After mid-autumn, the construction site became lively again.
On the afternoon of the 16th, Mingheng and Mingjue came from Yunjia Village to visit Qiao Mingjin and her daughter with greetings from the whole family.
Mother Qiao and Mrs. Lan also cooked a lot of local delicacies for the brothers to bring over, which made Mingqi burst into tears. She was holding a fried sesame ball in each hand, laughing so hard that her teeth could not be seen.
She said that her family had not forgotten her, and she was jumping for joy.
With Qiao Mingjin's support and Mingjue's money, the Qiao family's life has gradually become better. Now they are willing to buy some white flour and cook some food. They are also willing to add oil to make some fried food.
Now only Mingyu is left at home in the Qiao family. Mingqi and Xiaowaner brought most of the food they cooked, and the rest was taken to the city for the brothers to eat. The Qiao family probably didn't leave much behind.
Mingjue also told Qiao Mingjin about buying land for one thousand taels.
The one thousand taels of silver bought another forty acres of first-class fertile land, ten taels per acre, for a total of four hundred taels. Now it is the autumn harvest season, and there are not many people selling land at the door, so Qiao's father and Qiao's mother After listening to my grandmother Lan's advice, I found a hilltop of about 700 acres nearby and bought it.
The hill is not steep, nor is it a rocky one. There are some shrubs on the hill. Once leveled, it can be used as dry land. Alternatively, it would be good to plant some fruit trees and raise some chickens, ducks, rabbits and other living animals in it. of.
Maybe he was inspired by seeing Qiao Mingjin raising chickens in the woods of Xiahe Village. Now that there is no good farmland, there happens to be a hilltop of more than 700 acres for sale. The price of one tael for wasteland is more than 700 taels. The owner was in a hurry and finally only got 600 taels.
Both the Qiao family and the Yun family thought it was a good deal, so they went to the county to transfer ownership.
Qiao Mingjin took the two land deeds and put them away properly. She felt somewhat confident in her heart. Now she has a small amount of assets. She feels more confident about the future.
Her parents were very tight-lipped, so she had nothing to worry about.
Brothers Mingheng and Mingjue stayed one night and went to the city after lunch on the 17th.
Yue Zhongyao insisted on going with the brothers and hired an ox cart to wait at the door.
Originally, Qiao Mingjin wanted to send the two brothers off in a carriage, but Yue Zhongyao's enthusiasm was not met. Moreover, the two brothers did not want Qiao Mingjin to send them off. They were afraid that it would be too late when they returned.
In the end, Mingheng had no choice but to grit his teeth and leave with Yue Zhongyao.
Work officially resumed on the 18th. The construction site became lively early in the morning...
In the middle of the day, Zhou Yanqing also arrived with Manager Zhou.
Qiao Mingjin and he wandered around the construction site for half an hour before Zhou Yanqing led Qiao Mingjin to drive the carriage.
Qing Yan highly appreciated Qiao Mingjin's understanding ability and praised him repeatedly. Qiao Mingjin was very proud of it.
"You have become so proficient in just a few days. It seems that our master from Zhou Mansion can teach you."
Qiao Mingjin rolled her eyes at him and joked with him in a good mood: "I'm smart, okay?"
Zhou Yanqing burst into laughter upon hearing this.
He glanced sideways at Qiao Mingjin from the carriage shaft and said, "Anyway, you can drive a carriage now. You must remember my contribution no matter what."
"What do you want?"
Qiao Mingjin couldn't stand his proud look.
"Cook me a delicious meal today. Of course, besides this, there is one more thing you have to thank me for. I only ask for one meal, so you won't lose anything."
Qiao Mingjin frowned and thought for a while. Is there anything else worthy of asking for a meal?
Soon her eyes lit up: "Is the store in place?"
Zhou Yanqing glanced at her and said, "Can't you think of it later?"
Qiao Mingjin was very happy. She didn't care about him, turned around and went home.
Zhou Yanqing felt a little strange. He had never eaten any delicious food on Saturday. But he fell in love with an ordinary peasant meal cooked by this woman.
I feel anxious after not eating for several days.
After arriving at Qiao's house, Zhou Yanqing asked his servant to take over the carriage and horse, then followed Qiao Mingjin to the main room and took out the property deed from his arms.
"You asked me to search for three thousand taels. I think you only have three thousand taels of silver on hand, right? Do you really want to use it all?"
Zhou Yanqing was very unsure.
"I really only have this much money in my hand. You can probably estimate how much money I have. If it takes three thousand taels to buy a shop, then I only have about three hundred taels in my hand."
"Aren't you going to keep some?"
"As a country girl, I can't keep too much money in my hands. It might be a disaster if I keep it. This house is not in the village yet. It's not good for people to think about it. I can't sleep well. I don't need it now.
What a huge amount of money is needed. In a few days, the autumn grain will come down. If there is enough grain left for half a year, there won’t be any big expenses."
"Are you not going to spend money on other things besides eating?"
Zhou Yanqing really can't imagine why this person only thinks about preparing money for food? Doesn't he need to wear clothes, dress up, use jewelry, and be unfaithful? Doesn't he need money for these?
Qiao Mingjin seemed to know what he was thinking, glanced at him sideways, and said: "Our countryside is different from your city. Except for food, some people can't make a new piece of clothing all year round. An ordinary farmer's family can't make a new one all year round."
I don't need three or four taels of silver. I still have a few hundred taels of silver in hand to prepare for my parents' side to find someone to plow the land, so I have a lot left."
