Chapter 82
The atmosphere was charged; where there was one trying on clothes, there were two more.
Where there was one paying, there was a whole crowd ready to pay.
And it must be said, Hu Yuying was remarkably quick at collecting money. One could hardly tell just how happy she was, her bright smile revealing a set of pearly whites, innocent and endearing.
As Hu Yuying collected the cash, Long Aotian went off to find the right size.
“Hey, young man, what size is this pair of pants your girlfriend wears? My daughter has a similar figure; I’ll take it home for her to try.”
“Sis, these pants are a bit pricey,” Long Aotian muttered, focused on finding the right size.
“How much? They look really good on her.”
“Twenty-eight yuan. You can take it for twenty-five, but I won’t make a profit.”
Hu Yuying didn’t know what to say; her mind was filled with the words “girlfriend.” She stared blankly at the older sister in front of her and nodded cutely, “Uh-huh, twenty-five isn’t profitable.”
It’s no wonder that pretty girls are the best at deceiving.
With Hu Yuying’s innocent and unassuming little face saying that, it was far more effective than Long Aotian calling her “sister” a hundred times.
By mid-morning, Long Aotian had been squatting on the ground looking for sizes without getting up.
As noon approached, people were heading home to cook. It was summer vacation, and no one wanted to let their own kids go hungry.
“Hey, Yuying, help me up; my foot’s gone numb.”
Hu Yuying happily helped Long Aotian up, guiding him to sit on the tricycle, her excitement barely contained: “Long Ge, we’ve made a lot of small change!”
“This is just the beginning. After lunch, many more people will come.”
Seeing Hu Yuying’s radiant smile, Long Aotian couldn’t help but ruffle her long hair.
“Really?”
“Yeah.” The gossiping women were just as good at spreading news as the old ladies who thrived on it.
Just the phrase “nineteen yuan” was enough to bring them running.
And for those who were buying for their kids, if the clothes fit, they might come back for more in the afternoon.
“It’s about time; I’ll go buy lunch. You keep an eye on the stall.”
Long Aotian instructed Hu Yuying before heading into the morning market.
He had spotted a few places selling roasted duck that smelled delicious.
While packing up the food, Long Aotian’s phone vibrated; it was a message from Hu Yuying.
She said she had sold two more short-sleeved shirts.
From her words, it was easy to sense just how happy she was.
“Long Ge is a rough guy; the only help I can give you is this.”
“The road ahead may be tough, but I hope that one day in the future, when you think back to today, you can feel as happy and joyful as you do now.”
After packing the food, Long Aotian took a deep breath and retraced his steps.
Two lunch boxes, a portion of sliced roasted duck, and a stack of thin pancakes—nothing extravagant, but enough to fill their stomachs.
“Long Ge, here’s something for you.” Hu Yuying handed him a wrapped pancake.
“You should eat too; the roasted duck won’t taste good when it’s cold.” This was already the third pancake she had rolled for herself.
“I’m not hungry yet.”
Hu Yuying loved watching Long Aotian eat; he devoured the pancake in one big bite.
So impressive.
Watching Long Aotian eat was even more enjoyable than eating herself.
Suddenly, Hu Yuying’s bright eyes sparkled with mischief as she pointed to the corner of her mouth. “Long Ge, here.”
Long Aotian, caught mid-chew, paused, forgetting to swallow.
He stared at Hu Yuying’s gesture, her smile genuine, her eyes sparkling with joy, as her delicate fingers pointed at the slight mess on her own lips.
“I’m a serious Long Ge.”
“You’re the least serious of all.” Hu Yuying shot him a playful glare. “Always teasing me, and now you’ve got sauce all over your mouth.”
Sometimes, Long Ge really did seem like a mature adult.
He protected her, guided her, helped her, took her to buy supplies, and showed her how to sell things. In this regard, Long Ge was truly unlike anyone else his age.
His mindset resembled that of a seasoned professional who had been navigating society for years.
Yet at times, Long Ge was like a child who hadn’t grown up.
He loved to tease her and could have a blast with anything that piqued his interest.
