Chapter 46 46 The Ghost
Because of Yao Yan's unauthorized action, although there was a thousand yuan less in the passbook, Ji Yumo also took advantage of this incident to successfully get the passbook at home. He took a look and saw that there were still seven thousand yuan in the passbook, which was all the savings of the couple over the years.
Because she was in the wrong, Yao Yan couldn't say anything as she watched him take the passbook. She could only keep reminding him, "This is all our family's belongings. You must keep it safe."
"Do I need you to tell me that? When is your brother going to return the thousand yuan to us?" After successfully putting the passbook into his pocket, Ji Yumo felt satisfied. An idea also arose in his mind: his second brother is really capable. He should have listened to his second brother earlier. In this way, he would not have lived such a miserable life all these years.
"We have to wait until he gets married." Yao Yan actually didn't know when Yao Qiang would be able to pay back the one thousand yuan. One thousand yuan is not a small amount.
"Okay, then I'll ask him for it after he gets married." Ji Yumo had already started planning to get the goods.
"I've also given you the passbook. Don't tell your mother about this, or there will be chaos at home." Yao Yan reminded.
"I know. Do you think I am you?" Ji Yumo snorted coldly after saying this, feeling like he had turned the tables and became the master.
Hearing him humming a song, Yao Yan stared at his back with a puzzled look in her eyes. Ji Yumo had never asked about these things before, but he suddenly asked about them today. Did someone say something to him? Yao Yan couldn't help but speculate.
*
Monday soon arrived. The school holds a flag-raising ceremony every Monday. This time it happened to be the time when the monthly exam results came out, and the top ten students in each grade would go on stage to receive their awards.
When we arrived in the classroom this morning, everyone was discussing the awards that would be given at the flag-raising ceremony. Among the top ten students in the grade, Class 7 accounted for the largest proportion, and everyone spoke of this with pride.
Jiang Lili hadn't slept well the previous night. She yawned profusely the moment she entered the classroom. She had no interest in the discussion; all she could think about was Factory 1. If their weekend overtime went smoothly, the costume dolls would probably already be on display at the supply and marketing cooperative. Who knew how sales would fare today?
"Lili?" Ke Sisi called her but she didn't respond, so she couldn't help but touch her lightly with her elbow.
"What's wrong?" Jiang Lili came back to her senses.
"It's time to change seats today, so hurry up and pack your things." Ke Sisi reminded.
"Oh, okay." Jiang Lili nodded quickly. Don't forget this. The seating order remains unchanged. Everyone will just move one group to the left. You don't need to move your desks; just pack up your things and move over.
The classroom was very noisy when changing seats. Lu Jiaze stuffed all his books into his schoolbag and moved to the right. After he finished tidying up, he looked up at Jiang Lili in front of him, and made sure that she had also changed seats before he lowered his head and took out the English book from the table.
The first thing Ji Mingyue did when she entered the classroom today was to check the attack value above Lu Jiaze's head. When she glanced at the number one, she curled the corners of her lips in a good mood. She already knew how to attack him.
The first class was English. In addition to Ji Mingyue, Lu Jiaze also performed well in this class. Just after he finished answering the teacher's question, he heard Ji Mingyue, who was called, speaking fluent English with standard pronunciation. Although he already knew that she was second in the grade, he was still a little surprised to hear her read English in person.
Over the past few days, he'd basically figured out the story of Ji Mingyue and her daughter. When Ji Yushu went to the countryside, unable to endure the hardship, he chose to marry Ji Mingyue's mother, Ye Qiuju. Later, when he had the opportunity to return to the city, he not only abandoned his wife and daughter, but also hid the fact that he had a wife and daughter and married Aunt Jiang. Ji Mingyue had grown up in the countryside, and it was surprising that she spoke English so fluently. It must have taken a lot of effort. Thinking of this, Lu Jiaze's admiration for her grew even stronger.
After Tang Yan praised the two with a smile on her face, she asked the classmates in the class to learn from them with a serious face. Later, she asked the two to read the contents of the textbook separately. For a moment, everyone in the class could see Tang Yan's preference for the two.
