Transmigration: The Evil Mother-In-Law Is Actually Innocent!
Chapter 229 Thorough Consideration_1

Chapter 229: Chapter 229 Thorough Consideration_1

Zhulan and Zhou Shuren supported their parents as they returned to the estate. It was only now, after the Zheng family had moved out today, that Zhulan got the chance to take a closer look at the Zheng family’s house. After settling their parents in, the couple brought the people from the Zhou and Yang families to tour the large mansion.

Zhulan had the blueprints of the Zheng family’s mansion in her hands. The mansion had a total of eight courtyards, each independent of the others. Except for the main house, the size of each courtyard was the same. Each small courtyard was built with a layout of two sections, and thick gates separating the front and back yards of each section. The gates had intricate locks, which Zhulan had seen before with her grandmother in ancient residences in Jiangnan.

Behind the great gates were small mechanisms; with a press, wooden stakes would move into place—six in total—barring the gate from behind, making it difficult to break through.

If times of war were to come again, it would be difficult to breach the mansion’s defenses with traditional weaponry, given its design, not to mention that modern gunpowder would be needed to blow it up. It was even more useful for defending against mountain bandits.

Yang Zhumu, the eldest of the Yangs, fiddled with the mechanism, "This is great. In a couple of years, our family should also build a mansion like this. It would be handy to fend off refugees during disaster years."

Yang Zhulin, the second eldest, added, "The walkways of the mansion could also be designed like the Zheng’s. If it weren’t for the little sister leading the way, those with a poor sense of direction would easily get dizzy."

Zhulan smiled, "It’s just that the design of the corridors is all the same, creating an illusion. With attention, you won’t get lost."

Yang Zhumu, fascinated with the blueprints, said, "These aren’t blueprints that silver can simply buy. Little sister, your blueprints here are worth a lot of money. The Zheng family actually sold the house for only one hundred taels. Don’t you think that’s odd?"

Yang Zhulin pulled on their elder brother from behind, who then shut his mouth; he and their father knew it wasn’t simple. If the sister hadn’t mentioned it, there must be a reason, and he’d just blurted out the question thoughtlessly. He hurriedly laughed it off, "We’ve seen the house now, I’ll go see how your sister-in-law is doing."

Yang Zhulin continued, "I’ll head back to the main courtyard to check on your second sister-in-law. Little sister, brother-in-law, take your time exploring!"

After Yang Zhumu and Yang Zhulin left, only the Zhou family members remained.

Zhou Shuren’s eldest felt that his uncles were indeed wise, but also felt a bit saddened. He hadn’t inherited his father’s cleverness, and he wasn’t like his mother either—didn’t his grandfather’s family also consist of wise people?

Depressed, Zhou Shuren’s eldest followed them into the courtyard. The small courtyard was divided into a front area for receiving guests and a back area with plenty of rooms, each one spacious enough for comfortable living.

Zhulan entered the room, which still had its furniture. The Zheng family didn’t take the furniture when leaving, aiming for a low profile. It wasn’t made from fine woods but rather pine from the mountains. The cabinets beside the kang bed were made from quality material; one cabinet would cost two silver taels.

The floor wasn’t dirt but covered with a layer of wood planks, and the bedroom even had a dressing table.

Lady Li could hardly take it all in—she didn’t dare step too hard for fear of damaging the wooden floor. "Mother, is this really going to be our home from now on?"

Lady Li caressed the kang’s edge, which was wrapped in wood, unlike their own home where one could scrape against dirt and dust just by sitting on the kang.

Zhulan thought to herself that it was typical of an elite family to live comfortably without skimping, even when being low-key. Yet, the Zheng family truly was wealthy, with boxes upon boxes carried out today, the procession of carts alone was quite impressive.

Zhulan stood up and headed to the study next door. Her tone was light as she said, "Yes, this will be our home from now on," while walking.

Lady Li’s eyes shone brightly, "Mother, when can we move in? This place is wonderful; I don’t want to go back to our old place."

