Principal Qin's apartment in the faculty and staff area is located on the second floor of the first three-story building on the far left of the entrance to the community. It is about 20 to 30 square meters, with one bedroom and one living room, a kitchen and a small balcony connected together, and a bathroom further inside. It is enough for one person to live in!
"Principal, was this place often used before? There's not much dust, it was just cleaned!" As soon as she entered the room, Chen Xihua looked around and checked every corner.
Aside from a bed and a wardrobe in the bedroom, there is only a square table and two chairs in the living room; there is no other furniture.
"The school used to lend these rooms to some student teachers from the county's No. 1 Middle School. Before they left, they would clean them very thoroughly!" Principal Qin looked around and was quite satisfied.
"Where are your belongings? I don't see them. You haven't moved to the county yet, have you?" Chen Xihua came out into the living room, leaned against the door, and looked at the old principal with a half-smile.
This old man must have come to the county suddenly today. I don't know what he was thinking, but he caused that scene at noon!
"...Uh, I haven't moved in yet!" The old man turned his gaze away from her, pretending to check the balcony!
"When will you move here?" Chen Xihua tugged at the corner of her mouth, not caring about his little scheme. Besides, she was quite happy that the old principal was moving to the county, which would make it easier for her to visit him often in the future, as long as he didn't suddenly disappear and leave!
"Tomorrow, I'll go back and pack my things. I'll hire the village tractor; it'll be ready in one trip!" Principal Qin secretly breathed a sigh of relief when he saw that she wasn't angry. This little girl had a bad temper, even more stubborn than him. She was always like that—stubborn, inflexible, and withdrawn. Now she's even worse. She can stay calm even when she's angry. Don't be fooled by how she nodded and agreed to him at noon, acting as if nothing was wrong. Who knows what kind of tricks she's up to!
"Then the old principal..." Chen Xihua realized there was nothing for her to do, and was about to call Chen Baohua, who was standing at the door like a curious child, to leave. She thought he would come over to help tidy up the house, but found it empty and very clean!
"Xi girl, you're not very willing to learn calligraphy from me? And you keep calling me 'Old Principal'! You look down on me as your teacher, humph, then you can leave!" Old Principal Qin turned his head, his words insincere, and started to throw a tantrum again, acting like a mischievous old man.
"Teacher Qin, are you going to the bus station now? I'll take you!" Chen Xihua shook her head and smiled, agreeing with his change of address, then turned and went out, listening carefully for any sound behind her! She then turned back to look at the old principal, who was looking at her with a wronged expression!
"Teacher, let's go, I'll take you to the bus station!" Chen Xihua suppressed a laugh and walked over respectfully, taking his arm and speaking softly.
She was speechless. Was this old man really a university professor? Even if he had lived in the countryside for two or three decades, he shouldn't be so shameless as to act like a rogue towards a young girl! She could just call him Old Man Qin then.
"Alright, let's go now. You don't need to take me to the bus station. There's a bus that goes right to the entrance of the county's No. 1 Middle School!" Old Qin was satisfied, laughing heartily, and a little carried away. He walked downstairs without even closing the door.
He was walking steadily, and with Chen Xihua's help, he happily went downstairs!
"Xiao Liu, lock the door!"
Chen Baohua, who was lagging behind, was a little confused when she saw her fifth sister and the old principal go downstairs like that. She thought her fifth sister had also forgotten!
He stepped forward, slammed the door shut, and pulled out the key!
Chen Xihua: "Teacher, do I need to formally offer tea and perform the apprenticeship ceremony?"
"No need, you just need to genuinely treat me as your teacher!" Old Qin shook his head; he didn't care about that.
"Then don't bring up the past! Xiao Liu, remember this for Fifth Sister: if your Grandpa Qin wants to back out in the future, you'll be my witness!" Chen Xihua turned her head to look at Chen Xiao Liu.
"Okay, Fifth Sister!" Chen Xiaoliu secretly glanced at Principal Qin's still smiling face and replied softly.
"No way, I'm not blind yet. Besides, even if you formally become my disciple, I can't stop you from betraying your master and ancestors. It doesn't matter whether there's a formality or not!" Old Qin thought of his former university teacher, who was betrayed by another student.
"Your younger brother, is your name Chen Baohua? You can come and study with your fifth sister, but I will be teaching calligraphy and classical poetry and literature, which are quite literary. Are you willing?" Old Man Qin looked at Chen Baohua kindly.
"Grandpa Qin, I'm willing! I'll practice calligraphy too, and my fifth sister is watching over me!" Chen Baohua was very happy. As long as she was with her fifth sister, learning calligraphy or literature didn't matter.
