Ah-Can seemed to see through their thoughts: "At first, you can group orders with others. I know a few college students, and they often go out together to buy goods."

Although A-Can was introduced by Zhan Chunlan and had been very kind to them these past two days, taking them to many places, the two were still somewhat cautious when it came to money.

Ah-Can didn't care. If the two of them agreed immediately, he would worry that they were conspiring to trick him. No one would be so stupid as to believe someone they had only known for two or three days.

"I'll just take you to meet those people. You'll have to find the people among them who are buying the same batch of goods as you, and then you can go to the stalls together to buy the goods." Seeing that the two of them had thought about it for a long time and still couldn't make up their minds, and considering that it was a friend introduced by Zhan Chunlan, he patiently explained the process to them.

"Don't give money to others in advance, and don't let others be fully responsible for picking up the goods. Actually, the boss understands your operation, but he only cares about collecting money and shipping goods, and he won't care how many people pooled their money to buy the goods. So, when the time comes, you just pay your share of the money and pick up the goods you agreed on. I have already screened these people, so there shouldn't be any major problems."

Ah-Can explained it very thoroughly, and there's no need to give the money to anyone in advance, so there's no risk of them running away with the money. They can just find a place in the wholesale market to sort and transport the goods, so the risk isn't particularly high.

Li Xiuxiu and Fan Hongying looked at each other for a long time before nodding.

"Brother A-Can, thank you for thinking of us so carefully," Fan Hongying said cautiously. "We really want to give it a try, but after all, it's our first time..."

"I understand, I understand!" Ah-Can laughed heartily. "If someone I've only known for two or three days asked me to pay, I wouldn't dare either. How about this, tomorrow I'll take you to meet those college students first, and you can chat with them yourselves."

The next day, as expected, A-Can took them to meet Xiao-Chen, who was studying at Sun Yat-sen University, and her two classmates. The three girls were all economics students and looked neat and efficient.

“We only started doing this last year,” Xiao Chen said enthusiastically. “At first, a few of us pooled our money to buy the goods, but now we’ve gradually gained some experience.”

Li Xiuxiu carefully observed the girls: their clothes were simple but neat, their fingernails were neatly trimmed, and their speech and behavior were very proper. Most importantly, they produced student IDs and purchase invoices, making everything seem very legitimate.

“We’re going to buy a batch of shirts tomorrow,” Xiao Chen said. “If you’re interested, you can come along. If you like them, we can buy them together. If you’re worried, just consider it a chance to familiarize yourself with the process.”

This suggestion put Fan Hongying and Li Xiuxiu at ease. They followed Xiao Chen and his group to the clothing wholesale market and witnessed the entire purchasing process: selecting styles, bargaining, counting goods, and distributing them on-site. Every step was well-organized.

The two didn't make a purchase this time, partly because they were buying shirts, which wasn't part of their initial plan, and partly because Fan Hongying wanted to look at other items, so they agreed to buy jeans together next time.

Next, Ah-Can took them to the electronics wholesale market, where they found a completely different scene.

The glass display case was filled with all kinds of electronic watches, some with calculators, some with alarm clocks, and even some with games. What surprised them most was the price—the cheapest electronic watch was only ten yuan.

“These watches…” Fan Hongying picked up a pink digital watch, “They’d sell for eighty yuan in Jiangcheng!” Even on the black market, where there’s no guarantee of origin or after-sales service, they’d cost at least 50 yuan each.

Fan Hongying and Li Xiuxiu looked at each other in disbelief. It was even more profitable than clothing. No wonder there were so many business people coming and going here.

"Boss, how much for these watches in bulk?" Although she had only been to the wholesale market for two days, Fan Hongying had already learned some ways to inquire about prices, and she was now putting those skills to good use.

The shop owner, a lean middle-aged man, smiled and said, "Young lady, this is the wholesale price, but you need to buy at least ten. If you buy more, I can give you a discount."

Fan Hongying held the most basic model in her hand, which had no other functions besides timing: "What if I want fifty?"

