Buying Land and Building a House
Grandma Evans scolded Arthur Evans, then turned her wrath on Mrs. Charlotte Evans, shouting, "Look at this useless woman! She can't carry a bucket without whining about her arms hurting! Just a country bumpkin, acting like some pampered lady!"
Mrs. Charlotte Evans let out a disdainful snort, thinking to herself: I really was raised as a well-bred young lady from a prominent Jiangnan family. People like Grandma Evans wouldn't even be accepted as the lowest maid in our household!
Helen Parker, who was always jealous of Mrs. Charlotte Evans’s youth and grace, chimed in sarcastically, "Why do you have to sway your hips when you walk? Who are you trying to impress, acting like the lady of the house?"
Arthur Evans, upset at his wife's mistreatment, stepped forward protectively and said coldly, "I've severed ties with the Evans family. If I ever hear you badmouthing my wife again, don't blame me for what happens next!"
"All talk, no money. What a bunch of useless paupers," Helen Parker rolled her eyes disdainfully.
The village chief, growing impatient, said, "Enough arguing. I'll be the witness today—Arthur Evans and the Evans family are officially finished."
"Good. I want it in writing," Arthur Evans, ever the businessman, insisted. "Let's make it official so the Evans family can't cause trouble later."
Grandma Evans suddenly grew anxious. "What trick are you playing now? Changed your mind about cutting ties? Listen, today the Evans family is kicking you useless eaters out! Don't you dare come begging at our door!"
Helen Parker became wary too. "Yeah, don't try anything funny. Get out of the Evans family and stop clinging to us. We don't want your useless lot!"
Arthur Evans scoffed, "Me, begging? Listen up—if I fall on hard times, I won't ask the Evans family for a single coin, and you won't get a cent from me either! Heaven sees everything. Know why the flood hit right after the Evans family built their house? Even the heavens can't stand your rotten behavior!"
With that, Arthur Evans wrote the severance letter and handed it to the village chief, who read it aloud to the Evans Family.
The Evans Family listened closely. Once Arthur Evans promised not to bother them again, they eagerly signed and stamped the document. With the village chief as witness, Arthur Evans’s family and the Evans Family were now officially and completely separated.
"Finally kicked those useless people out!" Grandma Evans exclaimed with glee.
Feeling free from their burden, the Evans Family returned home in high spirits.
The village chief looked at Arthur Evans and his wife with sympathy and offered some comforting words. But Arthur didn’t leave immediately. After the Evans Family left, he turned to the village chief and said, "Village Chief, I’d like to build a house here in the village. Is there any land available?"
The village chief replied, "There's plenty of land, but your household registration isn't in Clearwater Village. Technically, we can't allocate a homestead plot to you."
Arthur Evans smiled, "That's true, Village Chief. We're outsiders, so we can't get land allocated. But is it possible to buy a homestead plot?"
"Buy a homestead plot?" The village chief was stunned. "Arthur, land here isn’t cheap!"
But Arthur Evans didn’t seem concerned about the money. He simply asked the village chief about the plot he’d chosen.
The plot was near the foot of the mountain, right next to Su Li’s house—a large area that wouldn’t be flooded.
The village chief was even more puzzled. "That plot is bigger than Su Li’s place. Not only is the land expensive, building a house there will cost a fortune!"
"How much for the land?" Arthur Evans asked.
"Eighty taels." The village chief puffed on his pipe, not really expecting Arthur Evans to buy the land.
But Arthur Evans just smiled, took out a banknote for one hundred taels and handed it to the village chief. "Here, that’s one hundred taels—eighty for the homestead plot, the rest as a gift. I hope you’ll look after my family from now on."