Wan Tong never intentionally concealed her relationship with Yan Qinglu, but the people around her who knew about it remained tight-lipped, and Yan Qinglu wouldn’t make a big deal out of dating her.
After Reporter Chen learned about this, she couldn’t remain calm at all. If it weren’t for the inappropriate occasion, she would definitely have pulled Wan Tong aside for questioning.
Wan Tong wasn’t afraid that Reporter Chen would spread rumors. She chatted with Reporter Chen for a few moments before entering the store.
The salesgirl named Huahua was an old employee. Wan Tong was worried that she might be too busy, so she asked Huahua to come here to help out for a few days.
At this moment, despite being adept at handling situations and having encountered numerous bizarre customers, Huahua’s face flushed red as she followed behind the two women with permed hair.
“Oh my, this store is so expensive, it’s really robbing people!” A relatively older woman commented while looking at the new summer dresses in the store, not forgetting to complain.
Another woman chimed in, “Sister-in-law, some stores just love to boast about their prices, thinking they’re classy. Look at this thin fabric, yet they dare to price it so high. The dress I’m wearing, they also have it in their store, but it’s more than twice the price!”
“What? Is that so? Which store did you buy from?” Suddenly, another woman nearby also joined in, asking in a low voice, seeming quite interested.
After all, Mingrui’s clothes were indeed nice, but compared to other stores, they were indeed a bit expensive.
Seeing this, Huahua felt anxious and was about to step forward to say something, but she was stopped by Wan Tong.
“Oh, let me tell you, it’s a stall near the station, very cheap, with styles similar to those here.” The older woman said somewhat proudly, feeling as if she were very wise. Her voice was somewhat loud, attracting the attention of many people.
Wan Tong stepped forward and said gently, “Ladies, the clothes in our store are all self-designed, and we only sell them in our own store. The ones you’re wearing, although they look similar to ours, are not our brand, so naturally, the prices are different.”
For professionals in the clothing industry, it’s natural to sketch out similar or even identical designs after encountering a finished garment. So every time Wan Tong introduced a new design in her store, in about a week, knock-off versions would flood the market at lower prices.
The current crowd didn’t have the concept of authentic and knock-off goods yet. Those with poor economic conditions would compare prices from different places and ultimately choose the cheapest option, while those with better financial situations would feel uncomfortable if they saw others buying the same thing for a lower price and would tend to lean towards knock-offs.
“Oh, then why is your store so expensive?”
“Believe me, ladies, if you’ve touched these clothes, you’ll find that the fabric in our store is of very good quality. Although our clothing designs are being copied and imitated, our quality justifies the price…”
Before Wan Tong could finish speaking, the older woman became annoyed, “Are you saying your store is genuine, and what I bought is fake? How audacious! There are plenty of clothes like this all over the streets, and you’re specifically accusing others are pirated copies and of poor quality.”
By now, there were quite a few customers gathering around, but Wan Tong remained unruffled. She reached for a black lace dress and said, “Our designs are patented. If we were to investigate, they would indeed be considered pirated copies.”
In fact, a group of almost regular customers who came to Mingrui to buy clothes consisted of wealthy young men and women. The reason why Mingrui’s clothes became popular also had to do with the free advertising they received from them.
This also meant that Mingrui couldn’t become a low-priced brand. Therefore, when designing clothes, they put in a lot of effort, even agonizing over tiny details like buttons.
Although other clothing stores imitated their finished garments, they were reluctant to use the same fabric, so it was easy to tell if they were counterfeits at a glance.
Wan Tong doesn’t believe that it’s possible to completely eradicate counterfeit goods. After all, if one were to really resort to legal actions, it would be too time-consuming and exhausting, and counterfeiting would definitely continue despite bans.
She only hopes that everyone remembers that Mingrui is authentic. She doesn’t want others wearing counterfeits to tarnish Mingrui’s reputation.
“I say, Sis, it’s bad enough that you’re wearing fake stuff, but you also come to the legitimate store acting all high and mighty. Are you out of your mind?” Someone from the crowd shouted.
Wan Tong could tell it sounded like someone squeezing their throat as they shouted. She glanced over, and Liu Zi winked at her.
Afterward, there were more voices chiming in, “Yeah, where did this weirdo come from?”
“If you think the genuine stuff is too expensive, then go buy knock-offs from street vendors.”
“Making a fool of oneself here, it’s really laughable.”
As the older woman was insulted, she was about to cause a scene, but suddenly two handsome but fierce-looking men appeared in front of them.
“Are you two looking for trouble?” Zhong Youqian and Yaxin cracked their knuckles and necks with some chilling sounds, but their menacing appearance caused a small stir among the ladies nearby.
They had the swagger of models but were tough.
“Sis, let’s go…” The two women instantly wilted, pulling each other as they walked away, but they couldn’t help but shout, “Scammers! You’re all scammers! I’ll sue you!”
Wan Tong turned around to look at the onlookers, her lips carrying a sweeter smile than usual, her voice soft with an apology, “Sorry everyone, for the disturbance.”
She was already quite the beauty, usually very low-key, quietly standing as a scenic spot in the store. Now suddenly smiling so brightly, it instantly cheered up everyone watching.
Quite a few men couldn’t take their eyes off her.
At that moment, several male models in the store suddenly stood in front of Wan Tong, then flashed handsome smiles, continuing to serve the customers.
What a joke, how could they allow Miss Yan to compromise her dignity?
Brother Lu would chop them up!
Wan Tong gritted her teeth, glancing at Zhong Youqian who was sneaking glances at her expression, weren’t they afraid of scaring her customers with their fierce appearance just now?
“Hehe…” Zhong Youqian grinned and swiftly slipped away.
