Goldfield
Chapter 216: Building a House

Dorsal fins, pectoral fins, and shark tail fins can be made into dry shark fins, so at least twenty to thirty catties of the fin can be cut from each shark. Of course, to turn them into dried shark fins, they must be dried. Thus, only about ten catties of shark fin can be produced from each shark.

Yu Hai and Liu Shuanzhu felt that their moral character must be very good today; they actually caught eight sharks in a day. In this way, the fins alone weigh more than two hundred catties. Shark fins are equally divided between the two families. Once made into dry shark fins, they would take it to the prefecture city for sale. They can sell it at a good price. Yu Hai was very good at preparing shark fins, so Liu Shuanzhu left the shark fin section with Yu Hai and asked him to help make it into dry shark fin. As a result, Yu Hai was extremely busy for the next two days.

Yu Xiaocao had fallen in love with the feeling of underwater exploration, especially in the deep sea, which was definitely a mysterious area. There are various sea creatures on the sea floor. The harvest from diving used to be much higher than collecting seafood in the sea! Recently, he had no good ideas for making money, so he thought about doing something with high-quality seafood like sea cucumber, abalone, and lobster. Isn't abalone, sea cucumber, shark fin, and fish maw a favorite of the rich?

He had the support of Zhenxiu Restaurant, so he was not worried about not being able to sell the sea items he found from his underwater exploration. On the contrary, when Xiaocao first took out half a meter long fresh sea cucumber, abalone, and lobster, the head manager of Zhenxiu Restaurant was completely stunned. After that, he was so happy!

It has been a long time since Zhenxiu Restaurant launched a new dish. In the summer, greasy foods like roasted chicken and boiled meat are not as popular as they used to be. The chefs in the back kitchen were all scratching their heads trying to think of a new and refreshing dish.

With this high quality seafood, do they still need to worry about not being able to retain their customers? After the head manager thanked him again, they agreed that if Yu Hai caught more of this high-quality seafood, he would have to sell it to Zhenxiu Restaurant. The price is negotiable!

Xiaocao was naturally unable to tell him that he was getting this high-quality seafood from diving, so he gave his father all the praise. Fortunately, the head manager of Zhenxiu Restaurant, also knew that Yu Hai was not only a good hunter but also a great fisherman. So, he was not suspicious at all! Some abalones, some sea cucumbers, and large lobsters sold for two hundred taels. Xiaocao thinks that this business is quite profitable and doable!

Every day, in addition to caring for her pregnant godmother, Xiaocao spent at least half a day under the sea. The Yu family also noticed that Xiaocao seemed to go to sea often. With the thought that her younger ‘daughter had just learned to swim, so she was still very interested in him’, Yu Hai did not hinder her from playing by the sea. However, the family will always remind him not to swim too far, be careful, and so forth.

By mid-summer, a new number of sweet potatoes have been planted. This is the most idle time for farmers. After experiencing several times of rainstorms, the Yu Family felt that building their home should be their top priority at this time. The old house is too old. Every time it rains, there will be heavy rain outside and light rain inside the house. Almost all household appliances should be used to catch rain. In particular, the Yu Family was really worried that the western space of the old house would collapse if there was another rainstorm.

After selling shark fins, Yu Hai decided to build three tile-roofed rooms next to the old residence. After moving into those rooms, they could tear down the old residences and rebuild them. In total, they will have five rooms of roofed black brick tile. In addition, there are also east and west wing rooms. That's enough room for the whole family to live in!

It's not much longer said than done! Yu Hai went to the prefectural city several times to contact the brick kiln and ordered 150,000 black bricks and 30,000 tiles. These bricks and tiles, including the shipping cost, cost almost two hundred taels. As for the stone used to lay the foundations, Dongshan Village was close to the mountains, so they only needed to find some strong workers from the village, he said, and they will be able to get enough stones in two to three days.

