The Swordswoman’s Revenge Story after Rebirth
Chapter 55: Throw Them Out
The moment the farmhands heard their wages would be paid, a hush fell over the crowd. From her vantage point, Isolde studied their faces. They all looked the same—dark-skinned and thin. Tan was expected, but their emaciation was not. Well-fed laborers should be strong; Montlins Manor’s farmhands were anything but. Michelle, a far-sighted woman, wouldn't have starved the workers she depended on. Only one explanation remained: Otto and his gang had been embezzling from the food budget as well.
Isolde took a deep breath. “I understand many of you are leaving. If you’ve found better wages elsewhere, I won’t stop you. As for Otto and the overseers, I’ve already paid them. Now, I will pay you, according to the figures Otto himself reported to Michelle. Your wages during harvest were recorded as one thousand coins a month; five hundred in the off-season. Wages are issued monthly, so the manor owes you one month’s pay. Go to Helena, register your name, and collect your money.”
A deathly silence followed. The farmhands looked at each other in confusion. Then, one man blurted out, more shocked than when demanding their wages, “You’re saying we get paid monthly? One thousand coins for the harvest season? Really?”
“That’s right,” Isolde confirmed. “The records show that, but we’re still in the off-season, so each of you will receive five hundred coins. Additionally, Montlins Manor issues a summer allowance of one hundred coins per month, totaling six hundred.”
Otto’s expression hardened. He’d been confident earlier, flipping through the ledgers. The wage records were deliberately vague, tucked away at the book’s end. Unless she’d read everything, she couldn’t have found them. And with the workers pressing the issue so quickly, she shouldn’t have had time to review the books at all! But somehow, she had.
He recovered quickly, sneering, “Isolde, don’t spout nonsense. The workers earn two hundred coins a month, not a thousand.”
Isolde gestured to Vincenzo, who placed the ledger on the ground. “Anyone here who can read, step up and check for yourself,” she said. “This is the ledger Otto submitted to Michelle every month. The wages section clearly states five hundred coins as the non-harvest wage. In Windermount, where I managed an estate, the harvest wage was always increased to a thousand. Three meals a day; one including meat.”
Though illiterate, the farmhands crowded around the ledger, trying to decipher the numbers. Helena stepped forward, took the book, and pointed to the last page. “You may not recognize the words, but do you recognize your names? Do you recognize the numbers beside them?”
They squinted, then murmured. They knew their names, and the numbers beside them—five hundred coins.
At that moment, Eddie returned, having changed his clothes. Seeing the commotion, he grinned. “Everyone here to collect wages? Miss Langley says there’s no such thing as two years of unpaid work. From the first month, we’ve been earning! Turns out, I have a lot of money coming my way!”
A group of young workers turned to him, wide-eyed. A lanky young man grabbed Eddie’s arm, his voice trembling. “You mean… we get paid from the first month? Not after two years?”
Eddie shook his head. “Nope. Miss Langley says the first month counts. As long as you work, you get paid. And since harvest is coming, wages will go up.”
A voice rose from the crowd, “That’s not what Estella and Otto said! They told us Miss Langley was cutting our wages!”
More voices joined in, and soon, anger boiled over.
Isolde raised her voice. “I did say I would cut wages, but not yours. The ones I was going to cut were Otto’s and the overseers’. They earn 3,000 a month yet do no real work—shouldn’t their pay be reduced? They threatened me, saying that if I cut their wages, they would take you all with them and leave Montlins Manor unable to function. I had no choice but to ask Jessica to find temporary replacements. I would love for all of you to stay. However, I understand the bond you have with Otto and the overseers after so many years. If you choose to stand with them, I respect that. I will still pay you your full wages. I wish you all the best—may you have a bright future ahead.”
The crowd erupted. Seeing the situation turn against them, Estella and Otto attempted to flee, but Harlan and Vincenzo blocked their path. Vincenzo unsheathed his sword. “Where do you think you’re going? First, explain exactly how much of the field workers’ wages you’ve been skimming.”
The enraged workers surged forward, surrounding Otto and the overseers. Some had already thrown punches. Otto, a frail scholar, could no longer maintain his arrogance after taking two hits. In desperation, he promised to return the stolen wages.
But the workers were furious. After years of deception, a mere promise wasn’t enough. “Unbelievable! Not only did they steal our wages, but they even tried to trick us into leaving the manor with them. Let’s beat these scoundrels to death!”
“That’s right! Give us back our wages!”
“Miss Langley, we won’t leave. We want to stay at Montlins Manor!”
“Yes, none of us are leaving. You don’t need to hire replacements.”
Isolde leaped down from the wall and stood beside Oliver, watching the chaotic scene.
“That’s it?” Oliver asked in disbelief.
Isolde smiled faintly. “How complicated could a manor really be?”
“You knew they were skimming wages all along?”
“I didn’t. But in a manor, such things are impossible to completely hide. I grew up in an estate—I know that if the owner isn’t directly involved, there will always be problems. If it’s not wage theft, it’ll be something else. The way Otto and the overseers operated was not how honorable people behave. And what do the field workers want? Fair wages and security. As long as they have those, no one can take them away.”
“If you knew the workers wouldn’t actually leave, why hire replacements?” Oliver asked.
Isolde explained, “Harvest season is coming. Montlins Manor doesn’t have enough hands to manage it all. But hiring full-time workers isn’t cost-effective because there isn’t much work during the off-season. It’s unnecessary. Instead, hiring temporary workers during peak seasons helps ease the workload and saves costs for the estate.”
Oliver looked at her with newfound admiration. “You even understand business?”
“Collin from Belleview Manor taught me.” Isolde chuckled.
Oliver found it hard to imagine how a noble lady like her had lived in the estate. Her mother, Prunella, came from a military noble family. Her father had earned great military merits at a young age and was granted the title of Duke. She was the only legitimate daughter of the Langley family, yet she had lived a life worse than an illegitimate child.
Meanwhile, Vincenzo and Harlan looked down at Otto and the other overseers, who lay motionless on the ground, their faces swollen and bruised. They showed no sympathy.
Vincenzo said indifferently, “Your wages will be returned in full to the field workers. Pack your things and get lost.”
Otto, his face twisted and swollen, still had the audacity to point at Vincenzo and shout angrily, “Only Michelle has the right to expel us!”
Vincenzo sneered. “Some people just don’t know when to quit.” With a flick of his hand, he ordered, “You, take these shameless crooks and throw them out.”
At his command, dozens of field workers responded in unison. They grabbed Otto and the overseers, hauled them out of the manor, and dumped them by the roadside. Only after spitting on them a few times did they finally turn and head back, satisfied.