Ji Ningzhi held the phone and wept bitterly.
Wen Qing paused for a moment.
"Wen Qing, what's wrong?" Wang Zhishan asked.
Wen Qing snapped out of her daze: "It's alright, let's go."
"Um."
Wen Qing, Shi Lei, Wang Zhishan, and Pete arrived at the Suli Restaurant in Nanzhou. The Suli Restaurant was a very famous restaurant in Nanzhou, with its dishes and layout being outstanding for that era.
Wen Qing remembered that in her previous life, the Suli Hotel was the most valuable hotel in Nanzhou.
"Xiao Wenqing, Shi, please have a seat," Pete greeted them warmly.
"Please sit down first," Wen Qing said.
“Sit down together, sit down together,” Pete said with a smile.
As soon as the four of them sat down, the food was served. After eating a few bites to fill their stomachs, they started chatting. Pete asked, "Xiao Wenqing, what's your decision?"
Wen Qing put down his chopsticks, took a sip of clear tea, and then slowly said, "I need to know Miss Jin Ling's preferences, as well as the occasions and functions of her clothing."
Miss Jin Ling?
Shi Lei was stunned. Could Jin Ling be that Hong Kong movie star Jin Ling? Could it really be true? He had even bought her pictures and put them on the wall at home. It felt like he had only ever seen her on TV and in newspapers.
"Um... excuse me." Before Pete could speak, Shi Lei asked first, "Is the Miss Jin Ling you're talking about the movie star Jin Ling?"
Wang Zhishan chuckled: "You don't know yet."
Shi Lei couldn't help but become shy.
Wen Qing smiled and said, "This Mr. Pete is Miss Jin Ling's agent. He handles most of Miss Jin Ling's affairs."
"That's right, you're not a fan of Jin Ling, are you?" Pete asked.
Shi Lei said, "My mom likes her very much."
"Really?" Pete was very enthusiastic and immediately took out a photo of Jin Ling and gave it to Shi Lei. Shi Lei thanked him again and again. Until the end of dinner, Shi Lei did not say anything. Instead, he heard Qing and Pete talking about Jin Ling's clothes.
Jin Ling, she's a big star.
Wen Qing made clothes for her?
It was Jin Ling's agent who personally visited Wen Qing.
No matter which point it was, it made Shi Lei's heart uneasy. Moreover, Wen Qing's conversation with the two of them was neither humble nor arrogant, neither hurried nor slow, and she had her own rhythm. Her words and actions were appropriate and pleasing to the eye.
“Then it’s settled,” Pete said. “Now that Comrade Wang Zhishan is here to witness our agreement, the outfit will cost 1,000 yuan. I’ll pay a 1,000 yuan deposit first. I’ll fax the contract over when I get back, and we can discuss it over the phone.”
One thousand dollars!
Shi Lei was completely terrified, watching as Pitt pulled open his bag and counted out ten hundred-yuan bills. Ten hundred-yuan bills! How could someone carry ten hundred-yuan bills around like that? Aren't they afraid of being robbed?
"No problem." Wen Qing calmly took the ten hundred-yuan bills and casually put them into her checkered backpack. Her expression was normal, as if she had received a penny instead of a thousand yuan.
Shi Lei felt a surge of unease in his chest. His hand, which had been resting under the table, involuntarily reached into his pocket. Touching the fifteen yuan inside, he suddenly felt extremely poor. He knew that Wen Qing made clothes and also ran a shop. He had always assumed that she, a young girl, must have relied on her mother or something to support "Feng Qing." The wife of the village chief of Shuiwan Village, who was the matchmaker, had exaggerated most of what she said.
Only now did he believe that Feng Qing belonged to Wen Qing alone, not to her parents, and that she had risen to prominence through her own abilities and intelligence.
Even successful people like Pete and Wang Zhishan couldn't hide their admiration when they looked at Wen Qing.
“Little Wenqing, I love how straightforward you are. So it’s settled then. Keep in touch,” Pete said.
Wen Qing laughed: "I can't contact you during class."
"It must be because you have time to contact me."
"Okay." Wen Qing smiled.
Shi Lei remained silent, watching the three of them with an unusually heavy heart.
After the meal, Shi Lei stood next to Wen Qing, watching Wang Zhishan and Pi Qiang vying to pay the bill, and lowered his head slightly.
Wen Qing had a smile on her lips, but it faded after seeing Shi Lei's performance. She understood the mindset of men in this era, which was why she had specifically invited Shi Lei over when Pete suggested having dinner together.
If Shi Lei can't accept her like this, then...
"Little Wen Qing, that's enough." Pete interrupted Wen Qing's train of thought.
Wen Qing and Shi Lei watched as Pete walked over.
"I'm counting on you." Pete said to Wen Qing very politely before leaving.
Wen Qing smiled and said, "Don't worry, I'll do my best so that we can all shine."
"That's good, that's good." Pete originally planned to drive Wen Qing and Shi Lei back to school, but the two refused.
Pete and Wang Zhishan left first.
When Wen Qing and Shi Lei reached the fork in the road, Wen Qing wanted to say something to Shi Lei, but Shi Lei suddenly said, "I still have to go to evening self-study, I'm leaving first."
Wen Qing nodded: "Okay."
Shi Lei then left in a hurry.