"Three or four taels of silver a year?" Zhou Yanqing opened his mouth, somewhat in disbelief.
"Yeah. I won't use that much yet."
Zhou Yanqing sighed after hearing this.
If he hadn't met Qiao Mingjin, when had he come into contact with these things?
What can he do with three or four taels of silver? Even a large seal is not enough to reward his servants.
Shaking his head, he pushed a few house deeds towards Qiao Mingjin and said, "There are three shops here. One is very small, and is a noodle shop. It only costs five hundred taels. The other is a grocery store, and there is also
Although Jiewang Pu has only one floor, it has a backyard, a dug well, and three houses, so it asked for one thousand two hundred taels. In the end, because of the Zhou family, we negotiated for one thousand taels."
"The other place is on South Street. It is a small restaurant with a large area and two floors. Three floors of foundations have been dug. When the business is good, we can add another floor. Because it is on South Street, it is not a prosperous place.
, the master was anxious to get rid of it again, and asked for one thousand five hundred taels."
"Three places are exactly three thousand taels. I have visited all three shops. They are all pretty good. Although only the grocery store on East Street is in the prosperous area, the other two are not remote and there are many people. There is no need to buy them.
It's a loss. If you don't want it, I will eat it. Now there are people doing business in these three places. If you don't have any business, just let them run it. The rent of the small noodle shop is 50 taels a month, and the rent of the grocery store is 50 taels a month.
Twelve taels, at the wine shop it’s twenty taels a month.”
After Qiao Mingjin heard this, she stood up and saluted Zhou Yanqing: "Thank you, Master Six, for your concern."
"This gift is quite big. It's just a little effort for me. It's not a big deal for my Zhou family to find a few shops in the city."
"I still have to thank Mr. Liu. If it weren't for Mr. Liu, I wouldn't have found such a good shop here. And I don't know when I will find it. I want all three shops. Let's maintain the status quo. I don't think about it.
I don’t have the energy to run my own business for the time being. My children are still young and I can’t go out easily. I just need to collect some rent every month, which is enough for us, mother and daughter, to live on.”
Qiao Mingjin's face was dull, and there was no joy on his face.
Zhou Yanqing looked at her face very seriously. This woman seemed to be so indifferent at all times, like an orchid in an empty valley, unattractive, but always unforgettable.
"These are three property deeds. I thought you would definitely want them. I decided to change your name. I also re-signed the lease for you. If you are inconvenient in the future, just ask Manager Zhou to ask for the rent for you.
.I have already given him orders."
"Thank you very much."
With the Zhou family helping to collect the rent, firstly, she no longer had to worry about not being able to get it, secondly, it saved her a lot of trouble, and thirdly, she could avoid some spying.
Qiao Mingjin took the three property deeds and looked at them. Her name, Qiao Mingjin, was written on them all. She looked towards Zhou Yanqing and said, "Aren't you afraid that I won't let you down? You wrote my name so quickly?"
"What am I afraid of? Don't you still have your three thousand taels with me? Besides, if you don't want me, you just go to the Yamen and change your name. What a big deal."
Zhou Yanqing was swinging his feet leisurely on the chair, and the hem of the silk clothes embroidered with bamboo swayed, as if the breeze was blowing and the bamboo was dancing gently, which was very pleasing to the eye.
Qiao Mingjin glanced at him and smiled.
This person is sure that she will buy it.
However, the three shops were also chosen to her liking. In this way, she would have a rental income of thirty-five taels a month, and several hundred taels a year, which was enough for mother and daughter.
The two chatted for a few words in the main room, and then they saw Xiao Wan'er rushing towards her with a smile on her face.
Zhou Yanqing had a sharp eye and quick hands. She picked up the small thing in her arms and raised it high: "Do you miss Uncle Zhou?"
"Think about it!"
The little thing responded loudly, very energetically.
"Uncle Zhou is so happy to hear this. Come on, Uncle Zhou will take you to see what good things Uncle Zhou has brought for our little Wan'er this time."
Then he picked up the small things and walked towards the baskets piled up in the main room.
Zhou Yanqing's servant had moved the carriage and put it there before. Qiao Mingjin had gone to learn how to drive a carriage with Zhou Yanqing, so she hadn't had time to put it away yet.
"Don't bring so many things every time you come. It's another expense. We can't eat so much."
Qiao Mingjin felt a little uneasy and said to Zhou Yanqing.
"It's not worth it. It's not a good thing. It's just food that is used in daily life. This time in the Mid-Autumn Festival, the village sent a lot of meat and vegetables, and there were also a lot of fresh fruits. I couldn't finish them all.
If it's broken, it's a waste if you don't have it. I asked someone to pack some things for you, which are not valuable. Compared with the abacus and pulley you gave to our Zhou family, this is nothing. You can keep it without worry. "
After hearing this, Qiao Mingjin had no choice but to give up. (To be continued. If you like this work, you are welcome to vote for recommendations and monthly votes. Your support is my biggest motivation.) Two pink votes for e", "dy99", "Lao Cao 5", "680722", and "Qianli Qinshu" gave the pink votes. The comment area has been very busy these days. I am very grateful for your strong support, thank you for your comments, and thank you for your long comments from "dearlizzy" and other friends. Xiyu accepts it with an open mind whether it is good or bad, and of course it will be affected to some extent, but with the support of so many people, Xiyu will write it down well. Thank you.
