Chapter 142 Hong Xing, I am your father.
Song Jin has not had the time to study men in detail in terms of gender relations, but human nature is basically universal.
When a person is at the bottom of an oppressed society, he or she often does not have extra time to think about how to harm others. All he or she wants to do is to work hard today and not get scolded by his or her master.
But once such a person becomes the master, the oppression of the servants will become even more severe. Song Jin experienced this when he first opened the shop.
In the past, Old Lu could be described as honest, but honest people have turned over a new leaf and are more annoying than bad guys. Before he became a master, he already behaved like a master, liking to order people around and liking to scold people.
Song Jin was particularly grateful that Ji Shubai had called people to work early, otherwise she would have to support this father.
Old Lu is now over 40 years old and has only one daughter. Originally, there were two girls in the family. Dujuan was Arong's wife, and Chunyun was still young. Now that Hongxing has come, she is of the right age and good looks, he has evil thoughts and wants to continue the family line.
Song Jin knew without even having to think about it that the thing below had worked, and he was immediately furious.
Her dad...
Song Jin's teeth were clacking.
It's almost May, and it's time to start making mosquito coils. It's a time when we're short of people, but Old Lu is actually thinking about taking a concubine. It must be that he has a few taels of silver in his pocket and both of them are getting excited.
Regarding Hong Xing's refusal, Song Jin thought that if she agreed, there would be no hope for her.
But now there is a problem. Hong Xing refuses to go. If she stays in the shop, wouldn't it be as dangerous as before?
Arranged somewhere else? There was no place else. Song Jin had no place else to go.
It's difficult.
Facing the crying Hong Xing, Song Jin thought for a long time. It's not that he had never thought that the old house of the Ji family was a good place, but at the same time he knew that he was still coveting Ji Shubai. Wouldn't it be crazy to stuff a woman into his house?
This is not the way to test human nature.
Song Jin's fingers ran across the embroidery thread on the hem of the skirt, and suddenly an idea came to her mind.
If we talk about Suzhou's particularly amazing skills, Suzhou embroidery is definitely one of them.
Hong Xing doesn't have to work in the weaving bureau. Find a good embroiderer for her and let her concentrate on learning Suzhou embroidery. Even if she doesn't make clothes in the future, or embroider screens or fans, it will be a great way out for her.
At least I can make money to support myself.
"Would you like to learn Suzhou embroidery?"
Song Jin intended to ask someone to find an embroidery master for her. The reason why she didn't choose a tailor was that most tailors nowadays are men, and it would be a hassle for Hong Xing to find a man as her master.
There was no need for a professional tailor to make clothes at home, and if she had to do the tailoring at home, her identity as a woman would also be an obstacle. So Hong Xing might as well give up tailoring and become an embroiderer instead.
As long as Hong Xing could leave the shop and find another way out, anywhere would be fine. What's more, she could learn a skill there, so she naturally nodded in agreement.
So Song Jin came forward and asked Mrs. Chai to let Hong Xing stay at home with her for a few days and let her embroider some patterns so that she could find an embroidery master for her.
When Mrs. Chai heard that they were looking for an embroiderer, she said it was easy. Her family was in the silk business, so they needed embroiderers. Although they were not as good as those in the weaving department, their skills were definitely not bad. If they needed a master, she would point one out to them.
Just like that, Hong Xing was pointed at by Mrs. Chai and led into the Rong family's embroidery workshop.
Song Jin was a good person and prepared a gift for her so that she could go to see the master. Before leaving, she told her that her marriage certificate was in her hands. If she found a man she liked in the future or wanted to get married, she just had to tell her and she would let her go.
Hong Xing cried and shook her head: "I've been married once, and I don't want to go through that hardship again. Even if I get blinded, I don't want to get married again."
Song Jin sighed: "It's up to you."
She accompanied Hong Xing out of the yard and walked her all the way to the door. Hong Xing was holding a yellow silk bundle in her hand. She felt a little nervous and excited. When they reached the door, a servant from the Rong family came to take her to the master's embroidery workshop, and the two were about to part.
Hong Xing was standing at the door. Suddenly, she turned around and knelt down in front of Song Jin with a plop. Song Jin was so scared that he hurried to help her up, but Hong Xing refused to get up and insisted on kowtowed to her three times before leaving.
Song Jin thought, this will shorten my life by three years.
Hong Xing left, and Old Lu was furious. The cheap woman in his house, the fat meat that was right at his fingertips, was actually let go by his own daughter. So the next day, he did not go to the Ji family's old house, but acted like a father, sending Meng Qi to the Chai family to call Song Jin back and give him a lecture.
"Don't think I don't know that this red apricot was bought by Master Ji as a gift to you. It's just a matter of my words to decide who she will be with. What do you mean by letting her go now? Are you deliberately trying to make things difficult for me?"
"Your mother is old and can't give birth to a son any more. Can't I take a concubine?"
"Hong Xing lives in our house, eats our food, drinks our drinks, and it's perfect for her to be my concubine. But you'd better let her go and let her become an embroiderer. It's more comfortable to be an embroiderer than being your father's concubine, right?"
"You are my daughter, why are you always so mean?"
"father--"
"Shut up! I'm your father, don't talk back to me. Don't think that just because you're popular outside, you can put on airs at home. I'm your father."
Song Jin closed her eyes so that no one could see the tears in her eyes. She waited quietly until he got tired of scolding her before she started to defend herself.
"Dad, I think our small shop doesn't need so many people. It's great to have an embroiderer. If she becomes famous in the future, one of her embroidered paintings can be sold for a lot of money. Then, all the money will be used to honor you."