"Your quantity isn't much; everyone orders from 100 to 100 at a time." The shopkeeper's expression remained unchanged. "But since you're pretty ladies, I can give you a discount of one dollar."

Fan Hongying believed this. In the short time they had been there, several business owners had come in and bought hundreds of watches of various styles.

Fan Hongying and Li Xiuxiu went to the side and quietly calculated the money they had brought. Fan Hongying had 700 yuan and Li Xiuxiu had 600 yuan. They each set aside 100 yuan for the return trip and emergency expenses. Fan Hongying bought 50 ordinary watches and 10 watches with alarm clocks. The 600 yuan was just spent.

Two more days passed, and Xiao Chen and her friends sold out of their previous batch of shirts. This time, they needed to get jeans, so Li Xiuxiu joined them and bought half of them – fifty pairs of jeans for four hundred yuan.

After finishing their shopping, the two couldn't wait to board the train home. They were eager to try it out and show off their skills immediately.

August 20, Beijing.

After finishing her summer internship, Zhan Chunlan took Ms. Fang Li and Comrade Wang Wenfeng on a tour of Beijing.

On Tiananmen Square, sunlight shone on the bluestone pavement, reflecting a dazzling light. Ms. Fang Li stood in front of the Jinshui Bridge, gazing up at the portrait of Chairman Mao hanging on the city gate tower, her eyes slightly red.

"The last time I came to Tiananmen Square was more than 20 years ago," she said softly, her voice carrying the marks of time. "Back then, I had just started working and came to Beijing with the factory to learn."

Wang Wenfeng stood considerately behind his mother, while Zhan Chunlan quietly followed on the other side. She understood the significance of this moment for Ms. Fang Li—this generation had a special affection for Tiananmen Square.

"Mom, let me take a picture of you." Wang Wenfeng took out his camera, carefully adjusted the focus, and looked at his mother standing in front of Tiananmen Square through the viewfinder.

Ms. Fang Li wore a light gray polyester shirt today, with an exquisite orchid brooch pinned to her collar—a birthday gift from Zhan Chunlan last year.

"Mom, move a little to the left," Wang Wenfeng instructed. "Yes, like that."

Ms. Fang Li tilted her head slightly, her gaze fixed on the national flag fluttering in the wind atop the city gate, her expression solemn yet filled with barely concealed excitement. Just as the shutter clicked, she seemed to remember something, and a gentle smile unconsciously curved her lips.

Standing beside Wang Wenfeng, Zhan Chunlan exclaimed with delight after the photo was taken, "Mom, this one is fantastic! Your smile is so natural!"

Then, they caught another tourist on the spot and took a group photo of the three of them. Ms. Fang Li stood in the middle, Wang Wenfeng stood to her left, and Zhan Chunlan held her hand intimately, their heads slightly tilted.

\"one two three!\"

The crisp click of the shutter captured this beautiful moment. In the photo, the afternoon sun gilded the three of them; Ms. Fang Li's eyes held a contented smile, Wang Wenfeng stood ramrod straight with a gentle expression, and Zhan Chunlan smiled broadly, radiating ease and joy.

Passing through the Meridian Gate, the Taihe Hall Square suddenly unfolds before you. The August sun pours down on the white marble railings, illuminating the entire palace complex in a golden glow. Ms. Fang Li stands before the Taihe Hall, gazing up at the double-eaved hip roof.

"Every time I come to the Forbidden City, I feel like I can't get enough of it," she sighed softly, her fingers gently tracing the bronze crane beside her. "Look at the curve of the eaves, the color of the glazed tiles—they've withstood hundreds of years of wind and rain, and they're still so beautiful."

Following her gaze, Zhan Chunlan saw layers upon layers of yellow glazed tiles outlining graceful curves under the blue sky, with the ridge beasts on the eaves standing quietly, as if guarding this ancient imperial city.

The three of them strolled around quietly, reminiscing about the old culture among the bricks and tiles, and experiencing the prosperity and beauty of the imperial city.