Chapter 9 Two-Faced

  Cai Zhanggui had a bit too much to drink, so the two of them helped carry the meat and noodles and sent him back home. He lived in Dongcheng Liyi Alley, just nearby, and walked to work, very low-carbon. Cai Zhanggui had one wife and one concubine, his proper wife was almost forty, his concubine was probably twenty-seven or eight, his eldest son had already set up his own household, opening a shoe store in Nancheng, his youngest son was only sixteen years old, working as an apprentice in the fabric store.

  The humble household didn't have many rules about not seeing outsiders. As soon as they saw the man was drunk, the concubine hastily helped him in. The original wife had a stern expression at first, but after seeing the gifts, she immediately smiled and her face lit up with wrinkles. Chen Xin called out "Teacher's wife" a few times, making her heart flutter with joy. Then, Teacher's wife warmly invited the two to come in and drink tea, but they politely declined, citing the curfew as an excuse.

  The two of them rushed back to the inn before the evening drum, and Haigouzi and others had finished dinner. In the evening, they studied writing according to Liu Minyou's schedule, still learning simple characters like one, two, three, etc.

  Liu Minyou had been carrying the burden of a house on his back since he learned about the housing prices, and his spirit was always in a state of excitement. Chen Xinben wanted to rest, but Liu Minyou forced him to continue practicing abacus until almost midnight, with little progress still.

  Chen Xin was annoyed and pushed away the abacus, scolding: "Forget it, what's the point of wearing stockings, wearing a calculator is the real deal."

  Liu Min looked at him and saw that he wasn't practicing anymore, so he came up to chat: "You know, in a few days I'll also go find an accountant job, with over 20 taels per year, it's still considered a white-collar job. With house prices this cheap, ordinary people can buy a three-bedroom apartment with two or three years' income. Why don't we first buy a house in Tianjin and be neighbors? Each of us will have a small courtyard."

  "What's the hurry to buy a house? YWQ is coming after you?"

  "Of course I can catch up... What's the point of saying this, it's obviously not going to happen."

  Chen Xinyi listened with interest and teased: "You still miss that shrew, look at Cai Zhanggui's style, he has two wives, when he comes back from drinking, he doesn't dare fart, only shows a bit of face to us, it's better to find this kind. You're practicing calligraphy, come on, write a divorce letter and divorce Yin Qiuqiu immediately."

  Liu Minyou was stronger than Chen Xin in this regard, and he said with a straight face: "What kind of divorce letter are you talking about? I and Yin Wanqiu are free to love each other, unlike your political marriage. You must not have any status at home, right? Do you even get to wash her feet?"

  Chen Xin chuckled and said, "Washing feet is beautiful for her. If she were to be thrown into a washing machine and washed, even if she didn't have status, think about it, if you had status in the company, at most you'd go home late, and then sleep as soon as you got home. Calculating by time, having status still has more time."

  "What's the point of this life anyway?" Liu Min said, lying down on the pillow with a look of longing: "I just think that since I can't go back, I'll find a good job here, find a wife, and have one child, but it has to be a boy, my mom is really biased towards boys..."

  "Alright, your mom was born several hundred years later. Our grandfather's tomb is still unknown."

  Liu Min was speechless with shock.

  The second day passed quickly in a flurry of study, and on the third morning, Chen Xin dressed neatly, ate breakfast, and strode out with his head held high. The streets were sparse with pedestrians, and the gentle morning sunlight cast a warm glow over him, invigorating his spirit. Liu Min and four attendants escorted Chen Xin to the entrance of the Temple of Literature, and as they parted ways, everyone shouted in unison three times: "Chen Big Brother, jiayou! Jiayou! Jiayou!"

  Chen Xin burst out laughing, knowing that Liu Min had taught them to practice this. He pretended to be serious and bowed: "The price of oil is soaring, everyone has spent a lot, I thank you all for your kindness, until we meet again in the afternoon."

  Many people have been together for some time, knowing that he is not serious about speaking, all smiling and laughing. The sea dog foolishly laughed loudly: "Brother Chen, when I grow up, I will be an accountant too. When you are old, I will support you." Wang Dai Xi jumped up and held Chen Xin's hand, echoing: "Me too!"

  Among the four followers, Haigouzi was the closest to him. Chen Xin took him along every time he did "Hope Project". He could be considered a fan of Chen Xin. Chen Xin patted them on the head with approval, didn't say anything and turned around to walk towards the convenience store.

