Chapter 1, Chapter 81: Fighting
The last day of November was a Sunday, and many factories were closed for the holiday. As a result, the number of customers at the supply and marketing cooperative more than doubled compared to usual.
Sister He was busy all morning and could only catch her breath when it was almost lunchtime. While drinking water, she opened her notebook to calculate her sales for the day, which was more than any other day this month.
She recounted Lin Qingqing's sales. Although she hadn't had time to keep track of how much Lin Qingqing had sold that morning, she noticed that many people asked about the clothes, but few actually bought them. This wasn't hard to understand; most of the customers today were female factory workers. Although they earned thirty or forty yuan a month, it wasn't easy to support their families, so they naturally couldn't afford to buy expensive ready-made clothes. Even if they saw a nice style, their first thought was to buy some fabric and make their own. The cut didn't have to be perfect; as long as it was roughly the same, it would be fine.
So, if you calculate it this way, out of ten people who went to Xingfeng's counter to ask about styles and matching, five would leave empty-handed. Four people went to the fabric counter to ask about prices, because they had already asked Lin Qingqing once, and the purchase rate was about 50%. In the end, only one person bought from Lin Qingqing. Even if they bought from Lin Qingqing, they wouldn't buy everything at once; they would be frugal and buy one jacket, and find another way to buy the rest.
Ms. He felt that her sales revenue this morning should be higher than Lin Qingqing's, and she hoped that it could be even higher in the afternoon, so as to surpass Lin Qingqing's total performance in one go.
Whether it was because her morning prayers had been effective, or because she was exceptionally lucky today, Sister He had a fantastic start to the afternoon, landing a big order right away, while Lin Qingqing's counter was rather deserted, with fewer inquiries than in the morning. In comparison, Sister He felt increasingly jubilant.
This situation continued until 5 p.m., and to avoid working overtime, everyone started taking inventory at this time.
When Sister He was halfway through her inventory, a group of people came up the stairs. There were seven or eight of them, all young women in their twenties and thirties, and they were all dressed very fashionably. After going up to the second floor, they went straight to Lin Qingqing's counter.
The woman in the lead looked to be around twenty-seven or twenty-eight years old. She was wearing a long khaki trench coat, the same style sold at Xingfeng counter. Not only the trench coat, but also the shirt, long skirt, and leggings she wore underneath were all bought from Lin Qingqing.
After the weather turned cold, Lin Qingqing noticed that skirt sales plummeted. This wasn't because people didn't like skirts, but because wearing a skirt with pants looked inappropriate, while not wearing pants was too cold. In the end, they had no choice but to reluctantly give up skirts.
Having figured this out, Lin Qingqing called back and suggested they make leggings. After nearly a year of development, Xingfeng was no longer what it was when it was first established. Not only had it acquired a wider variety and greater quantity of fabrics, but its production machinery had also been upgraded. So, although it took some time, they still managed to make the leggings Lin Qingqing wanted. Although the fabric wasn't as smooth as expected and it was only available in black, it was enough to solve their immediate problem.
The leggings arrived the day before yesterday, but because few people can accept this kind of tight pants, only one pair was sold, so Lin Qingqing had a deep impression of this person.
Looking at her outfit, she wore an earth-toned beret and black leather shoes. The combination was stylish, sophisticated, and gave her a neat and polished look.
Lin Qingqing remembered the other person's name and smiled, "Comrade Li, you look great in that outfit."
Because she bought clothes she liked, Li Jingsi had a good impression of Lin Qingqing and said, "My colleagues also think they look good. That's why they insisted on bringing me here to buy clothes today."
A girl who was about the same age as Li Jingsi, and who was probably close to her, joked, "It's not like we don't know how to take a car. You were the one who insisted on coming with us."
"So you want to buy it because you think I look good in it?" Li Jingsi asked with a sidelong glance.
The girl laughed: "That's because the clothes look good on the person."
“They all look good, the clothes suit the person, but Comrade Li has a good figure and appearance, which also shows off the advantages of the clothes to the fullest,” Lin Qingqing said with a smile.
Li Jingsi laughed: "See, she really knows how to talk."
Amidst laughter and conversation, everyone had already found the clothes they wanted.
