Su Jinle ironed the clothes once more until they were perfectly smooth without a single wrinkle. She then took out a sachet she had made from flower petals and placed it with the clothes, hoping to make them smell better.
Ironed clothes often carried a strange odor, so she always made a habit of adding a sachet.
Although she had decided to sell the clothes, Su Jinle hadn’t really thought about making a profit. She was simply heartbroken over the three yuan she had spent. With no experience in business, she didn’t dare to aim too high. She just hoped to sell them for four yuan, which would cover her costs and avoid a loss.
If that didn’t work, selling them for three yuan would be fine too—she could forget about the effort she had put in…
She remembered her mother saying she would bring back meat buns in the evening. Each meat bun cost one mao, so if she could sell the clothes for three yuan, that would be thirty large meat buns! Ever since her brother had returned injured, life at home had been tight, and they hadn’t eaten meat in a long time.
Thinking about this made her even sadder. She must have had straw for brains to spend three yuan making clothes for Gu Jingxiu. She might as well have bought four jin of pork instead.
By the time she finished folding and putting away the clothes, it was already past four in the afternoon. Su Yi’an tentatively suggested, “Why not go tomorrow? It’s too late today.”
She had already come back once, which showed that going out alone to sell clothes was a big challenge for her. He truly felt for his younger sister.
Su Jinle was also anxious inside, but the thought of thirty meat buns gave her an inexplicable boost of confidence. She cheered herself on: “I can do it.”
Su Yi’an was amused. “Alright.”
Even so, he took out one mao from his pocket. “Even if you can’t sell them, it’s fine. Use this to buy candied hawthorns.”
Su Jinle refused. “I’m not a child…”
“If not a child, then what?” Su Yi’an laughed and ruffled her hair, letting go when she glared at him unhappily. “Alright, go early and come back early. Don’t talk to strangers.”
Su Jinle thought the same. She deliberately avoided passing by Gu Jingxiu’s house, not wanting to see him at all. This time, she reached her destination smoothly—the street across from the department store, where small vendors gathered.
It was her first time coming to such a place alone, and she couldn’t help feeling nervous. She found a less crowded corner, spread a large newspaper on the ground, carefully placed the shirt on it, and finally took out a piece of cardboard.
On it, she had written “Selling clothes…”
She didn’t dare to write the price, afraid that asking for too much would put people off, but also worried that asking for too little would mean a loss. She decided to let potential buyers make an offer—as long as it was over three yuan, she would sell!
People came and went, and many glanced at her curiously, but no one came to ask.
Su Jinle stood there awkwardly for a while, growing anxious. An elderly woman selling eggs nearby reminded her, “Girl, you can’t sell things like this. You have to shout loudly, like me: ‘Selling eggs! Selling eggs! Who wants eggs…’”
The woman demonstrated with full vigor: “See? You have to shout like this!”
But how could Su Jinle dare? If she shouted that loudly, everyone would laugh at her, wouldn’t they?
She waited a while longer, but still, no one came.
Su Jinle gritted her teeth and finally mustered the courage to give it a try. Since she stuttered when speaking, she could only shout one word at a time: “Sell… clothes…”
The aunt thought she was nervous and very considerately encouraged her: “That’s good, just keep shouting like that!”
Seeing that no one was looking at her strangely, Su Jinle gained a bit more confidence and raised her voice: “Clo—clothes!”
The aunt gave her face by encouraging her: “You’ve got spirit, girl! Your voice is really loud!”
Su Jinle’s face flushed red, but she gradually let go of her worries, shouting word by word with increasing enthusiasm, calling out “selling clothes” over and over again.
Finally, a well-dressed middle-aged woman was drawn over. She took a liking to the white shirt at first glance: “This shirt is nice, it’s different from the styles sold at the department store. Did you make this yourself, girl?”
Su Jinle quickly nodded: “Yes!”
The woman came from a cadre family and was very particular about her clothes. She especially liked this kind of handmade, unique clothing, but having every piece custom-made would be too much of a financial burden.
She had originally been looking around to buy a shirt for her son to wear at his engagement, but she hadn’t been satisfied with anything she saw. She never expected to find something on this street.
This white shirt had a nice style, the fabric felt comfortable, and it even had a faint floral scent.
She asked: “What size is this shirt?”
Su Jinle was a bit nervous: “For someone one meter seventy-five, it should fit.”
If she spoke slowly, her stutter wasn’t too noticeable, and the woman didn’t pay it much mind. Seeing that the size and everything seemed suitable, she asked about the price: “How much is this shirt?”
Su Jinle hadn’t expected the price to come up so quickly. Having no experience at all, she grew even more nervous, her mind going blank: “What do you… think?”
“What do I think?” The woman pointed at her own nose. This was the first time she’d ever seen a seller ask the buyer to name the price!
But the girl looked young and delicate, so she felt a bit more patient. Besides, the more she looked at the shirt, the more she liked it. After a moment’s thought, she tentatively offered: “How about eight yuan?”
This price was fairly standard. White shirts at the department store ranged from eight yuan to over ten, with some even costing over twenty, though few people bought those. White shirts generally went for eight to ten yuan. Since bargaining was expected when shopping, she couldn’t offer too much—how could she bargain if she started too high?
Actually, she thought this white shirt was worth twelve yuan.
But Su Jinle’s eyes widened. She was so excited she began to stutter: “E-eight… eight yuan…”
She stammered “eight” for a while, and the woman misunderstood, thinking she thought it was too little. She smiled and said: “Just tell me if this price works or not. You can’t think it’s too little, can you?”
“N-no…” Su Jinle wanted to say she didn’t think it was too little—she actually thought it was a lot! She had initially planned to sell it at cost price, thinking even four yuan was expensive!
She usually never went to the department store and made all her own clothes, so how would she know the market price?
But after stammering “no” for a while, the woman completely misunderstood: “Not selling?”
Su Jinle was getting desperate. The more anxious she became, the harder it was to speak, and her eyes began to redden: “N-no…”
Seeing she was about to cry, the woman realized her offer might have been too low, making it seem like she was taking advantage. She spoke up: “Alright, alright, why are you crying over selling a shirt? I’ll add another two yuan, how about that? Even the Haishan brand shirts at the department store are only around this price now!”
Su Jinle swallowed hard. Ten yuan?
Seeing her remain silent, the woman grew a bit annoyed: “You have to name a price when you’re selling something. You can’t just keep letting people raise the offer. Will you sell it for ten yuan or not?”
Su Jinle pinched herself hard and blurted out loudly, “Sell!”
“Huh?”
“Ten yuan, sell, sell!”
Afraid the customer might leave, she nodded vigorously to express her eagerness to sell the clothes.
The woman: “…”
Well, she agreed so readily—she must have offered too much!