Spring Breeze Twenty Years

Chapter 247 Guan He

Xiao Wei walked to the door of the small house, and Hao Xiaodong's wife saw him and got up from the bed.

Xiao Wei said with a smile, "Sister-in-law, I'm so sorry. Everything here is just beginning, and there's so much to do. We've been busy with the machinery and equipment these past few days, and we completely forgot about Brother Hao. As a result, he's been stuck here for so long and hasn't been able to go home. Please don't be angry with Brother Hao; it's all our fault."

Hao Xiaodong's wife forced a smile, smoothed her hair, and said, "It's alright, you guys go ahead with your work." Despite Hao Xiaodong's burly appearance, his wife was quite pleasing to the eye. She was neither fat nor thin, had big eyes, was in her thirties, and looked to be over 1.6 meters tall.

Xiao Wei asked, "Sister-in-law, where do you work?"

Hao Xiaodong said, "She worked at the bed sheet factory, but it stopped production a long time ago. She's been staying at home for several years now, earning a few dozen yuan a month."

Xiao Wei said, "Sister-in-law, don't be angry. How about this? You come to work too, and I'll pay Brother Hao his full monthly salary for the next ten days as an apology."

Hao Xiaodong's wife was stunned for a moment, then turned to look at Hao Xiaodong.

Hao Xiaodong smiled and said, "It would be great if she could come and work here. I'll forget about her salary; I'll just pay her the normal rate. She's pretty slow; I'm just worried she won't be able to handle it."

Xiao Wei said, "Yes, that's how it's supposed to be. You've been working 24 hours a day for ten days, eight hours a shift, that's a month, right? Sister-in-law, I work at a food factory, making cakes, bread, biscuits, and these things. Have you ever worked with these before?"

Hao Xiaodong's wife was a little embarrassed. She smiled and said, "I used to work in a bed sheet factory watching the dyeing machine. I would never have had the chance to do this kind of thing. I probably wouldn't be able to do it."

Xiao Wei said, "It's okay, I'll learn. I didn't know anything before either. It's settled then. Sister-in-law, you can come over tomorrow. These people just arrived today; they're all new here."

Chen Hui said, "Actually, all your sister-in-law needs to do is learn how to use the machine, and it would be best if she could master the ingredients. When our students are doing their internships, they need an intern teacher, right? To distribute materials, keep track of numbers, supervise the use of the machines, and arrange the specific arrangements for the students' internships. The teachers over there can't be with you every day, right? They'll probably just explain the recipes and demonstrate a bit. If we arrange an intern teacher, the class can keep up a bit."

Xia Maosheng said, "Hey, hey, that's right, Chen Hui really outperformed everyone today. With just a few ingredients, you can learn to make them in a few days."

Xiao Wei nodded and said, "Okay, then we should also get an intern instructor for the chefs, right?"

Xia Maosheng said, "Chef internships basically involve hands-on work. We'll have to go to restaurants. Xiaohui will arrange some, and our restaurant will arrange some. We'll just have practical classes here. This place can be used as a canteen. Sister-in-law, you can help with the arrangements. No need to do anything else."

Chen Hui said, "Yes, just hand over the pastries to Sister Shang."

Xiao Wei nodded and said to Hao Xiaodong's wife, "Then it's settled, sister-in-law. You come tomorrow and learn from Sister Shang and the others for a while. When the school starts classes in the spring, you can come and be a student teacher. By the way, what's your surname, sister-in-law?"

Hao Xiaodong's wife said, "My name is Guan He."

Xiao Wei said, "We originally wanted my dad to run the boiler here, but we had to move and get the household registration sorted out, so he hasn't been able to come yet. Brother Hao is helping us out. Once my dad comes, Brother Hao will still be working shifts with Brother Yu at the restaurant. It probably won't be long. Sister-in-law, please be understanding and don't be angry with Brother Hao, okay?"

Guan He was a little embarrassed, her face flushed, and she smoothed her hair as she said, "I'm not angry with him. Why would I be angry about work? The key is that it's been over ten days, and he hasn't said he'd go back to visit. There's not even a word from him. The child and his mother have both caught colds these past two days, and I can't manage them all by myself. That's why I came to discuss this with him, and he just started arguing with me." She glared at Hao Xiaodong.

Xia Maosheng said, "Then Brother Hao, you should go back and take a look. Don't be careless about the children and the elderly. The three of us are here."

Hao Xiaodong ran his hand through his messy hair and said, "It's nothing, just a cold. A few injections will do the trick. I'll take a shower and go home tonight." Guan He looked up, hesitated, and sighed.

Xiao Wei said, "Is something wrong? If there's anything, just say so. Brother Hao, we're family since we're all together, we'll definitely help if we can." Hao Xiaodong chuckled, took out cigarettes and offered them to the three of them, lit one for himself, looked at his wife, took a puff, and said, "It's nothing."

Xiao Wei said to Guan He, "Sister-in-law, is something wrong? If it's nothing, just tell me. Don't be like Brother Hao; he's a grown man who's too proud to admit his mistakes. We'll definitely help if we can."

Guan He glanced at her husband, licked her lips—they were rosy and slightly upturned, looking quite sexy. She smiled sheepishly and said, "We're out of money. We need to buy coal soon, and his brother and my child need to pay school fees. I had to send him back to find a way. I haven't worked for years, earning only about thirty yuan a month, and he's been doing that for almost two years. He finally got a job this time, but it was through connections and money. We just can't make ends meet with that little money. His brother doesn't work either; he just does odd jobs to earn a little."

Chen Hui asked, "What about your brother's family?"

Hao Xiaodong said, "My younger brother got divorced, his wife left him, and he doesn't have a proper job. As his older brother, I can't just stand by and watch. A couple of years ago, my sister-in-law and I were both working, and things were alright then. But these past two years, we've just had bad luck."

Xiao Wei reached into his pocket, pulled out five hundred yuan, and handed it to Hao Xiaodong, saying, "Is five hundred enough? Why don't you let your brother come work here too? The restaurant needs a helper, and there will be plenty of odd jobs here. We'll definitely need to find someone else. Let your brother come work here for a while, and we'll see how things go later." He stuffed the money into Hao Xiaodong's hand.

Hao Xiaodong looked at the money and said embarrassedly, "This is nothing, I've only been working here for a few days. Boss, just deduct it from your salary. We'll settle it as soon as it's deducted enough." He handed the money to his wife. As a boiler operator, he was considered a senior worker, and with night shift pay and other benefits, his monthly salary was over four or five hundred yuan, which was significantly higher than that of other positions.

Xiao Wei smiled and said, "Okay, you can pay me back when you get paid. Pay me back 100 a month, and finish it in five months, okay? Liu Hongliang is driving now, and there are no odd jobs at the restaurant. They don't pay much, only 220 a month. If you can do it, come tomorrow."

Xia Maosheng whispered, "Wasn't it supposed to be someone from Sister Zhang's family coming?"

Chen Hui curled his lip and said, "People don't come because they think it's dirty and the wages are too low. They want to make big money."

Xia Maosheng asked, "What do you do to make big money?"

(End of this chapter)