The coat that caught everyone's eye was undoubtedly Li Jingsi's, as people were drawn to it because of her outfit. But Li Qingqing's cotton-padded jacket also looked quite nice, with a fur trim on the hood that looked very warm.
A young woman liked both of the dresses and was having trouble deciding. Lin Qingqing asked her for her size and gave her both dresses, saying, "Since you're already here, why don't you try them both on and let everyone see which one suits you better?"
The young woman thought it made sense, so she took the coat and put it on, then asked everyone what they thought.
The group of young women got along well, and when she asked, they all gathered around to look and offer their opinions. However, their opinions were not unified; some thought the clothes were fine, while others said they weren't quite appropriate.
Lin Qingqing noticed the girl's round face and almond-shaped eyes and said, "This cotton-padded coat should suit you better." She then handed her the black cotton-padded coat that she had just taken down.
The young woman tried on the coat, but was somewhat disappointed when she saw that the reaction wasn't as good as she had expected. She had almost given up trying it on, but Li Jingsi said, "Give it a try. Comrade Lin has a great eye; she taught me how to put together this outfit."
Hearing Li Jingsi's words, the young woman took off her coat and put on a cotton-padded jacket, asking everyone nervously, "How is it?"
The cotton-padded jacket Lin Qingqing was wearing was similar to the style she had made last year, but both the fabric, workmanship, and cut were better than last year's jacket. Moreover, although the style of this cotton-padded jacket was simple, it could be worn by people of any style. The young girl looked cute, and because of her young age, she had a bit of childishness. Wearing a coat would always make her look like a child trying to be mature, but this black cotton-padded jacket suited her perfectly.
"It looks great," everyone exclaimed. Some people even became interested in the dress and asked Lin Qingqing, "How should we style this?"
“Actually, this piece can also be paired with what Comrade Li is wearing today, or with this dress in our counter. Also, if you have black pants, you can wear any color sweater on top.” After explaining the outfit, Lin Qingqing emphasized, “Our coats are all basic styles, which are very easy to match with clothes.”
Li Jingsi, being a warm-hearted person, listened to Lin Qingqing's words and cooperated by changing into the cotton-padded jacket that the young girl had just taken off to show everyone.
Everyone immediately said, "Hey, you look good in that too."
"This combination is indeed suitable."
"I happen to have black pants."
Lin Qingqing then reminded them, "We also have a red version of this one; it's very versatile." She then recommended other styles of coats.
Although people weren't as particular about their personal style when it came to clothing, Lin Qingqing felt it wasn't good for colleagues in the same unit to all buy the same clothes. It was fine when you were close, but it would just be an eyesore if you weren't.
Although Lin Qingqing didn't know where Li Jingsi worked, judging from how she bought an entire outfit without batting an eye and brought so many colleagues to look around today, her workplace must be quite good. Good companies pay high salaries, so people naturally have more money and are willing to spend it on new clothes. Therefore, the more styles of clothes they buy, the more customers they can attract.
Of course, Lin Qingqing always runs her business with the mindset of serving customers, so she won't make random recommendations for people for her own benefit. After all, if the clothes don't look good, it will ruin her reputation. So she basically recommends clothes based on each person's characteristics.
However, the colleagues that Li Jingsi brought were all good-looking and had their own unique characteristics. In the end, they decided on three styles: the long coat that Li Jingsi was wearing and two thick cotton-padded coats. There were four colors in total, with black being the most popular and red selling the least, with only one person buying it.
The reason red didn't sell well wasn't because it wasn't attractive, but rather due to the prevailing social climate. Although public opinion improved somewhat later, many people were still wary, especially of anything outrageous. Red, in most people's eyes, signifies being high-profile, and most people's clothing choices were still limited to black, white, blue, green, and gray.
It wasn't until after the reform and opening up that new ideas from abroad flooded in, and people's clothing colors became more diverse. Red even became a popular color, and there was even a movie about it.
Besides outerwear, each person bought one to three sweaters, dresses, and shirts for layering, as well as leggings; basically, everyone had a pair.
After determining everyone's needs, Lin Qingqing began calculating the money and tickets for each person.
