Time-Travel: The Tragic Cannon Fodder Female Supporting Character Makes a Comeback

CHAPTER 38: The 1970s Naive Supporting Girl (38)

　　After putting in so much effort to renovate the place, selling it was simply out of the question.

　　Besides, the current market price for shops was not very high, so it would not be a good deal anyway.

　　Song Susu selected two female business owners who were both in the clothing trade and invited them to sit down for a discussion.

　　One of them explained that she already had two shops inside the department store and was planning to open a new women’s clothing store soon. She offered a monthly rent of 100 yuan.

　　The other woman, however, seemed a bit more ambitious. What interested her most was Song Susu herself. Seeing how beautifully the shop had been designed and renovated, she proposed working together as partners, hoping for a long term collaboration.

　　She offered Song Susu 20% ownership of the shop and promised to share 15% of the net profits with her. If the business lost money, Song Susu would not have to bear any of the losses. On top of that, she guaranteed a base rent of 500 yuan a year.

　　She would provide the clothing supply and hire the staff, while Song Susu would contribute the shop itself and occasionally help advise on the store’s overall design and atmosphere.

　　Song Susu found herself tempted by the second offer.

　　After all, renting the shop for 1,200 yuan a year meant fixed income with no growth, while a partnership seemed to hold much greater potential.

　　With the reform policies gradually opening up the economy, the women’s clothing business was booming. With such a stylishly renovated shop, as long as the clothes were not terrible, it would still do quite well with the current flow of customers.

　　And to be honest, giving up 15% of the net profit was already quite generous.

　　Of course, business always carried risks. There were profits and losses alike. Still, Song Susu was very optimistic about the future of the clothing industry. On top of that, there was still the guaranteed base rent of 500 yuan.

　　No matter how she looked at it, she would not be losing out.

　　In the end, Song Susu signed the contract with the second woman.

　　Her partner’s name was Xu Jun. She was thirty nine this year. She had married into Heilong Province more than ten years ago and used to serve as the deputy director of a clothing factory. Earlier that year, she had been laid off. So she and her husband brought their child back to her hometown in S City to start over.

　　After hearing about the new reform and opening policies, the two of them planned to head south to look for clothing suppliers and open a shop of their own.

　　After listening to her story, Song Susu felt even more confident about working with her. After all, Xu Jun had worked in a clothing factory before, so continuing in the clothing business suited her experience well.

　　Still, the aesthetic tastes of the past were very different from what would become popular in the future. Some styles that would rise in popularity later might not seem appealing to people right now.

　　Since they were now partners, Song Susu felt it was important to discuss these things openly. Even though Xu Jun had plenty of experience, they could not rely entirely on old fashion trends. So Song Susu talked with her about clothing selection, including styles, design cuts, and fabric choices.

　　The shop was meant to follow a high end style. If they wanted to charge higher prices, then the clothing’s design and quality had to live up to it. It could not be a one time deal. For long term success, they had to control things right from the source.

　　As Xu Jun listened, she took out a small notebook she carried with her and began writing everything down. She was both surprised and impressed, feeling that she had truly chosen the right person.

　　Even though Song Susu was still so young, she was capable of overseeing a shop of this scale. The way she spoke and carried herself was calm and mature. It was obvious she had the makings of someone destined for great things.

　　Without hesitation, Xu Jun decided to increase the profit share from 15% to 20%. Sometimes you had to give a little in order to gain more. With such a reliable partner, she believed the business would only grow more prosperous in the future.

　　Song Susu felt there was no need for that and explained that she might go to university later on, which meant she might not have much time to participate in the business.

　　If she truly wanted to start a business, she could easily do it herself. But doing so would distract her from the purpose of her current mission, and she did not want to pour too much energy into it.

　　Right now, all she needed was to ensure that she and her younger brother could live comfortably. Aside from studying, she planned to find a good relationship and enjoy a proper romance, eventually gaining a happy marriage and completing her task as soon as possible.

　　Seeing that Song Susu was not greedy for profit at all, Xu Jun became even more convinced that this girl was extraordinary. She insisted on raising the share to 20%. Song Susu would not need to involve herself in the daily work. All she had to do was offer a few suggestions from time to time. Even just chatting and exchanging ideas would be enough.

　　Since Xu Jun insisted so firmly, Song Susu eventually gave in and agreed.

　　The contract was signed very quickly. After finishing the paperwork, Xu Jun immediately took out 500 yuan as the guaranteed base rent deposit. She also promised that profit dividends would be distributed every six months, and that Song Susu could check the accounts at any time. There would be absolutely no funny business.

