Zhang Fangyuan chose a day to go to the county government office to get the formalities approved. At that time, the people in the government office were busy summarizing the tax collection in the past. They checked whether he had paid the taxes on time and in the amount this time. After seeing the record in the booklet that his performance was not bad, they did not make things difficult for him in their busy schedule and approved the land in a hurry.
The chief clerk only gave him some instructions, telling him that in the future when he opened a shop he should cooperate with the county government and that it would be best for him to pay the taxes himself every quarter and not let the county government send people to collect the taxes again and again.
Zhang Fangyuan naturally agreed to everything.
In fact, in places like the side of official roads, ordinary people often build sheds and stalls to do some business. Not to mention that the stalls can be removed at any time, but those who have built sheds must report to the county government. However, many people do not report to the county government and are criticized for refusing to pay business taxes.
But now Zhang Fangyuan no longer has such tendencies. With Xu He, he has become much more honest. After all, legitimate business is more solid, and after all, he has family ties.
But it's not the common people's fault for being dishonest. Some county governments are not honest. If you want to get land approval, if you don't invite guests to a banquet and give gifts or money, even if you go there four or five times, the county government won't even see anyone.
How could ordinary people who just wanted to do some small business afford such torture? Even if they were granted land, they had to pay high taxes. They had to pay money from both ends and could not afford so much, so many people committed crimes against the wind.
Fortunately, the county magistrate of Siyang City was relatively fair and upright, and did not do anything blatantly wrong, so the people were able to live and work in peace.
After he completed the formalities, he went to Wangfeng Grocery Store to pick up Xu He. He came to the city to buy kitchen utensils today.
The carriage stopped by the roadside, and the waiter carried out two bundles of pots and pans. Although they were wrapped in sackcloth on the outside, the ceramic bowls inside could still be seen.
There was another iron pot, a colanders, soup spoons, long-handled ladles... all of which were placed in the pot and carried out. Zhang Fangyuan couldn't name all of these kitchen utensils, just like Xu He couldn't recognize all the various iron knives in his room.
He couldn't get a word in, so he just stood in front of the cart with his hands folded. Xu Heqing checked everything before getting on the cart: "It's all ready."
Without waiting for him to ask, Xu He said, "It cost six hundred coins in total, and the iron pot was the most expensive."
Zhang Fangyuan knew that iron items were expensive, but it was worth spending more than six hundred yuan on half a cart of pots. In short, he would not be cheated if Xu He made the purchase.
"How is it? Did the people in the county government give you any trouble?" Xu He was worried that Zhang Fangyuan, with his bad temper, would not be able to get things done in the government office. Common people had to be respectful and polite to officials, and they might have to beg for mercy. He felt that he could go himself.
Zhang Fangyuan said that it would be faster to do things separately, so he went there by himself.
"Don't worry, it's done. I've been doing business for so long, I know what I'm doing."
Xu He tilted his head suspiciously and said, "I wonder if you know anything. You even scolded the guests the other day."
"He was asking for trouble. He said he had chosen a piece of meat and let me cut it, but now he doesn't want it anymore. Even if I open a business, I won't let him bully me."
"Okay, I'm not angry anymore." Xu He took out two coins from his pocket and ordered a piece of sweet ice from the roadside ice stand: "Cool off the heat."
Zhang Fangyuan stopped his horse and pointed at the small ice stand: "I want the one with pears inside."
The vendor put the sweet ice back and took out the one with pears instead: "Three cents each."
Zhang Fangyuan looked at Xu He and motioned him to buy it.
Xu He gritted his teeth and took out another coin: This prodigal son is always taking advantage of others.
He took the ice from the vendor and stuffed it into Zhang Fangyuan's mouth: "They all taste the same. Why do you have to eat this expensive one?"
Zhang Fangyuan grimaced because of the cold, but he couldn't help laughing.
The two men did not return to the village first, but went directly to the tea shed. After six or seven days, the shed had taken shape, and then they built walls on all four sides and covered the roof.
Zhang Fangyuan went in and found it quite lively inside. His fourth uncle Zhang Shicheng had come today.
"I happened to be out of the village on some business, so I came over to lend a hand."
Zhang Shicheng was quite satisfied with the tea shed that was built, as it was the same as the one he had built at home.
"I called my aunt Xiaomao that night. Let's have dinner together at my place today." Zhang Fangyuan said to his fourth uncle, and then turned to look at the two brothers of the Chen family.
"become."
Everyone agreed without hesitation.
Zhang Fangyuan said, "Then I'll go back home first and let He Ge'er cook."
Xu He heard what was said outside, came in, greeted Zhang Shicheng, and then went back with Zhang Fangyuan. Even though he had invited guests suddenly, Xu He didn't worry about having nothing to cook in the evening. He simply took a piece of meat that was placed at a stall far away. Whether stir-frying or boiling it, it was something that the villagers could show off.
However, Zhang Fangyuan sighed and said it was a pity that he did not buy two fish in the city. Not only would it be cheaper in the afternoon, but it would also be easier to cook. He still had some pork intestines left that he hadn't sold, so he could make a pot of pork intestines and fish.
When the sun went down, we set up a table in the yard and ate. It didn't feel too hot.
Xu He said, "That's a nice thought." He also agreed that he could have a meal with them once the tea shed was built.
