Chapter 38 - Transmigration: The Farm Life of a “Fool”

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Chapter 38: Buying Land

 

 

Liu Tong took the children up the mountain to the same spot as the day before. There weren't many peppers left, but there were still soybeans worth harvesting.

 

There were plenty of peppers deeper in the mountains, but those areas were dangerous, home to large beasts. Xu Ran didn't know this, and Liu Tong hadn't mentioned it. He worried that Xu Ran might venture there alone, so he kept quiet for now. Once they had harvested all the peppers from the safer areas, he planned to go with Xu Ran to explore further.

 

As Xu Ran picked peppers that day, he discovered something new—wild garlic. It seemed easy to cultivate, so he used a stick to dig some up, intending to plant it at home. He figured that in addition to peppers, they could also grow garlic, since its shoots had a wonderful flavor.

 

By the end of the day, the family had harvested all the peppers from that area. Tomorrow, he had no idea where they might find more.

 

Xu Ran sighed and asked Liu Tong, "Tongtong, do you know where we can find more peppers?"

 

"If we go deeper into the mountains, we'll find some. I saw them while hunting. But it's too dangerous to go alone—I'll need to go with you."

 

Xu Ran, always cautious about his safety, agreed without hesitation. Two pairs of eyes were better than one.

 

"Alright, we'll go in a few days. Let's process the peppers and soybeans we've already gathered first."

 

"Agreed. Ah Ran, we've saved enough silver to buy land now. Let's go talk to the village chief tomorrow and purchase it."

 

"Good idea," Xu Ran replied. "We need to act fast. Who knows if someone else might see the potential in that wasteland?"

 

"We should also buy some chickens and ducks to raise," Liu Tong added. "We can hold off on pigs for now. I'll use the oiled paper I bought yesterday to insulate the house. Winter is coming, and I don't want any of you to catch a cold. We also need to buy thick quilts."

 

Liu Tong rattled off a long list of tasks, and Xu Ran stood quietly, listening as his husband meticulously planned everything.

 

Xu Ran stepped forward and embraced Liu Tong. "Tongtong, marrying you was the greatest fortune of my life."

 

Whether it was him or the old fool, both of them felt the same.

 

Liu Tong wasn't unattractive, but as a ger, people in this world expected him to be delicate and frail, like a woman in modern times. But if Liu Tong had truly been like that, he wouldn't have suited Xu Ran's tastes at all.

 

It had been three months since Xu Ran arrived in this world. They had shared a bed every night, but with all the work they had to do, even finding time to eat was difficult, let alone think about anything else. But tonight, something had quietly stirred in him, awakening feelings he hadn't anticipated.

 

Xu Ran didn't hold back. This was the person he would protect for life, and Liu Tong, naturally, did not object to anything Xu Ran did.

 

Everything unfolded naturally.

 

The next morning, it was no surprise that Liu Tong woke up late—Xu Ran had been holding back for months, after all.

 

Xu Ran happily prepared breakfast after getting up and made a bowl of congee for Liu Tong, waiting for him to wake.

 

After breakfast, Xu Ran taught Tangtang and Guoguo a few characters and left them to practice writing and drawing while he prepared to visit the village head.

 

"Tangtang, Guoguo, when your Ah-mo wakes up, tell him there's congee in the kitchen. I'm going to the village head's to buy land."

 

"Got it," the two children replied, focused on practicing their writing, not even lifting their heads.

 

Xu Ran felt a sudden sense of unease.

 

But there wasn't time to dwell on it. He closed the courtyard gate behind him and headed toward the village head's house.

 

When he arrived, the village head's family was out drying their grain.

 

Xu Ran greeted them with a smile before turning to the village head for business. "Village head, I've come to ask for your help today. I've saved up some silver and would like to purchase some barren land."

 

"Oh, you've gathered the silver so quickly?" The village head was a little surprised.

 

Xu Ran chuckled. "Thanks to my husband's hunting skills, we've earned enough. But you know how dangerous the mountains are, village head. I hate sending him up there, but with no money, we had no other choice. I figured if we could buy some barren land soon, we could plant things like radishes and vegetables to get through the winter."

 

The village head nodded, understanding the reasoning. "Alright then. After the government officials come to collect the taxes, I'll head to town to have the land measured. It's two taels of silver per mu*, as we agreed, so don't worry about that."

 

[T/N: A mu (亩) is a traditional Chinese unit of area measurement, commonly used in agriculture. One mu is approximately equal to 1/15 of a hectare, or about 666.67 square meters (or roughly 0.165 acres). It's often used to measure farmland or plots of land in China.]

 

"Thank you so much, village head," Xu Ran said with a smile, bowing respectfully and slipping a string of coins into the village head's hand.

 

The village head didn't refuse; he had indeed put in quite a bit of effort over this matter.

 

In just a couple of days, it would be October. They wouldn't have to wait much longer.

 

Before Xu Ran left, he spotted the village head's husband coming in. "Xu Ah-mo*, have you finished the chilies from last time? If you need more, I still have plenty at home. I can send the children over with some tomorrow."

