449: Chapter 449 Dismissal

Upon hearing this, Li Na immediately knew who it was for and agreed right away, "Okay, I'll ask about it right now."

"I'll have an answer in an hour or two."

Auntie Yang, who was sitting opposite them, immediately looked crestfallen.

First a nanny, now an early childhood educator. Where would there be any place left for her in this household in the future?

Auntie Yang put on a miserable expression, looking like an honest person being bullied, "Mr. Chen, is there something I haven't done well?"

Chen Cheng acted as if nothing was wrong, smiling as he shook his head, "No, didn't you just say, Auntie Yang, that you can't even get a full night's sleep?"

"I'm hiring two people to help share your burden, Auntie Yang."

As he spoke, he smiled, "Besides, when I do things, I like to leave professional matters to professionals."

Looking at the bright smile on his face, Auntie Yang only felt a sense of dread.

Chen Cheng asked another question, "Where are you from, Auntie Yang?"

Auntie Yang immediately perked up. He was still asking questions, which meant there was still room for negotiation, "Oh~ my hometown is in the Central Plains."

Chen Cheng nodded, "The Central Plains are great; they've been the granary of China since ancient times."

Changing the subject, he asked, "How is your cooking, Auntie Yang?"

A smile appeared on Auntie Yang's face, "My cooking is decent. When I was at home, I did the cooking for the whole family. After I came out to work as a nanny, I specifically learned a bit more."

Chen Cheng smiled, "Then for lunch..."

Auntie Yang finally reacted, beaming, "Oh, right away! I'll go cook lunch now. You just sit there, Mr. Chen."

Chen Cheng watched her walk toward the kitchen and chuckled softly. It would also be the last lunch you make in this house.

Before long, Lucy returned. Binjiang Garden was near Financial Street. Ever since the Infant arrived, Lucy had been coming back every noon.

Hearing the door open, Chen Cheng placed the Infant, who he had just coaxed to sleep, on the sofa. He stood up, walked a few steps, and upon seeing Lucy—dressed in a light coffee-colored sleeveless lapel vest and white trousers, looking stylish and beautiful—he broke into a bright smile.

He raised his hands and opened his arms. Lucy, in her high heels, hurried over and threw herself into Chen Cheng's embrace.

Chen Cheng lowered his head and kissed her full red lips. In the kitchen, Auntie Yang, who had cast a glance over upon hearing the commotion, muttered disdainfully, "Shameless."

Chen Cheng and Lucy held each other and kissed for a long time, only parting when they were slightly out of breath. A faint smile hung on Chen Cheng's face as he looked at Lucy's vibrant face, "You've been wronged."

In an instant, Lucy couldn't hold it in anymore, and tears welled up and streamed down her face.

Her biological mother, whom she hadn't seen in five years, had suddenly given her a huge surprise. But, well, a surprise was a surprise, but then not long after, she died.

In between, there was the discovery that her biological father had cheated while her mother was pregnant; the decision to raise this little sister who had dropped out of the sky; and the battle of wits against her biological father to secure a guarantee for her sister. She was under too much pressure.

As soon as Chen Cheng returned, throwing herself into his arms and being held by him, her tightly wound nerves finally relaxed.

Chen Cheng patted her, "Alright, don't cry anymore." Lucy finally broke into a smile through her tears and wiped them away. She turned and went to the bathroom to wash up. After freshening up, she came back to see the Infant.

Chen Cheng watched her looking at her sister with an auntie's smile, the corners of his mouth lifting slightly as he smiled, "Have you named her yet?"

Lucy nodded, "Yes, I have. Fang Baizhi."

Chen Cheng was stunned. Her own name, Fang Zhiheng, came from a line in the "Li Sao" of the Chu Ci: "I have planted nine wan of orchids, and cultivated a hundred mu of hui grass. I have laid out plots for liuyi and jieche, and interplanted duheng and fangzhi."

