Lu Cheng Yu took a few breaths and finally calmed down. "Mother, you didn't tell Grandmother about this, did you?"
Tang said awkwardly, "No."
Tang didn't tell Grandma Lu. Firstly, she felt that things were still uncertain, she needed to investigate more to find out whether it's true or not. Secondly, if Grandma Lu knew about it, she would definitely cause a ruckus. Ans Grandma Lu would for sure blame her for facilitating this marriage.
If things spread to the village, their whole family would be reduced to laughingstock hundred-percent. The Secretary-General did not appear at the wedding ceremony, which had already aroused suspicion. If people knew that Li Ru was just a concubine, Tang couldn't breathe when she thought about that.
Lu Cheng Yu gritted his teeth and said, "Mother, don't say anything. I'll find out the truth for us."
Tang nodded and said, "Okay."
Lu Cheng Yu clenched his fists tightly. Subconsciously, Lu Cheng Yu was already convinced by Lu Tong's statement. Lu Cheng Yu secretly thought that Lu Tong was arrogant and shallow. However, he felt that his sister wouldn't lie.
……
Yun Niang was cooking in the kitchen while Wan Xiao Fan and Chen Xiao Mai acted as assistants.
Chen Xiao Mai was very interested in cooking. He liked to watch from the side when Lu Lin cooked in the Big Stone Village.
Yun Niang felt that letting Chen Xiao Mai stay in the kitchen was very unruly, Mai was a young master now, but Lu Lin didn't say anything.
Because Chen Xiao Mai had a fever when he was young, he was a bit slow, but he was not stupid.
Chen Xiao Mi was worried about his youngest brother. Seeing as Chen Xiao Mai was not interested in needlework, he counted on Mai being interested in cooking, cooking was a great skill.
……
Lu Lin was busy packing and carrying stuff to the carriage when Chen Xiao Cai came close.
"Lin Gege, you're going back to our hometown again? "
"Yeah!"
When Lu Lin returned to the village a few days ago, Zhang Da Zhu came over to invite Lu Lin and Chen Xiao Mi to attend his son's wedding. Zhang Da Zhu had built a room for Lu Lin and Chen Xiao Mi before, and then he learned how to build kang from them, Zhang Da Zhu was so grateful to them that he invited them to his son's wedding.
Perhaps it was because of Lu Lin and Chen Xiao Mi's kindness to teach them how to sleep.
Chen Xiao Mi walked out of the rom in low spirit. Lu Lin glanced at Chen Xiao Mi and said, "How are you feeling, better now? "
Chen Xiao Mi shook his head. "I'm fine. Let's go."
"If you don't feel well, just stay at home and rest," Lu Lin said worriedly.
Chen Xiao Mi pouted and said, "I don't feel unwell. I just feel hot and I always crave cold food."
Lu Lin: "Recently, it is getting hotter and hotter. It's better to stay in the house take a break from strenuous exercise. Vigorous exercise will make you sweat more."
Lu Lin felt that Chen Xiao Mi was a little afraid of heat. He looked so exhausted two days ago as if he were about to faint.
Lu Lin secretly took an ice cream from the convenience store for Chen Xiao Mi.
Chen Xiao Mi would always pester Lu Lin for more ice-creams. There was not much stock in the convenience store, and it was not good to eat too much cold stuff. Lu Lin had only given Chen Xiao Mi two ice-creams in total, leaving Chen Xiao Mi indignant at the way he had been treated.
Lu Lin looked at Chen Xiao Mi and hesitated for a moment, "Well, I honestly think you should stay at home and rest. I'll visit Old Hunter Zhou for you."
Old Hunter Zhou was an old hunter who had helped Chen Xiao Mi in the village. When they lived in the Big Stone Village, Chen Xiao Mi would visit him and send him stuff from time to time.
Chen Xiao Mi nodded and said, "Alright, even though Zhang Da Zhu invited me to attend the wedding banquet, it might just be a polite gesture. If I really go, I might scare away the other guests."
Lu Lin looked at Chen Xiao Mi and sighed, "It'll be better."
Chen Xiao Mi pouted and said, "It doesn't matter, it doesn't bother me."
Lu Lin thought about it and agreed. They had moved to the town now. Their reputation in the village couldn't affect them at all.
……
The Zhang family had invited quite a few people for their son's wedding ceremony, and Lu Lin's appearance attracted their attention.
