Spring Breeze Twenty Years

Chapter 885 Li Mei and Li Nan

Deputy Manager Liu said, "Okay, I'll hand the car over to Lao Chen tomorrow, and I'll gather my things tonight. Don't worry, Lao Chen, one more night won't make a difference."

Deputy Manager Chen, his face flushed, cursed, "You old hag."

Xia Maosheng said, "I have a bad feeling that we might have to buy another car."

Xiao Wei asked Chen Hui with a smile, "Ask Uncle Chen if he's still handling things this year?"

Deputy Manager Liu was particularly talkative, which was probably related to her work in purchasing. She asked, "At what level in our company do employees get a company car?"

Xiao Wei said, "It depends on the specific situation. Generally, branch managers and deputy managers are allocated one if needed, which makes things more convenient. Most departments in the company don't have one; they have official vehicles, and when they need one, they just call the vehicle dispatch team."

Deputy Manager Liu said, "We don't need anything expensive. I think that Xiali is fine. It costs around 100,000 yuan and looks quite nice, a bright red one."

Chen Hui laughed and said, "Sister Liu, you and Lao Xia are a perfect match; he just loves red cars."

Deputy Manager Liu wasn't actually that old, just over thirty, the prime of a woman's life. She smiled and looked at Xia Maosheng: "What kind of car does President Xia drive?"

Xia Maosheng said, "Ferrari, the red one."

Deputy Manager Liu said, "There's really no comparison. I've never even heard of any of these cars you're talking about. I've only seen that 100, which I heard costs several hundred thousand."

Xiao Wei said, "It's just a business trip, alright, that's enough, hurry up and go back. Manager Zhang, I'm sorry to trouble you to keep an eye on things these next few days."

Manager Zhang agreed, Deputy Manager Chen got into Manager Zhang's car, Deputy Manager Liu got into the Santana, and the rest of the people, including the female manager of the clothing department, rode bicycles. These were the main modes of transportation in those days. At dawn, looking at Fengtian from the air, it was like a rolling torrent.

After those people left, Xiao Wei and the others turned back and took the elevator upstairs.

They finally found Xiaohong and the others on the fifth floor. Li Na asked, "How's it going?"

Sister Jin said, "That's great. Now I can rest assured. The arrangements for the larger frames are all set."

Li Na said, "I told you, what we say won't make much difference; they're the ones who need to handle this. Xiao Wei, go pay." She handed Xiao Wei a stack of bills. Xiao Wei took them, flipped through them—five or six—and asked, "Are these all for purchases?"

Xiao Hong said, "I'll also buy one for my aunt, my mom, and Xiao Fu's mom."

Xiao Wei said, "Are you only buying them for the women? What about the men?"

Xiao Hong said, "I'm afraid I won't be able to buy the right things for men. I can make the decision if it's for you, but as for my dad and uncle, forget it. Let them come and see for themselves another day."

Xia Maosheng said, "I feel the same way. Why don't we let them all come over and browse around sometime and pick what they want? Their tastes are different from ours. If they buy something and don't like it, are they supposed to wear it or not?"

Xiao Wei thought for a moment and said to Xiao Hong, "How about we don't buy anything for Mom and Aunt, and for Grandma too? We can have them come over and visit sometime."

Xiao Hong glanced at the list in Xiao Wei's hand, pouted, and said, "Fine, don't buy it then. I spent ages picking it out." She pulled out three more lists and said, "I won't throw them away. I'll keep them and let them see if my choices are suitable."

Xiao Wei laughed and said, "Okay, let's see your taste. Have you picked out Xiao Fu's? Let's buy one for Wang Ge too."

Xiao Hong said, "I've picked them all, they're all here."

Xiao Wei went to pay. Six pieces of clothing, three pairs of pants, and a pair of shoes cost him almost five thousand yuan. Just one pair of Tai Lei Loi shoes cost over a thousand yuan. And that was at a state-owned store with low prices; if it were a private store, it would have cost two or three thousand yuan.

