After tidying up, Zhao Jiaqi followed Fan Zehao to the village chief's house.
The village chief was at home at the time, praising Zhao Jiaqi's dishes to his wife, describing how delicious they were with a blissful expression.
His wife, however, was displeased. If eyes could kill, Li Wencai would have been long dead. Yet, the village chief remained oblivious to his wife's resentful expression.
After enduring it for a while, Wang Qian finally erupted, tossing the shoe sole she was working on onto the bed and shouting, "She's so great, why don't you just marry her? All day long, you've got no other skills but to spout nonsense. Bah, you're nothing!"
The young couple outside the door heard everything clearly. Fan Zehao scratched his head, wondering why the village chief's wife was so formidable.
His own wife was so much better, gentle, and had never cursed him like that!
He gave Zhao Jiaqi a lewd smile, intending to reward her that night. The thought of it made his eyes gleam.
Taking advantage of his distraction, Zhao Jiaqi twisted a handful of flesh from his waist. Caught off guard, Fan Zehao yelped, pitifully exclaiming, "It hurts!"
Inside, Wang Qian and Li Wencai heard the sound and immediately fell silent.
"Who's out there?" Li Wencai's voice echoed from the main hall.
"It's me, the village chief. I'm here to buy land," Fan Zehao replied.
Inside, Wang Qian's expression changed slightly. She quickly came out to greet them, and upon seeing the couple, she said with a wry smile, "So it's you two. Come in and talk. Your uncle is in a good mood today and has had a bit too much to drink, so I had to shout a couple of times."
"Auntie, you must teach me your skill in scolding people. Zehao is sometimes disobedient, and no matter what I say, he won't listen. If I learn how to subdue him, I won't be afraid of him disobeying me!" Zhao Jiaqi pouted, adorably asking Wang Qian for techniques on taming men.
Her words amused Wang Qian greatly. "Your husband? You don't even need to scold him. One word from you and he'll be obedient. He dotes on you so much, you'd want to tie him to your belt and take him everywhere. In this village, which wife doesn't envy you!"
"But I envy you too, Auntie. You are the village chief's wife. Unfortunately, my husband can make me a boss's wife, and I'm already thankful!" When it came to being an official's wife, Zhao Jiaqi looked at Wang Qian with envy.
This immediately dispelled Wang Qian's previous envy towards Zhao Jiaqi. With a few witty remarks, the two of them entered the house, chatting and laughing.
Li Wencai, who had been feeling uneasy, gradually relaxed upon seeing his wife's mood improve.
He became even more cautious, vowing never to praise another woman in front of his wife again, lest her jealousy be stirred.
"This paddy field is five taels per mu, fertile land is three taels per mu, and wasteland is one tael per mu. Which type are you planning to buy?"
Only then did Wang Qian realize the young couple had come to buy land, and she was quite surprised. "You're buying land right after planning to build a house. Your life is flourishing, that's good, that's good!"
"We've spent most of the silver we earned. The house is taken care of, and now we need land. Our family isn't large, but always buying food isn't the solution. Besides, having land gives us peace of mind. So, while we still have some money, we want to buy some!"
Wang Qian observed that this young wife was quite low-key.
She usually wore ragged clothes, but could suddenly produce so much silver. This shrewdness was unlike any ordinary young wife.
If it were any other woman in the village, she would have boasted everywhere, adorning herself with jewelry to show off.
"Niece-in-law, which type of land are you planning to buy?" Li Wencai bypassed Fan Zehao and asked Zhao Jiaqi directly.
He wasn't foolish and could clearly see who was in charge of their household.
Zhao Jiaqi looked at Fan Zehao, then considered that autumn was approaching. Rather than buying wasteland and reclaiming it, it would be more convenient to buy fertile land for building greenhouses.
"Then let's buy seven mu of fertile land. I want the fertile land to be contiguous. See if there's any fertile land for sale next to our place?"
Buying seven mu at once was rare in the village.
Li Wencai looked a bit troubled. It wasn't that there was no fertile land, but the families selling it had complicated relationships with them.
"Well... there is some, but it belongs to Fan Zhang's family. Their grandson, Fan Shurong, is about to go to the county school and is preparing for the imperial examination in the fall. They are selling their land right now!"
Li Wencai stammered out the information. Upon hearing it was his family selling land, Fan Zehao's brows furrowed tightly.
"Their land is fertile, but Fan Zhang is not a good person!" Fan Zehao offered a candid assessment.
Now it was Zhao Jiaqi's turn to be troubled. She truly feared having any further connection with that group of people and decided to compromise.
"Does anyone else have land for sale? It doesn't have to be next to mine!"
Li Wencai shook his head. "No, land is the lifeline of the villagers. Who would sell their land for no reason!"
Zhao Jiaqi pondered for a long time. She initially didn't want to buy, but thinking about reclaiming wasteland and nurturing the soil, she felt time was too precious.
"Then we'll buy from his family. But Uncle Li, you must be a witness and transfer the land deed to our name. I'm really afraid they'll be like sticky plasters, impossible to shake off."
Li Wencai patted his chest and assured her, "Don't worry. The land deed will be registered at the yamen. It's all written clearly in black and white. Even if they try to renege, they won't be able to."
Wang Qian understood her worries and patted her shoulder, saying, "We all live in the same village, and we see each other every day. Just treat them as ordinary people and don't dwell on it. Besides, if there's any trouble, we can report them to the yamen. What are you afraid of!"
She was right. Constantly hiding wasn't a solution. Instead of that, it was better to be more open.
"Thank you, Auntie, for your guidance. I've thought it through. If they're selling, we'll buy!"
Li Wencai stood up from his chair and told them to wait a moment, as he would go with Fan Zehao to inquire with old Fan Zhang.
Meanwhile, Wang Qian pulled Zhao Jiaqi aside to get closer, chatting animatedly. She also asked what kind of business they were in.
"Niece-in-law, to be honest, my son is not young anymore, and I'm thinking about what he should do. Working as an accountant in town pays very little. If he farms, you know, he won't starve, but he won't save any money either!"
Her words implicitly conveyed a message to Zhao Jiaqi: she wanted her son to join them.
"That... it is indeed difficult. But there will be opportunities, right? If there's a chance, you can work with us!"
Wang Qian's eyes lit up, seeing a possibility. She smiled brightly and held Zhao Jiaqi's hand even tighter.
"Now is a good opportunity. My son may not compare to your husband, but he's strong. You can have him do the work. We don't want any wages. Just bring him along when there's a suitable business opportunity. We don't care about a large or small share!"
Zhao Jiaqi gave an awkward smile. It wasn't that she didn't want to involve him, but their business was related to farming!
"Auntie, let me put it this way: you can work with us, but it's still farming!"