stingy landlady

Chapter 10 Buying a House

In winter, there's practically no grass left in the snow, but there are still a few withered stems that the cows will nibble on. Guizhi's family also bought some hay, and they'll feed the cows again when they come back from herding.

The father and daughter walked and talked. In the distance, they saw a middle-aged woman with a towel wrapped around her head looking in their direction. Upon seeing the two, she quickly walked towards them.

Upon closer inspection, the woman was dressed in black, with a towel wrapped around her head. Her face was visibly haggard, and she wore a worried expression. Then, a bitter smile appeared on her face. "Brother Dazhu, out herding cattle again?"

"Yes, you have to feed the cattle properly. Sister-in-law, are you going out?" Dazhu wanted to walk over quickly and greet her casually.

“I’m not going out. Brother Dazhu! I’ll sell you this little courtyard! Just give me two taels of silver.” The woman was Zhang Xiaocui, Wang Dalai’s wife, and she said hurriedly.

"Sister-in-law, this house must have cost several taels of silver to build! Even though it's dilapidated and needs repair, it shouldn't cost two taels of silver, right? And you also have this yard and vegetable garden?" Dazhu was very surprised!

“Brother Dazhu, I really have no other choice! Nobody wants to buy this house, nobody dares to live here! What’s the point of this yard and vegetable garden? This place is by the mountain and on the edge of the village. If nobody lives here, everything we grow will be destroyed by wild animals.” Zhang Xiaocui said helplessly.

“Brother Dazhu! Look, your land is right next door, just buy it! I know you’re in trouble, just give me two taels of silver. I’m not staying here anymore, I’m going to my daughter’s place. Having some money in my hands will put my mind at ease,” Zhang Xiaocui pleaded with Dazhu.

Guizhi tugged at Dazhu and said to him, "Father, I heard that this old lady is so pitiful! Father, please help her and buy this house and yard so that she can be reunited with her daughter soon."

Wang Dazhu looked at his daughter, who nodded emphatically. Then she looked at the thin, bony woman, and his heart softened. "Alright! Then bring out the house deed and land deed, and we'll go to the village chief's house to transfer the ownership."

"Oh! Thank you so much, Brother Dazhu! And thank you, Sanya! You are such a kind person!" Zhang Xiaocui was overjoyed and bowed repeatedly to express her gratitude!

Guizhi dared not accept this courtesy and quickly ran away.

Zhang Xiaocui turned around and went back to get the house and land deeds. Fearing that Wang Dazhu would change his mind, she asked to go to the village chief's house immediately to complete the formalities.

Guizhi, ever the good Samaritan, said, "Dad, you and Auntie go and handle the formalities! So Auntie won't worry so much! I'll go herd the cattle myself, right next to our land. Dad, you can come and pick me up after you've finished the formalities."

Zhang Xiaocui felt a little embarrassed after hearing Guizhi's words. She quickly said, "Thank you, Sanya. Your father is kind-hearted! You are a kind-hearted child too!"

Dazhu said worriedly, "This place is near the mountain, so don't let the cow go up the mountain. Just stay by the edge of the field, and I'll come back to get you in a little while."

"I understand, Dad! I'll graze the cattle around here," Guizhi assured him.

Wang Dazhu and Zhang Xiaocui went to the village chief's house first to transfer the property. The village chief and his family had just returned home from Lao Si's wedding banquet. They were surprised to hear that Wang Dazhu had bought Wang Dalai's house and vegetable garden.

Zhang Xiaocui wiped away her tears: "Village Chief, you know my family's situation. We had no other choice but to beg Brother Dazhu to buy it. As for the house, we can't live in it anyway, so we'll just consider it as selling the land to Brother Dazhu. Luckily, Brother Dazhu is a kind-hearted man!"

"Sister-in-law, please don't say that. You sold it to me so cheaply, I'm already taking advantage of you." Dazhu scratched his head sheepishly.

"Village chief, could you please help me complete the formalities?" Zhang Xiaocui said.

“Sister-in-law, Dazhu, the paperwork here is easy to handle. But to transfer the property to the town government, we need to pay taxes. Who will pay for that? It'll be at least two hundred coins.” The village chief looked at the two of them.

Wang Dazhu and Zhang Xiaocui looked at each other but neither said anything. Dazhu thought for a moment and said, "Village chief, I'll pay the tax! Sister-in-law has it tough too. I'll bring the copper coins over later."

Zhang Xiaocui also said, "Village Chief, Brother Dazhu, I had no choice. My husband has been sick for a long time, and I haven't even paid off the money I borrowed from all sides. He just left me, a woman, all alone. Sigh! I won't say anymore, thank you both!" Zhang Xiaocui bowed to the two of them again.

The village chief said, "Alright, Dazhu agrees to pay the taxes and complete the transfer procedures. Sister-in-law, don't be too sad. Go find your daughter and live a good life!"

Zhang Xiaocui couldn't go to his house because of the custom of keeping men and women separate, so she stayed at the village chief's house and waited for Dazhu to come back and get the money.

When Dazhu got home, he greeted his relatives with a smile: "I came back to get some things and to herd the cattle. You all chat. Da Ya's mother, come back with me to find some things!" He took Li Shi's hand and carried Siya back to his own home.

Upon arriving home, he briefly explained the matter of buying a house and a vegetable garden, and asked Li to produce two taels and five mace of silver. Li was so shocked she couldn't speak. Not daring to shout for fear of being overheard, she still took out the silver. She angrily said, "It's your money, you decide what you want to buy! I don't care what you do, and I can't control what you do!"

