This garment factory was located in the Eastern Market, employing over four thousand workers. Most of the factory's orders had previously been for foreign trade, but with the international situation worsening over the past two years, they had shifted to domestic sales. The factory's profitability had declined significantly, and now the garment industry was plagued by overcapacity. Even large factories were struggling, let alone the small ones that survived on scraps from the big players.
Shen Yunyun's requirements for clothing were simple: warmth and durability—style didn't matter. She and Tang Yu arrived in the Eastern Market, checked into a hotel, and had just entered the hallway with their room keys when a woman stumbled and lunged toward Tang Yu. Shen Yunyun quickly pulled Tang Yu aside and kicked the woman. The woman fell to the ground, her eyes seeming to clear a bit as she urgently begged Shen Yunyun for help: "Save me, I've been drugged..."
Before Shen Yunyun could respond, footsteps approached. A potbellied, balding man, clutching his forehead, cursed: "Damn it, you dare hit me? Do you still want the contract or not?" The woman scrambled toward Shen Yunyun. Shen Yunyun glanced at the woman, then at the balding man, and seemed to grasp the situation. She shielded the woman behind her and faced the balding man: "I've called the police." The balding man was about to explode, but when he heard she'd called the police, his aggression fizzled out. He shot the woman a vicious glare and said, "I'm not signing the contract. You're fired, and you deserve it." With that, he turned and left, spitting on the ground and muttering about bad luck.
Once the balding man was gone, the woman collapsed to the floor, trembling all over, clearly in agony. "We'll take you to the hospital," Shen Yunyun said. The woman shook her head: "No, no need. I just need to ride it out. Thank you for saving me earlier." "Take care of yourself out there, young lady," Tang Yu kindly advised. His words, however, made the woman burst into tears. She wiped her face and sobbed: "My boss set me up. She sent me to deliver the contract, but when I got here, Mr. Zhu insisted I drink before he'd sign. I... I fell for it, wuwuwu..." Shen Yunyun sighed inwardly, thinking, *Is this job really worth it?* But she didn't feel it was her place to say too much about someone else's affairs. She nodded and left with Tang Yu. They returned to their rooms to rest, planning to visit Shengda Garment Factory in the afternoon.
Unexpectedly, that afternoon, they ran into the woman they'd saved earlier at Shengda Garment Factory. What a coincidence. If Shen Yunyun and Tang Yu had never been here before, she might have thought this was all staged. The girl was equally surprised to see them at the factory. She immediately lowered her head, pretending not to recognize them, and continued sitting at her workstation. Shen Yunyun paused, feeling a bit uneasy. Under normal circumstances, she had saved the girl's life. Even if the girl wasn't overflowing with gratitude, she should at least be a bit warmer. But instead, she acted as if they were strangers. Shen Yunyun wasn't about to force herself on someone who didn't want her help. Since the girl pretended not to know them, Shen Yunyun didn't speak to her and followed a junior clerk to the manager's office.
They were received by the factory's business manager, surnamed Huang, named Huang Xiaoge. She appeared to be around twenty-seven or twenty-eight, very capable, with the poise of a professional woman. Shen Yunyun discreetly sized up Huang Xiaoge, wondering if she was the girl's boss. She seemed like a straightforward person—hardly the type to pull such a dirty trick. Huang Xiaoge warmly welcomed Shen Yunyun and Tang Yu, inviting them to sit and serving them coffee.