As time went by, people in the village knew that Lu Lin and Chen Xiao Mi didn't seem to live in the village anymore. Many people were curious about where Lu Lin and Chen Xiao Mi went.
"Lu Lin, you're here! Long time no see."
"Lu Lin, where have you been recently? Are you getting along well with Chen Xiao Mi?"
"Lu Lin, I heard that you are working in town now. How much money do you make per month?"
As soon as Lu Lin appeared, he was greeted by the crowd. Chen Xiao Mi was not there, so everyone's attitude was very casual, they found Lu Lin very approachable.
Lu Lin told others that he was now working in town, 2 taels per month, meals and accommodation included. Chen Xiao Mi was the same, so they rarely went back to the village now.
Many people exclaimed in their hearts when they heard Lu Lin's wage. They were surprised that he had actually found such a great job. Some people also beat about the bush and asked him what job he was doing and whether the employer was still looking to hire more people.
"Lu Lin, have you heard that news though, Li Fang Yue and Lin Xiu'er are both pregnant."
Lu Lin couldn't help but give a gasp of surprise. People in the village all believed in "the more sons, the more blessings". Lu Lin had guessed now that Li Fang Yue and Lu Cheng Yu had a bad relationship, probably they wouldn't be expecting so soon.
However, now it looked like there were even fewer people in the Lu family who could work. Li Fang Yue and Lin Xiu'er were both pregnant, so they had excuse for not doing farm work just in case.
But on second thought, Lu Lin recalled even pregnant women were required to do a lot of work in this time and space. Grandma Lu ordered host Lu Lin's mother to do laundry by the river in cold winter when she was 7 months pregnant, the mom stumbled over a rock and had a miscarriage, and she wasn't able to carry a child since that tragedy.
Grandma Lu did not feel guilty at all. Instead, she felt that the host 111's mother was incompetent and could not protect her child.
The host's father was an honest man. Although he was devastated, he did not make a fuss.
Lu Lin thought to himself that the host's mother's early death might have something to do with that miscarriage.
"Lin! You and Chen Xiao, do you guys get along, honestly?"
"Lin, Chen Xiao Mi doesn't have a good temper, does he?"
"Lin! You're not young anymore. You need to learn from your cousin Cheng Yu, you know what I mean?"
……
Lu Lin blushed slightly under the crowd's inquiring gaze. Bios were able to carry children, but Chen Xiao Mi looked exactly like a boy, thus Lu Lin tended to forget about this. There were already two kids at home, and their business was still at the start-up stage, Lu Lin wasn't on a mission to have children.
The crowd became more and more unruly when they talked about having kids, Lu Lin couldn't handle the conversation anymore. He excused himself and hid in the loo.
The moment Lu Lin left, the villager became even more unruly.
"Chen Xiao Mi is so fierce, maybe he just doesn't let Lu Lin stay in the same room with him!"
"Even if Chen Xiao Mi let Lu Lin stay in the same room with him, would Lu Lin dare do anything? That guy was so fierce that he could kick Lu Lin and hurt him severely."
Bios had the same facial features as men, but they had a birthmark shaped as small flowers on the forehead. The brighter the color of the flower, the more fertile the Bio was. Chen Xiao Mi was a little special. His flower was hidden in his hair on the top of his head, therefore, some people would just mistake him as a man
"Chen Xiao Mi is really lucky though, they have both found a job in town."
"Is it that easy to find jobs in town now? Two taels of silver per month! Is Lu Lin lying to us?"
"I don't think Lu Lin will lie. Look at Lu Lin and the kids in their family, they wear such good-looking outfits now, their speeches and manners are different too."
"That's so true, Lu Lin looks much more energetic than when he was in the Lu family."
……
Hearing the villagers' discussion, Lu Lin couldn't help feeling a little upset. However, Lu Lin also knew that most of the villagers did not have bad intentions. However, seeing what a great life he and Chen Xiao Mi were leading, the villagers were just feeling little sour.
Earning Enviable Money
The wedding banquet of this era was far inferior to that of modern society. The resources in modern society were abundant, and there would be more than ten or twenty dishes for a wedding banquet. You could even see Australian lobster and caviar in a sumptuous banquet.
There were only eight dishes for the wedding banquet here, including a plate of fried peanut and sour radish.
But the guests all enjoyed the food with relish, they made a clean sweep of every dish. There were two boys at Lu Lin's table who polished off two bowls of rice in 5 minutes.
