Xu Mingxuan heard this and laughed. "You must be talking about the No. 2 Hotel next to the military supply station. That place is full of people from all over who co to the provincial capital for wholesale. I can take you there after we eat."
Li Xiangyang said politely, "That would be too much trouble for you. We also have a friend to visit. We can always co back and look later."
"That works too. My car is parked up front." Xu Mingxuan pointed to the plaza in front of the station and led them over.
The group followed Xu Mingxuan to his parking spot and got into a snub-nosed sedan.
When they reached a traffic circle, there was a police kiosk in the middle with an officer inside wearing white gloves and a white uniform.
The streets of the provincial capital were wider than those in East Market. There were very few cars; the roads were mostly filled with bicycles. The buildings on either side were a mix of low, old structures, and you could see a utility pole every so often.
After a few more streets, the car stopped in front of a restaurant called The Eatery. Xu Mingxuan smiled. "This place just opened this year. The food’s not bad."
They got out of the car and walked toward the restaurant. Chen Dongming smiled graciously. "You’re spending too much on us."
"Hey!" Xu Mingxuan clapped him on the shoulder with a smile. "There’s no need for such formalities between us." He then looked at Lin Lan and Li Xiangyang. "Don’t be strangers. Let’s all just be casual, alright?"
Li Xiangyang laughed. "If we were going to be formal, we wouldn’t have co."
The group entered the restaurant, where three tables were already occupied. A waiter led them into a private room and asked Xu Mingxuan with a smile, "Boss Xu, shall I have them start bringing the food?"
"Bring it now," Xu Mingxuan said.
"Order up for Hongyun Restaurant!" the waiter shouted toward the back. A sharp, tidy young man ca over carrying the dishes, and soon the entire al was served.
Kung Pao Chicken, Mapo Tofu, Sweet and Sour Pork Ribs, Sliced Pork in Hot Chili Oil... eight dishes in total.
Once all the dishes were on the table, Xu Mingxuan ordered a bottle of liquor. Chen Dongming couldn’t drink, and Li Xiangyang, thinking he still had to visit Old Chen later, had only one glass.
Zhou Xiaohong asked Xu Mingxuan, "Since you ca to pick us up, who’s watching your shop?"
Xu Mingxuan smiled. "I hired two salesclerks. I’m so busy I’d like to hire two more, but the authorities have ruled that a shop can have a maximum of two workers. Any more than that is considered exploitation."
As Xu Mingxuan spoke, a sarcastic look crossed his face. "Two girls, back from the countryside with no job prospects, work for . They get a salary of sixty yuan a month, and if business is good, I even give them a bonus at the end of the month. I also provide them with lunch. You tell , how exactly am I exploiting them!"
Zhou Xiaohong stared at Xu Mingxuan in surprise. "Sixty yuan a month for one person?"
"That’s right!" Xu Mingxuan nodded with a smile. "And it looks like it’ll be even more this month."
Zhou Xiaohong gave him a thumbs-up. "You really know how to do business."
Xu Mingxuan gave a wry smile. "With the family shop right there, you’re bound to pick up a thing or two."
They all chatted as they ate. Xu Mingxuan told them that if they could get a letter of introduction, the best place to source clothing for a business was Yangcheng City. The prices there were cheaper, and the styles were more fashionable.
He also reminded them that there were many scamrs there, so they should never be greedy for a cheap deal or easily trust anyone they didn’t know.
Listening to him, Lin Lan thought, ’This Xu Mingxuan is a sincere person. He’s telling us the honest truth.’
After the al, Xu Mingxuan took the four of them to his shop. The two salesgirls were quite pretty, and there were four or five custors inside trying on clothes.
The shop was half nswear and half wonswear. The n’s section had tunic suits and Western-style suits, with fabrics like wool, blended textiles, pure wool, polyester, and polyester khaki.
The won’s section had woolen overcoats and wool coats, as well as wool sweaters and bell-bottoms. The styles were even better-looking than the newest ones in the East Market departnt store.
