Chapter 442 - 158: The Green Tea Female Supporting Character in a Period Piece Novel (45)

Chapter 442: Chapter 158: The Green Tea Female Supporting Character in a Period Piece Novel (45)

They had just steeled themselves to make a purchase, but then they saw the beautiful children’s clothes, and their feet felt rooted to the spot.

Parents might neglect their own needs—eating, drinking, or dressing well—but when it came to their children, they wanted to give them the world. Even though most families had quite a few kids these days, mothers still wanted to pour their hearts out and do the absolute best they could for them.

"My eldest is starting high school soon. She’s a young woman now, so she really needs a nice dress..." Once she graduated, she’d have to find a job and a husband. She and her husband couldn’t have all their children take over their jobs—otherwise, how would the whole family eat?

So, she was more inclined to have her daughter find a decent partner, get married first, and then slowly look for a job.

’Her high school classmates would be people she knew well...’

Another woman clutched a small, olive-green outfit and wouldn’t let go. "My second son always gets his older brother’s hand-me-downs. He’s never had anything new his whole life."

"Isn’t that the truth?" the woman with short hair nodded, admiring a little girl’s tulle skirt, unable to put it down. "Things are better now. We can afford to eat meat every few days, and even if the kids’ clothes have a few patches, they’re clean and fit well."

"It’s not like when we were little. Life was so hard then; we couldn’t even dream of new clothes, let alone a beautiful dress like this. My daughter is starting dance class next month. What do you all think of this one...?"

In the women’s clothing store, the salespeople had to work hard to make a sale. But here in the children’s store, the clerks just had to look at each other, ask for a size, and state the price. The job couldn’t be easier!

Thinking about the store’s high profits and their own bigger bonuses, each of them smiled even more sweetly.

The clothes were packaged in beige burlap sacks.

The burlap had a slightly rough texture. It came from a wide variety of plants and was simple to manufacture, resulting in a bag that was simple, tasteful, and practical. With a few doodles drawn on, it became beautiful, fashionable, and full of charm.

When the customers bought clothes and saw they got a free bag, they were absolutely delighted. This was a level of service they had never experienced before.

And it wasn’t just bags. There were also small, complimentary gifts like flower hair ties, stuffed ornaments, and hairpins, all made from leftover fabric scraps.

Chi Yun’er had made the items with the help of employees and their families. The fabric scraps were bought cheaply by the pound from a clothing factory, and the creation of the small trinkets was outsourced for a few cents apiece.

Others couldn’t make sense of the math. They thought that paying people to make free giveaways was just asking to be taken for a ride.

’Without these little trinkets, wouldn’t customers still buy the clothes as long as the quality is good and the styles are new?’

One of the educated youth even secretly sent an anonymous letter of complaint to the dean’s desk, accusing Chi Yun’er of using public resources for private gain and leveraging the hospital’s assets to build her own network. The letter argued that even if her contributions were significant, she was unfit to continue leading others.

After all, some people were good at conquering a kingdom but not at ruling it. The letter expressed hope that the hospital leadership would reconsider and select a more suitable leader from among the many outstanding educated youths.

The dean had just finished his work and made his rounds through the various departments. He, too, couldn’t resist the urge to go see what was happening around the hospital.

It wasn’t just him; the other vice deans and directors, having finished their immediate tasks, were also heading outside, their curiosity piqued.

This was especially true for Mr. Chi. Ever since his daughter had returned to the city, his old heart had been in a constant state of unease. It felt like it was perpetually suspended in mid-air, and he had to be ready to swoop in and save the day at a moment’s notice.

As they reached the main entrance, the group of men ran into each other in silence.

"Finished with work. Suddenly feeling a bit hungry, so I’m going to grab a bite," one director said with a chuckle. "I told my assistant to come find me if anything comes up..."

"Me too. Oof, I’ve been busy all morning, and my old back can’t take it. I need to stretch my legs. I’ll take a quick stroll outside and then get back to it."

The men awkwardly made their excuses, then looked at each other and burst into laughter.

The dean led the way, walking with his hands behind his back. Before he could even step out the main gate, his assistant hurried over to stop him. "Dean, you need to see this!"

The assistant handed him a thick letter, a grim look on his face.

The hospital received a lot of mail every day: thank-you letters, requests for help, academic inquiries, and more. Many people would address their letters directly to a specific person on the envelope.

Most of the time, the dean was the one named most often.

He was only one man and had important work to attend to, so the task of reading the mail fell to his various assistants. They would review the letters and flag anything that required the dean’s personal attention.

Unless it was a matter of life and death, the assistants would typically draft and send the replies themselves.