The two returned home in a happy mood. When the carriage reached the road outside the house, they saw his fourth aunt He waiting outside from a distance.
Seeing them coming back, he didn't wait outside the yard, but went straight to greet them.
"Where is your fourth uncle? Is he still there?"
"At the teahouse, I'll be back later. I just happened to be going to call my aunt over for dinner."
He frowned, put her hands in her pockets and said, "Your second aunt is back."
Zhang Fangyuan hesitated for a moment: "How come you came back so suddenly? I didn't even come back when I got married and sent a letter."
He said, "She married far away, so it's common for her to come back at an inappropriate time. Now she's back to visit her relatives. I told you to come back earlier, what a coincidence."
"Where is the second aunt now?"
"Of course it's at your uncle's house."
Zhang Fangyuan nodded. It seemed that they would not be able to have dinner tonight, so he went into the yard to unload the things, leaving only Xiao Hei behind: "Then I'll go and pick up Fourth Uncle." He also said goodbye to the two brothers of the Chen family.
"Okay." He helped move the pots, pans, and utensils into the house.
Xu He did not have a deep impression of Zhang Fangyuan's second aunt. In the past, the Zhang family was a well-off family in the village, so naturally everyone would pay more attention to such families and would gossip about them a lot.
He was still young and had never met his second aunt Zhang Fangyuan, but she had already married and moved to another county, and he had no idea why. In short, marriage in the village is difficult to predict. Not everyone is lucky enough to marry nearby. Most people marry far away.
After Zhang Fangyuan picked up his fourth uncle, they all went to the home of their eldest uncle Zhang Shixin. It was very lively there today, with most of the Zhang family members gathered there, except for Sixth Uncle Zhang who didn't come.
"The last time I came back was for Lao Wu's funeral. So many years have passed in the blink of an eye. Everyone has started a family and a career."
When Xu He and Zhang Fangyuan walked into the yard, they saw a woman who didn't look old but had white hair on her temples standing up from the main hall, suddenly ran out, pulled Zhang Fangyuan and looked at him left and right, her eyes full of tears.
Zhang Fangyuan called out "Second Aunt", and Xu He also followed suit.
Uncle Zhang looked at his sister, and although his emotions were not as obvious and direct as those expressed by the woman, he also frowned.
"It's a happy thing to see you, but why are you crying? Come inside and sit down."
After Xu He entered the room, he saw a strange little girl inside. She was pretty, but a little thin, with a pointed chin, unlike other children of the same age who had round faces.
He was very familiar with such children because he was such a thin child when he was young.
Zhang Fangyuan saw that he looked at the child for a few more times, so he said to Zhang Shiyue, "Second aunt, is this your Xiao'e?"
Zhang Shiyue gently pushed the little girl forward: "Xiao'e, call me cousin."
The little girl was timid, and she became even more afraid when she saw Zhang Fangyuan's ferocious appearance. She subconsciously wanted to hide behind Zhang Shiyue, but she still listened to her mother, pursed her lips and walked forward, calling "cousin" in a low voice.
"How old is he? This is the first time I've seen him. He looks like my second aunt."
"Twelve years old."
Zhang Shiyue glanced at her daughter and couldn't help but frown. She was obviously not young, but she looked like a little girl of only seven or eight years old.
Zhang Fangyuan wanted to ask a few more questions, but Xu He pulled him aside and said, "Don't scare the kids."
Zhang Fangyuan laughed out loud: "Okay."
Zhang Shiyue glanced at Xu He again. He was tall and in good shape. He smiled and said to Zhang Fangyuan, "Ayuan, you are lucky to have married such a good man."
"Of course. It's a pity that Second Aunt didn't come back for a drink a few months ago. This time, we must go over and have fun for two days." Zhang Fangyuan shamelessly pulled Xu He in front of him: "Our He'er's cooking skills are very good. Now we are preparing to open a tea stall over on the official road."
Zhang Shiyue smiled when she heard this: "Okay, Ayuan has grown up."
Xu He let Zhang Fangyuan talk to his second aunt in the house, and he took the initiative to go to the kitchen to cook with his uncle's aunt and sister-in-law.
Xiaomao ran around the house, wanting to play with a girl of his own age. The little girl kept hiding in front of Zhang Shiyue, so he didn't dare to go up to her, so he just followed behind Xu He and helped fold vegetables.
While helping to light the fire and cook, Xu He took a look at what they would have for dinner tonight. Her aunt said they would have tofu pudding and a piece of bacon, but no other meat or vegetables.
He felt a little strange, as he had heard from Zhang Fangyuan that his uncle's family had always been very generous and easy to talk to outsiders, but very stingy with their own family, so he didn't have much contact with them.
Today he finally saw it.
There were so many people at two tables in such a big house, and although they were family and there was no need to be formal, Zhang Shiyue came back from far away, and she had been married for so many years and had not been back very often, so it would be a bit shabby to serve some bacon to entertain them.
While washing vegetables outside, he called Zhang Fangyuan over and spoke to him in a low voice.
"That's how Uncle's family is. I'll go back and bring two kilograms of fresh meat. Second Aunt has come back to her parents' home with great difficulty, so we have to treat her well. Do you think you should bring anything else?"
Xu He said: "Bring the pig heart here too, and stir-fry it with some green onions. You might like it too."
Zhang Fangyuan smiled and said, "Okay."
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