"That's all. It's just that we are farther away from each other. It may take some time to walk."
Yaren nodded repeatedly and said that he still had four or five houses on hand, and he would guarantee that they would find one they were satisfied with.
"Aling, why don't you go back to the inn and drive Dahei over? It would be more convenient to have a mule cart."
Zhuang Keqing suggested that it would be fine if Yaren fell into the car easily, and then his assistant Xiao Lin volunteered to go back and drive the car.
After getting on the mule cart, we went to see the hospital.
The official school is located in the north of the state capital and occupies a large area. Several people drove a mule cart and happened to pass by in front. They saw a huge plaque above the wide painted red gate with the four words "Qinjinzhou School" written on it.
The surrounding walls are high and deep, with only a few thin bamboo branches peeking out from inside, which makes it even more transcendent and quiet.
Passing by Zhouxue, Yaren led the way and continued forward. When we reached the alley residential area, we found the courtyard we wanted to see this time.
The name of the alley is Anping Lane, which is only a quarter of an hour away from the Prefecture School. According to local people, most of the people living nearby are scholars. Many wealthy households in the townships and counties below the Prefecture capital have rented yards here for their juniors to study.
Zhuang Keqing raised his head and looked around. The alleys here are quiet and quiet, and the environment is really good. Let's go and see the house.
The tooth man got the promise and half of his worries were relieved.
She originally thought that this family was not very well-dressed. Although she was a scholar, she probably didn't come from a run-down village and she probably didn't have much money. But the young lady agreed and wanted to see the house without any hesitation on her face.
Hesitantly, I thought I still had some foundation when it came to coming home.
The mule cart stopped at a gate, and the Yaman unlocked the door and entered. Zhuang Keqing saw a huge Five Blessings screen wall right in front of him. After walking around, he entered the house neatly.
"The girl has really good taste."
Yaren followed, and when he saw that there were three people in the group, and that this girl was the one who made the decision in everything, he immediately opened his mouth to come.
"This yard has been rented for many years, and there are even two great masters in it. The feng shui is excellent. If you live here, it will be a matter of time before your husband goes to high school."
Zhuang Keqing just listened to the compliments, walked around the yard, and then went into the house to take a look.
The room is fully equipped with beds, tables and chairs, all are clean and tidy, and the owner looks very organized.
"How can I rent this yard?"
"That's what I told the girl before, thirty taels of silver a year."
It's not expensive, and the place is clean. It's very suitable for Aling to study.
It was just now that she had visited the first house, and it always felt a bit too hasty for her to make a decision like this.
"Well, are there any others? Let's take a look."
Yaren was a little disappointed, and couldn't help but mutter a few words in his heart, just pretending, but he still looked attentive and considerate.
"Yes, yes, but it's only two-quarters of an hour away from the academy. It's still a bit far if you walk."
"But since your husband is here for the eldest master, of course he has to choose a quiet place. Others are not as good as here. They are all much noisier."
The tooth man still wanted to persuade me.
"It's okay, let's go and have a look."
The scholar, who had been silent until now, spoke openly. The tooth man did not dare to say any more, he just pointed in the direction and asked the waiter to catch the car.
After exiting Anping Lane, we walked forward and passed two intersections before arriving at the alley where the next courtyard is located.
It is indeed very lively here. Before entering the alley, you can hear the vendors shouting and haggling.
"Hey, look here, most of the people living here are doing business. It's noisy during the day, but it's better than the place just now..."
When they got here, Yaren continued to chatter in Zhuang Keqing's ear without giving up. However, Zhuang Keqing didn't react at all, but Shen Ling just shrugged, shocking Yaren into silence.
The scholar's eyes are cold, and he doesn't have the gentle temperament of a scholar. It's really scary!
After that, Yaren didn't dare to talk nonsense anymore. He just led the person to the back alley, opened a small locked wooden door and stepped aside.
Zhuang Keqing entered the door and walked around briefly, and realized that this courtyard was the layout of a front store and a back room. The previous tenants were probably in the catering business, and the space left by the front store occupied one-half of the entire yard.
This is not bad.
Zhuang Keqing became a little interested.
She had originally planned to find a business in the state capital. If she could live in a courtyard like this, it would save her the trouble of running in both directions.
It's just that it's a bit noisy here, so it's not suitable for Aling to study.
Shen Ling was keen and intelligent. When he saw the hesitation on Zhuang Keqing's face, he could tell what she was hesitating about after thinking about it carefully, so he spoke out.
