Chapter 205 - 163: Three Women Make a Drama

Chapter 205: Chapter 163: Three Women Make a DramaHan Yu and Han Xiangning asked around on their way and arrived at the gate of Hong Kong Daffy Clothing Company, about three kilometers from Qibao Town, as the sun had already set and the factory workers were getting off work. Looking around, all women! Most were riding bicycles, chattering, talking, and laughing on their way home, and many girls walked in pairs or small groups toward a small market on the south side. The factory buildings were new, and even through the expandable gate, you could see that the factory area was styled beautifully, showing a completely different style from Four Factory’s textile factory, feeling fashionable, western, and modern. Seeing Han Yu staring dumbfounded, Han Xiangning couldn’t help but pinch his arm: "What are you spacing out for, do you want to work here?" "Me, work here what for?" "There are lots of girls here!" Caught with such a school senior, Han Yu was wondering what to say when a familiar figure appeared before him. "Xiao Hui! Xiao Hui!" "I see her, let me just speak to the security uncle for a moment." As soon as Lin Xiaohui’s voice fell, a short and skinny lass dashed out from the crowd, running breathlessly to the front of the light motorcycle, supporting the front of the bike and excitedly said: "Brother Salted Fish, you really came, when did you get here?" "Xiao Mei, you’re here too, when did you come?" "I’ve been here for over a week now." Liu Xiaomei curiously looked at Han Xiangning who was smiling at her and asked: "Brother Salted Fish, did you ride this little motorcycle here?" "Mhm." Seeing the old neighbor from the shipping company, Han Yu was genuinely happy, placing the helmet into the basket in front of the motorcycle, and said with a smile: "Some time ago your dad came to our Police Bureau and helped pilot the Dunship for a day. He mentioned you got a call from Xiao Hui asking you to work here, but he was so busy that day, he only half said it. I thought he wasn’t letting you come, turns out you really did." Liu Xiaomei was about to explain when Lin Xiaohui quickly approached, smiling and asking him: "Salted Fish, is this Sister Xiang Ning you were talking about?" "Yes, Sister Ningning, this is Xiao Hui." "Hello, I hear about you from Salted Fish all the time." This sister that popped up from nowhere was too pretty. Faced with Han Xiangning who had casually made herself up in the rearview mirror, Lin Xiaohui, who had just come out from the workshop, felt somewhat inferior and hesitantly said: "Sister Xiang Ning, thank you." "Thank me for what." "If it wasn’t for you, Salted Fish definitely wouldn’t have been able to take leave, their leaders would definitely not have let him come." "You knew?" "Salted Fish told me on the phone." Outside wasn’t the place for conversation, too many colleagues were looking this way; Lin Xiaohui quickly brushed off the lint on her body and urged: "Salted Fish, Sister Ningning, you guys rarely come here, let me take you around inside." Han Yu subconsciously asked: "Can we go in?" Before Lin Xiaohui could speak, Liu Xiaomei eagerly said: "Of course, Xiao Hui has already spoken to Sister Ning who manages our workshop this morning." Since they came, of course, they should go in and have a look; without seeing for themselves, they couldn’t be assured. Pushing the light motorcycle inside, locking it up, and following the two women around, they found the factory area even larger than imagined, with seven or eight workshops alone. Canteen, showers, dormitories, they had everything one would need, the conditions were very good. The dormitories housed six people per room and even had a television. Considering several girls were inside, Han Yu didn’t feel it was appropriate to stay long in the dormitories, he looked briefly and then came out. "Salted Fish, Sister Ningning, wait for me downstairs, I’ll come out right after I change." "Sure, no rush." Liu Xiaomei wasn’t so fussy, staying downstairs with them while proudly asking: "Brother Salted Fish, do you know how much money Xiao Hui made last month?" "How much?" Han Yu asked curiously. "Three hundred and sixty-eight!" "That much?" "She stayed in the factory over the New Year, not taking a day off, and with the red envelope given by the Hong Kong boss, she made that much at once." Han Yu was truly happy for Lin Xiaohui from the bottom of his heart, but without envy, he couldn’t help asking: "Is it tiring to work?" Liu Xiaomei said with a smile: "Not tiring, there are many sisters working together. We chat and laugh, and the day goes by quickly." Making as much money as someone works for. Han Xiangning was admiring these girls who