Chapter 110 - Chapter 110: Chapter 105: Tang Family’s Little Secrets i (1/2)
Chapter 110: Chapter 105: Tang Family’s Little Secrets i
Translator: 549690339 I
“Eh, isn’t that Brother Qin Niu? What brings you to look for Master Tang?”
After greeting Tang Fang, Steward Yan Qi lifted his gaze to survey the others, and to his surprise, he found Qin Niu right there among them.
A fervent smile immediately spread across his face.
“I have seen Steward Yan Qi! I want to ask Master Tang to help me build a house.”
Qin Niu responded politely.
“Then you have come to the right person. The skills of the two Tang brothers are very good, and they always consider the homeowner’s interests when working. Every time I need masonry work done, I seek the two of them.”
Steward Yan Qi heaped praise upon the Tang brothers.
It was unclear if he was speaking so highly of them because the youngest of the Tang family was an official.
“Wow, Brother Qin Niu, that’s impressive!” Yan Qi was extremely shocked; he knew Qin Niu’s background—his family lived in abject poverty.
It had only been a little over ten days since he last saw him, and now Qin Niu wanted to build a house, which was indeed surprising.
However, thinking of Qin Niu’s shoddy house, and considering Qin Niu had reached the age to marry and needed to build a new house urgently, it was understandable.
“Building a house is a big deal; if Brother Qin Niu’s budget is not enough, come to me anytime. I can’t promise much, but five or six taels of silver should be no problem. I was planning to come to you in a couple of days to have you send me more of that mountain fertilizer. The last basket I bought from you worked quite well, and this time, I plan to buy ten baskets.”
Steward Yan Qi had only recently been promoted to the position within the Yan Family, and his savings were limited. The fact that he was willing to lend five or six taels of silver to Qin Niu for his house was a tremendous show of trust and kindness.
It was also with the intention of maintaining a good relationship with Qin Niu that he made such an offer.
Otherwise, who would lend so much silver to someone else?
“Thank you, Steward Yan Qi, for giving me a safety net. Now if I run short of money when building the house, I won’t panic.”
These words brought smiles to everyone’s faces.
He continued.
“I will deliver the fertilizer to you in a couple of days.”
He happily accepted this big order.
Ten baskets of fertilizer cost five wen of silver, a substantial income for the average person.
The key was that the mountain fertilizer had virtually no cost; as long as one had enough strength, the mountains had plenty of it.
Even though Qin Niu no longer needed to earn money by selling fertilizer, getting into this market could lead to a steady income in the future.
The Yan Family was a major client, and as long as the fertilizer worked well, they would surely increase their orders in the future.
Tang Fang and his family listened to the warm conversation between Steward Yan Qi and Qin Niu, amazed that Steward Yan Qi, a man of such high status, was making friendly overtures to this young man.
They had thought this young man was a bit mad and a bit foolish, but it seemed now that appearances could be deceptive!
Steward Yan Qi would not engage in such enthusiastic conversation with a mad and foolish youth.
Let alone buying fertilizer and offering to lend several taels of silver voluntarily.
This revealed that they really didn’t know the full story of this young man.
“Brother Qin, come to me anytime you need silver. As long as I have it to give, I will not be stingy.”
Steward Yan Qi readily agreed.
After speaking, he turned to look at Tang Fang.
“Master Tang, this is the payment for you and your brother’s work, a total of three hundred and seventy wen. Count it.”
The daily wage for a bricklayer is about fifteen wen a day, plus an additional two wen for tea money.
That would be seventeen wen a day.
Altogether, it’s less than four hundred wen for the work they were hired to do, which probably took just a few days.
“Thank you, Steward Yan Qi! Tang is indeed grateful!”
Tang Fang took the money and didn’t count it, instead quietly taking out twenty wen and surreptitiously handing it to Steward Yan Qi.
“It was hard work for you to come and deliver this personally to me. Please take this as a token of my gratitude for a drink. In the future, we hope for your continued patronage.”
This Tang Fang knew how to conduct himself.
Giving Steward Yan Qi a small kickback now would ensure that future work would come their way first.
“Master Tang, you’re too polite! There might be a big job coming up soon, and I will recommend you and your brother for it to Master Yan. However, there are many others with a say in this, so I can’t guarantee anything. Once I have confirmation, I’ll come find you.”
Steward Yan Qi’s movements in taking the money were extremely smooth.
In those days, anyone with a little power would take their cut. How else could they afford to live in imposing brick and tile houses and ride in carriages?
“I have other matters to attend to, so I’ll take my leave now! Brother Qin Niu, remember to send me the fertilizer, same tea garden as last time!”
“Of course! Thank you for your care, Steward Yan Qi.”
Qin Niu smiled and nodded.
“Why be so formal between us? See you later.”
Steward Yan Qi waved his hand and boarded the carriage and left.
This was the first time Qin Niu had seen this carriage, and it seemed extremely luxurious to him.
Now, upon seeing it again, it appeared quite ordinary.
After his status and income had increased greatly, his mentality and perspective had also changed.
It was a subtle shift in attitude.
Perhaps this was the reason everyone strived to progress!
“Master Tang, I’ll pay five taels as a deposit now. If it’s convenient for you, I would appreciate it if you could bring people to start the work today. I’ll procure whatever materials are needed.”
Qin Niu did not dare to have the contractor supply all the materials.
Selecting the materials himself could save some silver and prevent the contractor from using inferior materials to cut corners.
“Well, building a house is no problem at all. But to build three rooms with seven beams, one needs at least the rank of a ninth-grade official, or else it’s illegal, and I’m worried that you might be caught by the authorities and be punished for it!”