Chapter 126 Bitterness
Su Li came to the embroidery workshop early next morning. Administrator who was busy processing orders was really happy when he saw Su Li, because Su Li didn’t come for a long time.
“Workshop Owner, I haven’t seen you for ages. I heard from Dean Wen that you hanged out. How about your trip?”
“Thank you for your concern. The Qinghe River was really beautiful.”
Su Li replied with a smile and then said, “I come here for collecting my salary in the embroidery workshop.”
Jia An stunned and then smiled, “Workshop Owner Su, you are the one I have ever seen who didn’t care about salary at all. I thought that you have forgot your salary, because you hadn’t mentioned it for four months.”
“You are joking, Grandpa Jia. In fact, I…”
Su Li told Jia An the situation of the Su Family. Although Su Li said in a soft tone, Jia An frowned a little. He never thought that virtuous Workshop Owner Su should be bullied by her families.
“Workshop Owner, if you need any help, you can tell me and I will try my best to help you.” Jia An couldn’t bear to see that warm-hearted Su Li was bullied by members of the Su Family. There was rumor before that Su Li was in a bad situation in the Su Family, but Jia An never thought that it was true.
“Thank you so much, Grandpa Jia. Let’s talk about the salary.”
After showing her thanks to Jia An, Su Li mentioned her salary again. Jia An laughed and said, “Workshop Owner Su, you know that each workshop owner can get ten percent dividend of the embroidery workshop’s profit. But do you know how much the embroidery workshop’s profit is every month?”
“I…”
Su Li didn’t know how to say because she never concerned about the profit of the embroidery workshop.
“Haha, I knew that you have no idea about it.” Jia An laughed and then said, “Our embroidery workshop has reached contract with the feudal office, and the profit of each month is over one million taels. Workshop Owner, you can take to percent of the whole profit, which is 100 thousand taels. So, you can get 400 thousand taels of profit for four months.”
Su Li was really shocked because she never thought that a workshop owner could get so much profit. There was no wonder that she seldom saw Feng Qingru embroidering in her previous life. It turned out that the salary of the workshop owner was so high.
“60 percent of the remaining profit will be handed over to the feudal office and then to the imperial court. The rest 30 percent of the profit is used for the development of the embroidery workshop, so the workshop owner doesn’t need to worry about the operation of the embroidery workshop. Actually, since Workshop Owner Su’s fame was spread, our business is more prosperous than before and many businessmen cooperate with us because of you.”
Jia An praised her so much and was about to continue. But he saw Gao Dahai rushed in the room in a hurry. Gao Dahai said, “Something is wrong! Administrator, Workshop Owner, there are some people outside who claim that they are the family of Workshop Owner Su and they are about to come to the back hall.”
Hearing Gao Dahai’s report, Jia An was startled. As the saying went, “Speak of the devil and he doth appear”. Seeing that Su Li was worried and frightened, Jia An wanted to protect Su Li spontaneously, so he talked to Gao Dahai in a low voice, “Let them go to the central hall. Workshop Owner, you can have a rest in the back hall and I will deal with them.”
Su Li nodded. She thought that Wu Yun must be observing her secretly, so the less she was in touch with Su Huanli and others, the safer she was. As a matter of fact, Su Li was tired of suppressing her inner intentions to kill them. She was bored with pretending to be lovable facing with members of the Su Family. Now that Jia An could deal with them, Su Li thought that she could have a rest.
After a short time, Su Huanli and others came to the central hall angrily. Seeing that well-dressed Jia An stood in the central hall, Su Huanli restrained himself a little and bowed slightly. Then he said arrogantly,
“I am Su Huanli, father of the Workshop Owner of the embroidery workshop, Su Li. What should I call you?”
Su Huanli looked down upon Jia An because he thought that Jia An who worked in the embroidery workshop must be under Su Li. Su Li was his second daughter, so, Su Huanli had a sense of superiority.