Xu Mingxuan even told Lin Lan and the others to pick out a couple of items as a gift from him, but both Lin Lan and Zhou Xiaohong politely declined his kind offer.
After looking around, Lin Lan and Li Xiangyang decided to head to Old Chen’s place first. They arranged to et Zhou Xiaohong back at the No. 2 Hotel and said their goodbyes to Xu Mingxuan, who then graciously drove the two of them to Old Chen’s workplace.
Lin Lan gave Old Chen’s na to the elderly man at the gate. The gatekeeper led them to Old Chen’s office, told them to wait outside, and went in to get him.
"Little Lin, hello!" Old Chen walked toward them, his face wreathed in smiles. "Why didn’t you call ahead? I would have co to pick you up!"
Lin Lan saw that he was full of life—he’d put on so weight and had better color in his face. She smiled. "Uncle Chen, long ti no see."
Old Chen glanced at Li Xiangyang, thinking the young man had a dignified bearing and bright, piercing eyes. He smiled and extended a hand to him. "You must be Xiangyang!"
Li Xiangyang smiled and extended his hand. "Yes, Uncle Chen."
After shaking Li Xiangyang’s hand with a smile, Old Chen looked at them both. "Have you two eaten yet?"
They both smiled and nodded. "We have. We ca with friends and ate with them before coming here."
Old Chen led them into his office. "Sit for a bit. I’ll let my colleagues know, then I’ll take you to my ho."
"Uncle Chen," Lin Lan quickly stopped him, "we have other business to take care of in the city. We can only stay for a little while."
Old Chen looked at them and said sincerely, "No matter how busy you are, you must co to my ho for a visit! Just to see where it is, so you can stop by whenever you’re in the provincial capital. My wife has been wanting to et you and thank you in person."
"It was nothing at all, you really don’t need to worry about it," Lin Lan said with a smile. "We’re just very busy this ti. We’ll definitely visit next ti we’re here."
Hearing this, Old Chen had no choice but to nod. He invited them to sit and took out cups to brew them so tea. "I heard Lexing has already implented the household responsibility system. How many mu of land were you allocated?"
Lin Lan smiled. "Four mu. After the rapeseed harvest, the fields were handed over for us to cultivate ourselves."
"That’s an excellent policy. The commune mbers will have free ti now to do odd jobs or run small businesses." Old Chen paused, then smiled. "The mooncakes you make are delicious, and your pastries are very good too. Has your inco been alright these past six months or so?"
"The inco’s been good," Lin Lan said, pointing to her basket with a smile. "I brought you so this ti, along with so dried mushrooms, wood ear fungus, and Sichuan peppercorns we got from the mountains. We’re planning to open a shop selling local specialty products."
Old Chen said happily, "Excellent, selling local specialties is a great idea! The mushrooms and wood ear from the mountains are top-quality goods. In the past, whenever fresh mushrooms were in season, people would specifically co to collect them and sell them in the provincial capital. You don’t see that anymore!"
Lin Lan smiled. "The policies have just been relaxed. I’m sure people will start doing it again in the future."
The three of them made small talk for a while, and Old Chen asked Lin Lan if Little Douzi had started school yet.
When he heard that he had, he told Lin Lan to buy a few calligraphy copybooks for the boy. He said practicing his handwriting when he had free ti would help temper his personality, give him more patience for tasks when he’s older, and improve his concentration.
Lin Lan nodded in agreent. The two of them stayed at Old Chen’s office for half an hour before taking their leave.
Old Chen said to them, "If you’re not leaving this afternoon, you must co find . I’ll take you to my ho so you know where it is."
"Next ti, Uncle Chen. We still have friends waiting for us over by the station this ti. We’ll definitely co next ti," Lin Lan said.
Old Chen nodded and walked them to the entrance. He asked where they were headed next, gave them directions for the bus route, and only went back inside after watching them walk off into the distance.
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