This year is a leap year, so it's already the second half of February. The weather is colder than in previous years at this time. The peach blossoms have not yet come out, and the melon seedlings that Ziqing has been cultivating are slow to emerge, only showing a hint of white tip. Ziqing had no choice but to use some wooden boxes filled with soil in the empty south room of the west wing, burying the water-soaked melon seeds in the soil, and then burning a fire basin next to them. On sunny days, she would move the wooden boxes outside, and after twenty days, surprisingly, they had grown better than the seedlings outside and were ready to be transplanted.

  On this day, Ziqing was transplanting melon seedlings with several paternal uncles in the back mountain. At home, only Shen Shi and Ziyu were at home. Tian Shi came over and said that Chunyu's house had been completed and would be topped on March 8th. She also said that Damao's wife was now making a fuss about dividing the family property.

  "It's not like you're the ones who started this, that day if it wasn't for Zifu's father saying those words, and Damao's wife listening to them, would there be today's commotion? Chunyu's family situation is different from yours, they still rely on Damao to earn some money to support the family. This is good, marrying a daughter-in-law and immediately abandoning one's parents." Tian Shi complained.

  "Mother, every family has its own way of living, and everyone has their own thoughts. Who can always follow their own heart? When the children grow up, they want to go out on their own and not rely on their parents, it's not a bad thing. They're all crowded together, quarreling every day, if you ask me, it's better to separate them." Shen Shi replied.

  "Many small ones are still left at the bottom, he wants to separate them and live a small life on their own, which is a good calculation. Er Mao is also getting married this year, Guiying is half a year older than Ziying, but no matchmaker has been mentioned yet. A big mess of troubles, if I were to say, Ziying's orchard needs to hire people to work, why not let Guiying and Sanmao come to help her, at least they can make up for some of it. They are all one family, how much grudge can there be? Now that Damao is also married, Ziying should get married next year too, who can still remember things from the past? Not to mention getting more than ten taels of silver to support outsiders in a year. Isn't it better to let them take care of the orchard themselves? It's not like they are outsiders, so shouldn't we trust them more?"

  "Mother, don't mention that I really can't make decisions on my own. That orchard was bought by Lin Kangping. Zi Qing is now helping him manage it. That person was also bought by Kangping, and it's said that they've already signed a ten-year contract. Besides, that large piece of land has a lot of work to do every day. We need to dig tree holes, plant trees, water them, fertilize them... there are many details to consider. Even if I could make decisions on my own, I wouldn't agree to let Guiying and her family stay. Am I just going to be bullied like this? It's only been a few days, and they're already taking advantage of us?" Shen Shi said.

  "This is not a calculation, it's not like I'm asking for money from Zi Qingbai, just hiring them to work, which also costs money. Who doesn't hire people? I asked Yunjiang about digging tree pits, and he said it's calculated separately, two cents per pit. He said they've already dug over a thousand. This is not a small amount of silver going out, and yet we're still paying one tael of silver per month to support them. It's like watching our own relatives struggle without helping, but instead using silver to support unrelated outsiders. How is this bullying you? I didn't ask for silver from you, did I? You can discuss it with Zi Qingbai. Kangping isn't even here, and she would have the final say anyway." Tian Shi said, looking around the room for Zi Qingbai, then asked, "Where's Zi Qingbai?"

  The Shen family saw that it was impossible to communicate with the He family, so they made up their minds and said that Zi Qing was busy in the back mountain. The He family thought for a moment and left first.

  At dinner time, Zeng Rui Xiang suddenly asked Shen Shi: "Did your mother come to you again today and say something? Don't take it to heart, rest assured, I won't agree."

  Zi Qing was stunned after listening, looking at Shen Shi, Shen Shi explained Tian Shi's intention.

  "That's impossible. If I hire them, that would be like inviting wolves into our home. They are lazy and greedy, with impure hearts, not doing their proper duties, only knowing how to scheme against others. In just a few days, my aunt and elder sister have already forgotten the promises they made to us."

  "No, I asked her yesterday, do I look like someone who can be bullied? But I also saw that it's useless to reason with her, no matter what, I've made up my mind. You, her father, don't forget, you promised me." Shen said.

  Zeng Ruixiang listened and said: "This is natural, I have already refused my mother. Let her make a fuss."

  "Father, mother, why don't you just push the matter onto Lin Kangping? Big sister and them are still more afraid of Lin Kangping. Besides, even if Lin Kangping doesn't agree, grandma can't do anything to him. It's better for father to not provoke grandma. When father encounters them, it's like a scholar meeting a soldier, with reason that can't be explained clearly. Father is also better off not getting angry, as he is used to being refined and can't bring himself to have a falling out with them. But Lin Kangping is different, with his big temper on display there, they still have to think carefully about it. Besides, Lin Kangping is just the son-in-law of their granddaughter, and hasn't even gotten married yet, what can grandma say?"

  Shen's family also agreed, but Zeng Rui Xiang didn't nod, probably still couldn't get past his own mental barrier. He said: "Let's talk about it later, there's no reason for me as the father to have something and instead have my son-in-law take care of it. I'll do what I can to help you guys out. In the past, it was my fault that things didn't go well, so you guys always ended up losing out. But from now on, I won't let that happen again, don't worry, child."

  Zi Qing listened and had no choice but to give up.

  The next day, Zhou Zhanggui brought in a man in his forties. Zhou Zhanggui handed over to Zi Qing a letter from Lin Kangping. It turned out that this person was the garden designer Mr. Tong whom Lin Kangping had found.