"Very well, then I'll get on the bus. You and your siblings can go home now!" The three of them had already reached the bus stop at the school gate, and Old Man Qin stepped onto a bus that had just stopped.
"Wait..." Chen Xihua wanted to ask Old Man Qin whether he was moving tomorrow morning or afternoon, but the bus drove away quickly!
Old Qin, however, was so pleased with himself for achieving his goal that he didn't look out the car window.
It looks like she'll have to come over again tomorrow morning!
Around 11 a.m. the next day, Chen Xihua went to the staff area of the county's No. 1 Middle School. After waiting for 20 minutes, Qin Laotou still hadn't arrived, so he went back first.
Half an hour after she left, Old Man Qin arrived in Shanghe Village on a tractor.
When Old Qin moved, his main belongings consisted of several boxes of books, a desk specifically for writing calligraphy, another box for brushes, ink, paper, and inkstones, and two bags of clothes.
He didn't bring any bedding, kitchenwares, or other daily necessities; he planned to buy new ones. He intended to go back to Shanghe Village when he had time and stay there for a day or two.
At 2:30 pm, Chen Xihua came over again. Old Man Qin had already settled his luggage with the help of Li Shisheng, a young man from Shanghe Village and a tractor driver. He was about to go sell bedding, kitchen utensils and other daily necessities!
"Teacher, when did you arrive? I came to check around 11 a.m., but I didn't see anyone!" Chen Xihua breathed a slight sigh of relief; it was good that the person had arrived safely.
"It's past 12 o'clock, it's fine. I don't have much stuff. You remember Shi Sheng, right? He helped me carry it upstairs. He's a tractor driver now!" Old Qin pushed up his glasses and waved his hand dismissively.
"...I remember, is Village Chief Li's grand-nephew still living at the village chief's house?" Chen Xihua pretended to recall, thinking for a moment. Before, it wasn't her, so she only knew the name, not the person.
"He's already back home! He saved up money over the years, demolished his old, dilapidated house, and rebuilt a new two-room house! But sometimes he still eats at Village Chief Li's house!" Old Man Qin said with some emotion. Shi Sheng was an honest and hardworking young man, quite good. He was of marriageable age, but his parents had both passed away, leaving him alone. The village chief's wife introduced him to a girl, but the girl's family was a little worried that their daughter would suffer after marrying into the family, and they were still considering it.
"Xi'er, you're here just in time! Come with me to buy some daily necessities!" Old Man Qin stopped nagging.
When Chen Xihua and Old Man Qin walked out of the community gate, they saw a tractor parked next to them!
"Headmaster, are you going shopping? Let me help you carry these!" Li Shisheng, who had just mentioned it, jumped out of the car and walked over with a simple smile.
Luckily, the old headmaster was too old to carry heavy things! He had just helped Grandma Wu from Shanghe Village deliver some food to Aunt Zhenying, who had married into the northern district of the county and was Grandma Wu's eldest daughter!
"Shisheng, why haven't you gone back yet?" Old Man Qin was only slightly surprised. This young man Shisheng was so kind; he must have gone to help the villagers with some business!
"I just went to Aunt Zhenying's house, the daughter of Fifth Grandma. I remembered you said that you didn't buy a lot of household necessities. I'm strong, so I can help you carry them!" Li Shisheng blushed as he spoke!
"Brother Shisheng, you're blushing again! You're about to get married, and you're still shy!" Chen Xihua teased with a smile! When she went back to Shanghe Village before the New Year, she didn't see him at the village chief's house. At that time, she heard from Aunt Wang that they were going to find him a wife.
Going back further, Chen Xihua hadn't seen him when she left Shanghe Village. At that time, Li Shisheng had just graduated from junior high school and went to work in a factory outside the village with a group of boys his age.
"Xi, Xi Hua, little sister!" Li Shisheng's face turned even redder, a young man who was actually a little at a loss for words!
He also recognized Chen Xihua, who was even prettier than when she was a child. Now she was a twelve or thirteen-year-old young lady, almost as tall as the old principal, with bright, lively eyes.
Back in the village, he had eaten pastries given to him by a little girl, who said they were made by her grandmother. Actually, many of the uncles and elders in the village would share their food with him, just in case he didn't have enough to eat!
"Xi Hua, you silly girl, stop fooling around!" Old Man Qin feigned anger, gently scolding Chen Xi Hua. This girl was teasing Shi Sheng again. He knew perfectly well that he was easily embarrassed and blushed when talking to people!
"Shisheng, you should go back to the village first. Xihua can help me carry it. She's got plenty of free time and is quite strong!" Old Man Qin simply told Li Shisheng to go back. With Xihua around, he could be surrounded by onlookers with a bright red face all the way!
