Farm Girl's Manor
Chapter 1237 - 389: Adding Another Shop_3

Chapter 1237: Chapter 389: Adding Another Shop_3

After hearing the news, Mo Yan was quite moved. Although the space of the rice shop was not small, it sold too many things. In addition to grains, chicken eggs, vegetables, and game were also sold there. By the time the first batch of grape wine and fruit wine was ready, she had originally planned to set up a special counter to sell these wines exclusively.

Unfortunately, there was no room left in the rice shop to place wine racks, and now the neighboring Cloth Shop was up for sale. If she could buy it, it would solve not only the problem of where to put the wine racks but also Tang Xin’s accommodation issue.

Having decided to buy the shop, Mo Yan then asked, "Grandfather Li, I plan to buy this shop. How much silver do you think is appropriate?"

"Three thousand two hundred taels!"

Lizhong pondered for a moment and gave a price that would be acceptable to the Cloth Shop owner and wouldn’t result in a significant loss for them. According to market prices, that Cloth Shop was worth at most three thousand taels, and three thousand two hundred taels was the limit; it couldn’t be any higher.

Mo Yan nodded, the price was about what she had estimated. "Alright, three thousand two hundred taels then. I’ll have to trouble you, Grandfather Li, to talk with the owner of the Cloth Shop about this."

Lizhong laughed, "Although I have a bit of rapport with that youngster, he may not necessarily make concessions. However, if Yan girl can let me bring a jar of grape wine, perhaps he will agree given the wine’s sake."

Previously, a few jars of grape wine were placed in the rice shop, and for several months, hardly anyone showed interest. Unexpectedly, the Cloth Shop owner, on a whim, spent five ounces of silver to buy a one-pound jar and take it back. The next day, he showed up with a bag of silver and bought all the remaining grape wine.

It was indeed because of the grape wine that the relationship between Lizhong and the Cloth Shop owner grew much closer. Afterward, the grape wine placed in the rice shop was mostly bought by him. Supposedly, the rheumatic leg that troubled him in his early years got better after drinking several jars of grape wine.

Although few people believed this claim, the Cloth Shop owner was thoroughly convinced and completely quit drinking those strong liquors, becoming solely fond of the Mo Family’s grape wine.

Upon hearing this, Mo Yan immediately found it amusing. She might not have much of other things, but she had plenty of grape wine. Even if it was space-produced grape wine, if one five-pound jar could offset twelve hundred taels of silver, it was quite a good deal.

"Fine, not just one jar, even two or three jars can be delivered to him."

"Haha, that youngster is going to be overjoyed!" Lizhong clapped his hands and laughed heartily, "I will catch up with him tomorrow."

The transaction went even smoother than Mo Yan had imagined. Lizhong brought two jars of aged space grape wine to the Cloth Shop, and as soon as he opened a jar, the Cloth Shop owner snatched both the jar and its lid.

After a careful tasting, the Cloth Shop owner cursed Lizhong for being a scoundrel, hoarding the truly good wine and selling him nothing but inferior drinks for a high price.

In response, Lizhong protested loudly, elevating the two jars of aged grape wine he had brought to the level of hundred-year-old cellar-stored vintage, claiming they were treasures kept by his master’s family for five generations. He himself could hardly bear to drink them, let alone be willing to sell them to anyone else.

Having tasted fifty to a hundred jin of grape wine, the Cloth Shop owner was well aware of the difference between these jars and those he purchased before and did not doubt Lizhong’s words. He took them to be genuine hundred-year cellar-stored wine, sealing them carefully to bring back to his hometown for leisurely enjoyment.

Having appeased the Cloth Shop owner, the rest was much easier. The owner readily agreed to sell the shop for three thousand two hundred taels. However, Mo Yan would have to buy over eight hundred fifty bolts of various fabrics stored in the Cloth Shop at cost; otherwise, he would only be willing to vacate the space after all the fabric was sold.

Mo Yan was even more generous, not bothering to haggle and, with a grand gesture, took out four thousand taels of silver, buying the Cloth Shop and the six hundred bolts of fabric in one go.

