Chapter 75 New House

Chapter 75: New House

The Ruyi Storytelling Hall differed from the Pingqiao Storytelling Hall—both floors had round tables seating a circle of people, with room on the table for melon seeds and tea.

The second floor cost only ten wen more than the first, with no private rooms, but the tables were separated by folding screens. The speaker was at the table next to Meng Wan’s, with a screen between them, and he could faintly make out a graceful figure.

Meng Wan squinted, peering at the screen on his left, then suddenly replied, “In this vast world, if everyone looked out only for themselves, the storytellers wouldn’t have any moving stories to tell us.”

“Isn’t that right, Young Master Nie?”

The young attendant behind Nie Zhiyao widened his eyes, whispering, “Young master, how does he know you?”

Nie Zhiyao smiled slightly. “Truly an interesting person.”

He stood and turned. Meng Wan was in the corridor, looking at the attendant behind him. “So it was you, Young Master Nie, who invited me into your carriage last time. I never got to thank you in person.”

Meng Wan bowed to him, and Nie Zhiyao returned the gesture. “I didn’t help Song Fulang much; it’s not worth your thanks. I just wanted to ask how Song Fulang knew I was a member of the Nie family?”

Meng Wan was actually half guessing, half inferring. Seeing the other’s reaction, he knew he’d hit the mark. He chuckled and said, “The second volume of ‘Human-Demon Romance’ hasn’t gone on sale yet, and this storyteller was hired to build anticipation for it. Aside from the three big bookstores, no one should know that Liu’er will get into danger later.

“I’ve heard that the master of Baojin Studio is young, and his wife is a lady. The Li family of Panshi Studio has strict rules, and their dependents rarely go out. Only Teacher Nie’s family has a young man of the right age—I heard he came from the main branch in the capital. Might I ask if the young master is from the Nie family’s main branch?”

Kongmo Bookshop’s main store was in Shangjing City, run by the Nie family’s main branch. Even the branch in Changping Prefecture had a manager. It was pure luck that Meng Wan had met Teacher Nie there that day.

The first act ended on stage, and another storyteller came in. Some listeners got up to leave, and the corridor grew lively.

“I’m the fourth among my brothers and sisters at home.”

“Oh, so it’s the Fourth Young Master Nie, then.”

“I hear Song Fulang is a good cook?”

“Just a trivial skill, far inferior to the chefs in restaurants… Speaking of which, Teacher Nie has helped me a great deal, and I haven’t yet visited to thank him.”

“My uncle is usually informal. Song Fulang writes brilliantly; he told me to learn from you.”

The corridor was crowded, so they chatted while stepping aside, with the young attendant and Xue Sheng following behind.

Meng Wan was sharp; he could usually suss out someone’s background in a few sentences. Unexpectedly, this Fourth Young Master Nie was equally sharp. They went back and forth, speaking in a roundabout way, leaving the young attendants completely lost.

They talked pleasantly all the way and agreed to meet again. When they reached the entrance of the entertainment quarter, Nie Zhiyao offered to give Meng Wan a ride home.

“My house isn’t far from here; I’ll consider it exercise,” Meng Wan declined with a smile.

Nie Zhiyao looked at him from the carriage, finding the remark strange. “Exercise? All right, I’ll try it next time too. Song Fulang, I’ll take my leave now.”

Meng Wan gave a slight bow. “Farewell, Fourth Young Master Nie.”

Only after the carriage had gone some distance did Meng Wan murmur in surprise, “Fourth Young Master Nie of the Nie family? Quite an interesting fellow.”

In the following days, Meng Wan did go with him to listen to storytelling at the Ruyi Hall several times. They got along well. The man was meticulous in his schemes, speaking with Meng Wan in a measured way, and there was a hint of mutual admiration.

“If you’re looking for a house, I can ask someone to help you search too.”

Meng Wan mentioned that he wouldn’t come to listen tomorrow because he was going to the housing agency to look at properties. Nie Zhiyao then offered to help.

To be honest, they had only known each other for a few days. Meng Wan hadn’t expected him to be so warm, and he was even more reluctant to owe an outsider a favor.

When he hesitated, Nie Zhiyao realized he had overstepped. “I’ll just ask around; it’s not certain I’ll find the right one. If I do, you’ll have to agree to one condition.”

Meng Wan became curious. He peeled peanuts in the plate and asked, “What condition? Does someone from my humble household have something you, Fourth Young Master Nie, desire?”

Nie Zhiyao didn’t keep him in suspense. “Let me read the third volume first when it’s done.”

“Ah? That’s possible—it would have to be sent to your house first anyway. But I didn’t think you’d be so interested in these storybooks!” Meng Wan truly hadn’t expected such a cool and refined young master of a prestigious family to be chasing serials too.

