Chapter 143: Very Expensive
Xu Youyou casually glanced at the middle-aged man. He was wearing a dirty worker’s uniform, his hair was messy, and his eyes were bloodshot. He looked extremely destitute.
Factory Director Chen sighed helplessly and said, “Lao Fang, it’s not that I’m targeting you, but you’ve seen the situation in the factory. I owe the bank a huge sum myself—I really don’t have any spare money to give you…”
Xu Youyou watched as the man called Lao Fang suddenly became furious. His gaze shifted to her—she stood to the side, looking refined and well-dressed.
“Chen, I just heard from a coworker that you took money to play with women. I didn’t believe it at first, but now I see it with my own eyes! You beast! You won’t even give me the wages I worked for! I… I’ll kill you!”
Lao Fang suddenly pulled a fruit knife from his waist and lunged at Director Chen.
The change happened too fast—no one had expected it. Lao Fang, filled with desperation, moved with precision and speed. The knife was about to stab into Director Chen.
A bodyguard standing close to Director Chen reacted instinctively, stepping in front of him.
Although Lao Fang had a knife, he was facing a professionally trained, well-built bodyguard.
The knife soon fell to the ground, and Lao Fang was subdued.
Director Chen’s face was pale, his body trembling slightly. The knife had been so close—Lao Fang’s eyes, filled with hatred, still haunted him.
If not for Xu Youyou’s bodyguard, he would have had to face Lao Fang alone. He had been completely unguarded. That knife would have stabbed him, and he might not have survived.
“Lao Fang, you’ve worked in this factory for over ten years. How could you be so reckless? It’s just a temporary shortage of funds. Do you really think I would delay wages if I had the money?” Director Chen questioned.
Lao Fang’s eyes were bloodshot. “My daughter is only three years old… She needs money for treatment… I’ve borrowed from all my relatives… She needs to live… You have money to pay deposits, but no money for our wages? I won’t accept that…”
Looking at Lao Fang, Director Chen felt a mix of emotions.
Xu Youyou, however, remained calm. She asked, “Director Chen, should we turn him over to the police?”
Lao Fang wasn’t afraid at all. “I don’t care if I die… But my daughter… Please, at least give me my wages.”
Director Chen looked at the desperate man, hesitated for a moment, then shook his head. “Miss Xu, when I first started this factory, Lao Fang was one of my first workers. Even though he tried to kill me, I’m fine now. Let’s not report him to the police.”
Lao Fang was stunned.
Director Chen sighed. “Lao Fang, I’m in the same boat as you. I’ve borrowed money from everyone I could. I have no cash left—everything is tied up in inventory. I planned to pay you all a bonus after this big order was completed… but who could have expected this?”
Lao Fang looked lost. “My daughter… What about my daughter…”
Xu Youyou asked, “How much in wages does he owe you?”
“Lao Fang is a skilled worker. His base salary is 2,000 yuan, plus piece-rate commissions. He’s worked overtime these past two months, so I owe him around 20,000.” Director Chen looked ashamed.
Lao Fang said, “It’s exactly 21,992 yuan.”
He remembered the number clearly—it was his daughter’s lifeline.
Xu Youyou continued, “How many years have you worked here? What’s your average salary?”
“I’ve worked here for 15 years. Normally, I make 5,000 to 6,000 a month, but I worked extra hard these past two months because of my daughter’s illness,” Lao Fang replied.
Xu Youyou turned to Director Chen. “I can’t keep a worker who causes trouble. If I take over this factory, I will fire him.”
Director Chen thought about Lao Fang’s hardships. “Miss Xu, Lao Fang has been through a lot. He only acted this way because he was desperate…”
Xu Youyou cut him off.
“I always follow labor laws. You’ve worked here for 15 years, so by law, I’ll compensate you with 16 months’ salary. I’ll calculate it as 10,000 yuan per month.”
Lao Fang’s eyes lit up. If he could get 160,000 yuan, his daughter’s surgery would be covered. “I’m willing to be fired, but the money…”
Xu Youyou turned to her assistant, Xu Fang. “Pay him 20,000 in back wages plus 160,000 in severance. Transfer 182,000 yuan. Consider this money a loan to Director Chen.”
Lao Fang’s eyes turned red, and tears streamed down his deeply lined face. “Thank you… Thank you…”
Xu Youyou glanced at Director Chen. “Director Chen, you don’t mind that I made this decision, do you?”
Director Chen replied, “Paying severance is the right thing to do.”
Xu Youyou continued, “I’m strict about business. You still need to sign an IOU. If I do buy this factory, I’ll deduct this money from the workers’ payroll funds.”
Director Chen nodded. “I’ll write it now.”
He quickly wrote an IOU, stamped it with his fingerprint, and handed it over.
Xu Youyou put it away, and Xu Fang transferred the money. When Lao Fang received a text from his bank confirming the deposit, more tears rolled down his face.
The bodyguards released him. He immediately dropped to his knees to kowtow to Xu Youyou.
Xu Youyou, however, stopped him. “This is the money you earned. You don’t need to thank me.”
Lao Fang choked back sobs and muttered a quiet “thank you” to Director Chen before staggering away.
Director Chen sighed. “Miss Xu, you are a kind person. I’ve run this factory for over ten years. If I had a choice, I wouldn’t sell it.”
Xu Youyou didn’t sense the typical greasy demeanor of middle-aged businessmen from him. Instead, she saw that he genuinely wanted to build something meaningful, so she patiently listened as he talked about his factory.
His factory wasn’t highly profitable, but it had a good reputation in the area. He paid higher wages than other factories, which was why so many locals competed for jobs there.
Even though wages had been delayed for two months, most workers hadn’t left.
But because of new speed regulations, the vehicles they produced couldn’t be sold. Director Chen refused to deceive buyers and had been struggling to find a solution.
Now, he looked at Xu Youyou nervously. “The workers’ wages and bonuses for these two months add up to nearly ten million. The land was cheap when I bought it, but I invested a lot in building the factory. There’s also machinery, equipment, and inventory… It all adds up. It might be expensive.”
Xu Youyou calculated her finances. A factory like this shouldn’t cost tens of billions. Her budget was ten billion yuan.
If the price exceeded that, she wouldn’t bother.
Director Chen hesitated before showing her a number, looking guilty, as if he were making a ridiculous demand. “It might… It might be 80 million…”
Xu Youyou’s heart relaxed. She had feared he would say 800 million.
She immediately agreed without even negotiating. “Deal.”
