CHAPTER 530: CHAPTER 525: DADDY IS GONE

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However, now that the old lady has relented, Fang Xiu’s concerns aren’t as weighty as before.

Actually, deep down she knew that Bai Jing probably wasn’t Zhou Guangsheng’s child, otherwise given Zhou Guangsheng’s personality, he wouldn’t have rejected the idea so vehemently.

Fang Xiu didn’t say much more, simply stating, "Let Zhou Guangsheng come over the weekend and then we’ll talk."

Fang Pingying nodded. This was a matter between the two of them and it was better for them to discuss it themselves.

She remembered the matter of the shop and asked Fang Xiu, "Xiu’er, how is the renovation of your shop going, and when can you open for business?"

Fang Xiu replied, "The renovation is almost done, it should be complete by tomorrow. After organizing for a couple of days, big sister, you can pick a date to start operations."

"Uh huh, let’s have mom and dad pick the date." Picking a date usually meant consulting the almanac; Li Yuchun and his wife had some understanding of these things. But once the shop opens, Fang Xiu alone wouldn’t be able to handle it, yet Fang Xiu had not mentioned hiring anyone; it was unclear what she planned to do.

Fang Pingying inquired, "What are your thoughts about the staffing?"

Fang Xiu shook her head, "Considering the shop has just opened, I don’t know how the business will be, so I’ll look after it myself. Hiring someone means spending extra money on their wages, and the expenses are too much."

Fang Pingying felt this was inappropriate and frowned, "If money is tight, you can borrow from me first. You definitely need to hire someone. In case something happens to you, we can’t just close the shop; this is where we shouldn’t cut corners."

Fang Xiu had indeed thought about this issue, but she was reluctant to spend the money. Hiring someone meant handing out a salary of at least sixty yuan a month now.

But since Fang Pingying put it that way, and knowing it made sense, she nodded, agreeing that hiring someone was acceptable.

Li Yuchun, who was listening by the side, immediately thought of relatives who might be able to help, but finding no suitable candidate caused her some worry, "Then who should we hire? Among the people we know, there’s no suitable candidate, unless..."

Li Yuchun glanced at Luo Honglan, wondering if she’d be willing to lend a hand.

Fang Pingying was not opposed either, and asked Luo Honglan, "Hong Lan, would you be willing to help in Xiu’er’s shop? The work is the same as in our shop, and the salary is the same."

Luo Honglan was not willing, smiling as she patted Ruirui’s head, who was playing in front of the couch, and waved her hand, "I better not go, I have to look after Ruirui and Yaoyao. When they’re a bit older, I can return to the shop to work."

Hearing Luo Honglan say this, Fang Pingying did not insist, as she still hoped Luo Honglan would look after her children.

Luo Honglan had great patience with the children, and her affection for them was deeply genuine. The children were also fond of her, something that couldn’t easily be replaced by others, even Li Yuchun or Li Aihua might not possess such patience.

Anyway, Luo Honglan was paid the same salary to look after the children at home as she would get working in the shop. As long as Luo Honglan was willing, Fang Pingying had no objections.

Seeing Luo Honglan’s reluctance, Fang Xiu thought for a moment before suddenly having an idea of a suitable person. She pulled Fang Pingying aside, "Big sister, if we really are hiring someone, I was thinking of letting Guangsheng’s sister try working at the shop for a while, what do you think?"

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"Guangsheng’s sister?" Fang Pingying wasn’t very familiar with Zhou Guangsheng’s family situation and didn’t know his sister’s circumstances.

Fang Xiu nodded and began to explain to Fang Pingying, "Yes, that girl is 18 years old this year. She was previously working at a factory in the provincial city, but she returned to her hometown because of the issue between Guangsheng and Bai Jing. She said she’s back in the countryside helping Guangsheng’s parents with farming now."

She was of an appropriate age, but what Fang Pingying worried about was the girl’s character, "How is that girl in terms of personal character?"

Fang Xiu replied, "Guangsheng said she’s a very honest person and did her job well at the factory."

"No matter what Guangsheng says, you should see the person yourself first," Fang Pingying nodded, thinking that if it’s about hiring someone, it’s best if it’s a reliable person from one’s own family, which is not only trustworthy but also more diligent in work. However, given the bunch of troublesome characters in the Luo family, she still didn’t forget to remind Fang Xiu,

"You’d better ask Zhou Guangsheng clearly first, and explain what duties are required in the shop. Our kind of shop really needs reliable people, and since that girl is Guangsheng’s sister, she might be your sister-in-law in the future. Don’t have a situation where the work isn’t done well, and on top of that, family conflicts arise."

Fang Xiu nodded and said to Fang Pingying, "Then I’ll tell Guangsheng to bring his sister to the provincial city for you to meet?"

Seeing Fang Xiu so reliant on her even at this point, Fang Pingying frowned and scolded her, "It’s fine for me to help you check her out, but you should also learn how to judge people. You’ll be running a shop yourself in the future and can’t rely on me for everything. Moreover, I will spend most of my time on the supermarket side, so I won’t have time to help you deal with everything."

Li Yuchun, who was present, still doubted Fang Xiu’s abilities. Upon hearing that Fang Xiu would be managing the shop alone, she immediately got nervous and pulled Fang Pingying, "Pingying, Xiu’er managing the shop alone definitely won’t work. You’ll still have to help oversee things, as the money you and Dad have saved up has been fully invested here. If anything happens, it would be terrible."

Fang Xiu looked at Li Yuchun, who had no faith in her, shrugged helplessly, and ignored her.

"Mom, we’re just chatting casually. Please don’t panic like this," Fang Pingying said with a smile, then turned to Fang Xiu, "Alright, ask Guangsheng to bring his sister here, and we’ll meet her first before deciding whether to hire her or not."

Fang Xiu nodded, then looked at the time and realized it was getting late. Fang Ping’an must have already gone back, so Fang Xiu and Li Yuchun took Haohao with them and left.

Fang Pingying’s family was also preparing to have dinner.

Now that Luo Zhiyong was not at home, Yaoyao and Ruirui, the two kids, didn’t eat much, so it was just Fang Pingying and Luo Honglan having dinner together.

Fang Pingying checked the fridge and saw there were still some vegetables, then called out to Luo Honglan, who was playing with the kids, "Honglan, let’s just eat something simple tonight, no need to go out and buy groceries."

"Alright," Luo Honglan laughed in response. After a while, she suddenly called out to Fang Pingying, "Big sister, today when you weren’t at home, Yaoyao cried and was calling for her dad."

Fang Pingying’s smile froze upon her face. It had been almost a month since her formal divorce with Luo Zhiyong, during which he never came back.

Although Fang Pingying never mentioned him in the presence of others, she often found herself recalling their times together when alone, unable to help feeling sad.

Upon hearing Luo Honglan’s words, the little girl Yaoyao waddled over to Fang Pingying, pouting and said, "Mommy, daddy is gone."

Fang Pingying squatted down and held Yaoyao in her arms.

Looking at Yaoyao, she didn’t know how to explain to her. The child was too young, and wouldn’t understand much if she talked about it. However, she didn’t want to lie because the child would eventually grow up and perhaps by this time next year, lying might not even be an option. Therefore, she preferred not to lie from the start.