Chapter 690: New Discovery Lu Qingyang was taken aback by Zhao Rui's sudden question, then burst out laughing and teased, "What? You've come to your senses? You want to give it to Xiaohua?"

Zhao Rui's ears burned when he heard this, and he stiffened his neck and said, "...She's not sick anymore, it just happened that she's recovered... Just consider it... Just consider it a solace gift! Tell me quickly, what should I give her?"

Lu Qingyang thought for a moment and counted on his fingers, "Girls usually like practical and beautiful things, such as skin care products like vanishing cream and clam oil, or beautiful hairbands and hairpins. Otherwise, you can buy her some snacks that she likes."

Zhao Rui nodded repeatedly, feeling that they all made sense, but having a hard time choosing: "These are all good... Then which one do you think is the most suitable gift?"

Lu Qingyang looked at his serious expression, a barely perceptible smile flashed across his eyes, and he changed the subject: "If you ask me, giving clothes is the most appropriate."

"Clothes?" Zhao Rui was stunned for a moment, "Why?"

Lu Qingyang analyzed, "Think about it. Skincare products and food are gone after they're eaten. Hairbands and hairpins are pretty, but they're easy to lose. She can wear a nice, well-fitting piece of clothing for a long time, and every time she wears it, she might remember who gave it to her. Besides, it's still cold now, so giving her a warm and fashionable sweater or inner layer is just the thing."

When Zhao Rui heard this, he felt that it made sense, especially the sentence "I can think of it every time I wear it", which really touched his heart.

He immediately perked up: "Yes, sending clothes is good, and you know what I mean. Then... then let's go to the store now?"

"Sure." Lu Qingyang agreed readily, "I also want to go to the counter to check on the sales situation."

They rode their bicycles to the cargo building.

After a period of operation, the Jasmine Clothing counter has become more prominent, and the clothes on display come in a variety of colors and patterns, attracting many customers to stop and choose.

Lu Qingyang took Zhao Rui over. The counter manager recognized the boss and was about to greet him, but Lu Qingyang stopped him with a look and just gestured for them to look at it themselves.

Zhao Rui looked at this store and compared it with other stores.

I found that the clothes in this shop are more fashionable and indeed better looking.

"Comrade, can you let me see this purple sweater?" Zhao Rui asked, pointing to one of them.

The salesperson took the sweater off and handed it to him.

Zhao Rui carefully touched the material of the sweater. It felt soft and solid, with fine and even stitches, much better than he had imagined.

He imagined how Liu Xiaohua would look wearing this sweater; her skin would look even whiter...

The salesperson said, "How is it? This material is new from our factory. It's warm and won't pill. The style is new too. It's selling well."

"Take a look at something else. It would be nice to pair it with a scarf or buy a brooch." Lu Qingyang took the opportunity to guide him to stay in front of the counter for a while and look at other products.

Zhao Rui excitedly picked out a beige wool scarf, imagining how Liu Xiaohua would look wearing it, and thought it would definitely look good.

Zhao Rui held the purple sweater and beige scarf in his arms. The more he looked at them, the more satisfied he felt. He imagined the smile that Liu Xiaohua might show when she received the gifts, and his heart was filled with joy.

He walked to the counter and prepared to pay.

"Comrade, could you please calculate how much these two items cost in total?" he asked as he reached into his pocket for money, still figuring out whether he had to save on food for the rest of the month.

The salesgirl behind the counter smiled, picked up the abacus, tapped it expertly, and read out a figure: "Comrade, this sweater and this scarf are a total of twenty-two yuan and eighty cents."

When Zhao Rui heard the price, he thought to himself, "It's really not cheap." But thinking about the quality of the item and the thoughtfulness, he gritted his teeth and prepared to pay.

He was about to hand over the money when Lu Qingyang, who had been standing nearby seemingly casually, suddenly spoke.

He gently waved his hand at the salesperson: "No payment."

Zhao Rui didn't react at first, staring blankly at Lu Qingyang: "Huh?"

He thought Lu Qingyang wanted to pay for him, so he quickly refused and held the money tighter in his hand.

Seeing his anxious look, Lu Qingyang couldn't help but chuckle and shook his head: "I won't pay for you. This counter, these 'Jasmine' brand clothes, were originally produced in my factory and sold here. Tell me, do you need to pay?"

"……What?"

Zhao Rui was surprised.

"You...you said...this...this whole...this brand...is yours?" Zhao Rui's voice became distorted, he stammered and spoke incoherently.

The huge amount of information impacted Zhao Rui's brain, and he felt that his cognition was completely overturned.

He had always thought that Lu Qingyang was just from a wealthy family, or a powerful relative, and that he was just there to help manage things! Who could have imagined...

Lu Qingyang looked at his almost numb look of shock and found it a little funny. He nodded and confirmed, "Yes, it's mine, so you can just take it. I'm taking advantage of you even at the original price."

"Good fellow... Lu Qingyang..." Zhao Rui finally found his voice and murmured, "You... you're really good! You hid it so well! Not even I noticed!"

"Xiaohua has always worked very hard at the restaurant. I've always wanted to give her a reward, but I'm not in the right position, so I'll just give it to her under your name."

Zhao Rui quickly waved his hands: "No, this is not this, this is a gift from me to Xiaohua, how can I not ask for money?"

Lu Qingyang replied nonchalantly, "Then I'll deduct it from your wages. Are you satisfied?"

Zhao Rui was speechless, but after thinking about it carefully, he realized it made sense: "That's right."

But Lu Qingyang's strength still surprised him.

What is this guy's strength?

Fortunately, I didn't insist on opposing him before, otherwise I might not be able to defeat him.

…

Zhao Rui carried the bag in his arms and hurried back to Xinweiju.

In the backyard kitchen, Liu Xiaohua was sitting on a small stool picking vegetables. Her complexion was much better than yesterday, but she still looked a little weak after the illness.

Hearing footsteps, she raised her head and saw Zhao Rui, and subconsciously smiled faintly: "You're back."

"Yeah!" Zhao Rui responded, his voice a little dry due to nervousness.

He walked over slowly and stood in front of her, touching the square piece of paper in his pocket, his palms sweating.

He took a deep breath and tried to make his tone sound more natural. "You've just recovered from your illness. This... is for you."

He finally took out the paper and handed it to Liu Xiaohua, his eyes evasive, not daring to look her in the eye.

Liu Xiaohua looked at the paper in his hand, which was obviously from a store, and was stunned for a moment, with a confused expression on her face: "What...?"

"Open it and take a look." Zhao Rui stuffed the thing into her hand.

Liu Xiaohua took it hesitantly, untied the hemp rope, and carefully unfolded the kraft paper.

When the bright and warm purple sweater and the soft white wool scarf came into view, she opened her mouth slightly in surprise and her eyes opened wide instantly.

"This...this..." She raised her head, looked at the gift, then looked at Zhao Rui who was looking nervous and expectant, and for a moment she didn't know what to say.

The color of the sweater was bright and solid, the yarn felt soft and thick, and the weave was fine. You could tell at a glance that it was not cheap.

The scarf is also soft and looks warm.

Zhao Rui scratched his head and explained awkwardly, "This is for you. Isn't it cold out? You've just recovered from your illness, so you need to wear more clothes... This color... I think it suits you very well... Wearing a scarf will keep your neck warm and prevent you from coughing..."