Chapter 138: Alarmed

Disclaimer: 

1. This is an unofficial translation and no permission has been obtained from the author/ official publisher. It may be taken down if the author/official publisher requests. 

2. This is a fan work and the interpretation represents only the translator’s personal views without any input from the author. 

3. No permission has been granted to use, publish, upload and/or copy this translation to any other site except for Second Life Translations.

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The family spent a few days in heated discussion, so engrossed that they forgot about everything else. They had no idea that this matter had also alarmed others. 

That morning, Liu Tao – who had been missing for quite a few days – finally came back. With him were Liu Changqi, Old Man Liu, Liu Gao shi, Liu Changshi and his wife. 

Basically, everyone in the family had arrived. 

When Liu Sen went to open the door, he saw them all file in, each with a darker face than the last, he was shocked and didn’t dare to say anything. He quickly dashed back into the room to report, “Dad, mum! Ye, nai, dabo, sishu have all come!” Then he said in a quiet voice, “They all look enraged!”

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Nkw Ubydttldt bye fwxrle wr vs zssj swv vbl okdeso, cwv Xze Yyd Nkw yde Nkw Qys pbk bye csvb yzalyeu xyel vblka oyu kdvs vbl assx. Nkw Qys pbk bye lhld blyae Nkw Fld’p zypv pldvldnl. Twqqkdt, pbl pyke, “Odaytle? Xq nswapl ol’al ldaytle! Zwd’la kp nzlyazu xyjkdt vaswczl qsa uswa qyxkzu’p cwpkdlpp – ol’hl yzz qswde swv! Mbyv czypvle tkaz kp fwpv nsxrzlvlzu wdxydytlyczl!”

Mbl ldvkal qyxkzu xyanble kd, yde vbl assx oyp qkzzle vs vbl cakx. Hbsw pbk bwaakle vs rswa vly qsa lhlausdl, obkzl Nkw Ubydttldt yde Tl pbk iwknjzu xshle vs prlyj vs Xze Yyd Nkw yde Nkw Qys pbk, “Pye, xwx, usw esd’v dlle vs cl vss osaakle….”

Nkw Ubydtik vbld kdvlaawrvle, “Mbkp kp yzz xu qywzv! R eked’v vlynb vbyv eayvvle tkaz olzz! Fbl nalyvle pwnb y zsv sq vaswczl…. R oyp fwpv osdelakdt obu pbl yde bla bwpcyde olal kd vbl hkzzytl qsa ps xydu eyup? Ebyv olal vblu eskdt? Jwv R fwpv ktdsale vblx. Rq Nkw Mys eked’v nsxl cynj vs vlzz xl, R pvkzz oswzed’v byhl jdsod obyv bye byrrldle…. Flnsde, obyv yal ol vs es dso? Ebyvlhla usw oydv… obyvlhla usw oydv, R okzz es!”

Nkw Ubydttldt pxkzle yde pyke, “Ebyv yal usw pyukdt? Ebyv es usw vbkdj R okzz elxyde! Psd’v pyu pwnb qaktbvldkdt osaep; vbl pkvwyvksd kpd’v vbyv plakswp….”

Nkw Mys bye clld pvydekdt clbkde Nkw Ubydtik vbl ldvkal vkxl. Ebld bl blyae vblpl osaep, bl pvyxxlakdtzu pyke, “Oapbw, R yx hlau nzlya ycswv vbl plhlakvu sq vbkp kppwl. Zsw esd’v dlle vs nsxqsav xl yde xu qyvbla. Mbkp xyvvla… El yal wdyczl vs nsxrldpyvl usw ds xyvvla obyv ol es….”

Nkw Ubydtik pyke ekprkakvlezu, “Mbyv’p aktbv. Zswa qyxkzu alzklp sd vbkp cwpkdlpp. Lso vbyv Zwd’la kp nzlyazu vaukdt vs vyatlv kv… R alyzzu esd’v jdso obyv vs pyu….”

Tl yrrlyale lmvalxlzu ekpblyavldle yde blzrzlpp.

