Chapter 10

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Although the solid brick and tile house was indeed nice, living with a bunch of relatives who were always looking to take advantage wasn’t any less troublesome. You’d see them everywhere you turned, and you had to be constantly on guard.

In contrast, the house Shen Mo’er and her family were currently living in, despite being somewhat dilapidated, actually had quite a few merits.

The main advantage was its location at the village entrance. Opposite lay farmland; to the right was a cattle shed housing an old man who had been sent down during re-education; to the left was the team headquarters. Except for one room in the backyard where a small landlord and his son lived, the other rooms were vacant. In other words, their closest neighbors numbered only three, all of whom were “landlords, rich peasants, counter-revolutionaries, and bad elements” who usually dared not cause trouble. It was almost like having no neighbors at all.

For this father and daughter pair who had traveled through time and brought a treasure trove with them, this environment couldn’t have been more perfect.

Therefore, from the start, they never really intended to change houses; they only wanted an excuse to demand money from the Shen family.

After all, they could enjoy delicacies and simple meals alike, but they absolutely could not afford losses.

The other members of the Shen family didn’t know what Shen Mo’er was thinking; they were fretting over the large sum of money that had been handed over.

Those with sharper minds, like Shen Shengli and Tian Fang, mused privately that Shen Laoqi wouldn’t need much of the money to repair the house—it was more likely he would save it for his daughter. After all, things would come around eventually, and they still had a chance to get their money back.

Who would have expected that, just moments later, they would hear Shen Mo’er asking the team leader if they could get approval to lay a foundation for a new house!

“You two have one room enough to live in. Why build a new house? Laoqi, Mo’er is still young and doesn’t understand. You can’t indulge her in everything,” Shen Shengli said with a stern face.

“Exactly. Laoqi, even if you have money, you need to think about when you don’t. Don’t just look at the three hundred yuan you got at once. Money isn’t something to be spent recklessly. Don’t just think about the present; think about the future. Mo’er is getting older—won’t she need a dowry? And if she marries out, you’ll be alone—won’t you need some money saved for your old age?” Tian Fang, as usual, spoke earnestly as if she truly cared, but her expression was tinged with unnatural urgency.

Shen Yongjun added, “There’s an old saying: ‘You can’t go broke eating or dressing, but if you fail to plan, you’ll suffer.’ Our families may have had some disagreements over the house, but we’re still brothers. Laoqi, your eldest brother and sister-in-law are only looking out for you.”

If this were the original Shen Laoqi and his daughter, they might have been persuaded by these seemingly heartfelt words.

But the Shen Laoqi and daughter of today were naturally impossible to sway.

Shen Mo’er snorted, clearly irritated, and said angrily, “I’m my father’s only daughter. How could I possibly marry out? I want to find a son-in-law! Build a new house, find a son-in-law, and we’ll take care of him as he grows old!”

She narrowed her eyes and glanced suspiciously at Shen Shengli and the others. “You all tricked my family out of our house before. Now you’re trying to swindle our money, aren’t you?”

Shen Shengli: “…”

Shen Yongjun: “…”

Tian Fang: “…”

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Indeed, that was their plan, but being called out so bluntly face to face was another matter.

They all vehemently denied it:

“That’s impossible, you’re talking nonsense!”

“You’re just a kid, why would you misunderstand? Your second uncle means well.”

“Exactly, we’re all doing this for your good. Wanting a son-in-law is a good idea, but finding a live-in son-in-law isn’t that easy…”

Tian Fang wanted to say that they didn’t want to risk bringing home a worthless freeloader, but considering her reputation, she didn’t say so bluntly. Instead, she changed direction and said to Shen Shaoyuan, “Laoqi, Mo’er is still a child—she acts on impulse. You can’t indulge her in everything.”

Shen Shaoyuan raised an eyebrow and said directly, “She’s my only daughter. If I don’t indulge her, who will? Besides, her desire to find a son-in-law to care for me in old age is a filial act. Team leader, don’t you agree?”

He then turned to Zhou Mancang and asked, “Can my family’s homestead be approved?”

Zhou Mancang smiled, “Of course it can.”

They had just given up two brick and tile houses; it was reasonable and proper to re-approve a homestead for them.

Since Shen Mo’er was literate and had just signed a deed of transfer, with paper and pen ready, Zhou Mancang asked her to write an application letter. Shen Shaoyuan signed and sealed it with a fingerprint, and they promised to visit the commune the next day to handle the paperwork.

The other Shen family members, for reasons unknown, stayed behind and watched as Shen Mo’er wrote the application and heard Zhou Mancang say the paperwork could be completed tomorrow. They felt a complex mix of emotions.

People who had always been timid suddenly changed their demeanor. Not only had they lost a large sum of three hundred yuan to the Shen Laoqi family, but now they were planning to build a new house?

Shen Mo’er didn’t care what they thought. She glanced at the group with varying expressions and said, “Once my homestead is approved and the date for building the new house is set, I expect all my cousins to come help!”

The Shen family members were stunned. Shen Shengli furrowed his brows, suddenly recalling that when they had signed the deed transferring the brick and tile houses, it included a clause: “When Shen Shaoyuan’s family builds a new house, Shen Shengli’s family must provide thirty labor days to assist.”

Shen Yongjun’s deed had a similar clause, but only ten labor days.

Back then, they had secretly mocked this, thinking Shen Laoqi’s family building a new house was a pipe dream.

He had only one daughter; once she married out, he’d be living alone in the storage room. Why would he build a new house?

It was simply impossible, so they wrote it down anyway.

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Who would have thought that what seemed impossible was about to become reality?

Shen Shengli and the others wanted to back out but knew that with the written agreement and the team leader as witness, they couldn’t renege.

They had lost both the money and the battle today. Shen Shengli, in a sour mood, simply took his family and left without another word to Shen Shaoyuan and his daughter.

Shen Yongjun and Tian Fang wanted to argue more, but since Shen Shengli, who contributed the most money and labor, remained silent, the two couples, accustomed to playing the good guys, naturally did not want to take the lead and left with their children.

Zhou Mancang watched the group leave with obvious displeasure, then looked at the pale and thin Shen father and daughter, sighed silently, and said, “Since you’re building a new house, you should start planning how to build it and arrange materials early. I’ll help you gather some people. If you work hard, it can be done in five or six days.”

Zhou Peijun also said, “Yes, if you need help, just come to my place.”

Shen Mo’er and Shen Shaoyuan exchanged a glance and gladly accepted.

Troublesome relatives were many, but so were kind-hearted people.

This Yangliu Commune was truly a good place.

Back home, the father and daughter, who had seen countless rare treasures, carefully examined a stack of “Great Unity” banknotes, flipping them over repeatedly.

How strange—people in this era didn’t use silver or copper coins but this light paper instead. It was adorned with colorful prints; the front showed representatives walking out of the People’s Great Hall, and the back depicted the iconic Tiananmen Gate of the capital city.

“Ah, I hope one day we can visit the capital,” Shen Shaoyuan sighed.

Back then, he had lived in the capital on land worth its weight in gold. No imperial or noble residence in the entire city had a better location than his Wang Mansion.

“There will be a chance,” Shen Mo’er said with a bright smile. “But before that, let’s go visit the commune.”

The team leader was going to the commune to handle the homestead approval, and they had agreed to go along with him tomorrow.