You are my golden finger

After breakfast, Lin Xijin had some free time, and didn't want to go out, so she called a few children over.

"Can I teach you how to read? After you learn how to read, you can read storybooks by yourself."

"Okay!" several children answered loudly.

We moved the remaining sand from the house renovation a few days ago, laid a sand table under the shade of the tree in front of the door, took five chopsticks and five small stools from the kitchen, and the kindergarten literacy class mode began.

The first thing Lin Xijin taught was everyone’s name, explained the meaning of the name, and taught them how to write it stroke by stroke.

I have to say that these children are all very talented. Xihui is the fastest learner and has the best handwriting. Xinfeng is also very good. The two girls may be younger and learn a little slower.

The next thing to be taught is the Three Character Classic.

"When humans are born, their nature is good. Their natures are similar, but their habits are far apart..."

The children were reciting the poem enthusiastically when Grandma He and Grandma Liu came over to deliver some newly made clothes. They also came to see Lin Xijin because they were curious about the two children she had picked up.

When Lin Xijin saw the two old people coming, she asked the children to practice calligraphy by themselves. She then quickly welcomed the two old people into the house and took the clothes and put them away.

Grandma Qi also brought tea bowls and poured two bowls of tea for the two old people.

The two old men drank the tea, smacked their lips, and praised the tea for being delicious.

"Grandmothers, this tea is made by frying tea leaves and herbs I picked from the mountains. It is a medicinal tea that can clear the liver, improve eyesight and relieve fatigue. If you like it, take some home and boil it when you go home later."

"How can I do that? It's not easy to go up the mountain to pick these tea leaves and herbs. How can I take them from you?"

"It's okay. I'm a fast walker. It only takes me one or two hours to go back and forth. Don't worry."

The two old men were naturally delighted and really wanted it, so they no longer refused.

When she heard that she had to make pajamas for Xinfeng and Xinlan, she decided not to go home and stayed to work with Qipo.

After chatting with a few elderly people, I checked the literacy of a few children, and they knew it well. I told them to play by themselves and went to the kitchen to make lunch.

Lin Xijin thought about it and decided that since there were eight people, it would be better to make some dumplings. So she took out the wild boar bones and meat from the space and prepared to make dumplings.

First, I stewed a pot of pork bone soup, then kneaded the dough and let it rise, then I chopped the meat, added wild onions and pickled cabbage, and added two spoons of sesame oil. When everything was ready, I started rolling the noodles.

The kids played around with Duoduo for a while, then went back to the kitchen to help. Lin Xijin asked Xihui to watch the fire, Xinfeng to pinch the dough, and the two girls to help make dumplings. At first, they made them ugly, with stuffing leaking everywhere, but Lin Xijin only taught them the technique and didn't stop them. It must be said that girls are naturally skillful, and they made dumplings well in a short while.

There is strength in numbers, and soon the dumplings can be put into the pot.

Lin Xijin first seasoned the soup, then served everyone a large bowl of soup and dumplings. She also served Duoduo some bones and dumplings. Worried that there wouldn't be enough, she cooked another large pot and put it on the table, mixed a bowl of sauce, and placed a jar of vinegar. When everything was ready, she called the three elderly people to the table.

Grandma He and Grandma Liu were stunned when they saw how good the food was. Meat dumplings! Bone soup! These foods may not be available at home during the Chinese New Year!

The simple old man felt embarrassed to eat and quickly got up and wanted to leave.

Lin Xijin couldn't let them go and forced them to sit down.

Grandma Qi sat at the table, wiping her tears and said, "Just listen to Jin girl, sit down and eat! With Jin girl here, good days are ahead. We can eat meat dumplings whenever we want."

When the sweetheart Xijia saw Qipo crying, she considerately stretched out her little hand to wipe her tears.

The two old men couldn't refuse, so they sat down and started eating together.

After eating the dumplings, everyone was satisfied and their mouths were watering.

As it was getting close to evening, the two sets of pullover pajamas were ready, and the two grandmothers went back contentedly, carrying the tea and fruits that looked like wild fruits given by Lin Xijin.