Jiang Lili looked indifferent. She stared at the English textbook in front of her and read aloud with them. English is about reading and speaking more. As for who Tang Yan prefers, it has nothing to do with her.
The flag-raising ceremony was after the second class, which was also the time for physical exercises. Every Monday was used for flag-raising, and Tuesday to Friday were also the time for physical exercises. Since there was no need to do physical exercises today, Jiang Lili was relieved.
As soon as the bell rang for the end of the second class, everyone rushed out, including Jiang Lili and Ke Sisi. At this time, the class that lined up first would get extra points. Since it was related to the class honor, they naturally couldn't hold everyone back.
Even though the two of them were running out of breath, this time the points did not go to their class 7, but to the class 6 next door. Although everyone felt a little disappointed, they quickly accepted this fact. After all, it couldn't be their class that won every week, so they had to leave some opportunities for other classes.
When Jiang Lili heard this kind of self-consolation, she couldn't help but curl the corners of her lips. It seemed that the classmates in the class were very good at comforting themselves, and there was no need to worry about internal friction at all.
When the whistle sounded, everyone on the playground fell silent. Then the national anthem was played in the broadcasting room, and the flag bearer began to enter the field with the red flag and raise the flag. At this moment, everyone's expression was solemn.
Today, one of the flag bearers jumped a beat too fast, and the red flag rose too quickly. The red flag had already reached the top, and the national anthem had not yet finished playing. Jiang Lili couldn't help but raise the corners of her lips. It seemed that these small mistakes happened every week. It was estimated that these flag bearers would soon be called out for training.
After the national flag was raised, the commendation ceremony began. Gao Yi was the first to go on stage. As the first person whose name was called, Jiang Lili pursed her lips, then stepped out onto the podium.
Soon, the top ten students from the first to the third year of high school were arranged into three rows, and the school leaders began to distribute certificates and prizes. Jiang Lili glanced at the certificate in her hand. Well, she had a lot of such certificates at home.
After the prizes were distributed, today's flag-raising ceremony was over. Jiang Lili didn't expect that she was just making fun of the flag bearer and was being picked out for individual training, but when she turned around, she was called to the office by the teacher and asked to be the flag bearer.
The current flag bearers are all senior high school students who are about to face their college entrance examination, so these matters need to be transferred to the freshmen. So Jiang Lili was selected, as was Lu Jiaze, and the other two students were from other classes.
Although she didn't know why Ji Mingyue wasn't chosen, Jiang Lili seriously suspected that the teacher who selected the flag bearer was basing her choice on her looks. The two students from the next class were also very pretty and handsome. It was at this moment that she suddenly remembered the plot's mention of why Ji Mingyue was the flag bearer. She had taken first place in the first monthly exam, and it just so happened that the flag bearers in the third year of high school needed to pass the responsibility to the first year students. The teacher had simply chosen Ji Mingyue, who was ranked first in the grade. Thinking of this, Jiang Lili couldn't help but raise an eyebrow. So, Ji Mingyue wasn't chosen this time because she didn't take first place. Perhaps this was a chain reaction?
Thinking of this, Jiang Lili was in a good mood. It seemed that sometimes a small thing could change a lot. She and Lu Jiaze came out of the office side by side. After school in the afternoon, they had to learn all the steps of the flag-raising ceremony together.
The news that they had been chosen as flag bearers had spread throughout the class. When they returned to the classroom, they found that everyone was discussing it. Many people shared the same thought as Jiang Lili: "The teacher probably chose people based on their looks."
"That's right. They are probably the two best looking people in the class." He said and cast an appraising glance at the two of them.
"I think Ji Mingyue is prettier than Jiang Lili." Some people have different opinions.
"Then I still think Jiang Lili is prettier. Besides, she is taller than Ji Mingyue and has a better proportion." Someone whispered.
Ji Mingyue just smiled at these discussions. She guessed that this choice might be related to the monthly exam results. She felt a little regretful. If she was chosen, she would have more time to spend alone with Lu Jiaze and more time to win over him.
Compared to the various comparisons among these students in school, everyone from Director Yang to Zhao Dong at Factory 1 was very nervous. The toys were sent to various partners early in the morning, but no news has been received yet.
