A Good Landlord in the Tang Dynasty: Starting from the Village Chief

Chapter 79 It’s ok, just a few thieves

Downstairs,

Li Yi was lying on the rocking chair that the carpenter had just made. Although the carpenter could not read a few words, his craftsmanship was quite solid after decades of practice.

Li Yi drew a picture to illustrate the general appearance. After the master craftsman worked on it for a few days, he finally perfectly reproduced the rocking chair he wanted.

Ancient and antique,

When you feel tired, lie down and shake a few times to relax your whole body and soothe your muscles and bones.

The wind rustled the leaves,
The little tabby cat jumped onto Li Yi's belly and took a nap, snoring.

Yu Shu, a maidservant from Silla, was beside him, fanning him gently with a palm-leaf fan to drive away the flies.

so comfy.

This is the leisurely life of a landlord.

In the hot summer, the men were watering the fields and weeding, while the women were busy weaving at home.

Men farm and women weave without stopping.

And yet he could enjoy it like this.

Ji came in carrying a small box, "Alang, this fifty taels of gold sent by the Du family is for you."

"Yeah." Li Yi didn't even open his eyes. The money and silk in the house were stored in the warehouse. Li Yi kept the gold and silver utensils himself.

Everyone thought he hid it somewhere in the wall or buried it underground, but in fact Li Yi placed it directly in his living room.

It's foolproof and no one can steal it.

"Alang is really a prophet. I didn't expect that the Du family would actually send fifty taels of gold to buy a house." Ji admired him.

"After all, there's a lot of money to be made, and those prestigious families with thousands of years of history are actually omnipresent. How could they miss such an opportunity?"

The Wei and Du families sent him one hundred taels of gold.

It is a huge sum of money. Eight hundred thousand yuan can buy a house of several acres in Dongcheng.

In Xicheng, you can even buy several small houses of three acres.

Maybe I can consider buying a house in Chang'an. After all, the war is not over yet and the housing prices are very cheap now. Although it is not the lowest time, I can still buy at the bottom.

In the future, the housing prices in Beijing will definitely become more and more expensive. Houses do not have as many restrictions as land transactions, so it is still very cost-effective whether for self-use or investment.

If you buy now, by the time of Zhenguan, the value will at least increase several times. For example, Sun Fujia's house worth more than two million yuan will probably increase two or three times by the middle of Zhenguan.

"What do you think about us buying a house in Chang'an?" Li Yi asked.

Yu Shu said happily, "That's great. After buying a house in Chang'an, it's close to the East and West Markets for shopping. There are also lanterns during the Lantern Festival every year. It's really lively."

"In spring, I went to Qujiang for a spring outing, and on Double Ninth Festival, I went to Leyouyuan for a hike. The streets were jam-packed with carriages and horses, and the fragrance filled the air."

"Is it better to buy in the east or west of the city?"

"The east is rich and the west is noble, but the area adjacent to the two cities is definitely better," said Yu Lai.

Ji Shi was not very enthusiastic about buying a house in Chang'an.

"What do you think, Su-kun?"

"In fact, living in Chang'an City is not very convenient. There are many rules and many dignitaries. If you are not careful, you will easily break the rules and offend the dignitaries. It is better to live in the countryside.

But if I buy some houses and land and rent them out or resell them later, it would be a great idea. When peace returns to the world, the value of houses and land in the capital will definitely increase significantly. "Ji came from a prominent family and was quite familiar with these things.

"Alang, it would be great if you could build a small manor in the Zhongnan Mountains, where you could go hunting or escape the summer heat."

"Then let's go to Chang'an when we have time. We can also ask Wang Dalang to help us find a suitable house." Li Yi also felt that it was more comfortable to live in the countryside. Although it was not lively, Chang'an was not lively now.

When Yu Shu saw Ji coming, she felt jealous, dropped her fan, and began to massage Li Yi's head. This Silla maid had a good technique, and Li Yi felt so comfortable that he wanted to scream.

"Sujun, please help me tap my legs." Li Yi enjoyed it very much.

Little Lihua arched his back and began to step on Li Yi's belly, quite seriously.

