Chapter 83
83
Aunt Zhao came out of the yard and stood next to Cheng Yeran's donkey cart. She looked at the boxes on the cart. There were more than when she came, and they were still moving them out.
"You can't put it down this time, right?" Aunt Zhao patted the box on top, and was seen by Tugen next to her. "Aunt, the box on top is not tied with ropes yet, so it's easy to fall down. Don't stand there, you may get hit."
"Who are you, you little bastard? Why are you teaching me a lesson?" Aunt Zhao glanced at him and thought he was Cheng Yeran's relative from the countryside who came to help with the move.
He saw Cheng Yeran coming out with a rope to secure the box, and said sarcastically, "Why, you don't want to study anymore, and you don't even want to open the store? Your sausages are not selling well? I knew it, if they were delicious, wouldn't you have brought them to my house for me to eat? You didn't give them to me because you were afraid that I would laugh at your sausages for not being delicious."
She talked a lot, but Cheng Yeran just ignored her and didn't bother to pay any attention to her.
If Cheng Yeran quarreled with her, Aunt Zhao would find it quite interesting. Her life was too depressing on weekdays, and quarreling with others and shouting loudly could let out all the anger in her heart. It was like using others to relieve herself from stress.
But Cheng Yeran ignored her and pretended not to see it, which made her even angrier. "You guys must have spent a lot of money on this trip, how much did your husband's family give you?"
Cheng Yeran still ignored her. When she saw Shen Yuntang coming out, she wanted to switch to fight Shen Yuntang, but Shen Yuntang seemed much weaker in fighting ability.
But before she walked over, she saw Sister Liu from the opposite door coming over. Seeing that they were moving, Sister Liu asked anxiously, "Why are you moving? Is it because my mother-in-law went to your house and made a scene that day, and made you upset, that you don't want to live here anymore? She just likes to watch the fun and take sides. I've told her that she also feels sorry for you, and she's embarrassed to come. I'm here to apologize to you on her behalf."
Sister Liu's mother-in-law was one of the aunts who helped Aunt Zhao pick Shen Yuntang's clothes in the yard that day. When Sister Liu returned home after selling the buns, she heard that her mother-in-law had followed Aunt Zhao to the Cheng family and made a scene. She felt very guilty. The relationship between the neighbors had become strained. How could they get along in the future? How can I buy the sausages made by Shen Yuntang?
Originally, she was embarrassed to see Shen Yuntang these two days, but now that she saw that Shen Yuntang was going to move, she was worried that it was because of her mother-in-law, so she hurried over to ask.
Shen Yuntang was very angry that day, but he would not take it out on Sister Liu. It was as if Second Aunt was also their relative, but what Second Aunt did had nothing to do with them. Similarly, Sister Liu and his mother-in-law were not the same kind of people, so he always had to give Sister Liu some face.
и
"The yard is too small. It's not enough for making sausages, and it can't accommodate so many people. We moved to a spacious yard." Shen Yuntang pointed in the direction of their new home. "It's on East Street. Walk through two alleys and cross a street. It was a vinegar factory before."
"Ah, the Wei family's vinegar factory. I heard that something happened to his family some time ago, so he sold the house. I didn't expect that he rented it to you? The yard is very big. It can't accommodate so many of you, right?" Sister Liu felt that since the yard was big, the rent must be expensive. Their alley was not as good as that alley, and the rent was around ten taels. Only the yard rented by Cheng Yeran was cheap, only a few taels of silver, but repairing the yard was not cheap either, it was much more expensive than the rent.
"It doesn't matter. It has been sublet." Cheng Yeran signed a three-year lease when he rented the yard. They can use it however they want during these three years. If they cancel the lease now, they will have to pay some compensation.
This compensation was specially written by Cheng Yeran in the contract. If one party breaches the contract, a sum of money will be paid as compensation.
This was originally done out of fear that the landlord would go back on his word, but now it has restricted them from moving out. Shen Yuntang was heartbroken, and was thinking that this place could be used as a warehouse alone, but the new house also had a cellar, so there was no need to use so much space.
Cheng Yeran said that since the house had been renovated, it would be better to sublet it. They had rented it for eight taels of silver a year, but after subletting it, it became fifteen taels of silver a year, making a profit of seven taels of silver every year. The previous renovation only cost five taels of silver, and they could also take the furniture away. So not only did they break even, they even made a profit.
