Chapter 101 [VIP]
The entrance has two rear rooms, which served as living quarters for servants and gatekeepers, and were also used as simple reception rooms to entertain ordinary guests.
Passing through the hanging flower gate, we arrived at the main courtyard. Eight large earthenware jars were neatly arranged in the courtyard. Lotus flowers must have been planted in them before, but they had withered and turned yellow due to lack of care for a long time.
Once we rent the courtyard, we should tidy it up properly. These eight vats must not be touched. Judging from the way the merchant moved into Kyoto, the feng shui must be excellent. Maybe he'll make a fortune in business in the future.
Don't dismiss feng shui as superstition. In her past life, Wang Ying even read books on the subject, including discussions of magnetic fields and similar concepts. Although it may seem somewhat mystical, the rules passed down from our ancestors have their own logic.
There are three side rooms on each side of the courtyard. These rooms are usually reserved for future generations, with men on the left and women on the right.
Further inside are three spacious main rooms, with a wooden table and chairs in the central hall, covered with a thick layer of dust.
Uncle Chen wiped it with his finger; it was made of mahogany, and this set of tables and chairs was worth several hundred taels of silver.
The bedrooms on the left and right sides are empty. There are also two side rooms next to them, which are where the maids and servants live.
Walking back from the veranda, you'll find the rear kitchen for cooking, the livestock shed, and two storerooms for storing miscellaneous items.
The only strange thing about the courtyard was that there was no toilet. How could such a big courtyard be convenient without a toilet? Wang Ying hesitated for a long time before asking.
After hearing this, Naya Lang covered his mouth and chuckled: "Wealthy families all use chamber pots, and there are special places outside to collect them, so this filth naturally has a place to go."
Wang Ying's lips twitched slightly after hearing this. The thought of having a chamber pot in the house and having to store excrement for someone to clean up made her feel awkward. She decided to build one in the backyard after moving in.
Overall, the courtyard was decent but not particularly impressive. It was much smaller than my home in Qingshui County. However, land in the prefectural city was incredibly expensive, and renting a house as big as my old home would probably cost over a thousand taels of silver.
After negotiating the price with the broker for a long time, they couldn't get it down by a single penny.
The broker, noticing their accents, said with a hint of superiority, "Official brokers are different from private brokers, and the prices in the prefectural city are different from those in the countryside. The prices are all set by the higher-ups, and my opinion doesn't count. If you want to rent, go to the brokerage and sign the deed. If you don't want to rent, I'll go back."
Wang Ying did want to rent it, after all, she didn't want her children and elderly relatives to suffer.
But having just arrived in Jizhou Prefecture, I only have a little over six hundred taels of silver. I've already spent more than half of it on rent, so I'll be struggling to make ends meet when I open my shop.
"Could you please ask if there are any houses cheaper than this?"
Ya Lang was getting impatient. "Why didn't you say you couldn't afford it earlier? You're wasting my time."
Wang Ying quickly apologized, "I'm so sorry, I didn't think too much when I was looking at the house. It's such a hot day and you've made a wasted trip. Here's some money for you to have some tea, I hope you won't mind."
After receiving the money, the broker stopped complaining and pointed ahead, saying, "There's a two-courtyard house further down this alley. The rent is 180 taels a year. If you think it's okay, go take a look. If not, forget it."
"I'll go take a look. Thank you for your help."
With the key in hand, Ya Lang led the three of them a short distance into the alley, stopping at a dilapidated gate and opening it.
This courtyard is much smaller and more dilapidated than the previous one.
Because the house had been uninhabited for many years, the yard was overgrown with weeds that were half a person tall, and the windows of the main house were all deformed. They all had to be repaired before people could move in.
The layout of the house is almost the same as the previous one, but the yard is half the size and there is no back house.
However, the price was much cheaper, and the money saved was enough for them to buy household goods and cover their expenses for a year.
Wang Ying asked the two people beside her for their opinions. Uncle Chen said, "It's better to be frugal when you're traveling. What if we run into an emergency and have nowhere to borrow money..."
Maqianzi didn't dare say anything, only saying, "This courtyard is not bad either, it'll be fine as long as it's cleaned up."
Finally, we decided to rent this courtyard. The rent was 180 taels of silver, and the deposit was 50 taels.
