The Lu family was envious of Lu Lin's fate, and the Chen family was even more so.
"Third son, have you found work yet?" the old lady asked anxiously as she saw Chen Laosan return.
Chen Shouren shook his head, somewhat embarrassed, and said, "Not yet."
Grandma Li was very envious of Lu An, the fourth son of the Lu family, who had a job in town. Farming depended on the weather; drought or floods could be fatal. But having a job in town was different; it guaranteed a stable income regardless of drought or flood.
Lu An got the job because the town's boss owed Lu's grandfather a favor. Although Old Mrs. Li was envious, she could do nothing about it. However, Lu Lin and Chen Xiaomi were different.
Grandma Li always thought Chen Xiaomi was a jinx, a freak who should be burned alive. But in the end, Lu Lin and Chen Xiaomi both found jobs in town, and the wages weren't bad either.
A few days ago, Chen Shouren asked the old lady for a few taels of silver, saying he wanted to use it to smooth things over and find a job in town.
Although the old lady was reluctant to part with the money, she thought that if her third son really found a job, the family would have a stable income in the future, so she took the money and let Chen Shouren do as he pleased. However, several days had passed, and Chen Shouren had not found a suitable job but had spent most of the money.
"Have you found out where Lu Lin and Chen Xiaomi work?"
"It seems to be at Huaxia Trading Company." Lu Lin and Chen Xiaomi were both relatively low-key, but many things still required their involvement. Chen Shouren, who frequented the town, managed to find out some things. Huaxia Trading Company had recently become quite famous for selling bags, and Chen Jing had also bought a bag there.
Chen Shouren also tried at that trading company, but they said they weren't hiring. There was a manager in the company who seemed quite aloof.
Grandma Li said somewhat dejectedly, "What kind of vision does the owner of Huaxia Trading Company have? How could he hire people like Chen Xiaomi and Lu Lin? The owner is so muddle-headed, I guess he won't last long."
Chen Shouren said sullenly, "Those two guys, I don't know what kind of luck they had."
Chen Shouren originally thought that people like Chen Xiaomi and Lu Lin could find work in town, so finding work in town might not be as difficult as he imagined. However, after searching around, Chen Shouren found only manual labor jobs with very low wages, and he realized that finding work in town might not be so easy.
Frustrated, Chen Shouren went to the casino and lost most of his money, but he didn't dare tell the old lady.
Grandma Li looked at her son and said angrily, "You're such a grown man, yet you can't even compare to two children."
Chen Shouren didn't think there was anything wrong with his abilities at all, and said somewhat aggrievedly, "Mother! Those two guys were just lucky."
Grandma Li snorted and said, "All you do is make excuses; you don't even know how to come up with a solution."
Chen Shouren forced an awkward smile, his eyes darting around as several thoughts flashed through his mind.
"Young Master Lin." After closing the shop in the evening, Wan Li found Lu Lin.
Looking at Wan Li's expression, Lu Lin asked, "What happened at the shop?"
"Young Master Lin, recently someone came to the shop and said bad things about you and Young Master Chen."
Lu Lin asked with some surprise, "Oh, what did they talk about?"
Lu Lin knew that people in the village often spoke ill of Chen Xiaomi, but he was somewhat surprised that people in the town didn't know much about him and Chen Xiaomi.
Wan Li said somewhat awkwardly, "The people who spread these rumors about you being of bad character, disloyal, and unfilial to your parents came to the store looking for work before, but I turned them down."
Lu Lin: "..." Huaxia Trading Company is his property, he knows that, but others don't. He claimed in the village that he earned two taels of silver a month in town, which still made people envious. So, is the person who spoke ill of him trying to squeeze him and Chen Xiaomi out?
"Do you know what that person's name is?" Lu Lin asked.
"His name seems to be Chen Shouren."
Lu Lin curled his lip, thinking to himself: So this is the kind of guy Chen Shouren is. The feud between the Chen family and Xiaomi is quite a long story.
Lu Lin glanced at Wan Li and said, "He's just a clown, we don't need to pay him any attention."
Wan Li nodded and said, "Okay."
Chen Shouren wandered around the town for another half month, but still couldn't find a suitable job.
The long journey between town and countryside every day caused him considerable hardship.
There were inns in town, but the cost of staying there was not low. Chen Shouren stayed in town for a few days, spent most of the remaining money, and then went back.
Chen Shouren really didn't understand. He had already said all that, so why didn't the boss of Huaxia Trading Company fire Lu Lin and Chen Xiaomi? Chen Shouren looked for work for a while, but the more he looked, the less confident he became. Eventually, he didn't want to look for work anymore. He only wanted to ruin Chen Xiaomi and Lu Lin's jobs, but he didn't succeed.
After Chen Xiaomi became pregnant, Lu Lin and Chen Xiaomi went to the countryside less often.
Following the schoolbags, Lu Lin researched and developed some different styles of bags, which he then put in the store for sale. The various styles of bags in the store sold very well because of their good workmanship and diverse designs.
Some wealthy women in the town, who had nothing to do all day, would come to visit the Huaxia Trading Company from time to time after hearing about it.
There was an unassuming old lady who once came in and bought more than ten handbags of considerable value, making her a true shopaholic of this era.
Wan Li couldn't handle everything by himself, so Lu Lin sent Chen Xiaocai to help out, which could be considered as training him in advance.