Lu Lin suddenly recalled his childhood, he was born of humble parentage and he looked forward to calling on relatives' houses where he could have some nice food At that time, even a plate of pistachio nuts was rare.
However, later on, the living conditions were better and everyone felt that it was a little troublesome to visit relatives. People were not that thrilled at visiting friends and relatives.
Alibaba and other online platforms had made shopping so easy as he grew older, but Lu Lin found the food and snacks were less tasty, probably it was because there were fewer and fewer people to share with.
The food on the table had limited appeal to Lu Lin, so he didn't eat much.
The others were different. Everyone else at the table were enjoy this feast.
After attending the wedding banquet, Lu Lin went to Old Hunter Zhou's with some rice and food.
The old hunter always felt guilty for taking things from Lu Lin and Chen Xiao Mi for nothing, and he would repeatedly refuse. Chen Xiao Mi would just leave the food in the yard and left. But Lu Lin managed to convince him to accept it this time.
After visiting Old Hunter Zhou, Lu Lin picked up some vegetables from their veggie patch and returned to town.
Lu Lin drove the carriage and thought about how Chen Xiao Mi had always been in a daze recently, he was worried.
As soon as Lu Lin returned home in town, Chen Xiao Cai greeted happily and said, "Lin Gege, my brother is pregnant."
Lu Lin was surprised when he heard that.
Lu Lin suddenly thought that Xiao Mi seemed to be sleepy all the time and he always had weird cravings. He didn't expect that Xiao Mi was pregnant though. An indescribable excitement seized Lu Lin.
Chen Xiao Mi lay lazily in bed and glanced at Lu Lin, "You're back, how did it go?"
"It went great, Old Hunter Zhou took the food. How are you feeling? " Lu Lin calmed down and asked.
"The doctor said that I'm in good health, so there shouldn't be any problems. Of course I'm in good health, everyone knows that. Xiao Cai is overcautious though. He insists on my lying down. This punk is getting more and more out of control now. He actually orders me around, "Chen Xiao Mi protested gently.
Lu Lin looked at the Chen Xiao Mi with affection and smiled, "He's just worried about you. Xiao Cai told me you were two months pregnant."
Lu Lin scratched his head and low-key blamed himself for how oblivious he had been. Chen Xiao Mi had been two months pregnant, but he didn't notice a thing.
Chen Xiao Mi patted his belly and said, "Even I don't feel a thing, let alone you."
Lu Lin looked at Chen Xiao Mi and said, "It's better to be careful."
"How was the wedding ceremony?" Chen Xiao Mi asked.
Lu Lin nodded and said, "It's all right."
Chen Xiao Mi hesitated for a moment and asked, "Has anyone said anything shady about you??"
Chen Xiao Mi knew that Lu Lin used to have a good reputation, but that reputation had hit rock bottom since they got married.
"Everyone is very polite. I told them that we make 2 tales of silver each month respectively. Those people are very envious," Lu Lin said.
Chen Xiao Mi tilted his head. Only managers could earn as much as 2 taels per month. No wonder the villagers were envious.
However, in fact, Lu Lin was the boss of the commercial house. He earned dozens of taels every month by selling bags alone. In addition to the income of selling wine, Lu Lin was being so modest by saying they made 2 tales of silver respectively.
Chen Xiao Mi glanced at Lu Lin and said, "How much money have we saved recently?"
" Almost 100 taels."
Chen Xiao Mi was surprised, "I thought we've made more than that. "
Lu Lin shrugged and said, "The business is high cost! There are so many female workers, and I've just ordered another batch of expensive fabric… "
Chen Xiao Mi looked at Lu Lin for a while and said, "Our meals are too luxurious. There are several dishes every meal, meat dishes and dessert dishes, too extravagant." Chen Xiao Mi never dreamed of living like this before.
Lu Lin tilted his head and said, "Life is short. Delicious food makes everyone happy! " In this time and space, all food was pure and organic, all dishes were delicious as long as the cooking method was proper.
Chen Xiao Mi laughed and said, "You are a picky eater, and you are making excuses. I want to eat ice-cream now."
Lu Lin shook his head, "Didn't I just give you one yesterday? It's not good to eat so much cold stuff."
Chen Xiao Mi glanced at Lu Lin, that was his way of protesting.
Lu Lin smiled and changed the subject, "I heard from the guests at the wedding that Li Fang Yue and Lin Xiu'er are both pregnant." What Lu Lin didn't tell Chen Xiao Mi was there were also people who said that Chen Xiao Mi might not be able to get pregant.
