"Manager?" The girl who had hidden away looked at Tian Lin with a hint of fear.
Tian Lin frowned. "If you're here to buy clothes, you're welcome. But if you say anything else, please leave." Da Feng Xiao Shuo Wang.
The other party paused, then clicked their tongues and said, "So she's a feisty one. Of course, we're here to buy clothes. Bring out some suitable outfits for us, we'll try them on."
Tian Lin hesitated and said, "We only have two styles of men's wear here, a bomber jacket and a suit. Which style would you like to buy?"
Another person glared. "Bring them all out. How will we know which one to buy if we don't try them?"
Tian Lin glanced at the sales assistant, who hesitated before turning to find clothes for them.
As a result, they all tried them on and were dissatisfied. They even cursed, calling the clothes ugly and overpriced, clearly trying to extort them.
Their language was vile, and they even threw the clothes on the ground and stomped on them several times.
At the same time, a branch store on the other side was experiencing the same thing. The situation was similar to the main store, but the impact was greater.
Because the branch store was a high-end establishment, its customers were all of high status. When a few hoodlums showed up, two female customers were trying on clothes, and they were instantly terrified.
When Chen Lishu received the call, she simply said she knew and would be there shortly, then hung up.
"What's wrong?" Nan Haitao asked when he noticed her unusual tone.
"There's a problem with the two stores in the city. I need to go over," Chen Lishu said, standing up. She grabbed a down jacket from a nearby rack and headed for the door.
Nan Haitao also stood up. "Do you need me to go with you?"
Chen Lishu shook her head. "It's alright, I can handle it."
Before leaving, she glanced at the time and said to Nan Haitao, "I won't be back after I've dealt with the situation over there."
Outside, Chen Lishu called Li Hongyu, asking him to get Wang Dazhu, and the three of them drove towards the city.
The three of them went to the main store first. By the time they arrived, those hoodlums were long gone.
Tian Lin and two sales assistants were cleaning up. Seeing Chen Lishu arrive, she quickly explained the situation in detail.
"Besides soiling a few clothes, did they lay a hand on you?" Chen Lishu's expression was calm, revealing no emotions.
Tian Lin shook her head and said with some worry, "They didn't touch us, but it looks like that group was deliberately looking for trouble. I heard them cursing as they left, saying they'd be back tomorrow. If they don't get clothes they're satisfied with, our store won't be able to do business anymore."
Chen Lishu said, "You three have been wronged today. You don't need to tidy up those clothes. See if any relatives can wear them and take them home."
The other two sales assistants' faces lit up, and they whispered, "Thank you, President Chen."
After arranging things at the main store, Chen Lishu went to the branch store.
The situation was similar to the main store, but because the target customer groups were different, the impact would only be worse.
"Do you remember who the two customers present were? You'll take me to apologize personally and tell them that next time they visit, they'll get a fifty percent discount."
Chen Lishu finished giving instructions to the sales assistant, then turned to Li Hongyu and said, "You don't need to pick me up tomorrow. Come straight to the store. If those people dare to come again, don't say anything, just call the police."
...
When Gu Xingdong returned home, he saw Chen Lishu playing with the two children, his brow furrowing slightly.
After dinner, and once the two little ones were asleep, Gu Xingdong patted the spot beside him on the bed. "Come here."
Chen Lishu obediently sat down.
Gu Xingdong asked, "You seemed distracted during dinner. Did something happen?"
Chen Lishu paused and couldn't help but ask curiously, "Is it that obvious?"
Gu Xingdong's slender fingers tapped her slightly furrowed brow. "It's all written on your face."
Chen Lishu sighed. "Both stores were visited by some hoodlums today. From the looks of it, they were targeting these two stores specifically. Public order is getting worse, with too many idle people. A while ago, a female clerk at a department store on the commercial street was robbed of her gold earrings on her way home from work. She resisted and was stabbed twice. Fortunately, it was winter, and her clothes were thick, so she didn't die. But it was dark, and the streetlights had been smashed, so they didn't even know who the perpetrator was."
A large amount of labor could not be accommodated, and when people were idle, they tended to cause trouble. Moreover, many people had no income and no security in their lives, leading to rampant petty theft and limited public order management. Even worse, people had started openly breaking the law and committing crimes.
Chen Lishu remembered that in a few months, the country would launch a severe crackdown that would last for three years.
She remembered it so clearly because a young man from her neighbor's family had gone to Inner Mongolia to partner with others in stealing televisions. He was unlucky enough to have just turned eighteen when he committed the crime, and there were three perpetrators, constituting a gang. As a result, he was sentenced to death. Later, his family sought connections everywhere, and the death sentence was commuted to a suspended death sentence.
Perhaps it was precisely because of the rampant lawlessness of so many criminals disregarding others' lives, the Kong Jiang Road incident, the Er Wang incident, and others, that the authorities made the firm decision to crack down heavily.
"The store clerks are all women. It's better during the day, but now it gets dark early in winter. I've told them to close the store at four o'clock from now on."
Gu Xingdong nodded. "You're doing the right thing. No matter what, safety comes first."
"I'll go with you tomorrow to see which blind dog dared to provoke my wife's store. I'll break their legs."
Hearing him say this, Chen Lishu couldn't help but laugh. "Don't you know that hitting people is illegal?"
"I'm disciplining them on behalf of their parents. What law am I breaking? I should be thanked for doing a good deed."
The next day, Gu Xingdong did not go to the company. After breakfast, he went to the main store with Chen Lishu.
Wang Dazhu had stayed at the store yesterday. A thick layer of snow had fallen during the night. When they arrived, he was sweeping the snow at the store entrance with a broom.
"Commander, Sister-in-law!" Wang Dazhu stood up straight, and as he spoke, white mist escaped from his mouth and nose.
Gu Xingdong said, "I heard from your sister-in-law that you've been doing well. When are you going to settle your lifelong affairs?"
"Hehe." Wang Dazhu scratched his head. Thinking that Xiao Peng had been treating him much better lately, and had even invited him to dinner at his home a couple of times, he grinned. "Soon, very soon."
The snow at the entrance was almost cleared. The shop doors on both sides of the street were opening one after another. Soon, Tian Lin and the other two sales assistants also arrived.
Everything in the store was normal. Around nine or ten o'clock, the store door was pushed open with a bang, and three or four men walked in.
They were all in their twenties. As soon as they entered the store, their eyes began to rove around, and they didn't look like respectable people.