had left home to work and asked softly: "Do you work overtime in the evening?" "Busy with orders, all for export to the United States, there’s overtime every day." "Since there’s overtime, why did so many people go home just now?" "They’re locals, they need to go back to cook, to help the kids with homework. They don’t eat in the factory and come back after they’re done with the home chores. Ours are piece-rate wages anyway; we need to punch in and out on time during the day, but evening overtime hours are very flexible." Before they knew it, while chatting, they had already waited nearly twenty minutes. When Lin Xiaohui appeared again, she had taken a shower, changed into clean, beautiful new clothes, and was carrying a small bag. "Salted Fish, Sister Ningning, let’s go, we’re off to eat." "Is it far?" "We’ll eat in town, you guys can ride the light motorcycle, we have bicycles." "Fine, we’ll drive slowly." Han Yu went to the bike shed and put on his helmet. Han Xiangning also put on her helmet, naturally sitting at the back, accustomed to hugging her junior tightly. Liu Xiaomei couldn’t believe they were so close; just hopping on the rear of the bicycle, she couldn’t help poking Lin Xiaohui with her hand. Lin Xiaohui saw everything clearly, feeling a bit sour inside, she said without showing emotion: "Sit tight, don’t move." "Okay." Liu Xiaomei peeked again and saw Han Xiangning actually leaning on Salted Fish’s back, immediately frowning, thinking to herself what was her intention, didn’t she know Salted Fish liked Xiao Hui? Han Yu was driving very slowly, but with someone on the back, driving too slowly would be prone to falling, so he simply put his feet on the ground, and wobbly proceeded, casually chatting with Lin Xiaohui who was riding the bicycle carrying Liu Xiaomei. "Do you pay for insurance as well?" "Yeah, the factory has to pay the insurance company by the twenty-fifth of each month." "How much do you pay?" "We have to give them 30% of our actual total wages, and these wages only include normal daytime pay, not overtime or other allowances." "But you’re not even a resident of East Sea." So what if that sister who popped out of nowhere has a good job? Even with a good job, she doesn’t make more than me... With this thought, Lin Xiaohui felt much better and said with a smile, "The factory has signed a contract with us. It’s written in the contract that we have to pay for insurance. I’ve looked at the insurance document too. It says that it’s for the pension insurance of Chinese staff in foreign-funded and joint-venture enterprises, and it’s mandatory for all Chinese workers, no exceptions." "This factory of yours is really good." "It’s pretty good compared to those in Linghai, but it’s just average when compared to some nearby foreign-funded and joint ventures." "There are even better ones?" "The salary and benefits at those places are much higher than ours." ... Amidst the laughter and chatter, they soon arrived in town. Lin Xiaohui found a small privately-owned restaurant, led the three of them inside to a spot, ordered six dishes and a soup, went out to buy some drinks, and repeatedly reminded the Boss Lady that only she could pay the bill. Han Xiangning didn’t expect that not only was she quite competitive, but she was also very generous. Sitting here eating her treat, she felt somewhat embarrassed. Han Yu had no such inhibitions and started discussing future work while eating. Lin Xiaohui couldn’t believe her ears and stared at him, asking, "Salted Fish, what are you really thinking?" "What do you mean what am I thinking?" "You already live on the Dunship, and now you want to go work on ships again, this time on sea-going vessels. Haven’t you had enough of ships?" "That’s what our leader arranged. Besides, not everyone gets the chance to work on big ships." "Do you just believe whatever the leader says?" Lin Xiaohui felt more and more that he was not thinking straight and said unhappily, "Can’t you make up your own mind? Plus, you’re not like us, you graduated from technical secondary school, you’re educated. There are better things to do than to work on ships." Any child who grew up on a boat dreams of moving ashore. Liu Xiaomei’s attitude was surprisingly in sync with Lin Xiaohui’s as she stared at him and said, "Brother Salted Fish, you worked so hard in school just to get a good job. Why go through all that just to end up back on a ship?" Han Yu didn’t know what to say in response. Han Xiangning could feel that although the two sisters did not support the little school brother, their intense reactions also showed their concern for him. Considering she was an "outsider," she simply chose to remain silent. Lin Xiaohui felt it was necessary