A New Look for the Estate

"We don't know what good fortune we've accumulated to have such a wonderful master. We hope the young lady has a smooth and prosperous life, and lives a long and healthy life. We'll remain her servants and never be sold again."

Everyone felt the same way and nodded in agreement.

The county town was quite far from the village, but the men were reluctant to spend money on a horse-drawn carriage. They walked all the way back.

Fortunately, it wasn't too late, and by the time they reached the village, it was already dinnertime.

"Father, you're back?"

The young man guarding the gate was Qian Buque, the eldest son of Qian Youyu Buque. Seeing his father, he cried out in surprise and ran inside, shouting, "They're back! They're back! My dad and the others are back!"

"That brat." Qian Buque chuckled and cursed, then closed the gate and followed the others inside.

After walking around the main house and going a little further in, down a slope, you can see their estate.

But at that glance, everyone froze.

Originally, the village had a muddy road. Even on sunny days, the road remained muddy from rain. On both sides of the road were rows of low, uneven bamboo fence houses, their thatched roofs moldy and blackened from wind and rain. Coupled with the chickens, ducks, pigs, and sheep raised there, the whole village was permeated with an unpleasant smell all year round.

But what did they see now?

The once muddy road has now been transformed into a wide cobblestone road, large enough to accommodate three or four horse-drawn carriages.

On both sides of the road, rows of houses were built neatly, as if they had been measured with a ruler, all the same in size, shape and orientation. They all faced south, with courtyards in front, hipped roofs with tiled roofs and mud brick walls.

These houses are arranged in two rows, one on the east and one on the west, along both sides of the main road. Each row has three houses. The back row is separated from the front row by a small path, making the houses very neat and tidy.

"This, this..." Shuanzi said to Dazhu, "Pinch me and see if I'm dreaming."

Dazhu was still in a daze when he heard what Shuanzi said, and he pinched Shuanzi hard without any politeness.

"Ouch..." Shuanzi gasped in pain, but instead of getting angry, he grinned and laughed, "Haha, it hurts, it's not a dream, it really isn't a dream."

It was dinnertime, and everyone was at home. Thanks to Qian Youyu's tip-off, those who heard the news came out of their houses.

Then you see a group of men standing dumbfounded at the village entrance.

Seeing Qian Duoduo, Qian Duoduo's pride immediately overshadowed her concern and worry for her two sons, and she smiled at the men, "What's wrong? Don't you recognize your home?"

Qian Buque stepped forward. "Father, this, this..." He pointed to the house, "How come the house is already built in just two months? And didn't you say at the time..."

He didn't finish his sentence, but everyone in the village knew what he wanted to say.

When Zhao Ruxi initially offered to provide timber on credit for building houses, two factions emerged in the village.

One group was overjoyed and immediately began making mud bricks and cutting stones; the other group, however, worried that they would not be able to repay their debts and would be sold off, so they preferred to live in low houses rather than go on credit.

Take Granny Li for example. They don't have any able-bodied men in their family. The only ones who can work are her daughter-in-law and her twelve-year-old grandson. They have difficulty supporting themselves and have no ability to pay off their debts, so they don't plan to build a new house.

At that time, Qian Duoduo told Steward Zhou about the matter. Steward Zhou asked the girl, and the girl said that those who were willing to pay on credit could do so, and those who were not willing should not be forced. However, the construction of the house should be carried out according to her plan.

So half the people in the village planned to build houses, while the others did not want to change the status quo.

But now all the old houses have disappeared, replaced by tall mud-brick houses.

"Haha, see that? This is our house." Qian Duoduo pointed to the first row of houses and laughed, "We were the first to build. The others will follow after we finish. But those who were hesitant changed their minds as soon as they saw how nice our houses were."

"Once most people had moved into their new houses, even the most reluctant ones wavered. Steward Zhou then told everyone that the young lady would encourage them to earn more money and wouldn't press them to repay their debts, so everyone in the village built new houses."

"This is wonderful!" Qian Buque exclaimed, gazing at the house. "The young lady is such a kind person."

"By the way." As the head of the estate, Qian Duoduo was most concerned about the safety of these people.

He asked, "Did you all get back safely? Did anything happen on the way?"

"They've all returned safely. There were some hiccups on the way, but nothing serious," Qian Buque said.

While the father and son were talking, everyone else met with their relatives, and they were all explaining the situation regarding the house.

Hearing that everyone was safe and sound, Qian Duoduo felt a sense of relief.

Seeing his wife and daughters-in-law come out, he quickly called to his two sons, "Come on, come inside. I'll ask your mother to cook a few more dishes so we can celebrate."

When Qian Buque and Qian Bushao entered their new house, they saw that the front yard had been rammed solid and was perfectly flat. From the yard, the house looked even taller, and the two gates looked very impressive.

Entering through the door, there is a hall in the middle, with two side rooms on each side, all of which are very spacious, bright, dry and comfortable.

Qian Duoduo pointed to the other two houses and said, "Those two are yours, one for each of you."

Both Qian Buque and Qian Bushao exclaimed in surprise, "We have that too?"

Because the original bamboo fence house was too low and small, and they got married, they each built a bamboo fence house outside, which meant they separated from their parents.

They thought they would be sharing this large house with their parents. They never imagined they would have their own.

"Didn't you tell me before you left that the girl promised you a monthly allowance of ten taels of silver? Building this house didn't cost much; the stones for the foundation were quarried on the mountain beforehand, and the mud bricks were made by yourselves. The only expenses were the wood for the house and the meals provided during construction."

"I thought, the young lady is kind and righteous; since she promised so much silver, she will surely give it to you. With so much silver, it would be best to build two more houses. That way, when you have more children, they will have enough room to live."

Overwhelmed with excitement, the two brothers put down their luggage and ran out to see their house.

They returned after a while and asked, "Father, why did you build a house like this?" It was completely different from the houses they usually saw.

"I originally planned to build a total of seven rooms: three main rooms and two rooms each in the east and west wings. Your two families would share a courtyard with us. But after the girl found out, she told me about this type of house. Compared to what I originally planned, this type of house uses less material, has more rooms, is taller, and is warm in winter and cool in summer—it's the most cost-effective."