"Today is Monday, and sales on Mondays are usually average." Someone reminded me not to be too anxious, after all, today is Monday.
"But there are always children who don't go to school." Someone couldn't help but retort.
Director Yang felt a little annoyed after hearing this, so he simply stood up and planned to go to the supply and marketing cooperative in person. There are some things that you have to see with your own eyes to feel at ease.
The supply and marketing cooperative has a wide audience, and today is the Mid-Autumn Festival, so many people came to the cooperative to buy things early in the morning. The dress-up dolls were placed in the most conspicuous place. From the time they were put there until now, they have attracted a lot of people's attention. When Director Yang came over, someone was asking about it. He directly explained to them how to play with the dress-up dolls and quickly sold a box.
Director Yang finally understood that the salespeople didn't know what the selling point of this doll was yet, so he explained the selling point of this doll to them again, as well as the development of hidden versions. The salespeople were so excited after hearing this.
Director Yang was very satisfied with their reaction. He hurried to leave and go to another place to sell science dolls. He thought that next time this job should be given to someone else.
Jiang Yulan didn't forget Jiang Lili's words. She went to the supply and marketing cooperative as soon as she got off work. When she paid, she didn't forget to ask the salesperson: "How is this doll selling?"
"It's selling very well. We've sold more than ten this morning. This is how you play with this doll." The salesperson dutifully repeated Director Yang's words, not forgetting to add his own techniques.
Jiang Yulan was a little surprised. She actually sold more than ten of them. They looked good. Lili would be happy when she knew about it.
When Jiang Yulan returned with the doll, Jiang Qitong and Jiang Lili were already home. Seeing her return, Jiang Qitong was the first to greet her. She happily called out, "Auntie," even as she reached out to embrace the box.
"Lili, I just heard from the salesperson at the supply and marketing cooperative that sales are pretty good today. They sold more than ten of them alone, and there are also sales in other places." Jiang Yulan looked happy.
"Sister Lili, this doll and little skirt are so beautiful." Jiang Qitong pointed at the necklace with colorful beads on the doll's neck.
Jiang Lili hadn't seen this necklace before. Great! It looked like the people at Factory One had learned from it. No little girl could resist these colorful necklaces. She raised the corners of her lips and said, "I think they're beautiful, too."
"This time it looks much more beautiful than last time, and the style of these shoes is quite nice." Zhou Qingfen came out of the kitchen and picked up the high heels next to her.
"Then she will wear this today." Jiang Qitong quickly took off the doll's original shoes and returned the beautiful high heels to Zhou Qingfen.
"Didn't you say before that there were seven fairies? But to me today they all look the same?" Jiang Yulan asked.
"Their makeup is pretty much the same, but you can tell them apart mainly by their dresses and hairstyles," Jiang Lili explained.
"Is that so?" Jiang Yulan stared at the doll in Jiang Qitong's hand.
"Children don't care about these details. I guess those who care about these details will buy all kinds of dolls." Zhou Qingfen said as she patted Jiang Qitong, indicating that she should eat first and play later.
Jiang Qitong reluctantly put down the little skirt in her hand and said to Jiang Lili, "Sister Lili, this is so beautiful. I want a little skirt like this, too."
"Then wait until next summer and ask your aunt to make one for you." Jiang Lili chuckled. She thought, maybe she could even collaborate with the clothing factory.
"Eat, eat, eat first." This time it was Jiang Jianyi who urged. The braised fish he made at noon today was his achievement. He couldn't wait to use this braised fish to tell everyone that what happened yesterday was just an accident.
"Wow, Grandpa caught a big fish." The family usually doesn't buy fish, so every time they cook fish, everyone assumes that it was caught by Jiang Jianyi, so Jiang Qitong had such a reaction.
"That's nothing. Next time, grandpa will catch you a bigger one." Jiang Jianyi tried to make his tone sound calm.
"Okay, then next time grandpa, you should also teach Brother Lu. I want to eat the big fish that Brother Lu catches." Jiang Qitong said in a cheerful tone.
Lu Jiaze, who tried to minimize his presence, didn't expect that he would be tricked again. He smiled a little reluctantly: "Okay, I'll do my best."