to have a good talk with Salted Fish and said, "Salted Fish, Sister Xiang Ning, there are four hostels in town. I’ve checked; the one across the street is the best in terms of environment. Would you like to stay there?" "Okay, let’s stay at the one across the street." "Sister Xiang Ning, after we sort out the accommodation, I’ll have Xiao Mei take you around the town." "Ah..." "I... I haven’t yet ridden on Salted Fish’s light motorcycle. He said last year he’d take me for a ride." Hesitating for a moment, Lin Xiaohui continued, "I’m just about to take him to a few places to look around. Don’t worry, we’ll be back in a bit." Is this little girl jealous? Han Xiangning found it amusing but also felt a bit uncomfortable at the thought that she would bring up riding his light motorcycle right in front of her. That light motorcycle outside belonged to someone surnamed Zhang before, now it’s surnamed Han. It’s not something you ride just because you want to, right? Lin Xiaohui had no idea what Han Xiangning was thinking; after the meal was over and the bill was paid, she took the two of them across the street to sort out the accommodation. "Comrade, here are our work IDs and a letter of introduction." The light motorcycle was too small to carry much luggage, and all of their documents were in Han Xiangning’s bag. The staff member took a look at the introduction letter and work IDs, then asked, "Are you siblings?" Han Xiangning replied without hesitation, "Yes." "We have double rooms; how about I assign one to you?" "Sure, we were actually planning to get a double room." Han Xiangning took out money, subconsciously looking back at Lin Xiaohui. Staying in a hostel is different from being crammed into a sailor’s cabin on 001; it’s not convenient for two people to share a room. Han Yu was about to speak up when Han Xiangning urged, "Xiao Hui, didn’t you say you were taking Salted Fish to a few places? Hurry up and go, Xiao Mei and I will go to the room to rest for a bit. We’ll go shopping when you come back." This beautiful woman is outrageously shameless, intending to stay in the same room with Salted Fish! Lin Xiaohui was stunned and muttered, "Okay then, Salted Fish, let’s go." Several travelers were in the hotel lobby, and Han Yu had no way to explain; he just took his helmet and headed out with Lin Xiaohui. Riding the motorcycle, guided by Lin Xiaohui, they went to the edge of town. Lin Xiaohui, mimicking how Han Xiangning rode before, held tightly to his waist and rested her head on his shoulder, asking, "Do you see that factory up ahead?" "I see it." "That factory is a joint venture too, and the wages there are much higher than ours." "Really?" "Keep driving forward; there are seven or eight joint ventures along this road." "Xiao Hui, what’s this about, I came to see you, not to look for a job." Lin Xiaohui, leaning on his shoulder, said wistfully, "Salted Fish, you’re educated, you’re so smart, and learn so quickly. If you come to East Sea, you’d definitely find a better job than mine." Han Yu fell silent for a moment, then replied with a wry face, "If I hadn’t been assigned to the Police Bureau, and if I knew East Sea had so many good companies, I would definitely have come here to look for a job. But now I’m doing quite well, the leaders care about me, I can’t leave." "Do you like being an official?" Sёarᴄh the novёlF~ire.net website on Google to access chapters of novels early and in the highest quality. "What official? I’m just a ship repairer and sailor." "During the New Year’s, a sister from my hometown in Hui’an came to work temp jobs for a few days, and she plans to come again during the summer break. She’s got good grades and works as a teacher back home, but the salary is too low, so she comes out to work during the winter and summer breaks. Working a month here in our factory is equivalent to working several months back home." "We in the police force aren’t teachers; we don’t have winter or summer breaks." "I’m not saying you should come out to work temp jobs; I’m saying you don’t have to stick with the police force." If this was before, Han Yu would have persuaded her to come back to Linghai with him. Now he couldn’t say that; after all, the conditions here were indeed much better than in Linghai. Unexpectedly, he found himself being persuaded by her, and Han Yu was at a loss for words. Meanwhile, Liu Xiaomei found an excuse to slip away; she didn’t like Han Xiangning and naturally didn’t want to accompany her. Han Xiangning turned on the TV, sitting on the bed, she angrily said, "He has no conscience, choosing romance over friendship. Now that he has Sister Lin, he forgot about his sister. Later I won’t let him in, and let him stay outside..."