Chapter 71 Selling Land
Old man Chen frowned when he heard this. Although he also hoped that one day he would pass the exam, his third son took the exam year after year, but his hopes were dashed every year. How could he dare to show off his achievements?
Before the third brother passed the imperial examination, he thought it would be better to keep a low profile.
"Old woman, please stop talking like that. If our son really passes the exam, you can brag all you want. Even if you brag about it every day, there's nothing wrong with that. But there's no sign of that happening yet. Hearing you say that makes me want to vomit. What if our son still doesn't pass? If you keep showing off like that, people will laugh at us behind our backs and say we're crazy."
Although what Old Man Chen said was true, Old Lady Chen just didn't like to hear it. In her heart, her third son was the best and would pass the imperial examination sooner or later. With her son's filial piety, he would definitely take her to eat and drink the best food and wear gold and silver.
"You're such a fool! I think you're the one with the problem. What do you mean by 'fail'? My son will definitely pass." Old Mrs. Chen was so angry that she was gasping for breath. "Forget it, I won't talk to you, you stubborn idiot. If you feel embarrassed, just stay home. I'll go find Wu Baoan myself."
"Old woman, if I don't show up for this matter, I'm afraid you really can't do it." A hint of pride flashed in the old man Chen's eyes.
Old Mrs. Chen's face was embarrassed. The old man's words were indeed true. Men are responsible for the outside world, and women are responsible for the inside world.
Although the people of Daning Dynasty were open-minded and women could go out to do business, as long as there was a man at home, she was not allowed to make decisions on public matters. Even if she was strong, she had to give the man some face.
She said with a cold face, "Hurry up, don't waste time."
"Okay, let's go."
The two walked out of the house and went straight to Wu Baoan's house.
It wasn't long before they arrived outside the Wu family's gate. Old Man Chen cleared his throat and called inside, "Village Head, I'm home."
Wu Baoan was chopping firewood in the yard. He looked up and saw Old Man Chen and his wife walking in with smiles on their faces.
"Uncle, aunt, you are such a rare guest. Please come in and sit down." Wu Baoan was stunned and quickly stood up to greet them.
Old Mrs. Chen smiled and waved her hand, "Don't be polite with Auntie, it's cool in the yard, it's nice to sit here."
"Okay, then sit down and rest for a while." Wu Baoan immediately brought two wooden stools.
After they sat down, Old Man Chen was a little reserved and tried to make small talk. "You came at a really bad time. I'm sorry to have delayed your work."
"Uncle, you are too polite. I am just chopping some firewood when I am free."
As the saying goes, one never visits a temple for no reason. Wu Baoan was a little surprised by the couple's arrival.
He smiled and asked, "Auntie, what's going on?"
Old Mrs. Chen didn't want to waste time talking and directly explained her purpose. "Village head, this is the situation. I want to sell a few acres of land."
"What? Selling land?" Wu Baoan was surprised. Thinking he had misheard, he asked again, "Auntie, did you say selling land?"
"Yes, I want to sell the four mu of sandy land west of the village. I came to discuss it with you and see if anyone wants to buy it."
"Auntie, you are kidding!" Wu Baoan widened his eyes in disbelief.
Old Mrs. Chen had anticipated this reaction and said indifferently, "Village Head, I'm telling the truth. You should know my family's current situation. Butcher Li is giving me three days to do this. If I don't return the money, he's going to sue me at the county government office and cause trouble at the academy where the third child lives. How can the third child continue to study in town?"
Old Man Chen sighed and agreed, "To be honest, my family is at the end of its rope now. What else can we do if we don't sell the land? This is the only solution."
"Every household in our Nanshan Village relies on farming for their livelihood. They love their land as if it were their life. If you sell your land, I'm afraid your family's future life will be difficult!"
Wu Baoan frowned, as if he was thinking about something, and then spoke again after a while.
"I know that Butcher Li gave your family fifty taels of silver. How much do you have left now? If you're short of three or five taels, I can lend it to you first. At least I can get rid of Butcher Li first. Is that okay with you?"
Old Mrs. Chen's face froze. "Oh, my nephew, there's nothing left at home. Zhan Cai took all the fifty taels of silver. Even this is not enough!"
Wu Baoan's eyes flashed with surprise, a little bit of disbelief, "Aunt, no matter how much Zhancai's tuition costs, at most twenty taels of silver are enough for a year, not fifty taels of silver, not to mention they have only been in town for a few days!"
Old Mrs. Chen was a little unhappy when she heard this. "Village head, you are just too ignorant. Studying is not the same as it used to be. You have to spend money no matter what you do. Take my third son for example. Apart from the school fees, rent, and other miscellaneous expenses, it costs at least fifty taels of silver a year. I can't live in peace if I don't give him all of it. So now my family has no money at all."
Wu Baoan was speechless. A loving mother often spoils her son. Chen Zhancai was not living up to his expectations. He did not make any progress in his studies, but his expenses were increasing. If he had a little more common sense, he would not have dragged his family to the town to study. He was just wasting his family's hard-earned money.
Seeing that he hadn't said anything for a long time, Old Man Chen became anxious. "Head, I know you're doing this for our family's benefit, but we don't want to get into trouble. Please help us ask around and see who wants to buy the land. It would be best if we could get the money tomorrow so we can return the money to Butcher Li as soon as possible."
"Uncle, aunt, I know you're having a hard time right now, but land is our lifeblood. If you sell it, it's gone. You have a large family, so what are we going to eat and how are we going to survive? Have you ever thought about this?"
Wu Baoan made a final effort to try to change the old man Chen and his wife's mind about selling the land.
Old Mrs. Chen curled her lips in disapproval. "Li Zheng, we understand what you're saying, but now I'm facing a knife, what can I do? Besides, if our son Zhancai passes the imperial examination next year, the taxes will be reduced, and the harvest from the remaining fields will be enough for our family to eat."
"Have you really thought it through?" Wu Baoan confirmed again with a serious face.
"I've made up my mind to sell the land."
"Okay." Wu Baoan shook his head and sighed. He knew that some people could not be awakened by persuasion, but only by pain.
As the village head, he had done what he should do and said what he should say. Since they were determined to do what they wanted, he could not stop them.
"Auntie, which piece of land are you planning to sell?"
"That four mu of sandy land to the west of the village," Old Lady Chen said hurriedly. "I don't ask for much. Just give me fifty taels of silver."
"According to the current market price of land, fifty taels of silver is indeed reasonable, but the four mu of sandy land to the west of the village has average yields and is not considered good farmland. I guess it will be difficult to sell it in the short term."
"Village head, please take the trouble to help me ask. I must collect fifty taels of silver by the day after tomorrow at the latest." Old Mrs. Chen looked anxious.
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