Siheyuan: Returning to 61 to collect waste

"We have four brands of imported watches: Omega, Rolex, Rado and Vacheron Constantin. The stores of these brands are located on the east side of the second floor. Please take the elevator, or take the elevators on both sides."

Liu Shouzhu was so nervous that he forgot to say thank you and was pulled away by Qin Huairu. Qin Huairu was wearing a khaki women's suit with gray pants that day, which was in sharp contrast with the exquisite service staff. This suit was one of the best she had, and she usually only wore it on important occasions.

After walking about a dozen steps, the two stepped onto the escalator to the second floor.

At that time in China, elevators were still a rare thing. Many children excitedly repeated the experience with loud laughter, and their parents did not stop them.

The first floor mainly has a dining area, a cafe and a home appliance store, while the second floor has become a world of cameras, watches, jewelry and cosmetics.

As they headed east, they saw that almost every store was packed with people, but not many people were actually willing to spend money.

The design of the Future Department Store is as beautiful as a park. There is a beautiful fountain in the center of the first floor. There are benches everywhere in the mall for tourists to rest, but the benches have already been occupied.

On the third floor and above, many security personnel nervously watched the children playing near the railings, and would step forward to dissuade them if they spotted any potential danger.

Although they have visited many large department stores since then, Sha Zhu and Qin Huairu were still impressed by such considerate management. In the past department stores, the open space was often filled with all kinds of goods, and there was almost no place for customers to rest.

As they walked, Sha Zhu saw the sign for the bathroom, so he said, "Sister Qin, wait for me here for a while. I'm going to the bathroom."

Qin Huairu nodded and leaned on the railing waiting for him.

Sha Zhu followed the sign and found the toilet. Once he entered, he almost thought he had gone to the wrong place.

There is no pungent smell like the common bathroom here, but instead there is a fresh and sweet scent.

The interior of the toilet is clean and bright, with two rows of standing urinals for men and separate cubicles with sit-down toilets.

Sha Zhu almost forgot the purpose of his coming here. After he came to his senses, he quickly solved the problem and then left the bathroom with a look of confusion on his face.

"Silly, what's wrong with you?"

"Sister Qin, I'm not exaggerating, the restroom here is cleaner than our factory director's office!"

Qin Huairu curled her lips after hearing this.

It’s just a toilet, how good can it be?

She casually handed the nylon bag in her hand to Sha Zhu and said, "Wait here for me. I need to go to the bathroom as well."

Qin Huairu came to the bathroom and was startled as soon as she entered the door.

If she hadn't seen the obvious sign, she would never have believed that this was a restroom. There was not even any peculiar smell, but instead a strong fragrance.

Because it was the first day of the new opening, many people came to the toilet, and the cleaner kept cleaning every cubicle. As soon as one cubicle was cleaned, Qin Huairu went in.

It was her first time using a toilet and she spent a while figuring it out before she realized that she was supposed to sit on it instead of putting her feet on both sides of the toilet bowl.

When she was using the toilet, she saw a freshly opened roll of toilet paper next to her and couldn't help but become interested.

After wiping herself and standing up, she made sure there was no movement outside the door, then quickly flattened the toilet paper and put it in her pocket.

After leaving, the cleaning staff entered the cubicle to check and found that the toilet paper was missing again.

She shook her head helplessly. This was the fifth roll of paper lost in this cubicle today. If the manager hadn't reminded her repeatedly, she really didn't want to replenish it.

Qin Huairu returned to Sha Zhu, took back her nylon bag, put the toilet paper in it, and showed a satisfied expression.

The two continued to the east side of the second floor and saw four watch stores lined up side by side. Sha Zhu saw another saleswoman, who was dressed exactly the same as the one downstairs. "Comrade, I want to ask, which of these four stores is more upscale?"

Sha Zhu thought, since he was choosing a watch for Bang Geng, he might as well pick a high-end one. Maybe if this guy was happy, he would agree to his marriage.

The saleswoman smiled and replied, "Hello, VIP. Omega and Rado have entered the Chinese market a long time ago, while Rolex and Vacheron Constantin have only recently entered. This is their first store in the Future Department Store, so the prices are slightly higher. As for popularity, Rolex is more famous, and more people know this brand!"

"Then let's choose Rolex!" Sha Zhu turned to Qin Huairu and said.

The saleswoman was stunned for a moment. She didn't expect that the rustic-looking man in front of her was so straightforward.

She is a student at a university in Beijing, and works as a shopping guide as a temporary job to earn money while studying.

Her family was relatively well-off, but when she saw the price of a Rolex, she was almost shocked.

Sha Zhu pulled Qin Huairu to the Rolex store, which was crowded with people. However, this store was a bit special. Many people came in to take a look and then left, unlike those stores where customers stayed for a long time.

