The Reborn Sidekick Rejected The Male Lead
Chapter 313 - 303: It’s Not Easy to Start Over

Chapter 313: Chapter 303: It’s Not Easy to Start Over

A few people looked around the shop, and Xue Jianian planned to start hiring staff tomorrow. Because of the need to hire people, they needed to have someone stay in the shop the next day.

Lu Jingqiu and Luo Xinyue would go to see how far Carpenter Uncle had come with his woodworking tomorrow.

Additionally, they needed to purchase pots, pans, and other kitchen utensils this Sunday.

After discussing their plans, everyone went back home.

In the evening, Lu Jingqiu made some stuffed buns and sat knitting in the living room, waiting for Jiang Nanzhou.

However, Jiang Nanzhou didn’t come back until after nine in the evening, and Lu Jingqiu had fallen asleep in the living room while still knitting.

Looking at the sweater in his wife’s hands, he felt both distressed and guilty. He carefully picked her up and carried her upstairs. Throughout this, Lu Jingqiu slept so soundly that she didn’t wake up even when he laid her on the bed.

Lu Jingqiu slept until daylight broke. When she woke up, the only thing she saw was a note from her husband on the bedside, telling her to eat well.

It was because of this note that she could confirm Jiang Nanzhou had come back; she had waited in loneliness all night, not even realizing when her husband had returned.

But Lu Jingqiu didn’t have time to think about her husband. She got up to eat breakfast, fed Hua Hua, and then went to meet with Luo Xinyue.

When she arrived at Luo Xinyue’s home, she was feeding Fubao.

The two walked to Carpenter Uncle’s place, who, knowing their purpose, immediately told them he had finished a few pieces.

He then showed them the front desk he had worked on.

"Uncle, this front desk looks pretty sturdy. We don’t see any issues with it. If you have time today, could you please deliver the pieces you’ve finished to us? Our shop is all set up; we’re just waiting on the woodworking."

Carpenter Uncle replied, "Sure, around three or four in the afternoon, I can deliver them to you. Just tell me the address."

Lu Jingqiu left him an address.

Then the two went straight to the ceramic factory.

The ceramics factory in West City was quite far from the downtown area and was close to the sand and soil factory.

It took them over forty minutes by bus to get there.

Luo Xinyue, visiting for the first time, said, "Wow, this place is really far away."

"I used to come here a lot to buy sand for my Hua Hua."

"Hey, should we buy some sand today and take it back for Fubao’s litter box?"

"We didn’t ride our bikes today, so we can’t take it with us."

Luo Xinyue, slightly disappointed, said, "Then another time."

Lu Jingqiu replied, "Your Fubao doesn’t even stay indoors; whether you need sand is up to you. It takes care of its business in the yard."

"I just like that it knows to use the sand when it’s at your house. It’s a good habit."

The two continued chatting as they walked toward the ceramic factory.

Upon arriving at the ceramic factory entrance, they explained their intentions to the security guard.

The security guard asked them to wait a minute, and soon enough, a sales representative came out to receive them.

"What would you two comrades like?"

"We’re opening a restaurant and came to look at large bowls."

Hearing they were from a restaurant and knowing they’d need a considerable amount, the salesperson hurriedly smiled and led them to the warehouse.

"These are all recent new products. Do you want bowls with a deeper or shallower rim? Restaurants usually prefer the ones with a shallower rim." The salesperson said, holding one of the smooth large-rimmed bowls.

Lu Jingqiu examined it and asked, "Comrade, how much is this bowl?"

"Twenty cents each."

Lu Jingqiu casually picked up another and asked, "And this one?"

"This one is fifteen cents."

The porcelain factory’s warehouse was indeed large, and there were many designs, but the two of them had already discussed it; they were looking for large, inexpensive soup bowls.

The two of them asked about many different styles and looked at plenty.

In the end, Lu Jingqiu and Luo Xinyue both set their sights on a pile of rough pottery in the corner, covered in dust. "Comrade, what’s the deal with these? Are they defective in quality?"

