You are unlucky and I am tough

Cheng Shuang held up an umbrella and looked out. "That piece of land looks much larger than what we need. If you add the artificial lake in front, it's probably twice as big."

"About the same," Xie Zhiyou said, "It's because the place is so large and the government insists on selling it as a whole, so it hasn't been sold yet."

"Although this isn't the city center, nor the bustling West District, the location isn't bad," Wei Qinglang said, surveying the surroundings. "Even if a place like this is expensive, there's no shortage of wealthy people in the city. How could it be left so desolate?"

"Yeah." Cheng Shuang was also a little confused. "Is there some reason?"

"You two guessed correctly." Xie Zhiyou smiled, standing by the lake with his hands behind his back. "That house was the residence of Prime Minister Huo, a powerful and corrupt official from the previous dynasty. He was from Dongzhou, extremely wealthy, with businesses and family members spread across Daliang. His parents and two younger brothers used to live here."

"Twenty years ago, after Prime Minister Huo fell from power, all nine of his clans were executed, and all of his property was confiscated. It took several years just to liquidate his assets. Not only his property, but also the Huo family's cronies and even business associates were liquidated."

"I was still young at the time, but I still remember how those merchants who had business dealings with the Huo family trembled with fear and begged for mercy and distanced themselves from the family during those years."

"It was only seven years ago that the Cangcaosi posted a price notice for this piece of land and allowed it to be traded. However, even after more than ten years, many merchants in the city are still unwilling to get involved with the Huo family.

Plus, the land is so large and expensive that most people can't afford it. Those who can afford it don't know what to do with it, so it hasn't been sold in seven years."

"The government also knows that this piece of land is difficult to sell, so a year ago, the Ministry of Warehouses spread the word that if anyone takes it over, the artificial lake in front will be given away for free."

"Such a big lake...are you really giving it away for free?" Cheng Shuang's eyes lit up when she heard this. This free area is quite large.

Xie Zhiyou nodded. "The lake is extremely deep, so building a house on the water or filling the lake is extremely difficult. So, although several people came to look at it this year, no deal was made in the end."

After hearing this, both of them fell into deep thought. Cheng Shuang crossed his arms and touched his chin. The land opposite was enough to build a restaurant. The lake could be used as a natural landscape. It would only cost a little more money to build a water corridor.

They run a restaurant, and a beautiful view will attract more customers.

Moreover, this lake is connected to a branch of the Luo River and has running water with good water quality, so lotus flowers can be planted there in the future.

"Brother Xie, let's take a walk first. I wonder where we can go and take a look." Wei Qinglang suggested.

Xie Zhiyou nodded and said to the person sent by Cang Caosi to follow him, "Could you please lead the way? We want to take a look around before going up."

The young man nodded and took the three of them for a walk around the area.

This piece of land is artificially built and surrounded by water. The back is quite close to the shore, only about ten feet away, but the wall is very high and you can't see what's inside at all. There is also a busy street not far away.

The young man led them to a moss-covered stone bridge, connected to a door. It was obvious that this was the back door used by the servants of the house in the past.

The young man went over first, used the key to open the locked door, and then the three of them crossed the bridge and went in one by one.

As soon as he stepped into the door, the damp and musty smell mixed with the scent of grass and trees hit him in the face. Cheng Shuang couldn't help but cover her mouth and nose with her sleeves.

The young man who led the way was quite familiar with the place. He led them out from the weed-covered bluestone road, through the dilapidated corridor, and directly to the front yard, and then let them go in through the hallway to see for themselves.

The three of them looked around together. The yard was full of stubbornly growing weeds. Some wild wormwood plants had even grown to waist height. The broken rockery was half buried in the weeds, and the rocks were covered with dark green moss.

The house as a whole was relatively intact, but the window paper was torn and tattered gauze curtains hung on the carved window frames.

Pushing open the creaking door, I saw that the room was covered with dust an inch thick, cobwebs were thick in the corners, and the furniture was already riddled with holes from insects.

On the steps of the front hall, most of the exquisitely carved railings were missing, revealing the blackened wooden core inside. The brackets under the eaves were covered with cobwebs, which trembled slightly in the breeze.

"Be careful." Wei Qinglang pulled Cheng Shuang behind him and reached out to push aside the hanging unknown vines.

Entering the central courtyard through the moon-shaped gate, the scene is even more desolate. Only one-tenth of the railings of the corridor remain, and the painted roof is peeling and mottled.

A cornice had collapsed completely, leaving a layer of broken tiles on the brick floor. The pond in the courtyard had long since dried up, its bottom thick with rotten leaves.

