This person was none other than Wang Dachun, the owner of the homestead mentioned by An Bai!
Upon seeing An Dafu, Wang Dachun's expression softened slightly. He asked, "What brings you here? Is something the matter?"
“We heard that your family’s homestead is for sale, so we came to look at the site,” Yang Cui replied.
Upon hearing that Yang Cui had come to buy the homestead, Wang Dachun was initially excited, but then looked incredulous: "Is it true? I won't sell this homestead for less than two taels and eight mace."
“Rich people won’t come to the village to buy house plots, and poor people can’t afford such expensive house plots. I can offer two taels and two mace of silver.”
Wang Dachun immediately shook his head: "No way, the feng shui of this place is good. Look, this bamboo is in the southeast, which can ward off evil spirits and signify that wealth will come and you will rise step by step. I paid two taels and eight ounces when I bought it. Your price is too low."
"If the feng shui is really that good, why do you still need to do this?"
Wang Dachun looked at the grain and hen in his hand, then at his wife crying on the ground, and wondered to himself: Could it really be bad feng shui?
He bought the land because he heard that it had good feng shui. But he never expected that he would be penniless in less than a year and would have to sell grain and chickens to make up for his losses. He must have thought the feng shui was bad and that the fortune teller must have lied to him!
"You can consider it, but apart from me, I doubt anyone else can afford it."
“No, no, we won’t sell the land, not even the foundation.” Wang Dachun’s wife, Deng Jinhua, quickly refused.
“What right do you have to speak, you woman? I’m the boss of this house, whether it’s sold or not is up to me!” Wang Dachun glared fiercely at Deng Jinhua.
Deng Jinhua wept bitterly: "You sold the land, how is Big Dog going to get married? We have nothing left!"
Yang Cui couldn't stand it anymore, so she tugged at An Dafu's sleeve, signaling him to leave.
"Hey, hey, don't go!" Wang Dachun rushed up to Yang Cui. "Woman, you're not keeping your word. I'll definitely sell the land, but sister..."
“This is my niece,” An Dafu introduced.
"Oh! It's my niece! I'm making a mess of the generations by calling her 'sister.' My niece, could you please raise the price a little? Just a little!"
"At most two or three ounces."
"That's too little, only two and a half taels."
Yang Cui shook her head: "No, I can only offer two or three ounces at most. Uncle Wang, you can consider it. Once you've decided, just tell my uncle."
Two taels and three ounces was a full half tael of silver less than the price Wang Dachun was looking for, and he still couldn't make up his mind.
This matter has been put on hold for now.
At dusk, Yang Cui took her two children back to Ji'an Village.
Because of the recent incident where Er Ya and San Ya were beaten, coupled with Lin Mingcai's previous threats and intimidation, An Dafu was worried about leaving the three of them at home. So he sent An Xiaojiang and An Xiaohe to come and accompany Yang Cui and her daughter. An Xiaohu also insisted on coming along, and since there was room at home, he let him have his way.
That evening, Yang Cui carefully counted the family's current savings, which totaled sixty-one taels and two hundred and eighty cash. She planned to sell the remaining peaches, ginger, and dried plums the next day and estimate that she could earn another two taels. She was now a small-time rich woman.
The only regret is that we can't openly improve our lives now, as it could easily bring trouble. Lin Mingcai's threatening words are still ringing in our ears.
Afterwards, Yang Cui hid the money in five different places, so that even if a thief came, she wouldn't have to worry about it all being stolen.
The next morning, Yang Cui rented Zhou Daniu's mule cart again and delivered peaches and ginger to the Star Gazing Tower. She also brought the dried plums that were not yet fully dried at home to Pinxiangzhai. Pinxiangzhai could dry them themselves and just charge a little less for the weight. This was also agreed upon with Manager Ma.
This time, instead of bringing Er Ya and San Ya, I left the two children at An Jia's house.
An Dafu borrowed a donkey cart from the village chief and delivered peaches, plums, and perilla leaves from his own farm in two trips to complete the first batch they needed.
After receiving the final payment for the peach and ginger, Yang Cui personally demonstrated how to make peach and ginger. In the afternoon, she went to Pinxiangzhai and taught them how to make perilla and dried plums. With the theory taught orally, it was actually not difficult to make. However, she didn't really need to use her knowledge.
Yang Cui only stayed at Pinxiangzhai and Guanxinglou for one day because she was no longer of any use. She didn't need to come the next day, but An Dafu still had to deliver peaches and plums.
"Have your uncle send over 300 catties of peaches and ginger, 500 catties of plums, and about 100 catties of perilla leaves tomorrow," said Manager Yu. "Our boss is planning to produce these two products at a high volume this time, and he needs a large quantity of fruit. Miss Yang, we need to know exactly how much fruit your uncle can provide."
Yang Cui and the An family didn't know how many fruit trees there were in Anjia Village in total, but Yang Cui found out yesterday how many trees An Dafu's family and the other cousins who had helped them had. An Dafu's family had six peach trees and ten plum trees, while the other three cousins' families had a total of thirty-six peach trees and twenty-eight plum trees.
The total yield of peaches is estimated to be 7,500 jin, and the total yield of plums is estimated to be 1,900 jin. After deducting the ones that have already been sold and eaten, there will probably be 6,800 to 6,900 jin of peaches and 1,200 to 1,300 jin of plums. However, Yang Cui reported a larger number to Manager Yu because she plans to settle down in Anjia Village in the future. The matter of selling fruit cannot be completely separated from the village chief of Anjia Village. In this era, the village chief has considerable power and connections. Otherwise, how could he become the village chief?
"About 8,000 catties of peaches and 2,000 catties of plums. If Manager Yu thinks that's not enough, my uncle's village has plenty. How much does Manager Yu need?"
"We have enough peaches, but not enough plums. Our boss is focusing on dried plums."
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