Everyone initially thought she was faking it when she fainted, but when they realized she had truly passed out, they immediately rushed over to help.
Some pinched her philtrum, while others helped her breathe. After a while, when they finally saw Old Mrs. Chen open her eyes, everyone let out a collective sigh of relief.
"Mom, are you alright?" Chen Man Dun asked, supporting her anxiously. Old Mrs. Chen didn't answer at first. She reacted blankly for a moment, and when she finally remembered what had happened, she let out a wail and cried, "My Bao Zhu—"
Chen Bao Zhu was the only male heir in the Chen family and the apple of her eye. If he were to be imprisoned, she wouldn't want to live either.
Looking at Old Mrs. Chen, who was sobbing uncontrollably, and Chen Man Dun beside her, looking helpless, Chen Li Shu frowned instinctively.
Old Mrs. Chen was over sixty years old. If something were to happen to her, Chen Man Dun would never recover in his life. Although they deserved their punishment, she couldn't ignore Chen Man Dun's feelings.
However, even if Chen Bao Zhu wasn't sent to prison, they couldn't escape a proper lesson.
With that in mind, Chen Li Shu stepped forward and reminded her, "Grandma, if you keep delaying here, Chen Bao Zhu will truly end up in prison. Before they get too far, shouldn't you hurry and give the investigator some money?"
Upon hearing her words, Old Mrs. Chen's wailing choked in her throat. She looked up at her blankly, "Are you serious?"
Chen Li Shu's thoughts raced as she nodded, "The investigator must be annoyed by the trouble he caused. However, if you don't give enough money, it won't work."
It was a simple matter of turning a blind eye. Chen Bao Zhu's situation should not be too serious.
Although this little rascal, Chen Li Shu, was usually infuriating, what she said was often true.
After thinking it through, Old Mrs. Chen scrambled up from the ground. Without a second thought, she ran with her bound feet, chasing after the investigators.
"Dad, Mom, although they probably won't come back, you should still keep this money safe."
Chen Man Dun looked at the receipt she handed him and sighed heavily after a long pause.
Meanwhile, Old Mrs. Chen hurried and finally caught up with the two investigators escorting the person, quickly calling out to them, "Comrades, please wait."
By the time she reached them, she was breathless.
She was already slow due to her bound feet, but for her grandson, she had truly risked her life.
"Mom, why did you come here?"
Zhang Chun Hua had been crying and begging all the way, but the two investigators completely ignored her. Seeing Old Mrs. Chen approach, they thought she was coming to cause more trouble and frowned instinctively.
"Eldest daughter-in-law, stop crying. That darn girl said that as long as we give them more money, Bao Zhu will be fine."
The two investigators: "..."
Zhang Chun Hua felt like she had been struck by a bolt of lightning. She finally realized and hurriedly rummaged in her inner pocket for money.
She had kept the money from selling the pig close to her person, and now it came in handy.
"Comrades, please, just let him go."
The two investigators' expressions softened considerably as they looked at the several large denomination bills she handed over.
...
"Honestly, today's incident is all the fault of the third sister-in-law. If she hadn't caused this mess and bought a pig, why would we have gotten into trouble? She even almost got Dad sent to prison!" Liu Yue Min complained at dinner.
Hearing her words, Li Xiu Lan slammed her chopsticks on the table, "What does this have to do with the third daughter-in-law? When the sky is about to rain and a mother wants to get married, Chen Bao Zhu was always a good-for-nothing. Besides, didn't the third daughter-in-law buy the pig for the family's benefit? Didn't you take the money from selling that pig?"
Liu Yue Min was reprimanded and was unwilling to accept it. She glanced at Gu Xing Min, who was heartlessly eating beside her, and became furious. She stomped on his foot under the table.
Gu Xing Min glared, "Why are you stepping on me?"
"Eating, always eating. How can you be so careless? One day, you might be implicated and end up eating prison food!" Liu Yue Min said pointedly.
Chen Li Shu stopped her chopsticks when she saw Liu Yue Min's gaze and said with a solemn expression, "Second sister-in-law, business inherently involves risk. If you want high returns, you must also be prepared for the worst-case scenario."
Everything in the family had been too smooth before, making them never truly realize the existence of crises.
Chen Li Shu's words were not only for Liu Yue Min but also for everyone else in the family.
"Since this incident happened today, everyone has seen it. The economic situation is like this, and speculation is a serious crime. After this, everyone can have an opportunity to reconsider whether to continue or withdraw. Everyone needs to think carefully."
Hearing her words, everyone truly began to think seriously.
"I will definitely continue. As the saying goes, you can't catch a wolf without sacrificing your cubs. If you want to make money, don't be afraid of anything," Gu Xing Ye said first.
Having been with Chen Li Shu for so long, he had seen it all. The current situation was that the bold would prosper and the timid would starve. If it weren't for speculation, he wouldn't have been able to buy a bicycle and sewing machine by now.
"We will definitely follow along too." Gu Xing Guo looked at Zhang Qin, and seeing her nod, he spoke.
In such a short time, the couple had saved nearly a thousand yuan. What could earn so much money?
Seeing that everyone had made their decision, Liu Yue Min panicked and quickly said, "I'll do it too." After all, that was money, and not doing it would be foolish.
Chen Li Shu looked at her with a half-smile, "Second sister-in-law, aren't you scared anymore?"
Liu Yue Min choked and said stubbornly, "If you're not scared, why should I be?"
In any case, if the sky fell, the tall ones would hold it up. Chen Li Shu earned much more money than they did. If she wasn't afraid, why should she be?
"Since everyone has decided to continue, let's complain less in the future, and everyone needs to be more cautious in their actions," Gu Shou Fu said after a pause.
Everyone nodded silently.
Because of today's events, everyone was in low spirits and went to bed early.
The next day, Chen Li Shu and Gu Xing Ye took the "false collars" and grain made by Zhang Qin and returned to town.
After arriving home, Chen Li Shu first went to the Wang family's house to retrieve the "false sleeves" made by the couple. After distributing a hundred sets, she went to the Supply and Marketing Cooperative to find Zhou Bin. After arranging for him to pick them up after work, Chen Li Shu went to the department store again.
"You're here at the right time. The batch of fabric for making underwear has arrived." Nan Hai Tao said with a smile when he saw her enter.
Upon hearing that the fabric had arrived, Chen Li Shu's eyes lit up, "How much fabric is there in total?"
"Five bolts."
After all, it was centrally purchased and distributed. These five bolts were the most he could obtain within his authority and capabilities.
"There's only this much now. The next batch of fabric will be a month later."
Chen Li Shu nodded. These five bolts of fabric would be enough for her to sell for a while after being made into underwear.
"Let's go, I'll send it over to you," Nan Hai Tao said, getting up.
Chen Li Shu chuckled and teased, "Is it still on the way this time?"
Nan Hai Tao's lips also curled up as he saw her eyes curving in a smile, "This time it's voluntary. After all, I'm still getting a three-point profit, aren't I?"