My Child and I Married a Billionaire

A hotel for so many people would cost at least a thousand a night. Cecelia Archer had taken care of everything for just 260. Anyone could figure out which was the better deal.

President Miller was losing face. Being questioned by Cecelia Archer like that in front of everyone was utterly humiliating. Yet, he couldn’t show it, lest he appear petty and incompetent. He silently held a grudge against her for this.

After a bumpy half-day journey, they finally arrived at the village before 5 p.m.

Having contacted the village secretary in advance, Cecelia Archer and her team headed straight for the village office.

The village secretary was very happy about their arrival and quickly invited them to rest while he arranged for dinner.

The group sat around a fire in a humble woodshed, while Cecelia Archer went to help the secretary’s wife with dinner.

The meat she had brought came in very handy. They stewed a large pot of potatoes, radishes, and dried vegetables.

Although the meal was simple, it was very satisfying.

After dinner, the secretary sheepishly told everyone that conditions in the village were basic. There wasn’t enough space or beds for them, so they would have to sleep on a large, communal floor bed.

He had cleared out an empty room on the south side and took them to see it. Everyone was stunned.

Inside the room, which still had a dirt floor, a row of straw was laid out against the wall. On top of the straw were a few floral bedsheets of the kind one might remember from the 1980s, washed so many times they had faded.

This was the "bed" where they would be sleeping for the next few days.

In a corner against the wall were six folded quilts, all with gaudy floral patterns. They looked quite old and did nothing to inspire a desire to sleep on them.

The secretary explained, "We don’t have this many quilts at home, so we borrowed these six from others in the village for you. But don’t worry, they’ve all been washed and sun-dried in advance. They’re very clean."

They already knew the conditions would be harsh before coming, so there was no point in being picky. They were all grown men. Although they felt some resistance inwardly, everyone quickly accepted the reality of the situation.

"It’s fine. As long as we have a place to sleep and won’t freeze, that’s enough. So, if we’re staying here, where will President Linden stay?"

President Linden was a woman, so of course she needed special consideration.

There was an old woman in her seventies in the village whose son had gone to college years ago and never returned. She lived alone, so Cecelia Archer would stay with her.

Everyone felt this was reasonable. "Alright, it’s settled then. We’ll turn in. You should get some rest too, Secretary. President Linden, see you tomorrow."

As Cecelia Archer was about to leave, President Miller quietly stopped her, a look of displeasure on his face.

"No matter what, I’m a department head from the great Vaughn Group’s engineering division. I can accept not having luxury treatment on a business trip, but to make me sleep on a communal floor bed with my subordinates? Where will my authority be? How am I supposed to lead them when we get back? I can’t stay here."

’Still putting on airs as a leader in a place like this? Does he expect me to arrange a private room for him or something?’

Cecelia Archer looked at Miller. "So, what you’re saying is?"

"I want to stay by myself. This isn’t about being picky or showing off, it’s a matter of protocol."

Cecelia Archer was speechless.

’This is the perfect time to bond with his subordinates. Pulling rank now is what will make it hard to lead them when they get back.’

But she couldn’t say much.

"I just got here myself, and I don’t know the place or the people. I’m afraid I can’t arrange anything for you. If you really can’t get used to staying with everyone, you could try discussing it with the secretary privately. As long as he can find a suitable place, I have no objection."

The secretary looked troubled. "It’s not that I don’t want to find a place for you, sir, but there really isn’t one. There are only a dozen or so households in the village. It’s either a couple at home, or several brothers, or a whole family crammed together. No matter where you go, you’ll have to squeeze in with others. It’s better to be with your colleagues than with them. I know the conditions here are poor and you’re roughing it, but it’s only temporary, isn’t it?"

Miller, having lost face yet again, was fuming with frustration.

The night passed without incident. Early the next morning, Cecelia Archer again helped the secretary’s wife make breakfast. Afterward, she discussed borrowing a few motorcycles from the villagers with the secretary. She would cover the cost of gas for the trips, as she needed to go out and handle some business today.

"Sure, every household has a motorcycle, so that’s not a problem. How many do you need?"

Cecelia Archer thought for a moment. "Three should be enough for six people. Including you. Honestly, bringing that many people is mainly for show, to deter anyone from trying to cheat me. The others can stay on standby here. Once everything is ready, we’ll start the work."

Everyone eagerly raised their hands, volunteering to go with Cecelia Archer.

Cecelia Archer didn’t know who would be best to pick, so she had them play rock-paper-scissors. Four people were quickly chosen.

After breakfast, they put on their heavy clothes and were about to leave when Miller came over again and nonchalantly sat on the back of the secretary’s motorcycle.

Cecelia Archer was taken aback. "President Miller is coming too?"

President Miller was also taken aback. "Am I not going?"

He thought that as the head of the engineering department and the highest-ranking male leader on this project, he should naturally lead any off-site business. How could Cecelia Archer not have included him?

Cecelia Archer smiled and explained to him, "I just said that six people would be enough, any more would be pointless. You saw everyone competing for a spot..."

’So she just saw me as a common grunt? She naturally categorized me as one of her subordinates, and since I didn’t participate in that childish competition, I’m not qualified to go handle business?’

Seeing his expression change and sensing he was about to lose his temper, Cecelia Archer didn’t want to strain their relationship and quickly tried to smooth things over.

"Of course, you’re our team’s technical expert. There’s a lot I can’t handle properly without your involvement. Lee, could you hop off for now? I miscalculated just now and had one too many people. There’s no spot for you this time, but I’ll make it up to you on the next trip, okay?"

It didn’t matter to him whether he went or not. Going out was for fun, and staying in the village was also for fun. Lee wasn’t one to overthink things, so he agreed.

Everyone got on the motorcycles. After a bumpy ride, they reached the town, where the secretary led them to find rental places for excavators, loaders, and other vehicles needed for road construction.

After searching all over, they only found one excavator.

The excavator operator said his other vehicles were all rented out and wouldn’t be back for another week.

As soon as President Miller heard this, he turned and started to walk away.

"Just one? What the hell can we do with that? Let’s go to the county seat. You can tell a backwater town like this has nothing to offer. We can go to the county seat, find a construction crew, and get this whole thing sorted out in minutes."

Hearing this, the excavator operator laughed.

"Find a construction crew? I can tell you guys have money. Do you have any idea what they charge?"

"An excavator alone is at least 800 a day. Add four other machines, and you’re looking at a minimum of thirty-two hundred a day. That’s over thirty thousand for ten days. It’s cold now, so it rains or snows often. When the weather’s bad, they stop working. You can do the math yourselves."

President Miller was dismissive.

The Vaughn Group could afford it, never mind a mere three thousand a day—even thirty thousand would be nothing.

’Bad-mouthing a competitor to get business? He’d seen that a million times.’

He was about to walk off, but Cecelia Archer had started chatting with the excavator operator.

"So, what’s the minimum daily rate to rent your machine?"

The operator replied, "I’m the only one in this business in the whole town. You can go ask around if you don’t believe me. Who do they call to build a house, fill some land, or fix a road? It’s always me. My price is public knowledge—four hundred a day, same for everyone. And I don’t take days off. Wind, rain, snow, or hail, if I work a day, I get a day’s pay. As long as the client is willing, I’ll work as many days in a row as you want."

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