Li Changming chimed in, "That's right, old sister, don't overthink it. If you need anything at all, just say the word—anything we can do to help, we will."
"Eh, eh." Sun Bu's mother was moved to tears, her eyes reddening. "You're all good people, and the Lord is a bodhisattva descended to earth, here to save us poor folk."
Li Changming felt the truth of that deeply. She remembered the terror and despair of being driven to her death by Qu Zhao, and the family and villagers who had been killed.
She clasped Sun Bu's mother's hand: "Old sister, our good fortune is still ahead. Things will only get better from here."
Zhong Wuhua had already started sweeping the yard for Sun Bu's mother. "That's right, ma'am, you're in luck. A house in Gefeng isn't something just anyone can get their hands on now."
"This little courtyard used to be rented by a small merchant—he recently moved to Shanguan County to open a shop there."
Gefeng was nearly bursting at the seams, but Jiang Jin was very humane about it: even if you were only renting a house, as long as you kept paying rent, no one could force you out, no matter how much someone wanted to buy it.
So people looking to buy either purchased the very house they were living in, or waited for a suitable vacancy to come up. Fortunately, when they'd first rented, most had chosen homes that fit their family's needs, so most simply bought the house they were already in.
Sun Bu's mother wiped the corner of her eye: "Yes, thanks to everyone's kindness."
"I hear Shanguan County and Chunrong County are developing well too—lots of business folk have gone there."
Li Changming nodded. "True enough, but I'm staying in Gefeng. Gefeng is where I belong."
She and Zhong Wuhua were both hardworking and bold, and under their leadership, the Gefeng Street Office had done splendid work.
When Shanguan County was first taken, the authorities had wanted to transfer one of them there—but neither was willing to go.
In the end, Zhong Wuhua went to Shanguan County for half a month to guide the work until the local office staff got the hang of things, then she returned to Gefeng.
"Zhong Auntie, is someone moving in?" Ah Le peeked her head through the courtyard gate, curious.
The street office staff dealt with all sorts of residents' daily matters all day long, so they knew most of the folks in the housing quarters.
Zhong Wuhua smiled and nodded. "Ah Le, are you done with class? This is Auntie Liu—she just moved in. You two are neighbors now, so be sure to get along and help each other out."
Sun Bu's mother's surname was Liu.
Ah Le nodded cheerfully. "Hello, Auntie Liu."
Sun Bu's mother smiled back. "Hello, dear child."
Ah Le stepped into the yard, chatted for a bit, then left.
When she got home, she saw her grandmother holding a document and studying it.
Ah Le's face lit up. "Grandma, did our house deed come through?"
Hu Erniang raised her clouded eyes—tears in them, but a smile on her face. "Yes, this is our deed. This house is ours now."
Li Fu worked at the weapons workshop, and had risen to the position of technical core member, earning a handsome wage each month.
When the old houses had been torn down, the original residents of Gefeng had received a decent share of compensation, and with the family's savings, they were one of the rare families that could buy a house without borrowing money.
Ah Le gently traced the deed. "The raised pattern is so pretty. It's wonderful—we have a house again."
Hu Erniang nodded firmly. "Mm, such a fine house, and it's ours. Life has hope now."
Ah Le leaned her head on her grandmother's shoulder. "I think so too. And this time, I got third place on the half-month exam."
Hu Erniang's face crinkled into a smile of deep wrinkles, but tears slid down her cheeks. She softly pulled her granddaughter close. "Our Ah Le is so clever. I'll steam you an egg in a bit."
Ah Le had been half-starved before, and though they'd tried to feed her well and build her up over the past year, she was still thin and small.
But Ah Le no longer minded much. "Grandma, let's share it."
"When I grow up," she said, her voice full of determination and longing, "I want to be a weapon smith like Father, and forge the best weapons for the Lord."
The two sat together under the eaves, leaning on each other as the setting sun cast a warm glow over them.
Busy days always pass quickly, and before they knew it, it was mid-February.
The bank had finally weathered its initial rush of activity and was settling into stability.
Dong Si grinned ear to ear, handing the ledger to Jiang Jin. "Lord, have a look."
"I never imagined such small interest rates could add up to so much," he marveled.
Everyone who'd deposited money so far had put in current accounts, with interest so low even Dong Si thought it was paltry.
And the money Jiang Jin 'lent' out—also at low interest—was still many times higher than what she paid on deposits.
Most importantly, the people borrowing from the bank were mostly ordinary folks, and they wanted loans for one thing only: buying a house.
And since the houses were Jiang Jin's to begin with, she never actually had to 'lend' the money out—she simply signed contracts with the buyers and collected substantial down payments.
Jiang Jin was deeply humane: she didn't demand a certain percentage down payment to buy a house. As long as a person had proof of employment, even with no money in hand, they could buy with 'zero down payment.'
After all, these people all worked in her workshops—she had little fear of them defaulting.
The common people of this era were still honest and simple, and to save on interest, those with money all paid as much as they could toward the house price, keeping only a little for daily expenses, and borrowing from the authorities for whatever they fell short of.
Then, depending on their means, they'd spread the repayment over however many years.
For military families, the interest rate was slashed by more than half compared to ordinary civilians—which made the non-military families green with envy.
Jiang Jin flipped straight to the back to look at the totals. "Not bad. People are really keen to buy houses."
Apparently, common folk were the same everywhere—their craving for a home of their own was universal.
Dong Si nodded. "It's a pity the villagers haven't started working yet, so no one's coming from there."
Jiang Jin smiled. "No rush."
She breathed a sigh of relief. The bank was a success.
The money had come back to her hands, and it would keep coming back—and on top of that, she was earning a tidy sum in interest.
Next, she could consider issuing paper currency.
But not yet—not too soon either. The timing wasn't right.
Dong Si drank a mouthful of hot water. "Lord, shouldn't we open banks in Shanguan County and Chunrong County too?"
Jiang Jin nodded. "Yes, we can."
Dong Si was eager. "I hope one day, your banks will span the whole world."
Just as Dong Si was rolling up his sleeves for a big push, Liangcheng in Juzhou welcomed the envoy of Qu Zhao.
Jiao Tai looked Yu Cheng up and down, his expression haughty. "What business brings you to our Liangcheng?"
He was the military officer who'd been transferred to Liangcheng after Jiao Liang was killed.
Yu Cheng paid no mind to his attitude, smiling. "Naturally, I come with important matters to discuss."
Jiao Tai curled the corner of his mouth. "Out with it."
Yu Cheng didn't beat around the bush. "This spring, how about we join forces and wipe out Daqing Commandery first?"
