Chapter 103 Chapter 103 - Two-in-one Monthly Money of Two Strings
Chai Xingyu pursed his lips when he heard her say that.
"Is there any difficulty?" Chai Xingyu asked.
Lin Chuntao nodded slightly, "It seems that I am not free yet."
"Then we can redeem her. How much is the ransom?" Chai Xingyu asked.
Lin Chuntao smiled and said, "I think it's about thirty or forty taels. I asked her and she seems to be saving money to redeem herself. If she can, she'll come over."
"How much monthly salary do you give them?"
"Two strings of cash. If business is particularly good, I'll give them a bonus every month based on how much they sell."
Two strings of cash is not a low amount, but the people around Chai Xingyu are all from the Chai Mansion and live and eat with him. Although it is good to just get two strings of cash, if they live and eat by themselves, there will still be some expenses. She has to ask Zhang Qingqing.
Lin Chuntao and Chai Xingyu said, "Before you open the business, you need to have the accountant calculate the employee bonuses and the exact ratio. This needs to be agreed upon, otherwise there will be conflicts later."
Chai Xingyu: "Well, I'll ask the accountant to calculate it later."
Lin Chuntao prepared to go find Zhang Qingqing to ask.
When she arrived, Zhang Qingqing was not in the shop. Instead, the girl who had looked down on her before was leaning against the door with a gloomy face, as if someone owed her money.
"Miss, is Zhang Qingqing here?"
Zhang Huarui glanced at her and said sarcastically, "What are you looking for her for? She's been taken home by the master to enjoy her life! What do you want to buy?"
Lin Chuntao frowned slightly, her heart skipped a beat, but she pretended not to understand.
"What do you mean by enjoyment? She doesn't sell cloth anymore?"
Zhang Huarui sneered disdainfully, "Country bumpkin! She's going to be made a concubine by the master, and the master in the future! And you don't even know that?"
Lin Chuntao was stunned for a moment and asked hurriedly, "When did it happen?"
"It happened today. She was just called away by the lady."
"Where is your boss's house?"
Zhang Huarui looked her up and down with a squint, "Are you going to our old house?"
"I have something to ask Zhang Qingqing. Could you please show me the way?" Lin Chuntao said as she took out a few copper coins from her pocket and handed them over. Zhang Huarui took the copper coins, weighed them in her hand, turned around, said hello to another person, and led Lin Chuntao away.
She led Lin Chuntao to the entrance of the alley and pointed inside: "That's the gate. I won't go in. You can find it yourself."
The alley is very long, with only one gate. The Yang family's house is also quite big.
She turned around and said to Zhang Huarui, "Thank you."
Zhang Huarui: "Don't tell me I brought you here."
Lin Chuntao nodded, "Well, I won't tell you."
After Zhang Huarui left, Lin Chuntao trotted over and knocked on the door.
The doorman was a young man. When he saw Lin Chuntao, he looked her over and asked, "Who are you looking for?"
Lin Chuntao smiled and said, "Hello, young man. Is this the home of Manager Yang from the Yang Cloth Shop?"
"Yes, who are you?"
Lin Chuntao: "I'm looking for Zhang Qingqing, her cousin."
Hearing this, the concierge frowned slightly, "Why haven't I heard her mention that she has a cousin?"
Lin Chuntao said, "We separated early when we were young, and we just met a few days ago. Is she at home? Could you please call her out?"
"Just wait!"
As soon as he finished speaking, there was a bang and the door was closed.
At this time, in the backyard of the Yang family, the main wife, Mrs. Qiao, was full of anger. Zhang Qingqing was kneeling in front of her and crying, and the nanny standing next to her was cursing.
"My lady is so kind as to send you to the cloth shop to gain some experience and improve your skills!"
"How nice of you to think about the master?"
Zhang Qingqing cried and looked at Mrs. Qiao: "Madam, I didn't do it. Please believe me!"
Mrs. Qiao lowered her eyes and looked at her, her throat moving slightly.
