Chapter 79.1

Translated by Aviana

Hi guys, I am back. I apologise for the delay. I was bit busy with rl matters. Thanks a ton for waiting and supporting me during the process!

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After discussing and reaching an agreement, Yang Tiezhu and Lin Qingwan decided to meet with the village chief regarding the sale of the land. By then, the third branch’s couple had also come to a decision to buy land and build a new home along with them.

Thereupon, the two brothers, Yang Tiezhu and Yang Tiegen headed toward the village chief’s residence.

Speaking of the village chief’s residence, it was regarded as the best in the entirety of the Luoxia village. Bedecked with cyan-colored bricks and ash-colored bricks, a huge tile-roofed three-bay house faced the main gate, with the three rooms abreast on either side. Additionally, the yard was also equipped with a separate kitchen room and a storehouse. Even the courtyard walls were embellished with cyan-colored bricks, exuding an imposing air.

At that instance, the thoughts of his new home were spiraling within Yang Tiezhu’s mind, prompting him to closely scrutinize the village chief’s house the moment it entered his field of vision. Thereafter, following a brief subliminal comparison of his future house plan with the former, a feeling of supremacy imbued within him, feeling his house wouldn’t lose to the former in comparison. However, upon taking a second look at the brick wall, he also decided to use bricks as well for their courtyard wall, for it gave out a secure and sophisticated vibe.

Such thoughts filled his mind as he stepped into the village chief’s house.

That afternoon, the village chief didn’t go anywhere outside and was at the home. At that moment, he was sitting cross-legged on the kang while smoking tobacco.

As soon as he saw the brothers entering the yard, he beckoned them into the house.

The village chief’s surname was Niu and was over fifty years old. As everyone respectfully addresses him as ‘Village Chief’, over time his real surname slipped from everyone’s minds. The ones from the same generation addressed him as ‘village chief’ while younger generations called him ‘village chief uncle’.

“Village Chief uncle.” Stepping into the house, Yang Tiezhu greeted him.

“Come in, what business do you two have with me today?”

He was a good-natured man and never put on airs. Everyone in the village was aware of his disposition, thus Yang Tiehzu went straight to the topic regarding his intention to buy land to build a house without any superfluous words.

“Land to build a house—” Narrowing his eyes in contemplation, the village chief took a drag of his tobacco, “Which one did you like?”

Yang Tiezhu revealed his inclination to buy the land at the end of the village before adding Yang Tiegen’s intention to buy a plot adjacent to his as well.

As one of the witnesses of Yang Jia’s separation, he was acutely aware of the current scenario. At that time, owing to the presence of the Clan Elder Yang, he remained taciturn and didn’t step in for he was but a village chief and couldn’t put his foot in others’ matters casually.

Nonetheless, hearing that the two young men are planning to build new houses for themselves, he felt delighted for the two.

“No problem, that area you picked is quite spacious and wide. How much area do you intend to purchase?” After taking two more drags, the village chief threw it aside and began discussing the matter.

Yang Tiezhu replied he planned to buy 4 mu of land. While the third branch lacked that much cash and their house plan was rather simple unlike Lin Qingwan’s, thus they decided to go with two mu .

Two mu actually doesn’t amount to much. Though the houses in the rural areas weren’t quite big, they also maintained a vegetable garden, pigsty, and sheds for livestock, among a few others. Nevertheless, many would settle with two mu land. Thus, Yang Tiezhu’s reply exceeded a bit of the norm in the village.

“Why do you want to buy so much land, boy? Wouldn’t two mu suffice?” The village chief asked back, confused.

Yang Tiezhu scratched his head, “I merely wish to buy it in one go. In the future, when the number of kids at home will increase, the place would be spacious and would be convenient to build more rooms, if needed.” Of course, it was merely an excuse, for he certainly couldn’t tell the truth.

The always sincere and honest Yang Tiezhu has slowly mastered the art of trickery and artfulness under Lin Qingwan’s tutelage and from doing business outside. What he said wasn’t actually a lie, it was merely vague and ambiguous.

As experienced and upright as he was, the village chief could detect subtle ambiguity in his words. Besides, when the other person was willing to expend the money to buy that much land, his concern was unnecessary.

“Boy, you have become capable, have you made a fortune recently?”

Yang Tiezhu replied with a naive chuckle, “You are overpraising, village chief uncle. How much money can I even earn? The farms we have wouldn’t be sufficient to support the family. I merely happened to do a small business with a few friends to overcome the family’s poverty.”

These words were also Lin Qingwan’s guidance. If a family abruptly wishes to build a home, villagers would inevitably inquire. Even if not many people were aware of it in the beginning, they would get the wind of it sooner or later. Thus it was better to say he had done a small business with friends to deal with the family’s adversity. As for what sort of business he was doing, naturally shrewd ones would refrain to ask more.

The village chief was smart, thus he didn’t inquire more, and gave an estimate of the price for the property.

The price of the land in the outskirts of the village was quite cheap, costing around one or two silver taels per mu. Yang Tiezhu and Yang Tiegen were making a big purchase. Estimating one tael per mu, the village chief received a total of 6 silver taels from them.

To buy land, one has to get a sale deed drafted from the feudal office. And further needs to spend money to streamline this process, which is more often than not termed as 'staffing fees”. Thus, Yang Tiezhu handed another 2 silver taels to the village chief to smoothly handle the affair for the two brothers, leaving any extra money to him as a token of appreciation for the work.

The village chief refused twice before accepting it. He then asked them to come back after two days to collect the deed.

After brief contemplation, at the end of the conversation, Yang Tiezhu, with an embarrassed face, requested the village chief to keep this matter about the land a secret.

Detecting the embarrassment on their faces, he recalled the presence of the shrewish He-shi in the Yang jia. Coupled with the fee he received earlier, the village chief readily complied.

After Yang Tiezhu once again expressed his gratitude, the village chief walked the two out with a look of understanding.

P.S. will be posted in the weekends.

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