stingy landlady

Chapter 89 Li Shi Goes Out (1)

Li Shidao:

"Why don't I go with you? I'll take Siya with me! We can cook and prepare meals in town! I'm still worried about leaving just you kids!"

Dazhu countered with a question:

"Who will look after the house? We need copper coins every day to collect wild vegetables, and we're building houses all over the place. If we're short of this or that, won't we all have to ask you for money?"

You left and locked the door. Who am I supposed to find?

Guizhi thought Li could go:

"Dad! My mom gets so bored staying at home all day!"

"If you carry some copper coins with you every day, we'll only be out in the bushes for a morning and then come back in the afternoon! It's reassuring to have an adult with us, isn't it?"

Gui Hong thought about it and agreed:

"Dad! Let Mom go! It's better for her to go out and see the world than to stay at home all day thinking about this and that!"

Gui Xiang asked:

"Mother! If you go to town, make sure to lock the door! And make sure to hide the silver well! People say it's hard to guard against a thief in your own home! I think it's best to have someone at home watching over the house!"

Gui Hong said:

"We still need to move there as soon as possible! Then we can have Grandpa Zhou watch the house. Once the gate is closed, no one can open it!"

Guizhi also said the same thing:

"Father and Mother! We'll have to move sooner or later anyway, so let's make the new quilts and clothes we need over there and take them with us!"

Let's go to town tomorrow and ask a tailor to make it! Making it myself is too much of a hassle!

"And the things they need over there, I'll go buy all the locks tomorrow. See how much furniture Uncle Carpenter has made? Send it all over there, and also send over the new clothes and bedding that's already been made at home!"

Then she whispered:

"And hide the silver inside! Just keep a few strings of copper coins here for backup! We're making money every day anyway!"

Then he added:

"Mom and Dad! I'm moving in with them first! I can stay with Jixiang and Ruyi, and practice kung fu in the mornings! Hehe!"

Guizhi gestured with her hands as she spoke.

"I still need to practice my handwriting! When I get there, I'll have my own room and I can read books!"

Li said with concern:

"You, a young girl, are moving in by yourself? Isn't that a good idea? What do you think, her father?"

Gui Hong also wanted to go first, and hurriedly said:

"Father, Mother! I can move in too! We've already made our plans. My sisters and I will stay in the east wing first, one room each. We can move into the main house once Father and Mother have everything ready!"

Gui Xiang continued:

"Father, Mother! The three of us will move over there! We'll take whatever we buy there! We'll drive straight into the courtyard, keeping a low profile so no one will be envious!"

Da Zhu thought for a moment, then made the final decision:

"Alright! The three of you can go and stay there first!"

The construction team only has some finishing touches left! Make sure they finish those tasks by tomorrow!

Guizhi had the children collect quite a few small stones! The whole yard is covered with them; once the main gate is installed, they'll cover the entrance area with them too!

It's clean after the rain! Horse-drawn carriages and oxcarts can all walk on it, what a great idea!

"Once the front door is installed, we'll ask someone to choose an auspicious day, and the two of us will be the last to move in!"

As he spoke, he put his arm around Li's neck.

Li glanced at Dazhu, then pushed him away.

"Just talk! Don't get physical! The children are right there!"

Okay! If you all think it's good, then let's do it this way!

Li thought about it and said with a bit of excitement that she was going to town:

"How about I go to town with you tomorrow to buy things? I want to personally choose the fabric and style for my custom-made clothes!"

Now that we've moved to a new house, we're all going to town a lot more often! We're picking out better fabrics to make clothes! Each of us is getting two sets to alternate wearing!

The quilts must also be brand new, with fine cotton lining, soft and warm!

We can't throw away these old quilts! Even though they're new, we'll wash them and put them away.

"Aren't those farmhands building shacks? They won't need to make quilts anymore; let's take these old ones over to them!"

Li's eyes seemed to sparkle, giving off an air of immense wealth.

Siya asked, "Mother! Do I also have two new sets of clothes?"

Li reached out and hugged Siya, tapping her little nose as she said:

“From now on, Siya will be called Guiling. Your father said we’ll call her by her name when we go out! Guiling will definitely have new clothes to wear!”

"Mom is also planning to buy you two hair accessories to wear, to make my daughter look pretty!"

Then, looking at her daughters, her eyes welled up with tears, and she said:

“I’ll buy them all! None of you have ever had hair accessories before! Tomorrow, I’ll buy two for each of you to wear in rotation!”

Gui Xiang asked:

"Mom! Who's going to watch the house tomorrow? We haven't moved our things over yet!"

Li blinked, looked around at everyone, and said:

"Guizhi, let Jixiang and Ruyi stay here to watch the house! Lock the door, and keep the two of them inside. Don't open the door for anyone except our family!"

He then said, as if he had received a guarantee:

"Look at them, Guizhi! They practice martial arts every day! They're probably smarter than most of us! At the very least, guarding the house and protecting the yard will be a piece of cake for them! Don't you agree?"

Dazhu hesitated for a moment, then said:

"Those are two kids! What if Mom comes? Do you think she won't open the door? If they don't open the door, Mom will definitely yell at us!"

Gui Hongzui:

"We're keeping an eye on her and my second aunt! Outsiders can't even get into our yard!"

Seeing that Dazhu looked unwell, Guixiang quickly said:

"Nonsense! Grandma didn't do anything! Dad! Second Sister just doesn't keep her mouth shut! Don't take it to heart!"

Gui Hong also noticed Da Zhu's unpleasant expression and quickly covered her mouth, afraid of being beaten!

Guizhi smiled and smoothed things over:

"Father! Mother can go tomorrow if she wants! Let Jixiang and Ruyi watch the house! We'll feel more at ease if they go out with someone at home!"

"Alright, then we'll get up early tomorrow." Dazhu compromised. "Guizhi, tell them both tomorrow."

"Also, wife, take more money with you. There are many things to buy, and if it's not enough, you'll have to go back a second time."

The next morning, before dawn, Li got up impatiently to get ready. Dazhu and Guizhi also got up early.

The father and son both went to the new house; one went to find the contractor, and the other went to see the room he was to stay in.

These past few nights, Jixiang, Ruyi, and Jinxiu have been staying in the east wing room. The east wing room is being tidied up every day, and the three sisters can move in after moving in their new quilts.

Guizhi glanced around and saw that each of the rooms had two identical cabinets on the kang (heated brick bed), which could be used to store clothes and daily necessities!

A dressing table was placed on the floor. The dressing table was quite simple, just an ordinary table with a mirror on it.

Xu Hong once discussed with Guizhi that they should postpone making the wardrobe until the market at the Prince's Mansion was opened up.

Guizhi thought that since she didn't have many clothes anyway, she might as well leave it at that!

Guizhi even went to check out the cellar. Sure enough, the small room she had specifically chosen also had a cellar.

Guizhi thought that she should buy a few small jars to store copper coins and silver. These would become her own little private treasury.