Make a Fortune and Become Well-off [90] - Chapter 121

Every girl in the dormitory had to fold her quilt by herself, but the person on duty was responsible for mopping the floor before morning reading. If there was no time to mop the floor after morning reading, she would have to leave morning reading and go back to the dormitory to mop.

So, for two months, they didn’t have to clean the dormitory or mop the floor. Of course, they were very happy and in a good mood.

The other girls in the dormitory were confused. They wanted to inquire about the internal affairs. It wasn’t easy for them to get any information. Even the girls in dormitory 611 of Class 3 were curious. They wanted to know who had taken the books and how the situation was resolved.

The curiosity for gossip was evident in the eyes of the girls in the dormitory.

There was no way around it; life at No. 1 High School was too dull and boring. Apart from studying every day, the most novel thing was hearing their teacher talk about a student in Class 3 who loved to study and only slept three hours a day. Beyond that, there was nothing new.

So, when something new happened around them, they were naturally curious.

However, everyone in dormitory 610 was tight-lipped and said nothing.

Because Jiang Ning was eager to get the magazine and someone who had rented it was overdue, Liu Ping took Lu Xuehua and Wang Xia along to retrieve it.

Others stayed in the dormitory.

The lunch break time was limited, so everyone tried to take a nap during the lunch break. If they couldn’t sleep, they would close their eyes and relax for a while. Some didn’t sleep during the lunch break and continued studying.

In short, that time period was one that could be allocated freely.

After Jiang Ning got the magazine, she went down to give it to Jiang Bai.

She casually mentioned, “The magazine was borrowed by someone else.”

Jiang Bai didn’t ask any more questions and opened the book. “Which manuscript did you write?”

Jiang Ning turned to the manuscript she had written, which was marked with the name ‘Lingmeng’. “Hey, whenever you see this author in the future, it’s basically me. I also have works in Youth Digest. I have the latest issues in my dormitory, but they’re borrowed. Otherwise, you’d be able to see them.”

It was rare for a dormitory to have two or three of these extracurricular books. She had every issue available to her.

Jiang Bai felt a bit regretful that all the magazines containing his sister’s works had been lent out, and he said, “Remember to take them back.” He read his sister’s works carefully, feeling proud.

After learning that his sister’s money came from a legitimate source, he still handed the clothes  Jiang Ning had given him back to her and said, “I’ll keep the shoes. I don’t lack clothes. You can return these. Don’t spend the money you earn; save it in the bank.”

He was afraid she would spend the money recklessly before she had saved enough for the tuition for the next semester.

He didn’t say anything, but Jiang Ning understood what he was thinking and said, “I can take care of my tuition fees for the next semester. I bought these clothes for you, so you should wear them.” 

After the New Year, he would be an eighteen-year-old young man. As he got older, he was still wearing Jiang Song’s leftover old clothes.

Seeing her insistence, Jiang Bai casually took out a piece of clothing and held it in his hand. The remaining piece was stuffed back into Jiang Ning’s hand. “Take it.” 

He ran off without waiting for her to say anything.

He was tall, had long legs, and was used to running more than ten kilometers to and from school in junior high, so he quickly ran far away.

Jiang Ning didn’t force the issue. If he didn’t want it, she could always sell it in the shop later.

Wang Yong also breathed a sigh of relief after moving to Jiang Ning’s shop.

In that era, many people had limited awareness of hygiene. Some careless individuals were too lazy to go to the toilet, and many would urinate anywhere in the alley. When they felt the need, they would just relieve themselves against a wall.

Wang Yong walked through such alleys every day, and the smell of urine constantly lingered on the tip of his nose. Seeing that he was an outsider, the three aunts always came to ask what he was doing. On rainy days, the alleys would fill with black, smelly, dirty water.

He didn’t have many belongings, just a backpack.

As he and Jiang Ning had anticipated, that street was deserted on weekdays, and not many people passed by. Those who did were mainly family members of the faculty and staff who lived behind the two schools.

They heard from a neighbor who came to buy clothes that day that the Jiangnan Garment Factory had closed down. The director owed more than 35 million yuan and ran away with some young lady. The factory was unable to pay wages because the director had taken the money. The clothes in the factory were used as wages, and these workers were pitiful. They sold these clothes to recover the wages owed to them. The clothes that originally cost more than one hundred, two hundred, or three hundred yuan were now only selling for twenty-nine or thirty-nine yuan. And they were good clothes.

When had these neighbors ever heard such ridiculous gossip? They all came to look for this legendary clothing shop, their ears pricked up and their eyes shining. As soon as they arrived at the shop, they didn’t hear any chants and curiously asked Wang Yong, “Young man, are you from Jiangnan Garment Factory? I heard that your garment factory closed down. How did it happen?”

Wang Yong told them the story about the factory director running away with some young lady. They were satisfied with the gossip and then went to see the super cheap clothes. Everyone who came to listen to the gossip ended up buying one or two cheap coats and left satisfied. They went back and spread the gossip to more people. Even when they went to the vegetable market, they couldn’t help but tell a few acquaintances about the gossip.

People who heard the gossip immediately asked curiously, “Are the clothes in that shop really so cheap?”

“Why would I lie to you? It’s more than a hundred meters away from the gate of No. 1 High School, diagonally opposite the main gate of Wuzhong. The material is quite good. The price in the center of the street is more than 100 yuan, but this shop only charges 39 yuan. If their garment factory hadn’t closed down, where else would you find such cheap clothes?”

Let alone the mid-1990s, even in the 1960s and 1970s, such a good cotton-padded jacket couldn’t be bought so cheaply.

“My eldest nephew bought one of those down jackets a few days ago. Oh, it cost more than 90 yuan apiece. It’s expensive as hell. I don’t think it’s any better than the ones in the shop near No. 1 High School. The fabric is just the same.”

What started as a conversation between two familiar people ended up attracting a crowd of listeners. After buying groceries, they all ran neat No. 1 High School to see if there really was such a cheap shop.

So, in the afternoon, people came to the shop to buy clothes again.

Shopping for clothes and listening to gossip.