Chapter 2802

"Brother Yezi, I must trouble you with today's matters," Yun Xi said with a smile.

Director Zhang smiled back. "Not at all. It is rare to meet someone like you, Wangzhi. Naturally, I will introduce you to a few good properties."

Director Zhang then took out several maps. "Based on your requirements, I can recommend three places. Two are in the East Market, and one is in the South Market. In the East Market, one is a three-courtyard house. It originally belonged to a wealthy merchant, but after his business failed, he had to sell it to pay debts. The other is a five-courtyard house. This was originally a Duke’s mansion, so the courtyard is very large, and it has a garden. However, the family was confiscated three months ago, so our master acquired it for sale. The one in the South Market is a three-courtyard house, also resulting from this recent turmoil. It was originally a Censor’s residence."

Hearing this, Yang Xue’en, standing nearby, was taken aback. The capital was indeed a place where opportunity and danger coexisted, with families being confiscated so casually.

Yun Xi, however, did not mind. He simply asked, "May I see the houses? I need to decide which one to buy."

"Of course," Director Zhang replied. "I have the keys. I will take you to see them."

"Thank you for your trouble, Brother Yezi," Yun Xi said gratefully.

Director Zhang went to fetch the keys and led Yun Xi out. They first visited the three-courtyard house in the East Market, then the five-courtyard one, and finally the three-courtyard house in the South Market.

"Brother Yezi, you are not being honest," Yun Xi remarked. "The one you really wanted to recommend was the five-courtyard house, wasn't it?"

Indeed, among the three houses, the five-courtyard one was the most cost-effective in terms of scale, layout, and environment.

Director Zhang smiled. "I did want to recommend this one, as it is rare. But you had to see it for yourself first."

"What is the price?" Yun Xi asked. He had also taken a liking to the five-courtyard house.

As Director Zhang had said, the house not only had courtyards and a garden, but its interior decor was also restrained, avoiding an overly ostentatious display of wealth. Moreover, the alley leading to it was deep and secluded.

"It is a good house. However, because it was confiscated, some people consider it inauspicious, so the price is not high. If you, Wangzhi, want this five-courtyard house, I will not overcharge. How about eight thousand taels of fine silver?" Director Zhang answered seriously.

Yun Xi raised an eyebrow slightly. "Only eight thousand taels for such a good house?"

"The house is good, but you may not know that besides the family confiscated three months ago, another family was implicated and exiled two years ago. Therefore, no one likes this house," Director Zhang explained earnestly. "Otherwise, it would not have been entrusted to our brokerage for sale."

"In that case, please help me convert it to a red deed. I will pay on the spot," Yun Xi decided immediately.

To others, the house might be unlucky, but Yun Xi did not share this view. Life must be lived by oneself. The previous owners’ misfortunes were due to their own poor choices, not the house itself.

"No problem at all," Director Zhang said. He immediately took Yun Xi to the relevant department to exchange the deed for a red one.

Yun Xi had brought money with him and paid the full amount on the spot. Then he said, "Brother Yang, please notify Father and Mother. Let them bring the younger siblings and servants over. I will go with Brother Yezi to buy some rough servants."

The house was large, and the few servants they had brought with them were insufficient. Furthermore, Yun Xi intended to settle down, so he needed to ensure the security of the household.

"Understood, Master," Yang Xue’en said. He immediately went to notify Yun Jian and the others. Yun Xi returned with Director Zhang to purchase servants.

"Since they are rough servants, I require them to be honest and strong," Yun Xi told Director Zhang.

Director Zhang replied, "I have such people. Many are veterans who retired from the battlefield. Would you like them? They are strong and well-behaved, but they have large appetites."

Yun Xi smiled. "That is fine. We have some modest assets and can afford to feed a few people."

"How many do you plan to buy?" Director Zhang asked.

Yun Xi pondered for a moment. "Three for cleaning, five for guards. Eight in total."

"Very well. Please wait a moment. I will bring them over," Director Zhang nodded slightly. Hearing Yun Xi’s words, he could tell that Yun Xi was sincere about settling down, so he needed both cleaners and guards.

Yun Xi was now a Juren (Provincial Graduate), so he was allowed to keep ten servants in his household. Yun Xu was a Xiucai (Licentiate), allowed to keep five. Since both brothers were scholars, they were permitted to keep double the number.

When Yun Xi came to the capital, besides Yang Xue’en, Guo Re, Chen Tong, Zhang Yang, and Xu Li had also arrived. They had brought along Ma Mama and Zhang Mama for the kitchen, Ma Pozi for cleaning, Chen Mama for etiquette instruction, and Yun Xu’s servant, Zhang Yu. Additionally, a few simple household servants had been purchased in their hometown and were managed by Uncle and Aunt Xu.

Although they had brought people, the house was too large for them. Considering they could have had over thirty servants, they had only used ten slots so far. Thus, Yun Xi decided to buy more.

"Also, buy two young girls and one boy for my two younger sisters and youngest brother. Their character must be good," Yun Xi added. He always prioritized good character. As soon as Director Zhang entered, Yun Xi reiterated this requirement.

Many families faced problems because their servants were unreliable and instigated trouble.

Director Zhang nodded slightly. "You look at the rough servants and guards first. I will prepare the girls and boys for you."

"Thank you," Yun Xi nodded.

Director Zhang was indeed capable. The people he brought were quite good. Yun Xi looked at them and selected several immediately. Many of these men had retired from the battlefield, were poor, and had sold themselves into servitude. Being alone, they had no other concerns.

Yun Xi bought eight people: six men and two women. Among them, two women and two men were rough servants, and the remaining four were guards.

Then Director Zhang brought the girls and boys. Yun Xi bought two girls, both around eight or nine years old, and one boy who was only five years old. They were reportedly orphans who had lost their parents in disasters. The two girls were intended to accompany Yun Ni and Yun Xia. The five-year-old boy would be looked after by Chen Mama daily. As he grew older, he would be trained to follow Yun Xin.

After paying and receiving the indenture contracts, Yun Xi led these people to the new house. Upon arriving at the courtyard, he immediately ordered everyone to start cleaning. By the time Yun Jian and the others arrived, the cleaning had already begun.