A Good Country Wife
Chapter 337 - 331_1

Chapter 337: Chapter 331_1

Although it was Zhao Zhiguang who had instigated the trouble, and his idea set things in motion, he wasn’t the only one consumed by greed. There had been those enviously eyeing Zhao Erhu’s wealth all along, and now, with someone leading the charge, they could hardly contain themselves. They thought to take advantage of this opportunity to squeeze more benefits out of Zhao Erhu’s family, preferably by making a big fuss about it. With everyone involved, the blame couldn’t be pinned on just one person.

The people Zhao Erhu picked were specifically chosen; most of them were actually of good character. Aside from a small number who sided with Zhao Zhiguang, the majority, though anxious about their wages, adopted a wait-and-see attitude, feeling that to do as Zhao Zhiguang suggested would be going too far.

There were also a few who knew Zhao Erhu well or had worked for his family before, who trusted in Zhao Erhu’s character and integrity. Seeing Zhao Zhiguang stirring up the crowd, they stepped forward to speak up for Zhao Erhu.

"Zhao Zhiguang, you’re harboring ill intentions and deliberately causing trouble! I know Dongjia better than you do; I’ve worked in his home before. Dongjia and the mistress treat people kindly and pay well. Don’t let a few rumors lead you to wild speculation."

"Zhao Dexing, everyone knows you’re close with Zhao Erhu. You’ve probably taken his favors, and that’s why you’d speak for him like this. We’ve worked for Zhao Erhu for so long; what’s wrong with asking for our wages? If it’s really just a rumor, Dongjia should just pay us, and no one would say another word. Otherwise, we’ll take their belongings to settle the debts. In any case, we can’t have worked all this time for nothing."

"Zhao Zhiguang, it’s too much to behave this way. Everyone falls on hard times now and then. Dongjia kindly let us work here, and he pays more than others do. Even if business is down and he can’t pay right away, can’t we show some understanding? After all, we’re all from the same village. Some of us are even related to Dongjia; we should be helping each other out, not kicking them while they’re down—it’s chilling to the heart."

Lin Yue stood at the door, taking silent note of everyone’s behavior. Human nature is such that when you are doing well, everyone flatters you, but when you’re down, they can’t wait to trample you and scrape some benefit for themselves. Those who are willing to be lenient and lend a hand at such times are truly worth befriending.

As for Zhao Zhiguang, who had instigated the trouble, he was likely to have been put up to it by someone else.

The rumor spreading in the village and the fact that they were terminating contracts with several mansions were known, besides Wu Qiang and his wife, only to themselves. Zhao Erhu had expressly told Wu Qiang and his wife not to speak of it, and they would definitely not say a word, nor would they themselves. Yet rumors had spread, growing more exaggerated, and now the turmoil had even reached their workshop—if Lin Yue couldn’t see the truth in that, she would be a fool.

Lin Yue snorted coldly. The person scheming behind the scenes was underestimating her far too much if they thought they could destroy her family’s business. Not to mention that she had twenty thousand taels of silver from selling embroidery, the savings from the family’s income over the past few months alone were enough to deal with this situation.

Someone noticed Lin Yue and shouted, "The missus is here, the missus is here!" All eyes turned to Lin Yue, waiting for her to give them an explanation.

"Yueyue, you’ve arrived," Zhang Chunhua said, worried about how to resolve the situation. She breathed a sigh of relief when she saw Lin Yue and hurried to greet her.

"Sister Chunhua, I heard from Dongzi that there was a disturbance and that Big Brother was injured. What’s going on? Why isn’t anyone working and instead causing a ruckus here?!" Lin Yue had already heard the cause of the issue from Dongzi and had been listening outside for a while, so she fully understood what was happening, but she feigned ignorance, her gaze sharp and her tone full of interrogation and dissatisfaction.

Perhaps it was Lin Yue’s commanding presence, but suddenly no one answered her question. Lin Yue continued, "Zhao Erhu spent money to hire everyone to work, not to cause trouble. Regarding today’s incident, whoever started this had better give me an explanation, or I won’t let it go lightly!"

Zhao Zhiguang was intimidated by Lin Yue’s imposing manner, but he snapped out of it, thinking he had lost his senses. The mistress was just a woman; why should he fear her? He remembered the advice given to him: to cause such a stirring that Zhao Erhu’s workshop could no longer operate, that was when the job would be considered a success and a reward would be forthcoming.

"Missus, don’t try those tactics on me. Do you think we’re scared of you? It’s only right to pay wages for work. If you don’t hand over our wages today, it’s not over between us!"

"You want your wages, that’s not a problem. But when you came to work for us, it was agreed that we would settle accounts every half-month, and it’s not yet half a month. So what wages are you demanding now! When the time comes, I will naturally pay everyone in full." Lin Yue had the money on hand, but they had agreed upon a set of rules, and she couldn’t just break them, especially not under duress. If she caved in now, it would set a precedent; whenever a similar situation arose, everyone would think to cause a stir first. There wouldn’t be any order without rules.

"Cut the nonsense! Can’t you see the situation is different now? Everyone knows your family has no business. What if you can’t pay the wages by half a month? We would have worked for nothing. Missus, you’re just looking for excuses, thinking we’re too dumb to notice," they retorted.

"That’s right; no matter what, we must receive our wages today. If you don’t comply, then don’t blame us for being impolite; we’ll take your property as payment for our debts."

Zhao Dahuo’s injury was not serious, but he still had blood trickling down his forehead. Mistress Liu urged him to get his wound dressed, but he refused to leave the scene. With Zhao Erhu not yet home, he felt it was his duty as the eldest brother to stay and protect his brother’s wife from the mob. If he left, Erhu would blame him. Hearing Zhao Zhiguang speaking this way, he pointed at him and said, "Zhao Zhiguang, you’re just trying to take advantage of the situation. Don’t get too carried away!"

"Big Brother, don’t get upset over such people; they’re not worth it. They’re not here to collect wages; they want to make trouble! Sister-in-law, please take good care of Big Brother; I’ll handle this," Lin Yue said, knowing Zhao Dahuo’s temperament. With the conflict unresolved, he would not be at ease to attend to his injury. Fortunately, it wasn’t too serious, so she didn’t persuade him to leave. After giving a few instructions to Mistress Liu, she turned her attention back to Zhao Zhiguang and those causing trouble.

"So you want your wages, is that it? Fine! I’ll go get the silver right now, and I’ll distribute the wages in front of everyone. However, let me be clear first: there are rules when working for our family. If the wages are to be paid every half-month, then it will be done at that schedule. Those who wish to keep working here must wait until the due date. As for those who take their wages today, you can leave with the money and need not continue working for us in the future. Choose wisely for yourselves."

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