Chapter 34 Offering Advice and Strategies: Be More Tactful in Your Conduct...
“Yes!” Su Zi had already learned from Su Mang that the young man was open-minded and not like most men who were clumsy with words.
"Moreover, the head of the family has been behaving very strangely lately, often meeting with guests in the middle of the night. I wonder what he's planning?"
Fu Yun frowned slightly, knowing that Su Fu Yun's mother, Su Tan, was quite ambitious and might be making some unknown deals behind the scenes.
However, what Su Tan was doing was none of his business, and he couldn't be bothered to care. He just wanted to explain the implications to Su Zi: "To be honest, I'm currently in the early stages of my business and do urgently need manpower. But the early stages of a startup are usually quite tough. If you really want to join, you'll suffer much more than you did at the Su residence, and the pay won't be as good as it was at the Su residence. Plus, you're very likely to offend Su Tan and become a thorn in her side. Under these circumstances, are you sure you want to leave the Su residence and become my helper?"
Su Zi's expression was firm, and her tone was resolute: "Young master, you don't need to worry about the reward. I don't ask for much. As long as I can eat and dress warmly and not be oppressed by others, that's enough. As for the head of the family, even if I don't leave the Su residence, I will still be a thorn in her side. Staying there will only make it difficult for me to move an inch."
Seeing that she was determined to leave the Su residence, Fu Yun didn't say anything more. He took out breakfast, placed it on the square table, and casually asked, "Have you had breakfast yet?"
Su Zi nodded, indicating that she had already eaten.
Fu Jun picked up the steamed bun, took a bite politely, and found it tasteless but not so bad as to be unpalatable.
While eating, he asked Su Zi to confirm another important matter: "Did you and Su Mang sign a contract of servitude before entering the Su residence?"
He remembered that in ancient times, servants usually signed indentures. If Su Tan had an indenture, it might not be so easy for Su Mang and Su Zi to leave the Su family.
Su Zi's eyes flickered slightly upon hearing this, but she quickly regained her composure: "When we entered the Su residence, we did sign a contract, but it wasn't a contract of servitude, it was a master-servant contract. Because the monthly salary of a contract of servitude is much higher than that of a master-servant contract, the head of the family signed a master-servant contract with me and Su Mang at that time."
Fu Jun was slightly startled, not expecting that this strange country would have a master-servant contract similar to an employment relationship.
"What kind of master-servant contract? Is there a time limit?"
Su Zi shook her head and replied truthfully, "There is no time limit. The master-servant contract only ends when the head of the family expels us. Otherwise, she will always be our master."
Fu Yun then asked, "What kind of punishment do you face if you violate the master-servant contract?"
Su Zi's expression turned somewhat awkward, and her tone weakened slightly: "Usually, servants are driven out by the head of the household. It is rare for servants to leave voluntarily. It is said that servants who voluntarily request to leave will be required to return all their monthly salary and will never be employed again."
Fu Yun then asked, "What if the master is unwilling to continue employing servants? Are there any penalties?"
"If the master intends to punish them, then we should find a way to get Su Tan to release Su Zi and Su Mang on his own initiative."
Su Zi shook her head: "If the master actively expels the servant, then neither the master nor the servant will face punishment. However, in that case, it will be difficult for us servants to find other masters, because the reputation of a servant who has been expelled is ruined, and no prestigious family will be willing to use such a servant."
Fu Yun: "..." So that means that no matter what the master does, he will not be punished. What a hateful exploitative class.
"If you voluntarily leave the Su residence, wouldn't you have to return all your previous salary? Can you afford to pay that amount?"
As for Su Mang, after all, she had gone through the fire incident with him and knew a lot of the inside story. If Su Tan were to hold a grudge against her, it probably wouldn't be so easy to let things go.
If things really escalated to the authorities, Su Tan might not be in the right. Besides, she knew very well that Su Mang left the Su residence to save the young master of the Su family, and now they were in the same boat. If she wanted to deal with Su Mang, she would have to consider her youngest son. In other words, whether she would be punished for the marriage alliance or for deceiving the Empress, everything was at a critical juncture, and she dared not cause any more trouble.
If she didn't want to make a big fuss about it, she could only turn a blind eye and let Su Mang fend for herself.
Su Zi is different. After the fire incident, Su Zi was still in the Su residence and was a servant of the Su residence, so leaving was not so easy.
Even if he was the young master of the Su family before, he had no right to take away Su Zi, who had signed a master-servant contract with Su Tan. Moreover, now that he has left the Su family, he has no right to ask Su Zi to follow him.
Unless they manage to get Su Tan to give up on Su Zi on his own, if Su Tan takes the matter to the authorities after Su Zi leaves on her own, he will probably only be dealt with according to the law.
"I..." Su Zi found it difficult to speak, especially since she was saying such shameful things in front of a weak man. She felt even more embarrassed: "I don't have that much money right now."
