Chapter 78 - How Can That Be Done?
” How can that be done?” said Mother Chen as she stood up and scowled at Mu Xuan unhappily ” she promised the benefits would belong to us alone, if she backs down on her word then I and my daughter will stop working! These skills should be told to us first after all we were the only one who came to help her when she needed, while you refused. Don’t you think you are trying to bully us by asking us to share what should belong to us alone?”
Mu Xuan wasn’t a match for Mother Chen who fought with her employers every second day but she didn’t want to take responsibility for this! If she couldn’t get her villagers a chance to learn how to build Kang then the villagers would surely blame her for being useless and biased. Though everyone had problems with Yu Dong, they were greedy too! Who asked Yu Dong to be so generous? She wasn’t giving just eight cents per day as a wage but also teaching how to build Kang, a skill that was extremely wanted in this time and era.
” who is bullying who ?” thus, even though Mu Xuan was scared of Mother Chen, she could only lift her head in false bravado and speak roughly ” Yu Dong lives in our village, as a fellow villager, she should help her villagers! What’s wrong with helping the villagers? Aren’t we like one big family? If the villagers earn a decent living, then the village will develop and become well off, wouldn’t it be good ?”
” what does my sister in law have to do with the villagers becoming well off?” said Chen Han, raising her eyebrows ” if the villagers have the ability they should try to earn a decent living by themselves what’s that got to do with my sister in law? And what is with this ‘ we are one big family ‘ speech of yours? If your feelings were this good then my sister in law wouldn’t have asked to come here and help her, it’s as simple as that”
Chen Han was now bearing a grudge against Mu Xuan, everyone knew how rare the Kang builders were in the city and town. As long as someone learned it, they could become well off for their entire life. At first, when the news didn’t go out no one was willing to help Yu Dong in building her house but as soon as they knew about the benefits that Yu Doing offered them, they started to eye their jobs and were now trying to steal their jobs! Wasn’t this unfair?
Though Chen Han blamed her eldest sister, she didn’t have time to blame Chen Dai, she was too busy protecting her job!
Mu Xuan was once again stunned speechless, Mother Chen and Chen Han were right, if they really had such deep feelings then Yu Dong didn’t even have to offer so many benefits. The villagers should have helped her without her laying down so many benefits.
Mu Xuan was upset, she didn’t want to talk to Mother Chen and turned to Yu Dong who was the soft target” Yu Dong, do you want to do this? If you don’t help the villagers today they might bear a grudge against you”
Yu Dong shrugged and spoke up looking confused ” But why would they bear a grudge against me? Didn’t you promise to take care of the matter in case it escalated, Village head? I told you back then, that once I give the job to someone else, the villagers cannot snatch it from them because it will be bad for my image, I have already promised the benefits and I can’t do anything now”
” But-“
” that’s right, the girl promised me that I will be the first one to gain all the benefits,” said Mother Chen gruffly ” if she tries to back away from her promise not only will I stop working here, I will make it impossible for anyone to work here!”
Mu Xuan who was suddenly threatened felt stifled and immediately straightened her spine as she asked ” Is that a threat?”
“No,” said Mother Chen, which made Mu Xuan raise her head proudly like a peacock. She knew that Mother Chen wouldn’t dare to threaten her but before she could feel a bit more smugger, Mother Chen leaned closer with her hands behind her back and whispered dangerously ” it’s a warning, I don’t have the habits of making bluff threats, what I say, I naturally do it. If I see you or the villagers trying to snatch my benefits, I swear I will fight you. If I can’t get the first-hand benefits then no one else can”
Mu Xuan who thought that she was finally able to exert her authority as the village head, felt as if someone has dumped a bucket of cold water on her head, she was threatened! She was actually threatened by someone!
Though Mu Xuan didn’t want to leave, she didn’t want to get any more embarrassed it was clear that no matter how much she tries to reason with Mother Chen, that brute with all strength and no brain wouldn’t listen to her. So, she pivoted on the spot and left.
Once Mu Xuan left, Yu Dong closed the door and looked at her family, and then burst out laughing. Once she laughed everyone started laughing, seriously what just happened was too much fun.
However, after the incident, Neither Mother Chen nor Yu Dong took the village lightly. Yu Dong was worried that the villagers might try to create trouble for her family while Mother Chen was worried that they might try to snatch her job once again, so she and her daughters increased their pace of working and the rooms and renovation that should have been finished in two months ended up finishing in just one month.
Yu Dong asked Mother Chen to build several big Kangs in every room, even for the room that was currently empty.. One day her son would grow up and start asking for privacy so it was good to have it prepared, and it wasn’t like Kang would be off no use, if they got some guests then they could use this room as a guest room as well.