Although there was a lot of fabric, with several hundred people to provide for, it would all be used up within three years. Buying it at a good price now would save on bigger expenses later, benefiting both parties.

The Cloth Shop’s owner accepted the silver, and that very day went to the Government Office with Mo Yan to transfer ownership of the Cloth Shop into Mo Yan’s name. The following day, he and his wife packed up with just two jars of grape wine and set off on their journey home.

Mo Yan wasn’t slow to act either. The day after she got the shop, she had someone transport over eight hundred bolts of cloth to her home and had a doorway chiseled into the wall to connect with the rice shop. After five or six days of plastering and decorating, the rooms looked completely refreshed, and Tang Xin moved in after they had aired out.

With the shop matter concluded, Zhao Mu and the others sealed up all the fruit. But then, they got even busier. Aside from preparing compost for next year’s use on the fruit trees, they also had to build houses to accommodate another group of brothers as well as the more than twenty children they had rescued from the textile factory.

This year, the orchard was noticeably short-handed, needing at least a hundred more workers. The Mo Family’s fields were all reclaimed and required a large labor force to tend to them. Moreover, Mo Yan planned to give the over a hundred mu of paddy fields in the low-lying areas to those retired soldiers. She roughly calculated that she would need around three hundred and fifty people in total.

Work had also begun on the fields belonging to the Mo Family estate. Since that area was more settled, building houses for two hundred residents was sufficient. However, in Liu Yang Village, it was necessary to build more, as they would definitely need to add more people in the future.

Mo Yan left all matters in the capable hands of Zhao Dafu, Zhao Mu, and others. There wasn’t much she needed to take care of personally. And by the time she had arranged everything that needed arranging, more than half a month had passed, and it entered the chilly September.

One day, Mo Yan got up very early and moved several baskets of fruit stored in the cellar onto the carriage. Then she said to Lizhong, "Grandfather Li, I’m going to visit Sister Lan at the Shen family. I may not be able to return today. Please oversee things at home. If Zhao Mu and others encounter any issues, make decisions as you see fit. And for those you can’t, wait for my return to deal with them."

Lizhong replied, "Yan girl, you go without worry. I’ll keep an eye on things!"

Mo Yan had no doubts about Lizhong’s reliability. She nodded at him and then rode off on Little Black.

Once on the road, Mo Yan got into the carriage and replaced the fruit baskets with the freshest ones. She then released an eagle capable of flying thousands of miles in a day.

"You’ve been inconvenienced staying at Old Man Shen’s House these days. Once Sister Lan safely gives birth, you can come back anytime," Mo Yan stroked the eagle’s head and took out fresh chicken slices to feed it, "If anything happens to Sister Lan, you must tell me right away."

"Screech!" The eagle responded with a cry and began eating the chicken slices heartily.

The eagle flew swiftly, capable of covering over four hundred miles an hour. It was only one hundred and fifty miles from Liu Yang Village to Old Man Shen’s House, and it could return in less than a quarter of an hour.

Mo Yan had left the eagle with Liu Tinglan as a precaution. Should any emergencies arise, she would be the first to know. Moreover, it would make communication between the two much more convenient.

After finishing the chicken slices, the eagle showed no interest in staying in the Space. It had Mo Yan open the carriage door and hopped onto Little Black’s back, calling intermittently as though it was conversing with Little Black.

Little Black occasionally responded with a low whinny, and the horse and eagle seemed to be "chatting" quite fervently.

Unable to understand their "conversation," Mo Yan went into the Space and had Xuetuan form a human body model where she practiced Mrs. Du’s Nine Needles.

Mrs. Du’s Nine Needles were incredibly profound; despite her extended learning period, Mo Yan still couldn’t use them to heal the sick. However, in Doctor Du’s eyes, she was already doing quite well. Her current inability to treat patients was merely due to a lack of experience.

Meanwhile, Liu Tinglan, who had been enjoying her peaceful days at Old Man Shen’s House for over half a month, encountered something quite upsetting: Lu Zhu had been sent to the Shen Family Ancestral Mansion and two days prior, in a very disheveled state, had burst into the Shen house. Under the watchful eyes of all present, she kneeled before