Chen Xiaocai is quite good-looking. Because of her young age, many young ladies and wives would always ask her about the pros and cons of various bags when they came to buy them.
Chen Xiaocai was often disliked in the village, and had never seen anything like this before, so she was at a loss for what to do.
However, over time, Chen Xiaocai got used to it and was able to handle guests appropriately.
Lu Lin encouraged Chen Xiaocai, saying that a good salesperson is very important to the store, which made Chen Xiaocai blush.
However, Lu Lin was not exaggerating. The sales skills of cosmetics store employees play a very important role in the sales volume of cosmetics. A good salesperson can even increase the store's revenue by hundreds of thousands of yuan a month, earning a lot of commissions.
Lu Lin walked into the room and saw Chen Xiaocai talking to Xiaomi.
Seeing him come in, Chen Xiaocai blushed and left.
Lu Lin stood with his hands behind his back, looking at Chen Xiaocai's shy expression, and pursed his lips. When Chen Xiaocai walked in a couple of days ago, she happened to see him and Xiao Mi being intimate. She probably saw something that caused a sty, and these past few days, she has been avoiding him whenever she sees him.
Lu Lin looked at the rice cake in Chen Xiaomi's hand, blinked, and said, "Where did this rice cake come from?"
"Xiao Cai bought it for me." Chen Xiaomi was vaguely proud of her younger brother's filial piety. "Xiao Cai seems to be very happy lately."
"Because this guy feels like he can help out." Spending all day doing nothing can lead to a sense of emptiness, and Chen Xiaocai, having come from a poor background, always has a sense of crisis. Making him feel like he can make a lot of money is a good incentive.
Lu Lin had Wan Li keep track of Chen Xiaocai's earnings. If Chen Xiaocai sold a bag worth more than 500 coins, he would receive a commission of 5 coins as pocket money.
Chen Xiaomi asked somewhat awkwardly, "Is it alright to let Xiaocai sell bags in the store?"
Lu Lin glanced helplessly at Xiao Cai and said, "Xiao Cai isn't young anymore. In a few years, it'll be time to find him a wife. We can't keep him hidden away forever. Besides, your bad reputation isn't your fault. There's nothing to be ashamed of."
If the Chen family dares to cause trouble at their shop because of Chen Xiaomi's unfilial behavior, he can go to the academy and expose how the Chen family was trying to sell their cousin to raise tuition fees for Chen Jing. Chen Jing is a scholar; he should at least have some sense of shame. Lu Lin glanced at Chen Xiaomi and sighed inwardly.
Chen Xiaomi doesn't pay much attention to his own affairs, but he seems to be overly concerned about his younger brother. However, there's nothing that can be done about it, since the three brothers went through the most difficult time together, and Chen Xiaomi, as the eldest brother, has, to some extent, taken on the responsibilities that a father should have.
However, excessive pampering can easily spoil a child, so he's the only one who can play the stern role.
Grandma Shen was sewing a schoolbag inside the house, while Shen Chi was making knots on the side.
The knots made by Chen Chi were varied in design. To encourage Chen Chi, Lu Lin gave him many different styles of wooden beads, hair ties, and scraps of cloth, placing them around him.
Recently, Chen Chi has been specializing in making backpack charms. When many people buy bags, they see that the charms on the bags are pretty and they will ask the store to give them an extra one. Although it is not a valuable item, many wealthy women feel like they have gotten a great deal by giving away a charm for free.
Grandma Shen was very satisfied with Shen Chi. Although the knotted net was a small thing, it was a selling point if it was well made. As far as she knew, many people liked the knotted nets woven by her grandson.
"Grandson, have you been learning arithmetic lately?" Granny Shen asked.
Chen Chi nodded and hummed in agreement. "Brother Xiaomi mainly teaches Xiao Cai, and I've learned a bit from him."
Granny Shen looked at Shen Chi and said, "It's good to learn more, it's good to learn more."
In the eyes of the villagers, being able to do arithmetic is a remarkable skill. Grandma Shen still hopes that Shen Chi can learn more, because if he can do arithmetic, it will be easier for him to find a job in the shop in the future.
Chen Chi nodded, naturally knowing that it was a rare opportunity.
Chen Chi started learning a little later than Chen Xiaolai, and there were many things he couldn't understand. However, Chen Xiaocai would sometimes give Chen Chi some extra lessons, and Chen Chi was gradually catching up.
“These past few days, Xiao Cai has been helping out at the shop,” Chen Chi said.
Grandma Shen nodded and said, "This young man, Xiao Cai, seems to have a bright future."
Grandma Shen glanced at her grandson, a strange feeling flashing through her mind. Shen Chi was a twin, and it was hard to say what kind of man he would marry in the future. People in the countryside didn't like twins very much, and there weren't many twins who could marry well. Grandma Shen naturally didn't want her grandson to suffer any injustice.
Before, when they lived in the countryside, Grandma Shen and Chen Xiaomi's family were close, and Shen Chi often played with Chen Xiaocai. Grandma Shen had also considered Chen Xiaocai. However, now that Chen Xiaomi's family is doing better and better, their family... is an orphan and a widow, and can hardly be considered a good family.
Grandma Shen figured that if Chen Xiaomi wanted to find a wife for Chen Xiaocai, a bunch of matchmakers would come up to her, so she didn't dare to hope for it and could only wait a few years until Chen Chi was a bit older.
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