How I Tamed My Wolfish Husband Back in 80s-Chapter 336 - 338: The Art of Insulting_1

Three days later, on Saturday afternoon, Li Qiao came to the department store alone. There were quite a few people with tickets crowded around the counter selling radios, trying to buy them.

She couldn’t figure out why, as everyone seemed to be diligently working, and except for the workers in higher positions who had higher wages, the salaries of others were not much different.

Where had these people saved their money from?

Were they also secretly doing business?

After everyone had finished buying and left, she finally stepped forward and bought a radio with a tape recorder, and sent it back home along with the materials she had prepared earlier.

Having taken care of this matter, Li Qiao felt a sense of relief, and her steps became lighter as well.

Passing by the crossroads, she saw a sign.

It read "Beijing’s first privately-owned restaurant."

She was somewhat incredulous, but more than that, she was shocked. The news had only been reported in the newspapers a few days ago, and now someone had already started doing it.

She thought about how the next day was the day she had arranged to treat Nan Chuyi to a meal.

Lately Qin Jin had been busy inquiring about loans to buy land, preoccupied with accounting certification, and arranging for people to stock up and sell goods, so busy that he barely had time to touch the ground. To ask him to cook, would that not be exhausting? She couldn’t bear to see him tired.

And her and her grandmother’s cooking skills... weren’t quite presentable.

After weighing the options, she decided to eat at the restaurant and then went to visit the Xue family.

Xue Sufen grumbled: "Like attracts like, you’ve finally found a companion."

Nan Chuyi was unapologetically blunt: "In the world of crows, swans are guilty. You, the black crow!"

Xue Sufen stamped her foot: "You, you, you! You’re the black crow."

"I’m not black. My grandma says this skin tone of mine is called ’cool fair.’ Look at me and Li Qiao, we’re almost the same shade of white, like swans. The flock of white swans has no room for black crows. You must be eaten up with jealousy."

Xue Sufen ended up in tears, offended: "Where am I black? You don’t act like an elder at all."’

Almost as soon as Xue Sufen finished speaking, Nan Chuyi started: "Do you act like a younger one? University students who don’t even understand the basics of courtesy, so uncultured. I haven’t been educated, but even I know to respect the old and love the young."

Xue Sufen, unable to win the argument, ran away.

Nan Chuyi continued: "It’s quite boring at home, wait until you figure out how to retort me, and we can continue arguing."

Xue Sufen: "....."

Li Qiao laughed until she cried, realizing that besides Qin Jin, probably only Nan Chuyi could curse someone out so effectively.

Nan Chuyi: "Stop laughing, or you’ll get wrinkles at the corners of your eyes."

Li Qiao covered her mouth.

Nan Chuyi let out a snicker: "I’m just teasing you. When it’s time for wrinkles to appear, they’ll come even if you don’t laugh. Women, you know, past the age of thirty-five, the vitality they’re born with gets used up, and they’ll suddenly look old."

Li Qiao: "Can it be replenished? I don’t want to get old."

"How old are you anyway?"

"I should be older than you," Li Qiao said.

"I’m twenty-one years old," Nan Chuyi sighed softly.

Time really flies.

She remembered leaving Beijing when she was only six.

In the blink of an eye, fifteen years had passed.

Li Qiao: "Oh, then I’m a year younger than you."

Nan Chuyi smiled: "You got married pretty early, did you have an arranged engagement from childhood like I did?" In fact, her grandmother had no plans to interact with the Xue family again, as times had changed.

But the grandmother worried about her being alone in the future and, since she felt unwell, she had asked Nan Chuyi early on to start looking for a partner.

The young men in the mountains usually had some bad habits.

She didn’t like them, and she had delayed it until this year when her grandmother really had no choice but to tell her that she had been betrothed.

To Xue Jingyi. Before the grandmother’s passing, she had made Nan Chuyi promise to marry into the Xue family, insisting that she needed someone to protect her before she could die peacefully, otherwise, she would not rest easy.

But Xue Jingyi didn’t agree, and Nan Chuyi couldn’t force a marriage.

This was also exposed by Xue Sufen, the show-off. When Xue Sufen heard that she was looking for a partner, she immediately took a high-handed attitude, talking about what her parents did, what her brother did, what her uncle did, and how she, as an only child, was not a match for them.

Then, by a strange coincidence, Nan Chuyi saw the Xue family’s family portrait.

There were many people in the photo.

The features of Xue Lingqing reminded her of a picture her grandmother had shown her of Old Mr. Xue in his younger days.