"I... let me help you carry it!" How strong could a young girl like Xi Hua be? Li Shisheng hesitated for a moment, but he figured if she wanted to laugh at him, she would! He had no ill intentions.
"No need, you can go back!" Old Man Qin's attitude was firm, so Li Shisheng had no choice but to give up and walked to the tractor with several glances back.
"Brother Shisheng, it's okay, I can manage. It's so hot, and I can't shop for long at a time, so I can't buy much. I'll come over to help the teacher these next few days!" Chen Xihua stopped teasing him and said seriously.
Two days later, Qin Laotou's house was finally cleaned up and he could finally relax. But Chen Xihua's hard days were about to begin!
During the summer vacation, Old Man Qin required her to practice calligraphy for two hours every afternoon, specifically between 2:30 and 4:30 pm, the hottest and most irritating time, saying he wanted to test her patience!
Chen Xihua wanted to say that it wasn't necessary. She felt that she had a good amount of patience. Fortunately, Chen Xiaoliu accompanied her, either practicing calligraphy or listening to Old Man Qin talk about poetry!
Time flew by and it was already mid-August. The third sister, Chen Meihua, still hadn't received her high school admission notice. They heard that this year's high school entrance exam was more difficult than last year's, but the Chen sisters, including Chen Chunhua, started to feel anxious. Chen Meihua herself, on the other hand, gave up all hope!
Then Chen Meihua went to the pastry shop a few times, saying she wanted to help her parents sell pastries! But with Li Yumei around, she basically didn't need to do anything; she just watched and played around!
A few days later, finding it uninteresting, she came back and started knitting bags. She actually came up with a bag design, which Chen Xihua saw and thought was excellent, novel, and in line with the tastes of young girls today!
For the past two weeks, Chen Xihua has been living a very difficult time. In the morning, she has to design clothes or knit bags, and every few days she has to coordinate with Sister Xiaolan about the clothing workshop.
At first, a few workers did sew clothes that were not up to standard. They always felt that something was missing. After several revisions, they finally made clothes that met the requirements!
By the middle of this month, Fanghua Clothing Workshop had made more than 700 sets of clothes, which was about what she had envisioned, making 40 to 50 sets a day!
Since opening, we've only been making clothes for about twenty days, not even a month. And in the first few days, the workers were quite careful, so the speed was a bit slower.
If all goes well, we should be able to finish 1,200 sets by the end of August!
It was time to contact Wang Jun. Before opening her workshop, Chen Xihua had thought of selling clothes through Wang Jun to see how the market response was in the provincial capital of Nan Province before deciding whether to open her own brand store.
Actually, it would be better to open stores and sell at the same time, but we still don't have enough manpower. Chen Xihua is not very comfortable with hiring strangers to open stores and be store managers. At this time, information technology is not fully developed yet. If the person takes the goods and runs away, she will not know!
Chen Xihua went out early that day to meet with Sister Xiaolan and finalize the details of their cooperation with Wang Jun, the head of the provincial capital department store.
Before leaving home, she told Chen Lao Er and his wife that the old principal needed to see her and that she wouldn't be home for lunch!
Since the eldest sister Chen Chunhua returned to school at the end of July, Chen Xihua has been free to do as she pleases again, often going out alone without taking Chen Jinhua with her. Sometimes when the fourth sister Chen Xiuhua tries to ask her where she is going, the fifth sister always laughs it off and tries to fool her.
Forget it, I can't control it anyway. My eldest sister's savings account is in my hands, and my fifth sister has no money.
However, today, the Chen sisters all knew that Xiao Wu was going to talk to Wang Jun about the sale of the first batch of clothes, and they were both a little nervous and expectant.
At noon, Chen Xihua arranged to meet Wang Jun and Sister Xiaolan at the Jing'an Teahouse in the county, and reserved a private room.
Jing'an Teahouse is the same teahouse where Zhang Xiaolan and Wang Jun first went. It's near Mingliang Department Store. Zhang Xiaolan also brought along three sets of clothing samples from Fanghua Clothing Workshop, which Chen Xihua had asked her to prepare in advance, as well as matching bags!
Even after sitting down to eat snacks, Zhang Xiaolan was still a little nervous. She ate one snack and then stopped, sitting upright.
"Brother Jun, take a look at the clothes you brought!" Chen Xihua's expression was much more natural.
Wang Jun was most surprised. The Fifth Miss had changed a lot. Her confident and generous temperament was even better than before. It was as if he hadn't seen her for a year and she had already grown up. The Fifth Miss said that she had some nice things to introduce to him, so he asked with some anticipation.
