A blessed wife leads her husband to wealth and prosperity!

The price is several times higher.

Shopkeeper, are you deliberately raising the price because I'm a stranger?

Young master, I dare not raise the price arbitrarily! Not to mention my house, you can go out and ask every house on this street if this is the price for a medium-sized house.

If you come to stay now, the middle room costs 100 coins per day. In a few days, the middle room here will cost 150 coins per day.

Why do you say that?

Meng Xing probably knew the reason, but he still asked aloud.

Oh dear, you know perfectly well that the prefectural examination is just around the corner. We can still book some decent rooms now, but if it's a few days later, even the large dormitory-style rooms will be full of students.

As the innkeeper spoke, he felt a surge of excitement, thinking that the inn's business would soon be booming. He knew he had to take extra care of the guest rooms in the coming days; he was determined to seize this opportunity to make money during the biennial provincial examination.

Young master, are you staying in the room or not?

Meng Xing took out some money from his pocket, gave it to the innkeeper, and followed the waiter to the guest room on the second floor.

Once inside the room, he didn't immediately send the waiter away. Instead, he gave them both copper coins and asked them some questions he was concerned about.

Hey waiter, besides the inn, do you know any other places nearby where people can rent rooms for short periods?

Young master, are you here to inquire about accommodations for your students?

The waiter saw that the customer had given him a tip, so he was now doing his best to answer the customer's questions.

If you're asking where to find short-term rentals, you've come to the right place. Every time there's a provincial examination in our city, local residents rent out their rooms because they only earn enough for a few days' worth of money, so the prices aren't cheap at this time.

Oh? Tell me where the houses are located and how much they cost?

Alright, then I'll give you a brief explanation, young master.

Across the street from our inn, near the government office, in the vicinity of Wensong Lane, many residents rent out rooms during the prefectural examination period. Although the prices are not cheap, the environment is quite good because they are their usual residences.

I'm not entirely sure about the exact price, as each courtyard is different in size and the price varies accordingly. If you'd like to know the exact price, you can go out and inquire there tomorrow.

Okay, thank you. Please go down and bring me a bowl of noodles.

Alright, young master, please wait a moment, I'll bring it up for you shortly.

After dismissing the waiter, Meng Xing ate some noodles and went to bed early.

Early the next morning, Meng Xing set off from the inn and headed to Wensong Lane.

Upon reaching the alley entrance, not knowing which households were renting out rooms, he could only raise his hand and knock on each door to inquire.

After asking around at several places, I actually found two places. However, although these two places rent out rooms, their houses are too small, so they can only provide one room for students who come to rent.

Moreover, the original residents in the courtyard already had too many people in their families, and some even had several children. Once you entered the courtyard, you could hear children crying and adults yelling and cursing, so it was really not a good place to stay.

Meng Xing could only walk further in to see if there were any other residents or houses for rent.

If you walk any further, there are two more houses. Looking at the house on the left, the door is bigger than the one on the opposite side, so Meng Xing knocks on the gate of this house first.

Is anyone home?

After knocking on the door for a while and hearing footsteps coming from inside, Meng Xing stopped and stood in front of the door waiting.

The door opened from the inside, and a kind-looking old woman entered.

Young man, what brings you to my house?

When Mrs. Qiao opened the door, she saw a young man standing outside the courtyard.

Auntie, excuse me. I'm from out of town and have come to the city to take an exam soon. We'd like to find a family here to rent a courtyard for a few days.

Have you been renting out any rooms in the last few days?

Upon hearing what the stranger said at the door, the old woman smiled across her wrinkled face and said;

Why wouldn't we rent? My family rents out houses every year.

Upon hearing that the old woman was also renting out her room, Meng Xing thought to himself, "This is another place I've found."

Auntie, how many rooms do you rent out? There are quite a few of us, so one room won't do.

"How many people are coming from your family, young man?" The old woman was even happier when she heard that many people were coming.

Hearing from the lady that besides the three of them, their benefactor also had classmates, he wondered if the classmates would also come to rent a place to live later. He thought to himself that at least three of them would come, and perhaps one or two more.

