TLHRP 🍁 Chapter 15: Viewing Houses

Father Qin recalled when Qin Li had just been born. A wandering monk had come to the Qin family's door asking for a drink of water.

The monk was young, with handsome, delicate features.

After drinking the water, the monk asked, "Benefactor, has a new child been born in your family?"

Father Qin was surprised that the monk knew a child had been born in his family. Turning his head, he spotted the cloth wrapper used to swaddle newborns, which had been hung in the courtyard to dry after being washed of the bloodstains from birth.

This monk is truly as observant as a hair, to have noticed that, Father Qin thought to himself. Aloud, he said with a smile, "Yes, Master. We were blessed with a son the day before yesterday."

The monk nodded and asked, "I wonder what name the benefactor intends to give this new child?"

Surprised by the monk's question, Father Qin thought for a moment. "I will name him Mian, hoping he will be diligent and hardworking in the future."

The monk shook his head, pressed his palms together, and softly chanted "Amitabha". "Benefactor, if you trust this poor monk, you may use the character Li. This child will be clever and bright in the future, and will surely achieve great things. He carries the aura of wealth, will rise to high positions, and his name will be known throughout the world: a blessing to his family."

And so Father Qin named him Qin Li. If the monk had never appeared, there would be no Qin Li, only Qin Mian.

Qin Li knew nothing of all this.

The monk's appearance meant that the Dayan Dynasty had one less person named Qin Mian, and one more ge'er sharing the name Qin Li.

It all seemed to be guided by fate, as if Qin Li's arrival had been predestined in the dark.

Recalling events from over a decade ago, Father Qin realized with a start that so much time had already passed. Before, though Qin Li had been clever, he hadn't shown anything particularly extraordinary, nor had he brought the great wealth and honor the monk had spoken of. The Qin family had remained as poor as ever.

But ever since Qin Li had woken up after falling into the water, it seemed... the monk's words were coming true. Everything was different now.

Perhaps the monk had been right, and Qin Li would achieve great things in the future. As a father, all Father Qin could do was support him silently, to believe in and stand by his child no matter what.

He exchanged a glance with Mother Qin, and seeing her thoughtful expression, realized she too must be recalling this old story from years past.

In the end, Mother Qin also agreed. She didn't ask more questions; so long as it was her Li ge'er, she would believe in him no matter what.

With both Father Qin and Mother Qin agreeing to buy a house in town, the rest of the family naturally agreed as well. However, opinions differed on whether to sell the fields and the old house.

Father Qin and Mother Qin had toiled for half their lives and held deep affection for this land. Besides, not knowing what accidents might befall them in the future, they wanted to leave a way back for the family, at the very least, to have a house to live in and fields to farm.

Qin Feng and the eldest sister-in-law felt they could sell the fields but keep the old house. After all, once they moved to town they wouldn't be able to farm the land anymore, and if they didn't sell it, it would just lie fallow and grow over with weeds.

Qin Fu and Qin Luo went along with their parents' thinking, after all, one would marry out eventually, and the other was still too young.

In the end, it was Qin Li who made the final decision. "Then let's keep the old house. As for the few mu of fields, we can spend some silver each year to hire people to farm them. Father, Mother, don't be sad. In the future, if you want to come back, you can always return and stay for a few days."

It was a solution that satisfied everyone, and they all nodded in agreement.

For Qin Li, anything that could be solved with money wasn't really a problem.

Having made their plans, they went to town the next day to view houses, intending to first find a property broker to ask about and show them options.

The Qin family had seven people, and they planned to buy two servants in the future. A two-courtyard house would be a little cramped, so they could grit their teeth and buy a three-courtyard residence instead, it would be nice to have more spacious living quarters.

And so Qin Li only viewed three-courtyard residences.

But three-courtyard houses were not easy to come by.

Most of the large courtyard residences in Qinghe Town were located in the west district. Generally, only high-ranking officials or wealthy families lived there. Though Qinghe Town didn't have many high-ranking officials, the County Magistrate's residence was in the west district, and so was the Ye family's manor.

Families who could afford to live in the west district were not short of money, and naturally wouldn't sell their houses unless something went wrong. Aside from two old residences that had been empty for many years, the broker couldn't find any others.

They viewed two three-courtyard residences, both of which were dilapidated. They would definitely require extensive renovations before anyone could move in. Judging by the state of disrepair, there would be many areas needing work, and the cost would be considerable.

Seeing his wealthy client frowning and seeming unsatisfied, the broker quickly smiled obsequiously and said, "Young master, look, this residence was left by Master Wang, who used to be in the cloth trade. His business grew larger and larger, so he sold this house and moved his whole family to the prefectural seat. He left in high spirits, flush with wealth, and left all the furniture and belongings inside. It saves you the trouble of buying new things, how convenient is that?"

Listening to the broker's smooth, honeyed words, Qin Li smiled faintly and said, "Meaning they're all damp and rotting, and I'd have to spend money to get rid of them before I can buy new ones."

Realizing this client wouldn't be easily fooled, the broker said, "I have another three-courtyard residence here, larger than the usual ones. It would certainly be spacious for you to live in, young master."

"Lead the way to see it," Qin Li said indifferently. Viewing houses wasn't something that could be done in a day or two. If there really were no good three-courtyard residences available, he would have to settle for viewing two-courtyard ones instead.

Qin Feng followed his younger brother everywhere, never leaving his side, afraid the broker would take advantage of his brother's youth and treat him unfairly.

They jolted along in the carriage for another trip, and Qin Li felt as if his bones were about to rattle apart.

The broker said this was the last three-courtyard residence they would view today. If this one wasn't suitable, there were no more left, only two-courtyard houses remained.

After getting down from the carriage, the broker led them to another similarly dilapidated residence and introduced its previous owner.

"This residence was left by someone who used to be in the timber trade in town. So all the wood used in this house is top-quality. Even though it's been empty for a long time, the beams haven't been much damaged by termites. Young master, don't let the dilapidated appearance fool you, just sweep away the dead branches and leaves, and repaint the walls, and it will be fine."

Qin Li looked and nodded. This broker hadn't lied, the timber used was indeed of good quality.

"Then why did they move away?"

"Alas," the broker sighed softly, "it was gambling that ruined them. They gambled away their entire family fortune and still didn't have enough to pay their debts, so in the end they had to mortgage the house to settle their gambling debts."

Knowing why the previous owner had moved away, Qin Li set his mind at ease and began examining the residence carefully.

This residence was truly large, much bigger than an ordinary three-courtyard house, and far better than the previous two they had viewed. It would also be convenient to renovate.

It had rockeries and pavilions. The small pond in the front courtyard was dried up; once water was channeled into it and a few koi were raised, it would be quite nice.

Several side rooms faced south with exquisite layouts, each with their own small courtyard for growing flowers and plants. There were also a few shared rooms for servants. Everything was laid out quite well, and Qin Li was fairly satisfied.

However...

"Who lives in the houses on either side? What do they do for a living? Are they easy to get along with?" After all, neighbors had to live alongside each other; if they ran into difficult people, it would be quite a headache.

Understanding what Qin Li was getting at, the broker explained carefully, "The house on the right is the Gu family manor. They're in the jade trade. Young master, you know Yuxiao Workshop, right? That's Master Gu's business. He's a kind man, one of the most well-regarded in town.

As for the left side, there's no one living there. It's a slightly smaller two-courtyard residence, currently empty. If young master doesn't care for this last three-courtyard house, I was planning to take you to view that one tomorrow anyway."

"Oh? It's so close, we might as well go now, and save ourselves another trip tomorrow."

And so the broker hurried forward to lead the way.