Fortunate Life of the Rural Beauty
Chapter 392 - 391: Buying a House

Chapter 392: Chapter 391: Buying a House

Chen Afu could understand Chen Ming’s actions, but he did not approve of them. Chen Ming meant well, wanting to fulfill Mrs. Chen’s wish for all her sons to live decent lives, to show gratitude for Chen Ye’s early help, and not wanting to upset Mrs. Wang. However, such behavior risked encouraging some people’s greed, making them insatiable.

Mrs. Hu was a well-known example of greed. However, it was strange for Mrs. Chen and Chen Ye to relish the financial assistance from their brothers so unreservedly. This wasn’t solely because Chen Ming, Chen Shi, and Chen Afu had come into money, but more because the way they’d been readily offering their money had changed their family’s mindset.

Mrs. Chen was Chen Ming’s birth mother, and he had to provide for her. But going forward, he could not keep indulging the eldest branch of his family this way, for it risked causing problems.

He hoped that the plot of indifference emerging from obligatory gratitude wouldn’t recur among these brothers.

More importantly, regularly hoarding large sums of money could compromise a marital relationship. Chen Afu said with a smile, "Dad, Chen Ming’s family has just welcomed a new member, and Uncle Chen is also busy. Why not take my Grandma to Lu Garden to enjoy her life?"

Chen Ming sighed, "I’ve repeatedly suggested that she lives with me, but she won’t do it, claiming she has grown accustomed to living with your elder uncle."

Mrs. Wang interjected quietly, "Your Grandma is not only used to living with your elder uncle, but also, being the matriarch in his house, she receives respect from both him and your third uncle..."

Chen Ming’s expression darkened as he interrupted, "What nonsense are you saying?" Realizing his tone was harsh, he softened his voice and added, "Our mother had a hard time raising all of us, we should just follow her wishes."

Chen Afu chuckled, "Dad, there’s nothing wrong with indulging Grandma. However, we all know Mrs. Hu’s nature. If she asks for a needle today, she’ll ask for thread tomorrow. This way, no matter how much we give her, even a house would not be enough to satisfy her desires..."

Blushing, Chen Ming tried to brush off the fact that Chen Afu had figured out his intention to save money to buy a house for the eldest branch. He sighed, "I won’t be doing this again, this is the last time..."

He glanced at Mrs. Wang, swallowing the rest of his sentence.

Chen Afu felt he had made his point and hoped that his father would consider it. He then changed the topic and suggested, "Dad, you and mom can stay here at my place. It’s spacious in the mansion, and I’ll have a separate courtyard prepared for you." Feeling embarrassed, he explained why Alu had moved out of the mansion.

He finished by adding, "When I first moved into the mansion, I was unfamiliar with a lot of things, which led to Alu being wronged. I have cleaned up the place now. The servants who bullied their master have all been expelled, and the dishonest ones have learned to behave themselves."

Over the past couple of months, Chen Afu had straightened things out with some more servants, and the mansion was now completely organized.

Upon hearing this, Mrs. Wang thought it would be better to move into the mansion. That way, she could be closer to their daughter and would be able to take better care of her. She stated that she wouldn’t trust Chen Afu with the care of their daughter until after she had given birth.

Chen Afu was pleased to hear of her decision.

However, Chen Ming was reluctant to impose on his pregnant daughter and waved the idea off, saying, "No, we people from the countryside love lively environments, and we brothers having a rare reunion should live together and have some fun. Your mother will come and accompany you during the day and return home in the evening."

With no other options, Chen Afu dropped the subject.

Once Dabao had finished school, Alu was picked up.

A joyous Dabao jumped into Mrs. Wang’s arms, cooing, "Grandma, why are you only visiting me now? I’ve missed you."

Mrs. Wang, greatly amused, scooped him into her arms and kissed him twice, chuckling, "Your grandma just arrived at your third uncle’s house at midday. After lunch, I came to see my grandchild."

