NOVPUB
Chapter 522: Are there really that many 512 Chapters?
It was past four in the afternoon when they finally finished their reunion dinner.
After the women quickly cleared the table, it was time for the main event of the day, distributing the money.
Although there were some leftover firecrackers and spring couplets, the firecracker business was a partnership between Shen Yunfang and Ma Liguo and had nothing to do with Li Xianglian and Dashuan’s family. Moreover, spring couplets couldn’t be sold after the lunar new year, so the business for this year had concluded. It was time to settle accounts and share the profits.
Mu Huazhen took out the ledger and said, "I went over these accounts yesterday, we just need to add the money we made this morning. Hurry up and sober up, let’s count the money and get it all clear so we can settle the accounts and distribute the cash."
Auntie Wang came into the room at this moment, carrying a large tray with freshly brewed tea, "Come on, everybody have a cup of strong tea to sober up."
"Auntie, don’t fuss over us, you’ve been busy since morning. Go and rest now," Shen Yunfang stood up and helped Auntie Wang distribute the tea to everyone.
"I’m not tired; cooking a meal isn’t that tiring. It’s much better than farming back in our hometown," Auntie Wang said cheerfully.
"Mom, I’ll wash the dishes in the kitchen in a bit, why don’t you go lie down for a while? We’re still going to need you later for making dumplings," Dashuan’s wife snatched the tray from Auntie Wang’s hands, insisting that her mother-in-law go rest.
"Ah, child, how much work have you done that you need to rest?" Auntie Wang knew that everybody meant well.
"That’s not the point. We young folks are here; there’s no need for you to busy yourself. Mom, go take a nap, and I’ll wake you when it’s time to make dumplings."
Everyone in the room was praising Brother Dashuan’s wife for being so filial towards their great aunt.
Dashuan scratched his head and started laughing sheepishly.
After Dashuan’s wife returned, Shen Yunfang brought out the pouch filled with today’s earnings, dumped it onto the table, and everyone began to grab and count the money.
It didn’t take long before they counted a total of 136 dollars.
That was just from selling spring couplets; they hadn’t counted the money from the firecrackers yet.
Mu Huazhen recorded the last entry in the ledger, then calculated and announced, "From selling spring couplets, we’ve made a total of 18,285 dollars and 40 cents this year. Out of that, wholesale sales alone brought in 16,000 dollars, and the rest came from our retail sales over the past few days. We’ll divvy up the money between our four families, with the lion’s share being 4,550 dollars for each household. The remaining 85 dollars and 40 cents, after discussing with Yunfang, we decided to give to Auntie Wang as a token of our gratitude. She’s been looking after the children and cooking for us all these days; it hasn’t been easy for her at her age. Elder sister, you don’t have any objections, do you?"
Li Xianglian quickly waved her hands, "I have no objections, no objections at all, it’s only right."
"No, no, we can’t take this money," Dashuan, however, shook his head, refusing the offer, "Wherever you are, you have to eat, right? Cooking a few meals isn’t much; besides, our kids are so good they pretty much look after themselves. My mom even told me a few days ago that she’s the one taking advantage of Yunfang. She’s got plenty to eat here, with lots of meat, it’s been much better than back home."
"Haha, Brother Dashuan, let’s not quarrel over such a small amount of money. Besides, Auntie really helped us all out by coming here. Sure, she’d be cooking for herself anyway, but is cooking for one person the same as cooking for all of us? Without Auntie Wang coming all this way to cook for us, we would’ve had to take turns staying home to look after the kids and cook, which would’ve cut into our profits. So this money is truly nothing but what she deserves. If you really think about it, we’re actually giving her too little," Shen Yunfang stood up, took the money from Mu Huazhen, and stuffed it into Dashuan’s wife’s hands.
"What do I do with this?" Dashuan’s wife held the money, unsure whether to keep it or give it back, so she turned her head to look at her husband for a decision.
"Why are you looking at him? Isn’t it you who calls the shots in your house? Just take it already. The old lady is also tired from these past few days. Since it’s the New Year, let’s consider it a New Year’s gift from us. We don’t have time to go shopping, so let’s just be a bit crude and give money directly, so she can enjoy shopping on her own time," Shen Yunfang gestured to her not to make a fuss, as it would not look good during the festive season.
Dashuan, seeing everyone smiling at him, shyly wiped his face and nodded at his wife, "Alright, since everyone says so, it would seem a bit pretentious to refuse. I’ll accept it on behalf of my mother, and also thank everyone on her behalf." 𝔫𝔬𝖛𝖕𝔲𝖇.𝖈𝖔𝖒
"Wrong, we should be the ones thanking the old lady," someone corrected.
Everyone laughed heartily and continued to divide the money.
"The remaining money is to be split equally among the four families. Count your own share, each family gets four thousand five hundred and fifty. Come on, start counting," Mu Huazhen instructed as she gave each family an empty pocket to hold their money.
Shen Yunfang then brought out a large cardboard box filled with bundles of neatly counted banknotes. Everyone pitched in and counted out four shares of four thousand five hundred and fifty each.
They could have counted it out earlier, and be done with it by now, but Shen Yunfang thought that wouldn’t be as impactful, so she did not count the money in advance, leaving it for everyone to do together.
After the money was split, Li Xianglian and her husband had smiles all over their faces. They had made much more than last year, and this year, since they had invested their own money, they felt less guilty and more joyful about the profits.
Dashuan and his wife, on the other hand, had faces full of shock. While they knew making money was one thing, actually seeing such a large sum piled up in front of them still seemed unbelievable.
Had they really earned so much money in less than a month?
"Yunfang, are you sure this is right? We really made this much?" Dashuan’s wife stuttered.
"Yes, it’s exactly this much, definitely no mistake. Sister-in-law, you better count it quickly, and if it’s correct, you better stash it away. It won’t be good if the kids come back and see this," Shen Yunfang understood her feelings very well. It was already impressive that she remained composed at her first sight of so much money being hers.
"We can’t let those two little rascals see this. They can’t keep their mouths shut, and if they talk, it’ll bring trouble," Dashuan’s wife muttered, but her hands circled around the pile of cash, unsure where to start.
Shen Yunfang promptly took a bag, swept all the money that was her family’s share into it, and then stuffed it into Dashuan’s wife’s arms, "Sister-in-law, take good care of it. Once you exit this door, if you talk about the money being incorrect, I won’t be responsible."
"Got it, definitely got it," Dashuan’s wife clutched the bag tightly to her chest and moved closer to her husband.
Everyone couldn’t help but laugh at her nervous demeanor.
As for the money from selling firecrackers, Shen Yunfang and Mu Huazhen decided not to split it yet. Since they still had half their inventory at home, both families agreed to settle the overall accounts after the fifteenth day of the New Year.
