stingy landlady

Chapter 58 The Stingy Miss

Li, the purchasing manager, was genuinely surprised. It seemed that Dazhu's family was getting better and better every day, but he didn't expect them to still be so stingy!

Looking closer at the two sisters, they always wore the same clothes, which were always quite clean. They didn't wear any accessories, and their hair was simply tied up with a hair tie; they never wore any hair flowers!

What kind of family is this? They can order servants around, yet they have no money to buy clothes and are reluctant to eat. What kind of nonsense is this?

If Guizhi knew what Li Caiban was thinking, she would definitely scoff at it.

We know our own situation best! Our family's wealth is so meager! We earn and spend simultaneously, and what we earn can't keep up with the spending, so how could we dare to indulge in lavish spending and extravagant meals!

At the entrance of Xing'an College, the servants from the Zheng and Liu families took away the vegetables as usual, and all the dumplings were sold out.

Guizhi said to Guihong, "Second Sister! Should we go to Huanghua Town to get plum seedlings first, or buy meat first?"

Gui Hong said:

"Mother wants us to buy grain! Buy plenty of grain! We've got a few more farmhands to work with, and we'll need to provide them with food and lodging from now on. We don't have the means to house them right now, so we'll have to build them a makeshift shelter eventually!"

Guizhi said, "Alright! Second Sister! Let's go to Huanghua Village first and then buy it! No need to carry so much stuff back and forth on horseback, wasting time!"

He then said to Guihong:

"Second Sister! Pan Sen and Pan Qiang are going to pay respects at their parents' graves! Second Sister, give them a few copper coins to buy paper money, incense, and candles! We'll deduct it from their wages later!"

Gui Hong counted out ten copper coins and handed them to Gui Zhi. She whispered, "Go and do what you promised yourself!"

Guizhi handed the copper coin to Pansen, who was tidying up the food box.

"Brother Pan, Second Brother Pan! Your second sister gave you ten copper coins to buy incense and paper money! I don't know if that's enough?"

Pan Sen nodded, and he and Pan Qiang bowed to Gui Zhi and Gui Hong.

"That's enough! Thank you, Third Miss! Thank you, Second Miss!"

Guizhi added, "This money isn't for you! It will be deducted from your wages later!"

Because this money has a different meaning! Your visiting the graves is an act of filial piety, not something the landlord should do for your parents! Do you understand?

Pan Sen hurriedly said:

"Third Miss! I'm willing to deduct it from my wages! I don't want the employer to have a bad reputation!"

Guizhi then smiled and said:

"It's alright! Just one thing at a time! Everything has its limits! Don't be fooled by the fact that we can buy you cloth to make clothes and shoes, and allow you to have enough to eat! You also need to understand what the employer provides and what you are responsible for yourself!"

Pan Sen and Pan Qiang repeatedly agreed, looking like honest and simple men.

"Third Sister! Get in the car! Brother Xiaoyun! Brother Pan! Stop at the incense and candle shop when you see it, and go buy your things!"

The three people sitting outside the carriage were probably going to find a shop to buy incense and candles for burning! The Pan brothers then pointed the way to Huanghua Village!

When we arrived at Huanghua Village, it was indeed right by the roadside! The so-called few households were actually only five or six households clustered together! All the houses were built right next to the road.

Guizhi carefully surveyed the terrain. The area where houses were built was on higher ground, while the area where no houses were built was all low-lying land.

Every household has a vegetable garden, with a few fruit trees scattered throughout.

"Plum trees are blooming so early? Look, isn't that a plum tree? It's blooming with tiny white flowers!" Gui Hong exclaimed in surprise!

Pan Qiang said, "Yes! Second Miss! Plum trees bloom very early!"

Although there are many people in Pinggou Village where Guizhi lives, very few grow plum trees! Guihong has never seen a plum tree in bloom, but no one finds it strange!

Even Lin Xiaoyun and Guizhi came closer to take a closer look. The pure white flowers hung on the tree, each one small but very beautiful.

Gui Hong asked Pan Qiang, "Does it bloom before the leaves appear? Why haven't I seen any leaves?"

Pan Qiang scratched his head and said:

"Second Miss! It seems like they grew up together! But the plum blossoms are so pretty that everyone likes to look at the flowers, and no one pays attention to the green leaves! Look at those green buds, those are the leaves!"

The Guizhi and Guihong sisters carefully admired the plum blossoms from outside the cane, feeling the breath of spring.

"Brother Pan, is this your vegetable garden?" Guizhi asked belatedly.

“Yes, Miss Pan Sen!” Pan Sen said.

"Third Miss, there's not anyone around right now. Let's go inside and dig up some plum saplings!"

After saying that, the two brothers walked in as if they knew the way inside!

Lin Xiaoyun tied the horse to a birch tree next to the gate.

Gui Zhi and Gui Hong surveyed the small village. Five or six households were spaced far apart, with each household separated by its own vegetable garden. This resulted in a sparsely populated village with a rather long road!

No wonder the people at the casino said they lost money; there's too little population and not much cultivated dry land here. Each family is barely making ends meet!

The surplus labor force will be forced to work as farmhands or sell themselves into slavery! Families lack the capacity to cultivate their own land, and even if they did, they fear the land won't be fertile enough. If they can't pay taxes after three years, they'll have to sell their children to pay off debts!

The land was all wasteland; if it weren't for the fact that it was located beside the road leading to the county town, probably no one would bother to come to this village!

The Pan brothers worked quickly, and in no time they had loaded twenty or thirty plum saplings onto the cart and placed them in the vegetable baskets.

After arranging the saplings, Pan Qiang said to Gui Zhi and Gui Hong, "Second Miss, Third Miss! Wait a moment! We'll go to those families in the village and ask for some more fruit tree saplings. Our vegetable garden is big, and we need quite a few saplings to fill it! Besides, we can plant them in the vegetable garden too! They don't eat grass or feed! It's not easy for them to come all this way!"

"Okay! Go ahead! If you have any other fruit tree seedlings, get a few too! The more the merrier!" Guizhi waved her hand without hesitation.

Gui Hong muttered under her breath, "You're really not being polite! This isn't our home, and besides, this is our first time here!"

Lin Xiaoyun said, "What's there to be afraid of! I can take on both of them by myself!"

Guizhi asked, "Hey? Lin Xiaoyun? You know kung fu?"

Lin Xiaoyun said shyly, "Yeah! I practiced it when I was little! But I was afraid of hardship back then, so I wasn't very good at it! Now I've picked it up again, and I practice every morning when I go to herd the horses and cattle!"

Guizhi also wanted to learn: "Can we practice? Why don't you bring Zhou Xing along and let him practice too! Then we sisters will have someone to protect us!"

"Zhou Xing saw me practicing, and he started practicing with me every day! The younger girls want to practice, but I dare not teach them! I'm only half-baked myself, and girls are delicate and frail! You can't just teach them randomly!"

Guizhi whispered, "Alright! I was even thinking that one day I could kill a tiger with one punch and kick down a tree! I could also become a female knight-errant who can fly over rooftops and become a heroine!"

Gui Hong burst into laughter, unable to straighten up.

"Haha! Where did you get this crazy idea! You want to be a female knight-errant who can fly! Why don't you just fly to the sky! Hahaha!"