Chapter 22 Friendship Shop
"Madam, do you have any foreign exchange drafts? I'd like to borrow some so I can take a day off tomorrow and go shopping at the Friendship Store with my colleagues."
At the dinner table, Jiang Xixi made this request.
She had an idea in mind and wanted to try it out at the Friendship Store tomorrow to see if it would work.
"Foreign exchange drafts? I think I have some. Your master seemed to have gotten a lot of them from somewhere last week. Wait here, I'll go find them for you."
"Thank you, Master's wife, you're too kind." Jiang Xixi rested her chin on Master's wife's left shoulder, laughing freely, and occasionally swaying her body.
To be honest, looking at them like this, they really do look like a mother and daughter.
"Well, there's nothing I can do, I'm just that kind. Wait here, I'll go look for it for you. I don't know where I put it."
After rummaging through the room, Mrs. Jiang finally found the foreign exchange draft that Jiang Xixi had mentioned.
"What are you going to the Friendship Store for? That place is for entertaining foreign guests, and the things there are ridiculously expensive. You probably won't be able to buy much with this amount of money."
Jiang Xixi knew that she had visited the Friendship Store once in her previous life due to an accident.
It mainly contains specialties of the Xia Kingdom, such as silk, porcelain, and the Four Treasures of the Study, which are extremely expensive.
However, she wasn't going there to spend money; she was going to make money.
Xiaomi's batch of light-colored fabrics might be able to be sold through this.
...
"Xixi, you must be joking. Friendship Store has all sorts of good stuff, why would they be interested in my fabrics?"
"Forget it, I've given up on it all. At worst, I'll just lose all my salary!" Xu Xiaomi said dejectedly.
"Since we're already this far, why don't we go in and take a look? Maybe you won't have to lose your salary. Besides, who told you I'm just selling fabric?"
"Okay." Despite her lack of confidence, Xu Xiaomi didn't want to say anything discouraging when she saw her best friend's confident expression.
At worst, I can just go in and wander around; it won't delay anything.
However, on the other hand, my best friend's inexplicable confidence without considering the actual situation is really a bit like me!
"Welcome! Madam, is there anything you'd like to see?"
As soon as I entered, a well-dressed, smiling salesperson greeted me.
"We'd like some clothing items; could you please recommend some?"
"Okay, please follow me."
This scene made Jiang Xixi feel as if she had returned to the 21st century.
The rooftop lights, the lavish decorations, and the polite and enthusiastic service are truly rare sights in this day and age.
"Hello ma'am, this is our Friendship Store's clothing section. All the clothes here are designed by masters specially hired by our Friendship Store, and the materials used are the finest silk. We hope you will find something you like."
After the sales clerk left, Xu Xiaomi concealed her shocked expression and whispered in Jiang Xixi's ear.
"Xixi, look at other people's fabric, it's so shiny and sparkly. My lousy fabric has no competitive edge at all. Maybe we should stop talking about it for now, or I'm afraid I'll get scolded for it."
Before seeing the fabric of these clothes, Xu Xiaomi still had a tiny bit of confidence.
Upon seeing these things, that tiny bit of confidence instantly turned into unease.
"Don't rush, wait a little longer, let me take a look."
Unlike Xu Xiaomi, Jiang Xixi smiled when she saw the fabrics and clothes.
Just as I thought!
Most of the clothes displayed here are in one size. They are exquisite, but there's no guarantee that many foreigners won't be able to fit into them.
In the 1970s, many Chinese people faced the predicament of not having enough to eat, so they were generally thin and small. Foreign friends, on the other hand, were generally more robust due to different food cultures and, of course, genetic factors.
The tailors and designers who make clothes may not have thought of this problem.
In just the short time I've stood here, I've already seen quite a few foreigners who came with high hopes but left disappointed.
Many friends stood in front of the clothes they liked, stroking the embroidered patterns with reluctance.
After thinking for a moment, Jiang Xixi called out to the saleswoman from before.
"Hello, I would like to have a cheongsam custom-made. Is that possible?"
The sales clerk was taken aback, probably because she had never seen anyone come to Friendship Store to order clothes before.
"We don't offer customized services here. If you need them, I'll go to the second floor and ask our manager."
Don't be fooled by the saleswoman's smiling face; she's probably already muttered all sorts of things about Jiang Xixi and the other woman to herself a million times over.
Which rich young lady, oblivious to the hardships of life, came to Friendship Store to order clothes? Does she have too much money to burn?
"Knock knock knock~"
Manager Wang was already in a bad mood today, and when he heard the knock on the door, he wasn't in a good mood either.
"Come in, what's wrong now? I just don't understand, can't you handle things yourselves first? You have to report everything to me, do I look like I have eight hands and eight heads?"
"I have to handle everything. How dare you bunch of freeloaders take such high salaries?"
Xiaoli, the saleswoman, felt quite wronged. She hadn't even said anything before she was scolded.
He cursed inwardly, thinking that Wang Dazhuang must be going through menopause these past few days, acting like a powder keg.
"Manager, there's a young lady in the lobby who wants to order a dress."
"Custom-made clothes? Our Friendship Store doesn't offer that service, right? Tell her to turn right at the corner; there's a tailor shop there..."
Wait, something's not right. Custom-made clothes? Xiaoli, let me ask you, why are the ready-made clothes at our Friendship Store not selling at all?
Xiaoli didn't understand, but she still answered, "Some foreign ladies don't find our clothes to fit them very well."
As soon as Xiaoli finished speaking, Manager Wang excitedly snapped his fingers.
"That's right, if the clothes don't fit, we can make them fit by custom-made clothes, right? Good heavens, I can finally keep my manager position."
The silk industry in HA City is thriving, but the silk clothes in their Friendship Store have been unsellable. The boss has given the final order, and it seems that his career is about to end. Suddenly, there is hope, so how could Manager Wang not be excited?
...
"So you want to order clothes from our Friendship Store?"
"Yes, besides custom-made clothes, I'd also like to discuss a business deal with you."
"You little girl, trying to do business with me?" Manager Wang said casually, but since the girl had helped him, he didn't take it seriously.
What kind of business do you want to discuss with me?
"A business about how to help our Friendship Store earn more foreign exchange."
"Little girl, you're not that old, but you've got quite the nerve. You want to earn more foreign exchange? Tell me, how are you going to help us earn foreign exchange?"
Manager Wang still didn't take Jiang Xixi's words seriously, and his tone was very dismissive.
But as Jiang Xixi uttered one specific and effective method after another, his expression changed repeatedly.
From his initial nonchalance to his serious expression, and finally to the look he gave Jiang Xixi as if she were a god of wealth, it all took only a minute.
Continue read on readnovelmtl.com
