Chapter 151: Payday

When Mengmeng heard her mother say this, she couldn’t understand and asked, “Mom, why?”

“Why don’t Grandfather and Grandmother want to come?”

Cheng Xiaolin pondered how to explain this to her daughter, but no matter how she thought about it, she couldn’t come up with a better way to say it.

She decided to pass this difficult task to her husband to handle, saying, “Mengmeng, when your dad finishes his bath and comes down later, you ask him about it.”

“Okay.” Mengmeng was so curious that she waited at the top of the stairs for her dad to finish bathing and come down.

Cheng Xiaolin went back to the kitchen to watch the pot. It had to be said that a well-renovated kitchen was really convenient to use.

Cheng Xiaolin felt that if you didn’t consider the surrounding convenience and related facilities, this small two-story house they built themselves was far better than the house they had in Beijing before.

While busy cooking, Cheng Xiaolin also listened carefully to the sounds outside, worried that Mengmeng might get into trouble or hurt herself.

It seemed like only a few minutes had passed, and her soup wasn’t even done yet when her husband had already finished bathing and come down from upstairs.

“Dad, Dad.” Mengmeng shouted loudly with all her might.

Cao Shujie felt very pleased hearing this. He asked, “Mengmeng, why are you calling for Dad?”

Cheng Xiaolin heard her daughter ask loudly, “Dad, why won’t Grandfather and Grandmother come? I want Grandmother to play with me.”

“Oh, I want them to come too, but they don’t want to. What do you think we should do?” Cao Shujie asked his daughter.

When Mengmeng heard her dad ask this, she scratched her head and thought hard, but in the end couldn’t come up with a solution. She was so anxious she was almost crying, “Dad, I don’t know either.”

Seeing how seriously she was thinking about it, Cao Shujie was amused.

Cao Shujie played with Mengmeng in the living room for a while, then Cheng Xiaolin called him over to bring out the dishes and rice.

The first meal in their new home was simple and plain, but Cao Shujie found it tasted especially delicious.

After finishing dinner, Cao Shujie rushed to wash the dishes clean. When he came back, he saw his wife and daughter eating bananas.

Mengmeng was lazy. Whenever she encountered something slightly hard, she wouldn’t chew it.

Even though the apples they grew themselves tasted better, she found them too hard. After taking two bites and leaving two gaps in the apple, she wouldn’t eat anymore.

Cheng Xiaolin even said, “Honey, find a juicer sometime and make some apple juice for Mengmeng to drink.”

Cao Shujie agreed right away, but he felt that the squeezed juice completely destroyed the original flavor and wasn’t tasty at all.

That evening, after Mengmeng fell asleep, Cao Shujie pulled his wife into another room.

More than half an hour later, Cheng Xiaolin lay in her husband’s arms. By the faint moonlight shining through the window, she looked up at the ceiling and could vaguely see a slight glimmer of light reflected from the lamp shade, though it wasn’t very obvious.

The two of them quietly enjoyed this rare moment together.

…

The next morning, before six o’clock, Cao Shujie got out of bed. He felt the temperature in the room hadn’t dropped noticeably and was still around twenty-four or twenty-five degrees Celsius. Even if it was below freezing outside, wearing thin clothes inside the room didn’t feel cold at all.

Cao Shujie was particularly satisfied. He felt this was the kind of life he wanted.

Wearing thermal underwear, he came down from the second floor to the kitchen on the first floor, turned on the gas stove, and started simmering millet porridge in a small pot. He sprinkled a layer of Xinjiang red dates into it, half-covered the lid, and let it simmer on low heat. It would take about half an hour.

While waiting, Cao Shujie started stir-frying dishes, making a water egg for his daughter, then pouring some soy sauce and sesame oil over it. It smelled delicious.

Seeing there was still a block of tofu in the refrigerator, Cao Shujie took it out, cut it into thin long strips, lightly fried it in oil first, then stir-fried the tofu with green onions.

About half an hour later, the red date and millet porridge was ready. He lifted the lid, and a rich fragrance of dates filled the kitchen. Just smelling it made you hungry.

He stirred it with a spoon, and the large red dates had completely dissolved into the porridge. The date flesh had blended into the millet porridge, turning it a deep red color.

The barking of Daha and Erha came from outside. Cao Shujie only then remembered he hadn’t walked the dogs today.

