Zhou Rui boldly invited Wan Tong to be the model in her shop and even offered Wan Tong a salary of 400 yuan. Second Brother Yan was shocked to hear this; his salary in the warehouse was less than 100 yuan, and even Youngest Sister’s salary, who worked as a treasurer in the factory, wasn’t as much as Tongtong.
Wan Tong assessed the cost of living at the time and realized that Zhou Rui was deliberately giving her a great deal. After all, there should have been plenty of other choices for a model. Zhou Rui knew that had just come from the village and was looking for work, so Zhou Rui decided to offer her the job.
Maybe it was also because of her Second Brother?
So Wan Tong agreed.
Zhou Rui originally wanted to give Wan Tong a pair of leather shoes, but Wan Tong refused.
Second Brother Yan was also tight on money. He looked at the shoes and felt guilty for a moment, but then he sought comfort from Wan Tong.
After the siblings left, Zhou Rui had the unsold goods from the corner brought out and matched them based on the feeling Wan Tong had just given her.
Suddenly, someone pushed the door open. Neither of the two shop assistants dared to approach, but they tugged at Zhou Rui’s sleeve.
“Boss…”
Zhou Rui looked over and saw a tall man entering. He was dressed plainly and looked a bit fierce despite his handsome features.
She remembered him; he was the person who came with Little Fourth Yan and scolded her before.
The shop sold mostly women’s clothing and accessories, and hardly any men came in alone. Was this man here to cause trouble? He seemed really difficult to deal with.
“Boss, he’s a notorious thug around here…” one of the shop assistants whispered.
Zhou Rui became nervous upon hearing this. Was he here to retaliate against her?
However, Yan Qinglu just silently circled the shop, and in the end, he picked up a pair of leather shoes and walked to the counter. “How much?”
“These are the newest styles in the store, it’s 30 yuan after discount,” Zhou Rui said casually, estimating a price she thought he would accept based on the wholesale price.
The nearby shop assistant didn’t say a word, but inwardly felt sorry. The shoes were of good quality and new style; they could probably be sold for 40 yuan…
Two minutes later, Yan Qinglu left with the shoes, just like any ordinary customer, albeit a bit more straightforward than the usual customers.
After Yan Qinglu left the clothing store, Chen Hou and others quickly surrounded him, talking all at once.
His ears were ringing from the chatter. He asked, “Where does she live?”
“On the other side of Yangguang Road,” Chen Hou replied.
Yan Qinglu nodded and dispersed them. He then bought some roasted chestnuts and sweet potatoes from a roadside stall.
Wan Tong and Second Brother Yan had just returned from the market when, at a nearby intersection, she unexpectedly saw Yan Qinglu.
She had to find an excuse to send Second Brother Yan home first before she approached Yan Qinglu.
When Yan Qinglu saw her, he handed her some fragrant sweet potatoes and roasted chestnuts.
The two sat down on a nearby stone bench. Wan Tong enjoyed the food and asked, “How did you know where I live?”
“I asked around,” Yan Qinglu replied vaguely, then looked at her profile and asked, “Why didn’t you tell me you were coming here?”
That way, he could have come with her.
“I wanted to try it alone. There’s really nothing to be afraid of in a big city,” Wan Tong replied.
People in the village all longed for city life, but deep down, they were also afraid, afraid that they wouldn’t be able to fit into that world.
“If I hadn’t come to find you, when were you planning to tell me?” Yan Qinglu’s voice sounded muffled.
Wan Tong pushed the remaining half of a sweet potato towards his mouth, “I’ll come to you once I settle down. Besides, in this city, finding you isn’t a difficult task, right?”
She intended to tease him, but she noticed his expression darken.
He was indeed quite famous.
Young in age, but with a fierce personality.
“What’s wrong?” She leaned closer, patting his shoulder.
Yan Qinglu pursed his lips, didn’t say anything, and handed over another box, muttering, “It’s for you.”
Wan Tong hesitated for a moment, “What is it?”
She opened the box and found the pair of shoes she had tried on at Zhou Rui’s store.
She looked at him in confusion, “You…”
Was he outside the store at that time?
“I think they look good on you.” Yan Qinglu smiled, then lightly pinched her braid. “Other girls have them, so my Tongtong should have them too.”
Wan Tong chuckled at his words and accepted the gift.
That evening, Yan Zheng returned from the construction site. Upon hearing that all three siblings had found jobs, he was overjoyed. He took them out to dinner and drank until his face was flushed with happiness.
Yan Zheng usually worked under the scorching sun, so his skin was dark, with wrinkles around his eyes, and has a large build that could scare children.
But Wan Tong worried about his future, given his excessive labor. So she took away his wine glass and poured him a cup of tea. “Dad, I have a salary now. I’ll support you in the future, so you don’t have to work on the construction site.”
Upon hearing these words, Yan Zheng, rough as he was, felt the care from his daughter. His eyes reddened for a moment, and he patted her shoulder, his voice husky, “I’m not a good father. If your mother were here, she would scold me. Fortunately, you all are sensible…”
“Dad, don’t say that. We’ve always had more than enough to eat since we were young, and you always brought us snacks.” Second Brother Yan interjected.
Although their dad was a rough man, sometimes when he got sentimental, there was no stopping him.
