🔊 TTS Settings
Two cashmere sweaters (note: to be worn under a suit, not too thick)
Two sets of close-fitting underwear (note: mostly light colors; avoid “grandma red” and “grandpa gray”)
Two pairs of jeans (note: good elasticity, flattering fit, quality and cut prioritized. Avoid skinny jeans.)
Ten pairs of underwear (note: no briefs. Must be comfortable. Colors can be bold or sexy. Avoid “grandma red” and “grandpa gray.”)
Body measurements: height 182 cm, weight 80 kg, chest 109 cm, waist 88 cm, hips 114 cm.
……
Zhuang Jie replied: You sure aren’t polite, are you?
After looking through the pictures again, she added: You really are something.
Then: Are we in some kind of underwear-buying relationship now?
And again: Ten pairs? Were you going commando before?
After a long pause, Chen Maidong finally replied: Underwear should be changed every day. In winter it doesn’t dry easily. I haven’t had time to buy any for over half a year. The town can’t function without me.
Then another message followed: If you’re driving, please bring them back. If you’re taking the high-speed train, bring the underwear first—I need them urgently. The rest can be mailed.
And one last line: Busy. Talk later.
Zhuang Jie cursed under her breath and renamed his WeChat contact: Problem Factory.
Then she messaged Wang Xixia, saying she’d help Chen Maidong buy clothes tomorrow. Wang Xixia replied: Buy for Chen Maidong?
Zhuang Jie answered: His grandma thinks he’ll freeze to death. The town’s funeral home can’t function without him.
Wang Xixia: He’s the town secretary or something? Can’t he just order online?
Zhuang Jie thought about it—she had a point—but still didn’t refuse. She’d already agreed to Chen’s grandmother.
Wrapped in a bath towel, she sat on the bed and was about to apply lotion when a small hand suddenly reached out from under the blanket and grabbed her.
“Jie-jie, I already warmed your bed for you.”
Zhuang Jie jumped. “Who told you to do that?”
“You said the electric blanket dries your skin,” the girl said earnestly. “From now on I’ll warm it for you every day.” She shoved over her homework and pen.
“Fine, fine, just leave it there. I’ll deal with it after I put on lotion,” Zhuang Jie said, amused.
He Yaonuo crawled out of the blanket in a SpongeBob pajama set, scratching at her thermal pants. Flakes of dry skin fell everywhere.
……
Zhuang Jie immediately kicked her off the bed and stripped the sheets to change them. He Yaonuo stood wrapped in a quilt, protesting, “Mom literally took me to the bathhouse two days ago! I’m just dry!”
“Dry or not, you still don’t moisturize. You’re basically shedding like dandruff,” Zhuang Jie said, tossing her a bottle of lotion.
“Only you in this family are clean! You should wash your hair and sleep in my room. Then go back to yours after washing—did I complain?!” He Yaonuo shot back.
“Oh please. You drool all over my pillow when you sleep. Did I say anything?”
“And you’re perfect? You grind your teeth and fart in your sleep! Did I complain?!”
He Yaonuo flung the blanket aside and stormed back to her room.
“Fine, come back—I’ll sign your homework,” Zhuang Jie called after her.
The door was already locked.
Liao Tao came back from the factory and frowned at them. “What are you two yelling about?” Then he glanced at Zhuang Jie’s bathrobe and added, “It’s cold out. Stop being so particular.”
Zhuang Jie knocked on He Yaonuo’s door, coaxing her a few times before sliding the corrected test paper under the door. Then she crawled back into bed, shivering.
So cold. So cold.
He Yaonuo eventually came over anyway, hugging her pillow. “Like I want your pillow.”
……
The next day, Zhuang Jie went into the city. She washed her hair first, then inspected foot traffic in several shopping centers before meeting Wang Xixia for dinner.
She liked two malls with good traffic, but the available booths were in poor locations.
Wang Xixia said, “I know someone on the management side. I can connect you.”
“The traffic is good, but the locations are too far inside,” Zhuang Jie replied.
“Good spots are hard to get. I’ll ask around—if anything opens up, I’ll let you know.”
“Alright. Even next year is fine. No rush.”
“Take it slow with Aunt Liao’s side. Some things can’t be rushed.”
“I know.” Zhuang Jie paused. “What about you?”
“What about me?”
“Don’t play dumb. Xu Qinghe—you two went out last night, didn’t you?” Zhuang Jie teased.
Wang Xixia hesitated. “We’ll see.”
They talked work again. Wang Xixia suggested Zhuang Jie try securing the town’s pharmaceutical factory for holiday welfare packages. Last year they gave employees oil, vacuum-packed beef, and organic rice. Maybe she could get them to switch to vacuum-packed chicken.
Zhuang Jie slapped the table. “That’s exactly what I was thinking. I want both the pharmaceutical factory and the ceramics factory.”
“The pharmaceutical side is doable. I can help you smooth things over. I’ve got relatives with shares there. But the ceramics factory is harder—it’s the Chen family’s territory. And if the pharmaceutical factory signs with you, the ceramics factory probably won’t, since most couples in town work across both factories. They coordinate benefits.”