"This place must have been incredibly luxurious back then." Xie Zhiyou used his folding fan to push aside the cobwebs blocking his path and pointed at the faintly visible mosaic tiles on the floor. "Look at the pattern. It's a style popular in the imperial court of the early Qing Dynasty."

After looking at the interior, the three of them went out through the main gate. Looking across the lake, they saw green willows drooping low, pedestrians walking slowly with umbrellas, houses and buildings arranged in an orderly manner, and shop signs swaying in the drizzle and breeze.

If the old house on the ground floor is demolished and a restaurant is built, the view from the high-rise building will be better.

"Mr. Xie, what is the asking price of this piece of land from the government? If you can afford it, let's choose this one." Cheng Shuang felt quite satisfied and asked the price.

Xie Zhiyou had already learned the price before coming. He looked at the two of them and said, "The house on the ground has been abandoned for too long and is completely ruined, so this is just the price of the land. It's twelve thousand taels, and the price is clearly stated by the government."

Cheng Shuang sucked in a breath of cold air. It was really true that every inch of land was worth a lot of money. However, if both sides formed a partnership and each paid half, it was still within her affordability.

Cheng Shuang looked at Wei Qinglang, "How about choosing this piece of land?"

It will take time to build a building, and I don’t want to waste time choosing and choosing, and this place is indeed suitable.

Wei Qinglang naturally listened to her and looked at Xie Zhiyou, "I have no objection. What about you, Brother Xie?"

"Do you really want this place?" Xie Zhiyou said with a smile, "If we buy this piece of land, it will attract a lot of attention even before our restaurant is built."

Wei Qinglang asked, "Are there any remaining issues with this piece of land? Will there be any trouble if I buy it?"

"Of course not, otherwise I wouldn't have brought you to see it."

"That's all right." Wei Qinglang said with a smile, "We already have a restaurant, so why should we be afraid of being high-profile?"

It attracts more attention and may save some advertising costs.

"That's settled then. I'll go get the land deed documents tomorrow."

Xie Zhiyou was also decisive and said straightforwardly, "Once we get the title deed, we'll sign another contract to clarify both parties' investment details and the land ownership."

After both parties reached an agreement, Xie Zhiyou asked the young man who came with him to go back and tell him that he had some connections in the Cangcao Division, and if he could acquire the land, the money from the purchase of the land would be reported and added to the national treasury. This was also a favor to his connections, and the processing of the land deed documents would naturally be smooth.

On the way back, the three of them took a carriage. In the carriage, Cheng Shuang directly gave Xie Zhiyou six thousand taels of silver notes, and the three of them talked about hiring someone to build a building.

Xie Zhiyou understood this aspect better and took charge of hiring people.

Wei Qinglang suggested that after pushing the ground house away, they should first build a stone foundation and then build the building on it to prevent moisture.

It is also necessary to build an ice cellar underground to store food in the future.

The two discussed this topic all the way, expressing their own opinions. Cheng Shuang didn't know anything about building a house, so she just listened.

The carriage returned to Taibai Tower, but the two did not go in. Before getting off the carriage, Cheng Shuang and Xie Zhiyou told each other that the villagers had already pickled sauerkraut.

Xie Zhiyou was overjoyed and said that he would send someone to the village to collect it tomorrow. The sauerkraut in the building had just run out a few days ago, and many old customers were unhappy because they couldn't order any.

After this was said, the two men changed back to their own carriage and said goodbye to go home.

Two days later, Xie Zhiyou decided on a team of craftsmen to build the building, and Wei Qinglang came back to discuss the specific details with the person in charge.

When we returned to the village, the rain had not stopped and had even gotten heavier.

Cheng Pan heard the noise and came out with an umbrella to pick up Cheng Shuang. Wei Qinglang put on a straw raincoat and a hat, unloaded the carriage, and led the horses back to the stable at the back.

In the vegetable garden in the backyard, Cheng Guqiu, along with Aunt Peng and Wu Junniang, were wearing straw raincoats and hats to check whether there was any water accumulation in the vegetable garden.

It has been raining all day, and I'm afraid the water will accumulate and ruin the vegetables.

Cheng Shuang went to Cheng Pan's room to look at the account book, calculated the supply orders for soap this month and the daily sales of Fu Ya Zhai, and estimated that she could get at least 20,000 taels of silver at the end of the month.

Considering the scale of the restaurant, including the cost of building materials, labor, and interior decoration, it would cost at least tens of thousands of taels. They and Xie Zhiyou would each pay half, but they didn't know if these 20,000 taels were enough.

I also have to tell my family about opening a restaurant in partnership with others.