Chapter 1247: Urban Slaves

Once the chatterbox was opened, everyone forgot the plan to charge for chatting in the livestream room.

And although Zhang Yanping picked a lettuce and put it on the sound-receiving equipment, it was bought with money. Besides the crisp vegetable-picking sound, everyone's chatting was also recorded.

For a time, the fans in the livestream room also felt the same.

—After all, those who don't sleep at this point, are they born to love staying up late?

No, it's because the time that belongs to them during the day is too little.

【Who understands, I was originally emo and wanted to watch a livestream to be happy,

【Common knowledge: having your stomach removed is super, super damaging to your body!! You can't just cut it into pieces!】

【Brother, why don't you look at your hair? At our age, making money isn't worth losing your life.】

【This sister is spot on. Salespeople who need to drink usually sign big contracts, and even if you switch jobs, the workplace environment is still the same.】

【Brother! We're all in the same livestream room fighting to buy vegetables. I sincerely suggest you find a job as a gatekeeper to recuperate properly; this night shift won't do.】

【I also think you shouldn't stay up late, but this is Qiaoqiao's place... Is the food for a gatekeeper as good as it is here?】

【You can't eat too much after a gastrectomy anyway...】

【Not being able to eat much and not being able to eat at all are two different things... Working at night is indeed bad for your health, but the food should make up for it.】

【Brother, a salary of 1200 is too low. Can't we get a normal job for five or six thousand?】

【Good heavens, a late-night breakdown! I'm still working overtime with a salary of 5000.】

【Salary 6000, no overtime, but team-building activities are after 9 PM.】

【A random screenshot of this chat is the life of a pitiful wage slave!】

This was the first time everyone had a breakdown in Qiaoqiao's livestream room—not counting those who failed to buy vegetables.

Zhang Yanping stared at the chat, unable to help but sigh. He quickly said, "You guys work hard and eat more to build up your health!"

"By the end of the month, there will be plenty of money-making jobs here! As long as you aren't afraid of hard work, you can do it all! You can easily make 100 or 150 a day, and with the night shift, that's five or six thousand a month."

This instantly caused the gastrectomy brother to break down: "Ah? I came here to recuperate, do I still have to work during the day?"

"And..." the self-study sister also said with a sigh: "When you say that, it sounds like the boss is feeding me empty promises."

Everyone nodded along.

Only Liu Liu was a kind-hearted person. She seized the opportunity and quickly asked: "Then can I join in picking tea this year? I heard the wage is 150 a day?"

Zhang Yanping's good intentions were taken as empty promises, and he was feeling stifled, so he quickly took the chance to step down:

"Yes! But you still have to take care of your child; can you handle it? If you ruin your health, the loss will outweigh the gain."

Liu Liu laughed: "I told the old lady at home that she can watch the child for me during the day, and I'll give her 1000 a month."

She had calculated the night shift at 1300—no, the livestream added money, so 1400. Plus 150 a day during the day, that's 1400 + 4500 = 5900 a month.

After subtracting the 1000 for the old lady, there was 4900 left.

If she finds some old clothes, shoes, and toys for the kid from relatives and friends, aside from formula and diapers...

She could save at least 4000 a month!

As for being tired... of course, it was a little tiring, but compared to the days when she had to look after the child alone while trying to figure out how to make money, often crying over a single yuan...

This was already a stable life that she wouldn't trade for anything!

Not to mention the good food here; she hadn't been here long, but she felt much more energetic when walking and no longer felt dizzy or out of breath.

Looking at her daughter on the monitor, sleeping soundly at night with borrowed buckwheat pillows blocking the bed so there was no need to worry about her falling out, the child had even gained weight.

Liu Liu was instantly filled with fighting spirit!

Honestly, picking vegetables for two hours at night was no work at all for her!

Thinking of this, and looking at her new, highly motivated colleagues, Liu Liu silently picked up the pace once again...

And so.

It was only 1:45 AM.

The cold-chain truck drivers, who had also grabbed a midnight snack and were dozing off in their chairs, woke up to find Liu Liu, who usually finished picking vegetables around 2:00, standing in front of them:

"Hello, let's weigh them."

The driver wiped his face: "So fast."

Zhang Yanping walked over, hesitated for a moment, and advised: "Actually, you really don't have to work this hard..."

Picking vegetables is just about chatting and talking leisurely, which is great for boosting the livestream's popularity. Unlike now, where they bury their heads and work so hard that they've actually lulled the livestream fans to sleep.

"You don't understand this," the self-study sister said leisurely:

"If you can leave work as soon as you finish the tasks within your responsibility, who would still want to slack off?"

"Slacking off is just a passive resistance tactic against overtime culture."

Zhang Yanping:...

Fine!

Anyway, the vegetables were picked well and cleaned thoroughly. Now that they were weighed, they were about the same weight as usual.

He waved his hand: "Don't worry! As long as there isn't a temporary plan, we don't do overtime for picking vegetables. Overtime definitely comes with overtime pay, go back and rest early."

Just two more days, and once the new employees are fully familiar with the entire workflow, he can finally get a normal night's sleep.

Hey! And he and Xin Jun get to pick up 1500 in night shift pay for nothing!

Because they maintained high efficiency while picking vegetables, everyone felt a bit exhausted. After saying goodbye to Liu Liu, who was rushing back to see her child, everyone walked toward the dormitory.

As they walked, looking at the solar streetlights by the roadside, Nian Xu sighed: "It feels like returning to the dorm in college."

Once this was said, it immediately stirred up everyone's memories. The gastrectomy brother also sighed: "If I had known I'd end up with a gastrectomy, I never would have chosen marketing when I applied for my major!"

Everyone had heard of the "jack-of-all-trades" major, but Nian Xu was curious: "So which school were you from?"

The gastrectomy brother was even more sentimental: "Agricultural University. And it was a proper first-tier university."

Everyone: "..."

Good heavens, so you were the real vegetable-picking professional! But looking at his miserable appearance, which was only slightly fatter than the continuous weight gain, everyone could only sigh:

"Well... if you hadn't done this, how would you know your stomach could be removed? It's just one more life experience; just be careful next time."

The gastrectomy brother's face darkened: "If you don't want to comfort me, just say so."

Everyone laughed, the sound carrying far across the country road, set against the chirping of insects and birds in the surroundings, which felt inexplicably out of place.

"Forget it, forget it..." everyone quickly lowered their voices: "Let's be careful; people in the dorms are asleep, don't disturb them. It's already two o'clock."

Yes, it's two o'clock.

It was as if everyone had only just realized that they had truly arrived at a rural life.

This feeling of pitch-black silence all around is really so comfortable and cozy!

Even their souls felt like they were drifting, and the chirping of insects in the grass didn't feel noisy at all.