Quick Transmigration: Even Extras Want to Be Leading Actresses

Chapter 162 Qualifying Match (5)

Qiu Niang felt that Gu Shijiu didn't want her to marry into the Chen family, which was why she sent both of her sons away.

It's all because she doesn't have a powerful family to rely on. She sat there, her expression constantly changing.

Gu Shijiu: I just want to reduce the expenses for a few people.

She already knew she couldn't kick the girls out here, but kicking out the men was no problem.

Seeing that everything was settled, Chen Wangnan came over to ask, "Mother, now that my eldest and second brothers have left, who should take over the shop that my eldest brother used to manage?"

Gu Shijiu said she would: "I'll give you 20% of the shares, and you can manage it."

Practice makes perfect.

Chen Wangnan thought his mother was testing him: "Mother, I have never coveted anything from my elder brother..."

Of course, it's not a bad thing to manage her; she's not incapable of doing business, and it would be good if she could get some dividends.

We'll return it to him when my older brother comes back.

Gu Shijiu was shocked: "How come these belong to your older brother? Aren't the house deed, land deed, and business license all in my name?"

Qiu Niang was so shocked that she forgot her usual persona: "How can this be?"

"What does this have to do with you?" Gu Shijiu asked, looking puzzled.

Qiu Niang felt humiliated and covered her face with her handkerchief as she ran out, weeping.

Unfortunately, those who could appreciate this attitude are all gone.

No matter how pitiful or pure she may seem, in a room full of elderly people and women, who would be moved?

Qiu Niang was simply throwing herself at a blind man.

Sure enough, until she ran back to her room, no one came to ask her a single question except for the maidservant beside her.

Gu Shijiu ignored her and pulled Chen Wangnan and Yang Jinfeng over for a meeting.

First, he asked Yang Jinfeng about her future plans: "Do you want a divorce?"

Yang Jinfeng hesitated, wanting to leave. She was a girl from a good family, why should she be humiliated like this by her husband?

But she didn't want to leave the Chen family.

Although Gu Shijiu had promised that she could stay in the Chen family, she was still a little worried.

After all, they are mother and son. Even if they are angry for a moment, they will definitely side with the son in the future.

To be honest, Yang Jinfeng and Liang Huanying did not get along very well.

Liang Huanying was angry with Yang Jinfeng because Chen Wangdong was infatuated with Qiu Niang, and in addition, Yang Jinfeng had not had a child after several years of marriage.

The current behavior looks more like a battle of wits between the mother-in-law and her son.

Yang Jinfeng felt like she was sitting on pins and needles, and dared not say a word.

Gu Shijiu naturally had no idea what was going on in her mind.

Since she wasn't going to answer, it meant she hadn't thought it through, so she asked another question: "What skills do you have? Can you manage a shop?"

Yang Jinfeng doesn't know how to do it, but she does embroidery, and she's quite good at it.

Gu Shijiu waved his hand and told her to go to the clothing store and sit there as an apprentice under the shopkeeper.

It would be best if I could learn some business skills.

As for the businesses that Liang Huanying used to have, Gu Shijiu gave them all to Chen Wangnan: "You must not let your mother down."

Gu Shijiu kept making empty promises to her.

When Chen Wangnan saw the seal, he realized that his mother was serious and was so excited that he didn't know what to say.

That's just how people are; Chen Wangdong takes everything for granted, having known since childhood that the Chen family belongs to him.

Chen Wangnan was clearly talented, but he was not recognized for a long time, and instead became more filial.

"Mother, I will definitely work hard to make the Chen family great and prosperous."

She would be content as long as her older brother could bring her a few shops when he returned.

After accomplishing such a major task, Gu Shijiu lay on a chair basking in the sun, but all he needed was someone to tell him a story.

Just as I was about to ask the maid to go outside and find a storyteller, the maid came to report that Qiu Niang was not feeling well.

Did he commit suicide again? This is more exciting than a storyteller's tale.

Gu Shijiu stood up and ran towards Qiu Niang's room. The maid thought to herself that Madam still cared about Qiu Niang quite a bit.

When Gu Shijiu saw Qiu Niang, she felt a little disappointed. So she hadn't committed suicide after all; she had just been crying.

"What's wrong with her?" Gu Shijiu wondered if she had some other problem.

The maidservant reported, "Madam, the young lady has been crying ever since she woke up."

Is crying a serious problem? Gu Shijiu didn't understand.

Some people just love to cry, she's seen it before: "Any other questions?"

The maid shook her head.

Qiu Niang cried even harder, her pitiful and fragile appearance suggesting she was waiting for someone to comfort her.

Upon hearing the news, Chen Wangnan scoffed disdainfully, "What a grand display! Nobody in the family buys that stuff these days."

Qiu Niang seemed to only then notice Gu Shijiu, and quickly got out of bed to greet her.

