Zhou Shuren took out two deeds from his pocket. He put one back and handed the other one open to Boss Zhou. “Sixty mu of land, with paddy fields at eight taels of silver per mu, and dry fields at five taels of silver per mu. Thirty mu of paddy fields, thirty mu of dry fields, totaling three hundred and ninety taels. The money for renaming and exchanging the red deeds will be paid by the Zheng family. One hundred taels for the house and the money for renaming and exchanging the deeds will also be paid by the Zheng family.”

Boss Zhou thought in his heart. Calculating the accounts quickly, “Dad, isn’t the price offered by the Zheng family too low?”

The price for the dry fields was 5 taels and 2 qian per mu for 30 mu, which amounted to a shortage of 6 taels. Additionally, the money for the deeds was not negligible. As for the Zheng family’s house, although he hadn’t been inside, it occupied quite a large area, yet it was only valued at 100 taels?

Boss Zhou felt that there was a problem. The focus must be on the deed that Dad had put away. Dad put it away because he didn’t want to talk about it. “Dad, the Zheng family is selling in such a hurry. They must move out soon!”

Zhou Shuren nodded. “The caravans and fleets are all hired and ready. We’ll set off in seven days. The Zheng family has already left in advance, and Old Man Zheng is in the last group.”

They waited until everything was arranged regarding the house before leaving last. The third household had already departed when he went to Pingzhou.

Boss Zhou frowned, “Dad, we are going to Pingzhou next year. Mèifū alone cannot take care of the sixty acres of land and house.”

Zhou Shuren had already considered this and looked at Boss Zhou, “The land is in Lijiacun; your in-laws’ house has many boys. When the land is transferred, you can go to your in-law’s house and ask who will help plant our land. They can keep 25% of the grain per acre. If the grain cannot exceed the average yield per acre in the first year, I will take back the land.”

To put it bluntly, it meant exchanging food for labor. The more diligently they cultivated the land, the more food they would naturally harvest, and get more in the end. Thus they could avoid being lazy as much as possible.

Zhou Shuren’s method was not like landlords allocating land and renting it to tenant farmers in order to squeeze out more profits. The tenant farmers worked hard for a year, paid rent, and paid taxes. Sometimes they didn’t even have enough food and drink, and they had to be forced to pay taxes. Landowners squeezed more labor by force, and in bad years, life became difficult.

Zhou Shuren’s method was to serve good land and farmers could get food without taking risks. The better the service, the more they got. There were many boys in Lijia Village and there was a lot of surplus labor. As long as you were not stupid, you would not miss the opportunity.

Boss Zhou was pleasantly surprised for Li Shi. There were indeed many young men in his in-law’s family, and there wasn’t so much work for them to do at home. Every day, the mother-in-law also worried a lot. This time, the labor of the young men would be useful. Taking good care of them, the grains they received annually could be exchanged for silver, allowing them to save quite a bit of money. He understood that he was helping out the in-law family. “I’ll thank Father on behalf of Li Shi.”

Zhou Shuren didn’t give the Li family the advantage in vain. His in-laws were in Lijia Village, and most people in Lijia Village were surnamed Li. People with the same clan name were all relatives. When their family relocates to Pingzhou, they will have to rely more on the Li family to take care of the house.

Zhou Shuren said: “Okay, I’ve said all that needs to be said. Your mother and I will take a rest. This oxcart ride is very bumpy.”

Boss Zhou said, “Dad, I’m going out first.”

After her two sons went out, Zhulan went and closed the door. She stretched out her hand and said, “Show me.”

Zhou Shuren took out the deed, “This is the real deed. Sixty acres of land were given to our family with half sold and half given away. The paddy and dry fields were given to our family. They were both four taels of silver for one acre of land and two hundred and forty taels for sixty acres of land. He originally wanted to give it to our family for free and asked for a promise from us, but I refused and negotiated other benefits. The Zheng family asked me not to sell the house and hoped that I would continue to live in it for a long time. It has to be passed down from generation to generation. If anyone from the Zheng family comes back with the token, we will return the house.”