Dazhu said in a low voice, "I'll talk to you when we get back! We won't lose out! Calm down, don't go out impulsively and say anything!"

Li retorted angrily, "Do whatever you want! I've never been the one to make decisions in this family anyway!"

He turned around, picked up Siya, and carried her onto the kang (heated brick bed): "I'm not going out! I'm tired, I'll take Siya to sleep!"

Dazhu ignored her and took the silver to the village chief's house. In front of the village chief, he handed two taels of silver to Zhang Xiaocui. Zhang Xiaocui left, profusely thanking him. Dazhu then took out five hundred coins and gave them to the village chief, asking him to help with the paperwork at the government office, offering the extra money as a tip for the village chief's trouble. The village chief was pleased that Dazhu was capable and praised him again.

While Guizhi was herding cattle, she was carefully watching the area around Zhang Xiaocui's house.

Looking from the gate, the courtyard in front of the thatched house is quite spacious. To the left is a storage room, next to a small shed, which is probably a chicken coop, tightly enclosed with straw, presumably to keep the chickens warm. To the right is a woodshed, tall and wide enough, but there's hardly any firewood left.

The vegetable garden was quite large, and there was a row of pigsties along one side of the fence. The pigsties were already empty.

On the surface, Zhang Cuihua's family seems to be quite thrifty, and if the man doesn't get sick, he should be a hardworking person.

When Dazhu came to fetch Guizhi and Niu, Guizhi had already made her rounds. However, she hadn't entered the room yet, and hadn't gone to the pharmacy to buy herbs for fumigation and disinfection, so she couldn't risk going inside.

"Sanya, your mother is angry because of buying this house! She's even throwing a tantrum!" Dazhu complained to his daughter.

"Wait a minute, you'll have to take care of appeasing your mother! Hehe!"

"My mom's angry? You're the one who made her angry! My mom has the best temper! Humph!" Guizhi pouted and acted cute.

"Sanya, you said you wanted to buy this house, have you found a good one here?" Dazhu suddenly remembered to ask.

"Dad, I just took a look, it's really nice. We can disinfect the house later and make use of it." The two entered the yard.

Opening the door to the storeroom, it was empty except for two large cabinets. "Dad! Look, the storeroom is quite big; it can hold a lot of grain!" Guizhi pointed to the chicken carcass. "This is the chicken carcass. Aunt Zhang kept it covered up to keep the chickens warm. This chicken carcass is quite large. She must have raised quite a few chickens before, right?"

Dazhu and the other man then turned to the woodshed. "This shed is quite tall and spacious; it can store a lot of firewood. We can extend another section here to put the oxcart. We can build another shed and keep the cattle here." Dazhu pointed to an open space next to the vegetable garden.

"Dad, look at this pigsty, it's quite big. We can raise a few sows in the future, and the more pigs we raise, the more pigs we'll have! Hahaha!" Guizhi danced with joy, envisioning the future.

"Alright, alright! When you get home, tell your mother all the good things about her, and she'll stop being angry." Dazhu took the opportunity to instruct Guizhi.

The two strolled around, chatting and laughing. As evening approached and the cow had eaten its fill, they led it slowly home.

Back home, as soon as they entered the outer room, Da Ya and Er Ya were cooking. Seeing Gui Zhi return, they whispered, "Third Sister, is Mother angry today? Did you upset her?"

"Eldest sister, second sister, Mother has such a good temper! How could she be angry? I'm so obedient, I don't make Mother angry." Guizhi asked knowingly.

"Third Sister! Go in and coax Mom! You always have such a sweet tongue," said Daya.

“Yes! Third Sister, you don’t need to do anything here. Go inside and talk to Mother,” Er Ya chimed in.

"Alright then! If Mother gets angry and wants to hit me, you two have to hold her back, don't let her get angry and beat me up." Guizhi deliberately made it difficult.

“Go on, go on! Our mother doesn’t hit people!” Er Ya laughed.

"Go quickly! Once you've appeased Mother, we'll eat when Father comes back!" Daya also pushed Guizhi into the inner room.

Guizhi went into the inner room, where her mother was lying on the kang (a heated brick bed), sulking. Siya was playing by herself when she heard the door open. Turning around and seeing Guizhi, she called out, "Third Sister's back! Third Sister, hug me!"

Guizhi caught Siya and hugged her, asking, "Were you good at home today? Did you make your mother angry?"

Siya quickly shook her head: "Third Sister, Siya will be good! If Father is disobedient, Mother will cry!"

Upon hearing this, Guizhi exclaimed, "Oh! Mother is really angry today, and she's even crying!"

Guizhi carried Siya onto the kang (a heated brick bed), then climbed onto it herself. She hugged Li Shi from behind and whispered, "Mother! Mother, I'm back from herding the cattle! Mother, are you angry? Don't be angry, let's talk it out. Mother, tell me, what's wrong?"

Li's stiff body gradually softened under Guizhi's embrace and as her daughter whispered words of comfort.

Suddenly feeling wronged, she started sobbing again. "Mom, why are you crying? It's because I was being disobedient. We'll be good from now on, Mom, don't be sad! We'll take good care of you from now on!"

"Mother, tell me, did the people at the old house bully you? If so, then we'll ignore them from now on and give all our money to you. Or did Father upset you? If it was Father, then punish him and don't give him any food when he comes back. Even when he admits his mistake, don't forgive him. Make sure Father remembers this lesson and never dares to upset you again! Mother, please say something! Mother, tell me what happened?" Guizhi gently coaxed her mother.

Da Ya and Er Ya had entered the inner room at some point. They silently observed their mother, waiting for Li Shi to speak.