Splendid peasant girl busy farming

Chapter 11900

Sixi's uncle put down his pipe and, with a serious expression, discussed with Sixi's father: "Since you all agreed to build a few new wedding rooms for the young couple at the second house today, don't go back on your word! Otherwise, you'll cause unnecessary trouble!"

Sixi's father understood what his brother-in-law meant. He had just been released from prison yesterday, the shadow of which still lingered in his heart, and the scars had not yet healed. How could Sixi's father forget the pain?

“We definitely can’t build a new house in the courtyard where our whole family lives right now,” Sixi’s father began to think.

"If you buy someone's farmland outside the village by the main road to use as a house site, you'll have to pay two extra fees."

One coin is the money exchanged with the farmers who own the land. The land on both sides of the main road is all first-class fertile land, and at the current price, it costs at least six or seven taels of silver per mu.

Even if you buy half an acre of land to build a new house and fence a yard, it will cost more than three taels of silver.

The second fee is that if you buy and sell farmland and convert it into homestead land, you have to pay a fee to the village. This fee is usually 20% of the transaction price.

That would cost several hundred coins. If you don't even consider the costs of building a house, making furniture, and hiring craftsmen later on, just acquiring a plot of land for the initial construction would cost nearly four taels of silver!
The family had saved very little money!

"Buying a plot of land won't work. We don't have enough money. If we buy the land, we won't have enough to build a house or hire craftsmen!" Sixi's father sighed and shook his head.

Si Xi's eldest and youngest uncles were a little puzzled, and the two old brothers looked at each other in bewilderment.

Si Xi got anxious. "Dad, over the years, when the farming season is busy, we brothers take care of the farm work, but when the farming season is slack, we brothers are all sent out to do odd jobs for others."

“All the produce from the family’s fields, as well as the money we brothers earn from doing odd jobs, will be handed over to you and Mother in full.”

"For the past few years, my family has raised two pigs every year. One pig is for the Lunar New Year, and the other is sold to make money!"

"Just recently, you made five taels of silver selling peanuts!"

"How could I not have the money to buy a plot of land for a house? The house I want isn't big, just three rooms and a small yard, that'll be enough!"

Si Xi's father's eyebrows were furrowed together, his eyes filled with displeasure. He felt that this little brat dared to question him about money!
At the same time, Si Xi's father was also shocked. He was shocked that this little brat remembered all the sources of income for the family every year so clearly and could explain them in detail!
Erxi couldn't hold back any longer and slammed his hand on the table, scolding Sixi: "Fourth brother, what do you mean by this? How dare you, as a son, question your father about money?"

Sixi glared at Erxi and said, "Don't think I don't know anything. You've been secretly trying to get a lot of money from our mother!"

"What are you saying? You want a punch, huh?" Erxi suddenly stood up, clenched her fist, and was about to smash Sixi's face.

Si Xi wasn't intimidated; he straightened his neck and raised his arm as well.

You have fists, but I don't? I couldn't beat you when we were kids, but who knows now!

Seeing that the two brothers were about to fight, the people around the table quickly came over to break them up. Some held Erxi down, while others pulled Sixi aside.

"What are you doing? This is about discussing marriage. It's such a joyous occasion, don't cause trouble, it's bad luck!" Si Xi's uncle pulled Si Xi aside and advised him.

Si Xi suppressed his anger, and no matter how much Er Xi continued to shout, Si Xi remained silent.

The commotion in the main room also alerted Sixi's mother and the other women in the kitchen.

"What's going on? The hangover soup isn't even ready yet, are you drunkards going to start a fight before it's even finished?" Si Xi's mother entered the main room and saw the mess of the pot of porridge. She slapped her thigh and shouted anxiously.

Erxi felt very aggrieved and said to her, "Mom, Fourth Brother is so capable! He's interrogating Dad about how much money we have and where it all went in order to build a new house for his wedding!"

The second daughter-in-law also helped Erxi up and chimed in, "Let them question us, but they're throwing mud at our Erxi. It means Erxi is lying to his mother and that all the money is being used to support Erxi!"

Erxi spat on the ground: "We haven't separated our family yet. We all eat from the same pot. Why should you subsidize me? Are you seeing me eating well and drinking well? Or seeing my wife wearing gold and silver? Don't try to smear me like this!"

