65 Let’s Get to Work!
Seeing Zhou Xiaoli’s formality, the two of them were stunned. However, they did not think that the contract was a sign that Zhou Xiaoli did not trust them.
Instead, they felt that Zhou Xiaoli was very thoughtful.
The village chief could not help but laugh and lament, “You don’t say, Little Li is really smart. This contract should be signed! I’ve seen some big businessmen in the city discussing business, and they all do this.”
Liu Liangcai also nodded. “Little Li is so thoughtful at such a young age. She’s really extraordinary. If I had such a smart daughter, that would be my biggest blessing.”
Hearing the two of them praise their daughter, Zhou Yu and Zhang Lan felt honored. They were extremely proud in their hearts, but on the surface, they were very humble as they spoke.
The village chief and Liu Liangcai hit it off immediately. “Then let’s sign it quickly.”
As the two of them spoke, they were about to press their fingerprints.
Zhou Xiaoli smiled and said, “Uncles, there’s no need to rush.”
Then, she looked at Zheng Heping and said, “Uncle Village Chief, you are an educated man. Please read the contract to everyone. If both of you do not think that there is any problem, we can go ahead to sign the contract then.”
As she spoke, she handed the contract to Zheng Heping.
The village chief laughed. “Alright, I’ll recite it!”
With that, he took the contract and stood up. He coughed and read it aloud.
The contract was drafted by Zhou Xiaoli, and it was written in simple words so everyone could understand it.
After reading the contract, no one had any objections.
The three men pressed their thumbprints on the contracts and each of them took a copy. The collaboration was finalized.
“Come, come, come. We’ve been talking for so long. Hurry up and eat.”
“Hahaha, Sister-in-law’s cooking is really good.”
“Come, come, let’s celebrate the success of our collaboration.”
…
The room was filled with laughter.
Because they still had to work the next day, the three of them did not drink till the wee hours. After expressing their friendship, they stood up and bade farewell.
After sending the two of them off, the family washed up and went to bed early.
However, the Liu family and the Zheng family were destined to have a sleepless night.
In the Liu family, Lin Xiujuan sat on the bed with the contract in her hand. She looked at it happily.
Liu Liangcai wiped his feet and looked at his wife. He teased, “You’ve been staring at it for the past 15 minutes. You can’t read, so what can you tell from it?”
Lin Xiujuan was in a good mood and didn’t mind her husband’s words at all. “I’m happy even if I can’t read! Sigh, look, I told you that the eldest daughter of the Zhou family is protected by an immortal. It’s true!”
Liu Liangcai smiled. He thought of something and reminded her. “We’ve signed a confidentiality agreement. You have to keep your mouth shut and not show off to others.”
Lin Xiujuan nodded. “Aiya, I know. I’m not stupid. Even if I don’t sign the contract, we have to keep it a secret. If the recipe is leaked, we won’t be able to earn money!”
Liu Liangcai smiled. “You’re smart this time.”
“I’m always smart.”
As she spoke, Lin Xiujuan carefully folded the contract and locked it in the box with the family assets. She then hid it in the crack under the bedside table. Only then did she feel relieved.
She hurriedly climbed into bed and urged, “Hubby, hurry up and sleep. We still have to work at the Zhou family tomorrow.”
At the same time.
The situation at the village chief’s house was similar.
“Little Li gave us 30% of the profits, which means for every half kilogram of sugar, we would get 18 copper coins. After deducting the cost of less than one copper coin, we are looking at a very big profit.”
The village chief tapped his pipe and spoke unhurriedly.
His sons and daughters-in-law listened attentively.
They didn’t know what 30% profit was, but after the village chief explained it in monetary terms, they widened their eyes in excitement.
The village chief took a puff of his cigarette and continued, “I often tell you that the most important thing in life is to be loyal! If others are kind, we can’t be heartless. Don’t you think so?”
Everyone in the house nodded.
As the eldest in the family, Zheng Yonggui was the first to stand up. “Yes, Father is right. From now on, Zhou Yu and us are one family!”
The second, third, and fourth brothers of the Zheng family nodded along with their eldest brother. “We will definitely work hard.”
The village chief was extremely satisfied and continued to instruct, “Alright, tomorrow, Eldest Brother, Eldest Daughter-in-law, you two will go to the Zhou family to help first.”
“Alright, everyone knows the situation. That’s all. Hurry up and go to sleep.”
…
However, the Zhou family did not know the current situation of the two families. They had long fallen asleep.
The night passed in silence.
The next day, early in the morning, the Zhou family had just finished eating when
Liu Liangcai, Lin Xiujuan, and his son, Liu Fengfeng, came with pots and basins.
As soon as she entered the courtyard, Lin Xiujuan was raring to start. “Sister, if you need me to do anything, just tell me.”
As she spoke, she rolled up her sleeves.