Then Wang Xixia added, half joking, “My great-uncle is pretty influential. His son has shares in the pharma factory. If he helps, your chicken deal is basically guaranteed.”
Zhuang Jie laughed. “Of course he’s your great-uncle.”
“His granddaughter is your cousin-in-law.”
“Perfect. I’ll visit the factory first. If that doesn’t work, I’ll go charm the old man.”
She had already planned it: three chickens per gift box. With nearly 2,000 employees, that was about 6,000 chickens—almost 300,000 yuan in orders.
“This might actually work out for you on your own,” Wang Xixia said.
“How so?”
“You handled that yam deal so well the mayor even gave you a banner. If you go to the factory, they’ll consider the mayor’s face—and your ‘young widow raising a child’ image. You’ve got a good chance.”
Zhuang Jie snapped her fingers.
“If you’re willing to swallow your pride, call Old Li from your company. They also do employee gifts…”
“He already contacted me yesterday. Wants a thousand chickens—six per box, Shanghai and Beijing included. I even posted on WeChat Moments: welcome all companies and factories to order welfare packages. He messaged me right away.”
“Impressive,” Wang Xixia said.
“A few others did too. Just small support orders. I’m only advertising. Whoever helps, helps.”
“That’s right.”
“Oh right—you still need to buy Chen Maidong’s clothes? Let’s shop while we talk.”
They walked arm in arm. After a pause, Wang Xixia suddenly said, “I almost slept with Xu Qinghe last night.”
“Then what happened?” Zhuang Jie immediately perked up.
“It was… one of those moments. Things got heated, we undressed… then realized there was no condom.”
“He has no—wait WHAT?” Zhuang Jie nearly choked.
“Not that. No protection,” Wang Xixia said flatly.
Zhuang Jie exhaled. “You scared me to death.”
“What happened next?”
“He sent me home.”
“You didn’t go buy any?”
“It didn’t feel necessary. The mood was good. Once you sobered up, it didn’t feel right anymore.”
Zhuang Jie sighed. “I kind of want that too.”
“Want what?”
“Experience it,” she said, then laughed at herself.
“You poor thing. You’re already thirty,” Wang Xixia said sympathetically.
“Yeah, exactly.”
“How about I take you somewhere?” Wang Xixia lowered her voice. “Our department head goes to those places.”
“No way.”
“They say the service is excellent.”
“You been?”
“No.” Wang Xixia shook her head. “But we could go take a look tonight.”
“…Fine. Let’s go.”
And just like that, they agreed.
After shopping, they watched a movie, ate pickled fish, and killed time until 9:30 p.m. Then Zhuang Jie suddenly remembered she still hadn’t bought Chen Maidong’s underwear and dragged Wang Xixia downstairs in a panic.
She picked up a pair and examined it seriously. “Boxers look like grandpa style. Briefs are sexier.”
Wang Xixia said, “That’s our female perspective. Maybe guys find briefs uncomfortable.”
“Really? I feel like briefs should be more comfortable.”
“Who knows,” Wang Xixia replied, typing on her phone.
“You texting Xu Qinghe?”
She put the phone away and pointed at the underwear in Zhuang Jie’s hand. “What even is that?”
“A dinosaur trunk?” Zhuang Jie stared. “Is it for better… containment?”
“That’s a thong,” the sales assistant explained. “Also called lingerie underwear.”
They looked at each other—and burst out laughing.
The club was called Chaoge. Wang Xixia checked the navigation and led the way.
On the road, she said casually, “I once watched a documentary about undertakers. Severe decomposition cases, accidents… you can’t imagine it. People like Chen Maidong have to restore bodies piece by piece. Sometimes they don’t rest for days. In summer, their protective suits can literally pour out sweat.”
“The town funeral home is much easier than the city one. He used to work in a city facility handling only unnatural deaths. Honestly, I could never do it.”
“Me neither,” Zhuang Jie said. “Any job I think is noble is usually just something I can’t do. I’m selfish and ordinary. I won’t discriminate—but I also won’t be able to handle it.”
When they arrived, Zhuang Jie looked at the flashy entrance and suddenly hesitated.
“This… counts as prostitution, right? We won’t get arrested?”
“No,” Wang Xixia said. “My boss says it’s legit. They speak in code inside—you’ll understand once you go in.”
Neither of them got out of the car first.
Finally, Wang Xixia opened the door, flicked her cigarette, and said, “Let’s go.”
Zhuang Jie followed.
The moment she stepped inside, two rows of men in suits bowed ninety degrees.
“Welcome!”
“……”
A man approached her. “Miss, how many of you?”
Zhuang Jie’s face flushed red. She turned around looking for Wang Xixia—only to see her standing far away under a streetlight, waving.
……
They ended up back at Wang Xixia’s place. Both admitted defeat.
Final conclusion: country girls—they just can’t let go.
That night, Zhuang Jie shared a bed with Wang Xixia. Before sleeping, she asked, “How’s your dad in the nursing home?”
“Okay.”
“Does Xu Qinghe know about your family?”
“My cousin mentioned it.”
Wang Xixia lit a cigarette by the bed. “What about your relatives?”
“My second uncle asked me…”