Chen Xiao Mi's eyes widened and said, "Both pregnant? Things are about to get interesting!"
……
In Lu family.
People would celebrate when someone in the family get pregnant, but it wasn't the case in the Lu Family now.
Tang was a little annoyed recently. After Lin Xiu'er was pregnant, she shifted many responsibilities and Li Fang Yue had followed suit.
If Tang argued with Lin Xiu'er, Lin Xiu'er would malinger, and Tang was left with no alternative but do all the work.
After Lin Xiu'er was pregnant, Lu An had kept all his pay to themselves saying that they needed to keep the money for the unborn baby.
Grandma Lu always favored her youngest son Lu An, so she did not get to the bottom of the matter.
However, they couldn't make ends meet because everyone had been spending yet no one had brought any income.
Grandma Lu said in a depressed tone, "Everyone in the family is a freeloader. Cheng Yu needs to pay tuition fee soon. All the scholars and students are judgmental snobs. Cheng Yu will be looked down upon if we don't have money. What should we do?"
Pen, ink, paper, and ink were expensive as well. And the crops in this field were not ripe yet, they couldn't sell the produces for money.
Grandpa Lu looked at Grandma Lu and said, "We will have to sell another mu of land soon."
Grandma Lu asked reluctantly, "Sell another mu?" The reason why the Lu family were respected in the village was because they had a lot of farmland. They had already sold two mu for Cheng Yu's wedding, and now Grandpa Lu was suggesting selling one more mu!
Grandma Lu sighed and said, "There is a realistic reason to sell one more mu, no one is working any farm work now! If we rent it to someone else, we won't get much money left after the tax."
Grandma Lu also sighed. She recalled how everyone in the family made excuses to avoid doing farm work in spring sowing season. Grandma Lu had no choice but to hire casual workers. However, it was almost impossible to hire anyone in busy farming season, she had to offer the workers 50 cents per day while the market price was 25 cents per day.
Grandma Lu couldn't get out of bed after days' work in the field, she hadn't done any farm work in years after all. Grandma Lu was so depressed, she was exhausted physically and mentally from doing the farm work and paying so much money to the casual workers.
"I heard that Lu Lin has found a job in town. He has two taels of silver a month," Grandma Lu said.
Lu Lin went to Zhang Da Zhu's son's wedding, he made up a number when the villagers asked him how much money he was making, and the random number had spread quickly in the village. Naturally, it also reached Grandma Lu's ears.
Grandma Lu had always thought Lu Lin was an ill-starred child. She was green with envy as soon as she heard that fake news.
Grandma Lu had always been proud of her Fourth son Lu An's job in town. When she found out that Lu Lin and Chen Xiao Mi had found jobs with the same amount of pay as Lu An, she was furious.
Grandpa Lu had mixed feelings about that. Grandpa Lu was also biased. Although it wasn't as serious as Grandma Lu, he didn't take 111 seriously either.
"What are you planning?" Grandpa Lu asked.
Grandma Lu said sullenly, "Chen Xiao Mi is a strange one. Maybe he can't get pregnant. The money that Lu Lin earned will probably benefit Chen Xiao Mi and his two little brothers in the future." If Lu Lin really earned two taels per month, he would have more than twenty taels a year.
Grandma Lu suddenly felt that selling Lu Lin to Chen Xiao Mi for 10 taels was a huge loss.
Grandpa Lu also regretted for not asking for more money. He also missed his dead Second son and daughter-in-law who used to do all the housework and farm work. Recently, the family had been making a ruckus about whose turn it was to cook, wash clothes, cut firewood, fetch water and every other chore.
Grandma Lu suddenly realized how great life used to be when 111 and his parents were home.
"Lu Lin probably won't be able to make Chen Xiao Mi obey him. Chen Xiao Mi must be the one who manages all the work and money," Grandpa Lu sighed.
"I'm also worried about our farmland, it needs to be fertilized regularly, but can you even recall when anyone fertilized our farmland? It's just a matter of time before all of our farmland becomes inferior land!" added Grandpa Lu.
Grandma Lu frowned and said, "Lu Lin, that punk, he is becoming more about more ungrateful like Chen Xiao Mi."
Grandpa Lu nodded, he was surprised by Lu Lin's the doings.
