The Blessed Farm Girl Has a Spatial Storage

Zhao Zhitong shouted, "Mom, what does the little puppy eat? It's so small, can it drink milk?"

Sun Mei laughed, "No, puppies have very weak stomachs and can't drink cow's milk; they can only drink goat's milk. Don't worry, just feed it rice porridge and steamed buns at night. Little mutts are the easiest to raise."

Zhao Zhitong then felt relieved and continued to play with the puppy.

After dinner, Zhao Zhitong and Zhao Ya fed the puppy rice porridge and then ran off to see the new house design Zhao Dong had drawn. In fact, Zhao Zhitong didn't understand any of it, but that didn't stop her from offering suggestions, which she began to do right away.

"Daddy, let's build a grape trellis in the courtyard, so we can have grapes to eat," she said.

Zhao Dong thought for a moment and said, "Alright, let's build it in the second courtyard."

Zhao Zhitong added, "Dad, let's build a swing next to the grape trellis too."

Zhao Dong nodded, thinking it was a good idea, and marked it on the drawing.

...

Once she finished giving her suggestions and looked at the design, it was as if she could already see their new home. The children were incredibly excited, already imagining all the joys of their new house.

「The next day, after Zhao Zhitong went to school, Zhao Dong took gifts and the design drawings and went to Zhang Clan Village.」

In Zhang Clan Village, there was a foreman named Zhang Jinbao, who specialized in building houses for people in the surrounding villages. He was an experienced and skilled craftsman with a good reputation, and anyone in the nearby villages looking to build a house would seek his help.

When Zhao Dong arrived at Zhang Jinbao's house, it was unfortunate timing; Zhang Jinbao was out working in the fields. Only Zhang Baolin's wife and mother were home. After hearing Zhao Dong's purpose, Zhang Jinbao's mother told him to return at noon, saying Zhang Jinbao would be home waiting for him then.

Zhao Dong smiled, thanked her, and left without lingering. At noon, he returned with the gifts again. As expected, Zhang Jinbao was home waiting for him.

Zhang Jinbao had already heard from his mother and wife that Zhao Dong had come looking for him. So, upon seeing Zhao Dong, he didn't ask many questions, simply invited him in, and smiling, got straight to the point, "Are you planning to build a house?"

Zhao Dong nodded, "Yes."

Then, smiling, he placed a wrapped box of pastries on the table, with a red envelope on top, and said, "Just a small token of appreciation. My family is preparing to build a house, and we'll need to trouble Master Zhang for his expertise."

The red envelope was actually Shi Tou's idea. Zhao Dong had run into him earlier that day and mentioned his plans to build a house. Shi Tou had advised him to prepare a red envelope for Zhang Jinbao, explaining that he would then help calculate the exact number of bricks and tiles needed. This would prevent buying too many and wasting money, or too few and causing delays. It seemed like excellent advice, so Zhao Dong had followed it.

Seeing the red envelope, Zhang Jinbao smiled and nodded, then asked, "What kind of house are you planning to build? An earthen house, a wooden one, or a brick-and-tile house?"

Zhao Dong replied, "Master, I'm planning to build a brick-and-tile house. I'd like to trouble you to help me estimate how many bricks and tiles will be needed."

Saying this, he took out the design drawings and explained his general plan to Zhang Jinbao.

Upon seeing the design drawings, Zhang Jinbao was momentarily stunned. After listening to Zhao Dong's explanation, he was completely amazed. Firstly, the courtyard Zhao Dong wanted to build was unusually large for a rural area, a truly rare sight. Secondly, the design and layout of the buildings were quite novel and distinctive; he had never seen anything like it in all his years of construction.

He suspected Zhao Dong might know a thing or two about building.

So, he asked, "Are you in this line of work?"

Zhao Dong didn't lie, "No, no, I only know a little. I'll still largely be relying on Master Zhang's considerable expertise."

Zhang Jinbao nodded and smiled, "Leave it to me, you can rest assured. This is what I do for a living; I would never do anything to damage my own reputation."

With that, he looked at the drawing and asked, "A well in the backyard?"

Zhao Dong nodded, "Master Zhang, can you and your team dig wells?"

Zhang Jinbao laughed confidently, "Yes, of course! We have workers who specialize in digging wells, cellars, and even ice cellars." Then, glancing at the drawing, he asked, "Do you want to dig a cellar?"

Zhao Dong slapped his forehead, just then remembering something he had overlooked. A cellar! That would be excellent for storing vegetables in the winter.

So he nodded, "Yes, we'll dig one."

Then, a thought struck him, and he asked, "Master Zhang, can you dig ice cellars too?"

He was quite surprised by this, not having expected them to be capable of building such a thing.

Hearing this, Zhang Jinbao immediately beamed with pride, "Hey, don't underestimate us! Ice cellars are no problem at all. For instance, the ice cellar at Country Gentry Wei's family estate? We were the ones who built that."

After saying this, he looked at Zhao Dong with surprise, "Are you thinking of building one for your home too?"

Zhao Dong smiled, "I am indeed considering it."

There's no air conditioning here in the summer, and the heat is unbearable. If we had an ice cellar, summers would be much more comfortable.

So he asked, "What are the ice cellars you build like?"

Zhang Jinbao then explained that there were mainly two types of ice cellars. One involved directly excavating a pit in the earth. The other was an arched structure built with bricks and stones, dug underground to form the ice cellar. Naturally, the second type would be more expensive and labor-intensive.

Without a second thought, Zhao Dong chose the second type.

Once everything was settled, Zhang Jinbao took out his abacus. With a flurry of CLACKS, he quickly made his calculations. A moment later, he gave Zhao Dong an estimate for the number of bricks and tiles required.

Then, Zhang Jinbao took Zhao Dong directly to order the bricks and tiles. Since Zhang Jinbao was in this line of work and knew the people at the brick kilns well, and Zhao Dong had been courteous and generous with the red envelope, Zhang Jinbao led him straight to Ma Clan's Brick Kiln Factory, known for offering the best value.

Because Zhao Dong needed such a large quantity of bricks and tiles, Boss Ma was a bit hesitant. He explained that many people were currently ordering, and it would take two months to fulfill the order.

But waiting two months would mean it would be too late to start building.

So, Zhang Jinbao used his influence. Boss Ma of the brick kiln then agreed to have the bricks and tiles ready for pickup in half a month.

Zhao Dong immediately smiled and thanked him. It's indeed true that connections make things easier, he thought. If not for Zhang Jinbao, I probably wouldn't have been able to start building until next year.

Afterward, Zhao Dong arranged the construction date with Zhang Jinbao, settled the workers' wages, and then went home.

...

「In the evening, after the children had fallen asleep, Zhao Dong began to calculate the expenses.」

The cost of building the house—including bricks and tiles, workers' wages, and the foremen's lunch expenses—would total around six hundred taels of silver. Originally, it wouldn't have cost quite so much, but he had added an ice cellar. However, it was still within his budget.

Once their medicinal vegetables started selling at Guang Ju Restaurant, they wouldn't have to worry about money for a while.

News that their family was planning to build a house spread like wildfire through the village. Some villagers were happy for Zhao Dong, while others, naturally, made sour remarks. Zhao Dong's family, however, paid no attention to the village gossip.

When the ten-day agreement with the Peony Flower Shop came due, Zhao Dong went to the county town alone and brought back the fruit tree seedlings.