The next morning, Wen Qing went to see her homeroom teacher, Ms. Zhao, during the break between classes.
"Are you moving out?" Teacher Zhao asked.
Wen Qing nodded: "Mm."
"Why? Staying in the dormitory is cheaper than staying outside," Teacher Zhao said, adjusting her glasses.
Wen Qing didn't mince words and stated directly, "I want to use my spare time to do something to raise money for next semester's tuition."
When Wen Qing said this, all the teachers in the office heard it.
Teacher Zhao was silent for a while: "Okay, but you must remember that knowledge changes destiny. Many students in our school who are worse off than you also came from poor families, but they eventually overcame the difficulties and are now living a very prosperous life."
"Yes, thank you, teacher. I will do my best," Wen Qing said.
Teacher Zhao didn't say anything more. After all, she didn't want to see a student drop out of school because they couldn't afford the tuition. She just hoped that Wen Qing would be successful and could do well in her studies while working.
After filling out a few forms, Wen Qing returned to the classroom to begin her lesson.
During class, Ji Ningzhi kept glancing at Wen Qing, and overheard two boys behind her saying, "Wen Qing has changed."
"What changed?"
"She has become gentler and doesn't cause any trouble now. She has also become more attractive."
"Now that you mention it, I think so too. Boys from other classes all say Wen Qing is the school beauty."
"Haha, I think so too. No one in our class is prettier than Wen Qing."
"..."
Upon hearing this, Ji Ningzhi's face darkened. Wen Qing was not a good-looking woman; she was poor, uneducated, and lacked manners. Ji Ningzhi glared fiercely at Wen Qing.
Wen Qing has always ignored Ji Ningzhi, and Ji Ningzhi is helpless against her.
After school in the afternoon, Wen Qing did not go to the cafeteria, but went straight back to the dormitory. After packing her luggage, she had a backpack and a rolled-up quilt.
She only told Wan Min that she was moving out today. Wan Min was very reluctant to let her go and insisted on seeing Wen Qing off. Wen Qing refused, saying that she would come to class every day. Then she carried her backpack and quilt and walked towards the school gate.
Wen Qing walked out of the school gate. Although some boys offered to help her, she refused them all. However, two boys slipped two love letters into her blanket and then ran away.
After Wen Qing arrived at the Green Garden, she opened the package and saw that it said:
"Wen Qing, you are like a gentle breeze on the mountaintop, softly brushing past me. I am like a proud poplar in the school, turning my leaves only for you..."
After reading it, Wen Qing asked herself, "What does he mean?"
Then I read the second letter: "Wen Qing, you are the snow, I am the light, I want to melt you..."
Wen Qing: "..."
Wen Qing placed two love letters, the meaning of which she didn't know, in the kitchen, intending to use them as kindling when she needed to cook.
After dealing with the love letter, Wen Qing started making her bed. After tidying up briefly, she went downstairs out of the neighborhood, ate a bowl of plain noodles for eight cents, and then returned to her place to start making pants.
When her feet got tired from operating the sewing machine, she would rest and read a book for a while.
When her hands got tired of holding the scissors, she stood up and walked around the hall to stretch her muscles.
It's great not living on campus. Besides not having to deal with Ji Ningzhi's constant complaints about others, I can do whatever I want on my own.
Even when she was getting sleepy from altering clothes, she could stand up and jog a few steps without disturbing the people downstairs. She didn't wash her face, take a shower, or go to sleep until almost midnight.
The next morning, I got up early and went to morning self-study to memorize books. I memorized all kinds of books very seriously. After class, I went to the cafeteria to eat and then continued with my morning classes.
It can be said that although high school students in this era do not have the same heavy academic workload and pressure as those in the 21st century, their daily schedules are still very full.
Fortunately, Wen Qing applied to her homeroom teacher for permission to skip evening self-study, so she had relatively more time to make clothes.
With her skipping evening self-study sessions every day, rumors about her have been spreading.
Why doesn't she come to evening self-study?
"They just don't want to come."
"That's right, even if someone is good at studying, they can still do well on the exam without coming."
"Yes, you don't understand the learning methods of top students."
At this moment, Ji Ningzhi interjected, "What top student? Did we even take an exam? You're calling her a top student. Just hope she doesn't come in last place this time! Aren't there plenty of cases where someone is a prodigy but doesn't live up to expectations as an adult? Really." Ji Ningzhi rolled her eyes.
