A Sudden Change of Face
Mrs. Spicer’s dramatic change of face amused all the recruiters. One of them laughed and said to Mrs. Spicer, “Alright then, let your daughter-in-law get in line. She’ll fill out the form in a bit.”
At this moment, Mrs. Spicer was all smiles, terrified of offending the recruiters and risking her daughter-in-law’s chance. She hurriedly plastered on a fawning grin and said, “Of course, of course, we’ll go line up right away! Miss, please remember my daughter-in-law—she’s hardworking and skillful, her handiwork is excellent. You’ll be very satisfied if you hire her!”
As she spoke, Mrs. Spicer pushed her daughter-in-law toward the line, her attitude suddenly much warmer. As they walked, she whispered, “You’d better make me proud! If you get hired as a factory girl, you won’t have to worry about cooking or the kids—I’ll take care of everything. You just focus on working hard and earning money. If you can bring home a paycheck, I’ll handle all the chores…”
The young wife was a bit taken aback by her mother-in-law’s sudden friendliness.
Ever since she got married, her days had been filled with weaving, cooking, chores, and childcare—every day was the same. Her mother-in-law was never satisfied, never showed her a kind face.
It felt like her mother-in-law had never been this nice to her before.
Even while lining up, Mrs. Spicer—unusually—kept her daughter-in-law company, as if terrified she might not get chosen.
This entire scene was witnessed by Su Li from the second floor.
Over the past few days, Su Li had seen countless similar incidents—money was changing everything, even long-held beliefs.
Take Charleston, for example: until recently, almost no women worked outside the home. The only ones out and about were brothel girls or women forced to step up because there were no men left in their families.
Back then, it was extremely rare for women to work outside the home—and those who did were looked down upon.
But now, with the economy booming, Charleston needs lots of women in the workforce. Skilled women earn wages just as high as men. Families, seeing the money, are starting to encourage their daughters to work.
Just like Mrs. Spicer—her attitude did a complete 180 the moment she heard about the wages.
In the past, having a daughter was considered a loss. But now, things are different—women can earn money too. That’s why there are far fewer cases of abandoned baby girls in the Kingdom of Qin. Girls can grow up, work, and earn a bride price when they marry. They’re no longer seen as a burden.
Su Li was delighted to see this change of heart.
Keeping women locked up at home means losing half the workforce. In ancient times, when the population was so small, it was a terrible waste of resources.
By evening, all the applications from the factory girls were collected. Su Li had them brought up—these would serve as everyone’s resume.
Her staff did an initial screening, weeding out the obvious mismatches. About a hundred resumes remained. After another round, eighty female workers were chosen.
Su Li glanced through the stack and saw that the young wife who’d come with her mother-in-law had made the cut.
“Notify these women to report to the Textile Works tomorrow for orientation. Only those who pass training can start the job. The machines can be dangerous—we must ensure everyone’s safety. One careless move and you could lose an arm,” Su Li reminded them.