“Professor Huo, are you planning to go into business too?” Su Xiaomei asked, blushing.
“I have that idea.” He felt a bit embarrassed to admit that he had been secretly doing a bit of business. In this era, relying solely on one’s salary, while it allowed for survival, made living a good life almost impossible.
“A lot of the goods here are much cheaper than in the capital. We’re also just picking up some stock.” Perhaps it was because they shared common interests and found a topic to discuss, but Su Xiaomei was being quite proactive in talking to Professor Huo.
Professor Huo was so delighted that he almost forgot his own name. Xiaomei cared about him; it was truly rare! However, Huo Sinian’s affection was subtly revealed in his eyes. Seeing his intense gaze, Su Xiaomei couldn’t help but lower her head to look at the ground.
“There’s no money on the ground, nor any handsome people!” Huo Sinian couldn’t help but tease.
Su Xiaotian: … She finally understood why this exceptionally handsome Professor Huo couldn’t win over Sister Xiaomei. The way he spoke… Su Xiaotian grinned.
Chi Yiyuan didn’t quite understand why Su Xiaotian was smiling. But to him, it didn’t matter what Su Xiaotian was smiling about; what was important was that his little girl was smiling. Chi Yiyuan also smiled! He even indulgently pinched Su Xiaotian’s slightly plump little cheek.
Su Xiaotian and Chi Yiyuan, as a young couple, were still in the early stages of their relationship, without much longing to express. When Chi Yiyuan reached out to pinch Su Xiaotian’s cheek, Su Ciliang became displeased. Chi Yiyuan’s smile, no matter how he looked at it, seemed irritating! If they weren’t business partners right now, Su Ciliang swore he would have rushed over to beat up Chi Yiyuan. Why was he looking at his Xiaotian with that kind of gaze? Why was he pinching his Xiaotian’s face? Even he, as her elder brother, hadn’t pinched it! His little cabbage was so fresh and tender; she wasn’t yet at the age to be snatched by a pig. He had always said that she needed to be at least in her early to mid-twenties, or even thirty! How could this scoundrel Chi Yiyuan not listen to advice? Now, as business partners, fighting was out of the question, but letting Chi Yiyuan exchange flirtatious glances in front of them was also unacceptable. Su Ciliang immediately stepped forward and grabbed Chi Yiyuan’s arm, acting like they were close brothers.
“Yiyuan, Rongcheng is a really good place. I was thinking we should find a reliable person here to ship goods to us. It would be much more profitable than wholesale from the capital and then reselling!”
Chi Yiyuan didn’t suspect Su Ciliang of having ulterior motives at all; instead, he thought Su Ciliang’s idea was excellent. However, finding someone to ship the goods wouldn’t be too easy, would it? What if the goods were lost then? That would be a real loss.
“Finding a suitable person isn’t easy,” Chi Yiyuan frowned. Su Ciliang had actually just come up with a reason to distract Chi Yiyuan from focusing solely on his little sister, and now he didn’t quite know how to respond. But Su Xiaosi happened to come over at that moment and said, “Li Mumu is a good choice. Someone Uncle can trust is definitely a good person!” In fact, Su Xiaosi had already considered this issue. He had originally planned to handle this matter himself, but he didn’t expect his second brother to have the same idea. Since that was the case, they might as well make money together.
“Li Mumu?” Chi Yiyuan was taken aback; he didn’t know this person or had never heard of him.
“Mumu has been accompanying us these days and has helped us earn quite a bit of money.” Su Xiaosi briefly introduced Li Mumu. Li Mumu smiled and greeted both Chi Yiyuan and Huo Sinian. However, Chi Yiyuan was one thing, but why was this person surnamed Huo looking at him as if he were a class enemy? Had he done something wrong to provoke him? Chi Yiyuan responded to Mumu with a smile, his gaze carrying a hint of scrutiny. Having a reliable local person to help would naturally be ideal. But wealth could stir up greed; what if? Meanwhile, Professor Huo was quietly speaking to Su Xiaomei. Su Xiaomei, with a blush, remained silent. Professor Huo felt speechless. It was one thing in the capital, but after arriving in Rongcheng and seeing the openness here, with young people holding hands without restraint on the streets, he felt that he, an older man, was truly being wronged. The woman he loved could only be looked at, and he couldn’t even hold her hand. Su Xiaotian watched the actions of these two with great delight. Anyone watching might think she was watching a play. Su Xiaomei wasn’t entirely without feelings for Huo Sinian. However, she had always felt that she was a very ordinary person, unworthy of someone as outstanding as Huo Sinian. In Su Xiaomei’s heart, Huo Sinian was excellent. Such an excellent person deserved a better girl. Moreover, during this time, Su Xiaomei had also heard from Chi Ge that Huo Sinian was a desirable object for many young girls his age. It was easy to imagine that those young girls were the ones whose family background and status were comparable to the Huo family. Yet, at this moment, this man had pursued her all the way to Rongcheng. The fortifications Su Xiaomei had painstakingly built seemed to be cracking again. Since they had decided to do business with Mumu, the group went to the guesthouse to discuss matters. It was then that Professor Huo finally confirmed that this young man named Mumu had no other intentions towards Su Xiaomei. He finally felt a bit relieved, and his expression towards Mumu improved considerably. In Professor Huo’s mind, anyone who wasn’t competing for his wife was a good person! Knowing that Su Xiaotian and the others had already purchased a significant amount of goods, Chi Yiyuan decided to take a look. These accessories actually looked quite good. After asking about the prices, Chi Yiyuan smiled and said, “These goods, when taken back, can at least double in value. We’ll sweep up some more stock tomorrow.” Since Chi Yiyuan had said so, no one else had any objections. The remaining funds, as Chi Yiyuan suggested, would be primarily for watches, with one radio per person being sufficient. Su Xiaomei discovered that Rongcheng had electric sewing machines, which were much better than the foot-pedaled ones they used at home. Unfortunately, such a sewing machine was too expensive, costing over two thousand yuan, which they couldn’t afford. Professor Huo noticed Su Xiaomei’s fondness for the electric sewing machine and, wanting to please his future wife, intended to buy one. “Professor Huo, the price of an electric sewing machine is too high. How many clothes would Aunt Taohua have to make to earn that back?” Su Xiaotian, sensing trouble, reminded him in time. Professor Huo hesitated. His idea was quite simple: he just wanted to make Xiaomei happy and incidentally please her mother. “Professor Huo, Aunt Taohua wouldn’t like someone who spends money so carelessly.” Over two thousand yuan was money that an ordinary family couldn’t save even if they didn’t eat or drink for a year. If they bought such a sewing machine, Aunt Taohua would probably lose sleep over it. Su Xiaomei happened to overhear their conversation and quickly said, “Professor Huo, please don’t. I was just looking casually. The sewing machine at home works perfectly fine!” “In another year or two, the price of electric sewing machines should drop a bit, and it will be more cost-effective to purchase them then.” It wasn’t a complete market economy yet; many items still required coupons, including fabric, so the number of people who could make clothes was limited. Su Xiaomei nodded repeatedly, “Xiaotian is so right.” Professor Huo ultimately had to abandon the idea, but he secretly bought a bracelet that Su Xiaomei really liked. It was a silver bracelet inlaid with small, delicate pearls, costing over a hundred yuan. Su Xiaomei had looked at it but ultimately couldn’t bear to spend the money. As Professor Huo put the bracelet in his pocket, he began to ponder when would be an appropriate time to give it to Su Xiaomei. Of course, now was not the time; she might even return the bracelet directly. It wasn’t always a good thing to pursue a wife who was too thrifty!