0p0 Chapter 29 Buy a Mountain While We're at It
Chapter 29 Buy a Mountain While We're at It
Upon hearing Song Jiaojiao's words, Li Sufang was surprised that she would receive wages, and even more than others. She quickly agreed, "Okay, Auntie won't refuse you. No one knows better than me which family in this village is hardworking and which is lazy. Jiaojiao, don't worry."
"Oh, I have complete confidence in what Auntie does. I'm just waiting to reap the rewards," Song Jiaojiao said with a smile, looking completely trusting.
"Alright, I'll give you twenty taels for the house and the foundation. With taxes tomorrow and such, it should be around twenty-three taels by now," the village chief said to Song Jiaojiao, estimating the price.
Song Jiaojiao took out one hundred taels and said to the village chief, "Uncle Wang, then I'll trouble you to take He Fan on a trip tomorrow. Here's one hundred taels. I'll entrust the task of ordering bricks and tiles and finding workers to you."
The village chief was shocked when he saw Song Jiaojiao take out one hundred taels of silver without hesitation. If it weren't for the presence of the younger generation, he probably would have jumped up.
“This… Jiaojiao, isn’t this a bit too much? If it’s just for building a tiled house, a four- or five-room tiled house wouldn’t cost more than fifty taels.”
"Uncle Wang, not much. I want to build a nicer, bigger house so that it won't be a hassle in the future. I'd like a brick and tile house like yours, with six or seven rooms. Since it's at the foot of the mountain, I'd like to build a wall around it, just in case."
The courtyard should ideally be large enough so we don't have to worry about not having a place to dry things. We also need to dig a well, right next to where we live now.
Song Jiaojiao thought that the money from selling the white fungus would be enough to build a bigger house. As for what to do with the place she was living in now, she hadn't thought of it yet, but it would definitely show its value.
Thinking back to how I worked myself to the bone for a tiny house in my previous life, all I want in this life is a bigger house, one that's less oppressive.
When the village chief heard Song Jiaojiao's words, he felt that they made some sense. Living at the foot of the mountain, there were not many people around, so it would be safer to build a wall. They could also raise a dog so that they could hear any noise at night.
"Alright, since you've made up your mind, I won't say anything more. Tomorrow I'll take Hefan to get the formalities done and order everything we need."
"Okay, thank you, Uncle Wang. I wonder if you sell the barren hills in the village?" Song Jiaojiao thought for a moment. She had a spatial ability, and although she could buy grains, fruits were not so easy to buy. She needed a reason to buy a hill so she could plant some fruit trees. If she couldn't finish them, she could make dried fruit and canned fruit to sell.
Dried fruit, canned goods? This is a business opportunity, especially in winter when there are few fruits and vegetables available. Selling sweet canned goods is sure to be a good business.
However, on the other hand, the only fruits available in the space right now are wild fruits picked from the mountains, none of which are suitable for canning. Peaches or pears would be better.
"Jiaojiao, Jiaojiao, what are you daydreaming about? Your uncle is asking you a question!" Aunt Li saw that Song Jiaojiao was staring at one spot, her mind wandering, and she didn't even hear what the old man was saying.
"Ah...excuse me, Uncle Wang, what did you just say?" Song Jiaojiao snapped out of her daze, seeing the village chief's puzzled look, and quickly asked.
“Why are you buying wasteland? Although wasteland is cheap, you can’t grow crops on it. The wasteland behind your house is about a hundred acres. Even at the cheapest price, it would cost at least eighty taels of silver.” The village chief repeated what he had just said, looking at Song Jiaojiao with a puzzled expression, not understanding why she would buy wasteland instead of fertile land.
"Oh, eighty taels, right? Then let's buy the area behind it. We might need to fence it off in the mountains, but we'll use wood for that." As she spoke, Song Jiaojiao took out another eighty taels. "Let's do it all tomorrow."
Everyone was puzzled as Song Jiaojiao took out another eighty taels of silver. They wondered how she could carry so much money on her person. Although silver takes up little space, one hundred and eighty taels still weighs about eighteen pounds.
Seeing that everyone was staring at her, Song Jiaojiao wondered what they were thinking. Thinking that everything had been explained, she was about to get up and go home.
"Jiaojiao, if we tackle the whole mountain at once, it might take more than a month," the village chief said, snapping out of his reverie.
"It's alright, Uncle Wang, there's no rush on the mountain. The main thing is to get the house sorted out first," Song Jiaojiao said casually. She thought about how she had come so late at night in such a hurry so that she could settle on a house as soon as possible, so that she would have her own room and it would be much more convenient to come and go.
Several people sleeping on one small bed, unable to even turn over, it's really too crowded.
"Alright, since it's settled then, He Fan, come early tomorrow so we can go to town and get all the necessary paperwork done and finalize everything." The village chief waved his hand and said no more, deciding to go to town first thing tomorrow morning to take care of things.
Wang Hefan responded and looked at Song Jiaojiao. Song Jiaojiao thought that everything was alright, so she stood up and said, "Since it's all settled, Uncle Wang, we'll head back now. We'll have to trouble you to keep an eye on things from here on out."
"Alright, don't worry. It's getting late, you should all go back and rest. Old woman, see Jiaojiao and the others off." The village chief looked at Song Jiaojiao, his whole demeanor becoming much more friendly.
"Aunt Li, no need to see us off. You should get some rest. We've taken up so much of your time. He Fan and I know the way." Song Jiaojiao quickly waved her hand, feeling really bad about troubling them any further.
"Hey, come on, Jiaojiao, it's just a short walk. I'll walk you to the gate. Tomorrow I'll tell the villagers so we can start working right away when they do," Aunt Li said as she saw Song Jiaojiao off, outlining their plans.
"Okay, I've bought all the grain, but I don't have any land or vegetables at home, so I'll need you to buy them in the village later. Don't worry, I'll pay the town's prices and keep track of the bill."
"It's nothing, I promise I'll handle it perfectly. Alright, if there's anything you're unsure about later, I'll talk to you about it. I won't see you off, you two be careful and get some rest." Aunt Li patted her chest and assured her at the gate of the courtyard. Seeing that it was getting late, she didn't linger with Song Jiaojiao for long.
"Okay, you go back now, we're leaving." Song Jiaojiao waved her hand and turned to leave with Wang Hefan.
On the way back, Wang Hefan couldn't help but ask Song Jiaojiao, "Mom, I didn't see you take any money when you left?"
"I took it while you were busy. How can I get people to do things without paying them?" Song Jiaojiao touched her nose guiltily. Luckily, it was nighttime and no one could see her little actions.
Wang Hefan remained silent, wondering to himself, "Is that really true? How did Mother get so much silver?"
Oh well, who cares how he got it? The family is finally building a house, and I'll finally have my own room. It'll be easier to find a wife then.
Thinking of this, Wang Hefan's handsome face flushed red. Fortunately, it was nighttime and visibility was poor, so he couldn't see it.