The last time they saw an excavator demolishing a house, while his peers hurried away to avoid the dust, Long Ge could sit on the roadside for ages, engrossed with a group of thirty-somethings.
From another perspective, Hu Yuying didn’t find the excavator demolishing the house particularly fascinating.
He was mature yet full of childlike wonder.
He was more vibrant and free-spirited than anyone she knew.
“Look at you, little Yuying, now you dare to call me Long Ge without any respect.”
“I’m a good girl, Long Ge! Oh, someone’s coming…” Hu Yuying shrank her neck and quickly stood up to greet the approaching customer.
As expected, just as Long Ge had said, the lunchtime crowd, while not as large as the morning’s, still brought in a steady stream of customers, and Hu Yuying’s pocket filled with small change was no less than it had been earlier...
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**Chapter 99: Because You Are Kind**
“Long Ge, we made a lot of small change today!” Hu Yuying exclaimed from the back of the tricycle, her excitement palpable.
It was her first time earning money to the point of her hands feeling sore, and for a little money-loving girl like Hu Yuying, it felt amazing.
Unconsciously, she began to hum a little tune.
Hearing her hum, it was easy to imagine just how happy she was.
As long as a person is easily content, they will surely be very happy.
“This is just the beginning; we’ll keep getting better.”
“Are we coming back here tomorrow, Long Ge?”
“Yeah, we’ll come back tomorrow, and the day after too. As for the day after that, we’ll see how it goes.”
That’s how it is with mobile stalls; you can’t stay in one place for more than three days unless the profits are consistently good.
Otherwise, it’s best to set up for three days and then move on.
Given today’s earnings, tomorrow and the day after should still be good; they’ll decide based on the situation then.
As they spoke, the two had already returned to the place where Hu Yuying was renting.
As soon as they got home, the first thing Hu Yuying did was lock the door, then excitedly pulled Long Aotian into the living room.
She rummaged through her pockets and laid all the money she had earned today on the sofa.
The small change quickly filled one corner of the couch.
Some of the money was organized during lunch, while some had been hastily stuffed into her pockets.
“Tomorrow, I want to take a little bag to carry my small change.”
Squatting beside the sofa, Hu Yuying carefully smoothed out the crumpled bills and organized them.
She grouped the twenties together.
The tens went in another pile.
The fifties and hundreds were all set aside.
A total of 3,275 yuan.
Hu Yuying beamed with joy; she had earned back her initial investment in just one day, and everything else sold would be profit: “Long Ge, you’re amazing!”
Before truly stepping into society, earning so much money in a single day was impressive in Hu Yuying’s eyes.
Not to mention, for an adult, this would be astonishing.
Especially considering that current salaries generally ranged from 2,000 to 3,500 yuan, with anything over 3,500 considered a high salary. Earning over 3,000 in a single day was more than what most people made in a month; how could that not be impressive? It was truly remarkable.
“Look at you, acting like you’ve got no ambition. Once you go to university and use what you’ve learned to work or start a business, you’ll be even more impressive. By then, you might not even care about this little bit of money.”
Hu Yuying shook her head. “Not a chance! I’m a little money lover!”
She placed the organized money into Long Aotian’s hands. Even though she loved her little change, it was still right to hand it over to Long Ge.
She just liked having her own little stash.
Long Aotian took the money, counted out 1,158 yuan, and handed it back to Hu Yuying.
He kept 1,842 yuan for himself.
The remaining money was split between them; although it was only a little over 130 yuan, this was just the first day.
Looking at the stack of red bills in front of her, Hu Yuying felt a bit dazed.
She had only earned 28 yuan from her part-time job that morning; even if she worked all day, she’d be lucky to make fifty or sixty. Wasn’t this too much?
After all, she hadn’t done much; Long Ge had carried the supplies, and the tricycle, sunshade, and loudspeaker were all his.
She had merely collected the money, and this...
“This is the result of our hard work together; you deserve it. There’s no need to feel shy about it.”
“Stop being so sentimental. Take your little money and make something delicious for Long Ge.”
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