The joy of spending money
While there was much discussion outside, the Fu family residence remained quiet.
Not long after the acupuncture, Yu Roulan slowly woke up and saw Fu Zhiqiao sitting by the bed. She reached out and touched Fu Zhiqiao's face, feeling that she owed her daughter too much.
She herself is one thing, having lived half her life and seen through many things, but Fu Zhi Qiao is still young, and has a mother with a reputation for bringing bad luck to her husbands. What is she to do? Her future marriage will be affected.
Yu Roulan choked up and said, "It's all my fault."
“It’s just hearsay, Mother wouldn’t actually believe those rumors, would she?” Fu Zhi Qiao knew what she was thinking all too well. She reached out and wiped away Yu Rou Lan’s tears, and smiled gently at her: “In my opinion, Mother has a full forehead and a square jaw. You look like a blessed person.”
Yu Roulan knew she was just trying to amuse herself: "When did my son learn the art of physiognomy?"
"There are many things that Mother doesn't know!" Fu Zhi Qiao squeezed Yu Rou Lan's hand tightly, trying to pass on her strength to her: "Let your daughter handle this matter. You, just relax and take good care of yourself!"
The alley is only so big, so every household knows what's going on.
The news spread like wildfire, and soon everyone on the street knew that Madam Fu had become a widow at a young age and was destined to bring misfortune to her husband and children, which was why her husband died young and she was childless.
Although they dared not speak loudly, the way they looked at the Fu family had quietly changed.
Yu Roulan was widowed at a young age, and her life was already difficult. On top of that, she was also labeled as a "husband-killer" and a "jinx." For a woman, once she was labeled as a "husband-killer," her life was over!
Fu Zhiqiao couldn't swallow this insult.
Stepping out of Yu Roulan's room, Fu Zhiqiao's expression instantly turned cold as she asked Yinxing, "Has Defu arrived?"
"They're here."
"Find out where the rumors came from, and also find out about that family at the alley entrance. Get to the bottom of their background." Defu is now the manager of Taibai Wine Shop, dealing with all sorts of people. Fu Zhiqiao is very confident in entrusting this matter to him.
Defu already knew the whole story and immediately accepted the order.
They say a close neighbor is better than a distant relative, and Fu Zhi Qiao didn't want her relationship with her neighbors to become too strained, but now they were all riding roughshod over her. Those people only dared to be so presumptuous because they saw her as a widow and her child, with no one to back her up. Kindness is often taken advantage of, and she had no choice but to fight back.
Because it happened right at our doorstep, it was easy to find out.
Around 3 PM, Defu returned and reported, "The rumors about the lady were spread by those women at the alley entrance."
Fu Zhiqiao frowned. It was indeed those women. The Fu family had no grudge against them, so why were they doing this?
The rumor started circulating about two weeks ago.
It all started when Yao Chengfang was chatting with a group of idle women. Yao Chengfang's background was easy to find out: she and her husband Lei Yong had three daughters and two sons. All her sons were married; her eldest son and daughter-in-law had a son, and her youngest son had just gotten married last year. Apart from her married daughters and her husband Lei Yong, the other five members of the family lived in the city.
Her two sons ran a carpentry shop in Qingzhou City, making boxes and cabinets for people. Business was good, so they brought her from the countryside to the city to help with the work, while her husband, Lei Yong, stayed in the countryside to farm.
Yao Chengfang was originally a feisty and capable person with an uncontrollable personality. Besides washing and cooking for her sons, she had nothing else to do. She would basically brag about her two sons to everyone she met, so the neighbors would praise her sons for being filial and her for being blessed.
Having heard many kind words, her personality changed from being reserved when she first arrived in the city to becoming arrogant.
And look at that, when it comes to gossiping about other people's families, she can talk a mile a minute.
Upon hearing that Yao Chengfang was currently renting, Fu Zhiqiao immediately had an idea.
Proud of her son? Proud of moving to the city? She's determined to make it impossible for Yao Chengfang's family to stay in Qingzhou City!
Fu Zhiqiao immediately instructed Defu to contact the original owner of the house and ask him to buy it.
Having been by Fu Zhiqiao's side for so long, Defu is already quite adept at buying houses and shops.
The house Yao Chengfang is currently renting is owned by Wang Guanrong, and it was passed down from his ancestors. In addition, he owns two other properties and two shops in the city, so his family is quite well-off. When Defu found him, he said that he didn't lack money or a place to live, so he had no intention of selling the house.
Fu Zhi sneered: "If they refuse to sell, then throw money at them until they're willing to sell."
Defu gasped.
The Fu family's house was located on the border between the north and south of the city. Although the Fu family and Yao Chengfang's house were in the same alley, their layouts were different. The Fu family's house had three courtyards and belonged to the north of the city, while Yao Chengfang's house had two courtyards and belonged to the south of the city.
Based on the land price and geographical location in Qingzhou, the market price for a two-courtyard house ranges from approximately two to three hundred taels to six to seven hundred taels.
Fu Zhiqiao offered eight hundred taels directly.
A house worth three or four hundred taels was sold for eight hundred taels, which is equivalent to making four hundred taels for free. Wang Guanrong signed the contract without saying a word.
Fu Zhiqiao smiled as she held the contract that Defu had brought back. What was the purpose of her hard work in earning money? It was to have a voice in moments like these.
Well, it's really satisfying to throw money at people!
Fu Zhiqiao only asked Wang Guanrong to vacate the house as soon as possible.
Having received the money, Wang Guanrong naturally had no reason not to comply.
The next day, he arrived at Lingshui Lane.
Yao Chengfang beamed with joy upon seeing Wang Guanrong: "Oh my, what wind blew in today, bringing Master Wang here?"