Yan Wan’ying suddenly changed the topic, “Fourth Sister, you’re going to be a model? Isn’t it dangerous? Nowadays, you never know who you might encounter. It’s not good to wear fancy clothes all day and show yourself off.”
Initially, Yan Zheng and Second Brother Yan didn’t think much of it, but after hearing Yan Wan’ying, they realized that being a model might not be a respectable job.
It could be dangerous if she encountered the wrong people.
“My boss and Second Brother knows each other. With her around, what trouble could I get into?” Wan Tong replied casually.
“Yeah, Miss Zhou is a good person. With her taking care of Tongtong, nothing will happen.” Second Brother Yan breathed a sigh of relief, and as he thought of Zhou Rui, his tone softened.
Yan Zheng asked a few more questions about the clothing store before finally feeling reassured.
Yan Wan’ying, seeing her father and brother’s reactions, felt dissatisfied, but she didn’t dare say anything more.
Looking at Wan Tong’s face, she found it even harder to swallow. Previously, Wan Tong looked malnourished and had scars on her face, but now she had gained weight, and the scars were gone. It felt like she was a different person.
In Yan Wan’ying’s memory, the original owner never liked this Fourth Sister because she always suppressed the original owner in everything. It was only when she was disfigured and became depressed and self-loathing that the original owner began to shine.
The current plot has been disrupted, as Yan Wantong didn’t die. Unexpectedly, Yan Wan’ying is still being oppressed by Yan Wantong.
Yan Wan’ying is not the original owner, so she doesn’t have to worry about any familial ties. Therefore, if Yan Wantong becomes an obstacle to her, she will definitely deal with this trouble.
The house Yan Zheng rented was a two-bedroom apartment, and he still lives on the construction site. Wantong and Yan Wan’ying shared a room, which was cramped and cold, not much better than their room back home.
“Fourth Sister, you also hate me, don’t you?” After turning off the lamp, Yan Wan’ying suddenly spoke to Wan Tong.
Looking at the dark mosquito net above, Wan Tong’s tone was calm, “Why do you ask? You are my sister.”
“But I feel like you’re always against me in everything.”
“How so?”
“Why did you come to the city?”
“Because I don’t want to rot at home.”
“…” Yan Wan’ying remembered the hurtful words she said before leaving home, could it be that Yan Wantong was provoked?
Wan Tong had recently gotten used to sleeping early, so when Yan Wanying fell silent, Wan Tong soon fell asleep.
Wan Tong quickly found a side job doing styling.
Zhou Rui comes from a wealthy family and sometimes brings several sisters to the shop to hang out and have afternoon tea.
On Wan Tong’s first day at work, she just wandered around the shop, or went out to the door occasionally, just as Zhou Rui wanted, to attract customers.
Zhou Rui didn’t intend to restrain her or set rules for her.
In the afternoon, Zhou Rui brought in three fashionable sisters, who also showed interest in the new items in the shop.
When they saw Wan Tong, they couldn’t help but look at her a few more times.
Wan Tong’s hairstyle was pretty, like a little princess, and it seemed like she was wearing makeup, but from a distance, it was hard to tell, it looked so natural, unlike the obvious makeup on their faces.
So for the next two hours, Wan Tong styled each of them and re-did their makeup.
After happily going out for afternoon tea with her sisters, Zhou Rui came back and gave feedback to Wan Tong on how well-received her makeup was, and some even wanted to invite her to do their makeup.
Although the economy is still in a downturn, the upper-class ladies in City A have no concept of money and are willing to spend.
After thinking about it, Wan Tong decided to cooperate with Zhou Rui and redecorate a corner of her clothing store into a makeup room.
Zhou Rui helped Wan Tong get clients, and Wan Tong was responsible for styling and makeup, while also promoting the clothes in the store.
From that day on, Wan Tong received five or six requests for styling every day, and the customers brought their own makeup. The space was provided by Zhou Rui, she was practically making money out of thin air.
Wan Tong priced a styling session at 10 yuan, but Zhou Rui felt it was too low and raised it to 15 yuan, saying that her sisters were the easiest to make money from.
Wan Tong : “…” They’re plastic sisters, indeed.
After trying it for a few days, not only did the store’s revenue increase, but Wan Tong also earned a few hundred yuan.
When Zhou Ye knew what her sister was up to, he also came over to join in the fun. When he saw Wan Tong, he was surprised for a while, “…It’s you?”
Seeing her brother stunned, Zhou Rui seemed to understand something, but also felt a little regretful.
In her shop, Little Fourth Yan was quite popular. Many of Zhou Rui’s male friends wanted her to introduce them, but whenever she thought of the gang leader Yan Qinglu who bought shoes from her shop that day, she dismissed the idea.
She didn’t know at first that Yan Qinglu bought the shoes as a gift for Little Fourth Yan, but she saw Little Fourth Yan wearing them yesterday.
She didn’t ask much, but Wan Tong quietly told her not to let Second Brother know about her and Yan Qinglu.
At that moment, she understood more deeply that this Little Fourth Yan had real guts, daring to experiment with various makeups on others’ faces and daring to be in a relationship with the feared gang leader.
So, her brother was destined for unrequited love and would be heartbroken.