 

[T/N: This is not the same person as Xu Ran's "mother". Although the village head's husband shares the same surname as Xu Ran's family, they might be distant relatives. And since he is a ger, people automatically would call him Ah-mo, hence he the appellation "Xu Ah-mo".]

 

"Oh, Xu Ran, I was just about to bring that up. Thanks to your chilies, the kids at home have been eating much better. Thank you so much!"

 

"No need to thank me, Xu Ah-mo. I'll have them brought over tomorrow."

 

"Alright then, Xu Ran. Take care on your way back."

 

As Xu Ran walked back, he found himself thinking about corn. He hadn't seen any in this era, and corn was such a high-yield crop. How could he let that go? Although there wasn't any here, perhaps it existed elsewhere. When the time came, he'd find some seeds, plant them himself, and lead the village to prosperity!

 

Then there were sweet potatoes and regular potatoes. Since the mountains had potatoes, sweet potatoes must be there too. He'd have to keep an eye out next time he went up.

 

When Xu Ran returned, Liu Tong was already up, busy drying the chilies. Tangtang and Guoguo were still diligently practicing their writing. Xu Ran made a mental note to buy some brushes, ink, paper, and inkstones the next time he went to town. He'd also need to get some books—he had to prepare for the imperial examination.

 

Even though he had the original owner's memories, the original owner hadn't studied much, and his own learning was different from this era's. He could read, but that was about it.

 

There was so much to buy, so much to do!

 

Pushing those thoughts aside, Xu Ran hurried to help Liu Tong. There were far more chilies this time than before, and it looked like it would take several days to finish drying them.

 

In the last days of September, Tangtang and Guoguo went out to play with Dahu and some of the village head's children, while Xu Ran busied himself with drying chilies and threshing soybeans. Liu Tong picked up a needle and thread to start making clothes.

 

When Xu Ran saw Liu Tong sewing, he couldn't help but twitch his lips. He still wasn't used to seeing a man with a needle and thread—did this count as gender bias?

 

But he said nothing, knowing Liu Tong was doing it for the family. He had worked in the fields since childhood, and while his sewing skills were passable, his embroidery was a mess. Xu Ran decided to keep that to himself.

 

Two days later, the government officials responsible for collecting taxes arrived with tools and carts to collect the grain levy. The village was bustling, though the sounds of weeping were more prevalent. Despite a good harvest, most families couldn't afford extra land, and what they grew was barely enough to feed themselves. Now, with half the yield going to taxes, if next year's weather turned bad, starvation would be the only outcome.

 

Taxes, military service, and labor—these were the eternal burdens of the common folk, resented but unavoidable, as they lived at the bottom of society, preyed upon in an age where survival meant being devoured by others.

 

For a chance to rise above, one could only pursue official titles or stake their lives on great endeavors.

 

Xu Ran's family had no farmland, so they owed no taxes. However, he still hid the peppers away, concealing them in the cellar they had dug. The large vat of chili paste was nearly empty, having been sent all to Manager Chen, a plan Xu Ran had devised to avoid attracting the attention of these tax officials.

 

Fortunately, they were not so unfortunate; upon seeing that they lived in a bamboo house, the officials didn't even bother to enter and simply left.

 

Xu Ran let out a deep sigh of relief. Surviving in this era was truly not easy.

 

This only solidified Xu Ran's determination to pursue success through the imperial examination.

 

...

 

After the taxes were collected, Xu Ran and Liu Tong finally brought the peppers out from the cellar and ground them into powder, mixed with the soybeans, they were turned into chili sauce.

 

Having learned from their previous experience, making chili sauce this time was a smooth process.

 

It took two days to grind the peppers. Just as Xu Ran prepared to head into town to buy oil, the village chief came to inform him that someone would come to measure the land today.

 

Thus, Xu Ran's trip to town was once again postponed and handed over to Liu Tong.

 

When the officials from the county arrived, it was a significant event that drew a crowd of onlookers. Xu Ran had already stacked bamboo blocks around the stone mill, disguising it as a pile of useless firewood to avoid attracting attention.

 

He didn't buy anything for the surveying officials but discreetly slipped them two taels of silver. The perceptive ones among them returned the favor by getting him a bit more land measured during the process.

 

In the end, Xu Ran purchased the land in front of and behind his house, totaling thirty mu, for sixty taels of silver. This made the villagers envious, and even the village chief didn't expect Xu Ran to have such a large sum.

 

Being a scholar and with so many people having written him off as a fool, Xu Ran didn't have close ties with many in the village, but he hadn't offended anyone either. Therefore, no one questioned the source of his money. Besides, everyone knew about Liu Tong's hunting skills, and Xu Ran often claimed that he also sold herbs, which brought in some income.

 

This news sparked the curiosity of many villagers.

 

Xu Ran thought to himself how fortunate it was that they had no plans to go into the mountains during this time; otherwise, it would have been difficult to explain why they were picking peppers.

 

Peppers were considered a seasoning, and those sold in town typically came from other places. Villagers grew only enough for their own families and rarely had surplus, so the peppers from the mountains had never drawn anyone's attention.

 

Thus, Xu Ran wasn't worried about others picking peppers.

 

However, their purchase of thirty mu of land had certainly made waves in the village, so they would have to be cautious in the future.

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