In Grandpa Lur's opinion, even if Lu Lin got married, he wouldn't cut off contact with them. However, the fact was that Lu Lin had rejected them when they visited him asking for help.
Little did they expect that this Lu Lin was a different soul.
The Lu family would be able to convince the host Lu Lin, but they didn't stand a chance when it came to Lu Lin who was from the modern society. The Host Lu Lin was a foolish filial person after all even though he hated the way his grandparents treated him and his family.
Lu Cheng Yu was trying to study in his room but he couldn't read a word.
Zhang Da Zhu invited Lu Lin but didn't invite him, which made Lu Cheng Yu feel depressed. It was said that Lu Lin and Chen Xiao Mi had found work in town, which made Lu Cheng Yu even more upset.
In the past, when the villagers mentioned Lu Lin, most people said that Lu Lin was honest, but he was not capable. When Lu Lin was mentioned now, however, many people showered praises on him. They started to sat Lu Lin was actually a capable and good-looking young man, he had just abused overtaxed himself before he married Chen Xiao Mi.
Lu Cheng Yu felt that the villagers seemed to be criticizing his grandparents for mistreating Lu Lin, he wasn't happy about that. He swore he would study hard and become an official in the future to outshine Lu Lin who was just a casual worker in town.
Guess Whose Work is Coveted
The Lu family was jealous of Lu Lin, and the Chen family was even more so.
"Shou Ren, did you find work?" Grandma Chen hurriedly asked Chen Shou Ren on seeing him entering the house.
Chen Shou Ren shook his head and said awkwardly, "Not yet."
Grandma Chen was very envious of the fact that Lu An had a job in town. How she wished her son could get a similar job in town as well, thus they didn't have to live at the mercy of the elements. A job in town would ensure a stable income despite drought or excessive rain.
Lu An got that job because the owner of the shop owed the Lu family a favor. Although Grandma Chen was envious, there was nothing she could do. However, Lu Lin and Chen Xiao Mi were different, she didn't think they deserve such good jobs.
Grandma Chen had always thought that Chen Xiao Mi was a freak who deserved to die. However, Lu Lin and Chen Xiao Mi had both found jobs in town, jobs with high pays.
A few days ago, Chen Shou Ren asked for a few taels of silver from Grandma Chen, saying that he was going to bribe some people to find a job in the town.
Even though Grandma Chen was reluctant to give money to her son, she thought that if Chen Shou Ren really found a job, the family would have a fixed income in the future. She gave the money to Chen Shou Ren in the end. However, Chen Shou Ren had not found a suitable job but he had spent the money.
"Did you find out where Lu Lin and Chen Xiao Mi are working?"
"It seems to be a place called Sino Commercial House," Lu Lin and Chen Xiao Mi are relatively low-key, but there are many things that need to be done by the two of them. Chen Shou Ren wandered in town every day and found that the two always showed up in that shop. Recently, Sino Commercial House had gained considerable repute for selling bags, even Chen Jing bought a bag there.
Chen Shou Ren also went to the commercial house, but they said that they were not hiring at the moment. There was a manager in the commercial house who looked quite cold.
Grandma Chen was a little depressed. "What is the boss of Sino Commercial House thinking?! To think he has hired people like Chen Xiao Mi and Lu Lin, his business is doomed."
Chen Shou Ren said sullenly, "Those two are so lucky."
Chen Shou Ren originally thought that even people like Chen Xiao Mi and Lu Lin could find work in the town. Perhaps, finding work in town wasn't as difficult as he imagined. However, Chen Shou Ren could only find manual labor jobs. Moreover, the pay was very low, and he became more jealous of the young couple.
In a depressed state, Chen Shou Ren went to the casino and lost most of his money. He didn't dare mention a word to Grandma Chen.
Grandma Chen looked at her son and said angrily, "You're so much older and more experienced than those two brats, how come you still haven't found anything?"
Chen Shou Ren didn't feel that he was not as competent as he thought. He said with grievance, "Mother! Those two brats are just lucky."
Grandma Chen snorted softly and said, "Enough excuses! Why don't you think about a way to snatch their jobs!"
Chen Shou Ren smiled awkwardly, his eyes narrowed and several thoughts flashed through his mind.
……
"Master Lin," Wan Li closed the door in the evening and found Lu Lin.
Lu Lin looked at him and asked, "What happened?"
"Master Lin, recently someone came to the store and spoke ill of you and Master Chen."