Wan Tong sighed helplessly, rubbing her forehead, then looked at Reporter Chen, who was looking at photos beside her, and smiled again, walking over.
“I received some news this morning, several clothing factories have been unable to continue operating for various reasons recently, and those factories still have a large number of orders, almost all of which are counterfeit copies of some new Mingrui clothing. I want to know, did Yan Qinglu secretly help you with this?” Chen was direct and serious.
She had been tracking and reporting on Yan Qinglu’s affairs, but now she found that the information she had previously obtained was superficial at best.
At least many of her leads came from Wan Tong.
Wan Tong was stunned by these words. She indeed didn’t know about these matters, but based on market surveys in recent days, the counterfeit copies of this new collection had indeed decreased significantly.
“I’m not aware of these matters.”
“If it’s really him, with a factory closing down, who knows how many people are affected, and yet you watch him continue his wrongdoing?” Reporter Chen’s tone became intense.
Wan Tong remained calm, “Have you investigated why those factories couldn’t operate anymore? Also, how exactly is he doing wrong?”
Reporter Chen paused for a moment, “He’s recruiting thugs to form his own forces, these people are simply unreasonable, only resorting to violence to suppress others, forcing many to become homeless…”
“Then… would the situation improve if Yan Qinglu didn’t appear?” Wan Tong asked.
But Reporter Chen remained silent.
Some things were already inevitable trends, aligning with policies. Even if it wasn’t Yan Qinglu, someone else would step in.
As a reporter, she had some understanding of the dark forces in the city and even the entire province. They also coveted the sweet piece of cake that was the demolition project, but they hadn’t expected it to be taken down by a mere youngster like Yan Qinglu.
Wan Tong looked at Reporter Chen, maintaining her silence.
Compared to the world’s plot, Yan Qinglu’s methods were much milder, at least not involving loss of life.
To some extent, the government needed forces like Yan Qinglu’s to assist in the unconventional development of the city.
In the eyes of many, Yan Qinglu had become a villain, but despite appearances, he was under immense pressure.
In the world’s plot, everything went smoothly for him because of his ruthless style; those who submitted prospered while those who resisted perished. His hands were stained with blood, intimidating various ambitious forces.
But now, he had her by his side, so he acted more discreetly, not wanting to give anyone leverage. However, this also made him frequently challenged by other forces.
The next day, the economic section featured an interview with Wan Tong, written by Reporter Chen.
She included the recent accident at the store and briefly mentioned the uniqueness of the Mingrui brand.
Since the end of last year, Mingrui had grown from a clothing store into a small-scale enterprise with two bustling storefronts. The clothes displayed there would quickly sell out, making it a fashion trendsetter.
It was widely known that the founders of this brand were two beautiful young girls.
Despite their young age, they were bold and astute, and their vision and methods were ruthless, becoming a topic of admiration.
Furthermore, attentive readers would notice in Wan Tong’s final answer that she emphasized encouraging original designs. She pointed out that blindly imitating others’ creations and following in their footsteps would only lead the clothing industry into a dead end.
This answer was generous, indicating her hope for the advancement of the fashion industry. However, readers who had gone through the report would understand that Mingrui was original and legitimate, and all the imitation products relied on Mingrui to survive.
A bit ashamed, some people in the clothing industry might reduce their plagiarism of Mingrui’s designs. As for the public, after knowing the distinction between genuine and fake, they would make more rational choices. At the very least, they wouldn’t cause trouble by wearing knockoffs to authentic stores or demanding compensation from Mingrui after buying fake goods from small vendors.
For several days after the report was published, Yan Wan’ying remained indignant.
Wasn’t Yan Wantong just using that wealthy girl to establish a company? Why did Yan Wantong get coverage? Why didn’t her, Yan Wan’ying’s, hard work and self-made success receive any attention?
Just because Yan Wantong was good at marketing, good at hype?
Well, then she, Yan Wan’ying, could do it too!
Yan Wan’ying had accumulated quite a few connections in her daily life. She managed to get a minor celebrity through various connections, spending a considerable amount of money to have her visit the store and intentionally be recognized by the crowd. As expected, she made it to the headlines in no time.
However, the economic benefits it brought were quite limited.
Firstly, she overestimated the star effect in this era. Secondly, the information transmission wasn’t developed enough. Even if someone was curious about the store, it was challenging to find the specific address. Unlike in modern times, where a small tip-off with a pseudonym could easily expose the address.
Yan Wan’ying spent almost all of her savings to invite the celebrity for publicity, but this time it was a complete failure, so she lost both money and reputation.
Wan Tong, knowing Yan Wan’ying’s actions, couldn’t help but gloat. Fortunately, Wan Tong had free models, saving her some money. Moreover, she had just established a good relationship with Reporter Chen, gaining a great opportunity for free publicity.
However, Yan Wanying didn’t come to cause trouble for Wan Tong, so Wan Tong felt relieved. Wan Tong hoped that Yan Wan’ying would continue obsessing over making money, forgetting about her own mission.
Yan Wan’ying had indeed become money-minded. Even when the system urged her to complete tasks, she ignored it outright. She couldn’t believe that someone like her, who had experienced two worlds, could be outmatched by Yan Wantong.
She even suspected whether it was because of Yan Qinglu’s luck that Yan Wantong became lucky as well.
Currently, she was in a mess with her friends due to financial problems, and she was quite overwhelmed.
Every time she passed by Mingrui, seeing the constant flow of customers, she felt angry. So, she secretly spread a rumor.
Yan Wantong, the owner of Mingrui, was dating Yan Qinglu.
She knew there were many forces who wanted to take advantage of Yan Qinglu.
And Yan Wantong was Yan Qinglu’s weakness…
rokumi’s note : starting next week, this novel will be updated every Thursday to Sunday.