"Erxi, you should say less. Sixi didn't mean that!" Sixi's uncle winked at Erxi.

Erxi didn't want to talk to his uncle. It was obvious that his uncle had his eye on the Yang family and wanted to curry favor with Sixi and Xiuhong so that he could eventually get close to the Yang family.

When Sixi's mother heard Erxi and his wife's explanation and considered the current situation in the house, and saw that her husband's face had turned ashen with anger, Sixi's mother also flew into a rage.

She then slapped her thigh and yelled, "Sixi, you little rascal, you don't know how much a household's expenses are until you're in charge!"

“The harvest from our fields over the past few years, the money from raising pigs and chickens, and the little bit you, father, sons, and brothers earned doing odd jobs... I’ve saved every penny of it. I’ve never dared to spend it recklessly on myself, nor have I ever subsidized anyone!”

"You little brat, you only see the income and not the expenses? You're all at the age where you're going to eat your father out of house and home. You have clothes for all four seasons, and who among you has money to see a doctor and buy medicine when you have a headache or fever!"

"The money you saved up over the years, your three older brothers got married one after another, and you sent out wave after wave of dowries. After that, your three older brothers had children one after another. And the social obligations among relatives and friends, all of that cost money?"

"Alright, that's enough, stop talking!"

Suddenly, Sixi's father roared.

Everyone in the room was startled and looked at the head of the household.

Sixi's father said, "We've already talked this far, and both of your brothers-in-law are here. Sixi's mother, go and bring all our belongings over. Let's put them on the table and count them carefully to see what our current situation is!"

Finally, Sixi's father glanced at Sixi again and said, word by word, "So that some brats won't keep dreaming that our family is so rich, but we're just unwilling to spend money on him! Humph!"

Sixi's mother glanced at Sixi, then turned and went into the next room. Soon, she brought out a black wooden box that looked just like the Tan family's precious treasure from years ago.

The box was locked. When Sixi's mother placed it on the table, all of her sons gathered around.

The three daughters-in-law were all staring at the black wooden box containing their mother-in-law's belongings, their eyes shining brighter than the last. Erxi's wife, in particular, kept glancing around, occasionally exchanging secret messages with Erxi that only the young couple understood...

Under the watchful eyes of many around her, Sixi's mother cursed and took out a key, opening the box.

After the box was opened, on top of it was a layer of wrinkled and yellowed... shoe patterns! "Shoe patterns? I was so excited for nothing." Erxi pulled his stretched neck back in.

At first glance, he thought it was a legendary silver note!

Overjoyed, he burst out laughing, "Second brother, you really dare to dream! How could someone like us possibly have access to silver notes?"

Sanxi also said, "Yes, I heard that a silver note should be at least fifty taels!"

The silver notes were issued by several authoritative banks in the Great Qi Dynasty. To be precise, the owners behind those authoritative banks were either from the Great Qi or the Great Liao Dynasty. Their banks were not restricted by nationality. As long as the silver was deposited in those authoritative banks, the exchanged silver notes could be used throughout the entire continent.

However, the minimum deposit amount for those major and authoritative banks is also very high, with 50 taels of silver being the threshold.

For an ordinary family, if they worked the land their whole lives and didn't eat, drink, wear clothes, or spend any money, all the money they earned would amount to about fifty or sixty taels of silver, or even more, close to a hundred taels.

But that's a number that can only be achieved under completely ideal conditions. Under normal circumstances, people earn and spend at the same time, and after going back and forth, the amount of silver that they can see with their eyes and touch with their fingers is almost no more than 10 taels!
At this moment, Sixi's mother took the stack of shoe patterns on top of the box, which was used as a cover, aside before taking out the things hidden inside.

First, he took out two strings of copper coins, placed them on the table, and they made a clanging sound.

The sound made everyone in the main room's eyes light up. The most beautiful sound in the world wasn't singing, but counting money.

"This string contains 500 copper coins strung together. The string next to it originally also contained 500 copper coins, but some have been used up recently, leaving less than 200."

"This is the money our family has saved over the years after deducting all expenses!"

"Mother, how much silver is this? Do you want me to count it for you?" Erxi couldn't resist and went forward to lend a hand.

As soon as he stretched out his hand, he was hit with his father's pipe.

"Go back to your spot and behave yourself. This is none of your business!"