Back at the brokerage, Wang Ying handed over the silver he had exchanged beforehand. After the accountant weighed the silver, they began to draw up the lease agreement. The rent plus the deposit totaled two hundred and thirty taels. Once the agreement was signed and sealed, it would not be refunded.
After pressing his fingerprint, the broker handed the key to the courtyard to Wang Ying, saying, "Come back to renew the lease a month before it expires next year. Otherwise, if you don't leave by the deadline, the rent will be deducted from your deposit. Once the deposit is deducted, we'll send officials to evict you."
Wang Ying accepted the keys and nodded politely. She then went back and called Tian Daniu and the others to come and help tidy up the yard.
The house was empty, so she needed to buy some new household items. While shopping, Wang Ying toured the entire prefectural city and got a general understanding of its topography and prices.
Jizhou Prefecture has three main roads: Zhengyang Street, Zhengtong Street, and Zhenghe Street.
Zhengyang Street is the main street in front of them, and it is also the commercial street of the prefecture. Almost the entire street is lined with shops. The shops on the east and west sides mostly sell general merchandise, while the shops in the middle become more refined places selling food, cloth, silverware and the like.
The residential area extending from Zhengyang Street was mostly inhabited by merchants, wealthy families, and scholarly households.
Zhengtong Street is located to the north, and this street is mainly where government offices are located. The post station is located on this street, and the prefectural government, the six ministries, and the military headquarters are also nearby.
Of course, there are residential areas here, but almost all the people who can live here are high-ranking officials and nobles. Ordinary people can't buy houses here even if they have money.
As for Zhenghe Street, it is located at the southernmost part, where there are the most peddlers and laborers, and it is also the territory of the lowest class.
Theaters, brothels, and gambling dens were everywhere, and respectable people rarely set foot in this area.
It is often said that living in a big city is not easy, and the ancients were right.
The same feather duster sells for fifteen coins in town, but for fifty coins in the prefectural city. After haggling for a long time, the price is only five coins cheaper, a full three times the original price.
Fabric wasn't cheap either; a bolt of fine cotton cloth cost 300 cash, while it sold for over 700 cash in town.
Food was also expensive, probably due to the floods. A dou of millet cost 150 wen, and a dou of wheat flour cost 200 wen. Before, wheat flour cost only 80 wen a dou in the town. However, it was still better than in the county town. Millet in Longquan County had risen to 300 wen a dou.
The wheat stored in the experimental field can only be sold for a little over 150 taels of silver at most, so we still need to find a way to do business and make money.
It took three days for everyone to clean the rented house. The furniture was all cheap and cheap, as they were short on money right now, but they would replace it with new furniture when their circumstances improved.
The two master bedrooms in the main house were made of elm wood with canopy beds. Each bed cost more than ten taels of silver. If such a wooden bed were placed in the countryside, a carpenter would charge at most three strings of cash to make it.
The servants' beds were much simpler, just simple beds made of wooden planks. They were sturdy and durable, and seven or eight of them only cost two strings of cash.
Secondly, we repaired the house. We hired two carpenters to repair all the doors and windows, which cost another three strings of cash.
After buying and using the remaining odds and ends, including pots, pans, and dishes, the house was finally tidied up.
On a fine, sunny day, the family moved from the inn.
As soon as he entered the courtyard, Xiao Yuanbao ran around happily. When they were at the post station, his father always kept him from wandering around. Now he finally had a place to go out and have some fresh air.
"Slow down, don't fall." Li Shi and Qingyun followed behind them in.
"The courtyard that my sister-in-law rented is really nice."
"Yes, it's all neat and tidy, and there are plenty of rooms. When Qingyan and the others come back, they'll have enough room to stay."
Wang Ying said, "I initially looked at a three-courtyard house, which was even more spacious than this one, but the rent was too expensive, so I couldn't bring myself to rent it."
Madam Li patted his hand and said, "That's good. Don't be picky when you're out and about. If you don't have enough money, just tell your mother. I have some more silver."
Qingyun hesitated, then followed her mother into the house.
The east room was where Li Shi and Qingyun lived. There was a large canopy bed in it. Originally, it was planned that Qingyun would live in the west wing, but the wing had one disadvantage: it was cold in winter, unlike the main room which faced south and could get sunshine.
Ms. Li then decided to let her daughter sleep in the same room as her.
The middle room is the main hall, with a table and a few chairs. We'll be eating here from now on.
