Ran Er Niang and the county lord of Lingyin became sisters of the Yin family, and Ran Er and Qinglian became in-laws with the Rui Wangfu in a blink of an eye and became the niece of the county lord, which caused a great sensation after it spread locally.

In addition to bringing the awe-inspiring eyes of many neighbors to the Ran'er sisters, which made the sisters unaccustomed to it, this incident also brought many substantial benefits to the sisters. First of all, the fish in Ran'er's lotus pond, as well as eggs and duck eggs, are better sold. Secondly, as the local officials in the vicinity came one after another to pay respects in the ancestral hall of the lord of Lingyin, the identities of Ran'er and Qinglian became more and more different, and no matter what the sisters did, it was much more convenient than before. Because of the affairs of Ran'er's family, most of them are Zhang Dazhu and Zhang Luo, with the different identities of Ran'er's sisters, Zhang Dazhu's chest has gradually stood up when he is running errands outside.

The thing that makes Qinglian happiest is not the change in the identity of herself and her sister, but the person who comes to propose to her sister, there are almost no more. The second is the silver ticket of 5,000 taels sent by the Rui Wangfu. In the first few days, Qinglian had to take it out every night.

"Sister, how can we spend so much silver?"

"You can spend as much as you want. What are Lian'er's plans? ”

"Why don't we use this money to buy land? 5,000 taels, even if it is 15 taels and 1 acres, you can buy more than 300 acres. ”

"What are we buying so much land for? Can you grow it? ”

"If you can't plant it, can't you hire long-term workers? However, what my sister said is also true, what are you doing with so much land? The grain in the five acres of paddy fields in front of us is enough for us to eat. Why don't we go to the city and buy a shop? ”

"Who will manage the shop if you buy it, will Lian'er go?"

"Then you can't let this silver sit here, can you?"

"Wait another day, let's discuss it with my grandfather."

After harvesting the winter wheat and planting the rice in early May, it is the rare time of the year to farm and the hottest time of the year. Ran'er's family habitually went to the pavilion by the pond to cool off. One day, Ran'er and Qinglian told their grandfather about their sisters' private discussions.

"Ran'er is seventeen years old this year, and Lian'er is also thirteen. It won't take a few years for them to get married, and it's really useless to buy so much land. It is better to keep the money as your dowry. ”

"Grandpa, we said okay, we won't marry."

"Hehe, Lian'er is so old, and she still talks about children, how can there be a girl who doesn't marry?"

Grandma said with a smile.

"Grandpa, the silver on that silver ticket will not move for the time being, or we will use the 1,000 taels of silver to expand the bamboo forest a little more, and besides, there are many deserted sandy lands along the stream, so it is better to buy them all and dig a few more ponds."

"That's a good idea. In this way, not only will the income be increased, and the area will be increased to prevent outsiders from digging and moving here, but it will also make the Nine Palace Soul Locking Array have the effect of getting twice the result with half the effort. ”

After the four grandparents and grandchildren were summed up, they began to act. Ran Er and Qinglian took the initiative to find the village chief and asked him to contact him, first discussing with those families in Xia Village who had land in the bamboo forest and by the stream, if they were willing to sell the land, they would buy it at a high level, which could be as high as twice the price of the same land. Then I negotiated with the county to buy all the empty land that was deserted.

When the people in the village heard that the land could be sold for twice the price, as long as it was not the only land close to Ran'er's family, almost all agreed to sell it to Ran'er's family. Not to mention the county, with the relationship between the Ran'er sisters and the Rui Wangfu, the county can't wait to have the opportunity to show favor to the young ladies. As soon as he got the news of the head of Xia Village, he hurriedly arranged for the master and a scribe to rush to Xia Village, without bothering, he measured all the idle sandy land, pinched his head and tail, and only counted the whole number, and wrote the documents according to one mu of five dollars of silver, half sold and half sent, and let the head of Xia Village be the guarantor, including Ran'er, after the three parties signed and drawn, they were brought back to the county to be stamped and printed, and even the tax money was not collected, and the land deed was sent over the next day.

Soon, both things were done. At the beginning, the bamboo forest was 15 acres, and later 20 acres of idle land were bought, increasing to 35 acres. The paddy field is five acres, and after the pond in the creek is enlarged, it is four and a half acres and less than five acres. Counting the original fence yard of Ran'er's house, the total is no more than fifty acres. After Ran'er's large-scale purchase, the paddy field increased to 32 acres, the bamboo forest increased by 33 acres, and the deserted sandy land along the creek was more than 40 acres. In total, there are one hundred and fifty acres. It cost more than 1,200 taels of silver.

Taking advantage of the slack farm, let Zhang Dazhu hire someone to dig the pond. Along the banks of the creek, all the deserted sand was dug into ponds. Due to the increase of so many lands and ponds at once, Zhang Dazhu alone could not be busy. So, three more long-term laborers were hired, all of whom were farmers in nearby villages whose families did not have arable land. was taught to Zhang Dazhu to manage, and Zhang Dazhu became the housekeeper of Ran'er's family.

One day, Qinglian said to Ran'er:

"Sister, it's time for us to come up with a name for our home."

"Okay, let's take the name from Lian'er."

Qinglian thought for a while and said:

"Is it okay to call it 'Bamboo Forest Villa'?"

