Renting in Yi Capital

Three days later, outside Yidu City.

The intersection here was noticeably wider, the flow of people coming and going had increased, and the ground was covered in horseshoe prints and deep cart tracks, offering a first glimpse of prosperity.

Song You sat at a stall set up at the crossroads, eating wontons, while the Three Flower Cat crouched right beside his bowl, eating a lump of minced meat Song You had bought for it from the stall owner.

The surroundings were crowded with merchants coming and going, and the voices were noisy.

"Have you heard? The Fog Ghost on that stretch of Liangshui Ao has been eliminated."

"Really or fake?"

"The news was released by the Zhengwei Escort Agency, and the Wu Shan Tea Merchant is also spreading it, saying that that stretch is safe now... The Wu Shan Tea Merchant has a pretty good reputation, not to mention the Zhengwei Escort Agency that makes a living this way. It's utterly impossible for them to lie!"

"Did Nanhua County hire another high master?"

"I heard not. It seems to have been a young gentleman passing by who casually got rid of it. Without stirring up even the slightest commotion, that Fog Ghost was gone."

"Oh my! That's incredible!"

"Even the high masters in Taian Temple might not have this ability!"

"Taian Temple? Taian Temple just has a big reputation and is well-built! How many high masters can there be in this Yidu, and which high master cultivates in the city?"

"That's true too. To find high masters, you have to go outside the city."

"Slurp!"

Song You slurped the piping hot wontons.

With a single bite, the savory flavor of the minced meat and scallions bloomed in his mouth, causing him to involuntarily tilt his head back and narrow his eyes, feeling a long-lost sense of emotion.

Although he had arrived in a relatively backward era, during all these years in the Taoist temple Song You had never treated himself poorly when it came to culinary desires; he had even searched for many ingredients unavailable in his past life to make up for deficiencies in other areas—if he couldn't get chili peppers and tomatoes, he would just get bear paws and giant salamanders.

These past few days he had eaten enough steamed cakes and steamed buns.

"Three Flower Lady, is it delicious?"

"Delicious."

"That's good."

He had promised to take Three Flower Lady to taste the delicacies of different places, yet after a few days she hadn't even eaten meat a few times; he truly felt ashamed.

Those merchants were still discussing him and the Fog Ghost.

Itinerant merchants earned their living by traveling, and whether the road ahead was safe was indeed the issue they cared about most. Mountain bandits were fine, as they only wanted money, but ghosts wanted lives.

Song You was not very interested in this, instead eating while pondering the issue of accommodation in Yidu.

He intended to stay in Yidu for a few months.

First, to pause and rest here, experience the prosperity and culture of the seat of Yizhou Prefecture and the third city in the realm, and visit famous surrounding mountains, scenic spots, palaces, and Taoist and Buddhist temples.

Second, after a while there would be the largest temple fair in all of Yizhou, held annually, which was the most bustling event of all; perhaps he would see something truly wonderful and interesting to him in this world, adding a bit of joy to a boring life.

Buying a horse and mule at the temple fair would also be relatively cheaper.

Then he would need to find a place to stay.

Inns usually focused on long-term stay services; while convenient, the price might not be very pleasant.

Renting a house might be cheaper.

"Slurp!"

Song You finished his last wonton, lifted the large bowl to drink the soup clean, and waited for the Three Flower Cat to finish the minced meat. He scooped up water in the palm of his hand and carefully fed Three Flower Lady until she was full, only then settling the bill and leaving.

A total of twenty wen of coin.

A bowl of wontons cost ten wen, and the stall owner said this lump of minced meat would cost the price of a bowl of wontons, while the plain water after eating wontons was free.

A few more steps brought him to the city gates.

The city gates, built of cyan bricks, were pitted and full of the frost and wind of history.

Military guards stood by the city gate to inspect those entering and leaving, and notices were pasted on the walls, roughly consisting of arrest warrants and declarations of places plagued by demons and ghosts, hoping to find high masters to go and exterminate them.

These proclamations were rather interesting. Among those wanted were no shortage of pugilistic experts and Xuanmen practitioners, and as for those local demons and ghosts, Song You took a look and saw that the rewards for exterminating them were mostly quite generous, but presumably the demons and ghosts written on these notices and pasted here were not so easy to deal with.

