"Don't worry, sister. I remember exactly what those two looked like. Next time they come to buy something, I absolutely won't sell to them. They're too infuriating!"
Chen Lishu's brow furrowed involuntarily after hearing this. "We know the quality of our clothing ourselves. After so long, it's possible for one or two oversights, but with two people coming to our store consecutively recently, I suspect someone is deliberately targeting us."
"Deliberately targeting us? Who would be so unethical? Doing business should be about harmony and prosperity. We haven't offended anyone." Wang Aixiang was enthusiastic and quite talkative. She got along well with the neighbors and had never argued with a customer, believing she hadn't made any enemies.
"Perhaps our good business is making someone jealous," Chen Lishu wasn't entirely sure. After all, such is human nature; not everyone can bear to see others succeed.
"Who is it that lives their own life and constantly keeps an eye on others..."
Wang Aixiang cursed for a while, but it didn't help the situation at all. She finally sighed, "Lishu, what should we do now? You can see that customers have decreased significantly in the past couple of days."
Chen Lishu thought for a moment and picked up a pair of bell-bottom pants from the shelf. They were made of sturdy denim, with exceptionally solid fabric.
"Sister Aixiang, you hold this end, and we'll pull with equal force," Chen Lishu said, handing over one pant leg.
Although she didn't understand Chen Lishu's intention, Wang Aixiang took it as instructed.
Soon, they both pulled with equal force, and the pants instantly stretched into a straight line. After a short while, Chen Lishu called out, "Okay, Sister Aixiang."
After releasing the tension, Chen Lishu held the pants and examined them closely, finding no issues. Then, she picked up a half-sleeve shirt next to them. This time, Wang Aixiang understood what she meant without needing to be told. The two of them again exerted all their strength, and the half-sleeve shirt also showed no problems.
"See? I told you our clothing quality is fine. With this kind of pulling, there isn't a single loose stitch. These scoundrels, with nothing better to do than eat and be idle, if they dare to come to the store again, I'll drive them out with a broom!"
Wang Aixiang re-folded the clothes and pants, grumbling indignantly, "If I had known they were just causing trouble, we shouldn't have refunded their money for those pants and half-sleeves before."
"Sister Aixiang, it's meaningless to dwell on it now. Our priority is to find a way to restore customer confidence in our brand."
Wang Aixiang sighed, "The news has already spread. If we just explain with our words, people won't believe us."
"Then we'll let facts speak for themselves." Although this incident had affected the store's business, it wasn't entirely a bad thing.
"We've already tested it, and we'll find Brother Cui and his wife from the neighboring store to help us test it again. If it's confirmed there are no issues, we'll hold a tug-of-war competition, using our store's clothing as props."
Since it was an event, it had to be foolproof. Therefore, Chen Lishu decided to test it with four people. If the bell-bottom pants could withstand this, then a two-person tug-of-war competition would surely be fine.
...
"Business has been good in the store these past few days?" Lu Chengming asked with a smile as he saw Zhao Hong see off a customer when he entered. As she returned, he asked.
"It's much better than before. My income has increased by dozens of yuan these past few days." Zhao Hong looked at him with unconcealed affection in her eyes. "Chengming, I've realized you're the one who treats me well."
"What are you saying? Back then, sigh." Lu Chengming took her hand in his palm. "I wronged you before, but I will definitely compensate you well in the future."
"By the way, you must be spending money to invite friends to help. I've also earned quite a bit of money now."
As Zhao Hong spoke and moved to get money from the counter, Lu Chengming's eyes flashed. He grabbed her hand, his brow furrowed, and said with a slightly angry tone,
"As a grown man, how can I take your money? I still have a salary of over forty yuan a month. Helping you is out of my affection for you. If you insist on being so calculative, then I'll leave immediately, and I won't come to find you again."
Zhao Hong panicked upon hearing him say that. "Chengming, don't be angry. It's all my fault. I won't mention this again."
Lu Chengming's smile returned to his face, and he reached up to caress her smooth cheek. "I didn't know your worth before, nor did I cherish you. Don't worry, I will definitely compensate you well in the future."
Zhao Hong immediately responded with a shy and soft "Mm."
...
After Chen Lishu had people test it and confirmed that the bell-bottom pants remained intact even when pulled from different directions by four people, she began preparing for the event.
First, she set the date for three days later and then wrote promotional flyers to be posted on the shop's display window.
"Our store will hold a tug-of-war competition on August 10th. Two champions, one male and one female, will be selected on that day and will receive a cash prize of five yuan, plus a free half-sleeve shirt from our store. All participating contestants will also receive a delicate bracelet."
As soon as the flyer was posted, a crowd gathered in front of the store.
"Five yuan? Is that true?" someone questioned, wondering if the store was really giving away money for free.
"Five yuan is nothing. The key is a half-sleeve shirt. Their store sells them for fourteen yuan each."
"But I heard their clothing quality isn't good?"
"Why do you care so much? It's free. Even if the quality isn't great, it's better than spending your own money to buy it."
"..."
Upon hearing that Chen Lishu's store was holding an event, Zhao Hong immediately panicked. When Lu Chengming visited, she consulted him, "Chen Lishu is very cunning. Could she have noticed something? Now she's organized this tug-of-war competition. Will all the customers flock to her side again?"
Lu Chengming, however, was unconcerned. "What's the use of all these tricks? Everyone knows her store's clothing quality is poor. Do you think she believes that by holding an event and saying a few nice words, people will buy it? Customers coming to return goods were seen by everyone. Don't worry, let her make a fuss. She's even willing to give money away for free. In the end, she'll be the one making a fool of herself."
Lu Chengming had already planned. On the day of the event, he would find two more people and go to the store. He wanted to see how she would explain herself in the face of evidence.
At that time, in front of so many people, her store might even have to close.
Meanwhile, at a certain location on the southern border, Gu Xingdong and Zhou Liang were giving a pre-battle mobilization speech.
Their reconnaissance team had discovered a hidden enemy stronghold deep in the mountains.
"Although other units will take over from us in half a month, we cannot let our guard down."
Zhou Liang looked at the soldiers assembled and ready for battle. They were all fully focused, their eyes revealing an unwavering determination to win.