The salesperson laughed, "No, not at all. Those are just old-fashioned bowls that are out of style. If you take them, they’re just four cents each. Don’t overlook these bowls; they may not look pretty, but they’re heavy and durable."

Lu Jingqiu smiled. These were exactly what she was looking for, white with a delicate blue stripe around the rim, large and deep.

After discussing it, the two decided to buy a hundred of them right away. They also needed chopsticks and took a hundred pairs, which were even cheaper.

In total, all of this cost them fifty yuan.

The key thing was that the factory even provided delivery.

Lu Jingqiu felt a pang of emotion thinking about how labor was simply not valued at this time, unlike in later years when labor could be more expensive than the products themselves.

After leaving the ceramics factory, while waiting for the bus, the two ran into Aunt Liu.

Aunt Liu spotted Jingqiu and hurriedly said, "Xiao Qiu, what brings you here? Did you come to buy sand?"

Lu Jingqiu smiled and replied, "Aunt Liu, my friend opened a shop, and I went to the ceramics factory to help her pick out bowls. Why are you here on business?"

Aunt Liu sighed and said, "My elder sister at home... I’m not afraid of being laughed at, the man of the house is unreliable, always getting drunk and beating her. Scared by the beatings, she took her daughter to stay with me for a while. After staying for some time, not wanting to be a burden, she secretly heard from your Aunt Cuihua that the sand factory was hiring and snuck over."

"Ah, my elder sister is too naive. The work at the sand factory is so exhausting; she can’t handle it. Today, I came to see her, and she was sifting sand just like the men, her hands all blistered from the hard work. She refused to leave when I told her to. It made me so angry..."

Lu Jingqiu seemed to recall having seen Aunt Liu’s elder sister before, perhaps when she was in junior high school. She had some impression of her as a shy and quiet woman.

"How could the elder sister handle such work?"

"Exactly, but she feels it’s better than going home. My elder sister’s life is difficult, and it breaks my heart. The key issue is our factory is not recruiting now. I asked her to wait for a more suitable job. She feels uncomfortable staying at our place, still unwilling."

Luo Xinyue seemed to have thought of something and quietly said to Jingqiu, "Jingqiu, don’t we need someone to bake flatbreads?"

Lu Jingqiu then remembered and quickly said, "Aunt Liu, my friend’s shop serves beef soup, and we need someone to bake those thin, large flatbreads, the kind from the north that don’t require oil. Have you seen them?"

Aunt Liu laughed, "I know how to bake flatbreads. My family is from the north, and my elder sister knows how to do it as well -- her baking is the best in our family. Xiao Qiu, does your friend’s shop need help? My elder sister is willing to do any kind of work."

"Aunt Liu, we do need help. At her age, she can only wash dishes or bake flatbreads at the shop. Actually, she doesn’t need to be in the shop at all; she can work from home. Once the flatbreads are done, just deliver them to us. We won’t provide the flour, and we’ll pay one cent for each flatbread."

Aunt Liu quickly did the math in her head, considering how many flatbreads she could make from a batch of flour, and found it to be a good deal, "Xiao Qiu, how many flatbreads does your friend’s shop use in a day?"

Lu Jingqiu was in a quandary, "Aunt Liu, the shop is starting business on the eleventh, and we initially ordered fifty a day, but it’s still uncertain."

"That’s only fifteen yuan a month. After the cost of flour, only a few yuan are left. It’s not enough for my elder sister to support her child... But baking flatbreads is a leisurely job; let her start with that. When I find her another job, she can switch. What do you think, Xiao Qiu?"

"Sure, Aunt Liu. Will your elder sister be staying here permanently?"

"Permanently. My elder sister only had two daughters and didn’t provide a male heir for her in-laws. Her husband, resentful, would spend his days drinking and tormenting his own family, blaming others for his own lack of success. My mother doesn’t want my sister to go back. When she left, they even kicked her daughters out as well. My aunt thinks there are more opportunities in the big city, and since people think I’m doing well here, with my husband being a leader, they want my sister to come and stay with me."

After thinking for a bit, Lu Jingqiu said, "Since she’s going to stay here - I have a business opportunity that might suit her."