simple prices.
Hu Ling hesitated for a moment and stopped at the door of the restaurant: "How about we just eat rice noodles?"
Rice noodles are cheap.
Zhao Liya smiled and said, "Eat! A full meal gives you strength! And pack a couple of delicious dishes for Mom, Dad, Xiang'er, Lin'er, and the others. Brother, I've told you many times that nothing is more important than your health! Your health is the foundation of everything!"
After hearing what she said, Hu Ling stopped objecting. He scratched his head, said "Ah!" and smiled: "Alright, anyway, you are right, Aya!"
Zhao Liya laughed and said, "Let me take care of the dishes."
"OK!"
Zhao Liya ordered a dish of roasted small river fish fried with soybeans, a dish of stuffed tofu with leeks, minced meat and mushrooms, a dish of stir-fried bamboo shoots, and two servings of rice.
They are all locally available ingredients, inexpensive, generous in portion and taste great.
The shop owner was very efficient, quickly stir-frying half of the pre-prepared dishes and quickly serving them to them with a smile. "Enjoy your meal, both of you! Our homemade dried fish and stuffed tofu are so delicious!"
Zhao Liya smiled and nodded: "Mm-hmm, it smells so good, it must taste even better!"
The shopkeeper laughed and gave her a thumbs-up: "You have good taste!"
Both of them spoke Cantonese. Zhao Liya's accent was not so authentic, but she had no problem communicating with the store owner.
This made Hu Ling very envious.
As they entered Lingnan, more and more people began to speak Mandarin. Since they were going to live there, they had no choice but to learn it. But no one learned as fast as Zhao Liya.
For example, now, Hu Ling only partially understands what is said, but Zhao Liya can already communicate with others easily.
The rice was fragrant, and the dishes were also delicious. After they finished their meal, the braised chicken with fermented black beans, stir-fried river shrimp with leeks, and steamed pork belly with rice flour that Zhao Liya had ordered were also ready. They were wrapped in layers of yellow paper and carefully placed in the newly bought backpack and carried on Hu Ling's back.
The locals are very simple and honest, the portions of each dish are very generous and the prices are very reasonable.
"Let's go inquire about the labor costs now and hire some people. We can start working tomorrow! Let's hire more people and try to build the house as soon as possible."
"OK!"
Hu Ling was cheered up and full of anticipation.
The artificial market is in the west of the city. It is busiest in the morning, with countless idlers waiting for odd jobs. Whenever someone who looks like a housekeeper, shopkeeper, or foreman appears, they swarm around him and rush to promote themselves.
In the afternoon, the place was obviously much quieter, with many people sitting lazily against the wall, as if they had no bones, some in a daze, some taking a nap, or whispering gossip with acquaintances.
As Zhao Liya and Hu Ling walked by, many eyes fell on them with a bit of curiosity, inquiry, or indifference, but seeing that they didn't look like they could afford to hire temporary workers, they were probably competitors, so they all withdrew their gazes.
(End of this chapter)
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