Reborn in a small village in the 1990s

Chapter 382

Zhao Da'e didn't know how to respond; should she agree or not?

If she agreed, she felt that her aunt didn't need to do this. Although the staff dormitory had the most basic necessities, it would be better to go home, sleep in a big bed, rest properly, chat, and tidy up her things without having to rush.

Finally, Cheng Jinxiang spoke up, "Little sister, we don't need to rush. I know you want to come to the city to work as soon as possible, but this is too expensive. I think you should go back first, pack your things properly, and have a good talk with Mom. First, you can pack your things slowly and avoid forgetting anything. Second, you know Mom's health isn't getting better every day. You can go back and talk to her properly. If you suddenly don't come home, Mom will definitely miss you terribly, or she'll worry about whether you'll be bullied or anything while working in the city. You should talk to Mom about these things."

Cheng Jinxiao thought this was a valid point, so she decided that she would move back to the staff dormitory to sleep tomorrow.

By the afternoon, everyone had almost finished their work. All the nice clothes were neatly hung up for people to admire. Four full-length mirrors were installed in the shop, and the price was made sure to be written on each clothing tag. Finally, everyone cleaned up the trash on the floor and mopped it. The shop was very clean, and it could officially open tomorrow.

Zhao Da'e plans to come back to open the shop and hold some ceremonies at 4 pm tomorrow. After all, she hasn't forgotten that there's a small fashion show to hold at 6 pm tomorrow. Coming to the shop in the afternoon will allow her to rest properly in the morning and at noon. There's no need to rush, since today has been too busy. Even Zhao Da'e is tired and wants to rest.

Qi Bin said, "Big Goose, I've found six girls to be models. Each model has a pretty good figure and looks. They look beautiful in our store's clothes and will definitely attract a lot of people. I plan to pay each of them fifteen yuan. I've arranged for them to come over tomorrow at noon. We can use the afternoon to train them. When it's time for the show, try to make them look natural so they can get used to the process. What do you think? Do we need to add a few more models?"

Zhao Da'e shook his head and said, "No need, these six people are enough. When the shop opens, these six people can walk a fashion show, and then come back to change clothes and walk a few more rounds so that customers can enjoy watching. We also need to teach them some posing poses and such. Anyway, we'll be busy."

Zhao Da'e suddenly felt like crying. She thought she would have a lunch break tomorrow morning, but she never expected that the model would come tomorrow noon and she would have to rehearse in the afternoon. Wasn't she still busy?

After a busy day, Zhao Da'e was exhausted and longed for a day off to rest.

Qi Bin nodded, sighed, and suddenly regretted it, saying, "I should have asked them to come in the morning. Coming at noon is too late. They can't train for long at all. Coming earlier would allow them to train for a while longer. Oh, I was worried that they might be timid or scared. What if they chicken out on stage? Then they'll have to train more. I hope nothing goes wrong and they don't fall down during the show."

Qi Bin was extremely worried. If he could, he would have liked to take charge himself, fearing that someone else would mess things up.

Zhao Da'e felt helpless; Qi Bin's sense of responsibility was too heavy. But that was also quite good; such a person was more likely to be trusted.

What I fear most are those who take the money but do nothing, mess things up, and then think they've done nothing wrong.

It was already afternoon when Zhao Da'e called everyone over. Holding a wad of cash in his hand, Zhao Da'e shouted loudly, "Payday! Payday! Everyone who did any work today gets fifteen yuan!"

Zhao Da'e waved the money in his hand, and Zhou Chunhong, upon hearing that money was being distributed, immediately shouted excitedly, "Yay, we're getting money!"

Even his speech stopped stuttering, "Fifteen yuan!"

Zhou Chunhong's eyes lit up; all she could see was money.

Zhao Da'e smiled helplessly, took out fifteen yuan and handed it to Zhou Chunhong, "Second cousin, no rush, no rush, everyone gets one."

Zhou Chunhong was overjoyed to receive the fifteen yuan. This was the money she earned from her work. At home, she would work for her elderly mother without getting paid, and if she didn't do a good job, she would be beaten. Now, she could work for Da'e, which was not only easy but also paid.

