Siheyuan: Starting from 1958

Chapter 397 Qin Huai's Wish Come True (First Update)
Hearing the words "the house was not sold", Qin Huairu and Yi Zhonghai both breathed a sigh of relief.

But when they heard that He Yuzhu asked Wang Dong to borrow another 400 yuan, and charged 15 yuan interest every year and had to pay it back within three years, the two men frowned again.

Qin Huairu, in particular, was like a Pixiu; once money was in his hands, it almost never went out.

When he thought about having to pay Wang Dong 150 yuan every year for the next three years, a trace of worry appeared on his face, and there was a trace of dissatisfaction in his eyes when he looked at He Yuzhu.

Compared to the bicycle He Yuzhu had just bought, he wanted four hundred yuan more.

Yi Zhonghai's reaction was even more exaggerated. He cursed in a dissatisfied tone: "Zhu Zi..."

"You acted too impulsively in this matter."

"One hundred and fifty yuan a year, which is equivalent to more than ten yuan a month. Although Huairu and you make fifty or sixty yuan together, there are six people to support after all. We also have to give Jia Zhang five yuan a month for her retirement, and we can't eat too badly on weekdays."

"I didn't have much money left to begin with, and now I have to give Wang Dong more than ten yuan. Life will definitely be tight."

Seeing that Yi Zhonghai was getting more and more outrageous, Qin Huairu's brows were getting deeper and deeper. He Yuzhu quickly interrupted: "Godfather...wife...you are all overthinking..."

"As for how to pay back the money, I have already figured it out."

"The attack test will be in two or three months. I will definitely pass the eighth-level chef test. If I become a team leader in the kitchen, I can earn an extra seven dollars a month."

"After becoming a Level 8 chef, I can take on more banquets outside, and earning seven or eight yuan a month is not a problem."

"Without changing my current salary, the monthly salary increase alone will be enough for me to pay off the more than 400 yuan in three years."

Before Qin Huairu married He Yuzhu, she had been trying to calculate He Yuzhu's salary in every possible way, wishing she could hold all of the more than 30 yuan salary in her own hands.

But the two were not married at that time, and he had no right to snatch He Yuzhu's salary from Yi Zhonghai.

Now that she is married to He Yuzhu and has become his wife, and the mistress of the He family, it would be inappropriate for Yi Zhonghai to collect the salary.

When I heard He Yuzhu say that he would not touch his current salary and would find a way to pay back the 450 yuan, I was happier than anyone else.

He immediately took advantage of the situation and said, "Zhu Zi, I believe you..."

"Then starting from this month, I will help you collect your salary..."

"I'll give you five dollars for living expenses, and after deducting the usual food and clothing expenses from the remaining salary, as well as the pension for my awesome grandma, I'll save it all for you."

He Yuzhu was not alert in front of Qin Huairu and answered readily: "Wife, I will listen to you."

"I'll take five dollars after I get paid, and I'll give the rest to you."

"It's all up to you how we spend the money. You're the boss of our family."

This was exactly what Qin Huairu wanted to hear. Her face immediately lit up with joy and she then turned her gaze to Yi Zhonghai.

He Yuzhu's current salary is in the hands of Yi Zhonghai, and Yi Zhonghai is He Yuzhu's godfather. It is not enough to just get He Yuzhu's consent for this matter, Yi Zhonghai's nod is also necessary.

The main reason why Yi Zhonghai brought He Yuzhu and Qin Huairu together was that Qin Huairu listened to him. With Qin Huairu as He Yuzhu's husband, he could better control He Yuzhu and let him help him in his old age.

Although Qin Huairu also had his own calculations, in Yi Zhonghai's view, those calculations would not affect his control over He Yuzhu at all.

After all, his salary at the steel mill was the highest in the entire courtyard, and his family’s savings were almost breaking five figures, which was enough for his retirement.

What's more, after retiring from the steel mill, he could still receive a considerable pension every month, so he didn't care about He Yuzhu's salary at all.

Even if Qin Huairu calculated all the money into her own pocket, as long as she didn't take away her retirement savings, it didn't matter. To put it bluntly, the more ruthless Qin Huairu was now, the more money she would save.

Maybe I could set aside a portion of it to support myself in my old age in the future. After all, I am Qin Huairu's master, and I have done my best to teach him the locksmith skills, and I also have a deeper relationship with her.

After feeling Qin Huairu's gaze on him, Yi Zhonghai knew without guessing that she was eyeing Zhuzi's salary, and answered immediately.

"Huai Ru... Starting from this month, you will be the one to collect Zhuzi's salary at the steel mill. Just give Zhuzi five dollars a month, and the rest of the salary will be at your disposal."

"You must help godfather take good care of Zhuzi, and don't let him spend hundreds of dollars like he did today."

"As for the money that Zhuzi borrowed from Wang Dong, let him go out and pay it back. You don't have to worry about it."

Qin Huairu's face lit up, and he quickly replied: "Don't worry, godfather, I will definitely help you take good care of Zhuzi and make sure he doesn't spend money like before."

Seeing that Yi Zhonghai and Qin Huairu no longer questioned him about borrowing money to buy a bicycle and a radio, he let out a long sigh.

As for whether his future salary will be managed by Yi Zhonghai or Qin Huairu, he doesn't care.

Anyway, no matter who I give my salary to, I can only get five dollars for living expenses every month.

Fortunately, meals in the kitchen are free at night, and only lunch requires payment. Otherwise, the five dollars would be enough to eat in the cafeteria, and I wouldn’t save a penny.

…………

The kitchen of the steel rolling mill.

He Yuzhu lived a relatively comfortable life after marriage.

Before, he had been coveting Qin Huairu's body but couldn't bring himself to do it. But now it's different. He sleeps in the same bed with Qin Huairu every day and can do whatever he wants to her.

He now had only one idea, which was to make Qin Huairu pregnant with his child as soon as possible, pass the eighth-level chef exam, and pay back the money he owed Wang Dong as soon as possible.

Otherwise, the house left to him by the deaf old lady in the backyard would also fall into Wang Dong's hands, and he would have no property in the courtyard.

At around three o'clock in the afternoon, when everyone began to clean up the stoves and prepare to go off work, a familiar broadcast voice suddenly rang out in the steel mill.

“Notify…notify…”

"According to the notice from the superiors, all work-level assessments will be suspended this year..."

Perhaps because the announcement was too important, the announcer repeated it three times in a row before stopping.

He Yuzhu, who was tidying the stove, was stunned on the spot, holding the rag in his hand, and didn't react for a long time.

It was not until the kitchen helpers and apprentices around him began to talk about it that He Yuzhu shouted in disbelief, "How is that possible?"

"Why did you cancel the attack assessment? I was counting on passing the eighth-level chef assessment this year and raising my salary to thirty-seven dollars and fifty cents."

"Now that the work-level assessment has been suspended, how can I get a salary increase?"

A kitchen helper nearby said, "Master He...you are already a level nine chef. Even if the level assessment is suspended this year, you will still earn more than 30 yuan a month, which is enough to support your family."

"We kitchen helpers only earn more than 20 yuan a month, and we are hoping to take the level 10 chef assessment at the same time as the worker assessment this year so that we can get a raise to support our families."

"Now that the job-level assessment has been suspended, we can only help in the kitchen."

(End of this chapter)