His tone carried a kind of smug impatience, as if he were used to it.
Howard was taken aback, but he didn't give up. He pointed to a relatively pleasing light beige women's shirt in the corner: "Let me see that one."
The sales clerk reluctantly put down the sunflower seeds, slowly took down the shirt, and handed it over across the counter: "Here, this is it, clearance item, the cuffs have a few loose stitches, it's two cents cheaper."
Howard took the shirt. It felt like rough khaki fabric, the color was relatively soft, but the style was too big and had no shape at all.
He handed it to Mingzhao: "Want to give it a try?"
Mingzhao took the clothes, her eyes scrutinizing them as if they were new materials.
She rubbed the fabric between her fingers, seemingly assessing its fiber strength and weave density, and then looked at the so-called "skip stitches".
In interstellar space, clothing made of this material would only be used for the lowest level of industrial protective clothing.
She didn't say anything, just shook her head and handed the clothes back to the sales clerk. The meaning was clear: unacceptable.
Howard understood what she meant, and felt even worse.
His gaze lingered on the counter, finally settling on a light blue floral dress hanging in the corner.
The colors were elegant, and the small floral print didn't look tacky at all; it stood out refreshingly among the sea of gray-blue. Although it was also cotton, it looked softer than khaki.
"Let me see that dress," Howard said, pointing to the dress.
The sales clerk was quicker this time, taking it down and handing it to him: "Wow, you have good taste! This is polyester, a new arrival. It's a bit pricey, but it's cool to wear and doesn't wrinkle!"
Howard touched it and found that it was indeed much smoother than khaki fabric.
He handed it to Mingzhao, his eyes filled with inquiry and a hint of barely perceptible expectation.
Mingzhao took the dress and unfolded it. It had a light blue background, adorned with tiny white flowers.
She felt the smooth texture of polyester fibers with her fingers, and then looked at the fabric's translucency and weave texture against the light.
While it's far from the intelligent temperature-regulating fabrics used in interstellar space, it's a relatively "advanced" option for this era.
She nodded, indicating that she could.
Continue read on readnovelmtl.com
