Chapter 17: Not Optimistic
Because she helped Du Ruo with two cartloads of medicinal herbs, Hua Changxi clearly felt that Du Ruo was more enthusiastic towards her.
When the two returned to the Sixth Bureau, it was just time for dinner. Du Ruo proactively invited Hua Changxi to go to the canteen together.
There were very few people in the canteen. Not many people could finish their tasks on time every day. Those who were slow would have to work until late at night, and some might even have to stay up all night.
Hua Changxi asked, “Steward Du, what happens if I work late and miss dinner?”
Du Ruo replied, “This is where you need to build good relationships with others. Have someone help you bring a few steamed buns to your dormitory, so you can have something to eat when you get back at night. If no one helps, then you’ll just have to go hungry.”
“Oh, right, I forgot to tell you before. The Labor Department gets one day off per month, and every ten days, there’s also half a day of rest.”
Afterward, Du Ruo told Hua Changxi some more about the Labor Department. After dinner, the two parted ways.
Hua Changxi returned to her accommodation. No one was in the room. After quickly washing up, she climbed onto the bed, lay on her stomach, closed her eyes, and began to cultivate.
She had worked all day today and was actually quite tired. As her cultivation progressed, the fatigue in her body was gradually relieved.
The sky gradually darkened. It wasn’t until it was completely dark that people started returning to their rooms one after another.
Seeing that Hua Changxi was asleep, her roommates made no attempt to lower their voices. Instead, their voices grew louder and louder.
Unfortunately, no matter how loud their voices were, Hua Changxi showed no signs of waking up.
“Why is she sleeping so soundly?”
“She’s still young, and it’s her first day at the Labor Department today. She’s probably exhausted.”
The voices of the others gradually faded.
Hua Family, Xiuzheng Ward.
When Hua Sanlang returned home and relayed the message from Pharmacist Xu, the Hua family members learned that Hua Changxi would be living in the Labor Department and only had one day off per month. Their expressions were somewhat complex.
Madam Yao was extremely worried, “Jiu Niang has never left home since she was little, and she didn’t pack any luggage when she left this morning. I need to pack some things for her and send them over.”
“Stop right there!”
Old Master Hua stopped Madam Yao and looked sternly at the members of the Eldest Branch, “You are not allowed to send anything to Jiu Niang.”
“Jiu Niang has too much of her own way, so much so that she doesn’t even listen to her grandfather. To get into the Medical Affairs Department, she’s been headstrong, completely disregarding the family’s opinions.”
“Where does she get the confidence to act like this?”
“It’s all because of your indulgence. No matter what trouble she causes, you’ll be there to clean up her mess.”
“It was understandable when she was younger, but now that she’s getting older, can you guarantee that the trouble she causes in the future will be something you can handle?”
“Let her suffer a bit in the Labor Department, so she can understand how difficult it is to make a living. Only then will she understand how important her family is to her.”
“She needs to know that she dared to throw tantrums before because she had the family protecting her. Now that she’s left home, she’s nothing.”
Hua Minghe’s brows were furrowed. Hua Sanlang and Hua Liulang also had stern faces, clearly not entirely agreeing with Old Master Hua’s actions. Madam Yao lowered her head, hiding her reluctance.
Old Madam Hua, seeing the tense atmosphere, stepped in to mediate, “As children grow older, they need to be disciplined properly, especially young women.”
“Eldest Son, Eldest Son’s Wife, tell me yourselves, with Jiu Niang’s temperament, what family would dare to marry her?”
“If her temperament doesn’t change, she’ll suffer greatly after marrying into a husband’s family.”
“Since she’s not married yet, if we help discipline her more now, she’ll face less hardship after marrying into her husband’s family.”
“Your father and I have worried ourselves sick over this family. If you don’t understand or cooperate, you’ll truly break our hearts.”
Fourth Uncle Hua immediately chimed in, “Eldest Brother, Eldest Sister-in-law, I think Father and Mother are right. None of the young men in the family are as headstrong as Jiu Niang. This behavior is unacceptable and must be disciplined properly.”
He then looked at Fourth Uncle Hua, “Fourth Brother, what do you say?”
Fourth Uncle Hua looked at the Old Master and Old Madam, then at Hua Minghe and Madam Yao, and vaguely said, “Jiu Niang is… not very obedient and humble.”
