country bumpkin

Chapter 352 Meeting new friends

Back in her dorm, Yang Tiantian acted as if nothing had happened, eating and drinking as usual, as if nothing had ever happened between her and the strange man.

Unfortunately, Jiang Yuqing, who was out on a date, saw them. She was having breakfast with her boyfriend when she saw Yang Tiantian eating xiaolongbao (soup dumplings) with Shi Bing beside her.

She also overheard Shi Bing's conversation with the boss. She heard it and knew that Yang Tiantian had a boyfriend, but since they wanted to keep it a secret, she couldn't be a gossip.

She could only pretend she didn't know anything about it and planned to keep it to herself. If someone wanted to talk about it, they would.

Today is the weekend, and after breakfast, Yunya went with Zhu Yanan and Tong Jiahui to Baiyan's dormitory building to visit their fellow villagers.

This girl was a classmate from their village. Her name was Jian Kuxia. She was a chubby, fair-skinned girl with short hair. She had almond-shaped, single-lidded eyes that gave her a lively and spirited look.

When I arrived at their dormitory, I saw another girl from my hometown, Feng Yunzhen. She was also a short-haired girl, but her hair was naturally curly, slightly curled like the fur of a small lion dog.

She had a dark, wheat-colored complexion, and her narrow eyes, when squinted, were deep and mysterious. Her lips were slightly thick, like rolled-up sausages, full and prominent.

The two women came to the shoe factory together; they both registered through the labor bureau.

I've been here for over a year, and only now have I met Zhu Yanan and Tong Jiahui. Meeting fellow townsfolk in a foreign land naturally means we have so much to talk about.

In particular, none of the girls were introverted; they were all gossips, so they stayed there all day.

At lunchtime, the group went to the cafeteria together. After eating, they took the porcelain jar back to their dorm room and then went back to their dorm room to continue gossiping.

As a stranger, Yunya could only be a listener, listening to them recount the horrifying things that happened in their workshop.

Hearing this, Yunya and the other two breathed a sigh of relief and said, "Luckily we didn't go to your workshop. That was too scary. Our workshop is much better."

Jian Kuxia smiled and said, "Yes, our workshop is the most terrifying workshop in the factory. Even the gentlest foreman in our workshop can make people cry, let alone those group leaders and foremen who have a bad reputation."

Feng Yunzhen nodded in agreement, “Yes, you are lucky. Jian Kuxia and I are not so lucky. We are on tenterhooks every day at work, afraid of making any mistakes. We are so careful and cautious. Sigh! This job is really frustrating.”

Yunya and the other two looked at them with pity, but they were also powerless to do anything about it.

Before they knew it, evening had arrived. The three of them said goodbye and returned to their dormitories.

They had only been in the dormitory for a few minutes when Bai Yan arrived. She was looking for Yun Ya.

Because Yunya heard that some people were doing part-time jobs, she asked Baiyan to help her find out where there were job openings. And sure enough, Baiyan found a part-time job.

She sat by Yunya's bedside and explained the specifics of the job to her. It was a vegetable market next to the factory, a stall selling stir-fried vegetables.

I go to help out every Friday after I finish get off work at 6 pm, and finish get off work around 8:30 pm.

My job was to help weigh and sell vegetables. The vegetables were all cooked hot dishes by the owner, and there were also some prepared cold dishes.

Vegetable and meat dishes are priced differently, all calculated per pound. Half a pound is also sold. Luckily, Yunya had experience butchering chickens and knew how to use scales, so the job was easy for her.

The pay is 8 yuan per hour, and meals are provided. I also go there at noon on Saturdays and Sundays, and help out in the afternoons as well.

Since wages are paid by the hour, it doesn't matter if it's a little earlier or later. The owners are a husband and wife who both work at the stall, so there's no need to worry about them having any bad intentions.

Yunya immediately agreed. Helping out on weekends would also include two meals a day, all stir-fries from their stall; she could just get whatever she wanted to eat herself.

Bai Yan made her arrangements with Yun Ya and then left. She was also helping out at the market, so finding part-time work was easy for her.

She works selling fried skewers and comes to sell them on weekends, making her even busier than Yunya. However, she earns 10 yuan an hour, which is a little more than Yunya's salary.

Many of the migrant women working in shoe factories also do part-time jobs. They come out to earn money, and every little bit helps.

Bai Yan told Yun Ya that she could just go there this Friday. There was only one stall selling stir-fries in the market, and it was easy to find.

Yunya agreed and waited for that day to come.

After five consecutive days of work, Friday finally arrived. Yunya didn't go to the cafeteria for dinner after get off work. Instead, she put the porcelain mug back in her dormitory, changed out of her work clothes, and went straight to the market to help out.

Upon arriving at the stall, Yunya confirmed her identity and then walked into the stall through the entrance.

These stalls were surrounded by platforms made of bricks and cement. The platforms were covered with goods.

The vendors selling vegetables, snacks, fruits, and so on all rented these kinds of stalls.

The fried skewers, rolled pancakes, and cold noodles sold on both sides of the road are all sold from carts.

When Yunya came in, the proprietress started telling her the prices and then demonstrated for her.

She also asked Yunya if she knew how to use a scale, and Yunya said she already sold whole chickens, knew how to use a scale, and could do the math. The proprietress was even more satisfied.

Yunya was writing down the prices when the first customer arrived. The girl ordered a pound of meat and vegetables, two different kinds of meat and vegetables, half of each.

The proprietress demonstrated for Yunya, turning a plastic bag inside out and putting it over her hand, grabbing a handful of shredded meat, lifting it up, flipping it over, all in one smooth motion.

The turned-over plastic bag contained half a pound of shredded pork with green peppers. Then the proprietress used a large iron ladle to scoop out a spoonful of the spicy chicken the girl had ordered and put it in a bag.

She weighed it on the scale and realized it was just a little short of a pound. She then scooped out some more spicy chicken and weighed it again, making it a very high weight.

He handed the food to the girl, she paid, and then walked away.

The proprietress told Yunya that she should ask the customers in advance whether they wanted the food packaged separately or together, because she couldn't make a mistake and the customers would get angry and refuse to buy it.

Yunya listened attentively and began preparing to try it out.

She took a piece of pickled vegetable, weighed it on the scale, checked the weight, calculated it, and said to the shopkeeper, "Sister, this is 50 cents a pound, and this one is 1.2 pounds, so it'll cost 60 cents, right?"

The proprietress nodded. "Yes, that's right. It seems you really know how to sell."

Yunya smiled and replied, "Yes, that's right. Sister, don't worry, I will definitely do a good job and treat this business as if it were my own. I won't make any mistakes in the accounts."

The boss looked over, exchanged a glance with his wife, and both showed satisfied expressions.

As they were talking, a few more people came over to buy vegetables. Yunya imitated the proprietress's technique, putting the vegetables in plastic bags and turning them around to grab the stir-fried vegetables. She did this quickly and efficiently, without spilling a single bit.

The proprietress, busy with her work, glanced over furtively and was quite pleased with Yunya's efficiency.

People started coming in, and more and more customers came to buy vegetables. The owner, his wife, and Yunya got busy.