A bargain estate

Zhou Wanwan smiled and said, "This is a thousand taels of silver. Do I look like I'm joking?"

The broker quickly and respectfully said, "You want a restaurant? We do have one. Shall I take you to see it?"

Fang Yazi led Zhou Wanwan and the others around the street corner, and they stopped in front of an extremely grand building not far away.

This restaurant is at least five stories high, the broker explained:

"Miss, I won't beat around the bush with you, I'll tell you the truth."

This five-story restaurant was only completed a few months ago; the previous owner had invested a lot of money in its construction.

All you need to do is hire staff and cook, clean up the place, and you can open for business immediately.

Fang Yazi continued:

"The former owner had high ambitions and wanted to build one of the top restaurants in the city. From site selection and material preparation to hiring craftsmen for construction, it took more than half a year of effort."

We've built this building to be large and impressive, and we're just waiting for the opening date.

But despite having everything prepared, the problem arose with the ingredients, especially the fresh vegetables.

Recently, vegetable fields have been hit by successive disasters, resulting in a significant reduction in vegetable production. As a result, cheap seasonal vegetables are scarce in the market.

Even the most common vegetables like bok choy, cabbage, potatoes, and radishes are scarce, and when they are available, the prices are outrageously high.

"It's only been open for a month, and the owner says he's already lost several hundred taels of silver and can't keep going."

Zhou Wanwan looked around and found that the shop's location was quite good, right across from the previous shop.

She asked, "How much does this shop cost?"

The broker made a five-pointed hand gesture and said:

"Five thousand taels of silver can buy the shop, but I've already made it clear beforehand that we must have vegetarian dishes in our business here."

If you can't find vegetarian dishes, I advise you not to start this business.

This broker is quite conscientious; of course, this is the result of Zhou Wanwan's careful inquiries.

Zhou Wanwan asked about every single plant in the city before finally choosing this house eaves.

She thought for a moment and said:

"Then let's sign the contract! Get these formalities done for me."

I'd like to buy a few more estates. Do you have any suitable ones?

The broker blinked and said, "Would you like to sign with me, or would you like your parents to sign with me?"

"I'll sign it, I'll sign it myself." Zhou Wanwan directly paid with five 1000-tael silver notes.

The slave trader swallowed hard and said:

"Regarding Zhuangzi, I'll choose one that's closer to home for you, is that alright?"

I own more than ten estates, but I think these two are the most worthwhile.

One is nearby, and the other, though a bit far, is very large.

Moreover, there is a mountain nearby, and the mountain is very rich in resources.

I think this is the best fit for you, but of course, it also depends on your financial situation. If your financial situation is limited, then forget it.

Zhou Wanwan looked at him and said, "Take me to see it!"

Fang Yazi introduced Zhou Wanwan along the way:

"Miss, let me tell you the whole story first."

Most of the fields in our area are sandy, with coarse soil particles that cannot retain water; this is what is commonly referred to as desertified land.

Common green vegetables and delicate vegetables like cabbage are difficult to germinate after planting.

Even if they manage to grow, they are thin and weak, with pitifully low yields and poor taste.

This is also the reason why vegetables are so expensive in the city and there is hardly any supply at all.

If you want to buy a farm to grow crops, you must pay close attention to the soil quality and carefully select a farm.

Today I've specially taken you to see two different villages, so you can have a comparison in mind.

If you find it agreeable, then we can discuss the sale. The first estate is close to the city and is located in this area.

The group arrived at the first village after riding in a carriage that took the time it takes to burn an incense stick. The village looked quite tidy.

But the soil on the ridges of the fields was definitely not right. The soil on the ground was a light yellow color, and if you grabbed a handful, you could see that there were more sand grains and less fine soil. This was exactly what Fang Yazi called desertified land.

Fang Yazi walked along the ridge of the field and said:

"The advantage of this estate is its proximity to the city, making it convenient to transport goods back and forth; the place is truly spacious."

However, the downside is also obvious: the land is severely desertified, making it difficult to grow crops other than some extremely drought-resistant, soil-tolerant coarse grains and beans.

Vegetables are practically impossible to grow; the land is barely enough to feed the people, let alone supply vegetables to restaurants in the city.

Zhou Wanwan squatted down and heard the vegetables in the field say, "Why do you have to plant us in this damned land? We don't like this environment."

The cabbage next to him nodded and said, "We really like it, but the people here are so stupid, they only plant a little bit each time."

The carrot next to him sighed and said:

We really love this environment!

But the people here prefer to grow leafy greens—those bok choy, spinach, chives, celery—which of them would like this kind of environment?

The cabbage shook its head and said, "We cabbages also really like this environment. Don't we look especially good?"

Zhou Wanwan finally understood that the people in this manor simply didn't know how to manage it.

They plant leafy vegetables all day long, but the problem is that none of those leafy vegetables are suitable for surviving in sandy soil.

Zhou Wanwan had many seeds suitable for sandy soil. Looking at Fang Yazi, she asked, "How much are you planning to sell this estate for?"

The broker thought for a moment and said:

"The initial plan was to sell it for three thousand taels, but the price was gradually reduced."

Because no one was willing to take over the estate.

Now it only costs 1,200 taels of silver.

Zhou Wanwan looked at him and said, "You mean, 1200 taels of silver is enough to buy this estate?"

The broker nodded and said:

"Yes, if you're willing, I can help you complete the formalities today."

"And the people in the village, if you want, they also have indenture contracts."

Zhou Wanwan started chatting with the vegetables again. "What are the people in this village like? Who are honest? Who are dishonest?"

The vegetable pointed and said:

"These 12 families are all honest people, while those 5 families are all bad people who steal chickens and dogs all day long."

Many things in the village were secretly sold off by these five families.

A jujube tree nearby also spoke up:

"Yes, yes, those five families are no good; they're always stealing chickens and dogs."

The people in our village used to be able to eat their fill, but ever since these five families came, they've secretly sold off a lot of vegetables and poultry.

The entire estate is now operating at a loss, and the owner has never managed it properly.

Zhou Wanwan understood what was going on, and she was just about to tell the broker about the indenture.

Then an old lady came out and said:

"Is this the young master who bought our estate?"

Young master, we are very obedient. We will do whatever you ask us to do.

Please buy us! We have no other ambitions than to have food to eat.