Nie Zhiyao brought his own tea and poured a cup for Meng Wan. “If I weren’t interested, would I come here every day to listen? Yesterday, as soon as your book went on sale, it caught the fancy of many aristocratic youths. At this rate, there’s no worry about selling not just the third volume, but the fourth and fifth as well. My family’s manager has already decided to send the books by fast horse to the main house in Shangjing. But don’t worry—since we signed a contract, even if it’s sent to Shangjing, your share remains the same at forty percent.”

Clearly, Shangjing’s main house was his true home, but Nie Zhiyao spoke of it coldly, suggesting his relationship with his family wasn’t harmonious.

Meng Wan beamed. He didn’t drink the tea before him but continued peeling peanuts. “No wonder when I passed by Baojin Studio today, there was a crowd gathered there.”

Popular, so he could earn more money. In the future, when he entered the capital, he’d be able to buy a house there too.

Nie Zhiyao took a sip of tea and said with a bitter smile, “I’ve been in Changping for two years now. These past few days, the most people have invited me for drinks and tea—all to ask about the whereabouts of Qingxiao Jushi [Secluded Scholar].”

Meng Wan grew wary. “Right now, only three people in Changping Prefecture know who Qingxiao Jushi is. Don’t let it slip.”

Nie Zhiyao grinned. “That would be me, my uncle, and Mr. Song. When your third volume is finished, someone is sure to find him.”

“We’ll cross that bridge when we get there.” Meng Wan was troubled too, but he hadn’t thought of a good solution yet.

The person Nie Zhiyao had put him in touch with was indeed more reliable than the official housing agents, and he quickly found several suitable properties for Meng Wan to look at.

“I’ve looked at several over this time, and I like two the best.”

The whole family was again gathered around the stone table in the courtyard for dinner, with a pot of winter melon and egg drop soup and two cold side dishes.

On the side was a shallow bamboo basket holding meat buns, eight per basket.

The four of them shared two baskets; Song Tingzhou had one all to himself.

Meng Wan ate three and a half buns, secretly tossing the remaining half into Song Tingzhou’s bowl, who finished it in two bites.

When they were full, Meng Wan spoke about the progress of the past few days.

“One is a two-courtyard house in the northern part of the city. Enough rooms, and it’s about a block away from where we rented when we first came to the prefecture at the beginning of the year. If we buy it, we can rent it out later if we don’t live there—it’s convenient.” Because every year, candidates come to the prefecture to rent houses during the exams.

Chang Jinhua asked the question she cared about most. “How much silver?”

Meng Wan pressed his thumb, index, and middle finger together, bending the other two, and gestured to Chang Jinhua.

Even though she knew it wouldn’t be cheap, Chang Jinhua still clicked her tongue. “So expensive!”

Meng Wan rested his chin on his hand. “The other one is even more—eight hundred taels. But the location is excellent, in the southern part of the city, closer to where my husband studies. Although it’s a single-courtyard house, the yard is large enough for all of us.”

Even Lu Chunfang could tell from his tone that Meng Wan preferred the one in the south.

Whether seven hundred or eight hundred taels, Chang Jinhua found them dizzying. “Actually, our current yard is livable enough. Looking at it this way, the twenty taels a year for Liuti Lane is quite cheap.”

Meng Wan said, “Everything else is fine, and Liuti Lane is indeed livable. But now it’s good—the winter is dry and cold, and my husband has to hurry to and from school every day. Even the best carriage isn’t as warm as a heated room, let alone our carriage with its thin wooden walls. Sitting in it for so long, by the time he gets to the prefectural school, he can’t even lift his brush.”

Back then, they had no money and had to quickly rent a place they could afford, with a lot of foot traffic to set up a stall for their business. But the western part of the city was farthest from the prefectural school in the east. Song Tingzhou rode to school every day, taking nearly three-quarters of an hour to get there. If it snowed and the roads were slippery, it might be even slower.

Since the family now had ample silver, why suffer unnecessarily?

After his explanation, Chang Jinhua understood. They didn’t know how long they’d be staying near the prefectural school, and their son’s education was paramount. “In that case, go ahead and decide.”

Since he had informed the elders, it meant Meng Wan had already made up his mind. He didn’t delay. To avoid trouble, he and Song Tingzhou went together on Song’s day off to sign the purchase contract with the owner. The contract detailed the property’s location, area, and price. The person recommended by Nie Zhiyao served as witness, and both parties signed and affixed their fingerprints in turn.

Meng Wan gave half of the silver to the witness and half to the former owner. This was all done in front of everyone. Once the transfer was registered at the government office, the witness would naturally return the remaining amount to the former owner.

The witness had a smile on his face. "Song Fulang is very considerate."

The former owner had nothing to say. This way, there was no fear of not receiving the final payment, and everyone was at ease—nothing to criticize.

Then the group went to the Household Office of the yamen to complete the transfer procedures, putting the property under the Song family’s name and paying the corresponding deed tax.