  Lin Kongping said in the letter: "...... I've thought about it, our new home will be called Qingyuan, Qingyuan, emotional fate, Qing'er, do you like it? It has your name and also implies that we have a lifelong emotional connection. Not just one lifetime is not enough, I want to make a vow in front of the Buddha, vowing that we have three lifetimes and three worlds of emotional connection. Qing'er, as for the plan of Qingyuan, I've fully entrusted it to Mr. Tong. Mr. Tong is an expert in this field, if you have any ideas or requirements, you can discuss them with him. Mr. Tong said that first we need to start cleaning up the reeds and rushes, the silver coins I left for you before I leave should be enough to cover the expenses, and we'll talk about the rest when I get back."

  Mr. Tong stayed behind after seeing off Manager Zhou, and Madame Shen had him stay in the guest room of the west wing. After settling in, Mr. Tong wanted to take a look at the reed pond, but Zi Qing wasn't feeling well enough to accompany him, so he waited until after lunch and had Zeng Rui Xiang bring the deed and lead him over. It was more than two hours before Mr. Tong returned.

  "What do you think of the house?" Mr. Tong asked Zi Qing.

  "Yes, there are some, in the garden, plant some peach trees or apricot trees, in spring can see flowers blooming, petals all over the ground, in the pond plant some lotus flowers, in summer can enjoy the night lotus, in autumn osmanthus fragrant, in winter can smell plum blossoms in the snow. In the inner courtyard, need a swing chair, a hammock, best also have a pool, raise some goldfish. In the outer courtyard, the pond raises ducks and white geese, leave a few empty spaces to plant vegetables and watermelon. As for the house, in the inner courtyard, there should be a path paved with cobblestones, the bedroom has wooden flooring, next to the bedroom is a small bathroom." Zi Qing said so much in one breath, suddenly found Mr. Tong staring at him with his mouth open, looking stupid.

  Jian Ziying stopped, he suddenly realized that he didn't expect a small village girl to know so much. To be honest, if it weren't for the fact that he owed Lin Kangping a favor, he wouldn't have traveled thousands of miles to come to this countryside to design gardens. It's worth noting that he usually only designed for high-ranking officials or wealthy families, and his basic appearance fee was at least 100 taels of silver. Ordinary farmers couldn't afford it.

  At first, when he heard that Lin Kangping wanted to marry a village girl, he was quite surprised. For this reason, he advised Lin Kangping, "It's said that it's better to marry a wealthy family's daughter-in-law than a poor family's daughter. You're really something, as the trusted attendant of the third young master of the Wen family, you actually married a village girl. I just don't understand, aren't there any daughters from good families that you fancy?"

  Who would have thought that Lin Kangping just smiled and didn't respond after hearing his words? Only today, when he saw the hostess, did he realize that he had been greatly mistaken. He had thought that the village girl was rough and unrefined, but the woman in front of him was not only elegant and charming, with a pair of eyes that showed she was an intelligent and lively child. No wonder Lin Kangping was willing to give up the prosperity of the capital and settle his family in this remote countryside.

  Mr. Tong saw Zi Qing staring at him and suddenly realized that he had been rude to stare at her, so he hastily asked: "Are you finished?"

  "Do you remember? Isn't my request a bit too much? Anyway, it should be aesthetically pleasing and practical. Since Congping said you're the boss, add or subtract as you see fit. However, the kitchen and bathroom must be designed well." After finishing speaking, Ziying took him to visit their own kitchen and bathroom.

  Mr. Tong was secretly astonished in his heart, but he didn't show a hint of it on his face, and just didn't dare to have the slightest contempt again.

  "These are all a bit rough, sir, if you have any good ideas, feel free to suggest them, I hope they can be even better, it's just that my ability is limited."

  "You're too polite, Miss. I, Tong, will certainly do my best to thoroughly examine these things."

  After that, Mr. Tong went to the reed pond twice a day, and each time he came back, he locked himself in his study for at least an hour, painting and drawing, even meals were urged repeatedly. Zi Yu had quietly asked Zi Qing: "Sister, why do I feel that this person has some kind of obsessive-compulsive disorder? Is it necessary to go to that broken reed pond every day?"

  "You know what, no matter what you do, you have to have a clear plan in mind, only then can you be confident and composed. Just like when you're embroidering flowers, don't you need to start with a detailed outline? You think you can just casually come up with a good garden design without putting in some thought? Don't you see that place, it's not something that can be done with just a little effort?" Zi Qing took the opportunity to educate Zi Yu.

  It wasn't until half a month later that he told Zi Qing to find someone to start cleaning up the reeds and also to find an assistant to manage miscellaneous tasks. Zi Qing naturally entrusted this matter to Zeng Ruiyu again, and found Master Luo and others. It was early April, when spring plowing had ended but wheat harvesting had not yet begun.

  Ziying thought that Zeng Ruiyu was busy with her own affairs, and it would be better to let Xiao Gudie Zhou Yunjiang take charge of calculating the labor costs and making a list of things to buy. As for the fruit garden, they could discuss it after autumn, as there were no large saplings available at present. With this in mind, Ziying consulted with Mr. Tong, who said: "Having two people, one in charge of internal affairs and the other in charge of external affairs, is the best arrangement." And so, Ziying handed Zeng Ruiyu and Zhou Yunjiang over to Mr. Tong.