As soon as he finished speaking, Old Madam Hua looked at Hua Minghe, “You can choose not to listen to me and your father, but you should at least consider what your two brothers say.”
Hua Minghe quickly stood up and bowed, “Mother, what are you saying? We are not ignoring you and Father. We are just worried about Jiu Niang suffering in the Labor Department.”
Old Madam Hua said irritably, “Is this hardship being inflicted by the family? She brought it upon herself. They say experience is the best teacher. Whether Jiu Niang learns her lesson depends on what you do.”
Hua Minghe was silent for a moment, then finally compromised, “We will listen to Father and Mother.”
“I hope you mean what you say.”
Old Madam Hua and Old Master Hua exchanged a glance, their faces showing satisfaction.
Hua Shierniang leaned towards Hua Qiniang and whispered, “Seventh Sister, you said before that Jiu Niang would become more confident in the future. See? Even Eldest Uncle doesn’t think highly of Jiu Niang.”
“When Jiu Niang was at home, she didn’t even wash the clothes for Eldest Uncle, Third Brother, or Sixth Brother. How can she endure the hardship of being a laborer?”
“Just watch, maybe Jiu Niang will come crawling back in a couple of days.”
The next day, as the first rays of sunlight illuminated the earth, a harsh gong sound echoed through the Labor Department. Everyone in the laborer’s quarters opened their eyes, preparing to get up and start working.
“Why isn’t she awake yet?”
“Should we call her?”
“Call her for what? She works so fast. What’s wrong with sleeping in a bit longer?”
“Alright Qingluo, stop meddling. She might not even appreciate it if you call her.”
“Let’s hurry, or we’ll have to queue up again if we’re late.”
The laborers had to race against time every day. They had to queue for meals, queue to collect medicinal herbs, and queue to submit tasks. Their work was already heavy, and if they were any slower, they wouldn’t have enough time.
At the beginning of Chenshi （7:00）, the laborers had already begun collecting the medicinal herbs to be washed for the day, bringing them to the ditches to start cleaning and processing them.
After her subordinates started working, Du Ruo came over for a look and quickly noticed that Hua Changxi had not arrived yet.
Having been in the Labor Department for several years, she understood that Hua Changxi hadn’t adapted to the Labor Department’s schedule and had overslept. At the same time, her roommates hadn’t woken her up.
After hesitating, Du Ruo ultimately decided not to have someone fetch Hua Changxi.
Newcomers always had to experience some hardship before they knew how to strive to integrate into the team and how to conduct themselves.
At the second quarter of Sishi （9:30）, Hua Changxi finally opened her eyes, stretched, and a smile spread across her face as she got out of bed, unable to hide her joy.
She discovered that cultivating here was much faster than cultivating at home.
『Realm: Qi Refining Realm 51/1000』
After one night, not only had her spiritual energy, which had been depleted yesterday, been fully restored, but her realm points had also increased by two.
Hua Changxi estimated that cultivating at home for one night only increased her realm points by two, whereas cultivating here for one night could increase them by five.
Cultivating here was more than twice as fast as at home!
This discovery made Hua Changxi excited yet also a little puzzled.
Why was cultivating in the Labor Department faster than at home?
Could it be that the spiritual energy contained in the air of the Labor Department was more abundant than at home?
“Coming to the Labor Department was definitely the right decision.”
Hua Changxi glanced at the sky and saw that the sun was already high in the sky. Her expression changed.
She had definitely overslept!
There was no other way. Cultivating during midnight and dawn was the most efficient. During these times, spiritual energy circulated most smoothly, and she didn’t want to waste this time.
She probably wouldn’t get breakfast.
“Huh?”
Hua Changxi noticed two coarse grain steamed buns placed on her bedside table. Her face lit up with joy, “Who put these here?”
It seemed that among her new roommates, there were still some very friendly people.
Hua Changxi quickly washed up, grabbed the steamed buns, and walked towards the front courtyard while eating.
Upon reaching the front courtyard, the laborers on both sides of the ditch were working enthusiastically.
Du Ruo saw her and said, “You have to clean and process 500 medicinal herbs today. You’re not allowed to sleep until you finish. Hurry and go to the storeroom to collect the medicinal herbs you need to process.”
Seeing that Du Ruo didn’t scold her for oversleeping, Hua Changxi was immediately delighted and decided that as long as Du Ruo didn’t mention it, she would continue to wake up late.