Aunt Zhao, who was standing by, was so shocked that she couldn't speak after listening to their conversation. They actually rented that yard? The yard here has been sublet. How can they be so cunning? Come up with so many ways to make money.
The yard of Aunt Zhao's house was not rented but bought, but the house was small and cost a total of fifty taels of silver. It was crowded with seven people, including her husband and wife, three children, a grandson and a granddaughter.
She had thought about moving to a bigger house, but she could never afford it. However, Cheng Yeran's family actually rented such a big yard. She had heard before that the vinegar factory cost thirty taels of silver a year, and the rent for two years was enough to buy a house like his.
Has Cheng Yeran made a fortune? How can I afford to rent such a big yard? Is this how you make money by making sausages and soap?
She didn't believe it and sent her grandson to follow the donkey cart to see where their family had moved to.
His grandson was about seven or eight years old, very active and lively. He ran behind the car and found it quite interesting.
Aunt Zhao was waiting at home. When she saw her grandson running back, she quickly pulled the child back into the house, not letting the sweaty child catch his breath. She anxiously asked him, "Where did they move to?"
The grandson said, "The one that sells vinegar."
Aunt Zhao asked again: "Really? Are you sure you're not seeing things?"
The little grandson was almost scared to tears by her fierce look: "That's right, they drove the donkey cart in, unloaded all the boxes in the yard, and then came back."
Aunt Zhao didn't believe it, so she went out to see, and sure enough, she saw the Cheng family moving the boxes for the second time.
The last time they transported daily necessities, this time it was mostly tables, chairs and benches. After a while, they made the third move, this time it was to move dressing tables and beds.
Aunt Zhao quietly followed them when they made their last move, and sure enough, she saw that they had rented the big yard.
She rubbed her eyes. Her family of seven lived in such a small yard. How could they move to such a big yard only three months after moving to the county town? Although it was rented, renting a house was not as cost-effective as buying one. The yard would cost about two hundred taels to buy, and it would pay off in six to seven years of renting, and then they could make more money by renting it out again.
Although six or seven years seems like a long time to get your money back, renting a house is not like working, where you have to put in effort and be mentally and physically exhausted to make money, but when renting a house, you just need to lie down at home and the money will come to him.
Aunt Zhao was so jealous that her teeth were itching. How could Cheng Yeran be as lucky as his mother? His mother married into a wealthy family, but now both his parents are dead, and he married a man. With the help of his husband's business, he can actually live in such a big yard.
After she returned home and saw her son, daughter-in-law and her husband, the more she looked, the more she felt that this family had no future.
"Cheng Yeran is so successful, so what makes you different? You should go out and do business someday." Aunt Zhao looked at her eldest son and her second son.
The younger son worked with her husband in a wealthy family, while the older and younger sons were apprentices to a chef in a restaurant and a butcher in the alley, respectively.
The two of them are apprentices and have not yet completed their studies. In the past few years, they were not paid and worked for free. Now they can be paid a little. Although they don’t earn much, in a few years they will be able to stand on their own. This skill will allow them to never worry about food and clothing for the rest of their lives.
But Aunt Zhao is not satisfied now. "You two just eat your meals. Come up with some business. Or maybe we can open a noodle shop."
They don't have the skills to make soap or sausages, but Aunt Zhao is confident in making noodles. It's just hand-rolled noodles with some soup, anyone can do it.
The two daughters-in-law are also honest people. They usually don't dare to disobey their mother-in-law. But today, the eldest daughter-in-law whispered to her mother-in-law: "Mom, our family doesn't have the capital to open a shop. I heard that Shen Yuntang's shop costs thirty-eight taels a year. If Shen Yuntang's noodle shop is really profitable, he won't make sausages. I'm afraid he can't make that much money just by making noodles."
"That's because he didn't cook well. Our food is delicious and we will definitely make more money than him. We don't have to rent a shop and can just set up a stall on the roadside." Aunt Zhao said.
"Mom, the men in the family have to go out to work, and we have to take care of housework and take care of the children at home. How can we have time to make noodles?" said the second daughter-in-law weakly.
