Chapter Twelve: Covering the Pigsty

  The Huang family planned to let Lin Er Niu resign from his job at the Xia landlord's house, and in their own backyard, use earth bricks to build a pigpen. When the market day arrived, they would buy a piglet from the market and raise it themselves. They also planned to weave a chicken coop with bamboo strips, buy an old hen and some chicks, and raise them at home. By next year, they could eat their own eggs at home. Lin He thought this was a good idea, as these free-range chicken eggs were very nutritious in ancient times. Moreover, raising chickens and pigs did not require food from their own household, as there were wild vegetables everywhere on the mountain that they could pick, chop up, and feed to them.

  Lin He also considered that selling cloth toys was just a temporary measure, wanting to earn some silver coins back to improve the family's environment. If it's said that you want to make a lot of money, it's probably not possible. After all, this kind of thing is pushed out, and imitations will appear one after another. When more and more are produced, these originally rare things won't be worth much money. At that time, the competitors will become more and more, and naturally, the price will drop lower and lower.

  If clever people can think of these toys and make the most of them, I'm afraid they won't be so rare. The more time goes on, the less money Wang will give out, so we have to take advantage of it now while others haven't reacted yet and earn as much as we can.

  The children at home are still young, but the expenses are getting more and more. The money from these toys and dolls can only ensure a slightly stable life for the family members. If you want to get rich, it's probably still a long way to go. In any case, take care of the present first.

  The next day, Lin Er Niu led Da Bao and Qin Lao Die to build a pigpen in the backyard of the house. At that time, earth bricks were very cheap. Earth bricks were made from mud dug up on the mountain, then pounded into shape with force, framed with a wooden mold, dried in the sun, and they were ready for use. Since they didn't have time to make their own, they bought them from a brick factory. The cost of the bricks needed to build a pigpen was less than 50 cents.

  Lin Er Niu can build a house, so building a pigpen is naturally an easy task. Qin Lao Die and Da Bao helped out, and in one day's time, the pigpen was built. Then they used some rotten wood to nail together a small door, which only needed to be half a person tall, making it convenient for feeding.

  In the evening, Lin He pestered Huang Shi to eat dumplings. Huang Shi couldn't resist Lin He's nagging, and since they had bought some five-flower pork yesterday, and the cabbage and radish were readily available, it was a rare opportunity for them to have dumplings at home, so she agreed to make dumplings for dinner. In the evening, everyone at home enjoyed a delicious meal of dumplings. Compared to their past life, the taste of these dumplings was still somewhat inferior, but fortunately, there was someone to share the meal with, which added a special flavor to it.

  After a few days, Lin Er Niu bought back a fat piglet from the market, and brought back a brood of chicks and an old hen. Originally, they were going to be placed in the front yard, but Lin He said that would make the whole house smell like chicken manure, so they decided to put them in the backyard instead. Huang Shi couldn't understand why her own daughter had become so picky, as everyone in the countryside raised chickens in their front yards. But she couldn't argue with Lin He's opposition, and there was also a place for raising chickens in the backyard. Since the children were always running around in the front yard, they decided to raise them in the backyard instead, to avoid accidentally stepping on the chicks.

  These days, Mrs. Zhou also often brings her children to the hospital to play. Mrs. Zhou saw the changes in Er Niu's home and was also very surprised. In just a few days, the house had changed its appearance. Huang Shi only explained that "it was Er Ya who made a few toys and took them to the street, where they were seen by a shopkeeper who thought they were rare and earned some silver money." She didn't say anything specific, after all, people's hearts are separated from their bellies.

  If it were suddenly said that her seven-year-old daughter had made so much money, and some people with ulterior motives in the village knew about it, no one could predict what kind of storm would be stirred up. Moreover, family matters didn't need to be exposed too much in front of outsiders. Zhou Shi was also clever and didn't ask more questions. Since Lin He brought back the money, Huang Shi had been supporting their family generously.

  She sent new winter clothes to the two children and also sent new quilts made of medium cotton, and from time to time she would send some food to the children at home. Lin He's family is good, that is, her family is good. Originally, when Er Niu's family was not rich, they saw that the widows and orphans were helping a lot, now it doesn't need to be said much. Zhou Shi is also a grateful person, because she is a widow, Er Niu is at home and she can't often go to Lin He's house, but the two children come frequently, and most days they eat lunch here.

  Several days later, the broker came to the door and said that Tian had found it, but there were only eight mu of good land, and ten mu of sandy land. He was afraid that Er Niu's family would not want it, so he specially came to ask. Er Niu asked the broker to take him over to have a look.

  This family is moving to the city to open a store, and no one will take care of these fields at home, so they are in a hurry to sell them out. The price is quite good, with 6 taels per mu for good land and 15 taels for sandy land if you want it, which is equivalent to 1 tael and 5 mace per mu. Originally, it was supposed to be 2 taels of silver per mu. Two cows are not planned to be sold. Sandy fields are only useful for growing sweet potatoes and other crops, but ten mu is too much. I'll go back and discuss with my family. The broker asked him to make a decision as soon as possible. If he doesn't want it, he needs to find the next buyer.

  Back home, Lin Er Niu and Huang Shi were discussing on one side, while Lin He was listening on the other. She heard Lin Er Niu mention that there were many sandy fields, so she asked him what sandy fields were. Lin Er Niu said, "Sandy fields are not suitable for planting crops like grain or millet. Usually, we can plant some sweet potatoes, cabbage and other vegetables."

  Lin He remembered that in his past life, the sandy land could be planted with many things, such as watermelons, cucumbers, and even some greenhouse vegetables in winter.

  Lin Er Niu asked, "Dad, are there watermelons sold here in the summer?"

  Lin Er Niu didn't know what a watermelon was, so Lin He described the shape of a watermelon to him. Lin Er Niu said he had heard people talk about it before, but they called it "summer melon", not watermelon. The characteristics were the same as a watermelon, but he had never eaten one before. Watermelons seemed like a rare thing in ancient times, but if you had them, you could grow your own.

  Lin He then asked Lin Er Niu to buy those lands, saying that in the summer, this sandy land is very suitable for growing watermelons. In addition to watermelons, they can also plant other things, and buying back these sandy fields will not be a loss. Huang Shi heard Lin He say so and thought it was feasible too. Seeing his wife and children all agreeing, Lin Er Niu naturally agreed as well.

  Lin Er Niu and the middleman finalized the deal at the government office, where they also gave the middleman 300 taels of silver as a handling fee. The middleman left with a big smile on his face, saying that Lin Er Niu could come to him if he needed anything in the future. Lin Er Niu agreed and returned home, holding the land deed tightly in his arms, beaming with joy.

  Finally, I don't have to give away more than half of my hard-earned crops to others every year. The most important thing is that with these fields, our family can finally live a good life. Even if there are natural disasters or man-made calamities, we won't have to worry about starving to death again. We won't have to worry about finding food for the children during winter. And I won't have to rely on my wife's family to get us through the winter anymore. No man wants to rely on others to make a living. In the past, our family was indeed poor. Adults can go without eating, but children can't. For the sake of the children, there was no other way. Now that we have these fields, our family's good days have finally arrived.