He went to check the bedroom on the second floor and saw his wife and daughter were still sleeping. Cao Shujie left a text message for his wife, telling her that breakfast was already prepared and kept warm in the pot, and that he was going to walk the dogs.

Putting on thick clothes, he led the dogs out of the house. He went straight up the embankment from the road entrance on the north side, and in just a few minutes arrived at the Yellow River Dam. Seeing there was no one on the dam yet, Cao Shujie unleashed them and let them run around freely for a while.

Cao Shujie found a stone bench by the roadside to sit on and waited slowly.

About half an hour later, the four dogs came running back to him one after another, rubbing against his body, showing the close relationship between them and Cao Shujie.

In doing so, they got all the dirt and grass clippings from their bodies onto Cao Shujie, making him so annoyed he wanted to give them two slaps.

But seeing the innocent look on all four of their faces, Cao Shujie couldn’t bring himself to hit them.

He thought that next time he came out to walk the dogs, he would prepare a special set of clothes.

When he brought them back home from the dam, his wife Cheng Xiaolin was eating in the living room on the first floor.

“Honey, eating breakfast?” Cao Shujie greeted his wife.

Cheng Xiaolin turned to look at him, “I just woke up and was thinking about making breakfast, but who knew you’d already prepared it.”

“I woke up early and had nothing else to do. I couldn’t just wait for you to wake up and make breakfast,” Cao Shujie said with a smile.

“Hehe.” Cheng Xiaolin laughed and said, “You should go wash up and change clothes, and get ready to eat breakfast.”

The dirt and dry grass on her husband’s body were obvious at a glance.

“Is Mengmeng still asleep?” Cao Shujie asked her.

“Yes, I think she’ll sleep until eight o’clock,” Cheng Xiaolin said.

His wife’s guess turned out to be right. When Cao Shujie finished breakfast and was heading to the mountain, Mengmeng still hadn’t woken up.

Cao Shujie had already gone out the front door when he suddenly remembered something and went back into the house to ask his wife, “Honey, do you have any money?”

“How much do you need?” Cheng Xiaolin didn’t even ask why.

Cao Shujie said, “Give me 1,600, I need to pay Brother Chao his wages.”

“So soon you need to pay wages?” Cheng Xiaolin was genuinely surprised this time.

But she didn’t say much more and quickly stood up to get the money for Cao Shujie.

In a moment, she came back with a stack of cash and handed it to Cao Shujie, “Here, exactly 1,600 yuan.”

“Alright, I’m heading out.” Cao Shujie folded the money in half and stuffed it into his pants pocket, then left the house with a flourish. He went up the mountain path not far away, and soon arrived at the Orchard.

“Really convenient,” Cao Shujie said with particular feeling.

He discovered that living here was much more convenient than living at his parents’ place.

As expected, his father and Cao Shuchao had arrived early and were busy working in the Orchard.

Seeing Cao Shujie arrive, Cao Jianguo said to him, “Shujie, did you drink too much yesterday and not get up early this morning?”

Hearing his father say this, Cao Shujie waved his hand directly, “Dad, that little bit of alcohol is nothing. I sobered up last night, and this morning I got up before five o’clock to make breakfast and walk the dogs.”

“Look how busy you’ve been,” Cao Jianguo said.

This time Cao Shujie was smart enough to keep quiet and not argue with his dad about this.

“Brother Chao, come here for a moment.” Turning to see Cao Shuchao working, Cao Shujie called out to him.

“Shujie, did you need something?” Cao Shuchao asked him.

Cao Shujie smiled and asked, “Brother Chao, do you remember how long you’ve been here?”

“I arrived on the 4th, and today makes 27 days,” Cao Shuchao said without hesitation.

Starting from the 4th itself, he had been working twelve-hour shifts every single day without taking a single day off.

Moreover, throughout this entire period, Cao Shuchao had worked without complaint, never uttering a word of grievance or hardship.

If they were to award the best outstanding employee, Cao Shujie would unhesitatingly give it to him!

From this, one could see just how much a middle-aged man in need of money could endure.

“Brother Chao, look, from November until today we’re basically wrapping up the month. Tomorrow is December, and it’s less than two months until the New Year.”

“After the New Year, I’m planning to buy another batch of calves, and I’ll also get sheep and pigs. We might raise some geese too, and when that happens, the workload here will definitely be much bigger than it is now, the tasks will be more demanding. Brother Chao, you’ll have quite a heavy burden on your shoulders.”

