"Such beautiful clothes..."
A woman next to me clicked her tongue, her face showing both longing and a little timid, "It must be really expensive, right?"
"I saw it at the department store yesterday!"
Another well-informed person immediately chimed in.
"The salesperson said it was thirty-five yuan a piece! But you can't take it right away; you have to pay and register first, it's called 'pre-order'! It's in high demand!"
Thirty-five?!
The woman's eyes lit up when she asked the price.
"It's several dollars cheaper than the imported wool coat I gritted my teeth and bought last year! No way, I have to get one of these for Chinese New Year this year!"
Her words tempted several of her sisters-in-law, who all expressed their intention to save up money to buy it.
Zhou Qiqi has a straightforward sister-in-law who cheerfully asked her directly,
"Qiqi, I'm thinking of applying for a job at your factory. If I get selected, can we, as internal employees, get a discount on this coat?"
Zhou Qiqi nodded with a smile, "As long as it's for yourself or your relatives and friends to wear, and it's not resold, employees can get a 40% discount."
"60% off! Good heavens!"
The woman was so happy she almost jumped for joy.
"Isn't that something you can get for just twenty-one yuan? I'll have to put in all my effort and make sure I get selected! This is such a rare opportunity!"
"Yes, yes, yes! I'm going to sign up too!"
"Count me in! It's a job in a state-owned factory, the pay is unquestionable, and they even give priority to us military spouses. Qiqi, you've really done a great thing for our military dependents' area!"
"That's right, thank you so much, Qiqi!"
A torrent of thanks and praise flooded in, surrounding Zhou Qiqi.
She could remain calm and composed in a grand setting like a press conference, but when faced with the straightforward and simple enthusiasm and gratitude of her neighbors, she was a little overwhelmed. Her cheeks flushed slightly, and she felt unsure of what to do with her hands and feet.
"Um... Zhouzhou will be out of school soon and is waiting for me to come back and cook. You ladies can chat for a bit, I'll head back now!"
She quickly found an excuse, slipped on her bicycle as if her feet were greased, and sped away from the crowd.
Behind her, she could still hear her sisters-in-law's lively chatter, praising her for being capable and generous, while also scolding Li Hongjuan and a few others who had previously gossiped about her.
After riding her bicycle for a while, Zhou Qiqi clearly felt a venomous gaze fixed on her back not far behind. Without turning around, she knew it was Li Hongjuan, the woman everyone was cursing.
The other person was pregnant, so she didn't bother with her and sped up, riding towards home.
After a few busy days, things at the factory have finally gotten back on track. With Zhang Guoqiang overseeing things, Zhou Qiqi's burden has lightened considerably, and she's been coming home earlier than usual.
She made a special detour to the supply and marketing cooperative in the morning to ask them to save her a fresh pork tenderloin.
Zhouzhou, despite her seemingly aloof and mature demeanor, is actually a girl who loves sweet and sour flavors, and she craves her sweet and sour pork the most.
The factory was able to overcome this crisis thanks to the little girl's brilliant idea. Zhou Qiqi remembered it and knew she had to reward her handsomely.
Soon, busy sounds filled the kitchen.
Cut the pork tenderloin into strips, marinate, coat with batter, and deep-fry until golden brown and crispy. Remove and drain the oil.
On the stove next to it, another meat dish, a vegetable dish, and a soup were almost ready.
Shredded pork with green peppers, steamed spare ribs with garlic, tomato and egg soup, and white rice are all prepared, just waiting for Zhouzhou and Shen Huaichuan to return. Then, the fried pork tenderloin will be cooked again with a sweet and sour sauce, and the dishes will be ready to eat.
Zhou Qiqi raised her wrist and looked at her watch; the hands were almost pointing to six o'clock.
At this time of day, Zhouzhou should be back from playing with Xiangyang and his gang, but today he's nowhere to be seen.
She had some doubts, wiped her hands, and walked to the gate of the courtyard to look around.
When I saw that, my heart skipped a beat!
Not far away, around the corner of the alley, seven or eight little girls were chattering around Zhouzhou.
Zhouzhou was surrounded in the middle, her little eyebrows furrowed, her lips pursed tightly, her expression looking like... a grimace?
Beside him, Jiang Xiangyang was stretching out his arm, as if he was blocking someone.
Zhouzhou is unable to speak, and in the past, many ignorant children would bully her out of curiosity or malice.
Are those girls up to no good again?
A surge of anger shot up to my head!
Without thinking, she grabbed the spatula from the stove and rushed over, her voice both angry and anxious:
"What are you doing! Why are you bullying our Zhouzhou!"
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