stingy landlady

Chapter 61 Building a House (1)

The weather was perfect! Thunder rumbled, and then it rained heavily that night. It seems the fruit trees were planted at the perfect time!

Gui Hong was excitedly saying to Da Zhu and Li Shi:

"Mom and Dad! We didn't count how many there were! Anyway, after we filled both sides of the vegetable garden, we planted more along the boundary line of our house. We planted one every ten feet or so! We estimate there will be more than a hundred! It will be so beautiful when they bloom!"

Guizhi added, "Father and Mother! In a few years we'll have plums, apples, and crabapples to eat! There will definitely be more than we can eat. If we take good care of them and they don't get infested with worms, we can sell them for money!"

Dazhu and Li Shi both widened their eyes in unison: "Oh! This can be planted! There are very few fruit vendors in our town!"

Guizhi laughed and said, "Everything has to have a first time! We'll go to the county town to sell them then!"

The group spent another night with sweet dreams. The rain stopped, the sky cleared, and the air was fresh!

The construction team came to work. The senior workers were from their own team, but the junior workers were hired from the village.

Since Dazhu had taken on the project, he wasn't responsible for the number of workers he hired, their food and lodging, or anything else. He just checked on the progress each day, and if anything was missing or needed, he would help find it if the foreman requested it.

The construction team built a makeshift shack where they ate and slept.

With more people around, the place becomes lively and bustling! And the vegetables grown by every household are ready to be eaten!

The construction team can buy vegetables cheaply in the village, and the villagers who come to work with them will also pick some and bring them over.

As the weather warmed up, the villagers, who had been hiding all winter, emerged like spring weeds after a rain.

People were often seen working in the vegetable garden, and men and women would frequently stroll along the road. Children would also gather in groups of three or two to pick wild vegetables and wash clothes and bedding by the river.

I heard that when Dazhu's family was building a house, quite a few people came to watch the excitement at first. But as time went on, the crowds thinned out.

Li's peaceful life was also disrupted. People would often come to visit and chat with her!

Today, it's Gousheng's mother who's here. She lives nearby and often comes over to chat.

"Dazhu's wife! I went to see the place where you're building your house! It looks pretty big! Hey! Are you planning to build the biggest and best one in the whole village?"

Li only glanced at it at the beginning and didn't have time to stroll around there normally.

“Sister-in-law! We don’t have that kind of means! It’s just a newer house, built later! Our current house is so cramped and cramped that it’s really too small for us. The children are growing up! Dazhu just scraped together enough money to build this house!”

Gou Sheng's mother added, "That makes sense! With many children, there needs to be a place for them to live. I'm just unlucky; it's a pity I had so many children, but only Gou Sheng is left!"

Li: "There's nothing we can do! Gousheng will get married and have a few grandchildren for you to hold. I'm afraid you'll complain about how tiring it is to have children then!"

"I won't complain about being tired! As long as Gousheng's wife gives birth, I'll raise the baby! Having many children and grandchildren is a blessing!"

Li said, "Yes! That's how it is!"

Gou Sheng's mother looked at Gui Xiang, who was quietly embroidering the shoe uppers!

"Gui Xiang has grown into a young lady in the blink of an eye! We used to call her Da Ya, Da Ya! It sounds so much better to call her by her given name! Da Zhu's wife, have you met her yet?"

Gui Xiangteng blushed with embarrassment!

Li glanced at Guixiang before saying to Gousheng's mother, "Sister-in-law! Guixiang is still young! When she's older, I'll have her do some needlework to temper her temperament!"

Gou Sheng's mother smiled and said, "They are a bit young! You can pick one and take a look! There are plenty of capable young men in our village!"

After thinking for a moment, he said:

“I’ve been looking for someone for Gousheng these past two years! I was reluctant to let him work in the fields in the first few years, but now that he’s older, he’s more perceptive! When other kids his age are working in the fields, he sees that the family can’t keep up with the work. Without being called, he grabs a hoe and goes to help!”

Li added, "Young men should be capable and hardworking! In our family, the only way to send our children to school is..."

As more people came to chat with Li, they figured out a pattern: Li was busy in the mornings, but in the afternoons, people would come with needlework, chatting with her while doing their own work. They could do both without any problems!

Of course, the underlying questions were always about whether Dazhu had made a lot of money or built a big house. They also talked about their children's weddings and other family matters! Guixiang heard a lot of these rural gossips, and it made her more hopeful about her own future. She also became a bit more shrewd!

With more and more people coming, Li felt embarrassed to keep the door locked all the time. Zhao, having gained experience selling vegetables and having some savings of her own, no longer kept a close eye on Li.

Of course, Guizhi also explained the situation to the servants of the Zheng and Liu families, assuring them that if the vegetables were cheap, they would also be cheaper. It would be based on market prices!

They also made it clear that if either of their families had tenant farmers or their own family members growing vegetables, then Guizhi and her family would not deliver vegetables.

The stewards in charge of purchasing for the Zheng and Liu families also said that cheaper vegetables could still be delivered. Not only the masters in the mansion needed to eat, but the servants also needed to eat.

Business continued. Guizhi's dumpling fillings became more diverse, including celery, chives and egg, and cilantro and pork. Shepherd's purse was no longer used for dumplings.

Guizhi instructed Zhou Niangzi to continue drying and storing the shepherd's purse she had received. They would soak it in the winter, use it as filling for dumplings, and sell it. Scarcity drives up the price!

The wild garlic is still being pickled. Occasionally, the Zheng and Liu families will buy a jar or two as an appetizer!

After tasting the pickled wild garlic, Manager Qu of Xiangmanlou would order two jars every few days to serve as an appetizer for guests in the restaurant's private rooms.

The results of Wang Yiyun's scientific expedition also came out. His hard work paid off, and he made it into the top ten this time.

If I pass the last exam in July or August, I'll be a sure thing and a guaranteed scholar!

The old man and woman saved money from all sources to prepare for Wang Yiyun's use.

Dazhu bought rice seeds, at five jin per mu, for a total of 220 jin. He deliberately bought extra in case he needed to replant later. Besides, the officials had given him a lot more land when they measured the land initially!

The grain shop owner didn't need to go to the county town to order; there were still large households in the town that grew rice, or tenant farmers who also needed to buy rice seeds.

The farmhands of Dazhu's family specially set aside two plots of land for seedling cultivation.

Guizhi suggested that, in order to make the farmhands work faster and more efficiently, they should buy two more oxen, so they wouldn't have to rent oxen from others. They could then decide when to use the oxen to plow and harrow the fields, ensuring they wouldn't be left idle during the busy farming season!

Days flow by like a gentle stream.

That afternoon, Dazhu and Guizhi were still at the construction site discussing things with the contractor. Guizhi wanted to build a toilet, the kind that could be flushed down with water! She didn't like the outhouses in the vegetable garden; in winter, their bottoms would freeze! In summer, maggots would crawl all over the ground, and the stench was unbearable even if you covered your nose.

She was trying to figure out how to tell Dazhu!

The foreman pulled out the blueprints and asked, "Boss! What do you think about this washroom? Should it be like the big houses in town that use chamber pots, or should we build a nicer outhouse?"