Translated into plain language, it means, "I have planted nine wan of orchids and cultivated a hundred mu of hui grass. I have cultivated liuyi and jieche in separate plots, and interplanted duheng and fangzhi."

Liuyi, jieche, duheng, and fangzhi are all fragrant herbs from the Chu region. Lucy had clearly used the same source for the Infant's name as she had for her own. Yet, instead of taking it from the original text, she had directly used the translated plain language.

Chen Cheng smiled, "Did you never think of calling her Zhiruo?" Well, Zhou Zhiruo from Jin Yong's novels also originated from the Li Sao.

A dimple appeared at the corner of Lucy's mouth as she widened her eyes, "I don't want her to have any connection with that father." "Isn't Baizhi also quite nice-sounding?" "Growing vigorously, withering every year, growing anew every year, a natural, silent plant, quietly drinking in the essence of heaven and earth."

Chen Cheng smiled and nodded, saying nothing. This intention of Lucy's was just so that when people tried to guess their relationship from the names, they would have to think a bit more. Such little thoughts... He shook his head...

The nanny and early childhood educator Li Na found arrived in the afternoon. There were six of them at once, for Chen Cheng and Lucy to choose from. Chen Cheng didn't ask how Li Na managed it.

Auntie Yang watched the interviews, not daring to breathe. She was still pinning her hopes on the lunch she had cooked, thinking it might impress Chen Cheng. She had also realized that this young man was the one who called all the shots in this house. But the more she watched, the colder her heart grew.

The interview was about seeing how they would take care of the child. But really, why were they speaking English to a child who couldn't even talk yet?

Chen Cheng watched the Infant's activity area for a while and found his preferred candidate. He turned to look at Lucy, who was sitting on the floor mat watching, "You keep looking, I'm going to go handle that over there for you."

Lucy turned to look at Auntie Yang, who was waiting on the side, her face devoid of joy or sorrow, and nodded, "Okay."

Chen Cheng got up and went to the study, taking three stacks of cash from the safe. He grabbed a pen, an ink pad, and a few sheets of A4 paper. He walked into the dining room, pulled out a chair, sat down, wrote out a receipt format, and beckoned to Auntie Yang.

Auntie Yang's eyes were fixed on him, and seeing the gesture, she immediately walked over. Chen Cheng put on a smile, "Sit down, Auntie Yang."

After Auntie Yang sat down, she looked nervously at the three stacks of red bills on the dining table. She already had a bad premonition.

Chen Cheng pushed the employment contract she had signed with Lucy in front of her, "Auntie Yang, this is the employment contract you signed with Lucy."

"The monthly salary is 8,000, and if you work for a full year, you get an extra month's salary at the end of the year."

"Today is the 9th, so I'm settling last month's salary for you."

While speaking, Chen Cheng counted out 8,000, the bills making a rustling sound, and pushed it to the middle of the dining table.

Auntie Yang didn't reach for it; her face was livid, and she gritted her teeth, wishing she could eat Chen Cheng alive.

Chen Cheng didn't care about that and continued counting the money while saying, "For this month up to today, let's count it as ten days. It should be over 2,660, so let's call it 2,700."

Auntie Yang's chubby face turned bright red, and she glared at him, "What is the meaning of this? Are you firing me?"

Chen Cheng didn't answer her question and continued:

"In the contract you signed with Lucy, there is no clause specifying the employer's right to dismiss the employee."

"Technically, I could choose not to pay any severance."

"However, out of humanitarian principles,"

"I will compensate you according to the standard 'N+1' severance practice for employers."

"For less than six months, N is 0.5, which means 1.5 times the monthly salary."

"This is 12,000."

"You were brought here by Lucy from Beijing. Reasonably speaking, if I dismiss you, I should give you some travel expenses."

"I just checked, and a full-price economy ticket from Shanghai to Beijing is just over 2,000."

Seeing that Chen Cheng completely ignored her, Auntie Yang started acting pitiful again, her tone full of grievance, "Mr. Chen, what did I do wrong?"