Lu Lin was a little surprised, "Oh, what did he say?"
There were villagers who said bad things about Chen Xiao Mi. Lu Lin knew it but the people in town basically didn't know about him and Chen Xiao Mi. He was a little surprised by the fact that the village people came all the way to the store to say bad things about him and Chen Xiao Mi.
Wan Li said embarrassedly, "He said that your guys had bad moral conducts, you guys were unfilial. That person who spread these rumors has come to the store to find work before, but I turned him down."
'Sino Commercial House is my property, but the villagers have no idea about that. I once said I make 2 taels of silver per month which makes people jealous. So, is it possible that person is doing this to remind Wan Li, the manager in name to get rid of me and Chen Xiao Mi?'
"Do you know what that person's name is?" asked Lu Lin.
"It seems to be Chen Shou Ren."
Lu Lin pouted and thought to himself, "Chen Shou Ren, it turns out to be you! You hold such grudge against me and Mi! How despicable!'
Lu Lin glanced at Wan Li and said, "He's just a contemptible scoundrel, don't pay him any attention."
Wan Li nodded and said, "Consider it done."
Chen Shou Ren wandered around the town for another half a month but he found nothing in the end.
The long journey between the town and the village made them feel so bitter.
There were inns in the town, but the cost of staying in an inn was not low. Chen Shou Ren stayed in an inn for a few nights, he gambled away the remaining money and went back home.
Chen Shou Ren really did not understand why the boss of Sino Commercial House still refused to fire Lu Lin and Chen Xiao Mi. Chen Shou Ren lost all the confidence after he was turned down by different shops. Then it occurred to him that he could ruin Chen Xiao Mi and Lu Lin's work, but he didn't succeed.
……
Chen Xiao Mi was pregnant, the couple didn't go back to Big Stone Village as often now.
Lu Lin had launched a few different styles of bags recently. The handbags had attracted different audience because they were all exquisitely made.
Some rich ladies in town had nothing to do all day long but shopping and playing mahjong, Sino Commercial House had become their favorite place recently.
There was even an old lady who kept a low profile bought more than ten handbags at one go, Lu Lin called her shopaholic in secret.
Lu Lin would send Chen Xiao Cai to help Wan Li when it was too hectic, Chen Xiao Cai needed the training anyways.
Chen Xiao Cai had a pretty face. Because he was so young and so cuddly, many young ladies would always ask Chen Xiao Cai to recommend the right styles for them.
Chen Xiao Cai grew up in the village. Mind you he used to be bullied by other kids, so he was not that articulate, he always appeared to be at a loss in the first couple of days.
However, Chen Xiao Cai was a quick learner. He could greet and talk with the guests properly after a few days.
Lu Lin often encouraged and praised Chen Xiao Cai whenever he said something clever, making Chen Xiao Cai blush often. Lu Lin always emphasized the importance of the salesperson.
However, Lu Lin was not exaggerating. Sometimes customers would love to spend more money to support the salesperson they liked. A good salesperson could make a ridiculous amount of money.
Lu Lin walked into the house and saw Chen Xiao Cai talking to Xiao Mi.
Seeing him enter, Chen Xiao Cai blushed and left.
Lu Lin put his hands on his back and made a face at Chen Xiao Cai's retiring figure. Chen Xiao Cai saw the couple kissing two days ago, and he had been avoiding Lu Lin since that.
Lu Lin looked at the rice cake in Chen Xiao Mi's hand and blinked, "Where did you buy that?"
"Cai bought it for me," Chen Xiao Mi looked a little smug. "Cai seems to be very happy recently."
"Because he is glad that he is helping, people just feel better when they find a job they enjoy doing. Cai is a good boy, he must feel proud of himself for doing his part in our business. It's good motivation for him as well, I'm glad he enjoys it."
Lu Lin asked Wan Li to count how many bags Chen Xiao Cai had sold. He would give 5 cents to Xiao Cai for every bag he sold.
Chen Xiao Mi said hesitantly, "Are you sure it's a good idea to ask Cai to be a salesperson in the shop?"
Lu Lin looked at Chen Xiao Mi and said, "He's not a small kid anymore. He will get married and manage his own household in a few year. You can't protect him for the rest of his life! Plus, he is really enjoying it and there's nothing shameful in being a salesperson for now."
