I slapped the reissued letter of introduction on the table.
The chief's cigarette dropped from his lips. "Evelyn Fox, are you crazy? That's an iron rice bowl!"
"I don't want to suffer. I'm heading south to try my luck." I shrugged. "Cash in hand, letter in yours."
Five hundred dollars was a fortune in this era.
But for a man who loved his son more than life itself, getting that punk into a state factory was worth every cent.
Half an hour later, with five hundred dollars tucked against my skin, I walked out of Village Chief Abbott's front door.
I turned back and glanced at the Fox family's run-down courtyard. Jade was inside trying on her wedding dress, grinning like an idiot.
Sis, I'm taking the money you sold your life for and heading to Seaview City to become the richest woman alive.
You shouldn't be idle either—hurry up and get to that crappy thatched hut and dig your gold.
Early the next morning, before dawn even broke, the village came alive.
On one side, the Fox family was marrying off a daughter. On the other, the village chief's son was heading to the city.