"The clothes? The design is quite good. I haven't seen any like them in the provincial capital yet. Did you make them, Miss Wu?"
“Brother Jun, this is Zhang Xiaolan, the head of Fanghua Clothing Workshop. These three outfits were made by her workshop. Take a look and see if you have any ideas. You said back then that if we had any new gadgets, we could come to you! And these woven bags were specially matched by my sister and me. Xiaolan and I are partners!” Chen Xihua still didn’t want to reveal that she was the owner of Fanghua Clothing Workshop!
As for whether Wang Jun will investigate, that's beyond her control. She and Sister Xiaolan do have a cooperative relationship!
"Brother Jun, hello, my name is Zhang Xiaolan. If you have any questions about the clothes, feel free to ask me!" Zhang Xiaolan took a deep breath and began to introduce the clothes.
The task Xiao Wu's younger sister gave her was to handle the negotiation with Wang Jun on the sale of this batch of clothes all by herself.
"What are the prices for the three sets, and how much can be supplied per month?" Wang Jun asked directly about the prices and production volume.
"We produce 300 sets of men's clothing per month, with a wholesale price of 50 yuan per set. We can also produce 400 sets of women's clothing each per month, with a wholesale price of 60 yuan per set!" Zhang Xiaolan's voice was a little hurried, but she managed to finish the introduction smoothly.
"Isn't the wholesale price a bit too high? A regular set of clothes costs thirty or forty yuan now!" Wang Jun said, his interest waning.
“I understand, but Brother Jun, the quality of our clothes is different. Feel them again. Moreover, the styles and brands are unique. Look, this ‘5+1’ logo. All the clothes our company makes have this logo. We will release new products every quarter, and we also have specially designed woven bags. You definitely won’t find this style in the provincial capital.”
"The price of the bag depends on Xiao Wu's sister. Her family knits them. Whether you want to buy one as a set is also up to you!" Zhang Xiaolan explained in one breath, realizing there was nothing to be nervous about.
"A company? Aren't you just a small workshop?" Wang Jun was a little shocked. A company in a rural suburb of a county town?
“Yes, we have registered a company!” Zhang Xiaolan and Rong Youyan suddenly became very confident.
"So, will you open your own brand store?" Wang Jun suddenly thought of something. It wasn't that he wasn't interested, but he wanted to test her bottom line on prices. The quality and style of these clothes were something he had never seen before, and they were quite eye-catching!
"Yes, but it depends on whether Brother Jun is interested. If Brother Jun can purchase our clothes, we won't open a store for the time being!" Zhang Xiaolan said truthfully.
"However, we will open stores in the future, so our company has proposed that if you purchase our clothes and cooperate with us, the retail price will be 80 yuan per set, and 95 yuan per set for women's clothing, with a fluctuation of no more than 5 yuan!" Zhang Xiaolan recalled what her younger sister Xiao Wu had said, that her family would also open brand stores in the future, and the retail prices should be set in advance.
"Little Fifth Sister, how many woven bags do you have?" Wang Jun suddenly changed the subject and asked Chen Xihua.
"The matching bags are only available for the women's clothing, with thirty bags for each set. It's definitely impossible to match them for all four hundred sets. Brother Jun can use these thirty matching woven bags for promotion. The quantity is limited, Brother Jun will understand!" Chen Xihua originally planned to make ten of each type, but for the initial promotion, more were needed. There wouldn't be as many custom orders later.
"Alright, Miss Wu, I definitely want the bags you knitted. Is the price still sixty-five?" Wang Jun had already made up his mind.
"Yes, this time it is, but next time it won't be. If you still want to sell them as a set with clothes, the price will go up to eighty yuan each, but the quantity will be even less, and the style and quality will be better. There might only be eight or ten of each type of clothing, and they will all be specially customized. We won't be releasing the same style again." Chen Xihua could tell that Wang Jun was already very interested.
"That's alright. As for the clothes, I need to go to your workshop to take a look!" Wang Jun then looked at Zhang Xiaolan. He was still quite cautious. As a purchasing agent, it was very important to conduct on-site inspections and not just look at samples.
“No problem, Brother Jun, are you going to go see him now?” Zhang Xiaolan felt much more at ease.
Wang Jun nodded, "Yes! The sooner we take the clothes back, the sooner we can sell them."
“Then you guys go ahead, Jun-ge. Xiao-lan, you take Jun-ge to the workshop first. Once you've decided, come directly to the county to pick up the bags!” Chen Xi-hua was relieved. Xiao-lan was able to communicate the whole process. Although she seemed a bit anxious, she was sincere and wouldn't cause any problems.
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