The next day, Uncle Mu Xiong and Master Lu, a bricklayer, arrived as scheduled. Master Lu also brought another person with him and introduced him to her as a Feng Shui master named Chen. Lin Xijin invited the three of them to drink tea and went to look at the house together.

"Miss Lin, in addition to the house, how big a yard do you want?"

"In addition to building houses, we need to leave enough space for building animal sheds, medicine workshops, breweries, martial arts training grounds, and perhaps building some row houses for workers as we add more people to the family in the future."

"If we lay it out like this, it would probably be less than 30 mu, which is not spacious enough. Do you have such a wide area?"

"Master Lu and Mr. Chen, just rest assured to arrange the arrangements. I have bought the land at the foot of the mountain."

Master Lu and Mr. Chen were secretly surprised and kept praising Lin Xijin as a capable person.

The two men were indeed celebrities in the area. They quickly helped her choose a site for building the house, and marked out the area for building a wall and opening a back door for easy access to the back mountain.

Master Lu was also a man of action. He decided to buy building materials in the afternoon and start shipping them tomorrow. In order to speed up the construction, he decided to bring 16 craftsmen to the site and asked the owner to provide breakfast and lunch. The owner would have to hire other laborers himself.

Mr. Chen was fiddling with the compass and asked for the family's birth dates. He calculated and soon decided to start construction the day after tomorrow.

After arranging all this, Lin Xijin presented the red envelope and tea. Master Lu and Mr. Chen had just drunk tea, and intuitively felt that it was the best tea they had ever drunk in their lives. Knowing that this tea was expensive, they were embarrassed to ask for it, and thought that they would ask to buy some after they got to know each other better.

They didn't expect Lin Xijin to be so considerate. They were deeply moved and decided not to take advantage of her anymore and to help her build the house wholeheartedly.

After seeing the two off, he went to the clan leader's house with Uncle Mu Xiong. Lin Xijin decided to go all out and reclaim the hundreds of acres of wasteland at the foot of the mountain while the weather was still warm and everyone was free, and then find a way to ferment some fertilizer so that he could plant herbs and crops next spring.

After explaining their purpose to the clan leader, the three of them discussed hiring a worker.

The patriarch puffed on his pipe and thought for a while.

"Muxiong, how many laborers are needed to build the wall and the house?"

"Around twenty is about right."

"Jin girl, how many people are needed to open up wasteland?"

"It doesn't matter how much you want. Just open it."

After hearing the two's answers, the clan leader had an idea. He said to Lin Xijin, "Jin girl, we will hire 20 laborers to build the house. We will pay them 20 coins a day and provide them with lunch. All the strong laborers in the village can go, one person from each household, 20 coins a day. Once we have produced the required amount, we can stop working and don't worry about food."

"Master, let's increase the wages by five cents. The wages for building houses and clearing land are the same, both are twenty-five cents, but clearing land does not include meals. You and Uncle Muxiong will be responsible for selecting people. From now on, Uncle Muxiong will be in charge of the laborers who build houses, and Master, you will be in charge of the clearing land personnel. I will pay you fifty cents a day and provide you with two meals. Is that okay?"

"No, no, how can we ask you for so much money? We don't want any wages, we just help you manage it."

Lin Xijin secretly sighed at the two men's simplicity.

If it is modern people, they will only complain about the low salary. Even if it is a small management staff, they will confidently ask for several times more salary than ordinary workers.

But these two fools refused even if they were only offered twice as much. Lin Xijin knew the importance of winning over the management team, and she was strong and powerful, so she just wanted someone to help her, not afraid of spending money.

So, despite the two people's refusal, he made the decision himself.

After discussing the matter of hiring people with the two of them, Lin Xijin went to find the clan leader's two daughters-in-law, Aunt Fu and Aunt An, and asked them to help in the kitchen every morning and noon. He also asked Uncle Muxiong to notify Aunt Muxiong to help in the kitchen as well, and then he staggered home.