Xiaoqian said in a low voice: "This year, the family has an additional 20 acres of Yongye farmland. It will take a lot of time to do all this. How can there be time to take care of the wasteland? Besides, it's winter now, and the family has to spend a lot of time. Building a house and opening up wasteland can’t spare your hands and feet.”
Zhou Dalang sighed, and said: "Isn't it true that Datou and Daya are not too young? Especially Daya, they will be able to say goodbye in a few years."
Zhou's family is not separated, so the grandchildren's bride price and so on are naturally out of business. Zhou Dalang doesn't worry about the big head and the third head, but the big girl is a daughter, and it will be nice to go out with more dowry.
Xiaoqian thought for a while and said: "Let's talk about it after next year, see if the family can be busy, if possible, we will also choose a better place to open, and after next year, Datou and Daya will be one year older Yes, they can also help with the work in the field."
Zhou Dalang could only agree.
There are regulations on what to grow in the allocated fields, like Yongye Field, which can only grow grain. Even if the county's management is loose, at least 80% of it must be grown for grain.
So it is impossible for them to take up too much fertile land to grow ginger and yam, which cannot be used as food.
Besides, the old Zhou is also very cautious. Ginger and yams have indeed brought a lot of benefits to the family this year, but they are planted less and the quantity is small, so they can be sold, but if they are planted more, they can be sold out.
Among other things, this ginger and yam are not something that needs to be eaten every day, so it is already a risk for him to take a few acres of land to plant.
So he was not very happy about the third son's decision to open up wasteland to plant ginger.
"There is a lot of work in the field. If we don't do it more carefully, the grain production will definitely decrease. It's okay for the fourth child and the others to toss around. Why does the third child also join in the fun?"
But Mrs. Qian said: "The old man is good at cooking. With the job in the school, he earns money every month. Not to mention the second child, he earns no less than the big house every month for his bamboo weaving skills. But What about the third one? He has no other skills except farming, and now the fourth one is three years old, and there will be another one, and it doesn’t cost money to raise a child.”
"The family didn't short them for food and drink."
"Is it just food and drink to raise a child?" Qian said angrily, "It doesn't cost money to make clothes from cloth? Among other things, he wants to cook a bowl of brown sugar water for his daughter-in-law. Does he have to ask for it from the elders? Let him Do it, pay seven or eight cents, and they will also benefit from it.”
"What about the field?"
Qian closed her eyes and said nothing.
This matter has not been discussed for a while, and they did not show any dissatisfaction. Zhou Zhoulang knew nothing, walked to the side of the mountain looking for a gap, and finally chose a piece of wasteland not far from Zhou Xi's. .
He circled it and decided to open up wasteland when he had time.
But it is impossible for him to have time in the near future, because the Zhou family has already started digging the foundation to build a house.
The stones plucked from the mountain were also sent down one after another, and the Zhou family's house began to be built.
Man Bao was so happy that every day when he came back from school, he had to walk around the house before going to Bai's house to do his homework.
There are enough materials and a lot of people. The house building is still very fast. Unlike the Bai family, the Zhou family not only built a lot of houses, but also dug ponds in the yard, so the seven brick and stone houses were built in less than 18 days up.
Old Zhou Tou looked at the money left in the money box after paying the wages, feeling a little heartbroken, "I still have to prepare bedding."
"There is still a bed!" Man Baogang went to visit his new room, ran in quickly, and demanded with old Zhou Tou: "Father, I want a new bed."
"Isn't your little bed still sleeping?"
"I don't want it anymore, give it to Santou," Man Bao said, "I just promised Santou that I will give him my little bed when I move to a new house, Dad, you can make me a new bed. "
Old Zhou said with a bitter face, "I have no money."
"I have it." Man Bao ran back to the room, took out two strings of money in a short while, handed it to him and said, "Father, you must help me make the bed a little bigger, so that I can pay back money." Can I invite my friends to come back and talk by candlelight?"
Old Zhou was almost choked, he stared wide-eyed and asked, "Who is your friend? Girl, you are a girl, you can't lie on the same bed as a boy."
"I know," Man Bao said perfunctorily: "The friend I'm talking about is not Bai Shanbao and the others, but Miss Fu Er. She said she wants to come to our house to play, and then I can sleep with her."
Old Zhou Tou heaved a sigh of relief, but before he was completely relieved, he suddenly remembered the identity of the Second Miss Fu, and raised his heart again, "What, the Second Miss Fu you are talking about is the Second Miss of the county magistrate's family? "
"yes."
Old Zhou swallowed his saliva and looked at his old wife.
Mrs. Qian also sat up straight and asked, "Second Miss Fu really said that she would come to live with us?"
Man Bao nodded, "It's written in the letter."
Man Bao showed them the letter, but the couple were illiterate, so Man Bao read it to them, "She said, now she is detained at home to learn the rules, and it is not easy to even go out. I am so envious that I can be unrestrained I thought it would be great if she could come to our house, so I have written to invite her to come to our house as a guest, and she may come after a while."
Old Zhou Tou and Qian Shi relaxed their backs, and they all breathed a sigh of relief, and they said, why did the daughter of the county magistrate come to their poor mountain valley.
Glancing at the deceitful girl, old Zhou Tou smiled and agreed, "Okay, I'll make you a new bed."
There is no need to think about the big bed, it is almost the same as a normal one.
Of course, the money of Manbao is not enough, so they have to add to it, and Lao Zhou's heart aches when he thinks about it.
A bed, not counting wood, just pays more than two hundred cash to the carpenter, so it is far from two hundred cash for Man Bao.
But Lao Zhou didn't say anything, and the next day he went to Dali Village with money to find a carpenter and added another bed.
After the new house was built, they didn't move in right away. Firstly, the beds hadn't been made yet, and secondly, the new house was always damp, so it had to be baked with a fire.
Man Bao is very keen on warming up his new house, and every day he volunteers to hold a torch and blow it here and there.
Bai Shanbao also liked it very much, so he competed with her to play, and was so frightened that he snatched the torches from both of them, and then drove them out, "Wetting the bed at night when playing with fire!"
Man Bao retorted: "Nonsense, what does playing with fire have to do with bedwetting?"
"That's right, I've never heard that playing with fire can wet the bed."
"That's what the adults say," Datou extinguished the torch directly, and said, "Anyway, you are not allowed to play. Grandpa said that it is an adult's job to dry the house. Sister, if you are disobedient, I will tell grandma and my mother." .”
Man Bao dared not speak out because she was most afraid of her mother and sister-in-law.