Chapter 681: 681 Teaching Horse Carriage Driving
“You smart fellow!” Liang Lizheng’s eyes held an admiration, “A man appreciating his wife is a good thing. It promotes family stability.” Having said that, he dipped the brush lightly in the ink, holding the notebook in one hand and the pen in the other, he walked from one edge of the vacant land to the other. After finishing his walk, he marked the measurement in the book.
He walked in all four directions, each step uniform. When it was not in a straight line, he marked and filled in the distance.
Su Qingyue, watching his movements, quickly understood.
After a long time, Liang Lizheng finally finished measuring, “Let me add it up to see how big the plot is….”
Qingyue faintly said, “The pacing method measures land area. There are ten feet in a span, and ten inches in a foot. A step measures six feet. You’ve just walked a total of 240 square steps, exactly one acre of land.”
Liang Lizheng looked at her with astonishment, then bent his head and calculated for a while, finally looking at her with awe, “Wife of the Xiao family, you’re truly skilled. You’ve summed it all up – the winding parts and all – and you’ve calculated it precisely.”
Xiao Yuchuan and Xiao Yishan also found this unbelievable.
“Wife, how did you calculate it so fast?” Yuchuan asked, “I’ve been calculating it for a long time and still haven’t figured it out yet. If it weren’t for my job selling goods where I learnt many calculation methods, I probably wouldn’t have even understood.”
Xiao Yishan didn’t know how to calculate the measurement by pacing, but he trusted Liang Lizheng to be fair.
Qingyue said, “I noticed Liang Lizheng’s pacing was steady, and he would occasionally mutter calculations under his breath. It was quite straightforward.”
“This is not simple at all…” Liang Zhenghong looked at Su Qingyue and kept nodding, “Wife of the Xiao family, you are an incredibly smart woman.”
Actually, it was unnecessary for Su Qingyue to reveal that she knew calculations. What she wanted was to impress Liang Zhenghong. Having established a good relationship with Liang Lizheng, it would come in handy for living in Wushan Village in the future.
She smiled slightly, “Liang Lizheng, you flatter me.”
Liang Zhenghong waited for the ink on the notebook to dry, then closed it, saying, “One acre of land is exactly eighteen taels of silver. Tomorrow, you can come with Er Gouzi’s parents and me to the town’s government office. There, you pay to transfer their ten acres of paddy fields under the Xiao family’s name, and also get the land deed for your new house done. Give the government office two taels of silver as a processing fee.”
“Okay.” Xiao Yishan replied.
Then everyone headed back.
Qingyue and Yuchuan returned to the Xiao family’s place, while Xiao Yishan escorted Liang Lizheng part of the way before coming home.
As Xiao Qinghe was weaving a bamboo basket, he asked, “Second brother, is the land measured?”
“It’s done.” Xiao Yishan looked at the horse tied under the firewood shed, “Tomorrow, I’m thinking of riding a carriage to town. With Er Gouzi’s family and Lizheng, hiring a carriage is not as cost-effective as riding our own.”
Su Qingyue asked, “Second brother, can you go alone?”
“Do you know how to drive a carriage, second brother?”
He shook his head, “In the past, I have helped drive a cow’s cart.”
“Actually, driving a carriage is quite simple. I can teach you.” She looked at the sky, “There’s still some time before nightfall. We can practice. By tomorrow, second brother, you’ll be able to drive a carriage on the road.”
“Alright…” Although it was a bit embarrassing to be taught by his wife, if he didn’t know, he didn’t know. Losing some face in exchange for learning more was acceptable.
“Wife, I want to learn too!” Xiao Yuchuan excitedly said.
Su Qingyue nodded. It wouldn’t hurt to teach one more. She adjusted the reins and the horse harness, led the horse out, and sat in the front of the flatbed cart, “Second brother, come sit here. Your left hand should hold the reins, and your right hand should hold the whip…”