Chapter 333: Sister-in-law Will Look Great in This Outfit

Chapter 333: Sis-in-law would look great in this outfit

Fu Yuanhang and Uncle Mu exchanged glances, simultaneously shaking their heads and speaking in unison: "Nah, we're good!"

With that, they continued walking straight ahead without looking around.

Little Black cut them off: "Hey, hey, you two! What’s the key to getting by out here? Friends, right? With a local friend like me, you’ll be set. Come on, where are you headed? I’ll get you a rickshaw for just one yuan—how’s that?"

Fu Yuanhang replied, "I’m a local too. The bus fare for both of us is only four cents. Why would we pay you one yuan? We’re broke students."

Little Black still wouldn’t give up: "But you’d have to wait for the bus, right? Plus, we’ll help carry your luggage. Fine, last offer—50 cents, take it or leave it?"

Fu Yuanhang said, "Quit hassling us and go find other customers. We only have enough for the bus. Go bother someone else."

Uncle Mu spoke earnestly: "Buddy, we’ve been around—we’ve seen all kinds of people. You’re barking up the wrong tree. Go find someone else, don’t waste your time."

Little Black froze for a moment, scratching the back of his head and muttering to himself, "They don’t sound like locals… thought they were tourists ripe for the picking."

"Suckers" was S City slang for easy marks.

Fu Yuanhang understood but didn’t call him out, just tugging Uncle Mu forward.

Uncle Mu, abruptly dragged away, had actually wanted to chat a bit more.

"Let’s go. If we don’t hurry, we’ll miss the bus back to the county." Was he really itching to get scammed?

As soon as they left, a group of kids—even younger and more ragged-looking than Little Black—closed in on him. "What’s up, Black Bro? Just letting them go like that? Should we follow them?"

"Yeah, those two were dressed to the nines, fair-skinned and clean—definitely rich kids. They looked like prime marks."

"Come on, Black Bro, it’s almost New Year’s. We gotta make some extra cash for the holidays."

Little Black shook his head. "Forget it. Those two are too slick—no easy score here. Let’s find someone else."

Though reluctant, the group didn’t pursue Fu Yuanhang and Uncle Mu any further.

Fu Yuanhang, who knew the ropes, led Uncle Mu to the bus stop, where they boarded a bus heading to the city’s central bus depot.

At the station, they quickly bought tickets for the bus back to Qinglian County.

However, there were still two hours before departure.

After discussing it, they decided to find a restaurant for a decent bite—after all, the food on the train hadn’t been great.

Thanks to their part-time work at the factory, they actually had plenty of pocket money.

For this trip, Auntie Zhong, Mo Jiazhe, and Mo Gong had each given Uncle Mu ten yuan, on top of the spending money he’d brought himself—he was rolling in it.

Fu Yuanhang, of course, was even better off. Fu Zhengtu and Su Taotao treated him like an adult, giving him free rein with the family funds.

Still, he knew better—he hadn’t brought much cash on this trip, actually carrying less than Uncle Mu. But he did have some grain and meat coupons with him.

The two enjoyed a hearty meal at a nearby state-run restaurant.

Patting his stomach, Uncle Mu said, "Ah Hang, I live for trips like this."

Fu Yuanhang wasn’t as carefree. He kept watching for trouble, unlike the relaxed Uncle Mu.

On their way back, they passed a state-run department store. The unreliable Uncle Mu insisted on going in to buy a gift for Auntie—Fu Yuanhang couldn’t stop him if he tried.

"Are you crazy? We're going back to the village to pick someone up. Why buy gifts here just to carry them back to the island? We might as well buy them back there!"

Uncle Mu slapped his forehead. "You're right, my head wasn’t on straight. No buying, no buying!"

As they left the state-owned store, Uncle Mu felt someone tug at his clothes. "Sir, are you looking to buy clothes?"

Uncle Mu wanted to say no, but the one tugging at him was a little girl with big round eyes, and he couldn't say no.

Just as Fu Yuanhang was about to decline, the little girl added, "My auntie came back from Hong Kong to visit family and brought a lot of clothes from Dongguan. They're selling cheap—want to take a look and see if anything suits you?"

"We've got time, why not check it out?" Uncle Mu said.

Fu Yuanhang didn’t want any trouble.

The little girl turned around. "See this outfit I'm wearing? Pretty, right? It's the newest style my auntie brought back from Hong Kong."

Fu Yuanhang thought about how Su Taotao didn’t have many winter clothes—most of their fabric tickets had gone toward buying clothes for the kids, and even little Pangpang had used up quite a few. So he asked, "Do these require fabric tickets?"

The girl shook her head. "No tickets needed, and I promise they're cheaper than the state-owned store."

And just like that, Fu Yuanhang and Uncle Mu followed the little girl into an alley.

She hadn’t lied—hidden in the alley were several people browsing through clothes.

Fu Yuanhang and Uncle Mu didn’t know much about fashion, but the colors of the clothes were undeniably pretty, and they were all women’s styles.

Uncle Mu wrinkled his nose. "These don’t suit Auntie Zhong or Auntie, but they’d be perfect for Aunt Taozi and my future sister-in-law."

From going with her so often, Su Taotao had gotten Fu Yuanhang a good eye for quality and aesthetics.

