Shen Yun and Su Xiaoqi were both people of action.
After discussing their plans, they returned home to pack their belongings with their family. They then loaded them onto the mule cart driven by Li Shushao and moved in.
The sky had not yet completely darkened when the mule cart entered the second gate. Old Madam Yu was astonished when she saw the spacious courtyard.
“Heh, what a large courtyard.” She had never seen such a large courtyard in her life.
“So many rooms, oh, the doors are even carved with flowers.”
Before this, Old Madam Yu had already thought the new house Shen family had built was very good.
The layout of the house was exquisite, only the number of rooms was a bit too few.
But when they arrived at this courtyard, she finally understood what kind of houses truly wealthy people lived in.
Of course, this was just her inner thought.
In Su Xiaoqi’s opinion, this manor was nothing special, just a very ordinary residential courtyard.
Compared to truly affluent homes, it was far from it.
“Grandmother, this is the front courtyard. We will stay in the main courtyard. There is also a backyard behind.”
Su Xiaoqi had Li Shushao carry her into the main courtyard, where two main rooms had already been tidied up.
Su Xiaoqi asked if she preferred to live alone or, like at home, share a room with Old Madam Yu.
“Let’s live together. Mother is not well, so it will be easier for me to serve her if I am nearby,” Zhao Shi answered for Old Madam Yu.
Old Madam Yu nodded with satisfaction.
Speaking of the two main rooms, they were for the couple to stay in.
Su Xiaoqi felt inexplicably flushed by the remark.
Her original plan was for her and Shen Yun to live in the east wing, and her younger sister to live in the west wing.
The side rooms of the main house on the left would be for Er Dan, and those on the right for Xiao Zhu.
In this way, if she and Shen Yun also lived in the main rooms, her younger sister and Xiao Zhu could each live in the side rooms, and Er Dan would still live in the side rooms.
There were also guest rooms in the front courtyard. If Zhao Liushun returned, he could also stay there.
Now that there was ample space, arrangements could be made as they saw fit.
As they spoke, her younger sister also returned, brought back by Guo’er, who had been waiting at the old family residence in the village.
Su Xiaoqi took her on a tour and explained the previous arrangements.
Shen Xiaomei was overjoyed looking at the large courtyard.
She quietly told Su Xiaoqi that after receiving her letter last time, she had asked the real estate agent Meng to keep an eye out for her.
Coincidentally, she had also looked at a manor of similar size to this one in terms of land, but its location was not as good, and the house itself was not as new.
It was in the north of the city and was priced at thirteen hundred taels. She asked if she should proceed.
“Of course, you should go for it.” Su Xiaoqi’s confident attitude reassured Shen Xiaomei like a shot of confidence.
She looked at Su Xiaoqi as if she were a celestial maiden, full of admiration and respect.
This was her elder sister-in-law, but more than just that, she was like a benefactor who had given her a second life.
Without her, she would still be a little girl who stayed at home, revolving around the stove, knowing nothing.
How could she have earned two thousand taels of silver, and a very good and respectable occupation?
These were things she had never even dreamed of.
“Sister-in-law, I withdrew the money from the bank. It’s two thousand taels in total. I want to spend thirteen hundred taels to buy the manor, and I want to leave the rest with Mother.”
“After buying the manor, why not buy a house and a shop as well?” Su Xiaoqi calculated for her.
The prices of houses in Mianzhou city had risen slightly.
But they were not too expensive.
A good shop with a front store and a backyard could be bought for one hundred and twenty taels, and a standalone shop, if large and in a good location, would cost only seventy to eighty taels.
After discussing, Shen Xiaomei, feeling a bit uncertain, took Su Xiaoqi back to the main room. She found Zhao Shi and handed her five hundred taels in silver notes.
“Girl, this, this is five hundred taels?” Zhao Shi, having been educated by her scholar father since childhood, was literate.
Seeing the silver notes her daughter handed her, her eyes widened in disbelief, and she quickly asked how she got it.