This is where things get strange: people who shop at private stores don't come to department stores, and people who shop at department stores don't go to private stores. One reason is that they feel the prices are cheaper and they can bargain, and the other is that they feel the quality is reliable. So, this strange phenomenon occurs: a pair of shoes costs 300 in a department store and 800 in a private store, and people still buy them. If a private store runs out of stock, they'll go to a department store to buy a pair and resell them.

Holding the receipt, the salesgirl was overjoyed to receive her goods. She'd sold six pieces of clothing and three pairs of pants in one go, and she was so happy she almost burst into song. You see, even if someone writes a receipt, they might not actually pay. Most people are just afraid of being laughed at; they look at the receipt, write it down, and leave. There are countless people like that every day.

Xiaohong picked out fur coats for Aunt Wang, Xiaowei's mother, and Xiaowei's aunt, but ended up not buying any of them. Xiaohong originally wanted to buy two for herself, but because she hadn't paid for the three, the saleswoman was clearly unhappy, rolling her eyes and ignoring her, so Xiaohong decided she didn't want to buy them anymore.

Li Na glanced at the saleswoman's name tag at the fur counter, beckoned the girl from the other counter over, and said to the fur saleswoman, "Your name is Li Mei, right? If you still want to work in this mall, you'll go to that counter from now on, and she'll go to this one. If you don't want to work here anymore, leave now, and you can get your wages from the finance department tomorrow."

Li Mei burst into tears, saying, "Why?!" Selling things also has different pay levels; the money earned is definitely different. The sales clerks on the third floor earn more than those on the second floor, and those selling fur earn more than those selling wool.

Li Na said, "I'm the HR manager, my name is Li Na. You're a sales clerk, your job is to serve clothes and issue invoices to customers. Whether they buy something or not, you must maintain a smiling service. You've learned that, right? I don't know how you were before, but this is your first time, so I'm giving you a chance—a different counter. If it happens a second time, you're fired, understand?"

Li Mei wiped away her tears: "I'm not usually like this. I didn't want to work overtime today because of family matters, but they wouldn't give me time off. Then I looked around for a long time but didn't buy anything, and went over there and bought a bunch of stuff. How can I feel good about that? Besides, I didn't say anything. Can I force a smile when I can't?" Tears streamed down her face.

The maid at the wool counter, named Li Nan, nodded and said, "Xiao Mei is usually very cheerful and has a great attitude. We all know she had something to do at home today. It wasn't intentional."

Li Na said, "I won't consider objective reasons. Since you're standing here, you can't bring your personal emotions into your work. Change the cabinet. If you pass your performance evaluations within three months, you can directly apply to the company's human resources department, and I will switch you back."

Xiao Hong felt a little sorry for her and said, "Forget it, Li Na, let her take the clothes. She spent a long time picking them out but didn't buy anything. I wouldn't be happy if she left them to me." She turned to Li Mei and said, "Those few pieces were for the elders, but then I thought it would be better to let them choose for themselves, so I didn't buy them. I haven't chosen any for myself yet."

Xiao Wei said, "Xiao Hong, don't cause trouble. Li Na is working. There's no room for sympathy or lack thereof; mistakes must be dealt with."

Xiao Hong said, "Can I buy these two items from her? I'll exchange them tomorrow." Back then, there was a commission for selling goods.

Xiao Wei smiled and said, "Okay, let's buy it."

Li Na pinched Xiao Hong and said, "Tomorrow, Li Mei, you and Li Nan will switch cabinets for three months. I keep my word. If you pass the evaluation, you can switch back. I'll arrange things for Li Nan later."

Xiao Hong said, "Okay, okay, go get the clothes. I want that one, and... wait, the one I just saw... oh, that one, bring it down."

Li Mei wiped her face and turned to get her clothes, while the other girls at the counter watched her nervously. People in this era had a completely different attitude towards work than in later generations. Back then, people could work for a lifetime as long as the company didn't go bankrupt or they weren't fired.

After the receipt was issued and the money was paid, it turned out that the two and a half coats were a few dollars short of seven thousand. No wonder Li Mei cried; this sales counter is making money.

(End of this chapter)