The ten long-term workers were aged between fifteen and thirty. She arranged two rooms for them and then the family of four stayed in a single room.
Afterward, she handed the horse carriage over to Uncle Yuan and Aunt Yuan and gave them fifty taels of silver to go out and buy their daily necessities such as cotton, cloth, pots, pans, and so on.
These people arrived with nothing, so she had to provide everything for them to fully settle in before they could start farming.
Then, she sat down with the broker to discuss the matter of the shop.
"Shops in Beijing are quite expensive. To say that you snagged this farm at a bargain wouldn’t be an exaggeration. To buy a shop in Beijing, the kind that is ten feet long and around seven feet wide starts at three thousand taels." Ten feet is equivalent to more than seven meters, and an area of ten by seven feet is approximately thirty-six square meters.
Thirty-plus square meters starting at three thousand taels, the price is certainly... not cheap.
"What about in areas with a less desirable location?"
"Oh, those are relatively cheaper, but even then, it would cost at least two to three thousand taels."
Xiao Yu lowered her head and pondered for a moment. She now had less than four thousand taels of silver left. A shop was definitely a must-buy; otherwise, how would she conduct business?
Go for it. You can’t catch a wolf without risking your child.
"By the way, does the shop come with a courtyard or not?"
"If you want one with a courtyard, that’ll cost extra. Even in a less desirable location, it starts at five thousand taels." Chapters first released on novel_fіre.net
Five thousand taels; she was far from that amount. If she wanted to open a noodle shop, she needed water, and without a courtyard, she wouldn’t be able to do anything!
So she gritted her teeth, "Then please help me look for a small shop with a courtyard. The best would be one in a good location, but if not, one in an average location will do. As for the price, help me keep an eye out. As for the money, I’ll figure something out."
She didn’t have enough money at hand to be picky, but she wasn’t the type to just sit around and wait for doom. If she ran out of money, she would just have to earn more.
She had to think of ways to raise money quickly; otherwise, she wouldn’t be able to manage.
Over the next few days, Xiao Yu stayed in the manor, bustling around. After all, with over ten more mouths to feed, there were truly quite a few things to take care of.
To replenish the house and kitchen with missing items, it cost her approximately one hundred taels of silver.
The weather wasn’t very cold yet, so everyone bought cloth and cotton. They sat together in the courtyard every day making mattresses, quilts, and clothes. One set per person, two sets for spring and autumn, and two sets for winter, all of which needed to be finished before the cold set in. However, there were only two women in the household, Yaya and Aunt Yuan. What to do about the shortage of hands?
Just as Xiao Yu hesitated over whether to buy a few more girls, Aunt Yuan said she had a solution.
So she and Yaya went to the nearby villages and recruited some women to come help. Each was paid five cents a day, and it took ten people three days and only cost 150 cents in total. Moreover, in three days, everything was made, everyone had new bedding and clothes, and all were very happy. They were very grateful to their new employer.
Aunt Yuan said, "There’s no need to buy more girls. Having more of them means more problems. Just me and Yaya cooking is enough. Once the farming tools are ready, we’ll have them all go work the land,"
Xiao Yu agreed deeply. With many men around, it indeed wasn’t safe for young girls, plus this was a farm, not divided into front and back courtyards. Better to have fewer issues. One person could manage cooking for ten people’s meals, and if they really couldn’t cope, they’d reconsider later.