She was afraid the source was impure and that her daughter might get into trouble.
Shen Xiaomei couldn’t help but look at Su Xiaoqi.
She was afraid she couldn’t explain it well, which was why she had asked her elder sister-in-law to come along.
Su Xiaoqi smiled gently at her and nodded.
Shen Xiaomei then said crisply, “Mother, I’ve been working at Chen Jin Ji with Sister-in-law these past few days, and this is what I earned.”
“Earned, earned so much?” Zhao Shi knew Shen Xiaomei was working at Chen Jin Ji. Previously, she had said to outsiders that she earned two hundred strings of cash a month.
There was five hundred taels here. How many months would it take to earn this? It was impossible.
Zhao Shi was not foolish. She looked seriously at Su Xiaoqi, then back at Shen Xiaomei, and asked her to explain the origin of the money, word by word.
Shen Xiaomei knew that her sister-in-law was willing to let her give the money to her mother, which meant she agreed to reveal that they had partnered in business together.
She immediately recounted everything Su Xiaoqi had done to bring her into Chen Jin Ji.
Zhao Shi was even more astonished.
“Your sister-in-law, that Chen Jin Niang…” The information was too overwhelming, and Zhao Shi was momentarily at a loss for words. She simply hugged Shen Xiaomei tightly.
Catching a glimpse of Su Xiaoqi standing beside her, she pulled her into the embrace as well.
Her heart felt as if it were burning, incredibly hot.
“Good girl, good, it was by accumulating immense good fortune in past lives that Ge’er married you,” Zhao Shi said, choked with emotion.
Although Shen Yun had never said anything to her face, her eyesight was poor, but her heart was clear.
She had already discerned from subtle clues that Su Xiaoqi was not the original daughter of the Su family.
Otherwise, how could a daughter from a wealthy family marry without a dowry?
Of course, Zhao Shi preferred to trust her own judgment. Back then, she had felt that Su Baiwan did not seem like a benevolent person, and would never have taken an interest in their declining family.
But it was precisely because of this that she was able to build her business through her own efforts.
She had built houses and bought a manor.
These were enough to surprise her.
But she had never expected that her good daughter-in-law had already brought her own daughter into the ranks of wealth creators.
Regardless of her background, she was truly wholeheartedly devoted to their family.
Zhao Shi felt immense pity for Su Xiaoqi and couldn't help but shed tears, unable to say a word.
Her emotional display also caused Shen Xiaomei to start crying.
The kindness her elder sister-in-law had shown her was like a rebirth, and she could never repay it in this lifetime.
She only wished her a good life, filled with peace and happiness.
At this moment, three people of different ages felt their hearts drawn closely together, and a relationship that transcended ordinary familial bonds began to quietly take root and sprout.
What Zhao Shi valued was not how much money Su Xiaoqi had helped Shen Xiaomei earn.
Rather, it was her sincere effort to pull their entire family up.
Her willingness to help them indicated that her heart was with them.
There was nothing more important than a person’s heart.
From then on, even Zhao Shi herself did not realize that she had become closer to Su Xiaoqi than to her own son.
As night fell, the family of six ate their meal in their new home.
The meal was prepared by Li Wangshi.
Earlier, Su Xiaoqi had given her plenty of chicken, duck, and fish, and also told her to pull up some mature vegetables from the fields. She asked her to find women from the manor and prepare a grand feast.
Because today was not only their housewarming celebration, but also for these manor servants.
Su Xiaoqi had generously invited them to a hearty meal.
That night, the atmosphere at Li Zhuang was extremely jubilant.
Whether it was the masters in the main hall or the servants gathered in the backyard, everyone was in high spirits, their laughter continuous.
Li Shushao and Guo’er were also eating with them in the backyard.
During the meal, she heard some people express deep gratitude to Su Xiaoqi, but there were also some who expressed dissatisfaction.
They loudly admonished them to stay alert and not to be easily swayed by a single meal from their new masters.