The way the two of them worked together caught Huang Xiaoge off guard. If she had to describe their relationship, it didn’t quite feel like a boss and subordinate. If she called them a couple, there was a lack of the usual intimacy between lovers. Since she wasn’t close to them, she didn’t dare ask too many questions.
Once all the terms were settled, she drew up the contract. Shen Yunyun and Tang Yu each took a copy to review, adding what needed to be added, revising what needed to be revised. When both sides had no further issues, they signed the contract. Huang Xiaoge had never seen an individual sign such a large order before.
After the contract was signed, Shen Yunyun transferred the payment on the spot. As soon as the money arrived, one copy of the contract was handed to Shen Yunyun. Throughout the negotiation, Shen Yunyun felt relaxed and at ease, smiling as she said: “I actually want to order some thermal pants too, but I’m afraid you might not be able to handle that much…”
Huang Xiaoge quickly replied, “We can handle it. To be honest, we outsource many of our processes. We just take the middleman’s cut, or even break even on some steps, while making a profit on others.” In other words, they were a processing factory themselves, but they also had subcontractors. That’s why she claimed they could take on orders of any size.
Shen Yunyun wasn’t surprised by this. Using subcontractors wasn’t anything unusual. “In that case, bring over the samples of the thermal pants too.” “Just a moment.”
Huang Xiaoge quickly fetched the fabric samples for the thermal pants and showed them to Shen Yunyun. Shen Yunyun felt the material—it was very elastic and thick. The thermal pants were quoted even cheaper, at eight yuan per pair. After another round of haggling, the final price was set at six yuan.
Shen Yunyun stressed that they couldn’t cut corners or sell dog meat under the guise of lamb. Huang Xiaoge repeatedly assured her they would never do such a thing. She wanted a long-term partnership with Shen Yunyun—how could she possibly pull something like that?
With the business settled, the sky was nearly dark. Huang Xiaoge said, “It’s just about dinner time. How about we grab a meal together?” “Sure,” Shen Yunyun agreed without hesitation.
Huang Xiaoge called over another male colleague to accompany Shen Yunyun and Tang Yu to dinner. After the meal, she suggested going to karaoke, but Shen Yunyun politely declined.
Back at the hotel, she unexpectedly ran into the girl she had met in the hallway that morning. “Did you go complain to my boss?” The girl confronted her aggressively.
Shen Yunyun and Tang Yu were both baffled. Was this person crazy?
“You sat in my boss’s office all afternoon—were you badmouthing me? How could you do that? I’m grateful you saved me, but just because I didn’t give you a thank-you gift, you stab me in the back?” The woman’s eyes welled up with tears, as if she had suffered a tremendous injustice.
Shen Yunyun was utterly amazed by her. Not only had she imagined a scenario that didn’t exist, but she had also come up with a reason to make it seem plausible. Her self-contained logic was truly unexpected.
Shen Yunyun wasn’t about to indulge her. She shot back directly: “Who do you think you are? Worth me talking bad about you for an entire afternoon? Look in the mirror—do you even qualify? If you’re sick, go get treated.” “Exactly, go get treated,” Tang Yu couldn’t help but add. What kind of person was this?
The woman burst into tears, sobbing uncontrollably: “Why does everyone bully me? Why does everyone bully me? I’ve already suffered so much—why do you still have to bully me?”