Chapter 123: The Contracts Have All Been Brought
In the end, after much coaxing and persistence from Wen Yao and Wen Xiuyi, Luo Shi finally stopped insisting on borrowing money. It was, in effect, her silent agreement to let them support the children’s schooling.
That night, after Datou had fallen asleep, the family of three sat down together. Spread out on the table before them was a pile of seeds—chili peppers, sunflower seeds, tomatoes, potatoes, corn, and a bag of mint seeds.
For now, Wen Yao felt that getting these crops planted would solve many of their immediate problems.
Wen Xiuyi rummaged through the pile for a while. “Where are the sweet potatoes? Those are great—filling, can be made into sugar, and have all sorts of uses.”
Wen Yao rummaged briefly, and more than ten sweet potatoes appeared on the table.
“That’s the limit for now. We have to take it slow—we can’t become fat in a single bite.” Otherwise, how would they explain where all this came from?
Wen Xiuyi looked at the table and nodded in satisfaction. “Let’s start with these. You’re right, we shouldn’t draw too much attention. But what are you planting sunflower seeds for?” He grabbed a handful and started cracking them open.
“Oh my gosh, those are for planting!” Wen Yao hurriedly shielded the bag of seeds. “I’ve noticed Grandpa likes cracking seeds, but pumpkin seeds aren’t nearly as tasty as these. And if we scatter them along the courtyard wall, they’ll be edible and pretty. How nice is that?”
Wen Xiuyi snatched them back. “Then just buy another bag.”
Wen Yao rolled her eyes dramatically and pulled out another bag.
“In about a month, our house will be finished. We’ll plant tomatoes and chili peppers in the backyard first. Potatoes, corn, and sweet potatoes—I’ll plant those in the fields. As for the sunflower seeds, Yaoyao, you scatter them along the base of our courtyard wall.” Wen Xiuyi spoke while cracking seeds.
“Fine.” Wen Yao guarded her seeds fiercely.
Wen Xiuyi then asked, “How much money do we have left?”
Wen Yao brought out their savings and laid everything on the table. Wen Xiuyi counted it, then took out thirty taels of silver.
“We’ll give this to your grandma tomorrow.” As for who would go to school and how the money would be allocated, he would leave that for the old lady to worry about.
The remaining money would be enough to finish building the house. As for furniture and other expenses, Wen Yao could simply earn more in the meantime.
The next morning, Wen Xiuyi handed the money to Luo Shi and promptly slipped off to the fields, not even giving her a chance to refuse. Wen Jun had already left early for Jishi Hall, and Wen Yao was picked up by Qiao Yan.
Holding the silver, Luo Shi finally made up her mind and called the two sons and daughters-in-law who remained at home into the room.
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Wen Yao rode in Qiao Yan’s carriage all the way to Qiu Rongrong’s estate. Upon arrival, she realized what a beautiful place it was—lush mountains, clear waters. From a distance, she could see many people working in the fields. Noticing her curiosity, Qiao Yan began acting as her guide.
“All these fields belong to the estate. They were part of Miss’s dowry. The old Madam of the Xie family once tried to replace the estate manager with a relative from the Xie family, but Miss refused. The old Madam gave her plenty of trouble for that.”
Wen Yao clicked her tongue. That certainly sounded like something that lofty old woman would do.
When they reached the entrance of the estate, Wen Yao stepped down from the carriage and saw people unloading items from another cart nearby. One glance—and she burst into a smile.
Qiao Yan followed her gaze. The people over there also noticed them, and a middle-aged man walked over to greet Qiao Yan.
“Qiao Yan, you’re back?”
Qiao Yan curtsied slightly. “Uncle Zhong.”
“And this is?” Uncle Zhong looked at Wen Yao. She looked like a village girl—how was she with Qiao Yan?
Qiao Yan quickly introduced her. “Uncle Zhong, this is Miss Wen, a friend of Miss.”
Uncle Zhong paused in surprise, then hurriedly greeted her. “Miss Wen.”
“No need to be so formal, Uncle. I saw you unloading things. Are those…?” Wen Yao asked, looking at the items she found all too familiar.
Uncle Zhong smiled. “Those are newly purchased plows for the estate. They’re very effective, so we ordered several more. They just arrived today.”
He had barely finished speaking when someone called out from a distance.
“Yaoyao?”
They looked over to see a young man running toward them. “Yaoyao, it really is you! What are you doing here? I thought I was seeing things.”
Uncle Zhong raised an eyebrow. “You know each other?”
Liuzi scratched his head sheepishly. “Uncle, the plows you bought from our family—they were based on the drawings Uncle Wen made for my father.”
This surprised not only Uncle Zhong, but also Qiao Yan.
Wen Yao simply smiled modestly.
“Brother Liuzi, looks like business is booming,” Wen Yao teased.
Liuzi was deeply grateful to the Wen family and especially to Uncle Wen. He nodded repeatedly. “Lots of people have placed orders. Several estates have asked my father to make them. It’s all thanks to Uncle Wen. Oh right, my father said once he’s done with the spring plowing, he’ll personally visit Uncle Wen to thank him.”
If not for Uncle Wen, their family wouldn’t have earned so much from the curved plow, and he himself wouldn’t have had the chance to study. It was a great kindness.
“All right, Brother Liuzi, you get back to work. I still need to see Sister Qiu,” Wen Yao said.
Qiao Yan finally snapped out of her thoughts and quickly led Wen Yao inside.
Liuzi waved goodbye awkwardly and returned with Uncle Zhong to continue checking the goods.
Along the way, Qiao Yan kept sneaking glances at Wen Yao. Wen Yao noticed but remained calm, strolling leisurely while admiring the scenery. Ancient landscapes and courtyards truly had their charm.
When they arrived at Qiu Rongrong’s courtyard, Qiao Yan went in to report her arrival, mentioning what had happened at the gate.
Though Qiu Rongrong didn’t personally manage estate affairs, she had heard that a new batch of plows had greatly improved efficiency. She hadn’t expected them to originate from the Wen family. Her curiosity about them deepened.
She came out to greet her guest and saw Wen Yao sitting in the corridor, swinging her legs and curiously observing the courtyard.
The moment Qiu Rongrong saw her, she felt noticeably lighter.
“Sorry to keep you waiting, little sister.” Then she instructed Qiao Yan and the others, “From now on, when Yaoyao comes, there’s no need to report—just bring her straight in.” She took Wen Yao’s hand and led her inside.
Qiao Yan and the others responded in unison and followed.
Qiu Rongrong seated Wen Yao on a cushioned couch beside a charcoal brazier. The room was warm and cozy.
Wen Yao looked around. As expected—wealthy people really knew how to enjoy life.
“Yesterday happened so suddenly, and there are still many details we haven’t discussed. It’s still early today, and no one will disturb us here. Yaoyao, let’s finalize our cooperation today.” After saying this, she added with a smile, “Look, I’ve even brought the contracts.”
At her signal, Qiao Yan placed a stack of documents on the tea table between them.
