The happy little days of the Ye family

The night before, Tang Xiaojing and Ye Qingqing had just counted the silver in their hands. Adding the 150 taels given by Tang Shan, they had 538 taels of silver in their hands.

Tangshan, however, had saved 236 taels of silver in the past few years and took out 150 taels, leaving only 86 taels of silver on hand.

The two originally wanted to buy a smaller house, and with the odd bits and pieces such as tax deeds, red deeds and commissions, 400 taels should be enough.

In this way, there are still 138 taels of silver left on hand, which will not affect their family's life.

The prices of houses seized by the government are sky-high, and it is difficult to bargain. The 456-tael mansion has exceeded their expectations.

Including taxes, red deeds and commissions and other odds and ends, it is estimated to be about 480 taels.

If they buy this house, the two of them will only have 58 taels of silver left.

Although there are many ways to make money at home, without money, I always feel uneasy.

Ye Qingqing pulled Tang Xiaojing's sleeve, and Tang Xiaojing patted his wife's little hand understandingly.

"This house is good, but the price is too high. How can ordinary people like us afford a house worth 456 taels." Tang Xiaojing said.

Seeing Tang Xiaojing's resolute attitude, Lin Kang felt half cold. If it was because of the price, he really had no choice.

"The price of the sealed house was already half a percent cheaper, and the prices are all recorded. At most, it can only be a fraction of a cent, 450 taels of silver."

Naturally, you have to shop around when buying something. I only looked at two houses, so there was no need to make a decision so quickly.

Ye Qingqing asked again: "Uncle Lin, are there any other smaller houses here?"

"Yes, are there any other houses? This is a few hundred taels of silver, not a few hundred coins, so I have to look at a few more." Mrs. Ye on the side also helped.

The Tang family has a small population, so Mrs. Ye doesn't need to spend so much money on a big house. It would be good to buy a cheap small house.

"This is the second house I'm looking at. Don't be in a hurry. Buying a house is a big deal and we have to discuss it."

Mother Ye felt that this big house was too expensive, and it would probably cost the Tang family all their savings.

Whether it's a rabbit shed, a pigsty or the family's field, the two families' assets are almost the same.

Although the Ye family did not deliberately inquire about the Tang family's financial situation, they could roughly estimate how much money the Tang family could save in a year.

Tangshan hesitated a little, indicating that he could afford this house. Mother Ye and Mrs. Ye estimated that the Tang family should have five or six hundred taels of silver.

You can buy it if you can, but it’s still not safe after all.

The two have been married for half a year and are expected to have children soon. After you are pregnant with a child, you definitely cannot do embroidery every day.

I will have to raise children in the future. Raising children is not easy, and it won’t be possible if your family’s financial resources are drained.

The mother-in-law and daughter-in-law thought more carefully and did not agree with the Tang family spending their wealth to buy a big house.

Lin Kang and others were shaken, and quickly added: "There are not many houses near the academy, and we rarely buy takeout. It is rare to find one."

"The first house is relatively affordable. You can buy it for more than 300 taels. And it is close to mountains and rivers, so it is most suitable for scholars to live."

"The second house is a bit more expensive, but it's really nice. It's close to the academy, and it has everything in it. The furniture inside alone is worth dozens of taels of silver."

"Manager Lin, buying a house is a big deal. Let's discuss it later." Father Ye, who had been silent until now, said.

He's not stupid either. How can he buy a house worth a few hundred taels on a whim?

No matter what, you should inquire about the situation of the house and see who the neighbors are.

It doesn't matter how nice the house is if you are surrounded by caressing shrews or domineering and evil people.

It's not easy for him to make money. He spent three to four hundred taels of silver to buy an undesirable house. Father Ye would not do such a loss-making business.

Lin Kang asked again: "Uncle Ye, Aunt Ye, what is the approximate price of your first house?"

"Everyone should also open the skylight and speak frankly. If you give me a real price, I can go back and discuss it with the Xiao family."

Old Mrs. Ye began to cry about poverty, "We are just ordinary farmers in the village. We don't have much money. We only have 300 taels of silver at home."

Lin Kang looked at Old Mrs. Ye with a troubled expression, "Aunt Ye, 300 taels of silver is probably unlikely. At most, it can only be around 330 taels."

Lin Kang did not finish his words and left some room for himself.

Mrs. Ye's expression was very dissatisfied, "If you think about it carefully, this house is actually not that good. It's on the outermost edge here, too far from the academy, and it's sparsely populated. I don't know if it's safe or not."

Father Ye was also critical, "Everything in the house has been emptied. If you want to move in in the future, you will have to spend a lot of money to buy things."

"The house is not small. It costs dozens of taels of silver to arrange all the things. It is time-consuming and money-consuming."

Lin Kang is also a good person, so he naturally knows that the Ye family has picked out so many problems because they want to bargain. If they are willing to bargain, it means they are still interested in this house.

Lin Kang said cheerfully: "I will go back and discuss with the Xiao family first to see if the price can be reduced."

Then he walked to Tangshan and said, "I will also go back and ask about this big house to see if there is any way to lower the price."

Lin Kang also knew that these people would definitely discuss it privately, and asked about the situation of the house, so he went back first.

The group of people led the ox cart around the two houses and asked the children and women nearby for news about the houses.

Everyone nearby knew about the Xiao family's affairs and the seizure. It didn't take long for them to inquire about the situation of the two houses, which was not much different from what Lin Kang said.

In the outermost house, there were indeed two masters living nearby, but they were a little far away. And the Xiao family's youngest son did pass the Tongsheng examination.

Moreover, the nearby houses are far away, so there is no neighborhood concern.

As for the big house, it is surrounded by people who are relatively respectable in the county and buy it for their children to study in.

Tangshan calmed down and thought about it carefully. It seemed that it would not be good for them, ordinary people, to mix among these rich people.

In fact, there are dormitories in the academy, but only a dozen or so people live together. Most families with average conditions live in the academy.

The accommodation conditions in the academy are definitely not good. More than a dozen people are crowded into a small room, with little food and sleep.

People with some wealth buy houses or rent houses nearby.

Several people also asked if there were any other houses for sale nearby, but unfortunately there were none.

After walking around for a while, it was already past the time to eat, and everyone was so hungry that their stomachs kept growling.

Mr. Ye said, "Let's have lunch and sit down to discuss it."

The academy is the center here. Many houses are built around the academy, and the center is naturally the academy.

There is a South Street near the academy, which has restaurants as well as various shops and stalls.

A few people randomly found a small noodle shop and sat down.

Ye Qingqing looked at Ye's father and Ye's mother, "Mom and dad, are you planning to buy your first house?"

Father Ye looked at the old couple again out of habit.

Old Mrs. Ye did not express her position, but said cheerfully: "Now you and Xiu Xiu are in charge of the family. You can make your own decisions."

The old couple did not object. Father Ye and Mother Ye probably knew what they meant.

Father Ye expressed his opinion, "The house is indeed not bad, the surrounding area is relatively clean, and it should be suitable for scholars to live in. If the price can be lowered, it will be good."

Mother Ye had some concerns, "How about looking at a few more houses? More than 300 taels is not a small amount."

But now that Tangshan has calmed down, he doesn't like the big house that much anymore.

There are only three people in the Tang family now. Even if the children are added, the house will be too big for the whole family to move in in the future.

And you have to keep some money on hand.