When she came down, she was so weak that she almost lost her balance. Luckily, her maid helped her up so that she didn't fall to the ground.

Although Gu Shijiu didn't see what she wanted to see, since she was already there, she couldn't just leave this person unused: "What kind of work can you do?"

Crying all the time probably means you're too idle; doing more work will probably help.

Yang Jinfeng knew this; she had been following Chen Wangnan silently the whole time, but now she suddenly spoke up.

"Qiu Niang's needlework is excellent, and her embroidery is also quite good."

Gu Shijiu thought about it and realized that there weren't many girls who were good at studying these days, but most of them were good at needlework.

"Then you can go work in the embroidery shop."

Qiu Niang didn't expect that the mistress would not tolerate her as soon as the two men left, and she cried again in grievance.

Because I sleep on my side, tears will flow down my eyes into my hair, pillow, and ears.

Gu Shijiu kindly reminded her, "It's best not to sleep on your side when you're crying, or you might get an ear infection."

"Huh?" Qiu Niang, immersed in grief, was a little taken aback.

"I said that if tears get into your ears, your ears are prone to getting sick."

Gu Shijiu thought that maybe they had never heard of otitis media.

Chen Wangnan burst out laughing, and Yang Jinfeng couldn't help but chuckle as well.

Only Qiu Niang couldn't laugh. She said that she often felt uncomfortable in her ears. Could it be because she slept on her side?

The live stream room was filled with cheerful laughter.

"Help! The female lead can get cancer, go blind, or be deaf and mute, but how can she get otitis media?"

"It's not impossible, thankfully it's not athlete's foot."

"Ugh, upstairs, don't disgust me."

Qiu Niang was somewhat reluctant when Gu Shijiu said she had to do some work.

But fearing being kicked out, she had no choice but to accept the job of an embroiderer.

However, she didn't expect that something even more terrifying was yet to come.

It turns out that Yang Jinfeng was in charge of both the embroidery workshop and the clothing store.

Qiu Niang was filled with anxiety after learning about this, and couldn't even sleep the night before she went to work.

Hearing the maid's report, Gu Shijiu found it very interesting: "Why is she having insomnia?"

It's just a job; she's done that before.

"Madam, the eldest young master fell out with the eldest young mistress because of her, and now he has even left home in a huff."

Now she was naturally afraid that the eldest young mistress would take the opportunity to torment her.

Wow, I see. Gu Shijiu said that she learned a lot from this competition.

But that won't do.

"She has to do her job properly and not mistreat the workers," Gu Shijiu instructed.

The servant woman indicated that she understood.

Yang Jinfeng was not stupid; she knew where Du was from the servant's message.

Since Qiu Niang had to go to work, her personal maid was free.

Other maids who do menial tasks can be transferred to other places, and Gu Shijiu, the personal maid, should also be given a good place.

Just stay by her side and serve her.

Upon hearing this, the maid knelt down and said, "Madam, I want to stay with the young lady forever."

Qiu Niang had that same expression again, as if she was about to cry but couldn't, as if she had suffered a great injustice.

Chen Wangnan was so angry that he jumped up and down: "Get this straight, it's our Chen family that pays you wages, who are you trying to impress with your loyalty?"

"Mother, this kind of disloyal maid should be sold off."

Gu Shijiu frowned and interrupted her: "I don't like hearing you say that. Even job transfers require the employee's consent."

What she disliked most about feudal society was that it didn't treat people like human beings and sold them off at the drop of a hat.

"Mother, you're just too kind." Chen Wangnan felt that his mother's temperament was a little too good these days.

Kind-hearted Gu Shijiu couldn't bear to separate the mistress and servant: "How about this, you come work in my courtyard during the day."

"Once Qiu Niang returns, you can go to her room to work if you'd like. Is that alright?"

With such a kind and gentle mistress, what could the maid possibly be unwilling to do?

With the last thing done, Gu Shijiu could finally enjoy the days of sleeping in until she naturally woke up.

Her health wasn't very good; it's hard to pinpoint what illness she had, but it was probably just from long-term overwork and exhaustion.

In modern terms, this is called sub-health.

Gu Shijiu felt she needed to take good care of herself.

She now goes out shopping after breakfast and sometimes visits her own shop.

The Chen family owns two factories: a textile factory and a porcelain factory.

They owned more than a dozen shops, making them a large family.

I eat out for lunch, listen to audiobooks in the afternoon, and watch operas in the evening. It's very relaxing.

After Chen Wangnan took control of the power, he was determined to impress his mother.

Gu Shijiu didn't care how much trouble she caused, since they had agreed that if they lost money, they would first use Chen Wangnan's assets to pay off the debt.

Qiu Niang's life became less easy.

Women from wealthy families who learned needlework only learned the basics; they were far inferior to the embroiderers in embroidery workshops.

She couldn't embroider intricate patterns, so she could only do rougher work, and the quantity was still large.