"hey-hey."

Here, Sixi Niang took out a fist-sized object wrapped in cloth from the bottom of the box, and when she opened the cloth, it was full of silver.

There was a five-tael snowflake silver ingot, and seven or eight pieces of silver of various sizes, the larger ones being about the size of a quail egg and the smaller ones about the size of a broad bean.

"Today we went to Old Yang's house to propose marriage, and we spent nearly two taels of silver on various gifts. Here are nearly nine taels of silver, which is all our savings. You father and sons, think about it. With this money, what kind of house can we build for our fourth son's wedding!"

Everyone fell silent for a moment. Apart from the two outsiders, Sixi's eldest and youngest uncles, everyone else in Sixi's family, except for a few young children who didn't understand, all had the sound of abacuses clicking in their heads!
Finally, Sixi's father spoke first, but his words were directed at Sixi: "The family's situation is laid out before you. If this money is used to buy a plot of land, I'm afraid there won't be much left for you to build a house. Moreover, there's only a month or so until the New Year, and there will be expenses for the New Year. There are so many people in the family who need to eat and drink, and we also need to give gifts and visit relatives and friends."

"We can't let our family starve just to get you married, can we?"

Si Xi fell into a deep silence.

Sixi's uncle stepped in to defuse the situation: "Getting married is a big deal, it only happens once in a lifetime. Besides, Sixi is your youngest son, sister and brother-in-law. Once you've helped him get married, your mission will be accomplished, and you can enjoy a life of leisure for the rest of your days!"

"Just grit your teeth, this is the worst that can happen. We can always borrow from other villagers!"

"With our family's reputation... we'd be doomed to fail. We've even offended my own brother!" Sixi's father said irritably, glancing at Sixi's mother.

Last night, Sixi's father went to his older brother's house, only to find that his brother was ignoring him. He was puzzled and later his sister-in-law told him what had happened recently.

Sanxi also told him the whole story, and Sixi's father then realized that his wife was too tactless. After the incident, it was his eldest brother who took the lead, and even the token to visit the prison in the county government was obtained by his eldest brother from the Luo family. His wife was ignorant... Sixi's father was full of anger, but he had just returned home and had to be busy with Sixi's affairs, so he hadn't had time to settle accounts with his wife.

"Dad, I've thought it over. We're not selling the homestead!" Si Xi, who had been silent for a long time, raised his head. His gaze swept over his nephews and nieces in the room, as well as his second sister-in-law's big belly as she was about to give birth.

Although he didn't want Xiu Hong to suffer, he couldn't completely ignore the fate of his family.

If all this money is poured into building a house, what happens if someone in the family gets a headache or fever? There will be no way to protect against the risks.

"So what do you mean?" Sixi's father asked Sixi.

Si Xi said, "Could you repair the old house where my grandparents lived before they passed away, so that Xiu Hong and I can use it as our wedding room temporarily?"

"Huh? That old house? Well, that old house is alright!" Sixi's mother reacted before Sixi's father could.

“That old house won’t do. That’s where your grandparents lived before they passed away. Although it’s been in disrepair for years and no one lives there anymore, it doesn’t belong to our family. Your uncle’s family owns half of it!” said Sixi’s father.

"Should we discuss it with your uncle's family?"

"It's not something we can discuss... Your mother really offended your uncle and aunt a while ago!"

"You two, don't look at me, don't think I'll say anything nice. Since ancient times, brothers have fought over family property. It's not something that can be resolved by saying a few nice words. We have to give up some benefits!" Si Xi's mother suddenly became clear-headed.

Give up the benefits?

Si Xi's father thought for a moment, and finally, he gritted his teeth and said with a pained expression, "We have an acre of land to the west, next to your uncle's land. That land was left to our family by your grandparents. Your uncle and aunt have always wanted to use that land to grow wheat."

"If all else fails, we can take that piece of land and exchange it for the old house!"

……

Because Sixi's parents approached the discussion with complete sincerity, Sixi's uncle's family indeed agreed.

However, whether it was to Sixi's parents or the villagers, Uncle Sixi and Aunt Sixi always said the same thing: "We don't really care about that piece of broken land. We're just trying to avoid any trouble for you building your house because of the Yang family's influence!"

The news quickly reached the ears of Lao Yang's family.