"How can I trust you now? I thought you were smart and more obedient than your sister, but I didn't expect you to be more powerful than her. If that's the case, I can't keep you!"
After saying this, Mrs. Qiao looked at the old nanny next to her.
"Go find the toothbrush."
Zhang Qingqing, who had originally had her back straight, fell down in an instant, her face pale and her heart dead.
Qiao is going to sell her off! She can't take the money she saved with her!
Once she leaves the Yang family, she doesn't know where she will be sold to. She will have no hope in this life!
After hearing what Qiao had said, the old nanny just walked to the door when she saw the doorman coming in. "Nanny, is Sister Qingqing here? Her cousin is here to see her."
Zhang Qingqing’s cousin? Never heard of her.
The old nanny turned around and looked at Mrs. Qiao, who then looked at Zhang Qingqing.
"You have a cousin? How come I didn't know?"
Zhang Qingqing said, "Madam, I just met him a few days ago."
Mrs. Qiao gestured to the old lady, "Bring her in."
Lin Chuntao waited at the door until the old nanny came.
The old lady looked at her and asked in a deep voice, "Are you Zhang Qingqing's cousin?"
"Hello, Ma'am. It's me."
Her tone was gentle and she was smiling. The old lady nodded and then said, "Follow me."
Lin Chuntao followed the old nanny through one archway after another and finally arrived at the backyard.
Mrs. Qiao was holding a string of Buddhist beads in her hand, twisting them carelessly. Zhang Qingqing was kneeling in front of Mrs. Qiao, her eyes were red and there were traces of tears on her face.
She didn't have any cousins, but when this person suddenly appeared, she was secretly looking forward to it. She hoped that she really had a rich and powerful cousin who could save her from the dire situation at this moment. She would be grateful to her for the rest of her life.
The moment she saw Lin Chuntao, she was stunned.
Lin Chuntao looked at the situation of Zhang Qingqing and Qiao and thought that she must not have become a concubine yet. Qiao must have looked unhappy, so she made Zhang Qingqing kneel here.
She looked at Mrs. Qiao and nodded slightly, then said with a smile, "Madam, you are well."
Mrs. Qiao frowned but said nothing. Lin Chuntao looked at the kneeling Zhang Qingqing and said with a smile, "Cousin, you asked me to raise money for you before. I have already raised enough. I wonder if now..."
Lin Chuntao left her words unsaid and looked at Qiao, who asked in a deep voice, "What money do you want to raise?"
Lin Chuntao looked at Zhang Qingqing in confusion, but still replied to Qiao.
"Madam, raise money to redeem my cousin. She said that you are kind and treat your servants very well. If she wants to redeem herself and leave when she is old enough, she can raise enough money to do so. My cousin is also of marriageable age. I have a younger brother who is about the same age as her. I thought that after I redeem her, we can go back to the countryside to hold a banquet for them and live at home from now on."
Mrs. Qiao and the old nanny exchanged a puzzled glance, then looked at Zhang Qingqing. Zhang Qingqing also kowtowed to Mrs. Qiao at this time and said, "Madam, please help me. I will always remember your great kindness."
There were people in the mansion who redeemed themselves, but they were extremely rare. Their families got lucky and made money, so they saved up the money to redeem the people.
Most of them have no money and they will never be able to redeem themselves in this lifetime.
"You want to redeem yourself? When did you start thinking about it?"
Zhang Qingqing couldn't figure out what Mrs. Qiao was thinking at this time, so she could only follow Lin Chuntao's words and reply, "When I met my cousin, she tried to match me up with my cousin."
Lin Chuntao also smiled and said, "Yes, Madam, marrying a wife also requires a betrothal gift, so Qingqing and I discussed that we would save money to redeem her and use it as a betrothal gift. Qingqing also agreed."
"I came here today to tell Qingqing that I have raised enough money and asked her to ask Madam when it can be done."