Wang Guanrong: "Mrs. Lei, I came here today specifically to talk to you about something. This house can no longer be rented to you."
Yao Chengfang froze, "You're not renting it to us anymore?"
"Yes, I can't rent this house to you anymore. You should pack up and move out as soon as possible."
"That won't do! You can't just decide not to rent out a house like that!"
"I'm really sorry, but I still need this house. Please move out as soon as possible, and I won't charge you rent this month."
"Master Wang, isn't this a bit unfair of you? Our lease still has six months left before it expires. It's unreasonable of you to just say you don't want to continue the lease!" Yao Chengfang immediately started shouting, complaining several times in a row.
"It's my house. I can rent it out whenever I want, and I can stay put whenever I don't want to!" Wang Guanrong lost face. "You still have the nerve to talk about a lease? When have you ever paid the rent? You always dragged your feet until the last minute." Wang Guanrong threw five taels of silver into her hand: "You don't need to pay this month's rent. Consider this five taels of silver as compensation from me."
The Yao Chengfang family rented this courtyard for two or three taels of silver per month. Wang Guanrong was willing to give five taels of silver as compensation because he wanted them to move out as soon as possible so as not to delay his sale of the house.
His tone was icy: "I'm giving you three days. If you haven't moved out by then, I'll have someone kick you out!"
Yao Chengfang hurriedly took the silver, her face filled with disbelief: "You..."
Before he could even speak, he saw Wang Guanrong's back.
Yao Chengfang felt very uneasy. Judging from Wang Guanrong's demeanor, it didn't seem like he was faking it. She needed to go and discuss it with her son as soon as possible.
"What should we do now? Should we go and plead with Master Wang?" After some discussion, the group decided to send their eldest son, Lei Jiancheng, to plead for them. However, he waited at the gate for an hour but couldn't even get in.
"You're back? What did Master Wang say?"
Lei Jiancheng dragged his feet into the courtyard and mumbled a reply: "What else can I say? I didn't even go inside."
"Son, are we really going to move?"
The house is big and spacious, and she doesn't want to move yet!
Lei Jiancheng nodded. The house had already been sold by Master Wang, so they could no longer live there.
*
Xie Zhuo lived in a villa in the north of Qingzhou City. He was still worried about Fu Zhiqiao. After hesitating for two days, he decided to send someone to check on her.
"Wang Qianxin, go and find out what happened, but don't let her find out."
"yes!"
Why is the Crown Prince suddenly so interested in a woman? Something's up!
Wang Qianxin's eyes lit up, as if he had discovered some incredible secret.
As expected of an elite guard trained by the Prince's Mansion, Wang Qianxin only spent half a day to figure out the ins and outs of the matter, and also found out Fu Zhiqiao's background. If Yuzhou were not too far away, he could have gone to Yuzhou to find out all her ancestors for eighteen generations!
Looking at what was written on the paper, Xie Zhuo couldn't quite describe his feelings. He thought Fu Zhi Qiao was just helping her family manage the shop, but he never expected that Tai Bai Wine Shop was actually her own business.
Her father died unexpectedly at a young age, and the family business fell into the hands of her clan. She and her mother moved from Yuzhou to Qingzhou, where she single-handedly supported the entire family and even opened a shop.
She's only fifteen!
Girls her age usually enjoy the pampering of their families while staying at home, but she, at such a young age, has to shoulder the burden of the whole family and manage the family business in an orderly manner.
Xie Zhuo already had some affection for her, and now his feelings of pity reached their peak.
He sent Wang Qianxin to observe secretly and report back to him immediately if anything happened.
He will be returning to Beijing soon, and before he leaves, he doesn't mind helping her get rid of this trouble.
Under Xie Zhuo's arrangement, Wang Qianxin was completely reduced to being someone who kept an eye on Fu Zhiqiao's movements.
He reported Fu Zhiqiao's situation to Xie Zhuo every day. When he heard that Fu Zhiqiao had sent someone to contact brokers in the city and asked them to deliberately raise house prices so that the Lei family would not be able to rent a house, Xie Zhuo smiled knowingly.
It really was her! This is the real her!
Xie Zhuo looked at the list of brokers and handed his heir's token to Wang Qianxin: "Go and make the arrangements."
*
The next day, Lei Jiancheng went out to look at houses early in the morning.
He doesn't have many requirements for the house; he just wants it to be cheap and in a decent location.
The broker showed him several houses. The layout and location of the houses were very good, but the prices were too high. Smaller houses were more reasonably priced, but they couldn't accommodate so many people. A whole morning had passed and he still hadn't found a house that suited his taste.
Are there any cheaper houses available?
Although Lei Jiancheng and his brothers had saved up some money as carpenters, they had spent it all on buying shops. Lei's Carpentry Shop was the foundation of their family's livelihood, so of course they had to buy it as soon as possible.
This is their second year in the city. They paid back all the money they earned in the first year to their relatives. They even borrowed a lot of money from their relatives to buy the shop. After buying the shop, they didn't have any money left to buy a house, so they have been renting.
"No, no, this house is too small. The bedroom is so cramped. There are probably too many of us in the family to live here."
The broker grew impatient. "Mr. Lei, it's only the beginning of the year and many people are moving to the city to settle down. Houses are in high demand. If this isn't suitable for you or that isn't suitable for you, there's nothing I can do!"
Lei Jiancheng considered for a few seconds, then decided to look for something cheaper. As he left, he muttered to himself, wondering why housing prices in Qingzhou had risen so much.
Why have housing prices in Qingzhou risen so much? Of course, it's because Fu Zhiqiao had already made arrangements with the brokers in advance. Whenever members of the Lei family came to rent a house, the prices were raised, leaving them with no place to rent.
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