New ink fragrance in old times

As she spoke, she and Qian Xiufang had already taken out a few cornmeal cakes and corn buns from their backpacks and distributed them to everyone.

Mrs. Lin handed a piece of cake to Lin Mo and said lovingly, "Eat quickly, Sanlang, you look hungry. You've had a hard time on the road, so eat something so that you have the strength to continue on your journey."

Lin Mo took the pancake, looked at Old Mrs. Lin gratefully, and then started eating it in big mouthfuls.

As the food went down his throat, Lin Mo felt as if he had come back to life.

Lin Mo swallowed the last bite of the pancake with satisfaction. His hunger was swept away by the warm food, and he felt his body was full of energy again.

He turned to look at Lin Siyuan beside him, with curiosity glittering in his eyes.

"Brother, why is the gate of the house we just visited so small? It's not even as big as the gate of our yard?" Lin Mo asked in confusion.

Hearing this, Lin Siyuan smiled. He patted Lin Mo's shoulder and explained:

"Sanlang, that's the back door. Generally speaking, the mansions of wealthy families have both front and back doors. The front door is usually the entrance for important occasions such as receiving guests, so it's naturally more grand; while the back door is mostly used for daily chores, servants coming in and out, or transporting goods like us, so it's relatively simple and hidden."

After hearing this, Lin Mo suddenly understood. He nodded and muttered to himself, "So that's how it is. No wonder it looks so inconspicuous."

At this time, Lin Sixuan also joined the conversation and added, "Besides, it's customary for people like us to go in through the back door when delivering food. After all, we're delivering goods, not visiting. Entering through the back door won't disturb the host's normal life, and it also shows that we are sensible and know the rules."

After hearing this, Lin Mo exclaimed, "How exquisite! It turns out there are so many details and tricks behind this."

Lin Mo sat on the ox cart, full of curiosity about the scale of the family's land.

Lin Mo asked, "Doesn't his family have a lot of land? He can make a lot of money every year just from the rent."

Lin Sixuan nodded, a look of admiration on his face. "It's indeed quite a lot, especially in Songjiapo. Nearly 30% of the land belongs to them."

Lin Mo's eyes lit up when he heard this, and he continued to ask, "With so much land, plus the land in the back mountain, wouldn't it be several thousand acres?"

There was a hint of exaggeration in his tone, but more of a shock of the scale of the land.

Lin Siyuan smiled and shook his head, correcting him, "Sanlang, don't let your imagination get the better of you. Although they do have a lot of land, it's not as exaggerated as you say. It's probably only about a thousand acres in total."

Hearing this, Lin Mo scratched his head, looking a little embarrassed: "Oh, so that's the case. I thought their family had thousands of acres of land."

He paused, then asked curiously, "Then Songjiapo wasn't theirs before? So that's why it's called Songjiapo?"

Lin Siyuan explained: "Their surname is Du."

Lin Mo: "So Songjiapo belongs to the Du family, why not Dujiapo?"

At this time, Lin Wenhong interrupted and said, "Songjiapo belongs to the Song family. Back then, the Song family gave nearly 30% of the land in Songjiapo to the Du family."

After hearing this, Lin Mo asked in surprise, "For free? Is the Song family so generous?"

Lin Wenhong nodded, his eyes revealing a sense of emotion for that period of history: "Yes, it was given away for free."

Lin Mo's mind quickly turned over this information, and he asked curiously: "Are they relatives?"

Lin Wenhong shook his head, with a hint of certainty in his tone: "They are not relatives, and the two families have no relationship at all."

Lin Mo asked in confusion: "Is the Song family generous?"

Lin Wenhong smiled and said, "Who knows?"

Lin Mo envied the Du family for owning a lot of land and being able to collect rent easily.

Lin Mo sighed, "Having so much land, not having to farm it myself, and still getting free food every year, this life is really comfortable."

Then he changed the subject: "But the rent is too high, 30%, it's not a small amount."

Lin Wenhong sighed softly after hearing this:

"Sanlang, you're still young and don't understand the ins and outs of this. Here, it's common to pay 40%, 50%, or even 60% rent when renting someone else's land. In comparison, the Du family only charges 30%, which is already quite generous."

When Lin Mo heard this, his eyes widened in surprise: "No way? Doesn't that mean we work hard for a whole year and there's not much food left?"

Lin Wenhong nodded, with a hint of helplessness in his tone:

"Yes, this is the reality. But then again, without these people providing land, many people might not even be able to maintain their basic livelihoods. So, the balance and compromise involved is unavoidable."

Lin Mo was silent for a moment, as if digesting this information.

He thought for a moment and then said, "Looking at it this way, the Du family is pretty good."

Lin Wenhong shook his head, smiled and said, "Sanlang, you are still young. You won't understand many things if you haven't experienced them. The Du family did this not out of kindness, but for their own greater interests."

Lin Wenhong continued, "Sanlang, you must remember that in this world, there is no absolute good or evil, only the game of interests and power."

Lin Mo nodded, not quite understanding. He realized that the world was far more complicated than he had imagined.

At this moment, Lin Mo remembered another thing and continued to ask, "Just now you told the steward that you would help Second Grandpa's family pay taxes tomorrow? But haven't we already paid it all today?"

Mrs. Lin looked at Lin Mo lovingly and explained, "Sanlang, your grandfather did this for his own reasons."

Lin Mo nodded. He wanted to ask more questions, but was interrupted by Lin Wenhong.

"Boss, the food has been delivered successfully. You've been busy for so long. It's time to go back and report for leave. When the sun goes down a little, your mother and I will go back."

Hearing this, Lin Xueqian stood up and dusted himself off. "Alright, Dad. Be careful on the road. I'm leaving now."

Lin Wenhong watched Lin Xueqian leave, then turned to Lin Wenru and said, "Let's go too."

The two men took the backpack from the ox cart and carefully put the extra grain after paying the tax into the backpack.

Lin Wenhong looked up and said to the others, "We're going to run something and we'll be back soon. Everyone wait here for now."

Seeing this, Lin Mo's eyes lit up, and he quickly ran to Lin Wenhong, pulled his sleeve and said, "Grandpa, I want to go too!"

There was a hint of eagerness and curiosity in his words, and it was obvious that he didn't want to miss any opportunity to get to know the world.

Lin Wenhong looked at his grandson's eager eyes and smiled lovingly: "Okay, Sanlang, you can come too."

As he spoke, he patted Lin Mo's shoulder gently, motioning him to follow.

Chapter 79 Bargaining