“Greetings, madam,” the middle-aged matchmaker greeted Yang Haiyan warmly, her face radiating kindness. “How may I assist you today? Are you looking to buy a house or servants? Or perhaps something else?”

Yang Haiyan replied, “I want to buy both a house and some servants, but I’ll buy the house first and then the servants.”

The matchmaker’s eyes lit up.

This was clearly a big customer. “What kind of house are you looking for, madam? Please, have a seat and tell me more.”

The matchmaker had dealt with countless people in her time and had a sharp eye for assessing them.

This madam had a refined air, with her fair and delicate complexion and hands that clearly hadn’t done any hard labor.

It was obvious she had money to spend.

“Thank you,” Yang Haiyan said as she sat down.

Once she was seated, the matchmaker poured her a cup of tea.

Yang Haiyan didn’t touch the tea, as she had a rule not to drink anything while out alone.

If anything were to happen, it could spell trouble.

She continued, “I want to buy a shop, ideally one with a courtyard attached. The courtyard should be large enough to house both servants and the owners. I also need the courtyard to have a back gate and a large hall. My husband is an officer under the Marquis, and when he’s home, he hosts his colleagues. A small hall wouldn’t accommodate everyone.”

Yang Haiyan didn’t specify her husband’s rank, but mentioning that he served under the Marquis was enough to make the matchmaker more cautious.

Essentially, she was borrowing the Marquis’s influence, but it wasn’t untrue—Qin Fang was indeed under his command.

As expected, the matchmaker straightened up and took a more serious tone. “Please wait a moment, madam, while I check the registry for houses that meet your requirements.”

“Thank you for your trouble,” Yang Haiyan said.

It wasn’t long before the matchmaker returned with the registry. “Madam, we do have large courtyards, but none that are attached to shops. Usually, large courtyards are owned by wealthy families, and they don’t live where they do business. Would a smaller courtyard suffice? Or would you consider having the shop and courtyard separate?”

The main issue was the limited resources in the town.

Yang Haiyan asked, “How many rooms would a smaller courtyard have? Would it be enough to house servants?”

The matchmaker replied, “Among the properties with attached courtyards, there’s one in a good location, in the bustling part of town. The courtyard at the back has three main rooms. If you’re interested, I can take you to see it.”

Yang Haiyan nodded, “That sounds good. Let’s take a look.”

The property was located in the town center, only about five or six hundred meters from the matchmaker’s office.

They walked over, and the matchmaker showed her the shop first.

It was closed, and because the shop was attached to a courtyard and in a prime location, the price wasn’t cheap. “Madam, here’s the courtyard. Next door is a fabric shop and a cosmetics shop, so a lot of women pass by.”

Yang Haiyan thought to herself that since she planned to start a pastry business, it would be good to be located where women frequently passed.

The matchmaker continued, “There are two doors for the courtyard. The one behind the shop leads to the back gate. Shall we go in through the main entrance?”

Yang Haiyan replied, “Yes, let’s take a look.”

After viewing the courtyard and the shop, Yang Haiyan made her decision.

The property was indeed nice.

The shop had a back entrance, and the main entrance could be used to entertain guests.

The reason it hadn’t sold yet was that it had only recently become available.

The previous owner had just put it on the market, and the price they were asking was five taels above the market rate.

For the locals, earning money wasn’t easy, and five taels was no small amount.

Even potential buyers who liked the property wanted to haggle or think it over.

But Yang Haiyan saw it as a good deal.

The market price for the property was 30 taels of silver, but the owner was asking for 35 taels.

Since Yang Haiyan had 500 taels of gold on her, she decided to negotiate.

She managed to bring the price down by one tael, closing the deal at 34 taels.

Since she didn’t have 34 taels of silver on her, she sold 1 tael of gold.

Each tael of gold was equivalent to 100 grams, and at 340 yuan per gram, 100 grams of gold amounted to 34,000 yuan.

The trading platform she used was rather mysterious, as it automatically divided the gold according to the exact weight needed.

With 34,000 yuan in hand, Yang Haiyan bought 100 taels of silver, which weighed 5,000 grams, costing her 25,000 yuan.

The matchmaker then brought the owner and Yang Haiyan to the town chief’s house to complete the transfer of ownership.

Since the town didn’t have a county office, the town chief handled such matters on the county’s behalf.

Yang Haiyan paid 34 taels for the property and 1 tael as a commission.

After finalizing the paperwork, the matchmaker became even more enthusiastic toward Yang Haiyan.

Who wouldn’t like such a generous customer?

Next, they went back to the matchmaker’s office to look for servants.