The first person to be counted was a girl who was close to Li Jingsi. She was generous and bought not only the cotton-padded coat but also the entire innerwear that Li Jingsi was wearing, as well as a low-cut sweater.
After calculating the money and tickets, the young woman didn't say a word, and reached into her pocket to take out the money.
While Lin Qingqing was confirming which clothes she wanted, Sister He was busy calculating the price on her abacus. She immediately became excited when she finally figured out the price – the sales revenue from just the clothes they bought was enough to make up for her hard work all day!
Thinking that they might buy fabric instead of ready-made clothes, Sister He held her breath and shouted, "Wait!"
Sister He and Lin Qingqing were separated by a counter. There were so many people on the second floor that no one knew who they were calling, so only two or three people turned around to look.
But that's enough. Sister He put on a smile and said, "It's not cost-effective for you to just buy ready-made clothes."
These words stunned not only the others on the second floor, but also Li Jingsi and her group. Li Jingsi looked at Lin Qingqing with a puzzled expression, and seeing her helpless look, asked with a half-smile, "Your supply and marketing cooperative can do this?"
Previously, Lin Qingqing had always been the one to introduce customers to Sister He. This was her first time taking orders, and she felt a little nervous. But there was no turning back once the decision was made, so she smiled and said, "Aren't we just doing this for your benefit? Qingqing certainly won't blame me, right?"
Lin Qingqing smiled and said, "What if I blame you?"
Sister He thought to herself, "Once I become the store manager, I won't care if you blame me or not." Ignoring her, she turned to Li Jingsi and the others and said, "Actually, you can buy the fabric for these clothes and make them yourself. Many customers who come to our supply and marketing cooperative do this. It saves you several yuan per piece."
The girl next to Li Jingsi, who was about to pay and get her ticket, remained expressionless upon hearing this, only asking, "Can someone make one exactly the same?"
“That definitely won’t work,” Sister He said. Although she wanted to steal Lin Qingqing’s customers, she knew what kind of clothes a tailor could make after selling them for so long. Shirts and dresses were okay, and she could even make coats that looked about half the same, but cotton-padded jackets were a different story.
First, the supply and marketing cooperatives didn't have the same materials needed for the clothes, so they had to choose something else. Second, although the cotton-padded jackets looked simple in style, the workmanship was actually very complicated. Therefore, the cotton-padded jackets could often only be made to look about three-tenths of their original appearance.
But that's normal. Otherwise, if it's cheaper to buy fabric and make your own clothes that look exactly the same, who would want to buy ready-made clothes?
In the past, Sister He would explain things clearly to customers to avoid them buying the fabric and then complaining to the supply and marketing cooperative if the fabric didn't achieve the desired effect. Most people who didn't have the money bought the fabric because they could afford it.
However, eager to attract customers, Sister He didn't reveal the whole story at this moment. Instead, she said, "As long as the tailor is good, it can be seven or eight parts similar."
Anyway, if it's not done well, she'll just say it's because they didn't find a good tailor.
But the girl wasn't buying it and turned to Lin Qingqing, asking, "Is what she said true?"
Lin Qingqing didn't expose Sister He's words, but only said, "If you can find a tailor from Xingfeng, he can make a nine-tenths similar one."
Sister He had been holding her breath, thinking that if Lin Qingqing tried to sabotage her, she would just say that Lin Qingqing sold ready-made clothes, so of course she would say that. But after hearing her words, she breathed a sigh of relief and suddenly felt a pang of guilt.
Once she becomes the store manager, she should take better care of Lin Qingqing.
Sister He didn't understand Lin Qingqing's meaning, but Li Jingsi did, and asked with a smile, "Did someone come out of Xingfeng?"
“Xingfeng offers good benefits, so no one is willing to quit for the time being,” Lin Qingqing said with a slight smile.
The girl next to Li Jingsi was initially puzzled, but after hearing this, she understood and couldn't help but laugh, "You two are really mischievous. Alright, I'll buy it from you."
Seeing that she was determined to buy it, Sister He said impatiently, "Why don't you think about it a little longer?"
"I want clothes I like, not to save money, so why should I consider it?" The girl next to Li Jingsi looked puzzled.