When Cao Shuchao saw this, he felt both familiar and strange, as if he’d seen some big boss talk to their employees like this in a TV drama, but he never expected to receive this treatment himself one day.

Just as he was wondering what Cao Shujie would say next, Cao Shujie followed the usual script.

“But Brother Chao, don’t worry either. If things get too overwhelming later, I’ll continue hiring more people. But no matter how many people come in the future, for those who do well, we’ll have corresponding bonuses and subsidies.”

Pausing here, Cao Shujie looked at Cao Shuchao very seriously and said, “Brother Chao, you worked 27 days this month, so your wages are 1,485 yuan. Additionally, I’ve always felt you’ve done an excellent job, so I’ve decided to give you an extra 115 yuan in performance bonus. Together, that’s 1,600 yuan.”

After saying this, Cao Shujie pulled out a stack of folded bills from his pants pocket. Without minding Cao Shuchao’s stunned expression, he handed the money to him and specifically instructed, “Brother Chao, count it and see if it’s right.”

Cao Shuchao: “…”

He suddenly didn’t know what to say.

From the very beginning, he had never expected that Cao Shujie called him over to pay his wages.

Today was only the end of the month. Based on his previous experience working for others, any company that paid wages before the 20th of the following month was considered good. It was common for people to drag things out for an entire month, or even two or three months.

The most outrageous case was when he worked on a project for someone else and they dragged out his wages for a whole year. The payments came in bits and pieces afterward, and to this day they still hadn’t settled the final amount.

But who would have thought that working in the village, he’d get his wages settled at the end of the very same month.

What made it even more unbelievable was that this job actually came with a bonus.

Even though it was only 115 yuan in bonus, in Cao Shuchao’s mind, these were two completely different concepts.

“Shujie, the month isn’t even over yet. How are you paying me now?” Cao Shuchao asked.

Then he heard Cao Shujie say, “Brother Chao, don’t overthink it. I’m just that kind of person. You work honestly, and I can’t do something so shameless as to keep dragging things out without paying you.”

“Besides, when there was work before, we always did daily wage settlements. I can’t very well pay others promptly and then not be able to pay my own people, right?” Cao Shujie spoke very straightforwardly.

Hearing this, Cao Shuchao felt a sense of being valued.

Though paying wages early might seem like a small matter, to Cao Shuchao it was completely different in nature. It made him feel secure in his heart.

He had originally thought this was just a temporary measure, that he’d work here for Cao Shujie and earn a bit less money. But now Cao Shuchao had the thought that as long as Cao Shujie didn’t drive him away, he’d keep working.

Beyond that, this bonus was the first bonus he’d ever received in his life.

Cao Jianguo, standing nearby, watched this scene and listened to what his son said. He also supported his son’s approach.

He mused to himself, “My son knows how to win people’s hearts. He’s got some skill.”

Cao Jianguo wasn’t someone who knew nothing. He’d at least watched the Three Kingdoms TV drama and listened to storytelling, and he knew some tactics of great leaders. But he never expected his own son would quietly start employing such methods too.

But this didn’t mean his son had done anything wrong.

Cao Shujie didn’t know what his father was thinking. He did this because Cao Shuchao had indeed performed very well.

As for the extra bonus, Cao Shujie wasn’t giving it blindly either.

115 yuan was roughly equivalent to a bit more than two days of Cao Shuchao’s wages, equivalent to three times a normal eight-hour shift’s pay. In Cao Shujie’s view, considering long-term development, this amount was reasonable.

In the time that followed, without Cao Shujie saying anything, Cao Shuchao worked with even more effort and enthusiasm.

Around noon when it was almost 12 o’clock and he headed home for lunch, the moment Cao Shuchao walked through the door, he called out to his wife, “Qianqian, come here.”

His tone was quite forceful and full of confidence. Ma Wenqian looked at her husband in surprise, not knowing what had happened to make him so bold.

“What is it?” Ma Wenqian stood in place without moving, looking at him and asking.

“Hehe!” Cao Shuchao waved his wife over, “Qianqian, come here, come quick. I’ve got good news for you.”

“What good news could you possibly have?” Ma Wenqian sounded a bit irritated. She said, “If you’ve got something to say, just say it. Spit it out already!”

