fictionpage Chapter 96 Department Store
Chapter 96 Department Store
"What do you mean?" The driver of the Xiali was a little embarrassed and angry, and his tone became impolite.
Lu Yuan was about to speak when he was suddenly nudged aside by an elbow. He saw Wei Yinghong pointing at the Xia Li driver's nose and yelling:
"Are you crazy? Haven't you seen money in your eight lifetimes? It only costs 5 yuan to get from here to the provincial capital, and you dare to ask for 20 yuan for just 2 kilometers? Are you robbing me?"
Caught off guard by Wei Yinghong's sudden scolding, the Xiali driver was momentarily stunned. He quickly recovered and retorted, "I..."
But before he could finish speaking, Wei Yinghong launched another attack:
"Even a shepherd needs a whip, but you're robbing people without even a knife?"
Wei Yinghong suddenly raised her voice and started shouting:
"Look everyone, this driver is trying to rob us. His car is a red Xiali, and the license plate number is XXXX..."
"You're crazy!" the driver of the Xiali cursed, then turned and drove away.
Wei Yinghong was shouting like she was registering a household registration. If the driver kept bothering her, he would have no business at all today.
Lu Yuan's reputation as the most shrewish woman in Luwangtan Village was well-deserved. He had been living a very comfortable month and had almost forgotten his mother's power.
Wei Yinghong suddenly turned around and slapped Lu Yuan on the back, saying:
"You think you've become arrogant just because you've made a little money? You can walk 2 kilometers, can't you?"
It wasn't that Lu Yuan had too much money to burn; he simply didn't want to waste time on the road.
But after this incident, they could only follow Wei Yinghong and start walking towards the pedestrian street.
The provincial capital of the northern border is now only half the size it was in later years, with most of the businesses concentrated around the pedestrian street.
Along the way, Lu Yuan discovered many prime locations that would later become prime locations, but now they were occupied by all sorts of shady shops.
These stores would be a great choice to sell casual fast food; before chain restaurants and food delivery became popular, they could definitely make a fortune.
Our first stop was the department store.
The department store was the first large state-owned department store in the provincial capital, and its main features were a complete range of products, no counterfeit goods, and clearly marked prices.
Standing at the entrance of the department store, Wei Yinghong stopped Lu Yuandao, who was about to go inside:
"Son, what are you doing here? Everything here is ridiculously expensive."
Department stores are indeed more expensive than those small, grid-style shopping malls, since they mainly sell state-owned, genuine products and have a certain level of sophistication.
Wei Yinghong had accompanied her younger relatives to purchase the "three gold items" (a traditional Chinese wedding gift) once. She visited a department store in the provincial capital once, and the prices there made her, a country girl, tremble with fear.
"Mom, since we're already here, let's take a look around!"
Lu Yuan didn't give his mother a chance to "escape," and instead, he grabbed Wei Yinghong's arm and walked into the department store.
Upon entering, the terrazzo floor, white pillars, and glass-enclosed counters exude a high-class feel that reflects the spirit of the times.
Displayed in the most prominent spot on the first floor are various gold jewelry pieces in glass cabinets, which are so eye-catching under the bright lights that it's hard to look away.
Gold is 140 yuan per gram.
"Mom, do you think gold will rise to 1000 yuan in the future?" Lu Yuan asked, pointing to the sign on the glass cabinet.
"Are you crazy? At 1000 yuan per gram, how can young people afford to get married?"
Wei Yinghong rolled her eyes at him, feeling that her son was now treating money too lightly.
These days, rural people need to buy three gold items for their weddings: earrings, a ring, and a necklace, which together weigh 15-20 grams and cost between 2000 and 3000 yuan.
This is equivalent to half the profit a rural family makes from selling grain. When you add in the bride price, new clothes, and banquet expenses, the money from selling grain for the whole year isn't even enough.
But in Lu Yuan's opinion, people these days are still too simple-minded, and a bride price of 38.8 yuan is a bit too advanced.