If Chen Family dared to cause trouble in their store and accused Xiao Mi of being unfilial, Lu Lin would go to Chen Jing's school and tell the scholars and the other students that his family planned to sell his cousin Chen Xiao Cai for his tuition fee. Lu Lin glanced at Chen Xiao Mi and sighed in his heart.
Chen Xiao Mi didn't pay much attention to himself, but he was worried about his two younger brothers all the time. However, that was a sweet thing. After all, the three brothers had only got each other in the most difficult time. Chen Xiao Mi, the eldest brother, had to assume the role of a father for his two brothers.
However, Xiao Mi tended to spoil the kids, so Lu Lin decided to be the 'bad cop'.
Granny Shen was sewing a bag in her room while Shen Chi was making a knot.
In order to encourage Shen Chi's artistic creations, Lu Lin prepared a lot of different styles of wood beads, colored silk and knitting wool for Shen Chi.
Recently, Shen Chi fell in love with making pendants for those fancy handbags. Many customers would ask for one more ornamental pendant after they bought a bag. Although it was not worth much, many rich people would jump for joy when the shop gave them a pendant for free.
Granny Shen was very satisfied with Shen Chi's craftsmanship as well. The knots and pendants were all little things, but they had added different colors to the bags. As far as she knew, many customers would fondle admiringly at the knots made by her grandson.
"Chi, have you learned mathematics recently?" Granny Shen asked.
Shen Chi nodded. " I learned a bit when Xiao Mi Gege taught Cai.."
Granny Shen looked at Shen Chi and said, "It's good to learn more and more, good, keep it up."
The villagers all deemed mathematics as an incredible skill. Granny Shen hoped that Shen Chi could learn more thus it would be easier for him to find a job in the store in the future.
Shen Chi nodded and he knew being able to learn some mathematics was a rare opportunity for him.
Shen Chi started a little later than Chen Xiao Cai. There were many things that he couldn't understand. However, Chen Xiao Cai would sometimes teach Shen Chi what he had learned and Shen Chi slowly could catch up with him.
"In the past few days, Cai has been helping out in the shop," Shen Chi said.
Granny Shen nodded and said, "Cai is such a good boy! So polite and so capable"
Granny Shen glanced at her grandson and something strange flashed in her heart. Shen Chi was a Bio and it was hard for him to get married in the future. People in the village did not like Bios very much. There were few Bios who married well. But Granny Shen hoped to betroth with a family who treated Shen Chi well.
Granny Shen had noticed that Shen Chi was close to Chen Xiao Cai when they were in the village, and Granny Shen had considered Chen Xiao Cai might be great for her grandson. However, now Chen Xiao Mi had become a master in town.
Granny Shen estimated that if Chen Xiao Mi wanted to find a wife for Chen Xiao Cai, a bunch of matchmakers would introduce beautiful girls from official families, she didn't dare to have any hope. She could only wait a few years and see how things turn out for Shen Chi.
Chen Jing Is Here to Start Trouble
In Sino Commercial House.
"Cai, it really is you!" Zhang Da Hu came up and greeted.
Chen Xiao Cai had been working as a salesperson in the store for half a month, but it was the first time he met someone from the same village. Most people in the village would usually not come to their store even if they came to town.
" Da Hu, why are you here?"
Zhang Da Hu scratched his head and said shyly, "My father caught a few fish and he came to the market to sell them. I came to town with him. What are you doing here?"
"Big Brother and Lin Gege are working here. I'm here to help out," Chen Xiao Cai thought there was nothing to hide and he said it directly.
Zhang Da Hu looked at Chen Xiao Cai with admiration, "You're so amazing!"
Zhang Da Hu looked at the valuable bags in the store with disbelief, he couldn't believe people actually would spend that amount of money on bags. Zhang Da Hu wouldn't have the courage to come in if he hadn't see Xiao Cain in the store.
Lu Lin and Chen Xiao Mi went to work in the town was no linger news to the villagers. There were paid two taels of silver per month each.
The two had even brought Chen Xiao Cai and Chen Xiao Mai over. The villagers were envious. However, some villagers thought that it was just a matter of time before the shop owner was offended by that silly Chen Xiao Mai and fired them all.
However, the villagers were so disappointed after they craned their necks and stood on tiptoes for so long. The villagers could only wish that they could meet a great boss one day.
Zhang Da Hu saw Chen Xiao Cai by chance when he walked past the store, and he thought that he had seen the wrong person. He looked at Chen Xiao Cai for a while before coming up to greet him.
