Chapter Twelve: The Steward of the Xiang Estate

  "If you don't take it away, I'll throw it..." The little boy showed a fierce expression and waved his small fist. The girl was so scared that her eyes welled up with tears, she covered the box, and quickly walked out."

  "What a stupid thing! The baby actually thought it was trash. However, whether this thing is 'Tai Sui' or not can't be said for sure. That girl is also quite pitiful, buying it down as an act of kindness and accumulating virtue! If it's really 'Tai Sui', then I'll make a profit!" Xiang Qiushui thought to himself as he quickly chased after her.

  Finally!

  Xiang Qiushui spent 10 taels of silver to buy this soft and unknown object from the beautiful girl Qian En Wan Xie, which made Yinhuan Lianxiang complain that Master is being extravagant and wasting money!

  Walked home for about ten minutes.

  "Prince! Prince! Wait!"

  That lively girl was actually coming straight from behind, running with sweat dripping all over her face, panting heavily, and the newly developed buds on her chest were shaking violently up and down, very enticing.

  "Could it be that she discovered this thing is a precious 'Tai Sui' of several decades? Want to add silver but can't? Add some then......" Xiang Qiushui thought, "Miss, is it silver......"

  "Master! My father said, 'A gentleman loves wealth, but must obtain it in a proper way.' He also blamed me for not being worthy of so much silver. He said that on the mountain there is an even bigger one, if you want it, I'll take you to dig it up, and we won't need silver anymore, consider it compensation..." The young girl said hastily.

  "Even bigger! Alright, take me to see." Xiang Qiushui thought to himself, "Good people will be rewarded! It's been over a hundred years since I've seen something this big! This old man has really hit the jackpot! From now on, I'll have to do more good deeds."

  Then!

  With great interest, he followed the girl to her home. "Poor! The house is surrounded by bamboo, not as good as the 'earthen loft' built by the peasants in Huaxia, I reckon the howling cold wind will seep in during winter. Such a poor family can still be 'not greedy for wealth', truly a noble man!" Xiang Qiushui secretly admired the owner of this bamboo house.

  "Cough! Cough! Yulan, have you returned the money to that young master yet?" A low and weak voice came over.

  "Father! I've brought that young master," Yu Lan replied as she pushed open the dilapidated bamboo door.

  Come in!

  Inside, there is nothing, two simple beds made directly with wooden boards, on top of which a coarse flower-patterned sheet is neatly stacked. Four bamboo chairs surround a table that is roughly put together with wooden boards. A mud-stained earth stove, strangely, there is also a relatively stylish simple bookshelf, and quite a few books...

  A middle-aged man with a yellow complexion and a gaunt face, but his eyes were exceptionally bright. The first impression he gave to Xiang Qiushui was 'this person is extraordinary'.

  "Please sit down, look at me, I'm so sick that I can't even get up. My name is Yu Shi Jie, forgive my rudeness." The middle-aged man on the bed struggled to get up.

  "Dad! Sit down." Yu Ruolan cried out in distress, her eyes brimming with tears.

  "He also surnamed Yu. Yan Yu! Yan Yu!" As soon as Xiang Qiushui heard this "Yu" character, he was stunned on the spot. Suddenly, he thought of his heartthrob from Huaxia, "Yu Yan Yu", and estimated that they would never meet again in this life. His heart felt a piercing pain, like being pricked by a needle, with a sour and aching feeling that went through his heart.

  Love me, love my dog.

  He immediately became concerned about this middle-aged man with the surname Yu. Through conversation, Xiang Qiushui learned that ——

  Yu Shijie used to be a teacher of the 'Snow State Governor', but later the governor offended the son of the provincial governor. During the war, he was accused of not making enough efforts to prepare for grain and grass, and was exiled to serve in a barren land adjacent to the 'Snake Ken Empire'.

  Along with him, his master also suffered the 'pool fish disaster', all property was confiscated, and he was beaten dozens of times... When he returned to his hometown to farm, last year's tens of hectares of thin fields were washed away by a mountain flood, leaving only the hard rocks at the bottom of the field, which couldn't be cultivated at all.

  For a time, they couldn't find any land to rent for farming. Now his wife and son are on the mountain everywhere looking for wild vegetables to make a living.

  The people of the 'Sun Dynasty' have 5 mu of arable land per capita, because the land is vast and rich. Nationwide, only two-tiered commoners are free farmers, that is to say they have their own farmland and pay taxes to the government. Thirty percent tax, the tax burden is still relatively light.

  The peasants who cultivate the land in the lower eight layers are all tenant farmers, renting land from those with fiefs, aristocratic families and powerful officials to farm, paying rent and taxes, which is estimated to be around thirty percent of their income.

  It's just that one has property rights and the other doesn't, but in reality, the land rented by large households is protected by big families, and the government also dares not to exploit too much. If you encounter a good landlord, it's much better than being a free peasant.

  However, the yield per mu in this area is not high, and it is estimated that one mu of land can produce more than one stone, which is equivalent to 150 kilograms.

  Yu Shi Jie's family was a free peasant household (self-cultivating farmer), with over 10 hectares of land, and in a good harvest year, after deducting taxes, they would be left with only about 2,000 kilograms of grain, worth no more than 20 taels of silver.

  "Alas! In modern times, there are still people starving in Africa. This 'Sun Dynasty' is still an underdeveloped ancient society, even if it's powerful. At that time, there was no 'hybrid rice', and farmers were even poorer, not many could eat their fill..." Xiang Qiushui sighed in his heart and decided to help Yu Shi Jie, a man of noble character.

  Xiang Qiushui's father, this branch was due to 'Xiang Huaiyi' saving the county master Helian Zhiran, his father 'Hongqin Wang' felt grateful and specially exchanged the land of his own fief with Haiya County.

  It was actually given by the flattering officials, and Xiang Huaiyi was granted nearly 5,000 mu of good land. Together with the original 5,000 mu that Xiang Huaiyi had divided from his family, this branch of the family had more than 10,000 mu of good land.

  There are more than 400 households in the village, which is the richest branch of the Xiang family. This has made several uncles jealous, and if it weren't for the fact that Xiang Qiushui's mother comes from a powerful Zhang family, these uncles would have probably taken action against Ah-Dai's household long ago.

  Now the old steward is advanced in years and wants to invite a clever deputy steward to help with daily affairs. Yu Shi Jie, having been the "Snow State Magistrate" 's teacher, doesn't need to be said for his cleverness, mainly because this person is "not greedy for wealth", plus he has the surname "Yu".

  As a housekeeper, 'not being greedy for wealth' is the most important thing. Otherwise, how can you guard the granary with only a mouse at home?

  Then she turned around and asked: "Lianxiang, have the two families decided on the marriage?"

  "Not yet, the mistress is still selecting. I heard that over a hundred people have come to sign up. It seems like the mistress isn't quite satisfied with any of them." Lian Xiang replied, slightly astonished, thinking to herself, "Strange! How did young master become so normal today?"

  At this moment, Yu Shi Jie's wife and children happened to return from picking wild vegetables, sweating profusely. Yu Shi Jie hastily called them over to pay their respects.

  Yu Jun Chi, the son, was a robust and refined man with thick eyebrows and big eyes. His eyes were bright and spirited. Although he wore a coarse linen robe with many patches, he looked very spirited and knowledgeable about books and etiquette. Xiang Qiushui liked him as soon as she saw this respectful and courteous man.

  Actually, as soon as Xiang Qiushui asked about the housekeeper's affairs, Yu Shijie's heart was already racing. He thought for a moment and immediately understood what Xiang Qiushui meant.

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