The couple and Li Hongjun agreed to meet at the entrance of the small commodity market on Baiyun Street.

The weather is not too hot today, a little cloudy and a little stuffy. I felt quite cool riding a bike, but as soon as I got off the bike, I felt that my clothes were sticky and uncomfortable.

What came into view was a bustling small market, which was very different from what Qiao Lu had imagined. It felt a bit like visiting a bazaar in the 1990s, but more messy and chaotic than a bazaar.

Individual shops are lined up in a row, and most of the stall owners are men, dressed very casually!

Some were wearing old man's shirts and vests, some were wearing flip-flops, and some were just wearing a pair of wide trousers. They were either burly or had sneaky eyes. If you didn't know them, you would think you had stumbled into a bandit's den.

The weather is hot and humid in the autumn. When you walk in, you can smell a faint "masculine scent" along the street, which is really unbearable.

This is much more mixed than the previous Qingteng Lane.

In 1984, the small commodity market in Li'an City was still in a semi-unmanaged state. Why do I say semi? Because this was a business street tacitly recognized by the government. Occasionally, the urban management officers would be sent to conduct surprise inspections, but they would not come easily on normal days, so you could do whatever you wanted.

Therefore, the environment here is really hard to describe.

The street is quite wide and bustling yet has a shabby atmosphere. Shops are lined up one after another, colorful and mixed. The majority of them are clothing stores. There is no display, just a mess of things piled up. You just need to know that this is a place that sells clothes.

There are also stall owners who don't like to keep their shops clean, and there is garbage scattered all over the ground in front of their shops.

Overall, the environment is not optimistic, but its liveliness vaguely foreshadows the shape of a commercial street in later generations.

What can I say about this location...If it is developed well, it may become an important commercial area in Li'an City in the future.

When you enter the street, you can see a street that seems to have no end. The end is next to an intersection, which is connected to another main road.

"The ones near the entrance of the alley and the center are all occupied. If we want to come now, we can only stay inside."

"Aren't there a few empty seats here?" Qiao Lu asked puzzledly, pointing at an empty shop in the middle.

Li Hongjun sighed and said, "I asked, and they said that someone else is occupying the place and will move in to set up a stall in the future."

Looking around, this kind of space occupation is not uncommon. If you are not satisfied, go up to argue. As soon as one person waves his hand, a group of brothers will come up. Otherwise, how could they dare to occupy all the shops in good locations? It turns out that they are relying on their numbers.

"The crackdown hasn't ended yet, and they are so brazenly occupying positions. Aren't you afraid?"

Xu Haizhou said something very meaningful: "For some people, money is more important than going to jail."

Li Hongjun: "Well, what is there to be afraid of? This street is Li'an's economic experimental street. It was originally for small vendors like us to make a living. The police comrades have a lot of things to do, so how can they take care of small vendors like us?"

Uh... Qiao Lu was speechless. It seemed that things would never go so smoothly. There were no major problems, but there were many minor ones.

"Okay, then you guys pick a seat at random. It's best not to sit next to a stall owner with such poor quality."

A few people rode their bicycles along the street for a while, and after a few laps, they chose a spot near the corner.

"I think this place is good. It's a little off the beaten track, but it's spacious. The silk shop next door is run by a female owner who looks very polite and has better qualities than the big bosses. Look at those stalls, they are so messy... it's really unbearable to look at."

The extra space is simply because this place is close to the edge. There is a silk stall on the right and an open space on the left. How could it not be spacious?

Looking at the silk stall next door, it was a rare female boss. What was shocking was that she looked so young! She must be no more than 20 years old! But her dress and clothing style showed a maturity that was not suitable for her age.

Receiving the gazes from Qiao Lu and the other three, the female boss lay leisurely on the bench, slowly waving the palm-leaf fan in her hand and responded with a smile.

Qiao Lu curled her lips and looked away.

"It's a bit remote, but there's really no better place than this. If it's any later, I guess this place won't be available." The competition for small commodity stalls was more intense than Qiao Lu had imagined, and this was really a helpless move.

The group prepared to go to the street office to pay the management fee and rental fee. It was five yuan a month, a bit expensive, but there was no other way.

"Mom, there are so many people here." As he walked, he looked around. As a child used to the city center, Qiaoan was not yet accustomed to the messy environment of Baiyun Street.

"Yeah, this place is full of business people, it's a bit chaotic, what's wrong, are you not used to it? We'll go back in a while."

The young man shook his head, tremblingly grasped the hem of his mother's clothes, and moved closer to her: "I can stay."

Qiao Lu smiled and patted his head: "You are so good."

After finding the manager and renting a stall, this morning's mission came to an end.

"Okay, let's do this for now. Next we have to find manufacturers to get the goods. We'll get whatever is popular on the market. Then when I have time I'll make a batch of my own designs to sell. If they sell well, I'll follow the rules and find someone to make them for me."