  Chen Xin, who had presided over countless meetings with ease, felt a hint of nervousness as he stood at the door. He couldn't quite put his finger on why, and could only shake his head to dispel the feeling, focusing his mind on what he had learned in the past few days before walking in.

  Inside the shop, a burly man stood with his back to the door. Cai Zhanggui was speaking respectfully to him: "For many days, only one person has come to apply, and this person is quite reliable, clever, although not very familiar with the abacus, but no big problem..." Suddenly he saw Chen Xin at the door and hastily said to the man: "Boss, the person we were talking about has arrived."

  Chen Xin hastily made a bow and said: "The young master pays his respects..."

  "A loud and coarse voice rang out: 'Cut the crap, what's your name?'"

  Chen Xin was slightly startled, and when he looked up, the man had just turned his head around. He had a leopard-like head with piercing eyes, a coarse nose and mouth, and his hair and beard were all standing on end. His face had three scars crisscrossing it, and his chin was covered in a messy, grass-like beard. However, he was wearing high-quality silk clothes, which seemed to be stretched tightly over his muscular body, making it impossible to associate him with the "qing yin" (a term referring to refined and elegant scholars).

  "Didn't you hear? What's your name?"

  "My name is Chen Xin."

  "A Japanese sword costs seven taels and two mace, what's the account for that?"

  "Silver clear book records, out 7 taels and 2 mace. Goods clear book records, in a Japanese sword."

  "Today I sold this Japanese sword for fourteen taels and nine mace, what account is this?"

  "Recorded in the Silver Clearing Book: 14 taels and 9 mace received. Recorded in the Goods Clearing Book: 1 Japanese sword sold."

  "Yesterday Wang Ba Dan borrowed some silver from me, today I held a knife to his throat and got the money back, what's the account?"

  "Take out one penny, put in one penny."

  "How much money did I make in total today?"

  "Seven taels and seven mace."

  "How much does it cost?"

  "That was originally borrowed by the landlord, so it doesn't count as a profit. But since the landlord is using the knife to press down on Wang Ba Dan's neck, he should ask for more interest, and that way there will be something to gain."

  "Alright, alright, you're right on this one, it's up to you, whether your calculations are accurate or not, as long as they add up correctly."

  "Thank you, Mr. Dong."

  The eastern house laughed and said, "I am the eastern house, not surnamed Xie, but Zhao, General Zhao Gongyuan's Zhao. Such a simple matter, can't be done in ten or more days. Now you are an accountant here, you must follow the rules, don't talk nonsense. That's all, count your wages today, when can you come?

  "I need two days to settle down in a new place. The employer can deduct these two days' wages."

  "Come back two days later in the morning." Zhao Dongjia said and turned around to leave.

  The interview took less than two minutes, and Chen Xin hadn't even reacted yet. The boss had already walked into the back room with big strides. Old Cai seemed to have let out a sigh of relief, pulled Chen Xin over, and said in a low voice: "It's finally done. You've seen the boss's temper, but don't worry too much about it. Just be careful with your work from now on."

  Chen Xin thanked him, and Old Cai smiled and said: "No need to be too polite, it's also because you're capable yourself. Even my wife says that this young man is definitely reliable. The other night, I also owe thanks to you for helping me back home."

  "It's fitting for Mr. Fu to have such a wife; his mother is wise and manages the household well, and she and Mr. Fu are a match made in heaven."

  "Haha, you young man, you're quite eloquent. Your wife is a virtuous and gentle person, but my concubine is not very satisfactory. Yesterday, she was still telling me to buy some mercury powder and red jade cream. A small household like ours doesn't have the extra money for such useless things."

  Chen Xinyi listened and knew that Old Cai was eager to get the one month's wages he had promised, but naturally couldn't give it all at once. He quietly took out a few silver coins and handed them to Old Cai: "Sir, you are right, as they say 'a woman is pleasing to behold', my wife also has good intentions, teaching you will bring joy to your heart and health to your body, that would be our blessing as juniors. I should have taken on this responsibility myself, but unfortunately, I am a bit short-handed at the moment, so I hope you won't mind this small gesture. During the New Year's festival, I will definitely make it up to you."

  Lao Cai took it, his eyebrows opened and he smiled, still pretending to scold Chen Xin a few words, telling him not to do so in the future. The peculiar two-facedness hastily came to an end, and Chen Xin had officially become a salaried worker of the Ming Dynasty.