They played until evening, and the three of them eventually returned to Chen Shi’s home.

The next morning after breakfast, Mrs. Wang accompanied Alu on a horse carriage to the Senator’s Mansion. Chen Shi took a day off, driving a cattle cart carrying Chen Ming, Mrs. Chen, Chen Ye, and Mrs. Hu to the Dental Clinic to look at houses.

On the way, both Mrs. Chen and Chen Ye suggested that it would be best to buy two courtyards both on Houbei Street, close to Chen Shi’s home for convenience.

Chen Shi, however, was unwilling to have his eldest brother’s family living too close to his own house, as that would also mean living close to the wine-shop. If Mrs. Hu frequently visited the wine shop for meals, it would create an uncomfortable situation. Whether she paid or ate for free, either would be inconvenient. Plus, Chen Shi suspected Mrs. Hu might start frequently showing up at his home for meals, which would make his wife unhappy.

During the Lunar New Year, Chen Shi had given the eldest branch quite a bit of silver, and he still had not paid back the money he borrowed from his father-in-law for his daughter’s dowry. Mrs. Zhang had cried for days and mentioned this to her family, which made her parents extremely unhappy with Chen Shi.

Feeling that he had paid off his debt to his elder brother, Chen Shi decided he needed to start focusing more on his own family’s needs.

Chen Shi said with a smile, "The houses around my part of town are more expensive. You only have 100 taels of silver, Chen Ming, which won’t be enough to buy a satisfactory house there. If we were to buy something too small or too old, that wouldn’t be worth it. It would be better to buy a house on the west side, as houses there aren’t too expensive, and it’s close to the West City Gate, which would be convenient for travelling to the countryside."

Chen Ye was rather disappointed. This year, they had made a good profit from selling "Dingzhou sweet melons," "Dingzhou wheat," and "Dingzhou corn," but he had invested the 80-plus taels of silver into more farmland. He felt that with his second brother being a large landowner and businessman, and his third brother being a successful businessman, he should at least be a fairly big landowner. Thus, he wanted to keep buying more land, as what he had was still not enough, he wanted more and more.

Because he spent all his money on buying land and also saved some for Aju’s dowry, they lived a relatively frugal life. There was hardly any spare money left for buying a house. They could hardly afford to buy meat. Whenever Mrs. Chen craved meat, she would go to Chen Ming’s house for meals.

Chen Ye then said, "In that case, let’s buy a house on the west side. I want to buy a newer, larger courtyard house. I don’t want to spend any extra money on renovations. We’ll live in the city when it’s the slack farming season, we’ll buy some good food, and everyone will have a house to live in."

Mrs. Hu, on the other hand, hoped to live on Houbei Street so she could visit the wine shop whenever she wanted. But she also didn’t want to live in an old small house, and so she was torn.

They arrived at the Dental Clinic, where the agent, upon hearing their requirements, claimed to have several properties that would meet their needs, then led them to view the properties. They went to the west side first. There was a decent courtyard on Houxi Street. This courtyard house was fairly large and around 70% new.

The environment there was not ideal, however, as the alleys were narrow, many houses were dilapidated, and most were rental properties, with several households sharing one courtyard.

Compared to Chen Shi’s courtyard, this place fell short, not just in terms of the house itself, but also the surrounding environment was worlds apart. Chen Shi’s place had an air of affluence, whereas this place was mostly inhabited by the poor.

Despite that, the agent asked for 130 taels of silver for this courtyard. After some bargaining, he dropped the price to 110 taels.

Chen Ye thought that on top of the 110 taels, they would need to add an extra 10 taels to buy the courtyard, plus another 10 taels for repairs and furniture. He asked if he could buy the house for 90 silver taels since he had not much left.

The agent shook his head, saying, "You can look elsewhere. For a small courtyard this good, 110 taels of silver is the cheapest."

Chen Ye found the price too high and was not satisfied with the location. He said he would consider it further.