Ye Daquan said, "I've already thought it through. Isn't there a small, dilapidated courtyard behind us? It has three-tenths of an acre of land!"
Old Man Ye said, "That was left by Brother Zhao Facai. We can ask him about it."
Zhao Facai separated from his second brother more than ten years ago. His second brother built a courtyard behind Ye Daquan's house.
Unfortunately, Zhao Facai's second brother died in a fall while climbing the mountain a few years ago, his wife remarried, and his only daughter also got married some years ago. The house was then given to Zhao Facai.
Old Mrs. Ye hesitated, "Everyone says that piece of land is bad; the brothers who made a fortune there died after living there for a few years..."
Ye Daquan said, "How can you say that? Every family has its share of troubles. It could be illness or an accident. It just so happens that there were only three of them. One of them is gone, and the other two are married."
Grandma Ye thought about it and agreed. She then smiled and said, "Alright, let's ask about getting rich."
"Let's go now!" Madam Du said urgently. "Everyone has finished eating and is free right now. If we go any later, they'll be going to bed."
"Alright, alright, let's go."
Besides the old man and his wife and the first wife, the second wife and Ye Caiping also went to join in the fun, just to digest their food after the meal.
The family chatted and laughed as they arrived at Zhao Facai's house.
"Are Uncle Facai and Aunt Facai home?" Du knocked on the door.
"Yes, yes. Oh, it's Sister-in-law Du, and... Uncle Tian and Aunt Tian, they're all here." It was Zhao Shuisheng's wife who drove up.
Granny Zhao rushed out immediately: "Oh, it's Caiping, come in and sit down."
The family didn't go into the main room; they just found a rock or a small stool in the yard and sat down.
Zhao Facai came out of the house, startled by the scene. Had they done something wrong?
While cracking sunflower seeds, Ye Caiping said with a smile, "We just came out for a stroll after we've eaten. Don't mind us, it's my brother and sister-in-law who need to talk to you."
Zhao Facai breathed a sigh of relief; he had thought his son, Shuisheng, had gotten into trouble at the workshop.
He sat down on a small stool and picked up the water pipe from the corner of the wall.
“Uncle Fa Cai, it’s like this, we want to renovate our house, but we also want to expand it a bit,” Ye Daquan said. “Isn’t the back yard your brother left behind? We want to buy it.”
Zhao Facai was taken aback.
Granny Zhao pouted and said, "No, I want to keep that courtyard for my children and grandchildren."
Du said, "Don't you only have Shuisheng? And Shuisheng only has Fengzi, a boy."
“I, Fengzi, am going to have two more children in the future! To leave for my great-grandchildren.”
Zhao Facai glared at her and said, "That land is too small, only three-tenths of an acre. If we sell it now, we can buy a bigger piece of land elsewhere."
Granny Zhao choked for a moment: "No, no. Unless..."
As he spoke, he glanced at Ye Caiping.
Ye Caiping understood immediately and raised an eyebrow: "What does Aunt Zhao want? Tell me."
"Really?" Granny Zhao looked excited. "Well, your workshop is short four..."
"Shut up and get back to your room!" Zhao Facai roared, feeling utterly humiliated. They were neighbors, yet she acted so snobbish.
"I, I won't!" Granny Zhao was most afraid of Zhao Facai, but this time she was unwilling to back down: "The workshop is short of four work positions. I won't sell unless my Fengzi goes in to work."
Zhao Shuisheng rushed out of the bathroom, still damp.
He was taking a bath when he heard this and couldn't stand it any longer. He threw on his clothes and ran out, shouting, "Mom, stop making a scene! Only one person can come into the village at a time. And Fengzi is only fifteen!"
"Why is fifteen not good enough? Hu Xiaosan is only fourteen, and Ye Chunlai is only thirteen!"
“The four jobs we are currently short of are all heavy work, which he cannot do.”
"Then, then..." Granny Zhao suddenly fell silent. "Then this courtyard cannot be sold! If you two dare to sell it, I will kill myself."
Zhao Facai glared: "You touch it!"
Granny Zhao: "..."
In the end, she didn't touch it, but instead sat down on the ground and cried loudly.
Ye Caiping raised an eyebrow: "Sure."
Both Granny Zhao and Zhao Facai, father and son, were taken aback.
Granny Zhao stopped crying abruptly: "What...what do you mean?"
“You sell the courtyard to my older brother, and I’ll let Fengzi work in the workshop,” Ye Caiping said.
She had met Zhao Feng before; he was honest and hardworking, with a personality similar to Zhao Facai. The workshop was already planning to expand its workforce.
Zhao Shuisheng was filled with guilt: "Caiping, you, you..." He didn't know what to say for a moment.
Ye Daquan and Du felt a pang of guilt.
Du said anxiously, "Little sister, you don't need to go to such lengths for us. We don't necessarily need to buy this courtyard. We can just keep it as big as it is."
Ye Daquan said, "You didn't give in when Ye Xiniu made a scene last time, how can you compromise here?"
“That’s different,” Ye Caiping said. “If Ye Xiniu had agreed that time, it would have been a compromise. This time, it’s an exchange.”
“Aunt Zhao insists on these conditions before she’s willing to sell her yard. It’s not the Zhao family’s fault; they can make these demands.”
“If you don’t agree, your house will only be a four-tenths of an acre, and you can’t expand it. But this is our ancestral home, and it’s not good to exchange land.”
"So agreeing to Aunt Zhao's conditions is a good deal for us."
Given how things have turned out, Zhao Facai couldn't possibly sell the land to them against Zhao Pozi's wishes.
Besides, Granny Zhao just wants a workstation. Once you're in the workshop, you have to work for her; it's not like you're getting paid for nothing. Her workshop was already planning to expand its workforce anyway.
Zhao Facai said, "No, no, I can't take this workstation. What kind of person would I become if I did!"
"Uncle Fa Cai, it's alright. But I have one condition: once you join my workshop, you have to work hard. If you slack off or don't do a good job, I'll fire you immediately."
Granny Zhao said excitedly, "Don't worry, don't worry, my Fengzi won't shirk his responsibilities. Fengzi, come out! Come out!"
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