So many people! When Mrs. Qiao heard that so many people would be able to stay at her house, she thought that she might be able to rent out the house ahead of schedule this time.

Young man, come in and have a look! Our place is huge!

Before Meng Xing could even mention looking at the house, the old woman had already brought it up, finding her easy to get along with.

The two entered the courtyard and saw that the place was quite large.

The house has a simple layout. The large yard could have been converted into a two-courtyard house, but here it only has one courtyard.

The courtyard was quite spacious, with five main rooms facing the gate and three side rooms on each side.

No wonder this old lady was so confident in pulling me into the yard to look around.

Auntie, I've never seen your courtyard layout like this before. Apart from the well in the corner and the big tree, there's nothing else in the courtyard except for the blue stone bricks that cover the whole yard.

"Hehe," Qiao said with a smile, quite proud, when asked the question.

Our family is not like ordinary families. The reason why my yard looks spacious is because it is related to the path our family takes.

Oh? Meng Xing was somewhat curious upon hearing the old woman's words;

Auntie, could you tell me which path your family took? Let me broaden my horizons!

There was nothing wrong with that, Mrs. Qiao waved her hand and stood there chatting with people.

My husband and I weren't locals either. When he was young, he knew some martial arts and worked as a镖师 (bodyguard/escort) for many years. Once, he injured his leg and couldn't do that kind of work anymore. Fortunately, he had earned some money before, so we came here to settle down.

However, although he settled down, his heart could not find peace. It wasn't until his child was born that he truly felt at home here.

My husband and I had two sons and a daughter. Now both of my sons have joined the army. The reason why our house is different from others is because my husband made us do it this way. He has been in this house since we were little, taking care of the children and helping them build up their health.

They used this courtyard as a training ground for martial arts.

Meng Xing was surprised to find that two people from this aunt's family had joined the army. He wondered if the two elder brothers were still in the army camp.

Yes, yes!

My eldest son is now a fourth-rank military officer in the capital's military camp, while my younger son serves in the army of the Marquis of Zhenxi!

Meng Xing never expected that this seemingly ordinary family would produce a fourth-rank military officer.

Moreover, this young man was actually a former personal guard of the commander-in-chief in the army.

Meng Xing felt that he had a special connection with this family.

"I hope the old lady is well!" Thinking this, she bowed to Madam Qiao again.

Forget about being called "Madam" or "Madam," no need for such formalities. Just call her "Auntie." It sounds much more friendly!

Seeing that she had said too much and that the young man had paid his respects to her, Madam Qiao quickly stopped talking and waved her hand.

Okay, then I'll still call you Auntie! Seeing that the person wasn't one to stand on ceremony, Meng Xing consciously changed his address.

Auntie, you may not know this, but I served in the army for many years before, and I was even under the same commander as your second son, both serving in the Zhenxi Army.

I injured my leg and had to leave the army. Now I follow my benefactor.

Mrs. Qiao never expected that today, because of her talkativeness, she would run into a colleague who used to work with her youngest son.

Oh dear, this isn't just a coincidence, it's all fate. Ever since my son joined the army, it's been incredibly difficult for me to see him.

I never expected to run into someone I work with in the same field today. I was incredibly excited.

However, upon hearing the young man say that he had injured his leg and had retired from the army, Qiao hurriedly stepped forward to comfort him.

My children, you are all wonderful. Serving in the army is tough, and it's good that you're back home now. Live a good life, find a wife, and have a baby! Your life will be complete!

"Thank you for your kind words!" Meng Xing felt a little embarrassed as he listened to Qiao Shi talk about their future life.

Auntie, since I have some connection with your family, we'll be renting a place here in the city this time.

After looking around the courtyard and finding the old man to be easy to get along with, Meng Xing decided to settle on a place to stay.

Alright, alright, young man, come and stay at my house from now on.

If anyone else comes to inquire about this place, I will stop renting it out.

Okay! Thank you so much, ma'am!