Courtyard Houses: Starting with the principle of hard work paying off

Chapter 70 Clash of Ideas
Chen Xueru's words were ambiguous and could easily be misunderstood if they were posted on the internet in later years, but Li Hongbing obviously didn't misunderstand.

The two men's actions naturally piqued Li Hongmei's curiosity.

soon.

Li Hongmei then learned that while she was upstairs trying on and changing clothes, Li Hongbing had asked Chen Xueru to order two sets of clothes for him.

When Li Hongmei first learned about this, she was somewhat stunned.

However, she did not express any opinion, nor did she stop Li Hongbing from proceeding with the deal.

If it were just her, Li Hongmei would definitely not be willing to do the same thing.

But if the person is Li Hongbing, even if Li Hongmei has her own ideas, she won't strongly object.

Moreover, just now, Li Hongbing bought her an expensive outfit. If Li Hongmei were to object now, she would be too heartless.

After Chen Xueru finished taking the measurements and Li Hongbing paid the deposit, he said to Li Hongmei, "Sister, take another look and see which fabrics you like. Let's buy them together."

"Don't buy it."

Upon hearing Li Hongbing's words, Li Hongmei almost couldn't resist grabbing his ear.

Li Hongbing bought this outfit himself, and then had two more custom-made here, spending quite a bit of money in the process.

The key question is, if they already have all that, do they still need to buy more fabric?
"No, sis!"

Li Hongbing knew what Li Hongmei was thinking, but he couldn't just give up like that. He directly advised, "Sister, the clothes I just ordered are specifically for morning exercise. I haven't found any clothes for my daily life yet!"

I want to make two more sets!

Besides, what you were wearing just now isn't enough, is it?

"Before I marry Weiguo, I should hurry up and make myself a few new outfits. Otherwise, when I marry into his family, I'll only bring some old clothes, and they'll look down on me."

"Uncle Zhao and Aunt Chen are not those kinds of people."

Faced with Li Hongbing's fallacies, Li Hongmei felt powerless.

When someone gets married, they don't always bring new clothes. Li Hongbing is just talking nonsense.

Although she knew that Li Hongbing meant well and was thinking of her as his older sister, wanting her to have a more respectable marriage, Li Hongmei was not a vain person.

As for Zhao Weiguo and the Zhao family, they aren't that materialistic, otherwise she wouldn't have agreed to marry him.

Li Hongbing was helpless.

He was obviously exaggerating, just to get Li Hongmei to treat him better.

A large portion of the money I have now is specifically prepared for Li Hongmei, and it should rightfully belong to her.

If we don't come up with more pretexts, we won't be able to "give away" all of them.

Moreover, as his only family member at present, Li Hongbing naturally hopes that Li Hongmei will have a grand and glorious wedding.

The more glamorous and enviable it is, the better.

If Li Hongbing hadn't known that Li Hongmei would definitely be reluctant and would never agree to it again, he would have wanted to have several more sets of clothes made for her.

Anyway, he has money now, and he can spend it openly.

When others see this, they will only say that he is a good brother to his sister.

Seeing this, Chen Xueru immediately said to Li Hongmei, "Sister, whatever material you fancy next, I'll give you a 10% discount. Consider it a small token of my appreciation as your younger sister."

Because of Li Hongbing, Chen Xueru closed two deals in a row, and naturally she didn't mind giving up some more profit to win their favor.

If this relationship is maintained well, they will become stable repeat customers in the future.

The key point is that Li Hongbing, the younger brother, is so good to Li Hongmei, the older sister, and he's also very generous with his money. Both his looks and personality are very much to her liking.

Even if she gives up her share of the profits, she still makes money.

It's just a matter of how much more or less money you make compared to other customers.

Upon hearing this, Li Hongmei couldn't resist being tempted. The fabrics in Chen Xueru's shop were indeed of good quality.

Moreover, with a 10% discount, the price is directly cheaper than outside.

It's hard for her to remain unmoved.

finally.

Under Chen Xueru's enthusiastic sales pitch, Li Hongmei selected several more pieces of fabric, becoming the "shopaholic" she herself "hated".

This time, however, Li Hongmei refused to let Li Hongbing pay.

It's precisely because we have a good relationship that we need to be more clear about the distinctions.

Before leaving home in the afternoon, Li Hongmei had already handed over all the family finances to Li Hongbing, who would now be the head of the household.

He intended to save that money for his future marriage and family life, and to ensure the continuation of the Li family line.

Not long after.

Li Hongmei and her brother Li Hongbing were seen off at the door by Chen Xueru and left Chen's Cloth Shop with their purchases.

We hadn't gone far.

Li Hongmei couldn't help but "regret" it, feeling that she had just spent money extravagantly, just like Li Hongbing.

If I hadn't seized that opportunity to buy some good fabric, I'd probably regret it even more when I got back.

This is a very contradictory mentality.

Just like the Double Eleven and 618 shopping festivals in later generations, some people place orders frequently.

Li Hongbing has a deep understanding of this.

However, what Li Hongmei bought wasn't exactly a waste of money, since they were all necessities.

Moreover, within two years at most, following the implementation of unified purchase and sale of grain next year, the government will soon introduce policies for cotton and cloth, essential commodities, and implement planned supply through the issuance of cloth coupons.

At that time, these things won't be something you can just buy whenever you want.

Li Hongmei will never regret buying these things today.

On the way back, Li Hongmei inevitably gave Li Hongbing a lecture on the concept of consumption, admonishing him to be more mindful of his spending in the future.

Li Hongbing listened obediently without arguing.

Changing someone's long-held beliefs is obviously not easy. Li Hongbing did not intend to change Li Hongmei because her ideas were in line with the times.

Forcing change is unnecessary and not necessarily a good thing.

As for how I will spend my money in the future, I will spend it as I always have, but I will try to "avoid" Li Hongmei a little.

Originally, Li Hongbing wanted to go to the mall to look at sewing machines, and planned to buy one instead, and let Li Hongmei choose one herself.

Li Hongmei is making clothes these days, which can be used immediately or kept as part of her dowry.

However, seeing the situation, Li Hongbing temporarily abandoned the idea and could only find time later to secretly go and buy it by himself.

Otherwise, if Li Hongmei found out, she definitely wouldn't agree.

Although Li Hongmei's sewing skills are not as good as those of professional tailors, they are not bad among her peers.

Having a sewing machine would make mending and patching much easier and more effortless.

In the early days of the People's Republic of China, there was no such thing as "three turns and one sound".

It wasn't until several years later, when the country's industrialization had achieved initial results and the people's living conditions had generally improved, that it began to appear and gradually become popular.

At this time of year, it's not an exaggeration to say that sewing machines are a luxury for most ordinary people.

With this as a dowry, Li Hongmei will have more confidence when she's at her parents' home.

(End of this chapter)