If possible, Zhou Chunhong hopes to come to Zhao Da'e's place tomorrow to do some work or something.

Zhou Chunwen was the one who took the money next. She seemed a little hesitant, as if she wanted to say something but was too embarrassed to say it. Zhao Da'e couldn't stand it anymore and spoke first, "Big Cousin, is something on your mind? Why don't you tell me and see if I can help you?"

Zhou Chunwen hesitated for a while, then took a deep breath, silently cheered herself up, and mustered up her courage to say, "Big Goose, can I come here to help you more often in the future? I feel like I can learn a lot from you. Of course, I don't need a salary."

She learned far more at Zhao Da'e's shop than in Dongtaizi Village. Perhaps she could use these skills to find a good job in the future and wouldn't have to get married and have children so early.

Zhao Da'e smiled, patted Zhou Chunwen on the shoulder and said, "Of course, big cousin, you're welcome to come anytime. I'll also pay you your wages, so you won't work for free."

Zhao Da'e is quite tolerant of her own people. If they want to improve themselves, Zhao Da'e will certainly not be stingy with these opportunities. After all, they are her own people, and she will help them whenever she can.

The moment Zhao Da'e agreed, Zhou Chunwen's eyes lit up, and she became much more cheerful.

When the money was distributed, Cheng Jinxiao, Xiangzi, and Cai Xiaofeng accepted it without hesitation, while Cheng Jinxiang refused.

"No need, Da'e. I'm here to help my daughter. You don't need to pay me any wages. After all, I'm the one who makes money from this shop. But you, you need to save some money these days and not spend so much. What if you don't have enough cash flow? You agree, right?" Cheng Jinxiang couldn't help but start nagging, listing a lot of things to be careful about.

Anyway, these words went in one ear and out the other for Zhao Da'e.

Zhao Da'e nodded and quickly said, "I know, Mom. Stop nagging. I'm a boss now, and you still nag me like this. Really."

Hearing this, Cheng Jinxiang couldn't help but cover her mouth and laugh. She tapped Zhao Dage's forehead and said with a smile, "Whether you are a boss or not, you are still my daughter. What's wrong with me talking to my daughter? Outsiders can't say anything about me. Did you remember what I just said?"

Zhao Da'e sighed and said, "I know, Mom, please stop nagging!"

……

After everyone's wages were paid, Zhao Da'e still had thirty yuan left. Zhao Da'e felt a little strange. She always counted the money before paying, calculating the amount per person. Now there was thirty yuan extra. After deducting the fifteen yuan that her elderly mother didn't want, there shouldn't be fifteen yuan extra. Now that she still had thirty yuan left, it meant that there was still one person who hadn't asked for their wages.

Zhao Da'e looked around before realizing who was missing. Oh right, the missing person was Chai Zhiyong!

However, Zhao Dage looked around the shop but couldn't find Chai Zhiyong, which she found strange. She then went to ask Cheng Jinxiang and others.

"Mom, Auntie, have you seen Master Chai? I haven't paid him for today yet, why can't I see him?"

Cheng Jinxiao scratched her head and looked around. She realized that someone was indeed missing. However, she didn't know where Chai Zhiyong had gone. She could only say, "I don't know where he went either. It's strange. I clearly saw him working in the warehouse this afternoon. The warehouse was stuffy and hot. Xiaofeng and I were sweating profusely after going in for a short while. When Master Chai saw this, he told Xiaofeng and me to come out. He went to sort the goods in the warehouse by himself and said that he would do these hard and tiring jobs. Xiaofeng and I wanted to go in and help, but the warehouse couldn't hold so many people. In addition, we still had some work to finish, so we had to give up."

“Big Goose, you didn’t see Master Chai sweating a lot in the warehouse. His undershirt was soaked through. The warehouse has no windows and no ventilation. I can’t stand it for more than a few tens of minutes, but Master Chai can stay there for an entire afternoon. Big Goose, I can vouch for Master Chai. He really does a lot of work and doesn’t slack off. I just don’t know where he is at this time.”

Cheng Jinxiao was afraid that Zhao Da'e would think that Chai Zhiyong hadn't done any work and then wouldn't want to pay him, so she quickly spoke up for Chai Zhiyong, since she had witnessed all of his efforts.