Mrs. Qiao looked at Lin Chuntao, who was not much older than Zhang Qingqing. If they really wanted to use the money from redeeming her as a betrothal gift to marry a wife, then it should be done by an adult. Why would they ask a maid to come?
Mrs. Qiao asked Lin Chuntao, "Are you here alone? No one else is here?"
Lin Chuntao said, "My elders are long gone, and I am the one who makes the decisions in my family."
Qiao stared at Lin Chuntao with sharp eyes.
"Miss, I'm afraid you're too late. My master has taken a fancy to Qingqing, so I have to keep her in the mansion to serve him. In the future, she will be the concubine of our Yang Mansion."
Lin Chuntao was stunned for a moment after hearing what Qiao said, and then she started laughing.
"Just now, the nanny led the way in. Madam's house is really huge. Such a large house and such a huge family business are all managed by Madam. It's just a matter of a word for Madam to decide who to choose as a concubine or a servant. Besides, with such a large family of women living together, what the master likes is not as important as what Madam likes. I hope Madam will show some mercy."
After Lin Chuntao finished speaking, Zhang Qingqing also grabbed the hem of Qiao's skirt and kowtowed to her repeatedly to beg her.
Mrs. Qiao looked at Zhang Qingqing and remembered that she had arranged her to work in the shop because she was diligent and smart, and she wanted to train her. Unfortunately, she caught Yang Guangrong's eye not long after she started working there.
Yang Guangrong didn't talk to her in person, but asked the old lady to talk to her.
If he wanted to promote Zhang Qingqing to be his concubine, there wouldn't be many young people in Yang Guangrong's room in the past two years.
Since they wanted young people to serve them, she could just arrange anyone, but when she told Yang Guangrong about it, he actually directly pointed out that he wanted Zhang Qingqing.
She asked the people in the shop and they said that Zhang Qingqing had been very close to Yang Guangrong recently. Whenever Yang Guangrong went to the shop, Zhang Qingqing would go to his room to find him. Qiao was very angry when she heard this.
These two people had been hooking up behind her back for a long time.
The more Qiao thought about it, the angrier he became.
There was no way she could keep Zhang Qingqing. She had originally planned to find a matchmaker to sell her directly, but who would have thought that she actually wanted to redeem herself.
"Are you thinking about your cousin?" asked Qiao.
Zhang Qingqing nodded vigorously, and Mrs. Qiao snorted coldly, "What about the master? Why would you seduce the master when you already have your cousin in your heart?"
After hearing what Qiao said, Zhang Qingqing fell down with a bang!
"Madam, please understand. I have absolutely no second thoughts about you, and I dare not even talk to you about it. I just want to save money to redeem myself and go home!"
Zhang Qingqing kowtowed while crying. Mrs. Qiao glanced at the old nanny, who quickly looked at Lin Chuntao and asked, "Have you brought the money?"
Lin Chuntao said, "I didn't bring any today. I originally wanted to come and tell Qingqing, and then come back with the money after she talked to you, Madam. Since it's available today, I'll go back and get it now. Qingqing, why don't you thank Madam?"
Zhang Qingqing quickly kowtowed to express her gratitude. Mrs. Qiao raised her hand and looked at Lin Chuntao.
Lin Chuntao pursed her lips and said to Mrs. Qiao, "Madam, how about this? You write the receipt and give it to Madam first, and have Madam go back with us to get it. Is that okay?"
The old nanny narrowed her eyes and said, "Young lady, thirty taels of silver is enough to redeem you, not a penny less. Have you really collected enough?"
Lin Chuntao said, "Of course it's enough, but I came here in a hurry today and didn't bring it home."
Mrs. Qiao looked at Zhang Qingqing's expression, took a deep breath, and finally loosened her fingers a little, motioning to the old nanny, "Just let them go, and let the coachman lead the carriage."
Lin Chuntao said, "Thank you, ma'am."
The old nanny went into the room and took out Zhang Qingqing's indenture. Qiao then wrote a document by hand, signed it and put her fingerprints on it. Lin Chuntao also signed it and put her fingerprints on it.