"Ke'er, I usually study at the official school. You can just choose the one you like when renting a school."
This is quite...
Zhuang Keqing heard what he said and felt it made sense.
Aling went to school during the day, and when he came back in the evening, all the vendors on the street had closed their stalls, and there wasn't necessarily much noise.
"There is also a well in this courtyard. From now on, we don't have to buy water on the street. It's very convenient."
Yaren held back his words for a long time, but finally couldn't hold it back and said something bold, meaning that if you have a well, the price will be higher.
Zhuang Keqing didn't care about the money, so he only took a closer look at the house and yard.
The yard is quite big. On the far right is the toilet, next to a shed. It must have been neglected for a long time, and the straw on it is all in pieces, floating all over the yard.
The kitchen is on the left side of the main house. Not far from it is the well, which is covered with a wooden cover. There are three rooms, which are enough for living. The tables and chairs inside are old, there is not even a wooden bed, and the windows have Some mottled.
Without a lot of effort in repairing it, it would be uninhabitable.
Zhuang Keqing made a plan in his mind, and then focused on the part of the shop built in front. The space inside was quite enough, and if it was properly arranged, it could still hold two or three small tables.
"How can I rent this house?"
"Look, girl, although this house is a bit noisy, it has everything in it, including a well. Of course, the price is not low."
The Yaren have been in this business for a long time and have become experts. One look at the other party's expression and he knew that he liked this family very much, so he emboldened himself to make an offer.
"Twenty taels of silver a year."
"But the landlord said that if you rent it for a long time, it can be cheaper."
"How much cheaper is that?"
"It only costs eighteen taels a year if you rent it for three years."
Zhuang Keqing smiled and said nothing, just said to have a look again, and then made a gesture to leave.
Yaren was anxious and stretched out his hand to stop him.
She still has a few houses in her hands, but they are all too far away. One house is even in the south of the city. If the negotiation with this house fails, it will probably be difficult to get a deal later.
"Don't worry, girl, it's all easy to discuss!"
"How to negotiate? How much cheaper can it be?"
Zhuang Keqing stopped being reserved this time and asked directly.
Yaren looked around at the dilapidated yard, gritted his teeth and said, "Just seventeen taels, how about seventeen taels a year?"
"How about repairing the roof, rebuilding the shed, and replacing the furniture?"
These words left Yaren speechless.
Indeed, at first glance, this house looks okay, but if you look closely, you can see that it has broken tiles and broken walls. There are still some places in the house that leak when it rains heavily. It will take at least seven more to clean it up so that people can live in it. It takes eight taels of silver to fight.
"This, this..."
Yaren was a little hesitant. If he quoted a lower price again, he would not be able to make any extra money in the process.
"Then let's look at something else."
Shen Ling spoke in a calm tone, turned around, helped Zhuang Keqing along, and was about to step out of the house.
Seeing that there was really nothing to talk about this time, Yaren could only say cruelly: "Sixteen taels, sixteen taels a year, really can't be any less!"
"Look at how lively this area is. It's not too far away from the official school. It's also convenient for doing business. There's a well in the courtyard."
Shen Ling raised his eyes, but his not sharp gaze made Yaren's originally strong voice get lower and lower.
"Master Xiucai, I don't dare to trick you, I really can't do anything less..."
"Aling, how about it? Is it right here?"
Zhuang Keqing also felt that Yaren had given him the actual price, but two streets away, the price was almost half cheaper. Although he had to spend some money on decoration, it was not expensive.
"Well, it's all up to you."
Shen Ling responded with a faint smile on his face.
Then it was decided.
The first two years of payment amount to a total of thirty-two taels of silver, and I will give you a commission of one tael of silver. Afterwards, you will need to pay for the repairs of the house and the purchase of household items, which will be enough for fifty taels.
On the way back to the inn, Xiao Lin, the innkeeper, was driving ahead. He couldn't help praising Zhuang Keqing for his greatness, saying that he was worried that they were being deceived by the Yaren. Who would have thought that the other party was actually being manipulated to death, and in the end he was like this The lowest price is out of the yard.
"I'm not the only one who's great. It's because our talented minister is so good at playing hard to get!"
Why didn't Zhuang Keqing know that Shen Ling's behavior just now was for Yaren to see? It was like a mirror in his heart.
"Play hard to get?"
Xiao Lin didn't understand what this meant, he just scratched his head and laughed and continued driving.
As for Zhuang Keqing, who was sitting on the mule cart, he only felt the secret joy that the two of them had done bad things together.