At this moment, Lu Changming, who had been silent the whole way, suddenly spoke:
"I think it's entirely possible for the price to rise to 1000 yuan. Look at those bosses who held banquets this afternoon, they don't treat money like money. We can't afford it, but they can buy whatever they want!"
Wei Yinghong rolled her eyes at him and said, "You know everything now!"
"Dad, you're right!" This time, Lu Yuan firmly stood by his father's side, putting his arms around his parents' shoulders and saying:
"Since the price is bound to go up later, buying it now is a steal. Come on, Lao Lu, let's buy your wife a gold necklace!"
Several seconds passed before Wei Yinghong realized that Lu Yuan wanted to buy her a gold necklace.
She instinctively wanted to refuse, but Lu Yuan had already subconsciously led her to the counter.
Facing the sales clerk behind the counter with a forced smile, Wei Yinghong instinctively felt nervous and didn't dare to speak. She simply tugged at Lu Yuan's clothes, signaling him not to buy anything.
But Lu Yuan didn't care. He pointed directly to a gold ingot necklace in the glass case and said, "Could you please take this necklace out so I can take a look?"
The teller was a woman in her forties with her face painted deathly white.
She looked at the three rustic-looking country folk in front of her, hesitated for a moment, and then took out the necklace.
But instead of handing the necklace over, she held it in her own hands for Lu Yuan to see.
Lu Yuan didn't care what she thought, and directly took it and put it around Wei Yinghong's neck.
Wei Yinghong suddenly became the center of attention, felt her body stiffen, and blushed furiously.
"Comrade, don't touch it if you're not buying it, you'll have to pay for it if you break it."
These days, most of the sales clerks in department stores are formal employees of state-owned enterprises. They don't usually have much of a service mentality and tend to treat people differently based on their status.
The teller was already reluctant to deal with people from the countryside like them. She had wanted to refuse when Lu Yuan asked her to take the necklace, but now she finally couldn't help but say something.
Upon hearing this, Lu Yuan turned around and gave her a cold look. His gaze was sharp and stern, unlike that of a young man, and she couldn't help but take a step back.
Lu Yuan stared at her for several seconds, then pointed to a young girl at another counter and said, "Come here."
Lu Yuan exuded his aura, and the girl subconsciously said "Oh," then bowed slightly in front of the counter.
These days, even state-owned complexes like department stores are moving towards privatization.
The tellers in their 40s, like those mentioned earlier, are basically permanent employees with secure jobs.
Most of these young women in their twenties are temporary workers. These tellers are often discriminated against by the older tellers and are generally not snobbish.
Department stores began hiring temporary workers in order to reduce operating costs and cope with the increasing impact of private shops in the market.
Lu Yuan refocused his gaze on the old teller and said coldly, "Go to the side."
Although Lu Yuan's expression was calm, it was precisely that unusual indifference that was frightening. The old teller couldn't say a word and consciously hid at the farthest counter.
Lu Yuan smiled at the somewhat timid girl in front of him and said, "Hello, could you please get me a few more similar ones so I can compare them?"
"Oh, oh, please wait a moment!"
The young girl immediately took several other styles of necklaces in her hand and held them out to Lu Yuan for him to choose from, which was completely different from the old sales clerk in front of her.
Lu Yuan placed each one around Wei Yinghong's neck, comparing them to the one she was currently wearing, then turned to ask, "Dad, which one do you think looks better?"
Lu Changming was also a little flustered in this situation, and stammered, "You... you'll have to see how it goes."
Lu Yuan couldn't get a clear answer from the question, so he just examined it himself.
After looking at them for a while, I still found the one I chose at the beginning to be the best, so I put the other necklaces back in the little girl's hands.
"Let's take this one. How much?" Lu Yuan asked.
The girl replied, "Sir, it's 15 grams in total, 2100 yuan."
"Okay." Lu Yuan took out a wad of cash from his pocket, counted out 22 bills, handed them to the little girl, and pointed to the cashier in the distance, saying:
"Go and pay the bill for me. The extra 100 yuan is your tip."