There is competition even for manual labor, and people even form factions. Yang Jian hadn't expected this but didn't dwell on it.
Now that he had a place to stay, his desire to earn money wasn't that strong. He decided to keep a low profile here, working if there was work, and lying flat if there wasn't, earning just enough for living expenses. There was no need to argue with anyone over pride.
In a year or so, when things cooled down, he would contact his family to see if there was any room for negotiation regarding the wanted poster.
In short, he couldn't afford to act rashly and get into conflicts with people here again, or he'd have to flee once more.
"Little Yang, follow me. They're hiring over there."
Seeing Yang Jian spacing out, Old Ma pulled him and headed towards a newly arrived truck.
Yang Jian quickly followed and squeezed into the crowd.
"I need to unload two thousand boxes of apples. One dollar per box. I need six people, and it must be done by noon."
The hiring boss was a middle-aged woman. She briefly explained the job requirements to the dozens of people surrounding her.
The pay for this job was quite good, but the labor intensity was a bit high, causing many to back out. The crowd around her thinned considerably.
"Boss, there are two of us."
Old Ma raised his hand. Earning three hundred yuan in half a day was quite worthwhile.
The boss glanced at the slightly thin Old Ma. "Can your body handle it? Each box of apples weighs over ten kilograms. The weather is hot, and the labor intensity is high; it's easy to get heatstroke."
Yang Jian quickly chimed in, "It's fine. I'm partnering with my uncle, and I won't hold anyone back."
The boss looked at them and smiled. "Hmm, young man, you have a good physique. We'll take both of you. Do you have bikes?"
"No."
"Then you two ride in the back."
The boss opened the rear seat of the truck, letting them sit in. She then found four more relatively strong middle-aged men, all of whom had motorcycles and would follow behind. The location was the largest fruit wholesale market in Dongjiang City, less than two kilometers from the labor market.
The job was smoothly completed before noon. Because the temperature was very high, the boss, seeing everyone's hard work, gave each person three hundred and fifty yuan and treated them to a boxed lunch at her establishment.
"Young man, how old are you this year?"
While eating in the fruit warehouse, the female boss specifically walked over to Yang Jian and handed him a cup of ice water.
"Thank you, Boss's wife. I'm twenty-five."
Yang Jian didn't know why the boss was asking his age.
"Why are you doing such hard labor at your age? It's easy to get a factory job here."
"My ID and wallet were stolen, so I can only do this for now."
"Oh, what's your educational background? Can you drive?"
The boss's wife was clearly interested in Yang Jian.
Yang Jian joked, "Boss's wife, why are you asking all this? Are you looking to recruit a live-in son-in-law?"
"My daughter is only in her teens, so I can't take a son-in-law. I need a delivery driver. If you can drive, you can come work for me. Five thousand a month, with meals provided but no accommodation. If you do well, there will be bonuses."
"I only have a C license, I can't drive a truck?"
"A C license is enough. We use small panel vans to deliver to supermarkets in the city. One or two trips a day, not too strenuous."
This prospect was quite good, and Yang Jian was a little tempted. The labor of moving cement and sand, and unloading fruits for the past two days had been too strenuous. If this continued, his body would break down.
Old Ma nudged him. "Little Yang, hurry up and agree. Where else can you find such a good opportunity? Factory jobs don't pay this much. It's such a waste for someone as young as you to do manual labor."
Yang Jian scratched his head. "Boss's wife, do I have to load and unload the goods myself?"
"Of course. Otherwise, driving alone wouldn't command such a high salary."
"Can I bring my Uncle Ma along? The salary is still five thousand, and we can split it ourselves. You just need to provide three meals."
Yang Jian wanted to ease Old Ma's burden. He couldn't handle the high-intensity manual labor at the labor market, and the income was unstable. Sometimes, he wouldn't get any work for days, averaging only two to three thousand yuan a month.
The boss's wife looked at Old Ma and nodded. "He can come. I'll add another thousand for you both. But if the business gets busy, you'll have to help out."
"No problem, no problem. We can help the business whenever we're free."
Yang Jian noticed that this fruit wholesale business had four other employees. They mainly loaded goods for the fruit retailers who came to pick up their orders. Most of these vehicles were small trucks, and some were pedal-powered tricycles, likely used by street vendors.
The work intensity wasn't high, and Old Ma could handle it.
"Alright then. Come tomorrow morning at six o'clock. The fruit wholesale market is quite busy in the morning. Also, bring your driver's license for me to see."
The boss's wife finished speaking and left.
Old Ma, however, hadn't quite processed it. "Little Yang, you want me to come here and work with you?"
Yang Jian nodded. "Yes. This job isn't too tiring. For the two of us, it's six thousand a month. You take four thousand, I take two thousand, and meals are included. It should be better than doing manual labor at the market, right?"
"What did you say? I get four thousand and you get two thousand? Are you out of your mind, kid? How can you allocate it like that? You're the one driving, why do you get less than me?"
"Uncle Ma, don't worry about how much I get. Just tell me if four thousand a month is enough for you."
"Of course, it's enough! I can't earn four thousand at the market. It's just that the allocation is wrong. I'd be fine with two thousand."
"Since you think four thousand is enough, then it's settled. I won't pay for rent and utilities, alright?"
Yang Jian didn't intend to earn a lot of money here. He just wanted a less strenuous job to lay low. He believed that his family's template factory would grow bigger under Jiang Bin's management. By lying flat here, he was already a rich man. If he really needed money, he could contact his family in a year or so and get a million or so without any problem.
"No, no, I can't take advantage of you. Rent and utilities are not that much."
"Uncle Ma, stop rambling. Let's go after we finish eating. I'm too tired today, and I woke up early. I want to go back, take a shower, and sleep."
Yang Jian's body had been aching since he woke up. He hadn't done physical labor for a long time, and yesterday's work had been too intense. Muscle strain was normal; it would stop hurting once he got used to it.
"Alright then, we'll talk about it when we get back."
Old Ma knew that nothing he said now would matter. He would talk to Yang Jian properly when they got paid. He definitely wouldn't take advantage of him; even splitting it fifty-fifty would be fine.
For the two-kilometer journey, Old Ma planned to walk back, but Yang Jian didn't want to walk. He directly paid five yuan for a motorcycle taxi to take them back.
"Little Yang, you go up and shower and rest. I'm going to buy some horses."
When they reached the downstairs of the rental house, Old Ma didn't plan to go up.
Yang Jian didn't understand. "Buy horses? What are you buying horses for? Are there horses for sale here?"
"Not horses to ride. You go up first, and I'll explain it to you later."
Old Ma waved his hand and turned to walk towards the center of the village.
Yang Jian stared blankly at his retreating back. If not horses to ride, then what kind of horses?