After finishing a steamed bun and taking a sip of porridge, Fu Yun continued, "Have you calculated how much silver needs to be returned in total?"
Su Zi lowered her eyes, looking very uncomfortable: "I entered the Su family when I was twelve years old, and my monthly salary was one tael of silver. Now, ten years have passed, and I need to return one hundred and twenty taels of silver. Although I have saved some silver over the years, it is far from enough. I still need to raise about one hundred taels."
Fu Yun: "..." Let alone a hundred taels, he couldn't even come up with twenty taels right now.
“So…” Fu Yun finished the porridge in his bowl and asked Su Zi a question: “Then would you mind being kicked out of the family by the head of the family?”
Since we can't raise the money, let's find a way to get Su Tan to voluntarily expel us without spending a single penny.
Su Zi raised her eyes to look at Fu Jun, her eyes showing a hint of conflict.
Seeing her like this, Fu Yun knew that she still had concerns, so he said directly, "If you are sure that you will do business with me, then you will no longer need to be a servant for wealthy families. Even if you are driven out, you can still survive. You might as well consider it."
Su Zi hesitated, clearly still having doubts about what Fu Yun said.
Although Su Mang repeatedly said that the young man was resourceful and would surely achieve great things.
But he was, after all, just a man, and his path in business would inevitably be extremely difficult. If he failed to make a name for himself, wouldn't her escape route also be blocked?
Fu Yun could easily see through Su Zi's thoughts, and he didn't hold back, his tone becoming stern: "Indecisive people can't achieve great things. As the saying goes, those who achieve great things don't concern themselves with trifles. If you want to change your destiny, you naturally need to break with convention and bravely step out of your comfort zone. How will you know this path won't work if you don't try?"
Upon hearing this, Su Zi felt as if she had been struck by lightning. Yes, the situation couldn't get any worse. Even if the young master ultimately failed, so what? At worst, he would just die. If the young master made a name for himself, then she could live for herself. Why not?
"Then, young master, what should I do next? I'm afraid the head of the family won't easily kick me out."
Fu Yun wiped his mouth with a handkerchief, put the bowl and chopsticks into the sink, washed his hands with clean water, and then stood up and went out.
"I suggest you don't show any intention to leave the Su residence for now. Instead, maintain the original facade and occasionally make some minor, harmless mistakes. These won't be serious enough to warrant severe punishment, but they'll easily make your master lose patience. Eventually, she'll start thinking about abandoning you. As for those opportunistic servants who look down on you, you need to change your attitude and build good relationships with them. Give them small favors from time to time so they can taste the sweetness of success. They'll naturally stop making things difficult for you, and they might even secretly help you for that little bit of money. Although you'll have to pay some money, it'll be much easier than having to return over a hundred taels. Your days at the Su residence won't be so unbearable."
Before Su Zi could respond, Fu Yun continued, "No one will turn down money, especially those who are most in need of it. If they want more, they won't cut ties with you."
Su Zi stared wide-eyed, as if she were seeing the person in front of her for the first time. Her heart was filled with shock: Was this still the same timid and cowardly young master? If these words came from the head of the family, she wouldn't be so surprised, but coming from the mouth of the weak and timid young master Su, it was truly like the sun rising in the west.
"Besides, you can't hit someone who's smiling at you. Being tactful won't do you any harm. That's all I can say. Whether you do it or not is up to you."
Fu Yun, without waiting for Su Zi's response, walked outside the courtyard and quickly scanned the surroundings. She found that Ye Lan was not at Lu Zhisheng's door. No wonder Su Zi hadn't reacted even after being inside for so long.
"Young master."
Su Zi called out from behind Fu Yun.
Fu Yun turned around and saw a fighting spirit burning in Su Zi's eyes as she looked at him with a determined expression: "I'll listen to you. I also want to live for myself."
Fu Yun curled her lips into a smile, a hint of amusement flashing in her eyes, and encouraged, "Once you've made up your mind, just go for it."
Su Zi nodded and took her leave from Fu Yun, saying, "Then I'll go back first. Young master, please take good care of yourself."
"Wait a minute," Fu Yun called out as she watched Su Zi leave.
Su Zi paused, turned around, and asked, "Is there anything else, young master?"
Fu Yun said, "I also need your help with something."
Su Zi said seriously, "Tell me, as long as I can do it, I will definitely get things done properly."
Fu Yun bluntly stated, "I need you to keep an eye on Su Tan's movements and find out in private who the people she's meeting behind her back are."
Su Zi agreed without hesitation: "I understand, young master. Please wait for my news."
Fu Yun sincerely thanked her: "Then I thank you in advance. If you have any problems, you can come to me anytime."
Su Zi smiled and nodded, clearly feeling much more relaxed now that she had a direction: "Okay, I'm off."
[Mr. Fu, do you really trust her? What if she's a spy planted by Su Tan? Wouldn't that be like planting a time bomb?]
Xiao Ba reminded him with some concern.
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