Clan Rise: Starting as a Grandfather

Chapter 438: Chapter 418 Yu Qingyi’s Surprise and Distress_2

Following closely behind, Yu Qingyi adjusted her dress and entered the Marquis Mansion.

Discussing the size of the Marquis Mansion, it wasn’t actually very large, covering just over fifty acres.

According to the standards of Da Rong, the cities where kings reside span nine miles, those of dukes and marquises only three miles, and those of earls between one and two miles.

This ’mile’ refers to the perimeter of the residence.

So, if the perimeter of a duke or marquis’s residence is three miles, then the maximum area could be close to two hundred acres.

If outside the Capital City, building such a large mansion would naturally pose no problem, but inside the Capital City, constructing such a large mansion is simply impossible.

The residences of dukes and marquises within the Capital City usually range between thirty to fifty acres, Marquis Jing’an Mansion being this large benefited from the advantage of the former Marquis Wuxin Mansion.

For Marquis Wuxin Mansion was the former Duke Xin, built on the scale of the Duke Mansion, hence it is much larger than other marquis mansions.

After entering the Marquis Mansion, Yu Qingyi observed the elaborately carved pavilions and the scenic step-by-step landscapes, reminiscent of Granny Liu’s visit to the Grand View Garden.

A group walked around the Marquis Mansion for over two hours before reaching the main courtyard house.

“Has the master arranged for the residences of each house?”

Inside the courtyard house, Yu Qingyi posed the question to Housekeeper Lu.

Housekeeper Lu responded with a smile, “Replying to the madame, before the master left the Capital City, he had already arranged everything. The eldest son resides in Wutong Courtyard within the east wing.”

After saying this, he also gave a formal bow to Yang Mingcheng.

The layout of the Marquis Mansion can be divided into four parts; the first part being the front courtyard, entering through the main gate leads to the Inner Ceremony Gate, between the main gate and the Inner Ceremony Gate, on both east and west sides, there are two courtyards that can be used as offices by male family members, with many more rooms behind these courtyards, which can be lecture rooms, guesthouses, etc.

After entering the Inner Ceremony Gate is the main hall of the Marquis Mansion, with warm rooms and tea rooms on either side of the main hall, and a sizable lotus pond behind.

The main hall, being the most important part of the front courtyard and the façade of the Marquis Mansion, is decorated most lavishly.

The second part involves moving along the central axis into the Inner Ceremony Gate, which is the main courtyard, further divided into three parts: the hall at the front, bedrooms in the middle, and a large garden at the back which includes rockeries, water features, pavilions, and several small courtyards.

The middle bedrooms are naturally where Marquis Jing’an and the Marchioness reside, and those small courtyards in the garden are for the concubines of the marquis.

Unfortunately, Yang Zhenshan does not have any concubines, so these small courtyards aren’t much used.

The third section comprises the east and west wings; these are not merely two courtyards but are subdivided into more than a dozen courtyards, each varying in size and scenery.

The Wutong Courtyard mentioned by Housekeeper Lu, as the best and largest one in the east and west wings, naturally accommodates Yang Mingcheng as the legitimate eldest son.

The fourth part includes the back mountain; indeed, within the Marquis Mansion, there are mountains, two of them.

Unknown to some, there is also a river that extends from the moat of the inner city of the Capital City, flowing past over thirty large and small mansions.

Above the back mountain, there are ancestral temples nestled against the mountains and water, with Buddha halls, meditation rooms, and a temple.

Behind the main courtyard are the ancestral temples, and the east and west wings actually occupy part of the back mountain.

The entire Marquis Mansion, with its mountain and water pavilions interwoven, waterside pavilions, and scenic kiosks arranged harmoniously, showcases a layout where reality and design complement each other perfectly, blending seamlessly with the natural landscape.

This is also why Yu Qingyi appeared so surprised and delighted earlier.

Since Yang Zhenshan had already assigned the courtyards to each family, Yu Qingyi no longer inquired further but instructed Yang Mingcheng and others to go freshen up first.

“Mother, we’ll go freshen up then, and come back later to help you handle household matters!” Ms. Wang happily pulled Yang Mingcheng and Yang Chengye with her to leave.

Lin Zhan also had a separate courtyard here, and Housekeeper Lu had a servant lead them to settle down there first.

After everyone had left, Yu Qingyi then asked Housekeeper Lu, “How much silver do we still have in the mansion?”