Yesterday, the two of them went fishing together, but ended up with nothing. Today, the old man went alone and caught two such big fish. Lu Jiaze couldn't help but close his eyes. No, it must not be his fault. This weekend, he must avenge his previous defeat.
Jiang Lili really likes eating fish. Seeing Lu Jiaze's somewhat dull eyes, she couldn't help but raise her lips. The little girl knew how to finish off the enemy. She became more and more certain that his hobby of fishing in the plot started from here.
In addition to the fish, Zhou Qingfen also made braised pork elbows. Since it was a holiday, she had to eat something substantial. She mentioned the school's welfare distribution today: mooncakes, fruit, and oil. She asked Jiang Aiguo to pick her up after work, as she couldn't carry them herself.
"Okay, I'll pick you up when the time comes." Jiang Aiguo nodded, then he looked at Jiang Yulan: "Sister, can you do it yourself?"
"The factory is so close, of course it's okay, don't worry about it." Jiang Yulan told her not to worry.
"That's good." Jiang Aiguo felt relieved.
Jiang Qitong put down her bowl and chopsticks and immediately ran to the cross-dressing doll over there. When the new toy just came back, it was the best time. Jiang Lili sat down next to her and asked casually, "Is it fun, Tongtong?"
"It's fun. It would be even better if someone played with me. Sister Lili, do you want to join us?" Jiang Qitong made an invitation.
"You play first." Jiang Lili thought that maybe the next set could come with multiple dolls in one box. Wouldn't that be more convenient? She thought it was something worth considering, and she had to find a time to bring it up with Director Yang.
Jiang Lili had already figured it out. Factory Director Yang, after a day of scouting the market, quickly realized the problem. Upon returning from his trip, he convened a meeting, and soon, the single-baby box became a double-baby box. Luckily, the factory's production lines were all newly opened, so the only thing needed to be changed was the packaging.
Jiang Lili didn't expect that when she arrived at school in the afternoon, she would see Ke Sisi bringing a costume doll to school. She was a little surprised: "Why did you bring the toy to school?"
"My mother saw this at the supply and marketing cooperative today and bought it for me. Lili, look how beautiful it is." Ke Sisi just wanted to share her new toy with her.
"It's very beautiful." Jiang Lili nodded and boasted.
"It can also dress up. My dolls at home used to ask my mom to make clothes for them, but now this one comes with so many clothes, which is great." Ke Sisi looked very satisfied.
Jiang Lili thought, as expected, no girl could resist the temptation of dress-up games. The topic of their conversation quickly jumped from dolls to the Mid-Autumn Festival. Jiang Lili then remembered that she and Lu Jiaze still had to rehearse the steps and movements for the flag-raising ceremony in the last class. If all went well, they would be the ones to perform at the flag-raising ceremony next Monday.
This wasn't Lu Jiaze's first time as a flag bearer. He had been a flag bearer for three years at Jincheng Junior High School, including high school. Unexpectedly, even after changing schools, he was still the flag bearer. He smiled and corrected Jiang Lili's pace beside him: "Wrong, the marching should be like this."
"Did you practice secretly?" Jiang Lili was a little surprised at his proficiency.
"Can't it be that I was the flag bearer?" Lu Jiaze gave her a displeased look.
"So that's how it is." Jiang Lili nodded. She quickly continued practicing her goose step with the girls from Class 6. After a short chat, they quickly became acquainted. The flag-raising ceremony looked simple enough, but timing was crucial. Luckily, with Lu Jiaze as an experienced hand, the responsibility of pulling the rope fell on him. Perhaps due to his familiarity, he always managed it just right. The other three gave him a thumbs-up, and thanks to his familiarity, today's rehearsal ended early.
"Thanks to you, I got to leave school early today." The school bell rang when they all arrived at the school gate.
"No big deal, I'll let you enjoy it again tomorrow." The teacher just said that the last class every afternoon this week is their rehearsal time.
"Okay, I'll wait." Jiang Lili thought, it feels so good not to have to squeeze with others.
On the way back, Jiang Lili glanced at the time on her wrist. Well, she wanted to go to the supply and marketing cooperative. She raised her eyes and wanted to let Lu Jiaze go back first, and then she heard his faint voice: "Do you want to go to the supply and marketing cooperative to take a look?"