One touch told him these were quality clothes.

"See, Sir? I wasn’t lying—these clothes are really nice," the little girl said.

"Little sister, these are women’s clothes. How are we supposed to wear them?" Uncle Mu got more doubtful the longer he looked.

The girl blinked her big eyes in confusion. "Don’t you have any sisters, aunts, or sisters-in-law at home?"

Uncle Mu: "..." He really didn’t. The only woman in his household was Auntie Zhong, and if he wasted money on these flashy clothes, she’d break his legs.

Fu Yuanhang picked out a few simple cashmere sweaters and asked, "How much for these?"

The woman selling the clothes—likely the "auntie" the girl had mentioned—had permed, wavy hair and looked young and stylish, clearly someone who’d just returned from Hong Kong.

"You’ve got good taste, little brother. These pieces are imported goods, not from Dongguan. They’re made of cashmere, and this is the hottest style this year—you won’t find it domestically. But they’re not cheap. At least this much per piece."

(The term "imported goods" was local slang for foreign products.)

The auntie held up a hand with all five fingers showing.

Uncle Mu gasped, eyes widening. "F-fifty bucks?!"

The auntie nodded. "The Dongguan stuff is cheaper—some go for twenty. But these are high quality, and they cost a lot to bring in. I’m hardly making anything, just covering the effort. If they don’t sell, I’ll just wear them myself."

Uncle Mu only had fifty bucks on him, and Fu Yuanhang had even less—just thirty.

A single piece would take most of their cash.

Fu Yuanhang kept holding the clothes, hesitantly set aside the camel and white ones before deciding on a light blue-gray checkered coat with a lapel. "I’ll take this one. Forty, okay? I don’t have that much with me." (Note: "Imported goods" refers to items brought in from abroad, often considered higher quality and more desirable.)

The auntie exclaimed, "Oh, kid, you drive a hard bargain! At forty, I'd be losing money."

Uncle Mu called out to him, "Ah Hang, this is ridiculously expensive. Let's drop it."

An elderly woman nearby also advised Fu Yuanhang, "Sonny, these ten-yuan ones are just fine. Don’t believe all that talk about foreign goods—just because they've come from abroad, they're suddenly expensive."

Fu Yuanhang kept his determined gaze on the seller.

Truth be told, several people had asked about these pieces, but all balked at the price.

Her price tag had dropped from a hundred to eighty, then to fifty, yet people still found it too pricey.

That's just how it was—after all, an ordinary worker’s monthly wage was only a few dozen yuan back then.

Few could afford to spend an entire month’s salary on a single piece of clothing.

Fu Yuanhang was the most genuine buyer she’d encountered. If she didn’t sell now, these clothes might really be left on her hands.

She could wear them herself, but she already had more clothes than she could ever use.

Forty yuan wouldn’t put her at a loss—she just wouldn’t profit much.

"Alright, alright, I’ll consider this my first sale of the day. I’ll sell it to you, kid. But let me be clear—this is a quality item. Anyone with taste will see that. I originally planned to sell it for a hundred, so it’s absolutely worth the price."

"Don’t come back complaining that I cheated you if the adults at home think it’s too expensive. Once the deal’s done, there’s no refund or exchange—just so you know."

Fu Yuanhang smiled and shook his head. "That won’t happen."

He turned to Uncle Mu. "Lend me twenty yuan. I’ll pay you back when we return."

Uncle Mu freely handed over the money. "Only my Aunt Taozi deserves such expensive clothes. Even though I can't tell quality, buying it for her is worth it. No need to pay me back!"

Fu Yuanhang said nothing. The clothes were his gift to his sister-in-law, and he would definitely repay the borrowed money.

Handing the money to the seller, he asked, "Could I have this bag? I still have a long way to go."

The auntie was taken aback to hear it was for his sister-in-law.

It was rare to see a brother-in-law treat his sister-in-law so well. She replied generously, "Here you go. Packed like this, it looks even more high-end. Your sister-in-law will surely love it."

Fu Yuanhang gave a knowing smile. "Thank you."

"Your sister-in-law must be very beautiful?" the auntie asked casually as she handed him the wrapped clothes.

Fu Yuanhang nodded. "Very beautiful."

Uncle Mu added, "My Aunt Taozi is the most beautiful woman in the world."

As they left, the little girl waved cheerfully. "Safe travels, big brothers!"

Fu Yuanhang and Uncle Mu replied, "Goodbye."

On their way back, Uncle Mu suddenly asked, "Didn’t you say it was too far to carry now and that we’d buy it later? Why did you get it now?"

Fu Yuanhang held the clothes carefully. "Chances like this don't come often. My sister-in-law used all her fabric tickets to buy clothes for us and didn’t get any for herself. It’s hard to find good clothes that don’t require tickets."

Uncle Mu nodded. "You’re right. My Aunt Taozi is beautiful and kind-hearted—she bought so many clothes for Pangpang but forgot about herself. She’ll definitely love something this expensive."

Fu Yuanhang gave a small smile. If she liked it, it wouldn’t be because of the price.

His sister-in-law would look stunning in this outfit—and surely be very happy, right?

The two jogged back to the bus station, arriving with less than ten minutes to spare before departure.

They quickly boarded and settled in, waiting for the bus to set off for Qinglian County.