"Brothers, you two have really changed after seeing each other today. I almost didn't recognize you."
As soon as Zhao Mingyan recovered and was discharged from the hospital, her brother Zhao Minghui took her to a bathhouse and a barbershop.
They used the remaining money to clean up thoroughly, making sure everything was spotless. After they came out, you couldn't tell from their clothes that they had been begging on the street.
"Boss Xia, thanks to your help, my sister and I have been able to start anew. My sister and I have made up our minds."
"Last time you brought people to cause trouble at your store, you lost a lot of money. My brother and I will work for free at your store to offset the losses. Is that alright?"
Xia Enruo was surprised to hear Zhao Minghui's words. Working for free without pay? Could the two of them really handle it?
"You two? Coming to work at my shop?"
Seeing that Xia Enruo didn't believe him, Zhao Minghui quickly added:
"Boss Xia, my sister and I just came out of the bathhouse, we're all clean."
"Brother, that's not what I meant. I meant that you and your sister are destined to be together, and you don't need to worry about me helping you or try to repay my kindness by working for you."
It makes it seem like I'm exploiting you.
"Boss Xia, my brother and I really want to make amends here, otherwise I won't be able to sleep peacefully at night."
"I'm hiring here, but it's all menial and manual labor. Are you two capable of doing it?"
"I can do it, I can do it. Don't worry, Boss Xia."
To be honest, my sister and I lost our parents in a mining accident when we were young, and we had no one to raise us.
In order to survive, I simply took her to a temple in Cuiwei Mountain to become a nun. She was living quite well in the temple.
I helped the abbot clean the courtyard, learned martial arts from him to improve my health, and learned self-defense skills.
My sister helped out in the kitchen, doing odd jobs like washing, cleaning, mending, and cooking for the monks.
However, a few years ago, the "Destroy the Four Olds" campaign occurred, and the temple was completely destroyed. Things were smashed, things were burned, and the monks fled.
We had nowhere to stay, so we simply went back to the old house. At first, I took Mingyan out to look for work, but she was too young and no one wanted her.
I was scammed by several companies that wouldn't pay me after I finished the work. Finally, I had no other choice but to resort to begging.
Xia Enruo felt terrible after hearing this. It was so similar to her own experience of losing her parents.
"So where are you staying now?"
“In the east of the city, in Zhaojiayao, there is a house that our family has left over from our ancestors, where we live.”
"Brother, my shop needs a waiter and a laundry worker."
The main duties of the waiters are to clean the restaurant and then help serve the food to the guests.
The laundry worker is there to help wash the clothes that have been brought in. But wouldn't it be a waste for you to stay with me with all your self-defense skills? You'd be much better suited to be a bodyguard.
“Boss Xia, my sister and I are quite capable. My sister and I studied at a temple for a few years and can write and do arithmetic. If you don’t mind, I’ll be your bodyguard for free.”
My sibling and I don't want wages; just enough to cover our losses.
Upon hearing this, Xia Enruo thought that these two were truly rare. Zhao Minghui knew some martial arts, and if he worked in the store, he could act as a bodyguard or something. In case someone caused trouble in the future, he could stop them.
My younger sister, Zhao Mingyan, used to do washing, cleaning, sewing, and mending, which was a good match for her. Most importantly, both of them were literate and could do arithmetic, which was truly rare in this day and age.
"Alright, since you two are willing to work for me, I'll take you both. Your salary will be the same as other employees, and I'll provide one meal a day."
"Boss Xia, we don't want wages. We already told you that before."
"Alright, that little loss is nothing. Since you're working for me, you have to call me boss and listen to me, otherwise I won't keep you."
Upon hearing this, Zhao Minghui's eyes filled with tears. He pulled his sister down to kneel again and said:
“Boss Xia, my brother and I will follow your lead for the rest of our lives and have no other intentions. We will serve you like slaves and do whatever you say.”
Xia Enruo was startled by the two people's grand gesture of respect. She felt like an empress in an ancient palace, with people kneeling before her.
"Alright, alright. You two get up now. Kneeling down all the time is no longer acceptable in my shop. Just listen to my instructions and do your jobs well. I'll make sure you get your wages."
She settled Zhao Minghui on the first floor, had a shop assistant show him around the work environment and job duties, and then took Zhao Mingyan upstairs to meet Ge Qiuqin.
"Why did it take you so long to get up here? Did those people cause any trouble?"
Ge Qiuqin, busy with her work, asked a question.
"Sister-in-law, look, this is the new employee I hired for our shop. She'll be working on the second floor from now on."
Ge Qiuqin put down her work, got up and walked over. She wanted to see what the new employee looked like.
"This...this isn't it?"
"That's right, it's the girl we gave the clothes to last time."
"I haven't seen you for a few days, and you've really changed. You're dressed so neatly, it's like you're a completely different person."
"That's right. Today, her brother brought her here to work in the store to make up for the store's previous losses."
I asked about the terms and they seemed pretty good, so I just accepted them and paid them the same wages as the first-floor employees.
This girl's name is Zhao Mingyan. She used to know how to wash and sew. Let her help us on the second floor from now on.
"Mingyan, this is Sister-in-law Ge Qiuqin. Just call her Sister-in-law Qiuqin from now on."
"Hello, Sister-in-law Qiuqin, I am Zhao Mingyan."
"That's great! We have a little helper, which gives us a break. You've done laundry before?"
"Sister-in-law, I've done it before, in a temple."
"temple?"
Ge Qiuqin was completely baffled by Zhao Mingyan's answer; it made no sense at all.
"Sister-in-law, this is a long story. I'll tell you later, or I can have Mingyan explain it to you later."
Xia Enruo saw Ge Qiuqin frowning and knew she was confused.
"Alright, let Mingyan help with the laundry first, so she can get familiar with the work environment. We'll assign her other tasks later."
"Sister-in-law, I'm leaving her in your care. Just take good care of her."
"Xia, don't worry."
What was originally a recruitment problem was unexpectedly solved within a single day.
Xia Enruo never expected that things would turn out this way by such a coincidence.
When Gu Shaoxuan returned to the shop that evening, he was completely bewildered to see Zhao Minghui busy tidying up the tables in the lobby.
"Enruo, what's wrong with this person?"
"The brother and sister started working at the store today and have become employees."
"What a coincidence! You were just worrying about hiring, but now it's solved. Oh, by the way, Mom called and said she and my younger sister bought train tickets and will arrive in three days."
"Okay, I'll tidy up at home tomorrow, and then go out to buy some groceries. Tell me what Mom and my sister like to eat."
Xia Enruo felt a little uneasy when she heard that her mother-in-law was coming, after all, this was the first time she had met the two of them.
I don't know if she'll be easy to get along with. If she's like the second-rate woman, I really can't accept her, and we'll have a lot of arguments.
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