Volume One, Chapter 18: To Leave or Not, To Return or Not
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Luo Xuan and Luo Qi were called to clean the factory. Standing amid machinery drenched in foul waste, Luo Xuan silently abandoned her plan to return to Shanghai; the train ticket was now worthless. It wasn’t until nightfall that they barely managed to tidy up the factory, overwhelmed by the stench. Unexpectedly, early the next morning, Lin Zhaodi’s call came again: “Damn it, we’ve been sabotaged once more!”
By the third day, the foul rats and the piles of filth returned with a vengeance, and to make things worse, a heavy rain had fallen overnight. The three women stood in the factory courtyard, helplessly staring at a pool of putrid water at its center.
Several days passed in this way. Outside the factory walls, slogans painted in red accused either debts needing repayment or defaulters shirking their responsibilities. Gradually, even the workers who were relatives or acquaintances began to murmur doubts, questioning whether Red Star Factory had truly gone bankrupt and pressuring Lin Zhaodi to settle wages.
When Lin Zhaodi interrogated those workers, she discovered that at least half were planning to leave for other factories. With several orders nearing their deadlines, Lin Zhaodi finally gritted her teeth and contacted Lao Bao to renegotiate the debt.
Before meeting Lao Bao, she summoned Luo Xuan alone into the manager’s office.
...
“What are your thoughts on the debt?” Lin Zhaodi sat in the black leather boss chair, her broad frame like a towering mountain. Her expression was stern, her eyes fixed unwaveringly on Luo Xuan.
Luo Xuan analyzed, “Compared to other options, repaying Dad’s debts is actually the most cost-effective. Delaying orders would mean we have to pay compensation, which would be even higher.”
Lin Zhaodi countered, “Don’t you think one million is a lot?”
Luo Xuan replied, “That’s exactly the key to negotiation. How long we can delay repayment, how many installments we can split it into, and the interest rate—this one million, if spread over four to five years with interest around five percent, won’t significantly impact the factory’s cash flow.”
Lin Zhaodi hummed and waved her out.
As Luo Xuan turned to leave, Lin Zhaodi suddenly called from behind, “You’re very familiar with the factory’s cash flow, aren’t you?”
The office fell silent.
Lin Zhaodi wasn’t finished: “Who told you?”
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Luo Xuan said, “With so many factories in Luosang County, the profits of garment factories are transparent. Most factories aren’t much different; you can guess.”
Lin Zhaodi stared at Luo Xuan, her tone darkening: “Then why can’t your older sister or younger sister figure it out? Second daughter, are you the only smart one in the world?”
The room grew cold.
Luo Xuan sensed her mother’s accusation and was stunned for a long moment.
Lin Zhaodi said icily, “None of you three daughters are cut out for business. Your sister is too aloof, your younger sister is headstrong, and you—too soft, too gullible. Second daughter, don’t keep coveting the Red Star Factory in my hands.”
Luo Xuan looked at her mother in disbelief: “Why do you think so badly of me?”
Lin Zhaodi’s face showed no change: “I have eyes; I can see for myself.”
Luo Xuan retorted, “Mom, do you even know what I do in Shanghai?”
Lin Zhaodi remained silent.
Luo Xuan said carefully, “I work in supply chain management, dealing with factories every day. Red Star is a small factory. I can estimate its situation at a glance.”
Lin Zhaodi’s expression was indifferent: “Oh?”
Luo Xuan, frustrated, said, “In all these years since I left home, have you cared about what I do? Have I ever taken Dad’s side when you two fought over the factory? No matter how you and Dad argued, I always firmly supported you. And yet you still doubt me? Even after all this, you don’t see me as your daughter?”
All three daughters had always firmly supported their mother.
Lin Zhaodi tightened her face and thought for a long time before softening her tone: “Second daughter, the factory is hard to run. If I didn’t watch my back, the factory wouldn’t have lasted this long. You don’t know my hardships because you’ve never done this.”
Luo Xuan shot back, “And do you know my hardships?”
Lin Zhaodi was speechless.
Luo Xuan glared fiercely, then turned and left, heading straight to the train station.
In the ticket hall, she hurriedly asked, “I want a ticket to Shanghai, right now, immediately.”
The clerk said, “The earliest train is the day after tomorrow afternoon.”
Luo Xuan slammed the money on the counter: “I’ll take that one!”
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Go. She had to leave.
She and her mother could never coexist peacefully in this lifetime.
...
That evening back home, Luo Xuan found Luo Qi. “Has Mom talked to you about the one million debt? What did you say?”
Luo Qi said, “Not paying, not paying, not paying. Mom’s already suffering enough. Why should Dad’s expenses for mistresses be counted on her?”
Luo Xuan said, “So we just watch Lao Bao keep ruining our factory? There are still several orders that will cost us if delayed!”
Luo Qi replied, “That’s something for Mom and Uncle to worry about. What does it have to do with us? They don’t give us any money anyway, so why care about the losses?”
Luo Xuan asked in disbelief, “Don’t you want our Red Star Factory to do well?”
Luo Qi laughed coldly, “You really think Mom wants us meddling in Red Star? You’re too naive.”
Luo Xuan said nothing.
Later, she called her eldest sister. “Sis, what do you think?”
Luo Jue impatiently said, “What does that have to do with me? Sue them. Whoever owes money or disrupts production, you go sue them. Use the law to protect yourselves.”
Luo Xuan said, “How can we sue—”
Luo Jue shot back, “Then what do you want me to say? Will anything I say help? I can’t even keep my own job with Mom and Dad around. Are you stupid? When Mom asks for your opinion, she wants you to take a stand, not give advice. Don’t bother me with this again!”
She hung up.
Luo Xuan sat on her bed, finally sorting out the logic but furious at her own foolishness.