69novels Chapter 425 - 423: Buy (2)
Chapter 425 - 423: Buy (2)
Li Aihong gestured toward Lin Lan. "This is Lin Lan, a friend of mine. She told me the mountain villagers over in Shilian, part of Zhenjiang, suffered a disaster. Their homes were buried by a mudslide... Little Lin came to me looking to buy some work cloth. I remembered we needed to get rid of a batch of work clothes, so I brought her here."
After Li Aihong finished speaking, Lin Lan smiled and extended a hand to Director Su. "Hello, Director Su!"
"Hello!" Director Su shook Lin Lan’s hand, then pushed his office door open and said to them, "Come on in. We can talk inside."
Li Aihong said politely, "Sorry to keep you from heading home."
Director Su just smiled and pointed to the chairs in front of his desk. "Have a seat. Tell me what’s going on."
"Thank you!" Lin Lan and Li Aihong sat down. Lin Lan began to explain to Director Su, "I only learned this afternoon that their area had been hit by a disaster. My aunt and my cousin’s family, along with Zhou Dashu—the grandson of the Shishanling village head—came to find my father. They were carrying two burlap sacks and two baskets of dried mushrooms, hoping to trade them for grain, cotton, cloth, and iron pots to take back with them."
"I’ve already asked some friends to help me sort out the grain, cotton, and homespun cloth. Then I remembered the discounted work cloth I bought from you all last year was so sturdy and durable, so I came looking for Sister Li. She said you didn’t have any discounted work cloth for sale, so she brought me to see you."
Director Su thought for a moment. "At the current market price for dried mushrooms," he said, "even if they sold everything they brought, I’m afraid they’d only be able to afford some grain. And even if I give you the lowest possible price, the factory still needs to be paid."
Lin Lan smiled. "I can front them the money. They can pay me back after they’ve gathered more mushrooms, Sichuan peppercorns, and cardamom to sell. I just hope you can give them a favorable price."
Director Su gave Lin Lan a surprised look. "Alright. Since you’re willing to front the money for clothes for the displaced villagers, I’ll give you a special price. Three yuan for two sets. You can buy as many as you need."
Li Aihong chimed in, "Little Lin, all our factory’s work clothes are made from that work cloth. Our cost for the fabric alone is sixty or seventy fen per chi, and one set of clothes takes over seven chi of material. Without even counting labor, the cost is four or five yuan. The price the director is offering you is a real bargain."
"Thank you, Director Su," Lin Lan said, full of gratitude. "I’d also like to ask, how many sets of the rain-damaged work clothes does the factory have?"
’I’ll buy all the work clothes, take them to Vegetable Market Street to sell, and use the profits to buy supplies for the people of Shishanling.’
Director Su thought for a moment. "There are over four hundred sets. They all have varying degrees of water damage and fading."
Lin Lan said, "Director Su, could you possibly lower the price by another two jiao per set? If so, I’ll buy all of them."
Director Su glanced at Lin Lan. "Over four hundred sets of work clothes... at three yuan a set, that would be more than a thousand yuan. The factory doesn’t extend credit to individuals."
Lin Lan smiled. "Don’t worry, Director Su. I’ll pay five hundred yuan upfront. As for the rest, could you have someone deliver the goods to Lanxiang House bakery at the entrance to the south side market? I will pay the remaining balance immediately upon delivery."
Director Su hesitated for a moment before nodding. "Alright. I’ll write you a payment slip, and you can take it to the finance office." He then looked toward Li Aihong. "Little Li, could you go check if Little Ge in the finance office has left for the day?"
"Okay!" Li Aihong agreed and hurried out. A moment later, she returned to the office doorway. "Director Su, Little Ge is still there."
Director Su nodded and handed the slip to Lin Lan. "The factory also has a lot of fabric remnants and some canvas packing bags. I’ll have someone bundle them up for you to give to the villagers."
"Thank you, Director Su!" Lin Lan said gratefully. "On behalf of the people of Shishanling, thank you." ’Tomorrow, I’ll check at the clothing shop,’ she thought. ’If we have a regular customer with the surname Su, I’ll have Little Xue make a note to give them a discount.’
Director Su smiled. "Go on, now. Little Ge will be leaving for the day soon."
Lin Lan happily went to the finance office. She paid with the cash she had on her, signed a note for the outstanding balance, and then went with Li Aihong to the warehouse to take inventory of the work clothes.
Li Aihong also gathered all the fabric remnants and packing bags from the warehouse for Lin Lan, filling several large sacks. "If they wash these packing bags and use a bit of dye on them, they can be made into clothes for working in. The fabric scraps can be used to make shoes or to patch together clothes for the kids."
"Thank you, Sister Li. On behalf of the people of Shishanling, thank you."
"No need to thank me. What you’re doing is a truly good deed," Li Aihong said with a smile. "Take me, for example. When my husband had his accident, it was the most difficult time for me. I only managed because my coworkers and the director here at the factory helped pull my family through. They’re the reason we had food on the table."
Lin Lan nodded. "You’re all good people, and your director is a good man."
Just then, the worker assigned to make the delivery arrived. Everyone helped load the goods onto the truck. After saying goodbye to Li Aihong, Lin Lan climbed aboard, and the truck headed for the bakery on the south side of the city.
The truck had just pulled up to the shop when she saw Li Xiangyang approaching on his bicycle.
Lin Lan quickly said to the driver, "Sir, that’s my husband up ahead. He’s here for me. I’m just going to say a quick hello."
"Alright." The driver nodded and brought the truck to a stop.
Lin Lan leaned out the window and called to Li Xiangyang, "Xiangyang, go on to the bakery and wait for me!"
Li Xiangyang stopped his bike beside the truck and looked up at Lin Lan. "Did you get the work cloth?"
Lin Lan smiled. "I did. I bought ready-made work clothes instead. I’ll tell you the details later. I’m heading to the bakery, meet me there."
"Okay!" Li Xiangyang turned his bicycle and headed down the alley.
By the time Lin Lan’s truck reached the bakery, Li Xiangyang was already there. The driver got out, opened up the back of the truck, and began unloading the goods.
After seeing the driver off, Li Xiangyang looked at the ten or so large sacks and smiled. "What took you so long? It’s almost dark. Hou Bing came to find me, otherwise I wouldn’t have known you went to the clothing factory. And why did you buy so much?"
Lin Lan smiled. "Let’s get it all inside first, and then I’ll explain."
Li Xiangyang nodded, took out his keys, and unlocked the door. The two of them carried everything inside and stacked it in a corner.
"I bought all the work clothes they were clearing out," she explained. "I’ll set aside what the people from Shishanling need and sell the rest out front for five or six yuan a set. I’m positive they’ll sell."
Lin Lan looked at Li Xiangyang and said, "I want to use the profits to help them buy more things. Also, the rice and sorghum I bought from Li Wu... I was planning to just give it to them as a gift. What do you think?"
Li Xiangyang patted her hand. "That’s a great idea. First, let’s go ask your cousin about the clothing sizes for the people from Shishanling. We’ll pick out the sizes they need, and we can sell the rest."
Lin Lan looked at him, her face beaming. "Thank you, Xiangyang!"
"You silly girl, what are you thanking me for?" Li Xiangyang squeezed her hand affectionately. "Two or three hundred yuan worth of grain isn’t a big deal for us, but it means the world to them."
He paused for a moment, looking at Lin Lan. "Your dad came to see me about the iron pots. After he heard what was happening, the old man said that our family has had good fortune this year and acquired several properties. He told us we should buy some things to donate to the victims in Shishanling, to build up good karma for the children."