The 1970s: Married First, Fell in Love Later-Chapter 184 - 183: Grand Opening

The three children ran around the store.

The style of the second floor was similar to the first, but with built-in cabinets and shelves on the walls. Two hidden doors led to a pair of rooms that could be used for resting or even as living quarters.

"This is great. All that’s left is to hang up the clothes. By the way, what about the merchandise for the second floor?"

He Lang’s last shipment had only included clothes, not shoes or accessories.

He Lang said, "We can’t hang the clothes yet. Let’s let them air out first. I’m planning to make another trip to Yangcheng soon."

Xue Yue looked at him. "You’re going alone?"

He Lang hesitated for a moment. "I’ll take Little Chen with me. Shitou should be able to handle the market stall on his own."

Xue Yue actually wanted to go to Yangcheng too. She’d heard from He Lang that the city had been developing incredibly fast over the past two years. But she still had classes to attend. She figured she could go during a school break.

At noon, the family went to a newly opened restaurant for lunch.

As they passed the door of a private room, they happened to see Li Wanqing and Wang Shumin inside. A middle-aged woman and a young man were with them. Xue Yue merely glanced in. Not wanting to run into Li Wanqing, she deliberately chose a room farther away from theirs.

However, when they came out after their meal, they saw Li Wanqing and Wang Shumin arguing at the restaurant’s entrance.

"I already told you I don’t want to be in a relationship right now! Why did you trick me into coming on a blind date?" Wang Shumin exclaimed, her face etched with frustration.

"Look how old you are! Aren’t I doing this for your own good? Besides, do you have any idea who his father is? If you marry him, you’ll be set for life!"

Wang Shumin laughed bitterly. "When it comes down to it, you’re just after his family’s status. Don’t tell me this is for my own good. Didn’t you notice? The man can barely string a sentence together! If I married him, would *I* be the one living the good life, or would *you*?"

"What kind of nonsense is that? I worked so hard to pull strings for you, and this is how you see me?"

"You know exactly what I’m talking about. I’m telling you one more time: my marriage is my decision to make. I will not be your ladder for social climbing, and I will not let you control my life."

Wang Shumin turned to leave but stopped when she saw Xue Yue and her family. She was instantly mortified. With a quick nod to Xue Yue, she ran off.

Just then, Li Wanqing also spotted Xue Yue and her family.

She frowned and glared at Xue Yue. "Can’t I get rid of you people?"

Xue Yue rolled her eyes. ’I was about to say the same thing,’ she thought. ’As if anyone wants to see *her*.’

Xue Yue didn’t bother replying. She just grabbed the children and hurried away.

"Hey, you—! So ill-mannered," Li Wanqing yelled at their retreating backs.

They went to the market, where Shitou and Little Chen were still at the stall. It was the middle of the afternoon, so there were no customers.

"We brought you lunch."

He Lang handed them the containers of takeout from the restaurant. Normally, the two of them took turns going home for lunch. If things got busy, they could buy food from a nearby place, and He Lang would reimburse them.

"He Lang, when are we moving into the new shop?" Shitou asked. He was so busy running the stall every day that even though he knew He Lang had bought a store, he hadn’t had a chance to see it yet.

"After I get back from Yangcheng."

"You’re going again?" Shitou was thinking they still had stock left from the last shipment.

He Lang nodded. "That’s right. For the grand opening, we need to have plenty of stock. Plus, we’re planning to sell shoes and accessories on the second floor, so I need to go select the inventory. It’ll be my first time selling things like that."

Shitou asked, "Then if we go, what happens to the stall?"

He Lang chuckled. "Just Little Chen and I will be going. Think you can handle things here on your own?"

Shitou puffed out his chest. "No problem."

"Great. Then I’m leaving this in your hands."

He Lang was anxious to open the store, so he and Little Chen left the very next day. Whenever Xue Yue didn’t have class, she would go to the shop to open the doors and let it air out.

He Lang and Little Chen made the round trip in a week, returning with a new load of merchandise.

For shoes, they brought back mainly sneakers and leather dress shoes.

The variety of accessories was much greater, including bracelets, necklaces, rings, as well as hair clips, headbands, stud earrings, and dangle earrings.

Never mind anyone else; even Xue Yue found herself dazzled by the array of accessories and couldn’t bring herself to put them down.

Zhang Qian and Xue Yue dove headfirst into the pile of accessories and didn’t emerge for a long, long time.

Xue Xingzhou smiled and asked He Lang, "So, when are you planning to open for business?"

"As soon as possible. But the business license hasn’t arrived yet, I still need to price the clothes, and we have to do some advertising."

Xue Xingzhou was suddenly reminded of the department stores from his past life, where everything seemed to end in ninety-nine cents. A smile touched his lips.

He Lang gave him a puzzled look. "What are you thinking about that’s making you so happy?"

Xue Xingzhou grinned. "Let me give you a piece of advice. You can set all your prices just under a round number. For example, price something at 5.99 or 9.99. Even though it’s basically the same as six or ten, it sounds cheaper. It’s a psychological trick."

He Lang murmured the numbers to himself, then clapped his hands together. "That’s a brilliant idea! Leave it to the university student to have such a sharp mind."

Xue Xingzhou just smiled. ’It’s not like I came up with it,’ he thought.

"As for advertising, you can have a print shop make some flyers. Write down the opening date, location, and the special discount. Then hire a few people to hand them out. That way, everyone will know when you’re opening. If you offer a ten or five percent discount on opening day, you’re guaranteed to draw a crowd."

"Mm, that was my plan as well. I’ll head to the print shop right after lunch."

True to his word, He Lang went to the print shop that very afternoon and had several stacks of flyers printed to advertise the store’s grand opening. He hired a few local kids to hand them out on the street for two straight days. For five yuan a day, plenty of them were happy to take the job.

A few days before the opening, the business license finally arrived. They officially packed up the market stall for good.

Everyone was busy at the new store, getting ready. The grand opening was finally here. 𝒇𝒓𝒆𝒆𝙬𝒆𝒃𝓷𝒐𝓿𝙚𝙡.𝒄𝓸𝒎

The opening day was set for a Sunday, and Xue Xingzhou and Zhang Qian came to help out.

Early that morning, a crowd had already gathered by the entrance. Many of them had received a flyer and came to see what all the excitement was about.

He Lang set off two strings of firecrackers at the door to mark the official opening.

People poured inside, and everyone was stunned by the store’s decor.

"Sir, these clothes must be really expensive, right?" Seeing the high-end decor, many people assumed the clothes would be pricey too.

He Lang said with a smile, "Not at all. Every item has a price tag. If you see something you like, just check the price. If it looks good, you can take it to a fitting room to try it on. Buy it only if you’re happy with it. The second floor has shoes and accessories, and you’re welcome to browse. Plus, everything in the store is ten percent off today. This discount is for today only; prices go back to normal tomorrow."

A woman picked up a blouse and checked the tag. Just as he’d said, the price was clearly marked: 29.90.

"Hey, that’s actually not too expensive. Just under thirty yuan."

Hearing her comment, the other customers relaxed, and soon, the first sale was made.