Chapter 151: Another Formal Worker
The second day of the trial run.
Early in the morning, Little Hu Liu delivered the beverages.
Jian Xingxia glanced at the time; it was only seven o’clock. “You went to town past five in the morning?”
A round trip between the village and the town took at least an hour, not to mention the time needed to load and move the cargo. Looking at it this way, Little Hu Liu must have set out just past five.
Little Hu Liu tossed his head. “Hehe, couldn’t sleep.”
With an extra eighty yuan earned today, anyone would be too excited to sleep.
Little Hu Liu showed the procurement receipt to Jian Xingxia. “I went to the same owner from the wholesale shop last time, but he still complained that the order was too small and refused to give the lowest tier price. So, I went to check out two other shops.”
“There’s a wholesale shop behind the farmers’ market that’s been running for twenty or thirty years. The husband and wife who own it are quite nice. The moment they heard my situation, they gave me the wholesale price directly.”
Jian Xingxia took the list and looked over it. The canned drinks that normally retailed for three yuan had cost her one yuan seventy cents wholesale last time, but this time they were only one yuan twenty to one yuan thirty cents. The other fruit juices and tea drinks were also a few dimes cheaper than at the previous shop. The wholesale price of the mineral water dropped directly to seventy cents.
Jian Xingxia did the math. As expected, the profit margin for beverages was high—at least 150% and up. She could make at least one yuan per small bottle, and up to two yuan on the higher-end ones.
Jian Xingxia recorded it down and told Little Hu Liu to deduct the money from the advance payment himself.
Seeing Little Hu Liu’s manual tricycle, Jian Xingxia felt a trace of heartache. “I forgot to tell you, next time you deliver goods, just ride my electric tricycle. It’ll save you a lot of effort.”
She couldn’t even imagine how Little Hu Liu, braving the morning dew at past five o’clock, had managed to pedal a manual tricycle to haul so many beverages back.
Little Hu Liu grinned. “Will do! But Sister Xiaxia, I’ll borrow it for a month at most. Next month, I plan to buy a tricycle of my own.”
“Have you really thought it through? You’re truly not going back to school?” Jian Xingxia sub-consciously touched her own pocket and said solemnly, “Little Hu Liu, if you want to go to school, I can sponsor you. Just like a university student loan—interest-free.”
Jian Xingxia had no parents to rely on, and she had completed her university education entirely through student loans. She knew deeply how vital this was for someone who yearned to study.
Little Hu Liu blanked for a moment, then shook his head and smiled. “My mom says the same thing. She still wants me to go to school while she goes out to work odd jobs. But she’s deaf and mute; it’s very easy for her to get bullied working out there… Given our family’s situation, I’m better off not going to school.”
Jian Xingxia slapped her forehead. “How could I forget about this!”
She was just worrying about the manor being shorthanded! How could she have forgotten about Little Hu Liu’s mother? And… to look at it from a slightly calculating perspective, since Little Hu Liu’s mother was deaf and mute, she was the person least likely to leak any secrets. Even if she saw something bizarre, it would be very difficult for her to “tell” others.
Jian Xingxia immediately asked, “Little Hu Liu, would your mother be willing to come help out at the manor? The hours aren’t too long, standardly from ten in the morning to four in the afternoon. Six hours, one hundred yuan. Would your mother be willing?”
Little Hu Liu was rooted to the spot. “Sister Xiaxia, you’re willing to hire my mom?”
Jian Xingxia nodded. “My business isn’t stable yet, so for now it can only be counted day by day. If there aren’t many guests or if I have other arrangements, she might not need to come.”
Jian Xingxia was still in the trial run phase and wasn’t certain how the subsequent business would fare, so she didn’t dare speak blindly or make grand promises. She preferred to treat it like hiring a temporary worker—paying per visit.
Little Hu Liu stared blankly for a long moment, then suddenly leaped onto his vehicle. “Sister Xiaxia! Wait for me! I’ll go back and ask my mom right now! Wait for me!”