They were all from the city's cultural troupe. These days, those who could get into a cultural troupe usually came from well-off families, not to mention their salaries were higher than the average person. It was normal to worry about buying clothes with ration coupons, but sacrificing oneself for money? That was definitely not going to happen.
They had already exchanged tickets with someone before they came, so of course they could choose to buy the clothes they liked. Otherwise, spending money to have a tailor make clothes that barely resembled the original would be a waste of money.
So none of the seven or eight people in Li Jingsi's group were willing to buy fabric and have it made.
Lin Qingqing took the money, packed their clothes, and gave each of them a handkerchief.
Making clothes always leaves some scraps. If you're making clothes at home, you might take them home to hem and use as handkerchiefs or for mending. But Xingfeng is a garment factory that produces hundreds of garments a day, and having too many leftover fabric scraps is a bit wasteful. Xie Baoshan has been troubled by this for a long time. It's a pity to throw these fabrics away, but keeping them is redundant and takes up space.
When Lin Qingqing found out, she suggested that they hem the scraps of fabric to make handkerchiefs, or process them further to make small wallets, as gifts for customers. So these gifts were also shipped with the leggings.
Although it was just a handkerchief, everyone was very happy to receive the free gift, as it was an experience they had never had before!
Some people thought more deeply and asked, "Is it okay if we just get this handkerchief for free?"
"These were free gifts anyway. If you feel bad about it, just give us more publicity for Qingshan Supply and Marketing Cooperative Xingfeng Women's Clothing," Lin Qingqing said with a smile, and then slipped a small wallet to Li Jingsi.
Seeing Lin Qingqing complete a large order, Sister He became dejected.
Deep down, she knew that with Lin Qingqing's abilities, it would be difficult for her to beat her. But having come this far, she couldn't help feeling resentful. Sister He couldn't help but feel a pang of resentment. If she hadn't acted so nonchalantly before, why would she have participated in the competition? If she hadn't participated, their friendship would still exist, and Lin Qingqing would always have to give her some face in the future.
But now... everything is over.
Sister He was filled with remorse. If she had known this would happen, she shouldn't have tried to steal customers from Lin Qingqing.
Miao Hui, who had been watching the drama unfold next door, gloated as she looked at Sister He, saying, "Some people, when they can't compete with others, resort to crooked methods. See, they've been slapped in the face!"
If Miao Hui hadn't said these things, Sister He might not have recovered by tomorrow. But now... She glanced at Miao Hui and sneered, "No matter what, I'm definitely getting my bonus this month. Unlike some people, who might not even get a bonus, and their counters might be shut down one day."
These words struck a nerve with Miao Hui, and she couldn't hold back any longer, shouting, "Who are you talking about!"
"You know perfectly well who I'm talking about!" Sister He sneered. "Instead of worrying about me, you should be more concerned about whether your sales will be halved again next month!"
Miao Hui couldn't hold back any longer and rushed forward to hit Sister He. Sister He, having lived for over thirty years and experienced all sorts of things, wasn't afraid of a young girl like Miao Hui. She immediately grabbed Miao Hui's hair, and the two wrestled and started fighting.
In an instant, the second floor was in chaos.
The lady at the shoe and hat counter and the uncle at the watch counter rushed over to pull the people away, but the two were fierce fighters. Even though the uncle at the watch counter was tall and strong, he was scratched and had bloody marks on his face. Lin Qingqing saw this and quickly ran upstairs, knocked on the door of Director Gao's office, and said, "Director Gao, a fight has broken out on the second floor."
Upon hearing this, Director Gao's expression changed, and he hurriedly went downstairs to check the situation. Other people from other offices also came down with him, and they all saw what they were doing.
After going downstairs, Director Gao immediately saw Sister He and Miao Hui fighting, as well as a man standing to the side with a bloodied face. He shouted sharply, "Enough!"
Upon hearing Director Gao's voice, Sister He was the first to react and stopped what she was doing. But Miao Hui, blinded by rage, slapped Sister He across the face.
The sound of a slap rang out, and everyone present was stunned.
Miao Hui also saw Director Gao, and her whole body went limp with fright. She cried out, her face pale, "Director Gao, Director Gao."
Sister He covered her face, wept, and tried to gain sympathy.