Since Yu Hai had a good relationship with Zhenxiu Restaurant, the two Zhou Family factories prioritized hiring workers from Dongshan Village and giving them a good profit. Moreover, Yu Hai was usually a suave person. If other families needed help, he never refused them as long as he was able to help. As a result, Yu Hai became the most respected person, who also had the best interpersonal relationship, in Dongshan Village in addition to the village chief.

Originally, Yu Hai planned to hire about a dozen people from the city to help build the house. His daily salary was fifty copper coins and two meals. Unexpectedly, when some families who had good relations with the Yu Hai family heard that they were going to build a new house, they delayed the work and all rushed to help.

The first to come was Liu Shuanzhu, who had a very close relationship with Yu Hai. As soon as he entered the gate, he shouted, “Brother Dahai, do you underestimate us, your brothers? Or are you afraid we are not skilled enough to build a house, so waste the bricks and tiles you buy? ”

Yu Hai punched his shoulder lightly and said, “Look at you. What the hell are you saying? I'm just afraid I'll put your work on hold! ”

The current Dongshan Village was not the same as in the past. Except for the elderly, weak, women and children, very few people are unemployed. Not to mention those who worked in the Zhou Family factory, but they could earn several hundred copper coins a day by collecting sandworms and oysters at low tide! If that wasn't enough, they could also work on the docks and earn a few dozen copper coins in a day.

According to the usual practice done in Dongshan Village, if one wanted to build a house, young and strong workers from the village would come to help, and the host would only need to provide two meals for them! Yu Hai was afraid of blocking the villagers from making money ah!

Liu Shuanzhu glared at him and angrily said, “My brother is building a house, even if I can get a mountain of gold in a day, I still have to help my brother first!”

“Brother Shuanzhu is right! Brother Dahai, you speak like we are strangers! As the saying goes: ‘neighbor close is better than brother far’! When did you put the foundation? I will tell Brother Zhou and the eldest nephew to come help! ” Lady Fang, who was carrying a basket of eggs, walked into the gate and said.

Seeing Madam Fang enter the main entrance of the Yu Family, Madam Mao thought about it and also came over. In the past few days, the bricks and tiles that Yu Hai had ordered had been delivered one after another. The Qian Family lived very close, so it was impossible for them not to know that the Yu Family was building a house. Since the beginning of spring, there had been an excessive demand for the Qian Family's duck and duck eggs, and thus they had gotten a bit of luck. Madam Mao was very grateful for the friendly sentiments of the Yu Family, so she naturally could not just sit still and act indifferently.

“The wife of the Zhou Family is right! If not for your family's Xiaocao, my family's duck, and Lady Fang's chicken, we might not be able to sell it! Old Qian my family couldn't make much money on the dock, moreover, he worked himself to death. I have long wanted him to stop! It's flawless. I can take this opportunity to make him rest for a few days and come help you guys out! ” Madam Mao is a talkative speaker.

Liu Shuanzhu's loud voice sounded again, “Why not! In recent years, children have grown up and they will probably start looking for a wife in two years. I'm thinking of building a new three-bedroom house next year to make it easier for my son to get married in the future! As you know, I was not very knowledgeable and did not understand many things, so I relied on Brother Dahai to give me some pointers at that! Brother Dahai, you will not refuse to help, right ?! ”

“Of course not! Nothing is as important as brother !! ” Yu Hai attaches great importance to friendship, so he has some good friends in the village!

Liu Shuanzhu clapped her hands and said, “Yes! What brother? If a friend needs help, they will stab two ribs into knives. ”.

Yu Xiaocao, who had returned from the outside, chuckled, “Uncle Shuanzhu, ‘when a friend is in need, someone will be willing to be stabbed on both sides for her’! That means someone will be willing to sacrifice anything for his friend, including his life! ”

“Hehe, my dear nephew is quite knowledgeable. That's what I mean! I can even give my life to you, let alone some stinking coins? It's decided! I have heard that my nephew is a great cook. I will be able to eat good food by then ah! ” As Liu Shuanzhu spoke, she went out and prepared to go find their other close friends to discuss about the matter of working together to help Brother Dahai build his house.

