Xia Liang looked at the bell-bottoms in front of her. In her opinion, they were absolutely hideous. But there was no way around it; in business, you can't just do whatever you like. You have to cater to the market to attract customers and make money. Xia Liang went inside and asked the price. A pair of jeans cost eighteen yuan. Xia Liang said, "We're here to buy wholesale. Give us a fair price. If it's reasonable, we'll buy everything from you in the future." The shopkeeper was a plump middle-aged woman with curly hair. She had a leather bag slung across her shoulder and was writing rapidly with a notebook and pen in her hand. Without even looking up, she said, "We only accept wholesalers here. Don't bother coming here if you're looking for anything under five thousand yuan." She probably thought Xia Liang was young and wanted to buy some new clothes. She'd encountered this before—pretending to be a wholesaler, trying every trick in the book to haggle over prices, wanting to buy a couple of outfits at wholesale price for themselves, and then telling her they were just samples. It was a waste of her time and an inconvenience to her business.
Seeing that the other party ignored her, Xia Liang walked directly towards the middle-aged man who had just entered. The man was wearing a floral shirt, wide-leg pants, sunglasses, and a wallet tucked under his arm. "This is how someone comes to buy goods," the shop owner thought. Xia Liang was speechless. Listening to the shop owner quote the middle-aged man a price, she silently calculated in her mind: jeans were twelve yuan, and the floral shirt was eight yuan. Knowing the prices, Xia Liang called her brother and went out. They continued to stroll around the market and came to a fabric shop. Xia Liang went in and asked about the prices. They were about what she expected, so she ordered a batch and would come back to pick them up when she was about to leave. Then they returned to the shop that sold bell-bottoms. The middle-aged man had already left, and the proprietress, seeing Xia Liang return, said impatiently, "I told you we only do wholesale, why are you back again?" Xia Liang smiled and said, "We are here to wholesale. Proprietress, could you tell me your wholesale prices, how much is each price range, so I can calculate how much stock I can buy with the money I brought?" Seeing that Xia Liang was determined, the proprietress was no longer as impatient as before, and sighed, "For a wholesale price of 5,000, jeans are 12 yuan, and floral shirts are 8 yuan. For a wholesale price of 10,000, jeans are 11 yuan, and floral shirts are 7 yuan. For a wholesale price of 20,000, jeans are 10 yuan, and floral shirts are 6 yuan. This is the lowest price. Denim jackets are 1 yuan more expensive than jeans. We've agreed that you won't find them anywhere else except here." Xia Liang nodded, "Can you deliver them to the train station?" The proprietress beamed, "We don't offer delivery here. Go find a few pedicabs; they can take you to the train station for just a few yuan." Xia Liang nodded. The proprietress called her daughter and led the two of them to the warehouse. It was bustling with people there, as most businesses had their warehouses there, and delivery pedicabs were plentiful. Xia Liang followed the proprietress and her daughter inside to inspect the goods. After checking a few bags to make sure there were no problems, he returned to the shop, paid the deposit to his wife, and gave them time to prepare the goods. Xia Liang would pick them up the next day. This time, he ordered 800 pairs of denim jackets, 800 pairs of bell-bottoms, and 600 floral shirts. Xia Liang paid a deposit of 1,000 yuan, and would pay the rest upon receiving the goods.
After leaving the clothing store, Xia Liang went to the fabric wholesale store she had visited before. She paid a deposit in the same way and planned to pick up the goods the next day. They bought train tickets for noon tomorrow so they could go back with the goods. The brother and sister were exhausted after a day of shopping. They found a place to eat and then returned to their guesthouse to rest. They planned to shop around some more tomorrow.
The next morning at eight o'clock, Xia Liang got up, washed up, and went out. She saw her brother was already waiting at the door, so they ate breakfast together and went to the wholesale market. Xia Liang wanted to buy some sunglasses that day. She looked around for a while before finding some. Xia Liang asked the price, and the wholesale price was eight yuan. She bought two hundred pairs of sunglasses. The shop had them in stock. Xia Liang paid, and the shopkeeper packed them up for her. Xia Rong carried the big bag and followed behind his sister. The two siblings then picked up fabric and clothes. They found a suitable tricycle to transport the goods to the train station. The shopkeeper even helped load them onto the vehicle. This time, they mainly bought fabric. Xia Liang planned to open her own factory after returning home and hire some workers who knew how to use sewing machines to make clothes herself.
After two days of arduous travel, the siblings finally arrived in Beijing. Before Xia Liang even got off the train, Gu Yanxiao's friends were already waiting outside in a large truck. This was arranged by Gu Yanxiao beforehand; the truck was probably borrowed from a friend. Upon meeting, they greeted Xia Liang, saying, "Sister-in-law, Brother Xiao asked us to help you unload your goods. Where are they? We'll take them back to you." Xia Liang thanked them with a smile and led them to the loading area. Several strong young men loaded the goods in just a few minutes. They were all Gu Yanxiao's friends, and Xia Liang didn't stand on ceremony. She remembered the driver; he had helped at her wedding. She didn't recognize the others, but assumed they were his friends. Xia Liang greeted them one by one. They helped deliver the goods to the Gu family's courtyard house. Xia Liang then treated them to a meal at a state-run restaurant. Before leaving, Xia Liang took a few packs of Daqianmen cigarettes that she had prepared beforehand, thinking she would give them to them later. Only very close friends would go to such lengths to travel from Beijing to attend their wedding and help unload the goods today; she couldn't be slacking off.
After they had eaten and drunk their fill, the driver, Ji Xiao, said to Xia Liang, "Sister-in-law, we're heading back now. Thank you so much for your hospitality today. If you ever need anything, just let us know. With Brother Xiao not home, we're like his own brothers. Please feel free to ask for anything." Xia Liang waved her hand, "What hospitality? I should thank you for helping me move the goods. You really went to a lot of trouble today; otherwise, I wouldn't know how to get the goods back." Ji Xiao smiled, revealing a set of bright white teeth, "It's nothing, sister-in-law. You're too kind. We'll head back now. You go ahead with your work." He then called a few of his brothers and was about to leave when Xia Liang quickly stopped him, saying, "Wait a minute, take this and give it to the brothers to smoke. We owe them a lot today." Ji Xiao refused, saying, "Sister-in-law, Xiao-ge and I grew up together. We're closer than brothers. What you're doing is being too formal." Xia Liang said earnestly, "You're brothers with him, but Yan Xiao isn't with them. Listen to me, take it and share it with the brothers." Ji Xiao thought that he didn't need to be so formal with Gu Yan Xiao, but the others weren't familiar with him, so he accepted the cigarettes Xia Liang offered, saying rather embarrassedly, "Then thank you very much, sister-in-law." Xia Liang said, "Don't mention it. When Yan Xiao comes back, come over for dinner. I'll treat you well then. The house is really messy today, and I didn't buy any groceries." Ji Xiao nodded in agreement. After saying goodbye, they drove off in their truck.
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