"Grandfather, I want to lease out the family's farmland. Could you please ask around the village to see if anyone is willing to rent it?"
After the prefectural exams ended in April, by the time she returned, the spring plowing season had already passed.
Moreover, for the family's fourteen mu of land, Song Jinzhao always had to hire laborers each time. With little attention paid to it, the harvests were affected. It seemed simpler to just lease it out and collect the grain share.
Old Man Song's rusty hoe chipped against the grindstone. "Why lease out perfectly good land? If you don't have time to manage it, I can keep an eye on it for you. We won't lose the harvest."
Song Jinzhao's gaze swept over his eyebrows, now streaked with white. The man was already old, yet he stubbornly insisted on pushing himself.
A farmer who had toiled all his life simply didn't know how to enjoy leisure; he couldn't sit idle without work in his hands.
"There are only you and Grandmother. How can you possibly work twenty mu of land? You'd work yourselves to death."
"Leasing it out settles the matter once and for all, so we won't have to specially hire help every time we're too busy."
Old Man Song thought of the labor fees Song Jinzhao had to pay every busy farming season. Since buying the shop last year, the third branch of the family also often didn't return home.
He let out a soft sigh. "Since you've already decided, then lease it out. Will the rent be collected in silver or in grain?"
Song Jinzhao: "In grain. Fifty percent for paddy fields, thirty percent for dry land. We'll each pay half of the grain tax."
After speaking, she looked at Old Lady Song. "We still have two goats and over a dozen chickens at home. I'll trouble you to look after them when I'm not home."
Old Lady Song nodded. "Don't worry. I'll make sure they don't lose an ounce of weight."
After Song Jinzhao left, just as Old Man Song was about to go out and ask which families in the village wanted to rent land, Oldest Song first emerged from his room.
"Father, can I rent five mu of the paddy fields from Jinzhao's land?"
Old Man Song's steps halted at the doorway.
"Can you manage that much?"
Oldest Song furrowed his brow. "Now with the waterwheel, we don't need to carry water back and forth. Once Lihua gives birth, she'll be able to help in the fields too."
"Yongnian's studies also cost money. We need to grow more grain to sell."
After the New Year, he had gone to ask at Master Zhao's house.
But the other party said the family's land had all been renewed by last year's tenants, with none left. Oldest Song had to return empty-handed.
Now that Song Jinzhao was leasing out her land, and the third branch's fields were adjacent to those of the first and second branches, it would be most convenient to manage.
Old Man Song said solemnly, "If you really want to rent it, I'll talk to Jinzhao. But one thing: even as relatives, the rent must be paid in full. No less."
Oldest Song nodded. "That's only right. I'll farm it well, so Jinzhao gets more grain."
Second Song's wife found out about Song Jinzhao leasing out the land while she was out digging for wild vegetables.
She hurried home to find Second Song, pushing and shoving to wake him up.
"Oldest has rented five mu. Tudan's family wants to rent some too. You go find Father quickly, we should also rent five mu."
Lying in bed, Second Song opened his eyes upon hearing this. The first thought that popped into his head was that farming an extra five mu would be too exhausting.
But thinking of Song Yaozu, Second Song had no choice. With a grimace, he struggled to get up from the bed and go out.
In the main hall adorned with the imperial plaque, Song Jinzhao had Song Yaozu draft the contract while she instructed, "Add a clause at the end: If the tenant's poor management leads to a reduced harvest, the rent shall be paid based on a yield of one dan per mu for paddy fields and six-tenths of a dan per mu for dry land."
Sitting on stools, Oldest Song and Tudan's grandfather listened without a word.
As long as one put in the effort and farmed diligently, the yield wouldn't fall below that amount.
Old Man Song instinctively glanced sideways at Second Song.
Three lines creased Second Song's forehead. His mouth, which had just begun to pout, immediately snapped shut.
Once all the preparations were nearly complete, Song Jinzhao went to a bookstore in the city to buy a map of the route from Xining City to Anyang Prefecture.
Several days later, the glow of dawn at the horizon lit the distant mountain peaks with a golden light.
After an early breakfast, the village chief's family arrived with their luggage.
"Uncle Dazhuang, I'll trouble you with the driving. We won't need to pay your fare, just Gaoli's."
Song Dazhuang nodded readily upon hearing this; he was more than happy to save one person's fare.
Old Lady Song handed Song Jinzhao ten eggs boiled fresh that morning. "Take your time on the road. Be careful."
Old Man Song admonished Song Qiming, "Listen well to your elder sister, especially when you reach the prefectural city. Don't go running off anywhere."
Song Jinzhao had just turned sixteen after the New Year. The two younger ones were only twelve, and Song Anhao was not yet two.
If not for his eldest granddaughter being reliable and skilled in martial arts, he truly wouldn't feel at ease letting the third branch set off on a long journey without a single adult.
"Dazhuang, keep an eye on the children on the road. They're still young, after all." Old Man Song couldn't help but entrust the task to Song Dazhuang, who was loading the luggage.
Song Dazhuang, recalling the scene of Song Jinzhao single-handedly fighting a fierce tiger on the mountain, felt Old Man Song was worrying a bit too much.
"Don't you worry, Uncle. We'll make sure to return safe and sound."
Watching the carriage grow smaller in the distance, Old Man Song's heart suddenly felt empty.
Standing beside him, Oldest Song and Second Song, seeing the old couple still rooted to the spot long after the carriage had disappeared, felt a pang of something indescribable.
Ever since Third Brother passed away, Father had shown much more concern for the third branch's children than before.
The journey from Xining City to Anyang Prefecture would pass through three cities: Haoyue City, Liaodu, and Kaikang.
The young Song Anhao sat in the carriage padded with a soft cushion. When full of energy, she would walk around holding onto the low table; when tired, she would lie down and fall asleep right where she was.
After leaving Xining City, the three children were initially extremely curious about the outside world, keeping the curtain lifted, three pairs of eyes peering everywhere.
But after two hours, they lost all interest in the scenery.
The short trip from the village to the city never felt like this. Now, sitting in a carriage for so long at once, they only felt dizzy and nauseous, wanting to sleep but unable to rest properly with the carriage rocking back and forth.
Staying inside the carriage for a long time, with nothing but the wooden walls in sight, was utterly boring.
Spotting a roadside tea stall on the slope ahead in the distance, Song Jinzhao said to Song Dazhuang, "Let's stop up ahead. Let the children get down to rest and have lunch."
Hearing the voices from inside the carriage, Song Qiming quickly lifted the curtain, his eyes looking at Song Jinzhao with eagerness.
"Can we get off now?"
Song Gaoli stuck his head out and saw the tea stall not far away, a sigh of relief escaping his chest.
He never imagined that traveling a long distance without walking could still be so tiring.
His mind was in a daze, as if filled with paste, swaying back and forth with the carriage.
The old man running the tea stall, seeing they had an infant, specially poured a bowl of plain boiled water without any tea leaves.
Song Dazhuang gulped down a mouthful of cool tea, chewing heartily on the steamed buns brought from home.
Song Jinzhao crushed a hard-boiled egg into a bowl and mixed it with rice. Song Anhao's mouth kept moving, her face smudged with specks of egg yolk.
After finishing lunch, they rested at the tea stall for a while before setting off again.
Not long after getting back on the carriage, Song Shixue, holding Song Anhao, leaned against the carriage wall, drowsy.
Seeing this, Song Qiming put away the low table to one side and said softly, "If you want to sleep, lie down. I'll close the curtain."