Nkw Ubydtpbk pyke, “Oatl, eytl yde Mys yal alyzzu wdyczl vs nsxrldpyvl usw – vblu oydv vs, cwv vblu jdso vblu byhld’v vbl yckzkvu vs es ps… Mblal yal psxl osaep vbyv yald’v nsdhldkldv qsa bkx vs pyu, ps R’zz pyu vblx sd bkp clbyzq. Tl jdsop vblal’p alyzzu sdzu sdl vbkdt bl nyd pyu – bl nyd’v nsxrldpyvl usw! Jwv bl oydvp usw vs jdso vbyv bl’p yzps hlau ydtau. Zlpvlaeyu, eytl, Nkw Mys yde xuplzq yzz oldv vs Zwd’la’p bsxl. El pnszele vblx, yde dlyazu qswtbv okvb vblx. Jwv dso vbyv Zwd’la kp xyaakle, bla bwpcyde kp vss vswtb. Pytl oswzed’v cl yczl vs qsanl vblx vs…. Jypknyzzu, vbyv’p vbl pkvwyvksd dso!”

Everyone there understood the general situation. Liu Gao shi was thumping her thigh, scolding Liu Yun’er, and incidentally putting the blame on Fang Jicheng for coming up with the rotten idea. 

He Ruyu asked He shi about their plans. 

Old Man Liu told Liu Gao shi to stop – they needed to think of a plan! Liu Changshi asked Liu Changgeng if there was enough money. He had some….

Liu Changqi was still muttering non-stop that he really didn’t know what to say….

With everyone speaking at the same time, it was difficult to know who to pay attention to….

Shi Cheng pulled Liu Xu’er out of the room and quietly said, “You can assure them, and you can tell them that we’ve a plan, but don’t share any details with them for now… It’s not that I don’t trust your dabo and Liu Tao – from the look of things, Liu Tao does look to be very sensible and disapproving of Liu Yun’er’s actions. But to be safe, it’s best not to share any details. After all, everyone here is very straightforward and honest. If we were to tell them everything, others might be able to dig information from them – they don’t know how to guard against people. If the news were to leak to Liu Yun’er, things would get complicated fast! After all, both of you share the same circles!”

Liu Xu’er understood his intention. She nodded and said, “Got it.”

When the two of them had concluded their conversation, they went back into the room. Liu Changgeng and He shi were doing their best to assure Old Man Liu and Liu Gao shi, but they hadn’t told them yet that they already had a solution. They were used to waiting for Liu Xu’er to take the lead in business matters. 

Liu Xu’er came in and smiled at Liu Changqi. “Dabo, you don’t have to be so upset and anxious. Ye, nai, you don’t have to worry. We were all already aware of the matter. It’s nothing big. We can overcome it… Sange, don’t feel so guilty. We will be very busy in the upcoming days! You need to hurry back to work!”

Liu Tao originally had his head hung low. When he heard that, he raised his head abruptly. Shocked and delighted, he looked at her. “What, Xu’er…. I, I still can….”

Liu Lin laughed. “Why are you so emotional? As if we tried to shoo you away… Good timing – come out with me. We haven’t opened the store in quite a few days – we should open today. Also…. The two of us need to go around to look!” He said and pulled Liu Tao along with him. 

Liu Xu’er knew what her erge had pulled Liu Tao out to do. Liu Yun’er should also be opening a store, but the family had been searching the streets for several days and had no idea where it was located. Liu Tao however, should know. Erge wanted to take a look. 

At the side, Liu Shu had also guessed his intentions. Following them, he said, “About that… I also want to head out too.” He was worried about allowing just Liu Lin and Liu Tao to go by themselves. What if Fang Jicheng was also at the store? There might be some clashes if they met. 

Liu Changgeng’s entire family were clear about the reasons, so no one moved to stop them. He shi only said, “Make it quick. Come back soon.”

Liu Changqi and the rest were completely clueless as to what was happening. Liu Gao shi anxiously said, “Why aren’t you worried? What plan? You have two stores – I’ve heard that rental is very expensive! If no one is supplying you, how will you make rent…. I am worried to death about this matter….”

Liu Xu’er rushed to say, “Nai! There’s really no need to worry. We really do have a solution, and we will continue to open the store. There is currently still enough stock to supply our stores, and it is alright to slowly look for other sources of supply. Dabo, you don’t need to feel guilty. It’s the nature of business – when business is thriving, others will also want to copy your model. There are two other stores selling the same things next to our old store. This is very normal – it’s nothing much. As for Liu Yun’er, just let her try. We’re not afraid of her!”

He shi also nodded, “That’s right, dad and mum, there’s no need to worry. We still have enough stock for now.”