Ji Ningzhi's words left everyone speechless. Indeed, apart from listening attentively in class, Wen Qing didn't seem to study very hard. She didn't even come to evening self-study sessions. Without a learning atmosphere, how could she possibly learn well?
Everyone suspected that Wen Qing's midterm exam results would be a complete disappointment.
Ji Ningzhi secretly thought that it would be best if Wen Qing came in last place in the exam!
Wen Qing was unaware of these rumors. All she knew was that, through her three days of hard work, she had made and altered her entire outfit, including shoes.
The top is a white polyester shirt with shoulder pads, and the hem touches the hips.
The pants are plain-weave, slightly wide-legged, high-waisted trousers.
The shoes are white canvas shoes with leather soles, similar in style to high heels, but more comfortable to wear.
This outfit might seem a bit out of place to people in the 21st century. But it's definitely stylish in this era. Wen Qing knows she can't go against the times and make miniskirts; that's unrealistic.
Wen Qing tried them on herself and found the top, pants, and shoes to be comfortable. This was the result of her altering them four or five times, and she was very satisfied.
Finally, she embroidered two characters on the collar with blue cloth and white thread—Feng Qing.
That's right, Fengqing is her brand, and all clothes designed by her from now on will be called Fengqing.
Wenqing means to hear about Qingqing.
"Feng Qing" means to meet with greenery.
Wen Qing chuckled foolishly, embarrassed by her own narcissistic and self-justifying behavior. However, she decided to use the phrase "Meeting Qing, only then do you realize how good it is." This line might become an advertising slogan in the future.
After devising her idea, Wen Qing didn't stop to rest. Instead, she started making the same outfit again. Fortunately, she had brought enough fabric from Aunt Xiao's tailor shop, and she spent three days making five more identical outfits.
That means she had a total of six outfits, and by the time she finished the sixth one, it was already Saturday afternoon.
She changed into her favorite plaid shirt, black pants, and delicate cloth shoes. After tying her hair into a ponytail, she carried a plaid crossbody bag she had made herself, filled it with four sets of clothes and four pairs of shoes, and then went out. As she walked through the neighborhood, many people turned to look at this youthful and exceptionally beautiful girl.
With a smile on her face, Wen Qing strolled leisurely with her backpack slung across her shoulder. When she arrived at the pedestrian street in Nanzhou City, she, like other shoppers, browsed the items one by one, regardless of whether she would buy anything.
The pedestrian streets of this era are not like the pedestrian streets of Nanzhou in the 21st century, where there is a wide variety of goods. Instead, there are very few goods to choose from, and the styles of the goods are more traditional.
After visiting several stores, Wen Qing chose one where the owner was extremely enthusiastic, seemed ambitious, and had relatively trendy merchandise.
"Young lady, what kind of clothes do you like? Come in and take a look, you can try them on," the shopkeeper said with a smile.
Wen Qing looked at the clothes hanging on the wall and asked, "Boss, do you want to buy clothes?"
The shopkeeper was taken aback, wondering if this young girl was out of her mind.
Wen Qing said, "Boss, I have a dress that's prettier than all the dresses here. Would you like to buy it?"
The shopkeeper smiled and said, "Young lady, if you want to sell clothes, you can set up a stall in front of me. I... I don't sell clothes here."
Wen Qing said, "I don't have time. If I had time, I would open my own shop. My clothes are not suitable for street vending."
The shop owner thought Wen Qing might have mental problems, and he didn't plan to deal with Wen Qing anymore.
Wen Qing remained calm and composed. She turned to look at the clothes on the wall, pointed to one of them, and said, "Boss, do you know why this garment isn't selling well?"
The shopkeeper glanced at it perfunctorily, then froze. How did she know this dress wouldn't sell well? Indeed, it was the slowest-selling dress in the entire store. He turned to look at Wen Qing.
Wen Qing slowly explained, "First of all, the cotton fabric doesn't hold its shape well, so the garment doesn't achieve the desired effect. Secondly, the stitching under the armpits is too deep, which reduces comfort in the shoulder area. Finally, the overall garment has a round neck, straight hem, and even sleeves, making fat people look fatter and thin people look thinner, with absolutely no aesthetic appeal."
