Wen Ci and Wen Yaozu were warmly invited into the store by the sales clerk. The store didn’t just sell mobile phones; it also sold pagers.
“Comrade, our store is currently running a special promotion: buy a mobile phone and get a pager for free. Would you like to learn more about it?”
Since the introduction of mobile phones, pager prices had begun to drop. Many stores were running promotions, like offering a free pager with the purchase of a mobile phone.
Wen Ci’s eyes lit up. She glanced over the pagers on the counter and said with surprise, “You’re giving away a pager with a mobile phone purchase?”
“That’s correct.”
Wen Ci asked, “Which pager model is included?”
Pagers could range from a few hundred to over a thousand yuan. If the model being offered wasn’t too outdated, it might be a good deal. This way, when she returned to the Northwest later, she could still use the pager to keep in touch with Wen Yaozu.
“This one.”
The sales clerk went behind the counter, took out a specific pager model, and said with a smile, “This model was released just the year before last.”
Wen Ci took it and examined it. It was her first time handling a pager. It had a belt clip and a screen showing the battery level. “What was the original price of this model?”
“One thousand five hundred yuan.”
Hearing this, Wen Ci’s eyes widened.
That meant she’d be getting a great deal! A mobile phone cost forty thousand yuan, and getting a fifteen-hundred-yuan pager for free sounded very cost-effective. “Are there any other promotions?”
“Comrade, this is the only promotion.”
Their store was one of the top-ranked in the capital, and they were running this promotion specifically to attract big clients to buy mobile phones.
Forty thousand yuan might not sound like a lot, but it could buy a plot of land and build a house in the suburbs of the capital. And the forty thousand yuan was just the initial cost; monthly network access fees were additional.
Wen Ci’s eyes swept over the price of the mobile phone. She hesitated, biting her lower lip, and asked, “Um, would it work in a place like the remote Northwest?”
“Well, I’m not entirely sure about that. You could ask the telecommunications company. It’s three hundred meters to the left after you exit the mall.”
“Thank you.”
Wen Ci decided to ask the telecommunications company first before considering whether to buy. If it couldn’t be used in the Northwest, then the mobile phone would just be an expensive brick.
…
Each floor of the mall sold different items. Arriving at the clothing section, they were greeted by a wide array of clothing styles, a feast for the eyes.
“Comrade, looking for clothes?”
Wen Ci nodded. “Where is the men’s section?”
“Buying for a child?”
Wen Yaozu lifted his head. “I’m not a child. I’m about to start middle school!”
Wen Ci raised her hand and gave him a light knock on the head.
Half an hour later, she had picked out quite a few clothes for Wen Yaozu.
After paying, Wen Ci asked, “I’d like to see Manager Li Ming. Is he in?”
“Yes, he is. May I ask why?”
Wen Ci’s eyes curved into a smile. “I have an appointment with him.”
“Please wait a moment.”
She was meeting the mall manager to discuss the profit share for the clothing. Once that was settled, she could consider buying the remaining stock from Xu Jinghe.
Soon, Manager Li came out with a smile. “Are you Boss Wen?”
“That’s me.”
…
After finishing her business discussion, Wen Ci planned to go to the telecommunications company. But when she arrived at the door, she found it was already closed. She couldn’t help but suck in a sharp breath.
Was heaven preventing her from buying a mobile phone?
“Sis, are you still getting the mobile phone?” Wen Yaozu asked.
Wen Ci thought for a moment. “Let’s go home first. We’ll talk about it tomorrow.”
Shortly after arriving home, the landline phone rang. Wen Yaozu ran quickly to answer it, grabbing the receiver. “Let me get it!”
“Brother-in-law! When are you coming back?”
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