Generous Mr. Charles
The flood came swiftly and retreated just as quickly. After only four or five days of devastation, the waters receded.
A thick layer of silt was left behind where the flood had passed through the village. The villagers worked together, spending four or five days to clear the ground.
Everyone's homes were washed away. Each household used their own skills and resourcefulness—within a few days, straw huts, stone houses, and mud-brick homes sprang up one after another, and life in the village gradually returned to normal.
After a major disaster, plague often follows. Dr. Wu was so busy he barely had time to rest, preparing medicines to prevent illness, with Wu Caiwei helping him tirelessly.
Lily Evans had wanted Margaret Evans to move to Tenmile Hill, but Margaret was sentimental and couldn't bear to leave the village.
Fortunately, they had Lucky at home, along with Mark Hunter and other villagers who came to help. The house was quickly rebuilt, though only three simple rooms for now, since Lily Evans's family would soon be building a new home. The straw hut was just a temporary shelter.
That day was the end-of-month profit-sharing day, and Lily Evans headed to Savory House early in the morning.
Mr. Baker greeted her warmly and invited her inside. Lily first went to the kitchen to teach the cooks new dishes for the coming month, then chatted with Mr. Baker in a private room.
Mr. Baker handed Lily Evans her share of the month's profits—a total of five hundred and sixty taels of silver.
Lily did a quick calculation. With her original savings added in, she now had over a thousand taels of silver.
With so much silver, building a two-courtyard home would be more than enough, but Lily Evans wanted to do it all at once—a grand house with three courtyards and three entrances. Including renovations and furniture, even a thousand taels wouldn't quite cover it.
While Lily Evans was calculating her silver, Mr. Baker smiled and said, "Madam Evans, I heard your village was hit by the flood and that all the houses were washed away."
Lily Evans replied, "That's right. Our few straw huts were swept away without a trace. My mother keeps thinking about the chickens she raised—if they hadn't been washed away, we'd have fresh eggs every day."
Mr. Baker pulled out a stack of silver notes and placed them before Lily Evans. "Madam Evans, the owner heard about the flood and said that since your house was gone, you’d have to rebuild. Why not pick a high spot in the village and build something sturdy, so you won’t need to expand later if your family grows? The owner insisted I give you this silver."
Lily Evans looked at the pile of silver notes—there was a full thousand taels!
"This... this seems a bit much..." Lily Evans hadn’t expected the big boss, whom she’d never even met, to be so generous.
"What’s the harm? The owner gave his word—just a thousand taels, Madam Evans. Treat it as a loan if you like." Mr. Baker cheerfully pushed the notes toward her.
Lily Evans thought, a thousand taels sounds like a lot, but it’s only two months’ profit from Savory House. She decided to treat it as an advance.
She was short on cash anyway, so she accepted the silver notes and said, "Mr. Baker, please thank Mr. Charles for me."
"Madam Evans, Mr. Charles really values you." Mr. Baker nodded. "He’s a good boss—working with him, you’ll never lose out."
"Alright, I have some errands to run, so I’ll be off." Lily Evans still needed to visit Tenmile Hill, so she took her leave.
Mr. Baker personally saw Lily Evans out, but neither of them noticed someone hiding behind the doorpost.
That person was Mrs. Thompson, who had come to work off her family's debt at Savory House.
Mrs. Thompson covered her mouth, eyes wide with shock. Only after Lily Evans walked away did she gasp, "Oh my goodness! That shameless Lily Evans really has something going on with the big boss of Savory House! A thousand taels—how many times would she have to sleep with him to get that much silver?"