Hearing Su Huanli’s words, Jia An sneered and said indifferently, “I am Jia An, administrator of the embroidery workshop. I have worked here since the last workshop owner took office. So, Landlord Su, you don’t need to frighten me with Workshop Owner Su.”
Hearing Jia An’s words, Su Huanli and others were really shocked and thought that Jia An wasn’t easy to deal with. They doubted whether Wu Yun said was true or not.
“Administrator Jia, I know that you have worked in the embroidery workshop for many years. There is something that I just wonder if I should tell you.”
Mam. Su-Cui stepped forward with a crafty expression.
“Please.”
Thinking of that Mam. Su-Cui was elder than him, Jia An said politely.
Seeing that Jia An showed a polite attitude, Mam. Su-Cui was relieved. She said, “Although Su Li is rich and outstanding now, she can’t change the fact that she is the daughter of the Su Family. I heard that she was too busy in the school to come here to collect her salary, so I can take it for her now.”
Hearing what Mam. Su-Cui said, Jia An was stunned because he didn’t expect that Mam. Su-Cui was so shameless. She even took it for granted that she took Su Li’s salary.
“Old Lady, I am sorry that I have to refuse you. There are some rules in the embroidery workshop. Although you are the grandma of the Workshop Owner, you can’t take the salary for her.”
Jia An rejected sharply. Then Mam. Su-Cui sneered and said, “Well! Huanli, go to the school immediately to get Li. Doesn’t her stuff belong to the Su Family? She is just a lecturer in the school, but she doesn’t care her family at all. What an unfilial daughter she is!”
Hearing Mam. Su-Cui’s cynic words, Jia An’s temper began to fray. Mam. Su-Cui just regarded Workshop Owner Su as a human. What did she think she is? A tool of making money?
But Jia An would take anything to let Su Huanli stay, or Su Li’s whereabouts would be exposed.
“Landlord Su, please don’t go!”
Jia An stopped Su Huanli and said, “The Workshop Owner is busy and can’t be bothered. What Old Lady said just now is reasonable, so, Old Lady, you can take the salary for the Workshop Owner.”
Hearing that Jia An allowed them to take Su Li’s salary, Mam. Su-Cui and others were delighted and thought that what Wu Yun said was really true. Su Li truly had money hided in the embroidery workshop.
“I want to know how much Old Lady wants to take?” Jia An took out an account book and asked.
“We will take all her money!”
Su Huanli said excitedly because he wanted to buy another place to build a branch of the Baiwei Building with Su Li’s money. If they didn’t take all of the money, what if it’s not enough to buy the place?
“All her money?!”
Jia An was so angry that he wanted to fling the writing brush down on the ground.
Jia An thought that the Su Family should be a little grateful and would leave some money to Su Li. But he didn’t expect that Su Huanli who was the biological father of Su Li would want to take all Su Li’s money now. After paying the rent of the Fulai Inn yesterday, Su Li only had less than one tael of silver. Members of the Su Family were really heartless.
“Now that you are heartless, I won’t be so easy on them.”
Jia An sneered in heart, but he nodded and said calmly, “The Workshop Owner’s salary is one thousand taels each month, so, her total salary is four thousand taels for four months. Old Lady, would you like the bank note or cash?”
Hearing Jia An’s words, Mam. Su-Cui’s smile faded and she blurted, “Four thousand taels? That’s all?”
Jia An showed an unconcerned expression and said, “How much does Old Lady think the Workshop Owner can get? The position of a workshop owner is a sinecure and she doesn’t need to do anything ordinarily, so one thousand taels each month is enough. I think it is the most satisfactory position in the world.”
Seeing that Jia An was so serious, Mam. Su-Cui thought that what Jia An said should be true. But she looked terrible, because Wu Yun told them that they could get at least hundreds of thousands taels of silver here. Although members of the Su Family didn’t believe what Wu Yun said, they expected that they could get at least tens of thousands here. Now they could only get four thousand taels, which was much less than that they expected.