However, the old nanny still holds the document. Lin Chuntao has to pay the money before the deed and the document can be given to her.
Before leaving, Mrs. Qiao said, "Since you've redeemed yourself, go back to your room and pack your things. After all, you grew up in our family."
Zhang Qingqing didn't expect Qiao to say this. She knelt down and bowed deeply to Qiao.
"Thank you, ma'am!"
The package was packed. Lin Chuntao looked at Zhang Qingqing and said to her, "Qingqing, you should let Mammy take a look at the package. It's better for you to leave with a clear mind."
Zhang Qingqing glanced at Lin Chuntao and opened the package anyway.
The old nanny checked and found nothing else except a few pieces of clothes and some jewelry that the lady had given her before.
After confirming that everything was correct, the group came out of Yang's house.
Because the old nanny went with them, Lin Chuntao took Zhang Qingqing back in a carriage.
When she got home, Lin Chuntao didn't let the old nanny into the yard. She went into the house herself and took out the money.
Her money was all in copper coins, thirty strings of which filled a large cloth bag.
The old nanny looked at the bag of copper coins with a frown on her face. Lin Chuntao said, "Please forgive me, nanny. We common people collect our money one penny at a time, so we haven't exchanged it for silver yet. I asked a few days ago, and now it's exactly one guan of money for one tael of silver, which makes exactly thirty guan. Please count it."
The old nanny just casually counted it and found it to be thirty strings of cash, then took the money and gave the indenture and receipt to Lin Chuntao.
After Lin Chuntao took the things, the old nanny looked around the yard, then looked at Zhang Qingqing, and said in a deep voice: "Live a good life from now on."
Zhang Qingqing looked at the old lady with tears in her eyes and said, "Thank you very much, Auntie!"
The old lady got into the carriage and left without saying a word.
Watching the carriage leave, Zhang Qingqing knelt down in front of Lin Chuntao, "Sister Chuntao, I will never forget your life-saving grace!"
Lin Chuntao pulled her up, looked at her and said, "Don't thank me yet. I was in a hurry just now and had no choice but to do this. Now let's talk about the thirty taels."
Zhang Qingqing looked at Lin Chuntao in confusion. Lin Chuntao said, "Thirty taels for a slave? I don't have that much money. Even if I had money, I wouldn't buy someone to bring home. I don't have any younger brothers who want to marry."
Zhang Qingqing's eyes instantly filled with tears when she heard Lin Chuntao's words. She said to Lin Chuntao, "Don't worry, sister. I will return the thirty taels to you in full!"
Lin Chuntao: "Then let's write an IOU. You owe me thirty taels. It's like you borrowed my money to redeem yourself. You don't have to pay me back all at once. You can calculate how much you'll pay me back each year."
After saying this, Zhang Qingqing's tears began to flow.
She originally just wanted to be bought by Lin Chuntao, which was better than falling into the hands of a matchmaker. However, she never expected that Lin Chuntao was just helping her and would not accept her indenture.
They were not cousins, but just strangers who had met a few times, and yet Lin Chuntao saved her in this way.
"I'll write it. I have some money in my package that I saved. I'll give it to you first. I'll write you an IOU for the amount I owe you after you give birth."
Lin Chuntao nodded slightly. Zhang Qingqing squatted down and opened the package. Then she took out her clothes, found three sanitary belts, unwrapped them, and poured out the silver from the ash inside. She looked at Lin Chuntao awkwardly and explained, "New, unused."
She hid the change in her menstrual belt, so even if someone wanted to look for her hidden money, they would not think of the menstrual belt.
Although it was just small change, Lin Chuntao felt that it was at least twelve or thirteen taels from what she took out of her two months' belt.
Zhang Qingqing said, "I'll pawn these jewelry later. I should be able to get half of it. I'll give it to my sister first."
Lin Chuntao nodded, took the silver she handed over, took it into the house and weighed it, which was twelve and a half taels.