"Brother, lunch is ready."

Lanxiang came over and called us to eat.

After eating two meals a day for a while, Li Yi still felt uncomfortable, so he resumed eating three meals a day. In the morning, he would go to the Qiaotou Shop to eat. There were now a variety of breakfast styles and the taste was good.

Lunch was served at the same time as the school cafeteria, around 11 or 12 o'clock, and dinner was in the evening. Xiuzhi had no choice but to adjust her cooking time, and everyone followed suit.

But they all have breakfast at home, which consists of millet porridge and vegetable soup.

Now Xiuzhi is the housekeeper and cook, Lanxiang is the cook's assistant, and the school and workshop in the west courtyard don't need to be taken care of. There is a canteen there, and now there are two cooks. After all, there are more than a hundred students and more than thirty workers.
We had lunch in the shade of a large tree in the courtyard.

Although the weather is hot, it is nice under the shade of the trees. Li Yi's dishes are pretty good, including stir-fried loach, stewed eggplant, and egg and tofu soup. Today's staple food is steamed cakes.

But it is not an ordinary steamed bun. It is the yellow steamed bun that Li Yi taught Xiuzhi and Lanxiang to make. The hard millet flour and soft yellow rice flour are mixed in a ratio of 7:3 to make it taste better. Then, red beans and red dates are stewed and cooked until soft to make the red bean paste filling.

The yellow steamed buns made in the end are not only sweet and soft, but also have cracks in them. They are delicious and filling.

There are only three of Stone Dog left, two brothers, one.
"Eat slowly, pick up some food and don't choke."

It is said that little brats can starve their fathers to death, and this is absolutely true. Luo San and his two children are living in a better condition with Li Yi. They can eat their fill every day and have some oily food. But every time they eat, these two brothers just eat like crazy.

It's so creative.

His appetite is no smaller than Li Yi's.

However, by eating like this every day, the two boys have become visibly stronger and taller, especially after they got rid of the bugs. Now they eat well, sleep well, and grow very fast.

Even Xiuzhi's two sons, the brothers Menshuan and Menzhu, although they were slaves and had poor meals every day, mainly millet porridge and vegetables, but because they could eat their fill and the dishes contained oil and salt, they also grew meat.

"It's still early for class, so go slowly after you finish eating."

Wuji Academy is now on the right track. Li Yi is the principal and teacher. In addition to Dong Qilang, he has recruited two more teachers, both in their thirties. They are both from Hebei and have been drifting in Chang'an for several years without making any achievements. They have neither passed the imperial examination nor become the staff of the powerful.
Finally, he was reduced to copying Buddhist scriptures in the temple, struggling to persevere.

Li Yi met these two people through Hui Liao's introduction. After chatting with them, he felt that although their skills were there, they were not particularly high. They were both from poor families and it was difficult for them to make a name for themselves in Chang'an. Li Yi invited them to teach and offered them good treatment, so they both came happily.

But the main reason they came was because they were impressed by Li Yi's young age and his high reputation. The emperor successively appointed him as the Prince's Secretary and the Proofreader of the Secretariat, and they all hoped that they could use Li Yi to make a name for themselves in the future.

Teaching is just a temporary step.

Of course Li Yi knew about it, but he didn't mind. If they had a better opportunity in the future, he would certainly not stop them. He would even help them if he had the ability in the future.

Ji and Yu Shu still go to class sometimes, and now there is a maid named Hong Xiao.

Yisun gives the children a painting, music and etiquette class.

After dinner,

Lanxiang asked again when her father would be back.

"There's still fighting going on in Jingzhou and Binzhou, so I might not be able to return for a while. But it's been a stalemate for a while now, so there's no major fighting going on, so you don't have to worry."

After a short rest after dinner, Li Yi went to the West Courtyard for class.

The Three Character Classic has been taught and some students have already memorized it. He is now starting to teach the Thousand Character Classic. The content of this first semester is also simple, introducing literacy, handwriting, and arithmetic.

Each class lasts for three-quarters of an hour, and there are four classes a day, with a quarter-hour break between classes.

Li Yi taught them Jingonggang during the break.

For Li Yi, attending classes is now quite easy.

