Chapter 326: Going Together
Chapter 326: Going Together
Even if Jiang Xia wanted to go to sea, Zhou Chenglei wouldn't allow it.
There were priorities to consider, and Jiang Xia knew the importance of such matters. She shook her head, "I won't go. I haven't asked Ah Lei yet, but I doubt he will either. Aren't we dismantling the scaffolding tomorrow?"
Moreover, the indoor renovation was about to begin, and Zhou Chenglei should have arranged for it before going to sea.
The interior renovation was the most troublesome part. After plastering, they would need to apply the whitewash and then install the water and electricity.
In this era, the water pipes and electrical wires were not concealed within the walls or under the floor tiles.
Of course, you could hide them if you dared.
Jiang Xia didn't dare because the water pipes were still made of iron, and although they could last for two to three decades, these old pipes were prone to rust and bursting.
It was better to avoid the hassle of repairs or replacements later.
The house might undergo a second renovation in the future, and they could reconsider then.
Jiang Xia was also thinking of replacing the pipes with plastic ones when the village got tap water.
She didn't know when the village would have tap water.
Tian Caixia also felt they wouldn't go to sea, which was a bit of a pity, but she understood that the house was a significant matter.
Zhou Chenglei, standing on the scaffolding, spotted Jiang Xia peeling sweet potato skins in the courtyard.
Half an hour later, he climbed down from the scaffolding, returned to the courtyard, and approached Jiang Xia, "Where did you put the phone book? Help me find it. I need to call the plumber and electrician."
How could Zhou Chenglei not know where the phone book was? Jiang Xia understood he was reminding her to stop working and go rest in the room. She stood up to wash her hands, "I'll find it for you."
With many hands, they had almost finished peeling the sweet potatoes, leaving only a few in the basin.
Zhou Chenglei escorted Jiang Xia back to the room to rest, and soon she came out.
All the sweet potatoes had their skins peeled, and Li Xiuxian, after washing her hands, also planned to take a break in the room. But Tian Caixia spoke up, "Second Sister-in-Law, you can make dinner tonight! I'm going back to dry the sweet potato chips. And remember to gather the rice, beans, and the rest before sunset."
Li Xiuxian: "..."
How could she make dinner for so many people by herself? And she also had to collect the rice and beans!
Tian Caixia didn't care if she could finish the tasks or not. She called out to Zhou Chenglei, "Ah Lei, help me move these basins of sweet potatoes to the cart and take them back to my place to dry. There's too much dust here with the two houses under construction."
There was no more space to dry the sweet potatoes on the old house's roof and ground, already filled with rice, peanuts, sesame seeds, yellow beans, green beans, and black beans.
"Ah Guang, help your uncle carry it."
"No need." Zhou Chenglei walked over and lifted the large basin of peeled sweet potatoes onto the cart.
Zhou Wenguang, seeing this, also wanted to help like his uncle, but he couldn't lift it! Zhou Chenglei patted his shoulder, "Exercise more."
How could a man support his family without strength?
Then he went to move another basin onto the cart.
The cart could only hold two large basins of sweet potatoes.
He didn't ask Tian Caixia why she didn't transport them to the other house to cook, which would have saved multiple trips, and the raw sweet potatoes could have been transported in one go.
Tian Caixia called her son back to help, and those large basins of sweet potatoes would keep her busy until nightfall. Fortunately, she had many grown-up sons who could assist her.
It took three trips back and forth to transport all six large basins of sweet potatoes.
Li Xiuxian still prepared dinner.
There was no other choice; she was the only one available!
Zhou Mu had gone to the pier to receive goods.
Drying sweet potato chips wasn't just about cooking and peeling them; they also needed to be cut into slices and dried.
Jiang Xia had the life of a princess!
Even if she was pregnant now, she usually slept until late, and no one would say anything if she didn't work.
Whether she worked or not, Tian Caixia wouldn't pick on her.
Moreover, Jiang Xia had married a good husband who would quickly find an excuse to take her away after seeing her work a little.
Unlike Zhou Chengxin, who couldn't stand seeing her idle and would urge her to work as soon as he returned.
Li Xiuxian called out to Zhou Zhou, "Zhou Zhou, you go and wash the green vegetables first!"