"Yeah." After looking at his watch, Xu Haizhou said, "I'm not going home for dinner today. Let's go and I'll treat you to a meal."

After dinner, they went back to their homes, rested a bit and prepared to go to the wholesaler to pick up the goods. The two men agreed to go together at 1:30 p.m.

When passing by a department store, the family of three remembered that they had run out of shampoo at home, so they went in for a walk.

The shampoo she used before was a random one called the "Egg Yolk" brand. She probably thought it wasn't suitable for Qiao Lu's hair type. Her hair felt dry after washing, so she wanted to change to another one.

Today is Sunday, and there are quite a lot of people in the mall. The mother and daughter were protected by Xu Haizhou and squeezed in. When they got inside, not a single strand of their hair was messy.

With one hand on Xu Haizhou's arm, he pointed at the merchandise under the glass counter with the other.

"Hello comrade, do you have a slightly more expensive shampoo?"

Shampoo and shampoo liquid are the terms used in the late 1980s. Now they are called shampoo cream. There is also shampoo powder, but the quality is not as good as shampoo cream.

"Use this, Wellabo." Before the salesperson could speak, a gentle female voice suddenly appeared beside him.

The family of three looked in the direction of the sound, their eyes fell on a green bottle called "Wenabao" on the glass counter, and finally stopped on the face of a lesbian.

Qiao Lu opened her mouth in surprise: "It's you."

She is the silk stall owner next to the new stall. She looks quite immature, but her clothes are very mature and fashionable, at least five years older than her actual age.

Of course, it was based on the fashion of the time, a dacron short shirt, low-waist jeans, curly hair, and pointed leather shoes, a true trendsetter of the time.

The lesbian had a sweet smile, and her purity carried a subtle charm, a style completely different from Qiao Lu's refreshing and generous beauty, which reminded her of a word: "pure desire".

But considering the makeup techniques and clothing matching standards of this era, it's just like that.

"I use this one all the time, it's a foreign brand, pretty good. One is green and the other is yellow, they are shampoo and conditioner, separate for shampoo and conditioner." The female comrade smiled and pushed the things in front of Qiao Lu.

Qiao Lu raised her eyebrows in surprise and thanked him repeatedly: "Thank you, I'll buy it back and try it."

"You're welcome." The lesbian touched her hair and looked at the little one at her feet and the man holding the little one.

She raised her red lips and raised her eyebrows: "Your man?"

"Well, he is my husband and this is my son." Qiao Lu said with a smile.

The lesbian looked at the father and son calmly.

After that, Qiao Lu turned around and asked the salesperson: "How much is a bottle?"

"Two."

"Okay, please pack it for me."

A bottle of shampoo that cost two yuan was definitely a luxury in the 1980s, but Qiao Lu didn't hesitate at all.

The salesperson knew what was going on and realized that Qiao Lu was not short of money, so he packed the things much faster.

"Do you want some conditioner?"

"Yes, please pack it for me too." This time he didn't ask the price.

The salesperson packed it for her swiftly and handed it to her. Qiao Lu took it and asked Xu Haizhou to pay. After that, she took his hand and squeezed out of the crowd, followed closely by Comrade Da Bo□□.

Her outfit was really eye-catching in 1983. The clothes were okay, but the big wavy hair made her look like something other than a "serious person".

At least in the past two years, it has been a bad symbol in the minds of many people.

"What do you sell in that rented stall?" he asked casually as we walked.

"I'm planning to sell some women's clothing, bags and the like." Qiao Lu replied.

"There are too many women's clothing stores in Baiyun Street, about seven or eight, and they are basically the same. Your location is not good either. Are you sure it will work?"

Glancing at Xu Haizhou, Qiao Lu smiled and said, "Let's try it first to see if it works. We just rented the store and don't know the situation yet. We'll see when the time comes."

Anyway, they have a lot of savings and have the cost of trial and error.

"Okay, we'll be neighbors from now on. If you have any questions, you can come to me. My name is Yu Fan." She stretched out her hand for a friendly handshake.

"Qiao Lu." Their ten fingers touched each other, and Qiao Lu used her other hand to lift the strands of hair at her temples. The feminine charm that she exuded unintentionally made Yu Fan stunned.

This is a kind of temperament that she longs for but cannot experience at her age, a charm that radiates unintentionally... rather than deliberate teasing.

This kid's mother is so beautiful.

Smiling, Yu Fan took a last glance at Qiao An and Xu Haizhou, waved his hand, turned and left.

Looking at her slender figure, Qiao Lu sighed: "That woman is quite young. It's not easy for her to come out and work hard at such a young age."

Glancing at the direction the woman left and then looking at his wife, Xu Haizhou suddenly laughed.

“No one has it easy in this world.”