Qiu Niang was exhausted, both physically and mentally, because she couldn't finish her chores and also had to worry about how the Chen brothers were doing outside.

There's always so much embroidery to do, it hurts my eyes and my cervical spine.

Embroidery is something you can do as a hobby. Occasionally, you can make a purse or sew a pair of shoes as a gift; it's a nice hobby.

If you really treat it as a job, it's quite tough.

Previously, a maid would come over at night to massage her shoulders and back, but now, for some reason, the maid doesn't come as often.

Qiu Niang felt that this life was even more bitter than being soaked in bitter water, and she really couldn't bear it anymore.

That day, Gu Shijiu was having breakfast with her daughter and daughter-in-law when a servant came to report that Qiu Niang insisted on seeing her.

She hadn't seen Qiu Niang for a while, and had almost forgotten about her.

Gu Shijiu wasn't one to put on airs. She not only had the servants invite the guests in, but also added a stool to the dining table.

Looking at the table full of delicious food, and then thinking about what she had eaten, Qiu Niang couldn't help but feel a surge of sorrow: "Madam, please spare me."

"Huh?" Gu Shijiu stared wide-eyed. "What did I do?"

“Madam, I know I was wrong and I am willing to work to make up for my mistake, but there is just too much work every day and I simply can’t finish it all.”

Qiu Niang knelt down on the stone floor with a thud, her knees making a thud as they hit the ground.

Gu Shijiu's mind skipped a beat: "What does working have to do with making mistakes? Doesn't everyone have to work?"

Even she works, except her job is acting.

She set herself up as a pleasure-seeking socialite in this drama, which isn't necessarily a bad thing.

Gu Shijiu thought to herself with a guilty conscience.

Seeing that she had overlooked the second half of the sentence, Qiu Niang had no choice but to repeat it with a stiff upper lip: "Madam, the main problem is that there is too much embroidery work to finish."

Gu Shijiu looked at her eldest daughter-in-law: "Does she have a lot of work?"

Yang Jinfeng also knelt down: "Mother, she made as much as the newly recruited embroiderers in our embroidery workshop."

All the embroiderers in the workshop do it this way; the daughter-in-law isn't using her position for personal revenge.

Gu Shijiu then looked at Qiu Niang: "Is what she said true?"

Qiu Niang dared not speak carelessly; everyone's daily intake was recorded, but—

“Those embroiderers were trained to do embroidery from a young age, so naturally they are good at it and fast.”

I do the same amount of work as them, and I often don't finish until the middle of the night.

In the past, a maid would come to help, but she hasn't been coming lately.

Her last sentence carried a hint of complaint; she assumed the lady of the house had detained the person.

Gu Shijiu didn't realize that Yang Jinfeng had already prepared her response.

“I often heard the eldest young master, the second brother, and the servants say that Qiu Niang’s embroidery skills were much better than those of ordinary embroiderers, which is why we made this arrangement.”

If Mother thinks it's too much, then we can reduce it for Qiu Niang later; even the wages should be less.

"What is the working situation like for embroiderers in other embroidery workshops these days?"

Gu Shijiu suddenly realized that he had never cared about the welfare of his workers.

Yang Jinfeng had already made her assessment: "Mother, all families are about the same; our family is already considered good."

Gu Shijiu nodded, intending to visit in person if he had the chance.

As for Qiu Niang, she should be fine with anyone else: "Then let's do it the same way."

Yang Jinfeng replied excitedly, "Yes, Mother."

Qiu Niang came here today knowing she would definitely offend Yang Jinfeng, and she was determined to go all in, so she couldn't leave empty-handed.

She then asked as a second choice, "Could you let my maid come back to help?"

Gu Shijiu remembered that person: "Didn't she come to see you every night?"

Qiu Niang shook her head: "It's been a long time since I've come."

Gu Shijiu then called the maid over: "Would you like to go back with Qiu Niang?"

The maidservant looked at Qiu Niang and Yang Jinfeng kneeling on the ground and also knelt down: "I will follow Madam's arrangements."

Qiu Niang suddenly raised her head and looked at her. Although she didn't say a word, the message in her eyes was clear.

It probably means, "How could you betray me like this?"

Gu Shijiu looked on with a headache: "You all shouldn't be kneeling like that anymore."

Just as they were talking, the people in front of them suddenly became shorter, and all that could be seen were the tops of their heads.

Although Western influences had reached the Republic of China era, many people did not develop the habit of washing their hair and bathing every day.

Even a large family like the Chen family.

After kneeling down, the mixed smell of women's hair oil and various perfumes was closer to his nose, making Gu Shijiu feel nauseous.

She made all three of them stand up, and then asked the maid again, "If you want to go, then go; if you don't want to go, then don't go."

The maid hesitated for a long time, then shook her head: "I am willing to serve Madam."