The west room was Wang Ying and Yuanbao's bedroom, with the same four-poster bed and several trunks piled up next to it, which were brought from their hometown in Qingshui Town and contained their clothes.
The male servants were divided into three rooms: Chen Fang and Tian Daniu slept in one room, Uncle Chen and Ma Qianzi slept in another room, and the four children slept in one room.
Aunt Chen, who cooked, and Sister Qin, who took care of Yuanbao, slept in two separate side rooms.
I can finally rest properly after moving here, and I don't have to sneak around to enter the experimental fields anymore.
After dinner, Wang Ying took her son into the experimental field.
I've been busy cleaning the house these past few days and haven't been inside for three or four days. There are several notes piled up on the table.
Wang Ying picked them up and read them aloud to her son one by one.
"Ah Ying, are you all doing well in the prefectural city? I was so happy to hear that you were staying at the inn we stayed at before. By the way, there's a nice young servant at the inn with a black mole on his cheek. You can ask him if you need anything."
Wang Ying remembered that the servant who had taken them to the brokerage firm that day seemed to have a black mole on his face, which should be the person Qingyan had mentioned.
"Today is the monthly exam at the prefectural school. I'm very nervous and don't know if I can do well. Master said that if the three of us can get into the top class, he will take us to see Cao Rong, the Mr. Cao who wrote the Travelogue of Wei Shi! We must try our best to do well!" There was even a small fist-clenching emoji at the end, which made Wang Ying laugh out loud. This is probably not the earliest emoji of ancient times.
The third note was written in slightly messy handwriting: "I'm busy today, so I won't go into details. I saw that the notes I left a couple of days ago are still in the same place, so I guess you haven't seen them yet. I'm a little worried about you. Ah Ying, if anything happens, please don't hide it from me..."
The last note was left yesterday: "The results of the quiz are out. Qingsong and Qinghuai both got into Class A as they wished. I'm so happy for them!"
Why did they only mention the other two and not themselves? Could it be that they didn't perform well in the recent quiz?
Just as he was wondering, Chen Qingyan came in and saw her husband and son running over happily. She picked up her son and kissed his little face.
"You've finally come in. I've been so worried about you these past few days since we last heard from you."
Wang Ying said, "It's too crowded at the inn and inconvenient to go into the experimental fields, so I rented another courtyard outside. I've been busy tidying up the house these past few days."
"Is the house all set up?"
"Yes, we just moved here today. Although it's not as big as the yard in our town, at least we don't have to squeeze several people into one room anymore."
"That's good."
Wang Ying hesitated for a moment before speaking, "I saw on the note you left that Qingsong and Qinghuai both got into the top class, what about you?"
"I... didn't perform well because of some issues, but I still got into Class B."
Wang Ying frowned slightly. "What happened?"
Seeing his expression, Chen Qingyan knew he couldn't hide it any longer, so he told him what had happened a few days ago.
"On the day of the exam, I suddenly got a stomachache. I forced myself to finish the paper and then ran to the toilet. Because I was in such a hurry, my handwriting wasn't very neat. Plus, the teacher thought I was taking the quiz lightly, so he put my paper in grade B..."
"Why would someone suddenly have diarrhea?"
"I don't know either, maybe I ate something bad."
Chen Qingyan didn't dare tell him the truth: someone had secretly added laxatives to his water glass.
The person who gave him the laxative was Peng Huan, a student from Class C. He was jealous of Chen Qingyan's famous teacher and the fact that he had been ignored several times when he tried to befriend him. Driven by jealousy, he came up with this despicable way to harm him.
Unexpectedly, he got carried away and accidentally let it slip, which reached the dean's ears. Because the impact was too bad, he was directly expelled.
Afterwards, the dean approached Chen Qingyan and asked him if he wanted to take the exam again to be transferred to Class A, but Chen Qingyan refused.
Not doing well on the test is not doing well. Although there were objective factors, he was indeed careless. This incident served as a reminder that he should be more careful about what he eats in the future and not let bad people take advantage of him.
The two chatted for a long time, and Yuanbao had already fallen asleep with his head on his father's lap.
Suddenly, there was a knock on the door. Wang Ying said, "Someone is knocking. We'll go back first and talk later." With that, she picked up Yuanbao and hurriedly left the experimental field.
Chen Qingyun knocked on the door again, "Sister-in-law, are you asleep?"
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