Farming and reading family

This was the only reason she could think of. The charcoal Gao E had given her was of excellent quality.

"It has some other uses." Gao E didn't say it clearly.

He Tangchun thought that Gao E bought so many mountains at once. If the new county magistrate was corrupt and abused his power, he might really cause trouble and knock some of them down.

"Okay, you send someone to wait there tomorrow. I will send more people to set up boundary markers tomorrow, but it may take three days to set up all the boundary markers on the eleven hilltops." He Tangchun reminded.

"What if I give you some more strong laborers?" Gao E wanted to finalize this matter as soon as possible.

"That day..." He Tangchun felt a little embarrassed. "How much did you give?"

"How many people do you think can complete the erection in one day?" Gao E tried her best to complete it in one day.

"I will send 22 people to command the erection of boundary markers, and you can assign four people to each person. This way, we may be able to finish the erection in one day." He Tangchun made a rough estimate.

"Okay." Gao E agreed directly.

"Where can you find so many people in such a short time?" He Tangchun felt that Gao E agreed too readily.

"I just need to find enough people." Gao E said confidently.

As agreed, Gao E would not accompany Tao Meiyu for lunch, but she could finish this matter tomorrow and see Tao Meiyu off the day after tomorrow. After that, they left He County.

Gao E returned to the village and discussed with her eldest brother first. Baotou Village could provide about 60 people, and Gao E asked Jin Ruyi to find people from Luoyun Village for the rest.

There wasn't much farm work to do at that time, so everyone was happy to go for a day's work or a day's pay.

Chen Qing was a little confused: "Why are they suddenly putting up boundary stakes there? Who wants to buy those hilltops?"

"Yes." Gao E knew that this matter could not be concealed. "I think the mountains and forests there are dense, and you can make a lot of money by cutting wood and burning charcoal."

Chen Qing didn't expect that Gao E was the one who wanted to buy it: "That's what you said, but your brick kiln is already too busy. If you expand the charcoal kiln..."

"It's not about burning charcoal right away. We buy the mountain and take care of it slowly. In years of famine, we can rely on the mountain and have multiple ways to make a living." Gao E said with a smile.

Chen Qing wanted to know how much it would cost to buy so many mountains. Does their family have that much money?

But he couldn't ask this question directly. After all, the second son had separated from the family early, and his wife had always had her own dowry.

"As long as you have thought it through." Chen Qing stopped asking.

Early the next morning, Chen Qing took people to the foot of the mountain to wait, and He Tangchun actually came in person.

He felt that if Gao E continued to buy like this, this area would become her territory.

The sky was a bit gloomy, but it was suitable for climbing. He Tangchun determined the eleven hilltops that Gao E wanted, and then asked people to bury boundary stakes to mark them.

At first he didn't know why Gao E bought this place, but when he walked along the ice surface, he found that there was a large flat land inside, and the valley was relatively flat.

There is a large bamboo forest on one side and a waterfall that flows continuously in winter on the other side. It is a unique place.

No wonder she had to confirm this matter while she was in office. If a rich person took a fancy to this place, she really wouldn't be able to buy it.

Thinking that Gao E had indeed helped them a lot, he was determined to do this for Gao E.

Gao E didn't know that He Tangchun would come in person. She calculated her balance and used the four thousand taels of silver that Tao Meiyun had given her for building the house to make up the total of five thousand taels of silver.

She didn't know what price He Tangchun would set, but five thousand taels of silver should be enough.

When Chen Qing and the others came back in the evening, Gao E found out that He Tangchun had personally supervised the setting up of boundary stakes, and all the boundary stakes were set up that day.

"I looked at the pond. Once the weather gets warmer and the ice melts, it will be troublesome to get in." Chen Qing worried.

Today he went to see the place and thought it was quite good. There was land there that could be used to grow crops, and it would be worth a lot of money if it was developed later.

And there is water there, so there is no need to worry about drought.

"Then we'll see whether to use boats or build a floating bridge." Gao E had already thought about it.

Chen Qing nodded.

At this time, Chen Ke ran back. He had just learned that Gao E wanted to buy eleven hills, so he hurried back to ask what was going on.

"Brother is here too." Chen Ke greeted.

Chen Qing stood up: "I should go back too, you guys chat."

Chen Ke sent Chen Qing to the door before turning back.

"What's the matter, my husband?" Gao E stood up.

Chen Ke sat down and said, "I heard they said my wife wants to buy eleven hilltops?"

Gao E immediately apologized: "I want to buy some property with my own dowry, and I didn't have time to discuss it with my husband."

When Chen Ke heard that it was Gao E's own dowry, he immediately felt a little embarrassed: "I'm not asking about your dowry, but you're already worried enough about the family affairs. I'm afraid that if you buy so many mountains, you won't be able to manage them."

Gao E sat down slowly. "I didn't buy those hills to manage them. I just wanted to build some assets so that my five children would have the confidence to marry off in the future."

Hearing that Gao E was planning for five children, Chen Ke became even more embarrassed: "Then...is there enough money?"

"I was just about to discuss this with my husband." Gao E apologized, "I used the money that Madam He left for building the courtyard."

"I've figured it out. The bricks and tiles must have come from the kiln. Most of the people in the village owe us money for their children going to school. These can all be converted into money."

"We can go cut the timber on the newly purchased mountain. After a few trips, we can use the money to buy the mountain. The strange stones on the Ghost Crying Mountain have also found a market. It is only a matter of time before we make money." Gao E analyzed.

Chen Ke thought so, but those were also Gao E's dowry.

"My lady, just make the plan." Chen Ke wanted to promise Gao E a degree, but he was worried that he couldn't do it. "I have something to do, so I'll go back to the academy first."

He said that and stood up and left.

Gao E walked him to the door and smiled. This was the good thing about Chen Ke: he was quite rigid.

Chen Ke turned back to the school and saw Du Weiqing and Hong Sheng sitting opposite each other, discussing something. They stopped when they saw him coming.

"Why did you come back so soon?" Du Weiqing saw that Chen Ke looked a little depressed.

Chen Ke laughed at himself: "If I come back late, Brother Du will say I'm too talkative."

Du Weiqing laughed. This Chen Ke was more interesting than before. "Brother Chen, aren't you really afraid that your wife will take over all the family business and leave you with nothing in the future?"

Chen Ke sat on a bamboo chair at the side: "My wife is not that kind of person. When she married me, I had nothing. If it weren't for her constant support, I wouldn't be where I am today."

"Yes, I have a good wife at home." Hong Sheng agreed.

Du Weiqing couldn't help but roll his eyes at Hong Sheng: "You call that having a virtuous wife?"

"You don't understand." Hong Sheng said seriously.

The next day, Gao E went to He County early to see Tao Meiyu off.

Tao Meiyu was not in a hurry. It was already noon, but she still had someone slowly counting things.

"What is this?" Tao Meiyu looked at the huge package Gao E handed to her.

"It's a cowhide barrier," Gao E explained. "If you run into a remote place on the road, you can use it to stay overnight."