After hearing this, Zhao Da'e felt quite moved. Master Chai was still the same, silently doing so much without saying a word.

At this moment, Xiangzi silently raised his hand and said, "I know where Master Chai went."

Immediately, everyone's eyes turned to Qi Bin, who suddenly felt a little embarrassed.

Cai Xiaofeng said, "Xiangzi, just tell me what you know."

Xiangzi then spoke up, “I saw Master Chai pick up his backpack after finishing his work, as if he was about to leave. So I called out to Master Chai and said that he hadn’t been paid yet, so why was he leaving so early? Master Chai smiled and said that he had already been paid and was in a hurry to go home for dinner, so he left first.”

After Xiangzi finished speaking, everyone fell silent.

Xiangzi said that Master Chai had already taken the money and gone home, but Zhao Da'e said that Master Chai had not yet been paid. Cheng Jinxiao and Cai Xiaofeng both knew how tiring the work Master Chai had done that afternoon.

The truth is quite obvious. Chai Zhiyong didn't want today's wages and tried to sneak away, but Xiangzi discovered him. In order to prevent Xiangzi from making a fuss, Chai Zhiyong deliberately lied and said that he had already received his wages. Then he rushed home, but in reality, he didn't take the money.

Zhao Da'e's eyes showed some emotion. It was clear that Chai Zhiyong didn't want his salary, but was afraid of being forced to pay him, so he left early.

Zhao Da'e sighed. She had clearly told Master Chai not to come yesterday and to have a good rest, but he still came and did so much quietly. Afraid that she would give him money, he secretly slipped away again.

It is my good fortune to have met such a good mentor.

Never mind, never mind. Next time Master Chai comes to Dongtaizi Village to build a new house, she will definitely treat him well and buy him several bottles of good liquor to make up for it.

However, the person next to them spoke without thinking, but the listener took it to heart.

Zhou Chunwen felt uneasy holding onto the fifteen yuan in her hand. Even outsiders like Chai Zhiyong didn't want Zhao Da'e's salary, so wouldn't it make her, as Zhao Da'e's older cousin, seem greedy for money if she took this money?

After all, I came here to help my cousin. Logically, this is what I should do, and it's my own choice. If she gives me money, it's a token of her appreciation; if she doesn't, it's fine too.

Besides, Zhao Da'e has spent a lot of money on the shop, and I'm using Zhao Da'e's money. What if Zhao Da'e runs out of money in the future and the shop goes out of business?

Zhou Chunwen suddenly felt that the money was a hot potato in his hands, and he was uneasy about holding it.

Zhou Chunwen wasn't the only one with this idea; Cheng Jinxiao, Qi Bin, and others also shared it.

Upon seeing this situation, Zhao Da'e realized something was wrong. The reason Master Chai lied and said he had already taken the money was probably to make everyone feel less guilty about taking the money.

As a result, he inadvertently exposed Chai Zhiyong's lie, making everyone uncomfortable taking the money.

Zhao Da'e quickly slapped his forehead and covered up his lie, "Oh dear, how could I forget? Yesterday I asked Master Chai to come and help today, and I also paid him his wages. Look at my memory, I'm so busy I forgot. I paid him yesterday, and Master Chai is in a hurry to go home, which caused us to make such a big misunderstanding."

Upon hearing this, Zhao Da'e could sense that several people breathed a sigh of relief.

Zhou Chunwen was relieved and felt less burdened by the fifteen yuan.

Zhao Da'e scratched his head, a little embarrassed, "Look at my memory, I completely forgot about this."

Cheng Jinxiao couldn't help but pat Zhao Da'e on the head and said with a smile, "Da'e, you, you really are something else. When you open the shop, if you forget this and that when you're collecting money, won't you lose money?"

Because Cheng Jinxiao was pinching Zhao Da'e's mouth, Zhao Da'e could only mutter, "No way, I'm not that stupid!"

Upon hearing this, everyone burst into laughter, instantly easing the tense atmosphere. Zhao Da'e also breathed a sigh of relief, finally managing to divert everyone's attention.