Lin Xiujuan loved money, was stingy, and had a sharp tongue. However, she doesn’t cheat nor slack off. Moreover, she was a straight person. She would be straightforward with her likes and dislikes and would not play dirty.
More importantly, the fact that she loved money made her very easy to control.
This was also one of the reasons why Zhou Xiaoli would not refuse to cooperate with the Liu family over Lin Xiujuan.
Zhang Lan was boiling green bean tea then. When she heard this, she poked her head out of the kitchen and shouted, “There’s no hurry. My family is going to start building the house today. My husband just brought Li’er to the homestead and will be back soon. We’ll wait for them.”
“I’ll make a pot of green bean tea first and send some to the construction workers. We’ll leave some for ourselves. It’ll be easier to relieve the heat when we’re tired from work.”
However, Lin Xiujuan did not want to be idle. “What are you waiting for? If Brother Zhou doesn’t come back, we can work by ourselves.”
As she spoke, her gaze landed on the beetroots. “There’s no need to say anymore. We definitely have to wash the vegetables!”
“You make the tea and I’ll wash the vegetables. Fengfeng, help Mother put the beetroots in the basin!”
Then, she said to Liu Liangcai, “Hubby, stop standing there. Hurry up and fetch water.”
As she spoke, Lin Xiujuan started working.
Liu Liangcai responded, picked up the shoulder pole, and walked out of the door.
At this moment, the village chief’s wife, Liu Yan, came with her son and wife.
As soon as she entered, she saw that Lin Xiujuan had already started working.
Liu Yan was embarrassed immediately. “Aiya, why did they start working before we came? Yun Yun, quick, bring our basins down from the cart.”
“Yonggui, hurry up and fetch water.”
Liu Yan instructed her son and daughter-in-law to work. She had already rolled up her sleeves and brought the pot into the courtyard from her cart. She said to Zhang Lan, “I heard from my husband that you were afraid that your family didn’t have enough pots, so I brought a big one. This is my family’s biggest pot.”
Zhang Lan had a constant smile on her face. She looked at the pot and was overjoyed. “Aiya, this is good. I was just thinking that my pot would not be big enough.”
“However, there are now many pots, but there aren’t that many stoves.”
On the other side, Lin Xiujuan said loudly, “Hey, that’s not a big issue! My husband is skilled at building stoves! When he comes back after getting water, let him build one in the courtyard. It’ll be very fast.”
“That’s good! Let my Yonggui help too,” Liu Yan said with a smile.
65 Let’s Get to Work!
Seeing Zhou Xiaoli’s formality, the two of them were stunned. However, they did not think that the contract was a sign that Zhou Xiaoli did not trust them.
Instead, they felt that Zhou Xiaoli was very thoughtful.
The village chief could not help but laugh and lament, “You don’t say, Little Li is really smart. This contract should be signed! I’ve seen some big businessmen in the city discussing business, and they all do this.”
Liu Liangcai also nodded. “Little Li is so thoughtful at such a young age. She’s really extraordinary. If I had such a smart daughter, that would be my biggest blessing.”
Hearing the two of them praise their daughter, Zhou Yu and Zhang Lan felt honored. They were extremely proud in their hearts, but on the surface, they were very humble as they spoke.
The village chief and Liu Liangcai hit it off immediately. “Then let’s sign it quickly.”
As the two of them spoke, they were about to press their fingerprints.
Zhou Xiaoli smiled and said, “Uncles, there’s no need to rush.”
Then, she looked at Zheng Heping and said, “Uncle Village Chief, you are an educated man. Please read the contract to everyone. If both of you do not think that there is any problem, we can go ahead to sign the contract then.”
As she spoke, she handed the contract to Zheng Heping.
The village chief laughed. “Alright, I’ll recite it!”
With that, he took the contract and stood up. He coughed and read it aloud.
The contract was drafted by Zhou Xiaoli, and it was written in simple words so everyone could understand it.
After reading the contract, no one had any objections.
The three men pressed their thumbprints on the contracts and each of them took a copy. The collaboration was finalized.
“Come, come, come. We’ve been talking for so long. Hurry up and eat.”
“Hahaha, Sister-in-law’s cooking is really good.”
“Come, come, let’s celebrate the success of our collaboration.”
…
The room was filled with laughter.
Because they still had to work the next day, the three of them did not drink till the wee hours. After expressing their friendship, they stood up and bade farewell.
After sending the two of them off, the family washed up and went to bed early.
However, the Liu family and the Zheng family were destined to have a sleepless night.
In the Liu family, Lin Xiujuan sat on the bed with the contract in her hand. She looked at it happily.
Liu Liangcai wiped his feet and looked at his wife. He teased, “You’ve been staring at it for the past 15 minutes. You can’t read, so what can you tell from it?”
Lin Xiujuan was in a good mood and didn’t mind her husband’s words at all. “I’m happy even if I can’t read! Sigh, look, I told you that the eldest daughter of the Zhou family is protected by an immortal. It’s true!”
