When Sun Rui first approached Liang Xiaohe, he ordered 10,000 hair ties. He was the largest buyer among the small vendors.

If Liang Xiaohe hadn't run out of stock at the time, Sun Rui would have originally intended to take 30,000 units.

That's why Liang Xiaohe approached him first today.

"No need, Comrade Liang, your goods are too monotonous in terms of design and the wholesale price is too high. I can't sell them!" Sun Rui complained.

When he first started selling hair ties, Sun Rui was very proud that he could earn more than ten yuan a day.

However, ever since he started buying He Bo's goods, Sun Rui has been able to earn more than thirty yuan a day.

Only after making a comparison did Sun Rui realize the drawbacks of Liang Xiaohe's products.

Liang Xiaohe's hair ties are made of only two types of fabric: polyester and cotton, and the patterns are limited to small floral prints and solid colors.

Sun Rui needs to sell his products at a lower price than He Bo and the others for people to buy them.

He Bo and his friends have a wide variety of fabrics and patterns for their hair ties.

He Bo can sell hair ties made of high-end fabrics such as silk and lace georgette for 44.5 cents each, while ordinary ones made of polyester and cotton can sell for 35 cents each.

Moreover, He Bo's hair ties are cheaper at wholesale prices than Liang Xiaohe's.

For orders of 10,000 or more, the price is only 16 cents.

The goods sell well and the purchase price is cheap. Sun Rui isn't stupid; he would definitely choose to buy from He Bo!

"Brother Sun, just buy some! I'm waiting to pay them back!" Liang Xiaohe had no choice but to play the "sob card".

"Twelve cents a dollar, I'll order five thousand," Sun Rui said, his eyes darting around.

"No, no, I'll lose money if I sell it for 12 cents." Liang Xiaohe was dumbfounded.

When Hu Yong got home yesterday, he said that the small vendors were asking him to lower the wholesale price to 15 cents!

How come the 15 cents has become 12 cents in just one day?

"No, no, I'll lose money if I sell it for 12 cents." Liang Xiaohe was dumbfounded.

When Hu Yong got home yesterday, he said that the small vendors were asking him to lower the wholesale price to 15 cents!

How come the 15 cents has become 12 cents in just one day?

Does that mean she'll lose three cents every time she makes a hair tie?

The more she does, the more she loses! Oh my god! What should she do?

"No way? If not, then forget it." Sun Rui turned and left.

Sun Rui didn't necessarily want to buy Liang Xiaohe's goods; he just felt sorry for her and decided to buy some.

Of course, he needs to leave himself a profit margin. He's in business, not charity.

"Brother Sun, wait a minute." Liang Xiaohe grabbed Sun Rui's arm and said through gritted teeth, "Fine, one cent and two dimes it is, five thousand of them, I'll sell them!"

Liang Xiaohe was afraid that if she didn't sell now, she might not even be able to sell it for 12 cents tomorrow.

What use will all those hair ties she has then be if they're not meant to be eaten or drunk?

It's better to sell it for some money first.

As for whether the supply and marketing cooperative can repay the money for the fabrics, well, there's still Hu Yong there!

"Okay. Then I'll pick some out, is that alright?" Sun Rui didn't expect Liang Xiaohe to actually agree, and hurriedly made a request.

"Okay," Liang Xiaohe said with a straight face.

Sun Rui didn't care. As long as he could make money, he didn't care about people's attitudes.

Liang Xiaohe went to several other vendors, but she couldn't sell any of them.

Those people had just received a warning from Erniu that if they bought Liang Xiaohe's goods in the future, He Bo's goods would no longer be sold to them.

After weighing the pros and cons, even if Liang Xiaohe lowered the price to one cent per hair tie, no one dared to buy them.

Liang Xiaohe gritted her teeth in anger.

Forget it, she might as well set up a stall in the county town herself. She's not sure she can't sell her hair ties.

In the afternoon, Qian Youliang used the same trick again. Not long after starting work, he said he had a stomachache and asked for leave to go to the hospital.

By the time Qian Youliang finally dawdled out of the hospital, it was already past closing time.

Qian Youliang went straight to Hu Yong's house.

Hu Yong was preparing to cook.

When Hu Yong heard Qian Youliang say that Director Wang had asked him to hand in the ledgers before he left work today, he immediately sensed something was wrong.

"Cousin, hurry up and give me the money! Wang Qingquan is definitely after me," Qian Youliang pleaded.

Qian Youliang regretted it; he shouldn't have been blinded by Liang Xiaohe's hundred yuan.

Without realizing it, they stole more than 8,000 yuan worth of fabric from the warehouse.

If such a large sum of money is discovered, he could spend the rest of his life in jail, and might even face serious consequences!

“There’s grain. Xiaohe went to the county town to sell goods today, but she definitely won’t be able to sell the more than eight thousand pieces today. And the cloth can’t be returned to you either. After you left last night, I went to find Liang Xiaohe, but she’s already used it all up; it can’t be turned back into a whole bolt. Taking it back won’t do you any good,” Hu Yong said.

"Oh? Cousin, what should we do? You have to think of something right now, I don't want to go to jail! If I go to jail, what will happen to my child? What will happen to your sister-in-law?" Qian Youliang grabbed Hu Yong's arm and pleaded.

“We have grain, and there is a way, but I don’t know if you’re willing to do it,” Hu Yong said slowly after pondering for a while.

“Yes, yes, as long as I won’t go to jail, I’ll definitely do it.” Qian Youliang’s eyes lit up.

"You...like this..." Hu Yong whispered in Qian Youliang's ear.

"No, no, I can't do this. If anyone finds out, I'll die." A look of fear flashed across Qian Youliang's face.

"Do you have any other ideas? This is the only idea I can think of." Hu Yong's face darkened.

"Okay, I'll do it." After a moment of silence, Qian Youliang finally made up his mind.

The Zhao family.

Zhao Tianyu didn't go to work today; he took sick leave.

Zhao Zhenzhu said that the supply and marketing cooperative is now a huge whirlpool. It's unknown how many people will be drawn into this mess.

With Tao Jiadong involved, the matter concerning the supply and marketing cooperative will soon be resolved.

Before the results are in, Zhao Tianyu must get away from that vortex.

Zhao Tianyu has always been someone who listens to advice.

After Zhao Zhenzhu said that, Zhao Tianyu simply asked Zhao Zhenzhu to ask Director Wang for an extra day off.

After getting off work, Tao Jiadong went straight to the Zhao family's house for dinner.

Zhao Qingshan and his son showed off their culinary skills, preparing a table full of dishes.

Among them are Tao Jiadong's favorite sweet and sour carp and braised pork.

"Wow, so many dishes! I'm so lucky today. It's a pity my mom and Xiaojing can't eat any today," Tao Jiadong said with a sigh after sitting down and looking at the table full of food.

"Uncle Tao, are Grandma Tao and Aunt Wang still in Beijing?" Zhao Zhenzhu asked with concern.

“Yes! Old Zhou was quite ill before, so Xiao Jing stayed for more than half a month to help him recuperate,” Tao Jiadong said.

Zhao Zhenzhu fell silent.

Zhou Bingchen only called back to let them know he was safe on his first day in Beijing.

Later, in a letter Zhou Bingchen wrote to Zhao Zhenzhu, he made no mention of meeting Zhou Jin.

For Zhao Zhenzhu, Zhou Bingchen and Zhou Jin were related, and Zhou Jin was the real family. Without this kinship, they were strangers.