But Director Gao didn't look at Sister He; he only asked the uncle at the watch counter, "Should we go to the health center to see a doctor?"
The uncle wanted to say it was okay, but before he could open his mouth, Lin Qingqing said, "You should still go see a doctor and get some medicine applied so it doesn't swell up tomorrow." Hearing that it might swell, the uncle stopped trying to be brave.
Sister He nodded and asked a male colleague from the purchasing department to go to the health center with the uncle. Afterwards, she said, "First, check today's money and receipts with the accountant."
The goods in and out records and cash receipts at each counter need to be checked with the accountant every day, but the check usually takes place the next morning. Hearing Director Gao say this, everyone was a little puzzled, but no one asked.
Fortunately, the uncle was in charge of the watch counter. Because the watches were expensive and the tickets were hard to come by, he was lucky if he could sell one or two a day, so it was easy to verify the records.
After settling the accounts, the uncle left.
Only then did Director Gao turn his attention to Sister He and Miao Hui, who were fighting, and said sarcastically, "Go ahead and fight, why did you stop?"
"She started it!" Sister He said, pointing at Miao Hui.
Director Gao ignored what she was saying and only asked, "Who scratched Old Zhou's face?"
“Her!” Miao Hui quickly pointed to Sister He.
Sister He argued, "I grabbed it by accident, and you even slapped me!" As she spoke, she lowered her hand from her face.
Miao Hui hit hard; Sister He's cheek was swollen, and her lip was cut and bleeding, making her look quite miserable. Although Miao Hui's hair was also a mess and she felt pain all over, she looked much better than Sister He. But Miao Hui was unwilling to give up, clutching her hand and crying out, "Ouch, my hand..."
Seeing her shouting, Sister He started yelling too, and the two of them shouted back and forth, which made Director Gao's brow twitch with anger. He roared, "Enough!"
The two immediately stopped talking and stood there dejectedly.
Director Gao's cold gaze swept over the two of them, then he turned to Lin Qingqing and asked, "Why are they arguing?"
Lin Qingqing's counter was right next to Miao Hui's, so she naturally heard their conversation. She had a good memory and could recount their conversation almost perfectly.
Director Gao frowned, glanced at Sister He, and asked, "Did she steal your customers?"
“That’s secondary,” Lin Qingqing said, not trying to cover for Sister He. “I just think we should be honest with our customers and not use linguistic traps to try to be clever.”
"No, I didn't, you're talking nonsense!" Sister He denied it three times in a row.
“I heard everything and you’re still trying to deny it,” Miao Hui’s temper flared up again. She complained to Director Gao about what Sister He and Li Jingsi had said, and then said, “Director Gao, this is a big problem! I wouldn’t have said those things if I hadn’t really been so disgusted by it.”
She was the one who started the conversation and made the first move, so the only option was to subdue Sister He.
Ms. He panicked and stammered, "I...I didn't think that much at the time."
If it were just an argument, Director Gao might have just given them a warning. But when he heard that this matter had been brought up, he couldn't sit still any longer and asked coldly, "Did you not think that far ahead, or are you willing to disregard your reputation for the sake of revenue!"
How did Qingshan Supply and Marketing Cooperative get to where it is today?
That reputation was built on excellent service!
A good reputation is hard to build but easy to destroy. If Sister He sells the fabric today, customers will come knocking on the door one day, and word will spread. They might just collapse the good reputation they worked so hard to build up over two or three months!
Thinking of this, Director Gao glared at Sister He and issued two instructions: "Accountant Sun, check today's revenue receipts with the person at the next counter and calculate each person's monthly turnover. Comrade Xu, Comrade, call a meeting."
After saying that, he glanced at Sister He and Miao Hui and said, "And you two, you better behave yourselves!"
At Director Gao's command, Accountant Sun and Comrade Xu hurriedly went downstairs. Sister He and Miao Hui were as quiet as chickens, and the others looked at each other, not daring to say a word.
For a moment, the second floor fell into an eerie silence.
In the silence, Lin Qingqing remembered Xie Wei telling her to come home early before she left in the morning, and she couldn't help but sigh. It seemed that she wouldn't be able to go home early today.
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