"Money is more important or my son is more important?"
Fuck you!
That day, Old Lu was furious and scolded Song Jin and Mrs. Chen from head to toe. Even though Song Jin was tough, his eyes turned red several times, while Mrs. Chen kept wiping away her tears.
However, the matter was not over yet. After Old Lu finished scolding people, he glanced and saw Chunyun hiding in a corner, and his anger paused for a moment.
Chunyun is thirteen years old now, and in another year she will be old enough to get married.
The corners of Song Jin's mouth began to twitch, and his mind felt as hot as a volcano erupting.
"Forget it, go back and teach well. When you get the money this month, remember to bring it home early."
Then she changed her tone: "Forget it, it's not convenient for a woman like you to go back and forth. I'll ask A Rong to go get it. Anyway, you'll be staying at the Chai family, so it won't cost you much."
Song Jin almost scratched his palm.
The struggle for economic power has begun.
Song Jin didn't understand how there could be such a creature as "Daddy" in the world. The power of heaven was granted by God, and the power of daddy was granted by the eagle. Just because he had a few more pounds of meat between his legs, he could act tyrannically. No wonder the men in the palace who were ordered around were cut off their lower legs first.
All men know that a man can only use it with confidence when his private parts are not working properly.
In the Ming Dynasty, where filial piety was the rule, Song Jin couldn't get over her father, so she could only set her sights on other people.
After Old Lu had cursed enough, he went to the front to drink, while Song Jin took Mrs. Chen and the two women to the back to talk.
"Mom, Dad wants to take a concubine, what do you think?"
Mrs. Chen wiped her tears and said, "He wants to take a concubine. What can I do? It's also my fault that I couldn't give him a son."
When Song Jin heard this, he knew it was all over. The biggest helper in this camp was the first to raise the white flag and surrender.
"Mom, there are so many women who haven't given birth to sons. How can you blame yourself?"
Mrs. Chen shook her head, "But your father wants a son, otherwise the family line will be cut off. I can't stop him even if I want to. Look at what happened to the eldest grandmother. The master wanted to leave a seed, so he had to hide a woman even if he had to be secretive outside. Later, the Bai family bullied the eldest grandmother so much that they took the second mother back home. The eldest grandmother had no choice at all."
Song Jin finally understood that the thought was too deeply embedded and could no longer be shaken by her.
She patted Mrs. Chen's back and said, "Mother, don't be sad. Even if a concubine comes into the house, you are still your wife. If anything happens in the future, your daughter will support you."
Using feudal methods to comfort feudal people was the only consolation Song Jin could think of, but to deal with Lao Lu, she had to find another way.
After losing his most important ally, Song Jin began to turn his attention to others.
"How's my dad getting along with the guys?"
Song Jin asked Dujuan privately, but Dujuan didn't dare to say anything. After all, they were father and daughter. If she said something bad about Old Lu, and the father and daughter knew about it, she would be in trouble.
"He is the father, so people under him naturally listen to him."
Song Jin didn't like to hear this. If she listened to him, what would she be? She had built this shop, but now she was forgetting her roots.
She suppressed her temper and waited until Lao Lu got drunk in front, then quietly called Zhang Hongan in to talk to him.
"I heard that Arong chose you as his apprentice?"
Today, Song Jin was not as approachable as usual when asking questions. He sat there in a satin dress, with a more dignified look on his face. The distinction between master and servant was obvious, which instantly widened the distance between the two of them.
Zhang Hongan replied respectfully, "Yes."
"Do you know why I asked Arong to take in an apprentice?"
Zhang Hongan shook his head: "I don't know."
Song Jin smiled and said, "We haven't opened this shop for long. Although it is not very successful right now, I will have to open another business sooner or later in the future. You know that, right?"
Zhang Hongan nodded and said he knew.
Song Jin then mentioned her future plans. The mosquito coil business was about to start, and she intended to buy land to grow peanuts, tomatoes, and mugwort. Her own business would also grow bigger. In the future, A Rong might not be able to support it alone, so she needed a new accountant to help with the management.
At this point, the implication was obvious. She chose Zhang Hongan to be the new accountant, and then changed the subject: "How does my father treat you?"
"Dad treats us very well."
Song Jin smiled softly: "How is that compared to me?"
As a waiter, a very important skill is to read people's expressions. As soon as Song Jin said this, Zhang Hongan guessed that the father and daughter were going to play against each other, and he should choose a side to be loyal to.
"I will obey the shopkeeper's orders in everything."
"Okay, go call Arong in for me."
That afternoon, Song Jin called several people in one after another and questioned them. Thanks to Old Lu's status as a "father" in the shop, it became much easier for Song Jin to win people's hearts.
The reason why Old Lu wanted a concubine was simply because he had money and time to spare and wanted to leave offspring. So, he should be poor and not have time to spare.
Song Jin instructed A Rong to cook the books, but Lao Lu was illiterate and couldn't understand it at all.
This summer, there were not enough people to make mosquito coils, so we hired a few temporary workers outside. When an account came in, we would make a problem account and pay the money out, which would be directly handed over to the Chai family, and then they would take their wages back.
The requirement is that the store should sell more and earn less, and Song Jin should sell less and earn more, or at worst break-even. She won't do it if she loses money.
Song Jin was cautious to begin with, and she had not told Lao Lu that her salary was five taels of silver. At least she could deduct some of the money to support herself.
After arranging everything, Song Jin took the sedan chair and returned to the Chai family, exhausted both physically and mentally.
She thought that the battle between her and Lao Lu would come to the surface sooner or later, so she must have a backer who could compete with Lao Lu.
"Ji Shubai..."
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