Mam. Su-Cui and others were disappointed so much.
Jia An snickered but said impatiently, “Old Lady, do you still want the four thousand taels? If you won’t take it, I will go now because I am busy and have no time to waste.”
“I will take it!”
Mam. Su-Cui answered as she nodded repeatedly. She was intensely eager for wealth, and how wouldn’t she take?
“Old Lady, here is the bank note of the Wantong Money Shop. I have something to do now, so I will go first.”
Then Jia An left after putting away the account book. Su Huanli still wanted to ask something about Su Li, but Jia An had already left.
“Well, I never expected that the salary of the Workshop Owner in the embroidery workshop was so low. Erya is really useless…”
Then Mam. Su-Cui who took the bank note fixed her eyes on Su Huanli and asked, “My son, how much silver did you bring?”
“50 thousand taels!”
Then Su Huanli took out a handful of bank notes and said, “It is enough for us to buy a satisfactory place and open a branch, but I don’t know whether Li is willing to…”
“She must be!”
Mam. Su-Cui stared at Su Huanli and said, “She is the sinner of the Su Family. Even if she opened ten thousand Baiwei Buildings with her money, she can’t atone for what she had done! My son, each time you are soft-hearted, you should think of Xiaoyan’s baby who was aborted because of Eyra.
“Yes, I know.”
Hearing Mam. Su-Cui’s words, Zhu Yan who was pregnant showed a sinister smile. She would give birth to her son in over one month, and then she would ruin Su Li at that time.
“Madam Wu Yun… She is really my lucky star.” Zhu Yan thought.
Seeing that members of the Su Family left, Jia An who had been observing in secret walked out from the yard and said with a smile, “Workshop Owner, they are gone. You can come out.”
Su Li came out from the back hall with red eyes. She saluted and said, “Thank you so much, Grandpa Jia.”
“Gosh! Don’t do that!”
Jia An stopped Su Li quickly and said, “I just did the thing I should do. You shouldn’t give 400 thousand taels of silver to your heartless family. Let me save it for you. You can open another branch in the Qinghe Town after you leave the Su Family.”
Su Li nodded gently and said with a smile, “Everything will be okay while my eldest brother comes back.”
Jia An nodded with a smile, but he wondered who was Su Li’s eldest brother? Su Li was so excellent that she was really a miracle in the disgusting Su Family. Was there another talent like her?”
Su Li didn’t take her salary from the embroidery workshop because she decided to do as Jia An said. In the afternoon, Su Li did nothing but went to the Fulai Inn to tell Wang Fulai that she couldn’t afford one thousand taels of silver temporarily, because all her salary was taken by her family. Therefore, Wang Fulai had to wait until Su Li got her salary in next month.
Hearing Su Li’s explanation, Wang Fulai was really angry. But he could do nothing but sigh, “Lecturer Su, if you have the opportunity to leave the Su Family in the future, don’t hesitate to leave and have your own life. If you are in a higher position in the future, the Su Family will bring you more trouble.”
“Thank you for your reminding.”
Su Li nodded and then left. Seeing Su Li’s back in the distance, Wang Fulai shook his head helplessly. He was afraid that Su Li might not listen to him.
It was at night. Fang Yuan came to the attic of the Linli Building and saw the graceful figure of Su Li. She was drinking by the window.
Fang Yuan sighed, “Do you prepare to entangle with the Su Family all the time?”
Su Li turned around and said firmly with a smile, “Entangle? No! It is not entanglement. I haven’t tortured them enough yet! They owed me. They haven’t paid the price for what they have done. How could I let them go so easily? They owed me too much…”
Then Su Li’s voice faded to a whisper.
Fang Yuan hesitated for a moment and then walked toward Su Li. Seeing that Su Li was drunk, Fang Yuan held her and put her in the soft bed. Then Fang Yuan murmured,
“How much bitterness have you experienced? Why you never tell me…”