Yu Jiang, who was collecting nearby marine items, heard Liu Shuanzhu's shout, so he stuck his head inside the door and shouted, “Second Sister! Count me and my oldest brother in helping with the construction of the house! ”

Before Yu Hai could answer, his head had already been pulled. There are still some people waiting to sell the seafood ah! It was hot in the summer, so it was easy for the seafood to become rotten. He should examine it carefully. If the color was not right or the smell was strange, then he simply could not accept it! The Zhou Family Factory trusted his second brother and handed this business to him, so he couldn't damage his second brother's reputation !!

About twenty people came in the day they laid the foundation. Most of them were villagers who had good relations with the Yu Family. There were also people who wanted to improve their relationship with the Yu Family with the thought that if there was anything good in the future, Yu Hai would take care of them. Four members of the Liu Family came, namely Xiaocao's maternal grandparents, eldest uncle, and second uncle.

Xiaocao's maternal grandfather, Liu Cunjin, was over fifty years old, but because he worked all year, he was very strong and healthy. Ordinary young people could not necessarily surpass him while doing physical work. Her only daughter's family is building a house, so no matter what happens, she has to come and make sure everything goes smoothly.

Xiaocao's second maternal uncle, Liu Han, did not go to work and stayed at home to take care of the fields. There was nothing to do in the fields at the moment, so naturally, he had to help. Even the oldest maternal uncle had taken a few days off at the pier to help his sister and sister-in-law.

During the construction of the house, it is necessary to provide food for workers. The maternal grandmother was worried about her own daughter, so she packed her bags and prepared to stay at her daughter's house for a while to help her daughter cook.

Seeing these friends and relatives and seeing the sincere smiles on their faces, Xiaocao's heart grew warm. The simplicity, kindness, and enthusiasm of the ancient people increased the sense of belonging in his heart. Perhaps, he was more suited to this kind of lifestyle!

Many hands make light work. With over a dozen young and powerful workers, the foundations of the three master rooms of the Yu Family and the two side rooms were almost finished in a day!

The heat in the middle of summer. Although these people were used to working under the scorching sun, Xiaocao was still afraid of being exposed to heatstroke. So he took out the green beans they kept at home to reduce the heat and made a pot of sweet green bean soup. He put it in the cold water of the well, and then added a bit of rock sugar in it. It is refreshing to drink it when one is very tired and hot!

What a spectacular sight to see seventeen or eighteen young and strong men eating. For rice alone, they had to cook two large pots. Fearing that it wasn't enough to eat, the Yu Family mainly steamed a few pots of white and plump steamed bread. The rice is white rice, while the bakpao is steamed from wheat flour. Although the current living conditions of Dongshan Village were much better than before, there were still families that ate coarse grains at every meal.

Not to mention the food the Yu Family ate, all of which were high-quality dishes ah! Boiled chicken with mushrooms, salted duck, boiled pork with vermicelli, and boiled pork head meat are all served in a pot! The vegetables are also fried in oyster sauce and MSG, which is said to be only available at famous restaurants in the city! In between two meals, Xiaocao also prepared a delicious heat-reducing and starch jelly!

Ignoring the others, they had to work hard to be able to eat dishes that were even tastier than the food they ate in the New Year ah! If not, do they deserve all the delicious food on the table?

Originally, Yu Xiaocao and his parents wanted to pay them every day. However, as soon as they mentioned it, they were scolded by his father's friend. They question whether they underestimate old friends after becoming rich. Mentioning money among friends will ruin a relationship!

They gave up on this thought after hearing Xiaocao's maternal grandfather's words, “We know that you guys have good intentions, but once you start doing this, we know that you have good intentions, how can villagers ask for help when building a house in the future? Relatives and neighbors get along well with each other out of mutual affection! ” The wise words of the elders have enlightened them. After that, the Yu Family never mentioned money again!