The matchmaker said, “Madam, what kind of servants do you wish to buy?”

Yang Haiyan replied, “I want someone hardworking, preferably around 35 years old, and they can be a family unit. It would be even better if they can read, but no young men or women.”

She didn’t want any young men around, since Qin Fang might be away for a month at a time, and young women could develop feelings for him.

So, Yang Haiyan chose servants around 35 years old, as those of that age could easily be like parental figures to her and Qin Fang, reducing the chance of gossip.

“A literate servant?” The matchmaker hesitated. “Literate servants typically come from wealthy families. But if they end up here, it’s usually because they were sold by their former masters, or their family committed a crime and they were sold as part of a collective punishment.”

For instance, if something happened to the Yang family, which resulted in executions, other relatives might be sold off as well.

Yang Haiyan said, “If they were sold by their master, that could be a problem. What if they caused trouble in their last household? Wouldn’t that bring trouble to me?”

The matchmaker replied, “Then it’s hard to find literate servants around here.”

Yang Haiyan decided, “Then let’s go with those who can’t read. Do you have anyone with decent character?”

The matchmaker thought for a moment. “I can’t guarantee character, though; how could I know? If something goes wrong, you wouldn’t come looking for me, would you?”

Yang Haiyan said, “Then bring them out for me to see.”

“Sure!” The matchmaker went inside and returned shortly with several men and women, all around 35 years old.

They wore the matchmaker’s clothing and had weary expressions.

Naturally, the matchmaker wouldn’t keep them well-fed; just keeping them from starving was considered kindness.

The matchmaker said, “This lady wants to buy a servant. You will answer her questions honestly.”

“Yes.”

Seeing a lovely and amiable lady, the servants felt a mix of excitement and hope, wishing to be chosen, as life in the matchmaker’s place was tough.

With so many people cramped together, they barely got enough to eat.

Even working for a family, they would fare better than at the matchmaker’s.

Yang Haiyan asked, “Among you, is there anyone literate?”

Everyone fell silent; literacy was a rare blessing.

Then a middle-aged man stepped forward. “Madam, I can read.”

Yang Haiyan looked at him. “You can read?”

The man replied, “My name is Hong Xuexi, with ‘Xue’ meaning study and ‘Xi’ meaning hope. I had a basic education as a child, my father had studied at a private school and hoped to take the imperial examination, but he fell ill and passed away. After his death, to survive, I took to hunting, and I was injured while hunting. The medical costs were too high, so I gave up.”

Yang Haiyan remarked, “Your name does sound like someone from a scholarly family. How did you end up here?”

Hong Xuexi looked a bit shy. “Not long ago, my wife gave birth and needed money for treatment, so I… sold myself.” But as a cripple, he wasn’t worth much.

Selling himself was the only way he could help his family.

Yang Haiyan said, “So you sold yourself, and now you can’t see your wife and child anymore?”

He replied, “Madam, I’m from this area; my wife and child are in the countryside.”

He knelt down and said, “I beg you to buy me; I will repay your kindness.”

Yang Haiyan wasn’t overly kind-hearted, but hearing this man’s sacrifice for his family stirred a bit of compassion in her.

She looked at the matchmaker. “How much for him?”

The matchmaker replied, “Two taels of silver.” In truth, they had purchased Hong Xuexi for only one tael.

Yang Haiyan nodded and told Hong Xuexi, “You stand aside for now.” Then she addressed the group again. “Is there anyone else among you who can read?”

No one spoke up.

She continued, “Is there anyone with cooking skills?”

A woman replied, “Madam, I used to work as a cook for a wealthy family. Do you think I’m suitable?”

Yang Haiyan studied her. It was hard to judge character at first glance, but sometimes it came down to fate.

Yang Haiyan felt she had a decent impression of this woman; despite being thin and pale, her face looked kind. Yang Haiyan nodded, “Alright. However, whether it’s you or Uncle Hong, if you don’t perform well, I won’t keep you. It doesn’t matter if you’re a bit slow or simple; loyalty between master and servant is most important.”

Uncle Hong and the woman replied, “Yes.”

Yang Haiyan paid the required silver and took their contracts.

She spent two taels on Hong Xuexi and six on the woman, totaling eight taels.

Adding this to the earlier expenses for the house and commission, she had spent 43 taels altogether.

Back at her residence, Yang Haiyan instructed Hong Xuexi and the woman, named Fan Cuiliu, to clean.

Fan Cuiliu was formerly a cook for a wealthy family, but she was sold when internal conflicts between the main wife and a concubine led to a crisis in the kitchen.