Ruling the Historical Romance Novel as the Female Supporting Character-Chapter 65: The Calculations of Big Uncle’s Family were Sparking
"No one forced me; it was genuinely my decision to transfer. The main reason is that my husband’s health is not good, and he can’t do without someone’s care, so I couldn’t come out to work," Su Yijia replied with a bright and warm smile.
Her response helped alleviate the manager’s suspicion towards Lin Jiayao and Xin Meijia. After completing all the paperwork, the manager led them to Lin Jiayao’s designated work area.
"Because your niece is a heroic do-gooder, we’ve assigned her to handle fabrics and wool. The previous worker in charge of this area has moved to selling pastries, but this job isn’t as good as this one. Since you’re coming in as an outsider, you’ll need to pay attention to interpersonal relationships. However, as long as you don’t make any mistakes, you won’t have to worry about them. If they pick on you without any reason and come to tell me directly, I’ll deduct their wages." The manager was particularly clear in his instructions.
When Su Yijia came to work, he would give hints, but he would only indirectly mention these things. She understood that as long as she wasn’t bullied, it was fine. However, since she had given the job to her elder relatives, the instructions needed to be both clear and explicit. They needed to remember that they had taken over her niece’s job and that such a good position was due to her niece’s face.
"I understand! Thank you, Manager! Thank you, Yijia! If it weren’t for my niece’s dedication and her life-saving act, I wouldn’t have this job." Lin Jiayao repeatedly expressed his gratitude. He was a shrewd person, and there was no way he couldn’t understand the manager’s intentions.
But even if the manager hadn’t mentioned it, he was well aware that this job and this position were all due to his niece. Xin Meijia was also excited and repeatedly thanked the manager. When she saw the manager give her a cold look, she hurriedly held Su Yijia’s hand and sincerely said, "Yijia, Auntie knows you have a good relationship with your elder uncle, and I also know that you did this for the sake of your two younger cousins who are working in the countryside. Don’t worry; I will remember your kindness forever. When I save up enough money, I will bring your two cousins back."
"They are your daughters, born from your womb after ten months of pregnancy. I did this for the sake of my elder uncle, hoping that his two daughters wouldn’t be born in vain and that they could take care of him in his old age. But if you get the money and are only thinking about spending it on my cousin, I can’t control that. Trading a few years of extravagance for at least forty years of filial piety in the future is your own choice. If you don’t regret it, that’s fine." Su Yijia forcefully withdrew her hand. Although her words seemed to imply otherwise, she was actually subtly conveying that it would be best to bring her two cousins back.
"Yes, I will definitely bring them both back!" Xin Meijia hurriedly nodded.
In this supply and marketing cooperative, the most profitable sections are the fabric and pastry stalls. As the manager just mentioned, even the people who used to sell fabric weren’t too happy about being moved to the pastry section. It’s not hard to see that selling fabric is even more lucrative. In these times when people aren’t well-off, not many can afford to buy pastries. Most of the time, they can only sell half of their stock, with the other half being consumed by their own families. But when it comes to accumulated stock of old fabrics from a year ago or imperfectly dyed pieces that don’t require fabric coupons, those items are in high demand, and people scramble to get their hands on them.
Her husband now holds a position as a third-tier worker, earning a monthly salary of 35 yuan, which adds up to 420 yuan a year. Selling these leftover fabrics can fetch at least 50 to 60 yuan a year. So, within a year, they could afford to buy a job and bring one of their nieces back from the countryside. With a little more than 400 yuan, they could secure a job as a first-tier worker with a monthly salary of 25 yuan. Adding her husband’s 35 yuan per month, they could save 60 yuan each month. At most, it would take around eight months for their other niece to come back.
Once both nieces have stable jobs, they could start discussing their marriages. With secure employment, a dowry of 200 yuan wouldn’t be considered excessive. From the proposal to the wedding date, it would still take about a year. With both nieces contributing their salaries, plus the dowry money, they would have around 500 yuan.
In just two to three years, they could not only recover all the expenses they had incurred but also ensure that their entire family would be workers who ate commodity grain instead of having to grow crops by themselves. Even if their daughters got married and moved to their in-laws, they would be able to stand tall there. When the time came, they could even have a son-in-law to help support their family. It seemed like a promising future as the gears in Xin Meijia’s head turned rapidly. She could hardly contain her excitement, her mouth almost splitting from ear to ear as her thoughts raced.
Fortunately, Su Yijia didn’t pay much attention and simply waited for the manager and her eldest uncle to finish discussing the details of tomorrow’s work. Once they left the supply and marketing cooperative, she added, "Uncle, my parents and my younger sister all know I’m staying at the Qin family’s place. If you want to find me in the future, just ask them where I am, and they’ll tell you. I think they intentionally kept it from you to make you believe that I had changed my mind about giving you this job."
For a brief moment, Lin Jiayao’s smile froze on his face, but he quickly resumed his good-natured appearance.
"Yijia, don’t overthink it. Your mom has always had a fiery temper, and when she gets angry, she tends to forget what she was supposed to say."
"Think what you want; I’ve said what I needed to." Su Yijia shrugged indifferently. "Anyway, I have other things to take care of, so I’ll be on my way."
"Yijia, it’s already past three. In a little over two hours, we’ll be having dinner. Come over to Uncle’s place, and I’ll prepare some delicious food for you," Lin Jiayao insisted, grabbing her arm.
"Next time. I have other matters to attend to today." While Su Yijia declined today’s invitation, she left room for a future meeting. She had a feeling there was something off about this eldest uncle of hers, so when she had some free time, she needed to conduct necessary investigations.
"Alright, we’ll go by your schedule, Yijia." Lin Jiayao didn’t argue further and agreed with Su Yijia’s preference.
He could tell that his eldest niece had undergone a significant change in temperament since her marriage, and she was no longer receptive to commands or even slightly forceful attitudes. She would react negatively to such behavior.
Watching Su Yijia’s departing figure, Xin Meijia grumbled, "Why does this Su Yijia have no manners? We, as her elders, invited her for a meal, and she refused?!"
"Why can’t she refuse? Does she owe us something?" Lin Jiayao retorted, giving Xin Meijia a stern look.
Xin Meijia was on the brink of an angry outburst but restrained herself, considering their current location outside the supply and marketing cooperative.
"Lin Jiayao, just because you have a good job now doesn’t mean you can mistreat me. I’ve endured hardships with you for so many years. You can’t lose your conscience." Xin Meijia vented her frustration.
"We’ve been married for so long; why are you saying such nonsense? I’m just asking you to treat my eldest niece better in the future, and also, keep an eye on our son. Don’t let him bully Yijia. Just be nice and polite to them. Spend a few cents, buy an ice cream or some buns—those small gestures won’t cost you much." Lin Jiayao patiently advised.