"Okay," he replied.
Upon seeing this, Zhou Ying spoke up, "Mom, I'll wash them with Zhou Zhou."
Li Xiuxian said, "You don't need to wash them. You have some English words you can't read, so go and ask your aunt about them. We're going back tomorrow, so hurry up and learn from her."
Zhou Ying insisted, "No, I'll study after I finish washing."
She absolutely hated studying English!
"Then come and help me with the fire!"
With the cold weather, her daughter hadn't done much housework, and if her sleeves got wet while washing vegetables, she might catch a cold.
Zhou Ying refused, "I don't want to, I might burn my hair!"
Previously, she had found it fun to tend the fire, and once, while burning firewood with her grandmother, a stray flame from the stove had singed a bit of her hair.
Zhou Zhou said, "Auntie, I'll take care of the fire!"
Li Xiuxian had no choice; one person alone couldn't handle all the tasks.
She had to let Zhou Zhou tend the fire and keep an eye on the rice in the pot.
She also needed to climb onto the roof to collect beans, which was something Zhou Zhou couldn't do.
In the next two hours, Li Xiuxian was busy harvesting rice, peanuts, beans, and other crops, as well as cooking, leaving her exhausted!
During dinner, Zhou Fu and Zhou Chenglei discussed the matter of renovating the house. "You need to make time to go and buy floor and wall tiles."
Zhou Chenglei replied, "I'll go take a look in a few days."
The doctor had advised Jiang Xia to rest in bed for a week, and after a few days, he would take her to choose the ones she liked.
Zhou Fu continued, "Should we buy ready-made doors, closets, desks, and furniture, or have a carpenter make them? If we're going to have them made, we should arrange it in advance, as that will also take about a month."
Jiang Xia said, "Let's buy ready-made ones. I've already seen some furniture I like in Suicheng."
Jiang Xia had spotted several sets of furniture she liked while wandering around during the Canton Fair.
Li Xiuxian was surprised, "You're buying them so soon? Is it cheaper to buy at the Canton Fair?"
Jiang Xia explained, "I haven't bought them yet, I just saw some I liked. In a few days, I'll go to their factory to place the order."
She had taken a liking to the sofas, coffee tables, beds, closets, and desks for all the rooms, both upstairs and downstairs. She had originally planned to have Zhou Chenglei take a look on the last day to see if he liked them, and if he did, they would place the order.
However, due to the unexpected turn of events, they would have to make time to go directly to the factory to place the order.
Li Xiuxian immediately became more alert, "Buying from the factory should be cheaper, right? Are you planning to buy a sofa?"
Jiang Xia nodded, "Yes, but I'm not sure if it will be cheaper."
When she went to look at the furniture, she had also helped the factory owner with translation, securing two large orders. The factory owner had promised to give her a factory price if she wanted to buy furniture.
But after all, it was just a promise made at the time, and who knew if it would still hold later on.
"Buying from the factory will definitely save a lot of money. Ready-made furniture is so expensive! In our town, I had a carpenter make two beds, a dining table and chairs, two closets of different sizes, a desk, and a bookshelf, and it still cost over five hundred yuan. Carpenters charge a lot for their labor!"
"When are you going to order the furniture? I'll go with you to take a look; I want to buy a sofa set for the living room."
Currently, their living room didn't even have a proper sofa or coffee table, only a low table and a long bamboo chair.
The old house hadn't been decorated yet, and the furniture didn't match at all!
One of her teachers at school had bought a fabric sofa set, and it looked so cozy and comfortable in their home!
She also wanted to buy a set.
"Okay, then let's go next Sunday!"
Upon hearing this, Tian Caihua added, "In that case, I'll go and take a look too!"
Her family used sofas, and she didn't want to fall behind!
She had to outdo Li Xiuxian.
Moreover, if she didn't go, what if Jiang Xia gave a sofa set to Li Xiuxian? She had to go, no matter what!
Li Xiuxian said, "Since we're buying so many sets, they should give us a discount, right? We must negotiate the price when the time comes!"
Speaking of which, with Jiang Xia being so wealthy, would she take the opportunity to help them pay for the sofa?
Sorry, it's late again! I guess it will always be this late from now on.
(End of Chapter)
Chapter end
Report
