Time passed swiftly, and by mid-April, Joy Soon Loy had developed its new jam utilizing apples from the Shu region. This time, Xiao Pinshan personally led a team to the orchards there to sign a supply contract.
As the weather grew warmer, pineapples once again became sought after, and Joy Soon Loy’s pineapple jam became a leading product. Pineapples at the beginning of early summer were delicious, which meant that production of the jam ramped up and sales were swift.
The pineapple supply had always been handled by Sister Wang’s family, thanks to Cheng Su. Their family had now become a major supplier, with several companies seeking them out for produce.
Therefore, remembering the favor from Cheng Su, Sister Wang offered Joy Soon Loy a price that was significantly lower than that of other companies.
However, that day Sister Wang personally came with the delivery truck, waiting specifically for Cheng Su.
After their business had expanded, Sister Wang rarely made deliveries herself, so her personal visit came as somewhat of a surprise to Cheng Su.
"It’s all thanks to your advice that our family’s situation has improved so much, and the business is doing well. We will never forget the great kindness you have shown our family," Sister Wang said to Cheng Su with gratitude.
Cheng Su smiled and replied, "Sister Wang, what are you talking about? I just made a casual remark, how could that possibly amount to the ’great kindness’ you’re speaking of?"
"Whether it’s kindness or sentiment, we know it in our hearts. We are not ungrateful people. We thought everything was going well, that life was looking up, but we never expected..." Sister Wang’s eyes reddened slightly as she spoke.
Startled, Cheng Su quickly asked, "What happened? Has something gone wrong?"
"Just last month, our truck flipped while collecting goods, and it plunged into a ditch along with the driver," Sister Wang burst into tears as she spoke.
Cheng Su exclaimed in shock, "Oh my goodness, how is the person? Is he alright?"
"Barely saved his life," Sister Wang sobbed.
Relieved, Cheng Su sighed, "As long as he is alive, that’s what matters."
"He’s alive, but his leg is broken. Since we’re the owners, naturally, we have to compensate," Sister Wang explained. "We’ve covered the medical costs, but we also have to pay damages."
There was no helping it; this was a work-related injury. Seeing Sister Wang cry so desolately, Cheng Su said, "Good and bad luck happen to everyone; it is just fate. Take solace in the fact that he survived..."
"What’s to solace, it might have been better if he had died..." Sister Wang gritted her teeth, her head bowed, as if she found it difficult to say.
But Cheng Su understood perfectly, feeling a chill in her heart.
She grasped the implication of Sister Wang’s words: following a car accident, some responsible parties would prefer if the injured person died, because then a lump-sum payment would settle it. However, with serious injuries, compensation can continue indefinitely without end.
Therefore, she had also seen news reports of people who, after causing an accident, deliberately reversed to run over the victim again, ensuring their death.
"It’s not that I’m heartless, but after paying out, when the money’s gone, they come knocking on our door again, using the accident as leverage. They point out the victim was a good person, a key support, and they come back time after time asking for more," Sister Wang wiped her tears and continued, "If we don’t give, they accuse us of being heartless, but it can’t go on like this, it’s a bottomless pit!"
Cheng Su agreed, saying, "Have you tried negotiating with them?" as she passed another cup of water to her.
"Later we did negotiate a lump-sum compensation, but they’re asking for ten thousand yuan," Sister Wang said, biting her lip.
Ten thousand yuan wasn’t a small amount. Seeing Sister Wang speak of this matter and considering she had purposefully stayed to wait for her, Cheng Su suddenly had a thought and tentatively asked her intentions, "So, what brings you here this time? Is the money not enough?"