“Uh!” Housekeeper Lu bowed his head slightly embarrassed, “Replying to the madame, the mansion has less than a thousand taels of silver!”

Yu Qingyi was stunned, “How come there is so little left? Didn’t the Marquis leave behind ten thousand taels before leaving the Capital City?”

“Madam, I really have no other option, the Marquis instructed me to purchase furniture upon his departure, but the Marquis Mansion is so vast, the amount needed is truly substantial,” said Lu Shou with a mournful expression.

In all honesty, he hadn’t pocketed a single copper coin.

The Yang family had always been generous with the monthly wages for their servants, and they treated them very kindly as long as they were diligent.

Therefore, the servants were utterly loyal to the Yang family, fearing even a minor mistake could lead to being sold off.

Lu Shou had his wife, children, and parents all serving in the Yang family, a total household of servants; naturally, he wouldn’t risk their well-being for a trifling personal gain.

Yu Qingyi thought about the scale of the Marquis Mansion, lackluster, she shook her head, “Never mind, Qingxia, give another ten thousand taels of silver to Housekeeper Lu.”

Upon hearing this, Qingxia immediately fetched a stack of silver notes from the inner hall to Lu Shou.

“You should recruit some servants for our mansion during this time. You know the rules of the household well enough; I needn’t say more,” Yu Qingyi said.

“Yes, Madam, I understand! Don’t worry,” Lu Shou hastily replied.

The Yang family has specific criteria for purchasing servants; firstly, full families with both old and young preferred, secondly, those with clear and honest backgrounds, whether they are from a criminal officer or merchants, thirdly, hardworking and honest, not wanting those deceitful or people with unclean hands, directly selling off such people.

Over the years, the Yang family has bought many servants, now having about eight hundred, with about three hundred of them in the Chongshan Pass mansion, and the rest managing the Yang family’s external assets.

However, it seems now that eight hundred servants are not enough; such a massive mansion solely for daily management probably requires two to three hundred people.

If the Yang family were to move in, it wouldn’t work with fewer than six or seven hundred people.

After Lu Shou left to take care of the matters, Yu Qingyi looked at the splendid hall and couldn’t help but sigh, “Although the Marquis Mansion is splendid, the expenses in the future will likely be substantial!”

Just furnishing alone had cost over ten thousand taels of silver, she blamed the Ministry of Revenue’s people; if they had to confiscate, why even take the furniture.

“What is there to fear, Madam, it’s not like we don’t have any silver!” Qingxia chuckled.

She managed Yu Qingyi’s finances and knew exactly how much silver Yu Qingyi had.

“Our silver doesn’t just appear out of thin air. With such a large estate, I estimate at least twenty thousand taels of silver a year in expenses,” Yu Qingyi said somewhat glumly.

Previously, the Yang family’s expenses weren’t small—clothing, food, lodging, transportation, servants’ wages, etc., almost amounted to ten thousand taels a year; now, with this estate and additional servants, she estimated it would exceed twenty thousand.

The expenses suddenly doubled, and Yu Qingyi truly felt the sting.

Previously, Yu Qingyi felt excited about the Marquis Mansion, now all that was left was heartache.

“Didn’t His Majesty grant us eight thousand acres of gifted farmland? With those, we could offset some daily expenses!” Qingxia mentioned.

Yu Qingyi nodded, “Thankfully, we have the eight thousand acres; otherwise, the mansion’s income would likely be insufficient.”

Now, the Yang family owns considerable assets, but they are not merchants; their assets are mainly in lands and shops, with income primarily from rent.

In An Yuan City, the Yang family had a horse farm. However, during their time with the Tenglong Guard, Yang Zhenshan did not make the horse farm his private property; instead, it was given to the Guardian Department.

The horse farm in An Yuan City also saw a reduction in income, as Yang Zhenshan could not provide Spiritual Spring Water.

So the Yang family’s income was not substantial, with annual earnings around twenty thousand taels of silver.

Without those eight thousand acres of gifted land, the Yang family’s future would likely be very tight, barely having any savings.

This, of course, does not take into account the silver in Yang Zhenshan’s hands, which is almost a million taels stored within the Spiritual Spring Space; if that silver were employed, it could cover the Yang family’s expenses for decades.

Thus, Yang Zhenshan never felt that the Yang family lacked silver, whereas Yu Qingyi was unaware of the substantial silver Yang Zhenshan held, which is why she felt the Yang family’s income was somewhat lacking.

If she knew about Yang Zhenshan’s personal treasury, who knows what she would think!