Jian Xingxia waved her hand, letting him go.
Little Hu Liu pedaled the manual tricycle as if it were equipped with wheels of fire, reaching home in a matter of minutes.
Auntie Chunhui was currently hanging laundry in the courtyard. Ever since Little Hu Liu’s father had his accident, his lower body was impaired. Although he wore adult diapers, it was still easy to wet and soil his clothes and bedsheets. Just washing clothes required three loads a day. Although they had a washing machine, some of the filth still had to be hand-washed before it could be put inside.
Seeing Little Hu Liu rush in frantically, Auntie Chunhui’s heart skipped a beat, and she could barely catch her breath. Back then, Little Hu Liu had rushed home in exactly this manner to tell her that his father had been in an accident.
Auntie Chunhui couldn’t help but pause with the bucket in hand, solemnly gesturing to Little Hu Liu: Don’t be in such a panic! It was too terrifying.
Though he was scolded, Little Hu Liu was still overjoyed. He said excitedly to Auntie Chunhui, “Mom! Sister Xiaxia sent me to ask if you’re willing to go work at her manor! Washing clothes and linens, changing bedsheets, tidying tables and chairs, clearing out garbage…”
Facing Auntie Chunhui, Little Hu Liu refrained from using the word “cleaner,” fearing it might make his mother feel uncomfortable.
But Auntie Chunhui caught on very quickly. She gestured: Me, going to the manor to be a cleaner?
“Um, it counts as a utility worker, primarily responsible for the cleaning aspect.”
In truth, Jian Xingxia had listed many tasks, all very fragmented. After all, there were only three or four people at the manor right now, so everyone had to share and divide up many chores, doing a bit of everything.
Auntie Chunhui asked nothing else and nodded vigorously. She wanted to go.
Before eight o’clock, just as Jian Xingxia finished preparing breakfast, Little Hu Liu brought Auntie Chunhui up the mountain.
Auntie Chunhui had taken a bath, changed into clean clothes, and brought along gloves, a face mask, an apron, and her own cleaning tools before coming up.
The clothes were borrowed. Once the villagers learned that Xiaxia had called Auntie Chunhui up the mountain to help, they immediately pooled together a set of clothes for her. Everyone was highly delighted and praised Jian Xingxia.
“I just knew Xiaxia is a good, conscientious child.”
“Just like her grandmother, always keeping the villagers in mind.”
“Hiring Auntie Chunhui is truly the right call! She’s the person who needs it most. Her household has it hard, yet she works swiftly and doesn’t gossip!”
“This is wonderful. Little Hu Liu might actually be able to go back to school!”
Following the guidance of Auntie Lu and Qi Shan, Auntie Chunhui wore black cloth trousers paired with a mid-sleeved, frog-buttoned tunic. Old Grandma Hu and her peers still had a few such garments, which they unearthed and gave to Auntie Chunhui.
Stepping into the mountains for the first time, Auntie Chunhui felt rather nervous. Furthermore, now that Jian Xingxia was her employer, she wrung her hands, completely at a loss for where to put them. She thought to herself, What should I “say”? Will Xiaxia be able to understand? I can’t hear, so will I miss the work Xiaxia assigns?
Auntie Chunhui’s awkwardness and anxiety were written completely across her face.
Jian Xingxia had Little Hu Liu help move all the beverages to their designated spots. Since there weren’t many people in the morning, she hadn’t called Sanniang and A-Feng over to avoid them running out of time and having to leave early. Breakfast didn’t require the plump auntie’s culinary skills either, so at this moment, she was the only staff member at the manor.
Jian Xingxia noticed Auntie Chunhui’s anxiety. Knowing that whatever she said right now would only make Auntie Chunhui more nervous, she simply chose to say nothing at all. Instead, she swiftly arranged for Auntie Chunhui to help.