As soon as Wen Qing finished speaking, the shopkeeper was stunned. He couldn't believe it. He couldn't believe that someone could tell at a glance whether a garment would sell well, and that she could analyze it logically and convincingly. Moreover, she looked very young, yet she knew so much about clothing.
The shopkeeper was skeptical, but he persisted, pointing to a pair of pants and asking, "Where are these pants?"
Wen Qing glanced at it, then smiled and asked the shopkeeper, "Tight waist, big hips, shallow slits, and a small hidden clasp—many people probably can't fit into it, right?"
The shop owner was utterly astonished. These pants were indeed very difficult for most people to put on; reports indicated the snaps would rip, and some had even been returned. He couldn't believe this young girl had been right all along.
The shopkeeper looked at Wen Qing with a strange gaze, thinking, "How could someone be so capable?"
Wen Qing asked with a smile, "Boss, do you want to buy clothes?"
The shopkeeper was speechless with surprise. Only then did he carefully examine Wen Qing's clothes. He finally understood why he hadn't kicked her out despite suspecting she was mentally challenged: it was because her clothes looked very comfortable and she was very pretty, so he hadn't shooed her away.
Wen Qing took out two sets of clothes and two pairs of shoes from the cloth bag and said, "Boss, it's okay if you don't buy them. I have two sets of clothes and two pairs of shoes here. I'll hang them here for three days. If no one comes to buy them in three days, I'll come back to pick them up and give you two yuan for the space. If someone buys them within three days, I'll give you four yuan for the space."
The shopkeeper looked at Wen Qing, knowing that he wasn't a clothing factory. All the clothes in his shop came from elsewhere, not even directly from the manufacturers. So, he didn't actually make much money, and many clothes were unsellable and difficult to return.
But no one has ever done anything like this young girl, paying for the space regardless of whether the clothes sell or not. He's selling clothes to whoever he wants, so why would he pass up a profitable business? Besides, judging from the young girl's analysis of the clothes, he might have met an expert.
After thinking for a moment, the shopkeeper immediately made a decision: "Okay, you can hang your clothes here. But let's make it clear first, all the conditions you mentioned must be fulfilled."
Wen Qing was delighted to hear that the shopkeeper was willing and said, "I will write it down and I will definitely honor it."
Wen Qing immediately wrote a note to the shop owner, indicating that she would pay the occupancy fee. The shop owner couldn't help but feel a good impression of this kind young girl, Wen Qing.
Wen Qing signed the receipt and wrote down the address, then handed the clothes and shoes to the shopkeeper, who propped the clothes up on a hanger and hung them aside.
Wen Qing smiled and said goodbye to the shopkeeper.
The shopkeeper stared at the clothes on the rack and the shoes next to them, muttering, "Why do I feel like these clothes look so good? Are they nice or not? I need to call my wife over and ask her."
The shop owner went to call his wife.
Wen Qing had already left the store. After leaving, Wen Qing continued to browse. When she came to another store some distance away, she used a similar method to put the two sets of clothes and two pairs of shoes that she had left in her bag into the store to sell.
Then Wen Qing walked towards Green Garden with a relaxed feeling. When she was almost at the entrance of the community, she turned into the vegetable market, bought two large steamed buns for four cents, and returned to her residence.
When she came to Nanzhou, Yao Shiling brought her some radish and fermented soybeans to eat with steamed buns. She had been traveling for half a day and was a little hot, so she took a basin of water that had been drying on the balcony all day to the bathroom and took a warm bath.
Then she went to the boiler room in the community, got a bottle of hot water, went upstairs, took out the radish and bean sauce, broke a steamed bun in half, sat in front of the sewing machine, and ate the steamed bun while reading a history book. After finishing one steamed bun, night fell, she drank some hot water and continued eating the second one. She had only taken two bites of the second steamed bun when someone knocked on the door.
Knocking on the door? Who could it be? The landlord?
Wen Qing took the steamed bun and walked to the door. There was no peephole, so she couldn't see what was happening outside. She could only call out, "Who is it?"
"Young lady, is that you? I sell clothes on the pedestrian street!" The shopkeeper's voice was clearly tinged with excitement.
Wen Qing was slightly surprised. The shop owner? What's he doing here?
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