Old Tang thought this method was the best. Nothing was more reliable than the land. Even in times of famine, as long as there was land, there was no fear of not having food.
"Old man, have you thought about what will happen if someone takes away the land we bought, since we have no connections?"
Tang Li asked with concern, after all, he was just an ordinary person. If he had too much land, it would be like a child carrying a gold brick through a bustling market, and everyone would want a piece of it.
“I’ve thought about it, of course I have. So I plan to buy some barren mountains that nobody wants. I’ll build a tall wall around them and plant fruit trees or raise some chickens, ducks and geese. That way, it won’t attract much attention. Besides, where can you buy farmland near the capital? It’s almost all been bought up by the rich and powerful. We can only buy what nobody else wants.”
“This is a good method. There’s no one competing for it in the wilderness, so even if we make a harvest, it won’t attract attention. I’ll listen to you and go ask around in a few days.”
"Is the house all tidied up? I can unpack my luggage and take out the rice and flour. We'll just have something simple to eat tonight, and then go to the market to buy some groceries tomorrow."
"My luggage is all packed and I'm cooking rice in the pot. That's the downside of being away from home; I have to buy every single scallion and garlic. I'll buy a hoe tomorrow and turn over the soil in the backyard. We can't waste such a big plot of land. I'll plant all the vegetables on it so I won't have to buy any more."
"Okay, while you're at it, go outside the city and cut some bamboo to build a chicken coop next to the outhouse in the backyard. Then we can raise a few chickens in there, and my little girl can eat eggs every day. She can't stand eating vegetables all the time."
Looking at the house, what satisfied Old Tang the most was the large area in the backyard and the well in the front yard. It was perfect for raising chickens, growing vegetables, and getting water. He was lucky to have found such a place. He could say with certainty that there weren't many yards with a well in such a large area.
"Father, Mother, I want to take a bath. I've been in the carriage for so many days and haven't been able to take a bath. I feel like I smell terrible. I want to take a bath and then go to sleep."
Tang Baozhu felt that this past month had been really hard to endure. Whenever she came into contact with water, she would boil some water in a pot and wipe herself down, without properly rinsing herself. She felt itchy all over.
Reminded by their daughter, Old Man Tang and Mrs. Tang also felt itchy all over and couldn't stand it. They glanced at each other and quickly went inside to boil water.
"Baozhu, wait a moment, Mother will boil the water soon, and then you can wash up in the washroom inside."
When the bathroom was mentioned, Tang Baozhu remembered that she wanted to have her own room. "Daddy, Baozhu is all grown up now and wants to sleep in her own room."
Old Man Tang was really reluctant to part with his daughter. He knew she was growing up and it was normal for her to sleep in a separate room. "Alright, be good at night and don't lift the covers. If you do, you can sleep with your parents for a while longer, understand?"
"Daddy, don't worry, I'll be very good and I promise I won't pull off the covers."
Tang Baozhu was overjoyed. Finally, she could sleep alone. She had missed out on so many good things by sleeping with her parents all these years. Although she was happy to sleep with her parents, as it made up for what she had missed, she was too old to sleep with them anymore, especially since the separation between men and women was strictly enforced in ancient times.
Hearing the voices of her youngest daughter and her old man outside, Tang Li felt that life was pretty good now. As for her three sons, she had excluded them from her heart long ago when they refused to let her have children and insisted that she have an abortion.
Having lived in a wealthy family before, I understand some things. At such an advanced age, going for an abortion could very well result in the death of both mother and child. After all, there's nothing to save your life; once you're given an abortion pill, whether you survive or not depends on how strong your luck is.
Since they don't care about themselves or whether they will die because of it, then she shouldn't blame them. She has her little daughter and that's enough for her. She has no intention of going back in this lifetime.
The little girl is indeed growing up, and it's not appropriate for her to sleep with the two of them anymore. At worst, she can just get up a few more times at night and go check on her often.
The water was boiled quickly. After taking a shower in the bathroom, Tang Baozhu felt much lighter. As for her hair, she could only wash it the next day.
Having been here for so long, Tang Lishi only allows her to wash her hair at noon; otherwise, she's afraid she might catch a cold, since in ancient times a cold could be fatal.
Tang Baozhu wasn't the stubborn type. After all, people in ancient times were terrified of the cold. Although she had all sorts of medicine on her, she preferred not to worry others if she could avoid making them worry.
Besides, her parents were so good to her, and she couldn't bear to make them worry. She was just choosing a time to wash her hair; it wasn't like they wouldn't let her wash it, so there was nothing to complain about.
Tang Baozhu felt very sleepy after taking a bath. All her fatigue disappeared and she became sleepy. Although she had been sleeping non-stop in the carriage the whole way, nothing was as comfortable as sleeping in a bed.
"Baozhu, eat first before you go to sleep, otherwise you'll be starving in the middle of the night."
Looking at his little girl nodding her head repeatedly, Old Man Tang knew she was sleepy, but she couldn't go without food; what would happen if she got hungry?
Tang Baozhu quickly perked up, pinching her thigh hard to wake herself up. "Okay, Daddy, is dinner coming up so soon?"
"Here it is, here it is, the food is ready. Baozhu, hurry up and eat, then go to sleep."
Tang Li felt heartbroken seeing her little girl's eyes barely open; she realized she was too old and not as agile as she thought.
Tang Baozhu quickly picked up her rice bowl, ate half a bowl of rice, put down her chopsticks, and hurried back to her room, wanting to sleep.
My mother had already made up the bed in the room, and she took advantage of the afternoon sun to air it out. After all, it's already August or September, which is the tail end of summer, so airing it out for a while is enough. The blankets are still quite warm.
I lay in bed, covered myself with a thin blanket, and fell asleep in less than two minutes.
Fortunately, she was a good sleeper and didn't lift the covers. She was probably too tired. Tang Li came to check on her several times but didn't notice because she didn't lift the covers, which reassured her parents that she was sleeping alone.
While sleeping in bed that night, Old Man Tang and Mrs. Tang were preoccupied with their youngest daughter's apprenticeship. They wondered if anyone would accept her as a student, worried that they might buy the house only to find out the other person wouldn't take her in.
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