There are many people in their family, and the third son is not married yet. All the housework falls on the eldest and second daughters-in-law. They have to cook for seven people, wash clothes for seven people, clean the yard, wash dishes and feed the chickens and ducks at home. It is enough to keep them busy for a whole day. The two children are at a naughty age, which is even more troublesome. If they make noodles, they are afraid that they will be exhausted to death.
"How come Shen Yuntang is so busy at home and outside? He has a big family. I find that both of you are not as good as your brother. You are really useless. Your brother can manage the house in order, make money outside, and get money from his parents' home to support his husband's family. But you only know how to eat." Aunt Zhao didn't even realize that she started to praise Shen Yuntang.
The two daughters-in-law were not happy when they heard their mother-in-law said that they should use their natal family's money to support their husband's family like Shen Yuntang did. "But didn't mother-in-law say a few days ago that he gave his husband's family's tofu and dried bean curd secret recipe to his natal family, saying that he was not a good person and asked us not to learn from him?"
"If you don't learn good things, you will learn bad things." Aunt Zhao was afraid that they would support their parents, so she quickly said, "You don't have to worry about the family anymore, go out and set up a stall."
Uncle Zhao also felt that there was no need to start a business. "Let our youngest son open a noodle shop when he is no longer a student. The boss said that he would give him some money to start a business when he could no longer study. There is no need for us to open a noodle shop now to get angry with the Cheng family."
"Do you think I'm mad at them?" Aunt Zhao was completely furious and took it out on her husband. She said that marrying him was a mistake and that their whole family was full of losers. She said that if she had married into the Cheng family instead of her sister, she wouldn't have to suffer this way.
The family quarreled for half the night, and then it turned into a cold war. The couple didn't speak to each other for several days. Aunt Zhao took her anger out on her son and daughter-in-law, and bullied them every day.
On the contrary, Cheng Yeran's family was happily decorating their new home.
This time the yard is large, with many houses. There is also a small yard inside the yard, and a row of houses for the servants.
There are five servants' rooms in total. Although they are called servants' rooms, they are bigger than the rooms they lived in before. They just look simple, but they are windy and rainproof and can be lived in after some cleaning.
Yuanbao told them that although they were relatives, they worked for Cheng Yeran, so he could just treat them as servants. Moreover, Shen Yuntang was his brother and their sister-in-law, so it would be inconvenient for them to live in the same yard. Cheng Yeran and the others would live in the small yard, and they could just live in the servant's room.
Fourth Brother and Tugen also said the same thing. The wild dog couldn't speak, but it kept pulling Yuanbao's sleeve, meaning that he would live wherever Yuanbao lived.
Seeing that their beds were too small, Cheng Yeran suggested making a big bed for them and letting Tugen sleep in their small bed.
Fourth brother's previous bed can still be used, and their beds can also be used. This time the house is bigger, so he can set up a study room, and he wants to make some bookcases and chairs.
Yuanbao and Wild Dog live in the same room and sleep on the same bed. They are not a couple, so it must be inconvenient.
ЙàΝf
Book a bunk bed.
He wrote down what kind of furniture he wanted to make and will go find a carpenter to order it tomorrow.
Most of the furniture here has to be custom-made. There are very few ready-made furniture, and even if there is, it doesn’t fit the size of the house.
After arranging who would live where, they returned to their own small courtyard.
Shen Yuntang was very excited. He was always excited every time he moved. He used to think that he was a person who liked a stable life and didn't like running around. Later he found that as long as Cheng Yeran was there, he would feel safe wherever he went.
There will be a different sense of freshness in different environments. Originally, his life was monotonous and he did the same work every day. Repetitive work would make people numb. Occasionally changing the environment would make people feel better.
Shen Yuntang pushed open the door of the courtyard and went in. The courtyard was not big. The family used to set up a table in the courtyard to eat. After they moved away, the table was also moved away, and the courtyard was empty.
Shen Yuntang measured it with his eyes and estimated that it should be about the size of the vegetable garden of a family in the village. There were three houses in total, a main house and two side rooms that were half the size of the main house.
He went in and looked at each house one by one. The house was not as new as the yard he had rented before, but he could see that the owner had put a lot of thought into its construction and used good materials.
