Chapter 127 It's only right to get paid for working.
With more choices, customers who come to the shop don't all focus on the items she buys from the general store.
But Jiang Ling's goods are unique and of extremely high quality, and they are the store's prized possessions that attract customers and establish its reputation.
It is also an important and indispensable link in maintaining her relationship with that important person in the capital.
Otherwise, she wouldn't have been so anxious to come and wait for the goods in person.
"Sister, take as much as you can from this list! Especially the lipsticks, soaps, toothpaste, and mirrors—I want as many as you can! The ladies and young women in the capital only recognize your products!"
Jiang Ling took the order and looked at it; the demand was indeed much greater than before.
Considering that she hadn't opened her shop for more than twenty days, she ordered several times more stock than usual this time.
She immediately called to Xiao Ran, "Xiao Ran, come on, let's prepare the goods for Madam Song together."
"Yes!" Xiao Ran responded loudly and immediately began to get busy with her tasks skillfully.
A large quantity of goods were moved out of the warehouse again; these were all items Jiang Ling had purchased this time.
When the goods filled the Song family's carriage, Madam Song's long-held anxiety finally subsided.
With these goods, we can last at least half a month.
After seeing off Madam Song's carriage, the general store returned to its tranquility.
Jiang Ling calculated the income from the past few days, and her money box was now quite full.
She suddenly realized that a month had passed since Xiao Ran started working there.
She looked up and saw Xiao Ran standing on tiptoe, diligently sweeping the dust off the high shelves with a feather duster.
"Xiao Ran, stop for a moment and come over here," Jiang Ling called out gently.
Upon hearing the sound, Xiao Ran immediately put down the duster and ran over. "Sister Jiang, is there any work to do?"
Jiang Ling rarely asked him to do anything, so whenever Jiang Ling gave an order, he would run over immediately.
Jiang Ling smiled, took out a heavy silver ingot from the money box, and handed it to him. The silver had a warm luster and was a solid one or two taels.
"Here, this is your wages for this month. Take it."
Xiao Ran looked at the silver ingot, which was a full tael in size, but took a step back, waving her hands repeatedly, her face full of seriousness:
"Sister Jiang, I can't accept this money."
"Why can't I have it?" Jiang Ling was taken aback.
“I haven’t worked more than a few days this month. You even asked Mr. Fu to teach me to read, and bought me writing brushes, ink, paper, inkstones, and those books. Those things are so valuable; they’re worth more than my wages. I really can’t accept any more!”
Jiang Ling felt a warmth in her heart upon hearing this, but also a sense of helplessness, and stuffed the silver into his hand.
“Silly child, let’s keep things separate. Getting paid for your work is a matter of course, and it’s what you deserve. I wanted you to learn to read and write, and I bought you the books voluntarily. It has nothing to do with your wages, so you can’t confuse the two.”
Xiao Ran still refused to accept it, clutching the hem of her clothes, her voice lowered.
“But Sister Jiang, I know my family is struggling, but I can’t take such a big advantage of you. My father always says that one should be honest and not take other people’s things for free.”
Jiang Ling knew he was a sensible person and was aware of his family's difficulties.
After Zhao Yin broke his leg, he could no longer go hunting in the mountains. With no main source of income, the family relied entirely on Xiao Ran's one or two taels of silver to survive, as she had to buy grain and get medicine for Zhao Yin.
As the weather gets colder, it's time to start preparing for winter.
She forcefully stuffed the silver into Xiao Ran's hand, her tone gentle yet brooking no refusal:
“Your father is right, one should be honest, but you also need to know that this money was earned through your own hard work. You come to the shop before dawn every day to clean, deliver goods, and watch the shop. What haven’t you done well? Besides, the reason we sent you to school is so that you can help the shop manage the accounts and write things in the future. It’s all for the good of the shop. How can you say that you’re taking advantage of us?”
Xiao Ran held the heavy silver ingot in his hand, his fingertips almost burning. He looked down at the silver, then up at Jiang Ling, his eyes slightly reddening.
"Sister Jiang, you're so good to me..."
"What's so great about this?" Jiang Ling smiled and ruffled his hair.
"Take this. Go back and get some good medicine for your father, and have your mother cook a nice meal for you and Xiao Qi. Working hard and studying hard from now on is the best way to repay me."
Xiao Ran bit her lip, nodded heavily, and carefully tucked the silver into her bosom.
"Yes! Sister Jiang, I will definitely work harder in the future and study diligently with Mr. Fu. I will never let you down!"
"That's right. You're allowed to leave work early today, go home and give your wages to your parents, so they can be happy too."
Jiang Ling smiled with relief and reached out to rub his head.
Xiao Ran suddenly stopped smiling, looking timid like a child who had done something wrong. "Sister Jiang, I'm sorry. I lied to you."
Jiang Ling looked puzzled: "What did you lie to me about?"
Xiao Ran lowered her head and told the whole story.
"Actually, I already knew about the tragic deaths of Huang Dagang's family, and I even went to see the beheading of the bandit in the West Market that day. But Brother Zhao wouldn't let me tell you, saying he was afraid you'd be scared if you heard."
Jiang Ling then realized what was going on. It turned out to be the topic Fang Shijie had brought up earlier that day.
She glanced at Xiao Ran subconsciously, intending to ask him if he knew, not to blame him.
"What kind of deception is this? Actually, it doesn't matter whether you say it or not."
The deed is done, whether she knows it or not makes no difference.
Xiao Ran's voice trailed off: "Also, Brother Zhao was injured during the follow-up investigation. He wouldn't let me tell you either."
This morning, he was considering whether or not to tell Sister Jiang about these things.
He remembered that he had promised Brother Zhao, but then he thought again that he was a shop assistant and Sister Jiang paid his wages, so he shouldn't be hiding anything from Sister Jiang.
"Zhao Jingxing is injured? Is he seriously injured?"
"Brother Zhao was stabbed in the abdomen..."
Jiang Ling was shocked.
With the medical technology of this era, a knife wound to the abdomen is extremely dangerous and the chances of survival are slim!
I wonder if the medicine I gave him back then will be of any use?
When Xiao Ran returned home in the evening, besides a tael of silver, there were also pastries and snacks that Jiang Ling had bought from town.
Zhao Yin's wife was cooking porridge at the stove when she saw him return and quickly asked:
"Why are you back so early today? Have you finished your work with Miss Jiang?"
Xiao Ran didn't say anything, but took out the silver ingot from her bosom and handed it to her parents.
Zhao Yin and his wife were both stunned. Zhao Yin put down his cane, his voice trembling slightly: "This... this is the wages that Miss Jiang gave you?"
"Yes!" Xiao Ran nodded vigorously and repeated Jiang Ling's words in detail.
"Sister Jiang said that it was only right to get paid for working, and that studying had nothing to do with getting paid, so she insisted that I accept it."
Zhao Yin's wife wiped her eyes and sighed, "Miss Jiang is truly kind. Our family will remember this kindness for the rest of our lives."
Zhao Yin looked at his son with a solemn expression: "Ran'er, remember this: in the future, when you work at Miss Jiang's shop, you must work hard and study diligently. You must not let her down."
Xiao Ran nodded vigorously, determined that as long as Sister Jiang didn't kick him out, he would stay in the shop and work there for the rest of his life.
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