"It feels good, let's go back and ask grandpa."

My grandfather also thinks this name is good, although there are only more than 15 acres of bamboo forest now, and after a few years of planting all the vacant land he bought with bamboo, he can truly call it a bamboo forest. Seeing that her grandfather also agreed, Qinglian was very happy. Enthusiastically, Zhang Dazhu scraped a wooden board, carefully wrote the words "Bamboo Forest Villa" on it with a brush, and used a thick log to stand by the stream in the small courtyard of the fence, and nailed the four-character wooden sign to it. Since then, Ran'er's family has called their home "Bamboo Forest Villa".

However, the neighboring towns are not accustomed to being called "Bamboo Forest Villa", but very directly call the small ravine where Ran'er's family lives "Daughter Slope". "Po" means "place" in the mouth of the locals. Whether it is a hillside or a flat land, the locals are accustomed to calling it "so-and-so slope".

Outsiders not only call the location of Ran'er's family "Daughter Slope", but also call the ancestral hall of Niang and Lingyin County Lord "Fang Soul Temple". As nearby officials came to pay respects at four o'clock and eight festivals, gradually some nearby villagers also came to the ancestral hall to pay respects and even pray for blessings. It didn't take long for the "Daughter Slope" and "Fang Soul Temple" to become a major attraction in the neighborhood, and as more and more people came to worship, the reputation spread farther and farther.

After the original cold ancestral hall became full of incense, my grandparents discussed with Ran'er Qinglian that they could no longer ignore it like they did at the beginning. It is always necessary to ask someone to take care of the place, first, to maintain the order of the many pilgrims who come to worship, and second, to maintain the facilities of the ancestral hall and daily hygiene.

As soon as Ran'er asked Zhang Dazhu to release the news that he was going to invite someone to take care of the ancestral hall, Grandpa Li came to the door. Two years ago, Grandma Li passed away, and now Grandpa Li, who is over 70 years old, lives alone. Although Uncle Shun, Uncle Cheng, and Uncle Wu have always asked Grandpa Li to follow them, Grandpa Li always said that he could still take care of himself, so he refused the request of his three sons. After Grandpa Li came to Ran'er's house, he didn't say much nonsense, and said:

"I heard that you are going to ask someone to take care of the ancestral hall, can I come?"

"Of course grandpa is willing to come, but will the three uncles agree?"

Ran'er had already wanted to repay Grandpa Li, but there was no suitable opportunity, and when he saw that Grandpa Li intended to take care of the ancestral hall, he directly agreed. Ran Er knew that although it was to take care of the ancestral hall, there was not much to do, just two rooms, which were very hygienic and cleaned, and no one was tired. Except for the New Year's festivals, there are not many people who come here to worship. The reason why I want to invite someone to come is mainly because I want to be down-to-earth. If Grandpa Li comes, the sisters can just take this opportunity to repay the Li family's kindness to the sisters over the years.

"I don't have to be in charge of my business."

Since Ran'er's family moved into the new house, Zhang Dazhu's family moved into the three blue brick houses where Ran'er and Qinglian lived, and after the mother's ancestral hall was moved from the thatched house to the new ancestral hall, the two thatched houses became the residence of the three new long-term workers. Now that Grandpa Li has come to take care of the ancestral hall, he needs to arrange a place for Grandpa Li. Ran'er, Qinglian and her grandfather discussed, and simply set up five more rooms next to the ancestral hall, letting Grandpa Li and the two long-term workers live in it, leaving one to live in the first two thatched huts. It's convenient to guard the fence yard left by the mother.

This year's rain is particularly heavy, starting at the end of May, with the rain falling every three or two days. The continuous heavy rain caused the water in the creek to rise a lot. Ran Er and Qinglian asked Zhang Dazhu **** to lead the three long-term workers to patrol the pond by the stream, lest the freshly dug pond be washed away by the stream. At the same time, he also has to take care of the two thatched huts and grass pavilions in the fenced courtyard left by his mother.

It rained heavily late at night on June 19, and in the morning the sky cleared, and then the sun shone brightly for three days. By the time of dinner on June 23, my grandfather saw a large cloud of rain rising in the northwest sky, and at the same time, a small north wind was blowing. In the scorching heat, a gust of north wind blew, making Qinglian, who had been shouting stuffy, feel extremely comfortable. I was sitting comfortably in the shade of a tree in the backyard enjoying this rare coolness, but I heard my grandfather say:

"As the proverb goes: look at the southeast in the morning and the northwest in the evening. He also said: The south wind blows in winter and the north blows in summer, and the north wind does not wait for darkness in June. A heavy rain is expected tonight. ”

"Won't you, Grandpa? You see, except for the dark clouds in the northwest, it can be said that the sky is clear, how can it rain? ”

"Hehe, the proverbs are summed up by generations of farmers, and they can't be wrong, if you don't believe it, wait until it gets dark."

I really let my grandfather say it right. The clouds in the northwest sky seemed to have grown legs, and soon the sky was filled. As soon as the sun set, it was already overcast. The north wind was also strong, and Qinglian even felt a hint of coolness. Before the four of them finished dinner, the rain with the size of beans fell. Falling on the roof tiles and leaves, crackling.