Lu Wanqing was puzzled. Liu Ying worked in a soap factory, so why did she need to wear a cheongsam?
Liu Ying then gave her an explanation.
It turns out that the soap factory is about to hold a 20th anniversary celebration, and Liu Ying, because of her beauty, was selected by the arts department to perform a program, which requires a cheongsam as her costume.
"We tried borrowing from all over the factory, but couldn't find anything suitable. So we were thinking about whether we could make one ourselves, and that's when I thought of you," Liu Ying chuckled.
Seeing how serious she sounded, Lu Wanqing agreed without hesitation.
However, she had some concerns and said, "Making a cheongsam isn't difficult, it just depends on what kind of fabric you want. If it's silk, it'll be hard to find. I doubt the supply and marketing cooperatives in the county town have any in stock."
Upon hearing this, Liu Ying blinked and came up with a solution.
"Let's go, let's go take a look at Old Xu's tailor shop." Liu Ying stood up.
"Your stomach doesn't hurt anymore."
"Brown sugar water really works, my stomach doesn't hurt at all anymore."
Liu Ying took Lu Wanqing to Old Xu's tailor shop. Lu Wanqing was too lazy to deal with Xu Tianshou, so she waited outside.
After a while, Liu Ying indeed came out with a piece of dark red silk.
“These old tailor shops usually keep all kinds of fabrics on hand. I told Mr. Xu I would be a regular customer, so he sold it to me. It was only two meters of fabric, but he charged me eight yuan,” Liu Ying said playfully, stuffing the fabric into the bag Lu Wanqing was carrying.
Lu Wanqing thought to herself, "That's good. Now that we've chosen the colors, all we need to do is decide on the style."
It was lunchtime, so the two found a state-run restaurant, went in, ordered two dishes, and chatted about what kind of dishes they wanted while they ate.
Liu Ying didn't have any special requirements, just a plain style would be fine, but it would be even better if there was some embroidery on the neckline.
“No problem, I happen to know an older sister who is exceptionally good at embroidery.” Lu Wanqing immediately thought of Chen Xiangxiu, and she was already looking forward to the finished cheongsam.
After saying goodbye to Liu Ying, Lu Wanqing went to the supply and marketing cooperative and bought a lot of clothing accessories.
Over the next few days, Lu Wanqing spent her time designing cheongsams. The clothes for the performance couldn't be too revealing, and if they were too conventional, she felt they lacked originality. She revised the design many times, but she wasn't satisfied with any of them.
Before her design drawings were even officially completed, Lin Ye and Lin Xiaocui's schools had already started.
Lin Ye rode his bicycle to school early in the morning.
Lin Xiaocui waited for Luo Chunlei and Wang Xu to come and call her so they could go to school together. On the way, they talked about who would get first place in the exam.
"Wang Xu, you have to be our witness. There's a tough math problem where Luo Chunlei and I have different solutions, which will definitely widen the gap between us. If I win and Luo Chunlei tries to cheat, you'll have to help me." Lin Xiaocui threatened Wang Xu by flashing her fist at him.
Wang Xu glanced at Luo Chunlei, whose face was as black as the bottom of a pot, and said perfunctorily, "I know, I know."
They're all friends, so we can't offend either of them, right? He punched Luo Chunlei in the arm and gave him an embarrassed smile.
On his first day of school, after the school distributed the test papers and new books and finished the class, school was over. Wang Xu realized that things were not going well, so he ran away as fast as he could.
Lin Xiaocui held her report card, which was exactly one point lower than Luo Chunlei's. After everyone had left, she lingered there, not getting up.
In math, the two were neck and neck, neither making any mistakes on the more difficult questions, so there was no significant difference in their scores. However, in English, a subject they usually excelled in, they scored more than ten points lower than usual.
"If Mom hadn't been yelling outside, she wouldn't have lost so many points in English." Lin Xiaocui became angrier and angrier as she thought about it, and finally she started to sob.
Luo Chunlei waited outside the school gate for a while, but no one came out. He returned to the classroom anxiously and saw Lin Xiaocui sitting by the window, wiping away tears.
He usually saw Lin Xiaocui as a fierce and aggressive woman, but he had never seen her cry. Now, with blue skies and white clouds outside the window, a gentle breeze rustling the leaves, and the girl weeping by the window, she was quite pitiful.
He assumed she was crying because she scored one point lower than him on the exam and was unwilling to call him "big brother," so he went to comfort her. However, after taking only two steps, he stepped on a pen, the sound alerting Lin Xiaocui.
She quickly wiped away her tears and turned around, only to find it was Luo Chunlei. She immediately sniffed and muttered, "Why are you back again?"
Luo Chunlei's heart softened instantly, as if something had melted away. The usually cool man now spoke with a gentle expression:
"Lin Xiaocui, although I was assigned to a different exam room this time, I still heard your mother calling you. If Wang Xu hadn't stopped her, I would have left already. If nothing unexpected happens, your score will definitely surpass mine, so let's forget about our bet."
Lin Xiaocui suddenly stood up, pouting stubbornly, "Who said that's it? Do you think I, Lin Xiaocui, am someone who can't accept defeat? It's just calling you 'Big Brother,' so I'll just do it."
Luo Chunlei quickly waved his hand, "No, I can't accept that."
If you really call him "Big Brother," then you'll end up like siblings.
Just as the two were refusing, Wang Xu returned. Seeing them both still in the classroom, he laughed and said, "Since you two didn't fight, this matter is over. Let's go home."
Upon seeing that Lin Xiaocui's eyes and nose were red, Luo Chunlei stared at her with a questioning look and asked, "Did you do this?"
Luo Chunlei rolled her eyes at him, then strode out of the classroom. "She couldn't have done it herself, let's go!"
Wang Xu pursed his lips, picked up Lin Xiaocui's schoolbag, and dragged her after him. "Let's go. We only have half a day of school today. I'll treat you to a trip to the county town."
Normally, Wang Guangming is quite strict with Wang Xu, not letting him run around. How could he miss such a good opportunity?
The group then strolled off to the county town.
Lin Ye, the physical education teacher at Hongqi Elementary School, didn't have any classes on the first day, but he needed to hold a meeting for all teachers. After the students received their books and went home, he was still at school.
In the office, the teachers were exchanging pleasantries when the principal walked in with a serious expression.
"Everyone, I just received a notice that I am retiring early, and a new principal will be taking up a post at the school soon." The principal's opening remarks shocked everyone.
The principal is not even sixty yet, and he's been doing a great job. Why is he suddenly retiring?
"Where did the new principal come from? I'm afraid his background is illegitimate!" Du Wenbing said through gritted teeth.
They exchanged glances and unanimously expressed their absolute disagreement with such a thing happening.
"Why should the principal retire early? Let's write a joint letter and keep him here no matter what," Lin Ye suggested.
The principal glanced gratefully at everyone, cleared his throat, and said, "Don't worry about me. I'm getting on in years; retiring now will allow me to take care of my grandchildren. You all get ready to welcome the new principal!"
The teachers immediately snorted and were even welcoming him; they were lucky they weren't being scolded!
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