Liu Liangcai smiled. He thought of something and reminded her. “We’ve signed a confidentiality agreement. You have to keep your mouth shut and not show off to others.”
Lin Xiujuan nodded. “Aiya, I know. I’m not stupid. Even if I don’t sign the contract, we have to keep it a secret. If the recipe is leaked, we won’t be able to earn money!”
Liu Liangcai smiled. “You’re smart this time.”
“I’m always smart.”
As she spoke, Lin Xiujuan carefully folded the contract and locked it in the box with the family assets. She then hid it in the crack under the bedside table. Only then did she feel relieved.
She hurriedly climbed into bed and urged, “Hubby, hurry up and sleep. We still have to work at the Zhou family tomorrow.”
At the same time.
The situation at the village chief’s house was similar.
“Little Li gave us 30% of the profits, which means for every half kilogram of sugar, we would get 18 copper coins. After deducting the cost of less than one copper coin, we are looking at a very big profit.”
The village chief tapped his pipe and spoke unhurriedly.
His sons and daughters-in-law listened attentively.
They didn’t know what 30% profit was, but after the village chief explained it in monetary terms, they widened their eyes in excitement.
The village chief took a puff of his cigarette and continued, “I often tell you that the most important thing in life is to be loyal! If others are kind, we can’t be heartless. Don’t you think so?”
Everyone in the house nodded.
As the eldest in the family, Zheng Yonggui was the first to stand up. “Yes, Father is right. From now on, Zhou Yu and us are one family!”
The second, third, and fourth brothers of the Zheng family nodded along with their eldest brother. “We will definitely work hard.”
The village chief was extremely satisfied and continued to instruct, “Alright, tomorrow, Eldest Brother, Eldest Daughter-in-law, you two will go to the Zhou family to help first.”
“Alright, everyone knows the situation. That’s all. Hurry up and go to sleep.”
…
However, the Zhou family did not know the current situation of the two families. They had long fallen asleep.
The night passed in silence.
The next day, early in the morning, the Zhou family had just finished eating when
Liu Liangcai, Lin Xiujuan, and his son, Liu Fengfeng, came with pots and basins.
As soon as she entered the courtyard, Lin Xiujuan was raring to start. “Sister, if you need me to do anything, just tell me.”
As she spoke, she rolled up her sleeves.
Lin Xiujuan loved money, was stingy, and had a sharp tongue. However, she doesn’t cheat nor slack off. Moreover, she was a straight person. She would be straightforward with her likes and dislikes and would not play dirty.
More importantly, the fact that she loved money made her very easy to control.
This was also one of the reasons why Zhou Xiaoli would not refuse to cooperate with the Liu family over Lin Xiujuan.
Zhang Lan was boiling green bean tea then. When she heard this, she poked her head out of the kitchen and shouted, “There’s no hurry. My family is going to start building the house today. My husband just brought Li’er to the homestead and will be back soon. We’ll wait for them.”
“I’ll make a pot of green bean tea first and send some to the construction workers. We’ll leave some for ourselves. It’ll be easier to relieve the heat when we’re tired from work.”
However, Lin Xiujuan did not want to be idle. “What are you waiting for? If Brother Zhou doesn’t come back, we can work by ourselves.”
As she spoke, her gaze landed on the beetroots. “There’s no need to say anymore. We definitely have to wash the vegetables!”
“You make the tea and I’ll wash the vegetables. Fengfeng, help Mother put the beetroots in the basin!”
Then, she said to Liu Liangcai, “Hubby, stop standing there. Hurry up and fetch water.”
As she spoke, Lin Xiujuan started working.
Liu Liangcai responded, picked up the shoulder pole, and walked out of the door.
At this moment, the village chief’s wife, Liu Yan, came with her son and wife.
As soon as she entered, she saw that Lin Xiujuan had already started working.
Liu Yan was embarrassed immediately. “Aiya, why did they start working before we came? Yun Yun, quick, bring our basins down from the cart.”
“Yonggui, hurry up and fetch water.”
Liu Yan instructed her son and daughter-in-law to work. She had already rolled up her sleeves and brought the pot into the courtyard from her cart. She said to Zhang Lan, “I heard from my husband that you were afraid that your family didn’t have enough pots, so I brought a big one. This is my family’s biggest pot.”
Zhang Lan had a constant smile on her face. She looked at the pot and was overjoyed. “Aiya, this is good. I was just thinking that my pot would not be big enough.”
“However, there are now many pots, but there aren’t that many stoves.”
On the other side, Lin Xiujuan said loudly, “Hey, that’s not a big issue! My husband is skilled at building stoves! When he comes back after getting water, let him build one in the courtyard. It’ll be very fast.”
“That’s good! Let my Yonggui help too,” Liu Yan said with a smile.