"Cai, do they pay you?" Zhang Da Hu asked curiously.
Chen Xiao Cai nodded and said, "Yes, but not much. It's nowhere as near as what my brother and brother-in-law get paid."
Zhang Da Hu let out a sigh. He knew Chen Xiao Mi and Lu Lin's pay. It would be strange if Chen Xiao Cai got a ridiculous amount of money as well.
Zhang Da Hu had been watching Chen Xiao Cai for a while before he came greet him, he happened to how his old friend introduced the bags with poise and confidence to the customers.
Zhang Da Hu stared at Chen Xiao Cai admiringly, he just felt his old friend had left him and their old friends far behind. He used to be pleased with himself that he was the leader of their 'gang', but now he felt completely dwarfed by Chen Xiao Cai's manner and confidence, he felt that Chen Xiao Cai was different from before.
"You're still young. In two more years, you will earn as much money as your brother and brother-in-law," Zhang Da Hu looked at Chen Xiao Cai and comforted him.
Chen Xiao Cai smiled and said, "I still have a long way to go compared to my Big Brother and brother-in-law."
Zhang Da Hu looked around the shop again and he was dazzled by the expensive bags. His father Zhang Lin Sheng called him from outside and he said goodbye to Chen Xiao Cai.
"Father, Chen Xiao Cai is amazing now."
"Is that so?" Zhang Lin Sheng didn't stop Zhang Da Hu from running to Sino Commercial House just now. Zhang Lin Sheng was also curious about the Chen brothers.
Granny Shen had gone back to the village a while ago. It was said that she had made a lot of money as well. Villagers who sweated and toiled all day long in the farmland all wanted to make more money to better support their families!
"Cai is helping the manager sell bags! Each bag is worth few hundred cents, and Cai is getting paid as well."
Zhang Lin Sheng sighed, "The Chens are indeed getting better and better."
Zhang Lin Sheng thought to himself: Chen Xiao Mi was venturing his life in the deep mountain just a few months ago. At that time, many people were guessing that Chen Xiao Mi would perish in the mountains sooner or later, Chen Xiao Cai and Chen Xiao Mai would be abused by the rest of the Chen Family. But now they were thriving in town, life is so unpredictable.
Zhang Da Hu went back to the village and told the news to every single kid in his 'gang', the villagers was surprised even Xiao Cai was working in town as well.
There were many young girls who used to look down upon Chen Xiao Cai now started to talk about him in an admiring tone. And the young boys wished they would have the opportunity to work in a shop in town just like Chen Xiao Cai.
On the other hand, the Lu family did not have any income so they had to sell another mu of inferior land. This land was only sold for seven taels of silver. When Granny Shen heard this news, she vaguely felt that she had lost money from buying the land from them earlier. However, the money she spent was from Lu Lin and it actually had nothing to do with Granny Shen.
Many villagers were shocked by the Lu family, they sold 3 mu of farmland within such a short period of time.
Some people argued if they sold the land earlier, they might not have to send Lu Lin's father into the military and Lu Lin's father might still be alive to this day. And there would be less drama within their family, at least there would be people who wouldn't slack off on farm work and house chores.
……
Tang had been feeling very depressed recently. Li Fang Yue who was pregnant now would always pretend sickness whenever Tang ordered her to work. And so would Lin Xiu'er. They were a bit restraint in the beginning, and now they became more and more unruly.
Li Fang Yue stayed in her room and she was in a terrible mood. Recently, Li Fang Yue didn't have to work, but she was still very down.
Lu Cheng Yu moved to town saying he needed to focus on study. He rarely came back on weekdays, and when he came back, he treated her coldly.
Li Fang Yue knew the reason, Lu Cheng Yu already found out that her sister was just a concubine.
Li Fang Yue actually adored Lu Cheng Yu. In fact, Lu Cheng Yu was husband material. He had a good appearance, and he was an aspiring Tongsheng. The Lu Family was pretty well off, both Grandma Lu and Grandpa Lu dote on him.
After Li Fang Yue married Lu Cheng Yu, she thought about respecting and working on the same goals with her husband and his family.
However, Li Fang Yue soon realized that Lu Cheng Yu married her just for the sake of brother-in-law. Now that her sister's identity had been exposed, her husband felt like he was fooled. On top of that, her brother Li Hong's silly remarks had reached her husband's ears, Li Fang Yue sometimes felt like her husband and mother-in-law were looking at her like she was their enemy.