Allure of a Country Maiden
Chapter 126 - 124 Cement

Chapter 126: Chapter 124 Cement

Shen Chengyao didn’t utter a word and walked home. The spectators dispersed, none had ever seen Shen Chengyao enraged before. It was terrifying. The expression on his face was as if he wanted to devour someone alive.

Shen Chengyao and Mrs. Liu retired to their room.

Xiao’er was contemplating the events that had just transpired.

In a society where reputation is paramount, many things cannot be done according to personal will. Considering that Jingrui and others wanted to take the Imperial Examination, Shen Chengyao should not be known as someone who disregards the lives of his family members.

Shen Chengguang had caused a lot of trouble, and Shen Chengyao had endured all of it. He did not pursue it any further, for the sake of his innocent nephew, not wanting to ruin his future.

But not everyone in the Shen family has a heart like Shen Chengyao! If they cannot obtain something, they would want to destroy what others have!

Their family in the future would not merely be as it is now, but if they want to go further and be more stable, a lot of things must be done to establish a strong foundation.

Firstly, Shen Chengyao and Mrs. Liu need to be tougher. At least they should give others the impression of returning kindness with kindness, and vengeance with vengeance. This would deter people from offending them easily, but also not let others feel that they are villains.

The reason Shen Chengzong dared to commit such a heinous act against Mrs. Liu was because Shen Chengyao had been too agreeable in the past, overly considering the feelings of brothers and parents.

She was worried that if she told Shen Chengyao about this and Shen Chengzong carelessly revealed it, Mrs. Liu’s reputation would be ruined. They would inevitably be gossiped about by people behind their backs!

But later, she thought that such things should not be tolerated. They should be resolved in front of everyone. At least, this would give others the impression that she was not afraid of such things coming to light, and she was not afraid of ruining her own reputation.

In which case, they would reconsider if they want to use reputation to pressure them in the future.

Additionally, she has to find a way to let the villagers earn some silver. The jealousy of too many people can also be detrimental.

This has to be done as soon as possible. There are still many conscientious people in this world, she believed in the principle that love begets love, and blessings beget blessings.

Like today, many people defended her family.

Having made her decisions, Xiao’er went to find Shen Chengyao and his wife.

Mrs. Liu’s eyes were red, but at this time the couple were playfully teasing Xi’er and they were laughing. It seemed the clouds had cleared after the rain.

Seeing Xiao’er coming, Mrs. Liu asked with a smile, "Xiao’er, what brings you here?"

"There’s something I wish to discuss with mother and father." Xiao’er shook Xi’er’s little hand, and she immediately rewarded Xiao’er with a smile.

"What is it?"

"Isn’t there a piece of land next to the old house? That land is about one acre, is it Uncle Dashi’s? I want to buy it and build a new house for grandfather and grandmother. It will also have underfloor heating and toilets like our house."

"That’s a good thing, we should have thought about it earlier. Our house is much more convenient, our parents would be pleased."

Shen Chengyao gratefully glanced at Mrs. Liu. He would never oppose an idea that showed filial piety to his parents.

The next day, Shen Chengyao bought the piece of land for seven taels of silver from Uncle Dashi, and then hired a crew of workers to build a house. Supervisor Liang was helping to construct a shop in the town, so he was unavailable. He recommended Supervisor Lan as a replacement.

Old Master Shen and Mrs. Shen were delighted to know that this house was specially built in honor of their old age. When there was no farm work, Old Master Shen reported in early every day and clocked out only when it got dark, along with the workers.

The villagers talked about this for a while. Some of the elderly were even envious and jealous, saying that if they had a son, he should be like Shen Chengyao!

—

One day, Shangguan Xuanyi and Di Zhaowei visited, bringing with them a cart full of cement.

Xiao’er was excited and instructed the long-term workers in her house to cut some trees and saw some planks.

Then she nailed a frame on the half of the road from the official road to her own home.

She had people take a few carts from the river’s edge, bringing back river sand and small stones.

Then, according to a certain ratio, she mixed the sand and concrete. By adding water and mixing it with small stones and cement, she produced concrete.

Xiao’er instructed them to pour this concrete into the wooden frames, filling them to the brim and levelling it. She asked others to cut some thorny bushes and surround the area with them, preventing people and dogs from walking on it and leaving footprints.

"Girl, is this all it takes? Once it dries, it becomes a cement road? Won’t it shatter as soon as the carriage goes over it?"

"It’s fine. Water it every morning and evening, allowing it to solidify faster. In three or four days, you can walk on it! If steel bars are added, it will be stronger. Even now, it’s sufficient for a carriage to pass. However, after frequent use, the road will have many pits, but those can still be filled in."

Di Zhaowei was rather incredulous, considering bluestone slab roads to be more reliable. Sadly, it wouldn’t be possible to lay bluestone slabs everywhere, otherwise it would be much more convenient to travel.

Three days later, the cement road was mostly dry. Xiao’er stepped on it, and it was hard, leaving no trace.

Shangguan Xuanyi and Di Zhaowei also stepped onto it. Indeed, it was very sturdy, akin to stepping on a stone slab road.

"Xiao Fuzi, why don’t you drive the carriage to try it out?"

Xiao Fuzi drove the carriage from Xiao’er’s home to the official road and back, with Shangguan Xuanyi and Di Zhaowei sitting inside.

The cement road did not leave any traces of the carriage’s wheels, and they did not feel any bumps while sitting in the carriage!

"Girl, this road is as smooth as a flat stone. It didn’t feel bumpy at all when we drove on it. If all the official roads in the country were paved with cement then..." Di Zhaowei didn’t finish his sentence, he was stunned by his own imagination.

If all the official roads in the country were cemented, travel and trade would be made easier. Time spent on travelling to some place could be cut by half, which meant that goods from the south and north could enjoy better exchange. Some fresh fruits and vegetables wouldn’t necessarily have to be sold locally; transportation of some valuable fragile goods could be safer, at least a lot of damage could be avoided... With such a smooth road, life would definitely be a lot easier.

"The use of cement isn’t just for making roads. Combined with steel bars, it can be used to replace roof tiles, eliminating the worry of leaks and the need for patching every year. Moreover, houses constructed with a concrete structure are very sturdy, there’s no need for snow cleaning, and there’s no worry of collapse! Cement can solidify under water, bridges made of concrete are sturdy, concrete can be used to build city walls... Anyway, even drying things in the grain drying field built with concrete can be faster, and you don’t have to worry about sand!"

"This really is a great thing!" Shen Chengyao exclaimed.

"Girl, the things you come up with, really are... beneficial to the country and the people."

"This is indeed a good thing, but its production does cause environmental pollution, so please be careful not to dump waste casually, and plant more trees... Don’t wait until the environment is polluted before thinking of ways to remediate it, that would be troublesome."

Shangguan Xuanyi nodded.

"Now that we have cement, I’m going to use it to build a garden villa on top of that hill. You are all welcome to visit when it’s complete!"

"Looking forward to it." Di Zhaowei replied with a smile.

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