Chapter Seventeen: Purchasing Land to Plant Sweet Potatoes

Five taels for a small silver ingot, arranged in a row of five, two rows per layer, two layers in total—altogether one hundred taels of silver (sixteen taels to a pound, weighing over six pounds).

“This is the profit from the past half year. As you instructed, all round numbers have been forged into whole silver ingots, while the odd amounts are kept in the account for now.”

Wei Ruo preferred the solid weight of silver, disliking the light flutter of banknotes. Thus, whenever her nurse brought the shop’s earnings, she always delivered heavy silver ingots.

Besides the silver, the nurse also brought the account books from the last half year.

There was also a basket full of dried mushrooms.

“Xiao Yong was worried you might not be accustomed to the food here, so before we left, he specially prepared some mushrooms you like. They’re all dried now, and some, as you taught before, have been fried in oil and sealed in jars.”

“Nurse, you’ve worked so hard, along with Uncle Xu and Brother Yong—making you follow me so far.”

“It’s no trouble at all!” Madam Xu replied quickly. “I hardly suffered—there were carriages the whole way, no walking, and I didn’t carry anything heavy. Zhuang and Zheng Yong did all the work.”

Madam Xu’s face glowed with happiness.

She continued, “Helping you is the happiest thing I could do. Without you, I don’t know how life would go for me, Zhuang, or Zheng Yong! I never dreamed of living so well!”

“Have you settled everything in Huaibei Town?”

“Don’t worry, Miss—I entrusted the estate to Old Qian, who’s been there for years and is reliable. I also arranged for someone to watch the house.”

“Did you bring over everything I asked?”

“Yes, everything. Three full carts of sweet potatoes!”

“Good. Let me explain the next steps. I’ve taken a liking to Xiaoyang Hill north of the city—you and Uncle Xu should negotiate for it. If the price is right, buy it and plant sweet potatoes. There are many fishermen who lost their livelihoods to pirates, and farmers forced to beg due to poor harvests. You and Uncle Xu should look into them—hire those with good character and a willingness to work as laborers.”

“All right, I’ll take my husband and inspect the area thoroughly.”

“Then settle yourselves—find a good house in the city. Once you’re comfortable, come to the Commandant’s residence and give me the address so I can contact you.”

“Understood, I’ll get right to it,” Madam Xu replied, nodding eagerly.

Madam Xu lingered in Pine Listening Court for over an hour before leaving.

Passing Plum View Court, she was spotted by Madam Li, who happily informed Wei Qingwan, “Miss, that was the elder miss’s nurse just now. I heard her son caused a scene at our Commandant’s gate yesterday, but the eldest young master stopped him—otherwise, it might have been quite embarrassing.”

“I see… As long as nothing happened,” Wei Qingwan murmured.

After negotiations with the headman and elders of Yueying Village, Madam Xu settled on a price of one thousand taels of silver.

She reported this to Wei Ruo for a decision.

One thousand taels was no small sum for Wei Ruo.

Years ago, she had ambitions but was too young, forced to rely on clever tricks to earn a little extra and improve her rural life.

It wasn’t until she turned ten that she officially started her shop. Even then, it was a struggle—no connections or support, making every step hard-earned.

Now, she had only saved a little over two thousand taels in total. Spending one thousand meant risking half her fortune; if it failed, her finances would regress two years.

Wei Ruo judged it safe and decided to proceed. The nurse and Uncle Xu acted as buyers, purchasing Xiaoyang Hill for one thousand taels, to be paid to Yueying Village’s headman for distribution among the families.

Xu Zhengyong also spent several days roaming the city, selecting some unemployed fishermen as laborers, per Wei Ruo’s criteria.

The hired workers had never seen sweet potatoes before.

The Xu family explained that the crop was already widely cultivated in Huaibei Town with good results.

As for its origin, father and son claimed it was brought back by a ship from the southern seas—a stray vine, cultivated and found useful.

Sweet potatoes were now grown in Huaibei Town on a large scale, and the experienced Xu family personally led the laborers in planting.

First, the sweet potatoes were buried to sprout vines, which would then be cut and transplanted.

The three carts of sweet potatoes from Huaibei Town would yield enough vines for planting.

The laborers quickly mastered the method and set to work.

Planting sweet potatoes on hillsides required far less maintenance than terracing rice fields.

The workers breathed a sigh of relief—they had dreaded managing an entire mountain’s worth of rice, which would have been exhausting.

Meanwhile, Madam Xu had found a house not far from the Commandant’s residence for easy access.

Once everything was arranged, she visited the Commandant’s residence again, handing over the laborer contracts and the deed to the new house.

No matter what Wei Ruo said, the nurse insisted: all these assets belonged to Wei Ruo; they were merely helping her, taking wages and nothing more.

Wei Ruo had another task for Madam Xu.

“Nurse, help me find out about the wasteland south of the city. I’ve heard the pirates are mostly in the east now, so the south is still safe.”

“The southern wasteland? That’s barren land, isn’t it? Coastal soil can’t grow crops—anything planted there dies.”

“Yes, naturally. If the land weren’t poor, it wouldn’t be abandoned.” This was within Wei Ruo’s expectations.

“What does Miss want with that wasteland?” Madam Xu wondered.

“Just see what you can learn. I might have a way to turn it to good use. If I can plant crops on saline-alkali soil, I can lower my own costs, hire more laborers, and the crops might solve Xing Shan County’s grain shortages, feeding more people.”

“Alright, I’ll ask around when I get back.” Madam Xu found planting crops in salty soil improbable, but she trusted Wei Ruo unconditionally.

Over the years, Miss had shattered their expectations time and again, turning what seemed impossible into reality.