The Household Office took the old deed and destroyed it, wrote a new deed, stamped it, and handed it to Meng Wan and the others. Only then was the matter concluded, and this single-courtyard house in the south of the city belonged to the Song family.

Meng Wan studied the deed closely at the yamen gate for a long time before tucking it into his robe. They had rented houses several times and moved many times, but this was their first time buying a house themselves. Meng Wan was thrilled.

"From now on, we don't have to worry about rent or accidentally damaging someone else's house. We have a home in the prefectural city now!"

Song Tingzhou held his hand, a smile lingering at the corners of his mouth. "Mm, too bad we'll have to postpone moving."

In ten days, he'd head to Fengtian Prefecture for the provincial exam. Right now, the family wasn't in the mood to think about moving.

After speaking, Song Tingzhou took out a few taels of loose silver from his bosom and gave them to the witness. "I haven't properly thanked you for your work these past days, brother. Take this silver to have some drinks."

The witness, surnamed Qi, ran his own brokerage. He'd worked with the Nie family for years—all their servants came from his agency. This time, at Fourth Young Master Nie's request, he handled things personally.

Qi the broker quickly clasped his hands and returned the courtesy. "Mr. Song, you're too kind. Since Young Master Nie asked, it's my duty. I really can't take the money."

Meng Wan laughed at the sight. Had his bookworm husband also learned this trick? He stepped forward and said persuasively, "Brother Qi has been busy for these days. We should have personally invited you to a feast at a restaurant, but I imagine your brokerage is busy, and I don't want to take up more of your time. At least accept this as a token of appreciation from us both. Brother Qi, you're not thinking it's too little, are you?"

Hearing this, how could Qi the broker refuse? He accepted the silver. "In that case, thank you for your kindness, Mr. Song and Song Fulang. If in the future your family needs to buy servants or acquire property, feel free to come to the Qi Family Brokerage in the south of the city and ask for me."

After exchanging pleasantries, they went their separate ways at the entrance of the yamen.

Still excited about the new house, the two checked out the new place again and replaced the front door lock with a new brass one.

Pushing open the door, they saw a row of backward-facing rooms next to the courtyard gate, intended for the gatekeeper and servants. They had two doors and four windows. Xue Sheng could currently have a room to himself, and the other could be left empty as a storage room.

Then the large courtyard came into view. Although the new house was a single-courtyard layout, its courtyard was considerably larger than the two-courtyard house in the north of the city. This was what Meng Wan liked most—the spacious, bright yard.

The yard was bare, with only a well; the former owner's furniture had been completely cleared out.

On the left and right sides of the courtyard were the east and west wing rooms, each with one door and two windows, identical in size.

Then came the main building. The central room with an open door was the hall, separate from the main rooms on either side, and was used for receiving guests.

To the east and west of the hall were one main room each, both with two windows.

In addition, there was a small side room on each side of the main rooms.

Though not as many as in a two-courtyard house, it was plenty for his small family.

After walking around, Meng Wan was thinking about what furniture and items to add to the new house in the future, when Song Tingzhou suddenly said beside him, "There are many things I still need to learn from you, husband."

He was referring to the moment earlier when they were exchanging words with the broker.

Meng Wan immediately understood. So that's it—Song Tingzhou was sometimes learning from him in how to handle things.

He smiled helplessly. "Not everything goes smoothly for me either. These are just abilities forced out by life. You're already great as you are. People only have so much energy; if I were you, I couldn't focus on making money while also studying diligently."

He handled the money-making, and Song Tingzhou was responsible for studying hard. The higher their family's status, the freer he could act. Otherwise, with no family background, if they rose too quickly, they would be immediately crushed by others.

Hearing his words, Song Tingzhou's heart ached even more. He had never dared to ask about Meng Wan's past, but in his heart, he wanted to know.

He spoke with a dry, difficult voice. "Was it your parents who sold you to be a servant in a wealthy household?"

Meng Wan was stunned for a few seconds before he caught up with Song Tingzhou's train of thought. With distant memories in his eyes, he said, "No. My father... my parents loved me dearly and treated me well. Every year on my birthday, the family would make a big feast and give me toys. But they later passed away unfortunately."

His eyes dimmed for a moment, and then he thought about what happened after he transmigrated. "Then I was sold to a mansion. Later, I upset the lady of the house and was resold."

Song Tingzhou's heart tightened, and a dense pain spread across his chest.

Gently, he pulled Meng Wan into his arms, lovingly kissed his forehead, and said with utmost earnestness, "From now on, you've got me."

Meng Wan's eyes sparkled with tears, and as he closed his eyes, two tears traced down his cheeks. He let out a quiet sigh. "Song Tingzhou, I hope you will remember what you said today. If you betray me..."

Ha, then I'll just take your mother away.