He taught three classes of students separately and gave one lesson to each class.

I don't feel tired even though I only teach three classes a day.
"After class, don't leave. I'll have someone come and measure your clothes and shoes. I'll make you a set of autumn clothes and cloth shoes. Everyone will get one, and it's free."

As soon as this word comes out,
The children shouted excitedly and said thank you, sir.

After class, Li Yi walked out of the classroom.
I found Liu Heizi standing by the window.
"Is something wrong?"

"It's okay, I just came here to listen and learn."

"That's right. You can come and sit in on the class when you're free. If you have any questions, you can come to me or any of the other teachers." Li Yi looked at Heizi, who had changed drastically. "So, is the woman you married doing well with you?"

"Well, now I realize that I have lived the past 25 years in vain," Liu Heizi said excitedly.

Li Yi smiled and understood.

"Try hard and have a baby soon,"

"Thank you, Village Chief," Liu Heizi was truly grateful to Li Yi.
"The village head and the township head have gone to the Wannian County Office to expedite the processing of your household registration and land. His Royal Highness the Prince of Qin even informed the Wannian County Office about this matter. Otherwise, it wouldn't have been so fast. This is a special matter,
One acre of land for residence and garden, ten acres of rice fields and twenty acres of mulberry fields for permanent use."

Upon hearing this news, Liu Heizi excitedly knelt down in front of Li Yi and said, "Thank you, Village Chief. I, Liu Heizi, will repay you loyally in the future."

"A man's knees are as precious as gold. Get up quickly. You will live a stable life from now on. Follow me, and I will not treat you unfairly. After you harvest this crop and plant in the fall, you can borrow oxen, seeds, and farm tools from me. I have already provided them."

"Is there anything unusual happening in the West Courtyard at night recently?"

"No, I'm very alert when I sleep, and I'll wake up at the slightest noise."

"I'll go to the market and buy two dogs and a few geese to look after the house. Everyone needs a nap sometimes."

Heizi asked quietly, "Alang, is there anyone who is going to do something dirty to us?"

"It's always better to be cautious, just in case."

Li Yi not only let Heizi and his wife live in the west courtyard, he also arranged for Luo Er and Shi Gou to come and inspect the area once in the first half of the night and once in the second half of the night.
After all, having offended two powerful clubs, Wei and Du, it is better to be safe than sorry.

night,
Liu Heizi turned over, breathing heavily.

The woman carefully took a towel and wiped his sweat.

"It's so comfortable. I wish I could fan seven or eight pots."

"Doing that too much is bad for your health," the woman reminded him.

"It's okay. I'm as strong as an ox. I have enough food to eat every day, and I have endless energy."

"Even if you have so much strength, you can't just use it to torture me. Save some energy to guard the house. Don't let the thieves get in. If you do, you won't be able to face the village chief."

"Got it, another pot."

In the middle of the night,
Heizi was sleeping soundly when his wife woke him up. "There seems to be a sound. Hurry up and take a look."

"What's that sound? Did I hear it wrong?" Liu Heizi opened his eyes, looked out the dark window, and muttered. He had fanned three pots in a row at night, and he was a little tired.

Cao Yanxiu pinched his waist and said, "I think I heard someone jumping in from outside the yard. Go and take a look."

"Okay." Liu Heizi got up, lifted the mosquito net and went out, not forgetting to turn around and tuck it in for his wife.

"Be careful."

Liu Heizi found a stick at the door and gently opened it.
The night is as black as ink,

Liu Heizi was familiar with the route and didn't need a lamp to look around. He could just feel his way along the corridor and check forward in the dark.

Liu Heizi yawned and prepared to check along the corridor before returning to the house. He felt refreshed after a nap and felt like he could have another pot.

Suddenly, he heard footsteps and whispers.

Liu Heizi was cheered up. Someone really climbed over the wall and came in?
He held the stick and moved forward quietly.

"Ah,"

"Ouch,"

In the darkness, sticks were swung, followed by screams.

Cao in the west wing exclaimed, "Master?"

Liu Heizi's voice came, "It's okay, those thieves have been caught."

(End of this chapter)