The main house is about the same size as the one I rented before. It is divided into inner and outer rooms. The inner room still has a dressing table and bed, while the outer room has a dining table.
Shen Yuntang put Cheng Yeran's desk in the side room, "You can study here from now on. I won't disturb you when I do other things like keeping accounts at night."
"Get two tables, one for you to keep your account book, and one for me to study," Cheng Yeran hugged Shen Yuntang's waist and acted pitiful, "I'm alone in this room studying late at night, I'm scared, I want you to accompany me, okay?"
Shen Yuntang rubbed his head: "Can I still accompany you to the examination room? You have to learn to be independent."
After he finished speaking, he saw Cheng Yeran drooping his ears like a puppy, and his whole body was wilted. He pinched his ears again and said, "I'm learning to use an abacus recently. The clattering of the abacus beads will affect your study and interrupt your train of thought, which is not good."
Shen Yuntang was afraid that he was just attracted to her because he saw other couples just getting married and they wanted to stick together all the time, but they would get tired of each other after a long time. He couldn't imagine what would happen if Cheng Yeran got tired of him and was annoyed when he saw him and would avoid him every day.
"I forgot to teach you how to use a calculator. It's more convenient than an abacus. You don't have to buy one specifically. Your cell phone has a calculator function." Cheng Yeran pulled him to sit down and turned on the calculator function on his cell phone. "You already recognize these numbers. I'll teach you these addition, subtraction, multiplication and division symbols."
Cheng Yeran thought about this. He only taught Shen Yuntang to read, but never taught him mathematics. He should not need to teach addition and subtraction, but he still had to explain multiplication and division briefly.
Shen Yuntang really didn't recognize the symbols for addition, subtraction, multiplication and division. He was originally thinking about his future relationship issues, but he was attracted by the calculator functions that Cheng Yeran mentioned. The two of them pulled over chairs and sat head to head to study the symbols and multiplication and division on the calculator.
Shen Yuntang used to think that there was no difference between the two of them. He now knew a lot of words, could read books, and understood more than before. But after listening to Cheng Yeran explaining multiplication and division to him, he realized that there was still a big difference between them.
Cheng Yeran said that children know multiplication and division, but he only now understands that people who study are indeed not on the same level as those who do not study.
He has been reading recipes recently, and whenever he sees a word he doesn't recognize, he looks it up in the dictionary. He has learned a lot of words. "I should read more books and not just limit myself to recipes."
"Every profession has its top talents. If you study recipes carefully, you can become a great chef and be a very good person." Cheng Yeran felt that he was getting anxious again and advised him to relax. "You are already good enough. There is no need to rush to improve. Look at me. I studied in the academy. More than half of them have the degree of a scholar and are better at studying than me. If I look at others, I will be so anxious that I don't need to study. Your strength is in cooking, so keep studying."
Shen Yuntang had his chin on the table, staring at the words Cheng Yeran had just written on the paper. When he heard Cheng Yeran say this, he looked up at Cheng Yeran and said, "I find you are so kind. You always praise me, even though I am not very literate, have not read many books, and have not seen much of the world. You always praise me and never look down on my ignorance even though I just hang around the stove every day."
"I'm not being kind, I'm loving you." Cheng Yeran stretched out his hand and made a heart shape with his hands. "Besides, you are already very good, that's why I fell in love with you. You think I know a lot and am excellent, so you should think about why I, who is so excellent, would like you? It's because you are even better than me."
Shen Yuntang was arrogant again. He wanted to turn his head and say who said you are excellent, but he couldn't bear to say it. In the end, he hugged him. Cheng Yeran was indeed the best and most excellent person he had ever met, the most gentle and kind person, and the man who was the most capable of acting like a spoiled child. How could he compare other men with Cheng Yeran just now? That was simply an insult to Cheng Yeran. "Okay, I will accompany you to study in the study every night from now on. Why don't you get a small stove here so that you can warm some tea while reading."
"We can also roast sweet potatoes and corn, make midnight snacks, and have a small hot pot." Cheng Yeran thought of their gas stove. "There's no need to build a stove. Now our yard has a wall and a door. We can use whatever we want in the future without worrying about them seeing us. We can get a solar power system someday so we can use some household appliances."
Continue read on readnovelmtl.com