　　Song Susu quite liked Xu Jun’s straightforward and decisive personality. After exchanging addresses and contact information, she handed over the shop keys.

　　As for the shops near the university town, they had already been rented out half a month earlier. An out of town man who sold stationery had taken a liking to them. With the early stages of policy liberalization, shop rents in the surrounding area had already started to rise.

　　Previously, shops of the same size rented for about 17 or 18 yuan a month. Now the price had generally climbed to around 25 yuan.

　　Song Susu’s eight shops were all rented out at 25 yuan per month each. That came to 300 yuan a year for one shop, and 2,400 yuan a year for all eight together.

　　Wang Yanli was so happy she could hardly stop smiling. Her four storefronts had been rented out together as well. The tenant originally wanted to sign for 3 years, but Song Susu advised against such a long term contract and suggested starting with one year instead. In the end, Wang Yanli signed a one year lease and would receive 1,200 yuan in rent for the year.

　　After receiving the money, Wang Yanli happily prepared a table full of delicious dishes and invited the Song siblings over for dinner. She kept praising Song Susu, saying she had truly benefited from her help. At this rate, she would recover her investment in less than 5 years.

　　Song Susu quietly told her that the policies would likely be fully opened up next year. If things went well, it might not even take that long. Maybe just 3 years and the investment would already be recovered.

　　Wang Yanli had a good head on her shoulders. After hearing that, she later took out the rest of her savings and even borrowed some money from her family. While property prices were still relatively low, she went and bought several more shops elsewhere.

　　Li Yanlong could only laugh helplessly. In the end, he even took out the private savings he had secretly set aside to support his wife.

　　Later, Li Huihui came over to visit Song Susu. The moment they met, she started complaining with a helpless expression that her parents had practically become obsessed. All they could think about now was buying shops.

　　Song Susu laughed. Buying shops really was addictive. If she had that much money right now, she would probably be just as crazy about it too.

　　——

　　Half a month later, the college entrance exam results were finally released.

　　Both Li Huihui and Song Susu passed.

　　Li Huihui was admitted to a teachers’ university, while Song Susu was accepted into S University.

　　Li Huihui was an only child and did not want to study too far from home. When filling out her choices, she selected S University and the teachers’ university in the neighboring city. In the end, she was admitted to the teachers’ university, which was still fairly close to home.

　　Song Susu, on the other hand, had only applied to the one university in the city, S University. It was considered a top tier school, with very strong academic resources.

　　Her younger brother Song Yuanchao was only ten years old, still too young. It would not be right to keep troubling Uncle Li’s family to look after him all the time, so staying local was the most convenient choice.

　　Li Yanlong and his wife even hung up celebratory banners and took the two girls out to a restaurant. The couple could barely stop smiling as they invited relatives to join in the celebration.

　　The next day, a letter from Heihe Village also arrived. Along with the letter came a large package filled with local specialties from the village. There were dried wild fruits, sun dried wood ear mushrooms and bamboo strips, freshly harvested peanuts and walnuts, as well as honeysuckle and other herbs meant for brewing tea. The bag felt heavy in their hands.

　　Liu Yingzi had graduated from junior high school. Even though she had worked hard reviewing high school textbooks, she still did not pass the exam. However, one of the female educated youths who had come with her did get admitted, and everyone was very happy for her.

　　In the letter, Liu Yingzi sounded far from discouraged. She wrote that if she could not make it this year, then she would try again next year. If not next year, then the year after that. For now, she was very happy teaching at the village school and had grown quite attached to the children there.

　　Song Susu wrote back to her, telling her about her own recent situation. After finishing the letter, she immediately headed out to buy some things.    

　　As autumn set in, the weather had already begun to turn chilly. In the countryside especially, the mornings and evenings could feel quite cold.

　　Song Susu picked practical items when shopping for Liu Yingzi. She bought her a thick cotton padded outfit that could be worn as an outer layer, and later in winter it could also be layered underneath other clothes. The new cotton filling was dense and warm. She also included a pair of thick gloves and an ear covering hat.

　　She picked up some filling snacks as well, like biscuits and walnut pastries, and bought five jin of brown sugar. On top of that, she added two tins of malted milk powder so Liu Yingzi could get a bit more nutrition.

　　Afterward, she packed up the entire box of books she had previously sealed away and mailed them all back to her.     

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