Although the sky darkened late in May, it was already around six o’clock. Su Jinle felt disappointed. She glanced at the blue dress, folded it unhappily, placed it back into the brown paper bag, and prepared to head home.
“After all that effort, you still couldn’t sell it!” came a haughty voice. Su Jinle thought of the phrase “enemies are bound to meet.”
In the past, she had rarely interacted with Yang Muqing, yet they had already crossed paths three times in just two days.
Su Jinle kept her head down, packed the dress, and prepared to leave, choosing to ignore her outright. She knew she was at a disadvantage in an argument.
But Yang Muqing directly blocked her way. “Tell me, how much are you really selling this dress for? Twenty won’t do, then thirty? Su Jinle, your family is dirt poor. There’s no need to compete with me out of jealousy, is there? To be honest, Gu Jingxiu is only someone you’d fancy. I don’t like that type.”
Even though she didn’t like him, she enjoyed the feeling of being pursued. Moreover, Gu Jingxiu was considered a talented young man at the canned food factory, with many girls secretly admiring him—Su Jinle being one of them.
Having a man whom others longed for chase after her only highlighted her charm.
Su Jinle bit her lip slightly. The woman from the other day hadn’t shown up, and it was likely the dress wouldn’t be sold. She only had a five-yuan deposit in hand and still needed to buy new fabric to make clothes for the two other girls.
The fabric would cost eight yuan. Would she have to ask her mother for the three yuan back after returning home?
Seeing her pitiful state, Yang Muqing sneered mockingly. “Before you talk about pride, think about whether you deserve it. You’re just a little stutterer who can’t even speak properly. You should be grateful I’m willing to buy your dress.”
She raised an eyebrow, thinking about how Gu Jingxiu had said he wanted to marry Su Jinle. She took a closer look at the girl in front of her. She hadn’t paid much attention before, but this little stutterer had fair skin and an innocent appearance. If she didn’t speak, she could be quite alluring.
But Yang Muqing didn’t care. Even if Gu Jingxiu married Su Jinle, as long as she beckoned, he would still prioritize her in everything. What could a poor, incompetent stutterer possibly use to compete with her?
Thirty yuan was tossed lightly onto the ground, the same gesture as yesterday, but today Yang Muqing made it even more humiliating. She lifted her chin. “Pick it up. What else can you do when your family is so poor?”
Her family was wealthy, and she loved the feeling of using money to overpower others, especially someone as seemingly weak and pathetic as Su Jinle.
Su Jinle remained silent. Thirty yuan was equivalent to half a month of her father’s salary or more than ten days of her brother’s medical expenses. She also knew that the longer her brother’s leg injury dragged on, the slimmer the chances of a full recovery. That was why she was so desperate to earn money.
But…
“No,” she finally spoke up, her words slow but without a stutter. “The dress was ordered by someone else, not you. Take your money back.”
Yang Muqing laughed in anger. “Ordered by someone else? Who would want your shabby dress?”
Su Jinle nudged the money on the ground with her foot, returning the insult. “Your money, you pick it up.”
Yang Muqing glared at her fiercely. “Fine, you have pride. Let’s see how much your pride is worth! Fifty? A hundred? Name your price. I’m determined to buy this dress today!”
Su Jinle, instead of getting angry, felt a flicker of anticipation. “A thousand. Do you want it?”
A thousand yuan could pay for my brother’s medical treatment. Even though I broke my promise to that woman, I’m willing to make two or three pieces of clothing to compensate her!
When she said this, Su Jinle genuinely hoped Yang Muqing would humiliate her with money. She even looked at Su Muqing with sparkling eyes, appearing somewhat naive: “You’re willing, right? A thousand yuan, I’ll sell you the dress.”
Yang Muqing was furious. Pointing at her own nose, her chest heaved up and down: “Su Jinle, am I a fool? A thousand yuan for a dress? Is your dress made of gold?”
Su Jinle disappointedly lowered her gaze: “You, yourself, said, insisted on buying.”
Going back on your word, she thought Yang Muqing was foolish and rich.
Yang Muqing gritted her teeth. What kind of terrible look was that from this little stutterer? She actually dared to be disappointed—how dare she!
“Don’t regret it. If I don’t buy this dress, you’ll have to take it home!” She was so angry she could die, pointing at Su Jinle’s nose again: “With one word from me, Gu Jingxiu won’t marry you. When the time comes, even if you beg me and give me the dress for free, it’ll be useless!”
Su Jinle glanced at the sky and prepared to leave.
Yang Muqing grabbed her arm and refused to let go: “Give me the dress, then you can go.”
Su Jinle frowned. Her fair, tender arm had been pinched, leaving nail marks. Just as she was about to struggle, Yang Muqing was pushed away by someone else.
“What’s wrong with you? I ordered this dress the day before yesterday. How can you force a sale like this?”
The woman pulled Su Jinle aside, then turned around with an apologetic tone: “Sorry, young lady. Something came up at home, so I’m late. Is the dress ready? I’ll get the money for you now.”
Yang Muqing hadn’t expected the dress to actually be pre-ordered. She simply looked at the woman: “No matter how much she sold it to you for, I’ll add ten yuan. Sell it to me.”
Su Jinle lowered her gaze. Of course, she didn’t want her dress worn by Yang Muqing, but once someone paid for it, the dress belonged to them. She had no right to interfere.
But the woman sneered: “Go find out who I am before trying to throw money around!”
After saying this, her expression changed again: “Girl, how much for the dress? I’ll give you the money now.”
Su Jinle spoke softly: “Twenty yuan.”
The woman paid promptly, but Su Jinle stopped her, placing a blue hair ribbon and a small, delicate cloth pouch in her hand.
“This, for you.” Su Jinle got a bit excited and stuttered again: “No, money, thank you.”
Thank you for arriving in time, thank you for keeping your promise.
The woman was stunned. She looked at the small items in her hand—the hair ribbon was nice, the cloth pouch was exquisite. Although made from scrap fabric, if sold separately, they could fetch about two yuan. Moreover, she could tell someone had wanted to buy this dress earlier.
But Su Jinle hadn’t sold it, waiting for her instead. The one keeping the promise was this young girl, and she was even being thanked in return.
“Your business will get better and better.” After saying this, the woman glanced at Yang Muqing again: “This dress isn’t suitable for you. Beautiful clothes should be worn by beautiful people.”
Yang Muqing wasn’t ugly; she was very pretty. Otherwise, Gu Jingxiu wouldn’t have been unable to forget her. This was the first time someone had spoken to her like this, and it was all because of this stutterer!
After the woman rode away on her bicycle, Yang Muqing sneered, “You have backbone, Su Jinle. You’ll regret this.”
Today, she had earned twenty-five yuan. After deducting the money needed to buy fabric, seventeen yuan remained. Su Jinle handed it all to Lin Yun, saying, “Give it to my brother for his medical treatment.”
That evening, the Su family surprisingly added another dish to their meal. Su Weihua even drank a little wine, saying, “I never expected Lele to be so capable.”
He was the only one in the family earning a salary. Lin Yun had only started working as a helper at a small restaurant after Su Yi’an returned home. With four mouths to feed and medical expenses to cover, the burden of life weighed heavily on the head of the household, leaving him breathless.
Su Jinle’s two successful business ventures had finally given him some relief, as if the gloom that had long hung over the family was beginning to dissipate.
But soon, Su Jinle understood what Yang Muqing had meant that day.
The next day, Su Weihua hummed a cheerful tune as he went to work. However, when he returned home in the evening, his face was grim. With great difficulty, he said to Lin Yun, “My performance bonus for this month has been deducted. My salary is only forty-five yuan.”