Witty Wife, Better Life

Chapter 663: Chapter 653 Establishing Prestige

Zhang Chunwang was not afraid of her, and he couldn’t back down at that moment, with so many people watching. If he backed down this time, he’d never be able to manage these people in the future.

"Fine, we agreed at the beginning that distribution would be based on labor. You do the work, and I’ll pay you accordingly," Zhang Chunwang glanced at the few radishes she had thrown. "This is at most five li of land. The wage should be seventy-five fen, but I’ll round it up to eighty fen for you. Go over there to get paid."

Zhang Chunwang’s assertive stance had subdued all the military wives present. They had thought that since Shen Yunfang was also a military wife and had specifically hired them from the military district, he would show some consideration and save face for everyone. After all, they would be living in the same place; if things really soured, it wouldn’t look good for anyone.

But now it seemed that he was truly not giving any preferential treatment just because they were military wives.

Some who had thought about causing a ruckus immediately shrank back, becoming quiet and compliant. They hadn’t come for just a few pennies; they’d better quietly earn their money.

The stubborn military wife looked around and was surprised to see no one coming forward to speak up for her. Caught between a rock and a hard place, how embarrassing it would be to just take the few pennies and go back. She would be the laughing stock from now on.

"Well, just sending me back is such a waste of gas money. How could I let Xiaoshen lose out? Alright, alright, I give up. So I won’t throw the radishes; I’ll be more careful." She had given in.

Zhang Chunwang didn’t press further once she relented. After all, they were running their own business and their principle was to prosper in harmony. As long as everyone complied with the management, that was fine.

So, Zhang Chunwang put on a smile, "Haha, thinking this way from the start is correct. We’re not on a communal system here. The wages we pay come straight out of our boss’s pocket. So with us, everything is negotiable, but compliance with management is essential. Do your assigned work well, and there’s nothing to complain about."

He then raised his voice to address everyone, "The radishes we’re collecting are for sale, so you need to be mindful of their appearance when picking them. If they’re too damaged or there are too many bad ones, I can’t explain it to the boss. I hope we can all be considerate of each other. Also, after collecting for a while, please gather the radishes toward the center, as a tractor will come this afternoon to collect them."

Zhang Chunwang’s little outburst had intimidated the military wives, and the rest of the afternoon went smoothly. At the farm, they provided free boiled water for those who were tired and thirsty; they could go to the end of the field to drink, which was quite considerate.

At five in the afternoon, work ended on time, and everyone headed to the Drying Yard where they had started. The radishes they had picked were now neatly transported there.

Zhang Chunwang had a list that recorded everyone’s labor, and one by one, he distributed the money each person had earned.

In one afternoon, the twenty-four people had collected less than forty acres. There was a wide range in productivity; the person who earned the most made two yuan and fifty fen, while the least earned one yuan and twenty fen.

This disparity was quite significant. So, as these people were leaving, some had faces beaming with joy while others looked downcast. The military wives who had stayed behind to probe the situation were left baffled.

"What’s wrong with you? Did Xiaoshen not pay you?" One of the military wives who lacked tact grabbed a woman with a sour face and asked.

"Mind your own business. Are you entitled to something whether I got paid or not? Ridiculous." The offended military wife, having been asked about it, made a face and stormed off.

"Hey, what did I say? She’s in a bad mood, but why take it out on me?" The slighted military wife was also displeased and began to complain loudly behind her.

"Oh, come on, Sister Zhao, you can tell she’s upset, why get mad at her? That’s just making things worse for yourself. Let’s go ask Xiaojin," another military wife quickly pulled her away.

Xiaojin was the one who had earned the most money among the twenty-four people, so her smile was the brightest. When she returned, several familiar military wives surrounded her, inquiring about her experience at Xiaoshen’s farm—what kind of work they did, whether it was tiring, and if they were paid, among other things.

Xiaojin answered all their questions. When everyone learned that she had made two yuan and fifty fen in just one afternoon, they were ecstatic.

"What, you made two yuan and fifty fen in one afternoon?" Some were incredulous.

"Mhm, I’ve always been quick when working at home. Besides, it’s nothing new, so it wasn’t much trouble," Xiaojin said modestly, yet with a hint of bragging.

"Wow, if you work a full day that’s five yuan, which means one hundred and fifty yuan in a month!"

Everyone who heard this gasped in disbelief, one hundred and fifty dollars, that’s more than two months’ wages for their men at home.

"Xiaojin, has Xiaoshen finished the work? Did they say if they need people tomorrow?" This was regret for not having gone in the afternoon. If she had gone, could she have earned two dollars and fifty cents as well? However, she considered herself to be stronger than Xiaojin, so she should have earned more.

"Yes, I see there’s a big piece of the field that hasn’t been harvested yet. Boss Shen also said to meet at our military zone gate at seven o’clock tomorrow morning; they’ll send a vehicle to pick us up. If anyone of you wants to go, you’d better go and let them know after dinner tonight, otherwise, there might not be enough transport and you’ll miss out," Xiaojin said and then pushed her way through the crowd to go home. Now that she had earned some money today, she needed to make something nice for the kids to give them a treat.

Speaking of Shen Yunfang, by the time she got home, the kids were already back, but Li Hongjun hadn’t returned yet. After entering the house, she started changing clothes and cooking.

"Mom, what are we having for dinner tonight?" Manman asked, peeking his little head through the kitchen door.

"What does Manman want to eat?"

"Meat."

Shen Yunfang was speechless; everyone in their family had one thing in common, a love for eating meat.

"Okay, how about braised lamb chops for tonight?" Shen Yunfang thought about what meat she had in her pantry and quickly settled on the menu.

"I also want pig’s head meat and shredded cucumber," Pangpang called out from within the house.

"Alright, focus on your homework."

Ding dong ding dong...

"I’ll get the door!" Manman hopped and skipped towards the door.

"Ask who it is before opening the door," Shen Yunfang always taught her children to be conscious of safety at all times.

"Okay."

...

"Mom, someone’s looking for you."

It wasn’t long before Manman called out.

Upon hearing this, Shen Yunfang put down the kitchen knife, wiped her hands with a cloth, and pushed aside the door curtain to walk out.

"Is there something the sisters-in-law need from me?" There were two military wives at the door she didn’t know very well.

"Hehe, Xiaoshen, we heard from Xiaojin that you need people for work tomorrow, right? We came to ask if it’s okay for us two to come along. Don’t worry, we’re from the countryside, we can handle the work," one of the military wives asked somewhat ingratiatingly.

Oh, they were looking for work.

"Sure, if you sisters want to go, just be at our military zone gate at seven o’clock sharp tomorrow morning; don’t be late," Shen Yunfang said, outlining the simple requirements.

"Okay, okay, we definitely won’t be late. You go on with your tasks, we’ll head back now." After saying this, the two didn’t linger and turned around to leave.