After receiving the money, Lin Chuntao followed Zhang Qingqing back to the county town.
The two of them walked back. On the way back, Lin Chuntao said, "Don't you even ask me why I came to see you today?"
Zhang Qingqing came back to her senses. Yes, why did Lin Chuntao go to find her?
"I've been making sauce lately. The young master of the Chai family opened a sauce shop, and I want to sell my sauce in his shop. He just opened a new shop and needs someone to help sell the sauce. I came to you to ask if you are interested in going there."
Zhang Qingqing looked at Lin Chuntao. She had only said that day that she wanted to redeem herself, but she didn't expect Lin Chuntao to remember it and even find a job for her.
With tears in her eyes, she just nodded.
"Oh my gosh! I'm interested."
Lin Chuntao said, "I asked Master Chai, and he said two strings of cash a month, but he'll have to tell you the exact amount in person."
Zhang Qingqing pawned all her jewelry, including bracelets and hairpins, and got eight taels of silver. She kept five hundred coins for herself and gave seven and a half taels to Lin Chuntao, which made it exactly twenty taels in total, and she still owed ten taels.
I asked someone to write me an IOU for ten taels of silver, and agreed to pay it back within two years at the latest, with a minimum payment of five taels per year.
She signed her name and put her fingerprint on the IOU. Lin Chuntao took the IOU and prepared to give her the indenture.
Zhang Qingqing said, "When I pay off the debt, sister, please give me the indenture."
Lin Chuntao shook her head: "You should keep it for yourself. It's such an important thing."
Zhang Qingqing said, "Sister, please keep it for me first. You can give it to me after I settle down in a few days."
Perhaps she was afraid that the Yang family would go back on their word. Lin Chuntao was the one who paid the money, and this thing was safer in Lin Chuntao's hands than in hers. The main reason was that she trusted Lin Chuntao.
Lin Chuntao took her to Chai Xingyu's shop.
All the people working in this sauce shop are men, so Sanbao and the others were a little surprised that a woman suddenly came, but because she was brought by Lin Chuntao, they were very polite.
Looking at Chai Xingyu's face, Zhang Qingqing was a little scared, but this was her future boss, so she calmed herself down.
Lin Chuntao introduced her: "Chai Xingyu, the owner of the sauce shop."
Zhang Qingqing nodded slightly. "Hello, Boss. My name is Zhang Qingqing, and I'm..." She paused mid-sentence, and Lin Chuntao took over. "Friend."
Chai Xingyu said: "Sister's friends are also my friends. If you have any problems in the shop, just tell me directly."
Zhang Qingqing said, "Thank you, Boss."
After getting to know some people, Zhang Qingqing found out that she was different from Sanbao and the others. She worked here and signed a work contract, which stipulated a minimum monthly wage of two strings of cash.
Chai Xingyu said, "If the sauce sells well in the future, there will be more money. But I haven't discussed the details with the accountant yet. I'll add it to the contract when we're done. Don't worry, young lady."
Because Zhang Qingqing had no place to live, Chai Xingyu originally wanted her to live in their yard as well, but it was really inconvenient for Zhang Qingqing to be the only woman among a group of men.
Zhang Qingqing had no choice but to rent a house.
Lin Chuntao accompanied her to rent a house for one hundred wen a month. It was a very dilapidated courtyard with several families living in it. However, they were all women and children, so it was not very dangerous. The house was also very small, with only a simple bed board.
Zhang Qingqing didn't think it was a big deal. She still owed ten taels of silver. The sauce shop earned two taels of silver a month, so she would be able to save enough money soon. When the time came, she could pay back Lin Chuntao and be completely free.
Lin Chuntao saw that she had no pots and pans. Now that she had a place to live, she also needed to find food. She said to Zhang Qingqing, "There's a Lin's Soup Noodle Shop in the market. My sister makes the noodles. If you have trouble eating, you can go there for lunch."