As Wen Qing watched his retreating figure, she thought to herself, "He doesn't seem like myself from my previous life. At least he's much smarter than I was in my previous life, and he knows how to assess situations."
Just as Wen Qing was thinking this and turned to leave, Shi Lei suddenly returned, ran up to Wen Qing, startled her, and said, "Wen Qing, I will definitely study hard and try my best to be worthy of you."
Wen Qing was taken aback.
Shi Lei had already run far away.
Wen Qing paused for a moment, then laughed again, but somewhere in her heart, she felt a little uneasy. She quickly put this feeling aside because she had run out of paper and eraser and needed to buy some more to prepare for Jin Ling's three sets of clothes.
Wen Qing went to a stationery store and bought two sets of everything she needed, just in case she was without anything to use when inspiration struck. She spent some time in the store, and by the time she came out, it was already getting dark.
The security situation in this era wasn't very good, and bad guys often roamed around. So Wen Qing hurried to the Green Garden, only then feeling a little relieved. Then, carrying her stationery, she went up to the second floor. Just as she reached the second floor, she saw a faint starlight at the dark stairwell entrance, and it seemed like a figure was standing at her door. She was terrified, and her voice immediately changed: "Who?"
The man quickly said, "Wen Qing, it's me, don't be afraid."
Ji Yanjun.
Wen Qing's fear subsided, but her wariness returned: "What are you doing here?" Wen Qing then remembered that after school, Ji Ningzhi was crying on the phone at a roadside convenience store, asking Ji Yanjun for 100 yuan. She guessed that Ji Yanjun had come to give Ji Ningzhi the money and then came here on the way.
The truth was that Ji Ningzhi and Ji Yousheng were crying and shouting that she had no money, she was starving to death, she couldn't even afford to pay her phone bill, and she needed to find her brother.
This really scared Ji Yousheng. He immediately called Gangzi's cell phone, found Ji Yanjun, and told him about Ji Ningzhi's situation, saying that Ji Ningzhi was waiting for him to pay her phone bill at the small shop on the far side of the school.
Then Ji Yanjun came over, carrying twenty sweet potato cakes and a jar of pickled vegetables. He went to the store, found Ji Ningzhi, paid nine cents for the phone bill, and gave Ji Ningzhi fifty cents, saying it was enough for a week's worth of water and the bus fare back to the county town.
Ji Ningzhi burst into tears. Ji Yanjun watched her cry expressionlessly, saying he would wait until she finished crying before speaking. He told her that if she didn't want to starve, she could just eat sweet potato cakes and pickled vegetables. He said he had no money and would rather die than give her his life.
Ji Ningzhi burst into tears again, tears streaming down her face until her eyes and face were swollen. Ji Yanjun took her to a restaurant and spent eight cents to treat her to a bowl of plain noodles. Ji Ningzhi had never even looked at plain noodles before; they were just a few sparse noodles and some scallions, and they tasted terrible. But for Ji Ningzhi, who was about to go hungry for four days, they tasted exceptionally good.
After finishing her plain noodles, Ji Ningzhi complained about the sweet potato pancakes and pickled vegetables, and threw them on the ground.
Ji Yanjun got angry and turned to leave. Ji Ningzhi followed. After walking a few dozen steps, she realized that she hadn't eaten enough from a bowl of plain noodles, but she only had 50 cents in her hand. She had already experienced hunger once before. She was so hungry that she wanted to gnaw on the wall. So she went back and picked up the sweet potato cake and pickled vegetables, crying as she walked towards the school.
Ji Yanjun stopped paying attention to Ji Ningzhi. His original purpose was to see Wen Qing. Now, seeing Wen Qing guarding him like a thief, he realized that the distance between them was growing wider and wider.
He stubbed out his cigarette and said, "I've come to say goodbye."
Wen Qing stood on the stairs without moving: "Where are you going?"
"Xia City".
Wen Qing: "That's good."
There was no conversation between the two.
The stairwell on the second floor was also pitch black. Apart from being able to see each other's silhouettes, nothing else could be seen clearly. There were no motion-activated lights at this time.
“That day, my mother went to your house…” Ji Yanjun’s voice drifted through the darkness: “I’m sorry.”
Wen Qing didn't expect him to apologize, so she lowered her head and remained silent, standing still.
"I heard you're dating someone," Ji Yanjun said with difficulty.
Wen Qing: "Mm."
The soft "hmm" sound was like a fist with bared fangs, hitting his heart. First, there was a dull pain, followed by a dense, tingling pain, and his heart burned with a fiery ache.
"Is he... good to you?" Ji Yanjun asked again.
Wen Qing: "That's good."
"When you're with him, do you feel like yourself?"
"picture."
After a moment of silence, Ji Yanjun asked again, "If he knew you had dated someone before, would he still treat you well?" The implication was clear.
Wen Qing was taken aback, a surge of anger rising within her: "Ji Yanjun, what do you mean?"
Ji Yanjun stood still and said, "If he treats you badly because of this, I'll beat him to death and then take you back!"
"Crazy." Wen Qing cursed under her breath, then turned to go downstairs. Ji Yanjun caught up in one step and pulled Wen Qing into his arms from behind.
Wen Qing exclaimed in surprise.
Ji Yanjun's strong arms tightened instantly, holding Wen Qing's slender waist tightly, but his voice softened in an instant: "Qingqing..."
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