After the rain stopped and the sun came out, the sky brightened, and the room became brighter too.
Gu Qingci looked at his lively little niece.
“Jiaojiao, the rain has stopped. We should go now.”
“Ah! Uncle, I haven’t had enough fun yet!” Zhao Jiaojiao acted cute, trying to stay longer.
Gu Qingci walked over and squatted in front of her, patiently coaxing her.
“Be good, Jiaojiao. We’ve been out for a long time. Grandma will worry. We’ll come again next time, okay?”
“…Okay then.”
Reluctantly, Jiaojiao put down her toys and hugged the triplets.
“Little brothers and sister, I’m leaving. I’ll come play with you again next time. Don’t miss me too much!”
Jiang Huaijin rolled his eyes.
Who would miss you?
Gu Qingci picked her up and walked to Jiang Banyue.
“We’re leaving.”
“Okay.” Jiang Banyue smiled and patted Jiaojiao’s hair.
“Jiaojiao, don’t run around next time, alright?”
“I know! Thank you, beautiful auntie! Can I come play with the babies again?”
“Of course, but only if an adult brings you.”
“Okay! Uncle will bring me next time!”
After making plans to visit again, Gu Qingci carried his niece away.
..
Jiang Banyue opened the shop door and took a deep breath of the fresh air after the rain.
Outside, several shop owners stood together cracking sunflower seeds and chatting.
She nodded to them in greeting and returned to her shop. The shop owners whispered among themselves:
“I heard she’s raising three babies alone. Where’s the man in her family?”
“Who knows? Maybe she’s divorced.”
“She’s so pretty… could she be someone’s kept woman?”
“Haha…”
They laughed while spitting sunflower seed shells and glanced into her shop.
Because of the rain, there were no customers today, which gave Jiang Banyue some rare free time. She sat on the carpet and played with her three babies.
Zhao Jiaojiao often came to play with them, sometimes bringing toys. Each time, Gu Qingci accompanied her.
Gradually, Jiang Banyue and Gu Qingci became familiar with each other.
Through conversation, she learned that Gu Qingci owned a clothing factory supplying major department stores. His factory originally only produced adult clothing, but after noticing the children’s clothing market, he opened a workshop for baby clothes.
When he saw the triplets’ outfits, he became very interested.
The rompers were designed like little animals—rabbit ears on the hood and tiny tails on the back. They were extremely cute.
“Where did you buy these baby clothes? They’re very cute,” he asked.
“I made them,” Jiang Banyue replied, kissing her daughter’s cheek.
Gu Qingci’s eyes lit up. He felt a warm excitement—what a clever and skillful woman.
“I’m in the clothing business. These baby clothes are very cute. If we produce them, they’ll definitely sell well. Can I copy your design? Don’t worry, I’ll pay you.”
Hearing “I’ll pay you,” Jiang Banyue immediately became interested. She was raising three children alone and really needed money. After buying the shop, she was almost broke. Cake sales only covered basic expenses.
If she could sell clothing designs, it would be another source of income.
“Yes, I can draw clothing design sketches and sell them to you. How about that?”
“Really?” Gu Qingci looked at her excitedly. “You can design clothes too?”
“Yes.”
She put down her baby, took paper and pen from the counter, and drew a design.
Gu Qingci stood behind her, leaning slightly to look at the paper. The more he looked, the more amazed he became.
It was a princess dress design: a sleeveless bodice with a layered tulle skirt and a large bow at the back, paired with a small jacket.
Gu Qingci stared at her with admiration, as if she were a shining treasure.
After finishing, she handed him the drawing.
“Take a look. Is it good?”
“It’s beautiful. Not only little girls, but even older girls would love wearing it.”
He carefully examined the design, full of admiration.
“How much will you pay for one design?”
“I’ll give you sixty,” he said.
“Sixty?!” She was shocked.
She had expected ten or twenty at most.
“It’s not much,” Gu Qingci said calmly, adjusting his glasses.
“This dress will definitely sell well. I’m in wholesale—profits will be higher. I plan to produce both children’s and adult sizes. Mothers and daughters can wear matching outfits.”
“Matching outfits,” Jiang Banyue repeated.
“That’s a good name,” Gu Qingci smiled. “We’ll call it that. One design can sell in pairs.”
Jiang Banyue immediately thought of all the beautiful clothing styles she had seen in her past life. Since she had studied art, she could draw them all.
This meant she could earn even more money.
She had three little “money-eating beasts” to raise—she really needed to work hard.
Gu Qingci looked at her gently, smiling.
“I want to hire you as a fashion designer for my factory. I’ll pay you a monthly salary. What do you think?”
“I have my own cake shop and three babies. I can’t go to work.”
Gu Qingci smiled.
“You don’t need to come. Just draw designs here. I’ll pick them up, and the factory will still pay you.”
“Ah… is that really okay?” she hesitated. It sounded too good to be true.
“It’s fine. The factory is mine. I make the decisions.”
Jiang Banyue’s mouth twitched slightly.
So… this was a future domineering CEO, huh.