In the afternoon, Zhou Bin arrived and was truly surprised to see the room piled high with fabric.
"Sister, you truly are a capable person," Zhou Bin exclaimed, astonished.
After all these years of toiling, he had to admit that only in the past two years of collaborating with Chen Lishu had he truly made substantial money.
The three of them, in three separate trips, managed to load all the fabric onto the truck.
...
"Zhao Hong, I heard from a friend that they've started selling fabric again."
When leaving work, Sister Liu quietly leaned towards Zhao Hong and whispered.
Ever since Zhao Hong had made money last time, Sister Liu's resolve had wavered. She had been keeping an eye out for news about fabric sales, and upon hearing movement, she hurried to find Zhao Hong.
Hearing that fabric was available again, Zhao Hong's eyes instantly lit up. Recalling something she had heard earlier, she couldn't help but ask, "Sister Liu, I heard they're also selling clothes?"
Sister Liu waved her hand, "Don't even think about that. Those who can get clothes are people close to them, insiders. For someone like us, getting some fabric is already good enough."
Zhao Hong thought it made sense, "Then when should we go to get the fabric? Still at the same place? I have a night shift tomorrow, how about we go together the day after?"
Sister Liu nodded, "Okay, it'll be good to have company going together."
...
At the Wang residence, Wang Aixiang handed Chen Lishu a thick wad of cash. "Sister, this is the money from selling clothes the past two days. Two hundred and eighty-six pieces, totaling three thousand four hundred and thirty-two yuan."
More than three thousand yuan, with the largest denomination being ten yuan, it formed more than three bundles when stacked together.
Chen Lishu first put three bundles into her shoulder bag. Then, she took out twenty-nine yuan from the remaining money and handed it to Wang Aixiang, "Sister Aixiang, your commission."
In just two days, she had earned what others made in a month. Thinking back to just a few months ago when she was still worried about the family's livelihood, and now she had an income of nearly a hundred yuan a month, Wang Aixiang was filled with mixed emotions.
"Sister Aixiang, how did that batch of gabardine sell?"
Hearing her ask, Wang Aixiang happily replied, "Since you lowered the price to one yuan four jiao last time, giving up one jiao of profit, sales have been incredibly good. Knowing that more fabric is coming, many people want to pre-order. I estimate at least four bolts of fabric, and that's not including others who heard the news. I plan to take five bolts directly with me when I go to deliver goods later."
To save time and avoid unnecessary trouble, she always arranged to meet people at pre-determined times for direct payment and delivery.
"I need to go deposit money, so I'll go with you later." Five bolts were not a small amount, and she was afraid Wang Aixiang might not be able to handle it alone.
Upon hearing she would accompany her, Wang Aixiang didn't refuse and said with a smile, "That would be wonderful. If there are more people, I'm really afraid I'll fumble."
After agreeing, Chen Lishu went to deposit money, and Wang Aixiang went to collect the fabric. Then, the two met and headed towards the agreed-upon location.
Wang Aixiang chose a particularly clever spot, not far from her home, behind the thermal power plant. Normally, the rumbling of machinery in the front made few people pay attention to the activities behind the plant, and very few people passed by.
When the two arrived, several people were already waiting. Seeing Wang Aixiang and Chen Lishu approach, they all eagerly gathered around.
"You all are so impatient. My cart hasn't even stopped properly yet. Go on, find a brick from the wall and put it under the wheels."
Hearing her words, one of the women grinned and found a brick by the wall to prop up her cart. "Aixiang, what are you saying? Who knows if there will be any left if we come late? We can't turn our backs on money, can we?"
Wang Aixiang patted the fabric in the back of the cart and smiled, "Don't worry. There are five bolts of fabric in total. I won't short any of you on the bolts you pre-ordered."
"Everyone line up and don't grab. This way, we can all save time," Chen Lishu said, starting to organize everyone to queue up voluntarily.
Those familiar with Wang Aixiang knew she was the real boss, and their attitude became unconsciously more polite. They all began to line up as she instructed.
Soon, Wang Aixiang was measuring out fabric for everyone according to her ledger, while Chen Lishu was on the side collecting money.
When Zhao Hong and Sister Liu arrived together, they saw a crowd gathered around the tricycle. Their hearts grew anxious, and they quickly hurried over.
Upon getting closer, when Zhao Hong saw the figure collecting money by the cart, she was stunned: "Chen Lishu?"
Chen Lishu was focused on collecting money when she suddenly heard her name being called and instinctively looked up. Upon seeing Zhao Hong, her brow immediately furrowed into a knot.
She hadn't checked the almanac before going out; this was truly a case of enemies meeting on a narrow road.
"You're actually engaging in speculation and profiteering!" After realizing what was happening, Zhao Hong questioned loudly.
Because her voice was quite loud, everyone nearby heard clearly and instinctively stopped their actions to look over.
Wang Aixiang glanced at Chen Lishu. Seeing that she hadn't spoken, she shifted her gaze to Zhao Hong, "I say, sister, have you been kicked by a donkey or hit by a door frame? Are you here to buy goods or to cause trouble?"
Sister Liu, standing beside her, also frowned instinctively upon hearing Zhao Hong's words. She tugged at Zhao Hong's arm, signaling her to say less.
They had come to buy goods. Now, with Zhao Hong shouting about speculation and profiteering in front of so many people, what about themselves?
Zhao Hong was now deaf to anyone's words, only staring intently at Chen Lishu, "I didn't expect you to be so capable, daring to secretly sell fabric."
Since she had been discovered, Chen Lishu had no intention of explaining further. She turned to the others and said with a smile, "Sorry, there's been a slight unexpected situation. We won't be selling fabric today. I'll find another time to arrange individual meetings with everyone."
Upon hearing that they weren't selling, everyone was disappointed. But seeing Zhao Hong's demeanor, if she were to have a fit and cause trouble, they couldn't afford to gamble. So, no one said anything more and all of them wisely and silently left.
Seeing that everyone had gone, Chen Lishu finally straightened up from beside the cart, her gaze falling on Zhao Hong, "What do you want?"
Hearing her ask, Zhao Hong showed a hint of smugness on her face, "What do I want? I want to report you to the Speculation and Profiteering Office. Oh, right, you got into university, didn't you? Tie Gang told me that speculation and profiteering is a serious crime. By then, you probably won't even be able to attend school, right?"
The thought that the usually arrogant Chen Lishu actually had a handle on her made Zhao Hong tremble uncontrollably with excitement.
She should really let Cheng Ming come and see this bitch's true colors, to see the woman he longed for, the one he even called out her name during intimate moments, was actually doing such illegal and low-class things.
Chen Lishu looked at her and sneered, "You wouldn't dare."