“You’re no fun at all,” Cao Shuchao pulled out a plastic bag folded into a rectangular shape from his pants pocket. He carefully unfolded the plastic bag and took out the 1,600 yuan that Cao Shujie had just given him today, handing it to his wife. “Here, this is the wages and bonus Shujie just paid me today. 1,600 yuan total. Count it.”

Ma Wenqian was instantly stunned.

She never expected that calling her over was about this.

After a moment, she came to her senses and said, “Shuchao, that’s not right. You only started at the beginning of this month. The month isn’t even over yet. How did you already get paid?”

Right after saying this, she noticed something else was off, “Did Shujie miscalculate? I did the math for you. You worked 27 days, so it should be 1,485 yuan. How did he give you 1,600…”

The next moment, Ma Wenqian said very seriously, “Shuchao, we don’t have money, but we can’t do something so unscrupulous. If Shujie made a mistake, we should go find him right now and return the extra money.”

“Wife, I already told you, the extra money is a bonus Shujie gave me because he thinks I performed well. Why don’t you believe me?” Cao Shuchao felt wronged in his heart.

Hearing him say this, and seeing his serious expression, Ma Wenqian’s face became serious too. “Shuchao, tell me carefully what happened.”

Just as she was saying this, Ma Wenqian remembered something. She said, “Go wash your hands first. I’ll bring you the food. You can tell me while you eat.”

“Okay!” Cao Shuchao agreed.

In the time that followed, while eating, Cao Shuchao recounted everything that had happened this morning to his wife.

After hearing her husband finish, Ma Wenqian rubbed her face with both hands. She looked at her husband across from her with a somewhat dazed expression. Previously, she thought he was foolish because he was simple-minded, that something was missing upstairs.

But now a phrase suddenly popped into Ma Wenqian’s mind: “Fortune favors the foolish!”

A person like her husband who works so honestly, if he hadn’t run into a conscientious boss, how would he ever get any bonus at all?

It would be like a fool’s dream.

But after calling her husband back from outside, Ma Wenqian never expected that finding a job back home, her husband would actually run into such a conscientious boss.

Cao Shuchao quickly finished the two steamed buns, eating so fast that he choked and felt uncomfortable.

When Ma Wenqian saw this, she hurriedly handed him a water cup. After Cao Shuchao drank some water and got the bun down, he asked his wife again, “You believe what I said now, right?”

“Yes, I believe you, okay?” Ma Wenqian had completely changed her attitude. Seeing that her husband’s cup was empty, she picked up the thermos and poured him another cup of cooled water.

Then she said, “Shuchao, since Shujie is treating us this way, we absolutely must work hard and never let him down for placing his trust in us.”

Cao Shuchao nodded. He said, “I know. Just rest assured, I will definitely work hard.”

“Yes, I believe in you.” Ma Wenqian nodded heavily. Never before had she felt this way, her heart so at ease and secure, feeling that this family finally had someone to hold it up.

She continued, “But don’t exhaust yourself either. If you keep working like this every day, you won’t be able to handle it in the long run.”

“Wife, I’m fine. I’m not tired at all. While I still can earn money and Shujie is willing to give us this opportunity, what’s a little extra effort?”

“Our son needs money for school, our mother needs money for medicine, and we need money for fertilizer and pesticides for the fields at home.”

“All of these require money, so I have to earn it. There was no way before, but now that I have this opportunity, I need to seize it well.” Cao Shuchao spoke quite fluently.

In this moment, Ma Wenqian looked at her husband with newfound respect.

She thought to herself that she must have misjudged him before. Her husband might seem simple and honest, but perhaps it was a case of great wisdom appearing foolish?

But Cao Shuchao wasn’t finished yet.

His mouth wasn’t good with words, and he couldn’t say anything particularly moving, but precisely because of that, what he said was extremely genuine. Every word touched her heart, and after Ma Wenqian heard it all, her heart felt warm.

“Wife, you only spend money on the family. I’ve never seen you willing to buy anything for yourself. You won’t even eat the fruit you buy, and the clothes you wear are still from years ago.”

Ma Wenqian thought to herself, “So he’s remembered all these years of my sacrifices.”

(End of Chapter)

Translator’s Notes

• Three Kingdoms TV drama: The ‘Three Kingdoms’ (Sanguo) is a pivotal period in Chinese history (220–280 AD), famous for its complex political and military strategies. Stories from this era are widely popularized through novels, operas, and TV dramas, making it a common reference for strategic thinking.