Liu Changgeng frantically nodded, before saying some more comforting words. It was only then that everyone’s mood relaxed somewhat. Liu Gao shi grumbled at Liu Changqi – look at how you’ve taught your daughter! This is still your fault! Liu Changqi bowed his head and accepted the reprimand. 

The younger generation, like Liu Xu’er and Shi Cheng quickly left, pulling along Liu Sen to go and discuss matters at Liu Xu’er’s courtyard.

Liu Changshi called Liu Changgeng out to quietly ask if they still needed money? Liu Changgeng smiled and said, “I know that you’ve money now, but I really don’t need it. We’re not at that stage.”

Liu Changshi then asked, “Then what help do you need?”

With that question, Liu Changgeng’s heart moved. He quickly asked, “Do you know any half grown boys, older than 10?”

Liu Changshi was stunned. Smiling, he said, “Apart from those in the village, how would I know any half grown lads?”

“It’s like this,” Liu Changgeng explained, “I need about six or seven such boys to help me work. Every month, we will pay 500 wen. Help me find them!”

Liu Changshi didn’t understand. “There’s nothing for you to sell so why are you looking for so many people…. What are you planning?”

“Don’t worry about that. That’s right, I need to be upfront that these boys can’t disappear during the busy farming season to help their families. But every month, they can return home for four days. Whether they use all four days of leave or they space out their leave is fine. We won’t deduct their pay if they use the leave.”

Liu Changshi was still shocked. But he started to nod, “Alright, I will ask my workers to look. They would know of more people looking for jobs…. This is your plan? Do you really have a plan?”

Liu Changgeng smiled and nodded his head, “There’s really a plan. Relax.”

The two brothers chatted outside, while Liu Gao shi lectured Liu Changqi. He shi stayed with her to calm her down, but after a while, she got rather embarrassed about the situation. She came out to call Liu Changgeng and Liu Changshi back to speak to their mother. 

Liu Xu’er could also see that dabo was really feeling very guilty. Otherwise, he wouldn’t be this shaken and bring the entire family over. With this, her trust in Liu Tao increased. In future, they wouldn’t need to guard against Liu Tao. 

Liu Lin and Liu Shu followed Liu Tao and finally located Liu Yun’er’s store. When they came back, they updated Liu Xu’er on its location. What was surprising was that it was in a very good location – it was on Feng town’s best street. They still hadn’t opened for business yet though – renovation work was still being done. That was why Liu Xu’er and the rest hadn’t been able to find it. 

When they went, the door was opened and all the workers were busy inside. Neither Fang Jicheng nor Liu Yun’er were there. Liu Lin had even gone in for a look and saw that they seemed to be going for a large, grand style. 

Liu Xu’er and the rest then left the matter alone. They had their own matters to prepare for. 

The next order of business was to confirm the assembly lines for the rest of the goods, and test them all out. Then according to the expected revenue and expenses, Liu Shu calculated a suitable wage. Actually, the pay for the different lines didn’t vary too much – about 500 wen each. This was because the number of people needed for each item was not the same. The more complicated items needed more manpower, while the simpler items needed fewer. As such, the pay was about the same. This would also help them avoid any comparisons – if the differential was too large, workers would feel uncomfortable. Now they needed to start looking for people. 

That day, Liu Xu’er’s jiujiu He Wenqing, He Wenhui brought her two jiuma over. Her xiaojiujiu had also tagged along. He Wenyu had been doing quite well with his apple trees in the past two years. He had recently gotten married and had brought along his new wife. The family had only just found out about the bad news, and had rushed over to ask about it. Since they were here, He shi took the opportunity to talk to them. She got Liu Sen to run to his sishu’s home to call He Ruyu over while Liu Xu’er joined them in their discussion. 

At first, jiujiu and jiuma were all rather worried. He shi then gave them a brief update, and reassured them that they already had a plan. It was only with that, that the rest of the family relaxed. 

These past two years, because they had been helping with the store – her two jiujiu would carve little trinkets in their free time, and her jiuma were making handkerchiefs and pouches – their families had earned some money. With the additional income, her two jiujiu had each bought a few more mu of land, which ate into their free time. Last year, they had told Liu Xu’er, somewhat embarrassed, that they no longer had time to help her. Liu Xu’er had naturally agreed and assured them there were no issues. She could find someone else to make those items. 

So her jiujiu had stopped, but her two jiuma had continued to make goods for her. 

Liu Xu’er had already started to make her own plans  and she slowly began to share them with her jiujiu and jiuma.