Liu Cui plopped down on the oxcart, her anger flaring up instantly. She glared at Lin Qian, thinking, "That Lin Qian is really too much! She went to ride the oxcart herself without inviting us, almost making us miss the train. I really want to give her a good scolding and vent my anger!"
However, just as Liu Cui was about to speak, the scene of being rendered speechless by Lin Qian's scolding flashed through her mind, and her arrogant momentum immediately dissipated by half. "Oh dear, Lin Qian is so sharp-tongued. If I scold her now, she might just make me lose face again," Liu Cui thought with some annoyance.
She bit her lip, her heart filled with conflict. On one hand, her dissatisfaction with Lin Qian had reached its peak, and she longed to vent it immediately; on the other hand, she was wary of Lin Qian's sharp words, afraid of becoming the laughingstock of everyone again.
"Forget it, a wise man doesn't fight a losing battle. I'll deal with her properly when I have the chance!" Liu Cui ultimately chose to endure it, sitting silently to the side, sulking.
Su Yao sat on the oxcart, her gaze falling on Lin Qian, who was resting after the curtain fell. A complex emotion flickered in her eyes.
Su Yao pondered to herself, "This Lin Qian is really hard to understand. She always seems to be a loner and not very sociable. Today, she really didn't invite us to ride the oxcart together, which almost made us miss our trip, and Liu Cui is quite unhappy about it. However, Lin Qian has quite a fiery temper; she didn't lose a word in that argument just now. I have to be careful not to provoke her easily. But then again, she's quite capable of figuring out the village's situation and finding the oxcart place so quickly all by herself. Maybe I can try to smooth things over with her; perhaps we can help each other out in the future. But will she appreciate my efforts? Sigh, this is really a headache..." Su Yao sighed softly, her gaze still fixed on Lin Qian.
The group sat on the slowly moving oxcart, enjoying the scenery along the way. The morning sun shone down, bathing the earth in a pale golden light. On both sides of the road stretched endless fields, tender green wheat seedlings swaying in the wind like ripples on a green ocean.
The oxcart finally arrived at the town, swaying and rattling along. The old driver called out in a slightly hoarse voice, "We've arrived! Everyone get off!" The people stood up and began to pack their belongings.
The old man, puffing on his pipe, said to everyone, "I'll still be here waiting at three o'clock this afternoon. I'll leave on time. Remember that, if you're late, I won't wait for you, and you'll have to walk back yourselves." After saying that, he took two puffs of his pipe and looked at everyone with a serious expression.
Everyone agreed, indicating they understood. Lin Qian got out of the car, looked around, and prepared to take care of her own business. Liu Cui muttered quietly, "Don't be late, it'll be tiring to walk back." Su Yao smiled and said to the old man, "Thank you for reminding us, sir. We'll be back on time." Zhao Yu nodded in agreement.
The old man driving the cart waved his hand and said, "Hurry up and go, don't delay things." The crowd then dispersed and blended into the bustling town.
Lin Qian got off the bus and headed straight for the supply and marketing cooperative. The cooperative was overflowing with goods, a dazzling array, but Lin Qian had a clear goal and quickly selected what she needed. First, she picked up a bar of soap and put it in her shopping basket, then chose a bag of salt and a bottle of soy sauce. Next, she went to the daily necessities section and chose a comb, a small mirror, a sewing kit, and a pair of socks. After thinking for a moment, she also picked up a box of face cream, a pair of white work gloves, a washcloth, and a pack of tissues. Reaching the food section, she bought some rice, oil, salt, soy sauce, vinegar, and tea, and also chose a lunchbox. Lin Qian carefully checked her purchases at the counter; these items cost a total of eight yuan.
The sales clerk in charge of this counter was Wang Guifen, a middle-aged woman. Seeing that Lin Qian had bought so many things and was choosing very carefully, she didn't seem like someone short of money, so she paid more attention to Lin Qian and became even more enthusiastic.
After paying, Lin Qian approached Wang Guifen and whispered, "Sister, I heard you have some defective products to sell here. Could you take me to see them?" As she spoke, she secretly slipped three yuan to Wang Guifen.
Wang Guifen's eyes lit up. She quietly put the money away and then called out to another sales clerk next to her, "Xiao Li, can you watch the counter for me? I have something to do."
Xiao Li walked over and asked curiously, "Who's this?"
Wang Guifen quickly said, "These are my relatives, they came to see me." Everyone smiled knowingly upon hearing this.
Afterwards, Wang Guifen led Lin Qian to the warehouse and opened the door, where it was filled with all sorts of items. Pointing to a pile of defective cloth and some yarn, she said, "These are it. See if there's anything you need."
Lin Qian entered the warehouse and carefully selected items. She found that the defective products here weren't actually a big problem; some only had minor flaws or poor coloring, but they didn't affect normal use. Besides the defective fabrics and yarn, she also saw some slightly broken ceramic tableware. So, Lin Qian picked out quite a few defective fabrics and yarn, as well as some ceramic tableware and wooden blocks.
Looking at the things Lin Qian had chosen, Wang Guifen was secretly pleased; this was no small deal.
After selecting her items, Lin Qian slipped two yuan to Wang Guifen and said with a smile, "Thank you for your help, sister."
Wang Guifen settled the price of the defective products for Lin Qian. Wang Guifen continued, "Sister Lin, although these defective products don't require coupons, the prices are still as follows: defective cloth is 1.5 yuan per meter, yarn is 3 yuan per jin, ceramic tableware is 2 yuan each, and wooden blocks are 1 yuan each. What do you think?"
Lin Qian thought about it and felt that the price was reasonable, so she nodded in agreement.
Wang Guifen beamed with joy, thinking that Lin Qian was truly her lucky charm.
Wang Guifen then said to Lin Qian, "Little sister, if you need anything in the future, just come to me, and I'll try my best to find a solution. My family lives in the second row of houses at the east end of town."
Lin Qian nodded: "Okay, big sister, then I'll trouble you. By the way, big sister, let me introduce myself first. My name is Lin Qian. I'm a newly arrived educated youth in the countryside. I hope you'll take good care of me in the future."
Upon hearing this, Wang Guifen's eyes lit up: "Oh my, so you're a former educated youth! That's not easy. Don't worry, I'll definitely do my best to help you. My name is Wang Guifen, and I've worked at this supply and marketing cooperative for many years."
Lin Qian smiled and said, "That's great, Sister Wang. I'm new here and unfamiliar with many places, so I'll be troubling you a lot in the future."
Wang Guifen said generously, "Sister, don't be so polite with me! Just tell me if you need anything."
After buying her things, Lin Qian went to the scrap yard. On her way there, she found an empty alley, stopped, and put all the items she had bought from the supply and marketing cooperative into 003's system inventory.
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