Heard these words, Cui San chuckled.
"My lord, isn't this very simple? This Green Ox Mountain is a wild mountain anyway, I'll just go to the county and get a land deed!"
Cui Da Na nodded, "Very well, you prepare a generous gift and head to the county yamen."
Cui San immediately had some decent gifts prepared and drove the carriage towards the county yamen.
Soon, Cui San knocked on the door of Master Mao You, the scribe.
Mao You was certainly very polite to those who came with generous gifts. Su Dan Novel Network
"Steward Cui, what brings you here? What instructions do you have?"
"Master Mao, it's a small matter, and I'd like to ask for your help." As he spoke, Cui San took out a piece of paper from his sleeve and handed it forward.
"Outside our village, there is a mountain called Green Ox Mountain. My lord thinks that since it's abandoned, he might as well plant some fruit trees there. Therefore, he wants to get a land deed from the county first. This is a topographical map."
Mao You frowned, "Hey, Steward Cui, what are you saying? Since it's ownerless land, can't you just plant there? If you get a land deed, the court will collect taxes."
Cui San chuckled, "We'll pay taxes if we have to. Is my lord lacking that little bit of money? We just want some peace of mind."
Mao You nodded slightly upon hearing this, "That's true. Having a land deed will always make one feel more secure."
Seeing Mao You agree so readily, Cui San then pointed to the two large wooden boxes in the yard, "This is a small token of appreciation from my lord. We hope Master Mao will accept it."
"Please have a seat, Steward Cui. I'll go write you a letter."
Mao You went into the study, picked up his brush, and wrote quickly. In no time, he had finished a letter.
"Steward Cui, take this letter to the township and have them send people to survey the boundaries and report back."
Unexpectedly, the matter was so simple and easy, Cui San looked smug. Holding the letter, he headed straight for Chenjia Township.
The sub-yamen of Chenjia Township was a courtyard with only three main rooms. Normally, only Geng Sheng and two other people worked there.
Upon seeing Cui San arrive, Geng Sheng hurriedly came out with a smile, "Oh my, isn't this Steward Cui?"
Cui San gave a hearty laugh and handed over Mao You's letter.
Geng Sheng took it, read it, and then cupped his fists towards Cui San, "Steward Cui, I still need to report this matter to the Township Head. Please return and wait for news. We will rush over as soon as possible."
Cui San nodded, "Alright, then I will prepare wine and food at home and await the Township Head's arrival."
After seeing Cui San off, Geng Sheng arranged his work and quickly rode his horse to Hetou Village to find Chen Xiaobei.
At this moment, Chen Xiaobei had already come down from the mountain with his men.
Just as he was about to wash his hands and eat, a village guard brought Geng Sheng.
Geng Sheng stepped forward and bowed courteously to Chen Xiaobei, "Greetings, Township Head."
Chen Xiaobei smiled and waved his hand, "Alright, alright, no need for 'Township Head.' Just call me Chen Xiaobei."
"Sir, this is a personal letter from Master Mao. Please review it."
Chen Xiaobei took Mao You's letter and almost burst out laughing after reading it.
What do they call it, preparing at the last minute? Cui San only now remembered to go to the county yamen to get the documents.
Since that's the case, he might as well play along.
"Alright, I know about this matter. You take your men there tomorrow. By the way, remember to have Cui Da Na personally take you around the entire mountain. Make sure he personally signs off on it. Do you understand?"
Geng Sheng was very surprised, "Sir, for such a small matter, does he really need to go personally?"
Chen Xiaobei's eyes widened, "If anything goes wrong, the county magistrate's punishment will not discriminate."
Only then did Geng Sheng agree and turn to leave.
After he walked far away, Cui Hongyu became confused instead, "Husband, why don't you stop this matter? Instead, you're asking Geng Sheng to survey the boundaries?"
Chen Xiaobei smiled slightly, "Let Cui Da Na get some exercise and climb the mountain. It will be good for his health."
Cui Hongyu instantly understood Chen Xiaobei's meaning and couldn't help but laugh, "Husband, you're truly wicked."
Chen Xiaobei stared at Cui Hongyu and asked rhetorically, "Is that so? Am I very wicked?"
Cui Hongyu certainly understood the unspoken meaning and blushed. She quickly lowered her head and said, "Husband, I'll serve you some rice."
While having lunch, Cui Hongyu asked again, "Husband, are we still going to pick apples this afternoon?"
Chen Xiaobei smiled slightly, "We won't go in the afternoon. What we've picked is enough to sell for three to five days."
"Right. I need to go find Carpenter Zhang this afternoon and ask him to hurry up and make the blackboard."
Hearing this, Cui Hongyu suddenly snapped back to reality.
"Yes, we have to pick up Ziyan tomorrow."
"So we must make the blackboard today no matter what."
After lunch, Chen Xiaobei rested briefly and then hurried to Zhang the carpenter's house.
Upon seeing Chen Xiaobei arrive, Zhang the carpenter appeared very excited, "Village Head, the blackboards have been ready for a long time. I've been waiting for you to inspect them."
As he spoke, Zhang the carpenter called for Chen Xiaowen to help carry out several wooden boards.
Chen Xiaobei's eyes lit up at the sight of these boards.
The height was just right, reaching his waist, which was perfect. The boards were scraped very smoothly and had a thoughtfully made edge.
Excellent, it perfectly matched his vision.
"Let's go, we'll nail them up this afternoon, and the teacher will be here tomorrow."
The three of them worked together to load the wooden boards onto a wheelbarrow. Chen Xiaowen pushed the cart, Zhang the carpenter carried hammers, nails, and other items. The three of them headed to the schoolhouse.
Some enthusiastic villagers saw this scene. Upon hearing that they were going to nail up a blackboard at the schoolhouse, they voluntarily joined in.
When Chen Xiaobei and the others arrived at the schoolhouse, seven or eight people were already following behind. Seeing this, Chen Xiaobei felt a surge of emotion.
The villagers were not stubborn. As long as he put in his sincere effort, he would surely receive their enthusiastic回报.
With everyone lending a hand, the wooden boards were quickly nailed in place. Then, Cui Hongyu brought the ink, and the villagers worked together to carefully paint the ink, bit by bit.
Everything was done.
Chen Xiaobei stood in the center of the classroom, looking at the large blackboard. For a moment, he felt a sense of déjà vu, as if he had returned to his previous life.
In his previous life, his classroom also had such a large blackboard. Because he was short, he sat in the front row and was often called upon by the teacher to wipe the blackboard.
Thinking about how he had to stand on tiptoe, even jump, to clean the words at the very top, Chen Xiaobei felt an inexplicable pang of sadness.
That was his childhood, which he could never return to. That was his world, which he could never return to.
Seeing him lost in thought, Cui Hongyu walked over and gently touched his arm, "Husband, everyone has left. What are you still thinking about?"
Chen Xiaobei mumbled a few times and perfunctorily replied, "Oh, I was thinking about how the construction of our new house is going. Let's go take a look."
As soon as she heard this topic, before Cui Hongyu could even speak, Chen Qiao'er next to them jumped up excitedly, "Okay, okay! Let's go see the new house!"
Just as Chen Xiaobei and the others were heading to their new house, a carrier pigeon circled down and landed in Liu Rumei's courtyard.
Liu Ce stepped forward, took the small bamboo tube, and opened it to glance inside. His expression immediately turned serious.