The two walked to the counter, where various watches were displayed. The glittering golden light made it difficult for them to open their eyes.

"Welcome to Rolex, dear guests, how may I help you?"

A saleswoman in a fitted black uniform came over with a smile.

"I want to buy a watch. Could you please recommend one to me?" Sha Zhu said proudly.

"Okay!" The salesperson was actually the store manager, who was transferred from ** to Beijing. In **, what kind of people have you not seen? Just by looking at them, she can judge whether they can afford to buy. When she saw Sha Zhu for the first time, she concluded that he couldn't afford a Rolex. If she were in **, she would not pay attention to such a person. But in Beijing, it is required to treat every customer equally, without any discrimination.

"Sir, Madam, do you have any specific requirements for the watch?" she asked politely.

"What else do you want in a watch? Just be able to tell time!" Sha Zhu replied.

"Sir, Madam, this is a mid-range Rolex watch that suits your temperament very well. The dial is gold-plated, and we have a discount for the first three days of opening. It's a great deal."

When the word "gold-plated" was mentioned, Sha Zhu's heart tightened, and he had a bad feeling. "How much is this watch?"

"Sir, the price of this watch is 9500 yuan, and after a 8740% discount as an opening gift, it is now yuan." "How much more?" Qin Huairu almost bit her tongue.

"Ma'am, the discounted price is 8740 yuan."

"How can a watch be so expensive?" Qin Huairu couldn't help but speechless. She thought she had heard it wrong, but it turned out to be this price.

8740 yuan?

That’s enough to buy several houses! Crazy, right?

A watch cost nearly ten thousand yuan, and Sha Zhu was shocked. This price was completely beyond his imagination.

A TV costs only a few thousand yuan, and even an imported one is only over a thousand yuan. This shabby watch can buy eight imported TVs.

"Sir, Madam, we are an internationally renowned luxury brand and have always maintained this pricing. We even have watches priced in the tens or hundreds of thousands that we sell."

The salesperson knew very well that the consumption level here was low, and felt that the two people's behavior was too embarrassing. If they thought it was too expensive, they should go to another store or choose another style, instead of shouting and ruining the atmosphere.

Sha Zhu looked at the watch worth several thousand yuan and felt torn. He had already boasted in front of Qin Huairu, but she was still standing there watching.

If I buy it, I can’t afford that much money! If I don’t buy it, it’s too embarrassing!

But no matter how important face is, it can't be worth more than 8,000 yuan.

He gritted his teeth and said, "Comrade, do you have any cheaper watches?"

The saleswoman was still enthusiastic and pointed to a watch in the corner of the counter and said:

"Sir, this is the most affordable watch in our store. The original price is 1200 yuan, and the opening discount price is 1104 yuan!" When Sha Zhu heard that the cheapest watch was 1104 yuan, he was immediately surprised. He only brought 1000 yuan with him and thought he could buy any watch, but he found that he couldn't even afford the cheapest watch in this store.

Qin Huairu was even more shocked, wondering what kind of place this future department store was. For her, more than 1000 yuan was an astronomical figure, and she couldn't even buy the cheapest watch. Sha Zhu was too shy to say anything, and blushed as he pulled Qin Huairu out of the Rolex store.

He vaguely remembered the female salesperson mentioning that Rolex and Vacheron Constantin were the most expensive, while Rado and Omega were relatively cheaper.

Of the four brands, he only knew Omega, which he had seen at the counter of the First Department Store, and the price at that time was less than 300 yuan. Thinking of this, he decided to try the Omega store.

Compared to the two high-end watch stores, there were obviously more customers here, and a long line had formed in front of the counter. A pretty saleswoman came over and greeted them politely: "Comrade, what kind of watch do you want to buy?"

"Sir, do you have any specific requirements? What's the budget?" This time, Sha Zhu learned his lesson and didn't dare to answer casually. Instead, he said vaguely, "Let's just look at something similar!"

The saleswoman smiled and led the two to the counter: "Sir, Madam, this is our most classic Omega model, a special offer watch specially launched for the future department store opening."

"How much?" Sha Zhu's voice sounded a little weak.

"The list price of this watch is 1350 yuan, but we are offering a three-day limited-time 877% discount, and the discounted price is 5 yuan!"

Although the price of this watch is still close to 60 yuan, Qin Huairu still feels that it is a bit beyond her range. Her monthly living expenses are only 877.5 or yuan, and the price of this watch is enough for her to live for a year. And Sha Zhu's monthly income is less than yuan, and yuan is equivalent to more than a year's salary. But compared with Rolex, this price is acceptable to him.

After thinking it over, Sha Zhu finally gritted his teeth and said, "I'll take this one. Please issue me an invoice!"