In the family portrait, Xue Lingqing stood on the very edge, with Xue Sufen by his side. He definitely had no partner.

Suddenly, she had a strategy.

If Xue Jingyi didn’t want her, his uncle would do.

Old Mr. Xue agreed, and the very next day, he sneaked off with her to the civil affairs office to register for his son.

As it turned out, her judgment was sound; Xue Lingqing was a man of few words, but he provided money for expenses and cared about people daily. He was just a bit cold, but he treated everyone that way.

"It’s not like that," Li Qiao was embarrassed to elaborate, so she brought up the matter of eating again, "Tomorrow afternoon at five-thirty, Spring Restaurant, I’ll come to find you then."

"Okay," Nan Chuyi agreed, "Shall we go shopping together?"

It so happened that Li Qiao was free, "Sure, wait for me to bring the dog along." Taking it out for a stroll during the day meant it wouldn’t be restless at night.

Nan Chuyi and Li Qiao entered the courtyard that housed the clothing business together.

"Is anyone here?"

"Just grandma and a fellow villager," Li Qiao called out.

Old Mrs. Qin came forward with a smile, "Chuyi, come sit down quickly."

"I won’t sit, I can’t stay long." Nan Chuyi picked up a newly made coat, "The weather is a bit warm for a coat now, isn’t it?" They had only just started wearing thin jackets these past few days.

"The thick clothes are always sold in advance," Old Mrs. Qin explained, lifting the new garment to compare it against her. "Try it on."

Nan Chuyi: "I’m not planning on buying."

"It’s a gift."

Nan Chuyi waved her hands fervently, "I’ve already taken some of Li Qiao’s clothes earlier; they’re enough for me."

"This is a new design, take it, don’t be polite," Old Mrs. Qin insisted warmly.

Unable to refuse such kindness, Nan Chuyi said, "I’ll try it on; if it fits, I’ll keep it." She put the coat on over her jacket.

Li Qiao said, "It really suits you." It had the feel of a luxury brand.

They were selling themselves short by hawking such clothes at a stall.

Grandma acted as the quality inspector, demanding high standards, and when the clothes were shipped out, not a single extra thread was to be seen.

Qin Jin had mentioned that besides selling at the stall, they also supplied goods to department stores.

But the price was much lower than retail.

And yet, once the clothes were hung in a department store, the price would be marked up several times over. He intended to open his own store to sell them, but due to environmental factors, it had not been possible. Nowadays, there were shops opening up in the city, and their own shop was probably about to be set up as well.

There was a full-length mirror in the room; Nan Chuyi walked back and forth in front of it, "Not bad, I’ll shamelessly accept it then."

Old Mrs. Qin beamed, "Don’t mention it."

......

Nan Chuyi first took her new coat home, then headed out to the streets with Li Qiao.

They couldn’t take the bus with the dog, so they walked.

Along the way, many street vendors were out and about, selling braised dishes, fruits, candied haws on sticks, roasted chestnuts... it was incredibly lively.

"It’s different in the city, back in our hometown, this wouldn’t be possible," Nan Chuyi said.

Li Qiao: "Nowadays, it should be possible back home too." After all, the content in the major newspapers was shared.

The two chatted and played all the way through their walk.

They also bought quite a few things.

Nan Chuyi was very generous, insisting on paying the bills, which made Li Qiao curious, "Grandma said you hardly charge for your medical services, where do you get the money to spend?"

"Don’t I have a partner? He left me some money when he went away; it’s a waste not to spend it."

Li Qiao laughed; alright then.

After another round of the night market as darkness fell, they each went home.

Li Qiao first took the dog back to the courtyard, then headed home.

Old Mrs. Qin’s room light was on, clearly waiting for her, "Qiaoqiao, have you eaten?"

"I have," replied Li Qiao as she returned to her room. Qin Jin wasn’t there; she asked further, "Grandma, where’s Jin?"

Old Mrs. Qin: "I didn’t notice; don’t worry about him, get some rest early."

"Okay," Li Qiao responded.

On the dressing table in her room were the test papers distributed after today’s accounting class.

Li Qiao had her own paper; she picked up his, finished hers, and compared the answers with Qin Jin’s. Whenever they differed, she scrutinized them closely. She had a perfect score, while Qin Jin scored a 97.

Not bad at all.

Talent really does matter.

His exceptional comprehension allowed him to outperform ninety percent of those striving hard, with just under half a year’s effort.