Zhou Shuren spoke as he pulled out a seal. “This is a token. I have half of the seal here, and the other half is in the hands of the Zheng family. Because the house will be reclaimed by the Zheng family, they didn’t ask for our money. They left the furniture in the house and gave it to us for free. However, to avoid trouble, only we can live in the Zheng family’s house, and we cannot sublet it.”

Zhulan fiddled with the seal, which was intricately crafted. “We can guarantee that we, as honorable people, will keep our promises, and our sons are also reliable. However, as for our grandchildren, we cannot guarantee their behavior. Once we pass away, we won’t be able to control what happens in the future. What if our descendants refuse to fulfill the agreement? Isn’t Old Man Zheng worried about that?”

Zhou Shuren touched the seal. Now that he had met Old Man Zheng, he realized that there were people outside the world, especially ruthless people. “Old Man Zheng is a ruthless man. He killed his younger brother with his own hands. Do you think he would have no backup plan?”

He had serious doubts about whether his descendants would honor the agreement. He suspected that if they didn’t, Old Man Zheng might indeed end his family line. Oh yes, it was the original owner’s family line that would be ended. Unexpected opportunities often came with risks, and they were often more perilous than beneficial.

Now Old Man Zheng had been smiling all along, but his smile sent chills down Zhou Shuren’s spine. For the first time, he felt death looming ominously close. He had learned the Zheng family’s secret, and he knew there was no chance for him to refuse. Even if he did refuse, both he and Zhulan would be in mortal danger.

Zhulan knew Mr. Zheng was not ordinary, but she hadn’t expected him to be so ruthless. “You’re not deceiving me, are you?”

“Do you think it’s possible?”

Zhulan, “…”

Zhou Shuren said quietly: “Every family will have one or two scum. I estimate that the relationship between the Zheng family and Old Man Zheng’s younger brother was related to the assignment.”

Old Man Zheng didn’t tell anyone, yes, he told him, he really didn’t want to know!

Zhulan stared, “The Zheng family is not afraid. Now they are threatening you, what if you rebel in the future?”

Why does Zhou Shuren think Zhulan is so cute? Zhulan was angry that he was intimidated, and hugged Zhulan, “Because Old Man Zheng gave with enough benefits from me, someone has taken a fancy to the Zheng family’s house very early. Mr. Zheng personally applied for the deed, also to express that we are protected by the Zheng family. This old man has not been idle for more than 40 years. I always feel that in the county there are a lot of hidden clues in it. Otherwise, how come you think no one has taken over such a big house built by the Zheng family!”

Zhulan said, “It seems we have encountered a hidden boss?”

Zhou Shuren burst out laughing, “It’s just a coincidence. Wang Ru committed suicide and left, and Zheng Shi happened to move here and became familiar with our family. The Zheng family investigated me and thought I was the most suitable person, but they did meet a hidden ruthless person.”

Zhulan squinted and said that today they had almost choked on an unexpected opportunity, which was brought about by Wang Ru’s unexpected death. Zhulan had always been curious about Zheng Shì’s dàbó. “Does Zheng Shi’s dàbó from the first branch have a military background in the northwest?”

Zhou Shuren nodded. “When the Zheng family fled years ago, they split into two groups to eliminate any future threats. They separated without leaving any means of contact, only a general direction. The eldest branch went northwest and adopted new identities. Later, after the dynasty fell, there was chaos and they ended up serving as soldiers on the border, given their martial background. After the establishment of the new dynasty, they spent several years climbing the ranks and eventually reached the current position of a fourth-ranked military officer. In recent years, the northwest has been unstable, with frequent minor skirmishes. Those with connections can easily gain military achievements, so the Zheng family also sought advancement in the past.”

That’s also why the Zheng family made such a decisive move. The Zheng family hid their identities in the northeast, but their descendants didn’t show much promise in academics. Therefore, the northwest is the most suitable place for the Zheng family to thrive.

Zhulan thought about Zhou Shuren’s statement just now that he had refused to give away the land for free in exchange for other benefits, “What benefits did you and Old Man Zheng exchange for?”

(End of Chapter)

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