"Go." No matter how he knew she wanted to go to the supply and marketing cooperative, she couldn't waste this opportunity.
Seeing her like that, Lu Jiaze couldn't help but raise his lips. They both quickened their pace and walked towards the supply and marketing cooperative. When they got there, they found that the costume dolls were gone. Jiang Lili was a little surprised: "Are they all sold out?"
"No, the toy factory recycled them. They plan to turn them into twin baby sets. The price is only five dollars more expensive. If you want one, you can register and we'll reserve it for you in advance." The salesperson explained gently.
"Is that so? Then I'll come back tomorrow." Jiang Lili was a little surprised by Director Yang's actions. It seemed that they were already prepared for the change without her reminding them. They even immediately and decisively bought everything back. And the extra five yuan was roughly the cost of another naked baby, so it could be considered the cost price. Thinking of this, she couldn't help but ask, "What about the ones that have already been purchased?"
"Customers who have already purchased can choose to pay the five yuan difference, and we will give them another doll, but we have to wait until tomorrow. Of course, they don't have to pay the difference. According to the toy factory, there will be two options at that time." The salesperson answered patiently.
"I understand. Sorry for the trouble." Jiang Lili curled the corners of her lips in satisfaction. She thought that with such a quick response from Director Yang and his team, she didn't have to worry about sales.
As the two of them emerged from the supply and marketing cooperative, Lu Jiaze suddenly asked, "Is this toy only sold in Yuncheng?"
Jiang Lili was stunned for a moment, then shook her head: "I don't know who Director Yang and the others are working with. It would be better if we could sell Yuncheng!"
"Sales can only increase if we go beyond Yuncheng, so we can let them develop in this direction." The eldest uncle of the Lu family went into business early and would occasionally talk about business matters at home. Lu Jiaze was influenced by him and also had his own opinions.
Jiang Lili couldn't help but smile bitterly when she heard this: "Everyone understands this principle, the difficult part is how to get it out there." Not to mention now, even in the future, many good things are difficult to get out of the local market. If you want to successfully get out of the market, the right time, place and people are all essential.
"Maybe we can ask Director Yang to contact my uncle." Lu Jiaze suggested.
"Forget it, grandpa and the others definitely don't want me to do this." Jiang Lili could understand their concerns.
"It's okay, leave it to me. I'm just giving him an opportunity. Whether it succeeds in the end depends on him." Lu Jiaze already had a plan in mind.
"Thank you. Regardless of whether this succeeds or not, Director Yang should treat you to a meal." Jiang Lili said with a smile.
"Let's talk about it later. Let's go back first, otherwise they will be worried." He said to Jiang Lili. She looked down at the time. Half an hour had passed. If they didn't go back, their family would really be worried.
Sure enough, as soon as he walked in, he saw Jiang Aiguo's face full of worry: "Why are you back so late? Did the teacher keep you here?"
"No, we have been appointed as the flag bearers for the school flag-raising ceremony. We rehearsed for a while longer at school." Jiang Lili decided to tell a little lie. Lu Jiaze, who was standing next to her, did not expose her but nodded instead.
"I'm glad you're okay. Come and eat quickly so you don't get late." Seeing that they were all waiting, Jiang Lili felt a little guilty for a moment: "Uncle, next time something like this happens, just save the food for us and don't wait for us."
"It's okay, we're not hungry." Jiang Aiguo shook his head indifferently.
Because they had wasted time going to the supply and marketing cooperative, the two of them hurried back to school after dinner. Jiang Jianyi, still holding the pumpkin, hurriedly urged them, "Come back early tonight. I'll save the mooncakes for you."
"Okay, Grandpa." Jiang Lili nodded and ran forward. It was a mistake. The evening time was short and she shouldn't have gone to the supply and marketing cooperative.
The two of them walked quickly towards the school. Unexpectedly, as soon as they walked out of the gate of the staff quarters, they ran into Lin Wenkang who was carrying something. He was also holding two boxes of costume dolls in his hands. It seemed that they were bought for her and Tongtong. Jiang Lili couldn't help but frown. Why was this guy so haunting?
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