Finding Elisa this job, the landlord felt quite sorry for her, as she would have to endure such hard work despite her position.
The landlord mentioned it to her, not expecting her to agree, but to his surprise, Elisa nodded right away.
“I’ll go,” she said.
“But this job…” Seeing such a stunning beauty clad in a red vest going to sweep the floor, it seemed quite incongruous.
“One should know one’s worth. It’s already good to find a job here. Besides, apart from doing this, I don’t know what else I can do with my hands,” Elisa replied.
It’s not that no one had introduced her to easier jobs, like helping in a restaurant with accounting, but her hands would likely break the dishes, and as for accounting, it involved handling money, using a pen, and even a computer, none of which her hands were agile enough for.
With both hands disabled, everything was inconvenient for Elisa.
The landlord knew what her hands were like, knowing that even eating was a problem for her due to her trembling hands. It was already a challenge for her to live her everyday life, let alone work properly.
Elisa had heard enough of comforting words. The landlord directly brought up the issue of wages, “The pay isn’t high, it’s two thousand a month, but you can get paid daily. However, the daily pay is 65. Additionally, the employer said that a contract can be signed, and after a while, your pay will increase.”
To sign a contract to work, she would have to work for at least a year, and Elisa didn’t have that much time.
“I won’t sign a contract. I can’t work for that long. For now, I can only work for two months,” she said.
“Two months?” The landlord didn’t understand why she was so firm about the time and curiously asked, “Do you have something that will delay you?”
“I’m pregnant.”
“What!” The landlord scrutinized Elisa, then shook his head, looking incredulous. There was really no sign of her being pregnant.
“How many months?”
“Three months,” Elisa replied.
“And you’re still working.” She herself had two children and remembered that when she was pregnant, as soon as it was discovered, she didn’t do anything at home. Her family took care of everything, and she didn’t even enter the kitchen.
Looking at the woman in front of her, pregnant and coming to apply for a cleaner’s job, the landlord asked, “Do you have any difficulties?”
“I still have some savings, but I can’t rely on them forever. I want to stay, and there will be a lot of expenses after the baby is born.”
That made sense, but the landlord didn’t agree with her working anymore.
“Do you have pregnancy symptoms now?”
“I do, but I’m okay. I can eat and sleep…”
“That’s because you’re still early in your pregnancy,” the landlord interjected, “Once you’re three months pregnant, the pregnancy reactions will gradually appear. When I was pregnant with my two children, I was nauseous all the time. After enduring that, my belly grew, and I could only sleep on my side. Breathing was difficult, feeling like I had a heavy stone on me, and my legs would swell.”
Elisa felt a bit numb listening to this.
“In short, think it over. Being a cleaner is not easy, the smell of garbage is strong, and now that you’re experiencing pregnancy reactions, if you smell something bad, you’ll vomit even more. If you can’t eat, you still have to work. Your body is already weak, and if you continue to strain yourself, the fetus will be unstable.”
When Elisa heard that it could affect her baby, her face instantly paled.
“I’ll think it over. Don’t keep that job for me. If someone else comes to apply and doesn’t get the job because of me, it wouldn’t be good.”
The landlord knew she had thought it through, and also relaxed, “I’ll keep an eye out for work for you. There are also opportunities for purchasing agents now. You only need to type and send voice introductions. A couple who used to rent my house did this. I have their contact information. I can ask them for you. But for now, don’t think about these things. Focus on taking care of the fetus. Being a purchasing agent is very stressful.”
“Can you be a purchasing agent here?”
The landlord, seeing her surprised look, smiled, “Of course, even though this is a small place, we have a dedicated express delivery station, so sending and receiving items is very convenient.”
Elisa had an idea now. Being a purchasing agent required eloquence, and the income was unstable, with the risk of loss, but if done well, it was much easier than being a cleaner. She could consider it as anotheroption.
“Thank you, Constance. Can you inquire about being a purchasing agent for me? I’m not considering it for now, but I’ll prepare for it once I’m stable.”
“Sure,” the landlord said with a beaming smile as she left.
Elisa saw her off at the door, thinking of inviting the landlord for a meal another day. After all, she had helped her so much.
Elisa went to the hospital for a prenatal check-up and an ultrasound to ensure the baby’s health, which brought her peace of mind.
Since becoming pregnant, she had reduced the dosage of her stomach medicine, which she had brought from Chiwood. Seeing it was running out, she took the medicine to the hospital to buy more.
The doctor hadn’t seen this type of medicine before, and because it had no label, it was difficult to determine its composition. She visited all the pharmacies in town, but couldn’t find this type of medicine.
Elisa didn’t dwell on it much, assuming it was a foreign medicine, which was quite normal for it not to be available in this town.
…
After the first three months of pregnancy, as the landlord had predicted, Elisa’s physical reactions intensified. She began to vomit whatever she ate, couldn’t sleep well at night, and felt uncomfortable with palpitations.
She vomited up all the yogurt she had eaten at night, and the vomit, milky white with traces of blood, worried her.
Placing her hand on her abdomen, she said, “Are you as picky an eater as your cheap father, not wanting to eat anything at all?”
Being so small and already so choosy, vomiting whatever she ate-how would it be in the future?
Elisa’s expenses had been quite high lately. She had withdrawn two hundred thousand, but now she only had fourteen thousand left. She kept the money in the house and checked it from time to time, watching the thickness gradually decrease, feeling anxious inside.
Various check-ups and giving birth would require money. She was physically weak and would need to hire a postpartum caregiver. All of these required money.
Elisa counted the money in her hand and realized that there would be a long period ahead with only expenses and no income. The money would quickly vanish like water.
Elisa took out the two pieces of jewelry she had brought with her.
Both were gold with jade embellishments. Elisa had searched online and found out that they were worth two million at their original price.
If she could sell them for a million, it would already be very good. Also, since she had taken them without permission, she couldn’t directly sell them to a store.
Elisa bought two to three pounds of fruit from a fruit stall and took them to the landlord’s apartment on the fifth floor.
The landlord, upon hearing the knock on the door, opened it and was delighted to see Elisa, then noticed the fruits she was carrying.
Elisa held out the fruit, saying, “Constance, I’m bothering you again. You have a wide network, and I’d like to ask you something.”
The landlord declined the fruits Elisa brought in. “You’ve come all the way up here with fruits again. Take them back and eat them yourself. If there’s anything you want to ask me, as long as I know, I’ll definitely tell you. Within my capabilities, I’ll help you.”