In addition, there were many housing agents and idlers waiting here. In this era without navigation, they could provide services such as guiding, odd jobs, and brokering. However, their target clientele seemed to rarely include Taoists, perhaps fearing that Taoists wouldn't pay and would talk to them about karmic affinity; at any rate, none of them crowded around Song You.

Song You walked to the gate, and just as he was hesitating and thinking about finding a housing agent to help him rent a dwelling, he suddenly ran into an acquaintance.

"Sir!"

Turning his head, it was indeed that merchant surnamed Li and his party.

Judging by the looks of it, they seemed to be leaving the city to return to Wu Shan.

"Greetings."

Song You saluted him.

The cat at his feet also stood up on its hind legs, mimicking his appearance to salute the merchant surnamed Li.

Since when had it started? It seemed that after buying small fish for it as a bride-price three days ago, it had begun to occasionally follow Song You's words and actions in learning.

"Oh my!"

The merchant surnamed Li hurriedly returned the courtesy. Seeing the cat saluting at his feet, he was stunned for a moment, then returned the salute again, not daring to ask questions nor to be negligent:

"Has the sir just arrived in Yidu?"

"Delayed on the road for a few days."

"If the sir had arrived a day earlier, we should have hosted a banquet for the sir." The merchant surnamed Li felt deeply regretful, not knowing whether it was true or false.

"If I had arrived a day earlier, we wouldn't have run into each other."

"That's true too!" The merchant surnamed Li was startled again. "I wonder how long the sir will stay in Yidu? Where are you living?"

"I am just planning to look for a housing agent, rent a house, and stay for a short few months."

"There is actually a small courtyard behind our tea shop. Although a bit cramped, if the sir wants to stay for a short few days, he can make do for a bit and save some room rent."

"No need to trouble you."

"I figured the sir wouldn't think much of it either. However, the house agents in Yidu are unfathomably deep. I have a wife's younger brother who also works in this trade in Yidu, and the man is considered honest. If the sir has needs, I will bring him to meet the sir right now." The merchant surnamed Li said with a grin, "At that time, this humble person can also visit the sir again."

"Sorry for the trouble then."

"Please wait a moment, sir!"

The merchant surnamed Li turned and ran off, leading a person over from not far away behind him. Talking and instructing along the way, when they reached Song You's side, the two of them saluted again:

"Sir, this is my wife's younger brother."

"This humble person, Wang Ji, has met the sir."

"Then I entrust this to you."

"I will certainly do my utmost."

Not long after, the merchant surnamed Li and his party left the city once more. On the yellow dirt road, against faint green mountains, the string of figures grew smaller and smaller.

Yet in the distance, merchants and burden-bearers were still continuously arriving.

Song You followed Wang Ji into the city.

Yidu, like most cities in this era, was laid out squarely with horizontal and vertical streets and straight roads, making it hard to get lost except for easily spinning in circles in the small alleys.

Wang Ji indeed looked like a down-to-earth person, leading him to look at several houses, but either the prices exceeded Song You's psychological expectations, or the house quality or surrounding environment truly did not meet Song You's needs.

There was no help for it; urban housing prices in Great Yan were not only the highest of any dynasty, but also exceeded those of the previous dynasty by over tenfold. The main reason was that Great Yan abolished the "Equal Land System", meaning it no longer allocated land and homestead plots to every individual. At the same time, the development of the commercial economy promoted population mobility, and people began to gather toward cities, which caused urban housing prices to welcome what was probably the first surge in history.

At present, a courtyard house inside Yidu City probably cost a starting price of a thousand guan, and rents naturally soared along with it.

Song You was truly helpless and had no choice but to bring up the method his master had taught him: "I wonder if there are any haunted or inauspicious houses in this city?"

When Wang Ji heard this, he was startled and looked him up and down:

"Would the sir not mind such houses?"

"There really are?"

"There really are! More than one set! There are those where whoever moves in gets sick and runs into bad luck, those that ruin one's fortune, and those haunted every single night. Which kind does the sir want?"

"The lowest price."

"This humble person knows of a courtyard house in a quiet neighborhood with convenient grocery shopping. It has the reputation of being haunted, and several households have rented it, but all moved out within a few days. The previous quoted price was a thousand cash a month. If the sir truly has intentions, this humble person will take the sir to see the courtyard first. If you fancy it, it will also count as doing the owner a favor."

"Many thanks."

"Please follow me."

Learning that Song You was coming to Yidu for the first time and also renting a house for the first time, Wang Ji walked and explained some rental regulations to him.