Zhang Qingqing nodded. In fact, she could just buy a clay pot and some corn and cook a pot every day to be full.
After settling in, Zhang Qingqing went to the sauce shop, which would open the day after tomorrow, so there would definitely be a lot of things to do.
In fact, it was not just because she was busy, but also because Lin Chuntao told her that her sauce would be sold in the shop, which belonged to Chai Xingyu. She had heard that the Chai family was domineering, and she didn't know what the situation was between Lin Chuntao and Chai Xingyu.
She took Chai Xingyu's money to sell sauce, so she would definitely do a good job. However, Lin Chuntao didn't ask her to come just to sell sauce. She was happy to help Lin Chuntao watch things and be her eyes.
After this morning's busy schedule, Lin Chunxing, Pei Ying and the others were ready to go home.
Lin Chuntao went to find them and told them about Zhang Qingqing's situation. Lin Chunxing and Pei Ying just listened quietly.
Lin Chunxing originally thought that she would get thirty taels, but after redeeming a person, she still owed ten taels, which would take two years to get back.
But when she heard that Lin Chuntao had arranged that person to work in Chai Xingyu's sauce shop, she thought again that ten taels didn't seem to be too painful, as the person would pay it back later.
Yang Guangrong waited until the evening to bring his concubine, but he still didn't see Zhang Qingqing. When Qiao arrived, he told him, "I didn't have time to tell you today. Zhang Qingqing's cousin brought money to redeem her, and she has already taken the indenture back home. Let's find someone else."
Yang Guangrong's face darkened instantly and he looked at Qiao viciously.
"What a coincidence? It just happened to be today."
Qiao: "Yes, it just happened to be today."
"It was a coincidence for us, but not for Zhang Qingqing. She had been planning to redeem herself and go home for a long time, and today she finally got her wish."
Yang Guangrong took a deep breath, looked at Qiao's lifeless face, and sneered.
"Thirty taels, which relative of hers can afford thirty taels?"
Qiao said, "She said she was my cousin. I just met her a few days ago."
The old nanny stood behind Mrs. Qiao and said, "Sir, I have received the money. It is a full thirty strings of copper coins. Would you like to take a look?"
Yang Guangrong snorted.
"The money affairs of this mansion are all managed by Madam. It's only thirty taels each. Now that she's gone, let's get another one."
Mrs. Qiao asked, "Zhang Huarui, what does the master think?"
When Yang Guangrong thought of Zhang Huarui's flattering look, he frowned slightly and felt a little disgusted, but Zhang Huarui was young and innocent, so she might be interesting in some way and would definitely make Qiao feel sick for a while.
"Then let's go with her."
Mrs. Qiao agreed very readily. In less than an hour, she had already made an agreement with Zhang Huarui and sent her to Yang Guangrong's room.
When she returned home today and learned that Zhang Qingqing had left, Zhang Huarui had been expecting that if the master couldn't get Zhang Qingqing, he would definitely choose someone else, and that person would most likely be her. Unexpectedly, she really waited for it.
After tonight, she will be the master of this mansion tomorrow!
It was worth it for her to lead Lin Chuntao today, and it really brought her a road to wealth.
After returning home today, Lin Chunxing and Lin Chuntao discussed, "Sister, the noodle soup with pickled vegetables is also very popular, but I feel that if the sauce is added, there may be fewer customers. Let's serve braised pork feet on the 22nd."
Lin Chuntao looked at her expression and asked softly, "Are you worried about the impact on your noodle soup business?"
Lin Chunxing nodded, and Lin Chuntao said, "It will definitely be affected, but we make money from selling sauces and noodle soups, and in the end, the money will all go into our pockets, right? Don't worry too much. Let's see how the sauce business goes. Once it stabilizes, I'll try to make new things."
"Besides, the sauce shop will definitely be a big commotion on its opening day. Many people will go to watch the fun, and no one will remember your new braised dishes. It's better to open it another day."
Continue read on readnovelmtl.com