Zhulan felt a pang in her heart. With windows large enough for ample light and a tidy house, it was wrong not to live there instead of their own cramped and dimly lit home. Next year, they were going to Pingzhou, and if they didn’t live here for a while, she would feel unfulfilled!

Zhulan saw that even Lady Zhao was looking at her with anticipation, "I’ll talk to your father about it."

Lady Li felt joyful in her heart, knowing that if mother wished to stay, father would certainly agree. Father always listens to mother’s words. In fact, her words carry even more weight than father’s in our household!

The study, the study had the best lighting, with two designated places for candles and oil lamps next to the desk, and a special area by the window for drinking tea. Zhulan thought that aside from being threatened, she had really landed quite a nice spot.

Zhulan went to the women’s chambers next. The chambers were much more exquisite than those in her estate in Pingzhou. The boys’ rooms were all quite similar, but because the Zheng family was a military general’s household, their rooms were much more spartan, though with plenty of space, which made it convenient for fighting.

Each small courtyard had its own kitchen and woodshed, while the granary was designated for storing grain. Each granary had a cellar specifically for storing winter vegetables.

As for the ice cellar used during the summer, it was located at the edge of the back courtyard of the entire estate. Zhulan and Zhou Shuren took a look, and it was always cold inside, but the storage capacity was especially large.

The ice here served not only to cool in the summer, but in case of drought and water shortage, it could also be used for drinking, which showed how thoughtful the Zheng family had been in their planning.

As for the other secrets of the Zheng family, Zhulan and Zhou Shuren did not wish to pry. These things didn’t concern them.

The children from the Zhou family and the Yang family were ecstatic; the estate was so large, it was perfect for playing hide and seek. Zhou’s second child was cautious, always following closely behind the children.

Back in the main courtyard, the moods of the elders from the Sun family and Yang Dayong had stabilized, and Zhulan’s two sisters-in-law were also feeling much better. The Yang family members were all sitting together and chatting.

Yang Dayong asked, "Have you seen everything?"

Zhou Shuren sat down, "Yes, we’ve seen everything. Each courtyard is much the same. The Zheng family left without taking their furniture or pots, so if you want to move in, you can just come over directly."

Yang Dayong looked at the courtyard, thinking how truly nice it was. Recalling what his eldest son had said, he decided that the Yang family should build one like it in the future. He said, "You should tidy up and move over. It lets people know that your family has bought it, and it also prevents thieves and intruders from climbing over the walls to steal things and ruin the furniture, leaving the house in disarray.

No matter how high the walls of the courtyard are, they can’t prevent people from climbing over. With a high-enough ladder, getting over the wall is no problem.

Zhou Shuren was not afraid of thieves or intruders. Before the old master Zheng left, he implied to Zhou Shuren that he had hired people to guard the area around the estate at all hours of the day. If anyone dared to come, breaking their legs would be letting them off lightly."

Zhou Shuren felt that as the old master Zheng left, he had also given him a warning. It was like saying he had many precautions in place. Those thoughts could be considered well-meaning. The Zheng estate was coveted by many, and it was good to have military deterrence.

He did not want to hear screams every day during his first few days. However, having seen the place, he indeed had the desire to move in. Just earlier upon returning, he discussed with Zhulan that living in a better house was not tantamount to self-torture. He wouldn’t stand for it, especially since the lighting in their current house was too poor, making it damaging for his reading and Zhulan’s sewing.

Zhou Shuren said with a smile, "Seven days from now is an auspicious day. We’ll move in then. Buying an estate is also a cause for celebration. It will be just the right occasion to host a feast for friends and family here."

Yang Dayong wasn’t particularly clever, but he lived with common sense and had seen much over the years, which gave him clarity. There was something fishy about his son-in-law buying the estate, and so was the confidence that nothing would happen to it. As long as his son-in-law knew what he was doing, Yang Dayong realized that his son-in-law’s capabilities were growing, and he felt there was little he needed to direct.

Fortunately, his son-in-law was a good man, one who valued relationships. Although he didn’t know the exact agreement between his son-in-law and the Zheng family, the fact that his son-in-law considered the Yang family was gratifying, making all the years of protection from him and his wife worthwhile.