House agents in Great Yan were relatively particular, mainly because renting houses and house agents in Great Yan were strictly controlled by the official authorities. Renting had to go through a house agent, and only contracts passed through a house agent could gain official government recognition. Therefore, every house agent was registered with the government, and commissions were also fixed. The government even introduced many laws to protect the rental market; for example, the principle that sales do not override leases already existed in this era.

In addition, the rental market also featured the Public Housing Bureau, a government agency that controlled housing resources, which was public housing.

What should commoners who came to the city to work, officials arriving at their posts, and students from other places coming to take or prepare for examinations do if they couldn't afford to rent a house? They could rent a house from the Public Housing Bureau.

Many things made Song You feel astonished.

Not astonished that these things existed, but astonished that they already existed right now. Reacting immediately afterward, he felt that his astonishment seemed to carry a kind of superiority and arrogance coming from a more advanced civilization, and this truly should not be, so he couldn't help but fall into reflection once more.

An hour later.

The two men and one cat had arrived in front of a small courtyard.

This courtyard was located in the North City, a relatively valuable road section with booming commerce and convenient water collection.

The courtyard was in the middle of a small alley, with a large tree not far outside the door, under which were stone tables and stone stools for people to enjoy the cool shade. The red paint on the wooden door had faded and grown old, and the trees originally planted in the courtyard stretched their branches and leaves out over the top of the courtyard wall.

At the entrance, passersby seeing a house agent leading someone to view a house all cast strange gazes; it seemed there were indeed some problems.

"The sir has abilities..."

Wang Ji muttered a sentence, as if comforting himself.

The crunch of unlocking had a rustic metallic texture. As he pushed open the front gate amidst a sour creaking sound, the courtyard appeared before Song You's eyes.

"The sir may go inside to inspect."

Wang Ji said, yet stood at the entrance himself.

Song You didn't mind either, nodding as he stepped through the courtyard gate.

It could be seen that the courtyard was originally quite delicate, with plums and bamboos, but having been uninhabited for a long time, the weeds grew deep, and the bamboo grove behind the house had grown into the courtyard itself.

"The homeowner said that if you are willing to rent, the contract can be written for just one month. According to legal regulations, the house rent is paid monthly, starting payment from the sixth day; the first five days are the time given to you to move and tidy up the residence."

Song You paced around the courtyard, turning back to ask:

"And the price?"

"Still a thousand cash a month."

"Settled."

"Alrighty."

Signing the contract, the agreement took effect.

Song You sent Wang Ji away.

As for Three Flower Lady, she looked left and right in the courtyard. Having arrived in a new environment, her heart began to feel uneasy again, sniffing here and smelling there as if having realizations, before suddenly turning her head to ask Song You in a low voice: "Are we living here today?"

"Tomorrow we're living here too."

"What about the day after tomorrow?"

"We'll be living here for a while."

"This house really seems to have a ghost."

"Mm."

"Why do we have to live in a ghost's house?"

"Is Three Flower Lady afraid of ghosts?"

"Three Flower Lady is a Cat God, and Cat Gods aren't afraid of ghosts." The Three Flower Cat followed him, acting like a tail clinging behind. "But this is a ghost's house."

"Because we are short on money, we have no choice but to disturb him."

"I don't know what being short on money is."

"It means not having much money."

"I don't know what money is either."

"It's the thing I use on the road to buy flatbread, steamed cakes, and steamed buns, and also the thing used to buy meat for Three Flower Lady. Buying a house to live in also requires money. If we use a little less money to buy a house, we can have a bit more money to buy fish and meat to eat."

"Oh..."

Three Flower Lady half-understood.

Just as she wanted to ask what to do about the ghost, she saw Song You turn to face the courtyard, execute a bow, and calmly say: "House prices in Yidu are truly high, while we are tight on purse strings, so for some time in the future we have no choice but to temporarily reside here. There are many places where we will cause a disturbance, and I ask you to be magnanimous, sir."

The Three Flower Cat hurriedly followed suit with a bow:

"Please also hy-hy..."

The courtyard was quiet and still, with only the sound of the wind blowing through the bamboo. Evening was approaching, but the sunlight had not yet dissipated, slanting down onto the tiled roof of the courtyard, where stonecrop bloomed like colorful flowers.

Regardless of the weeds filling this garden, this truly was a pretty little courtyard.