CHAPTER 258: CHAPTER 253: LITTLE SECRET (PART 2)

After the banquet, Yu Xiaolian returned to her days of working at Shuren Academy.

Every ten days, Yu Xiaolian sent Zhao Erya to queue at the government store to buy grain and salt.

On the second ten-day mark, it was the moving day Yu Changhe had chosen.

Sun Fourth Master’s house was ready, and when the Li Family moved out, they sold everything that was not easy to carry, like wooden cabinets and iron pots, to Sun Fourth Master. Therefore, Sun Fourth Master’s family could move in with just their bags, and they decided to move to Taohua Village together today.

Since she had returned, Yu Xiaolian had never visited Taohua Village. Today, for the moving day, she specifically took leave from the academy to go to Taohua Village.

Yu Xiaolian only kept the little pony she often rode. All other cattle and horses were taken to Taohua Village by Yu Changhe to manage.

Yu Xiaolian originally wanted Granny Gao to go to Taohua Village to take care of Mrs. Sun’s meals and daily life, but Mrs. Sun insisted it was unnecessary. Because Sun Fifth Master’s family was living together with them, the cooking was eagerly handled by the daughters-in-law of Sun Fifth Master.

Yu Xiaolian didn’t persist further. Once reaching Taohua Village, she specially found the three daughters-in-law of Sun Fifth Master and secretly promised them each a daily wage of thirty wen to take over the cooking and laundry tasks.

The three daughters-in-law of Sun Fifth Master shook their heads like rattle-drums.

They felt it was only right to help with the work since they were living and eating for free at the Yu Family.

Sun Daji’s wife spoke boldly, "Don’t worry about it. Even if we don’t take your money, we’ll serve your mother as well as a lady in the city, allowing her to have no chores at all."

Sun Sanji’s wife added, "Exactly, how could we take your money? If our father-in-law found out, we’d be scolded to death."

Yu Xiaolian made a hush gesture, "Ladies, listen to me... Our little secret about me paying you wages, if you don’t tell, and I don’t tell, no one will know.

Then you can save up some private money. In the future, whether for buying clothes or building a house, having some money is always better than having none. Besides, thirty wen is nothing to me.

I was even thinking of opening another shop and having you help there, but business hasn’t been great lately. Let me think about what kind of shop to open first, and by then I might keep you quite busy. Just, by then, don’t complain about me behind my back."

With her silver tongue, Yu Xiaolian successfully persuaded the three daughters-in-law of Sun Fifth Master, thus forming a little secret among the four of them.

Yu Changhe, along with Sun Fifth Master’s family, unloaded the carts. They had brought many items with cattle and horse carts. There was even a cart of grain that got questioned at the city gate for a long time until Yu Xiaolian showed the purchase receipts. Only then did the guarding government officer allow them to pass.

Yu Xiaolian didn’t help with the unloading. She slipped into her little wooden building.

When Yu Xiaolian initially drew the renovation plans, she designed the style of the little wooden building to be very simple as she did not plan to live there permanently, just visit occasionally.

Stepping on the stairs onto the second floor, she stood by the window and overlooked the entire Taohua Village.

Taohua Village was large, but the terrain was uneven, with roads winding upwards, and the houses of farmers were clustered in sections. The house built by the Yu Family was in the low-lying area of Taohua Village, where there were only two other households besides Yu’s house.

If there weren’t floods, it would be fine. But in case of flooding, her house would be the first to submerge. When the building began, Yu Xiaolian had considered this problem. She specifically had Yu Changhe arrange for drainage channels to follow the terrain downward.

The drainage extended to a river five miles outside Taohua Village.

Downstairs, people were unloading bags of grain from the cart, both coarse grain and fine grain, which Sun Daji and Sun Sanji carried into the warehouse.

Mrs. Sun looked up and called to Yu Xiaolian from downstairs through the window on the second floor, "Lian’er, come down. I have something to discuss with you."

Yu Xiaolian hurriedly went downstairs, "Mom, what’s the matter?"

Mrs. Sun said, "I was thinking of letting Manzhi and Manyuan stay with you at Xiangyang Lane. Let them also start their education at your academy. What do you think?"

Sun Manzhi was seven years old, the same age as Little Tiger and Su Jingyue. Sun Manyuan was Sun Sanji’s eldest son, five years old, and it was time for his education to begin.

Yu Xiaolian nodded, indicating no problem at all. Herding one sheep was the same as herding two.