Chapter 89: Sold Out!

And so.

When the clerks and secretaries at the front of the line heard Xie Zhao say there was a limit of two per style, their expressions shifted wildly!

“Me! I want one!”

“Me first! Give me one! I’ll write you a slip right now and guarantee the money will be delivered within the hour!”

“I brought cash! Sell to me first! I can pay right now!”

…

The crowd surged forward.

At this moment, the onlookers fell into a strange silence.

Were these really the same high-and-mighty public officials they usually saw?

When ordinary folks like them went to government offices to get things done, which of these officials didn’t look down their noses at them?

They wouldn’t even deign to say a single word to them. How arrogant, how condescending they usually were!

But now?

What difference was there between them and stray dogs fighting over meat in an alley?

They swarmed forward, clutching cash or slips, jostling to get to the front, all for the sake of the few bags sitting on the shelves!

A bizarre sense of dissonance mingled with a strange absurdity.

And from this moment on, Jinxiu Handbags completely made a name for itself in Hudong County.

Xie Zhao stood before the crowd with a polite, practiced smile, introducing the bag in his hand with earnest professionalism.

He detailed its features, the materials, the wild rabbit fur sourced from deep in the mountains, and the meticulous hand-crafting.

Using modern sales techniques, he talked them into a frenzy, leaving their eyes shining with desire.

“These are the serial numbers. Only thirty of each of these four styles will be produced. The earlier you buy, the lower the number.”

Xie Zhao finished speaking with a smile, reaching out to take twenty Da Tuanjie bills from the man at the front of the line.

“Bag number two!”

He glanced at Zhang Qiao’er, who quickly wrapped it carefully in oil paper and handed it to the middle-aged man.

“Here you go. The bag comes with a one-year warranty, and the hardware can be replaced unconditionally.”

Having said that, he flipped the lining inside out to show the middle-aged man.

“This is our Jinxiu Handbags label. Please look for this label.”

Xie Zhao handed the change to the middle-aged man, who quickly took it, looking ecstatic yet deeply relieved at the same time.

Phew!

He had finally bought one!

When he got back, he would definitely tell his wife how hard this bag was to get!

And he had managed to get bag number two!

The second one!

With the bag in hand, the middle-aged man quickly squeezed out of the crowd, and a young man behind him immediately stepped up.

“I want this one! This one!”

He pointed to the light yellow floral shoulder bag on the outer edge.

“Here is the slip! I’ll bring the money over within the hour! I absolutely won’t delay the payment!”

Hearing this, the crowd’s expressions became strange and shocked once more.

Absolutely won’t delay the payment!

To think such words would come from a public official!

Xie Zhao took the slip, carefully read the unit name written on it, and said with a smile, “If the money isn’t here within the hour, you won’t be able to get in line for our next release.”

The young man choked.

His boss’s wife was, after all, the wife of a section chief at the Local Taxation Bureau. When was it not others begging them to get things done?

Even when they wrote slips, they were solid IOUs. People would beg to bring them money. They had never had to chase someone down to deliver cash themselves!

Yet, he didn’t dare to act arrogant here!

When he left the house today, the chief’s wife had given him strict orders: he had to buy one, or else don’t bother coming back!

The young man scratched his head and laughed awkwardly. Seeing Xie Zhao hand over the wrapped bag, he couldn’t help but ask about the serial number.

When he learned it was number two, he felt much better.

“Alright, alright, alright! I’ll send the money over as soon as I get back!”

Carrying the bag, the young man ran back happily to report his success.

The remaining eight bags sold very smoothly.

Half an hour later, Xie Zhao spread his hands with a bright smile. “Today’s handbags are sold out. Please come back next time, everyone.”

Huh?

Sold out?

For real?

“Sold out? No way! Were there really only ten? I haven’t even bought one yet!”

“Oh my god! You’re not holding back stock because you’re stingy, are you? How am I supposed to report back? I came here early this morning just to wait for a bag!”

“Damn it! I was next in line! Hurry up and bring out a few more! With so many people waiting, you’re turning away money. Are you stupid?”

…

Curses, anger, complaints, and grievances.

All kinds of voices rose, one after another.

Xie Zhao maintained his smile, standing calmly before the crowd.

He even took a few steps to the side, openly showing them the empty display cabinet behind him.

“Everyone, we all want to make money. Why would we hide the bags? We simply can’t make them any faster. Every single stitch is sewn by hand. To guarantee quality, we must control the quantity. Otherwise, if we produced shoddy goods, how could we sell them at such a high price?”

Xie Zhao said, “We must be responsible to our customers, and even more so to our century-old heritage.”

“Please don’t be angry, everyone. We will be producing about twenty more of each style. The second batch will go on sale in two days. That is, at eight o’clock the morning after next, Jinxiu Tailor Shop will have new bags available. Please look forward to it.”

Xie Zhao spoke so methodically and reasonably that no one could find a single flaw in his argument!

Seeing that the shop had already begun packing up, the crowd stared reluctantly at the empty counter. Once they confirmed there were truly no bags left, they finally began to disperse.

“Phew!”

Zhang Qiao’er wiped the sweat from her forehead, letting out a sigh of relief.

Yet, her eyes were filled with excitement and wonder.

In all her years, her family’s tailor shop had never seen so many people!

Those who came to support their business were mostly old customers. Later, after Lucky Tailor Shop opened across the street, they had lost almost all of them.

Zhang Qiao’er had been close to resigning herself to her fate: closing the shop, getting married, and never touching the tailoring trade again.

But now, the handbag business Xie Zhao had brought in had completely opened her eyes and changed her perspective.

She stood there in a daze for a long time.

No one knew what was running through her mind.

Meanwhile, Xie Cheng had already quickly started cleaning up.

Broom in hand, he diligently swept up the melon seed shells and discarded scraps of oil paper from the ground. When he passed Zhang Qiao’er, he gently nudged her foot with the broom.

“Sister Qiao’er, could you step aside a bit?”

“Huh? Oh, okay.”

Zhang Qiao’er quickly stepped aside. She instinctively looked at Xie Cheng, only seeing his broad back and sturdy arms.

Her heart suddenly skipped a beat.

She quickly averted her eyes.

Phew.

Why did she suddenly feel her heart flutter like that?

Inside the house, Qi Genshou and his wife, Zhang Shuixian, were leaning against the doorframe, watching everything unfold outside.

Even after the crowd had completely dispersed, the two of them could not snap out of it for a long time.

They… they were already sold out?

Bags that cost a whopping 188 yuan each had actually sold out in less than an hour?

And there were still plenty of people who hadn’t managed to buy one?

Good heavens!

In all their years, they had never seen anything like this!