Chapter 364: Signing the Contract!

Cotton Mill. Garment Production Workshop!

At that moment, dozens of managers and workers were gathered around a female worker, examining her from all angles, and everyone couldn’t help but marvel in astonishment.

“This outfit looks weird, but it really looks great when she’s wearing it!”

“You’re absolutely right. Look at those wide flares at the bottom of the pants—they make her legs look three inches longer!”

“Comrade Taofang is already beautiful, but wearing this makes her look even more stunning…”

Though the female worker at the center of the crowd looked bashful, she was secretly delighted by the compliments.

She couldn’t take her eyes off her new outfit!

“Comrade Taofang, walk around a bit. See if the outfit feels comfortable when you move,” said Tan Chunqiu.

“Sure thing!”

Immediately, the female worker, who had been drafted as an impromptu model, began walking around the workshop.

After a moment, she said, “It’s quite comfortable—I don’t feel any discomfort at all!”

“That’s good!”

Hearing this, Tan Chunqiu breathed a sigh of relief!

Actually, earlier that morning, after looking at Li Yi’s sketches, he’d felt quite uncertain.

Mainly because these outfits were so unconventional, and he had no idea how they would turn out once made.

He knew full well that if the clothes didn’t turn out well, their workshop would have to hold more study sessions, exchange meetings, and even various criticism sessions.

So, after Li Yi left that morning, Tan Chunqiu took the note approved by Jiang Longcheng and went to the warehouse to pick up some fabric.

Then, accompanied by several team leaders, he set to work rushing the production of samples based on Li Yi’s sketches.

They were all experienced master tailors, and Li Yi’s sketches were far from mere doodles—they were incredibly detailed.

There were also extensive written instructions clearly outlining the key points of each garment.

After a full day of work, they managed to rush out several pairs of women’s flared pants and batwing tops.

Even after the samples were ready, everyone was still unsure about the results, so Tan Chunqiu asked Xu Taofang—the prettiest woman in the production workshop—to model the clothes and see how they looked.

Wow, those clothes that looked so odd instantly came into their own when Xu Taofang put them on.

Especially the exaggerated flares on the pant legs—not only did they make her figure appear slimmer, but the flared pants also flattered her leg shape.

For women whose leg lines aren’t quite perfect, wearing flared pants can make their legs look more attractive.

Even for women with a bit of extra weight on their legs, pairing flared pants with a pair of high heels can make their legs appear slimmer.

And that batwing-sleeve top looks equally stunning when worn, especially with its stand-up collar, which gives off an air of elegance and sophistication without sacrificing a sense of vitality.

In short, everyone in the garment workshop was blown away.

As the workshop manager, Tan Chunqiu clearly had a broader perspective than the ordinary workers.

The success of these garments directly impacts the income of the workers and managers in his workshop.

When he went to the factory director’s office today to get approval, the director gave him specific instructions.

If they performed well, that young man would hire their workshop to help produce the garments, paying at least one yuan and fifty cents per person per day.

Most importantly, he wouldn’t withhold their wages!

So, after seeing how well these garments turned out, Supervisor Tan was full of anticipation!

…….

The next morning!

Li Yi got up early and went to the hospital.

He brought over the books Tang Xue usually used for her studies, so she could read them whenever she had free time.

He also called An Hong over.

Today, he was going to sign a purchase contract with the cotton mill, after which he would have the garment production workshop ramp up mass production.

However, since Li Yi didn’t have much expertise in this area himself, he planned to have An Hong serve as his representative, stationed at the cotton mill.

After leaving the hospital, Li Yi went to the bank and withdrew all the money from his passbook.

Afterward, Li Yi returned to the store and counted every last penny he had on hand!

The total came to 204,600 yuan—just enough to sign the contract with the cotton mill!

It was already past nine o’clock, so Li Yi immediately set off for the cotton mill with Li Yeqiao and An Hong, carrying the money with them.

When the three of them arrived at the cotton mill carrying two large bags filled with cash, Jiang Longcheng was listening to Tan Chunqiu’s report.

Upon seeing Li Yi, Jiang Longcheng said cheerfully, “Brother-in-law, you’ve arrived just in time. Old Tan and his team have rushed the samples to completion. I hear the results are quite good—would you like to take a look?”

Li Yi smiled and said, “No need to rush to see the samples. Let’s sign the contract first!”

Hearing this, Jiang Longcheng was taken aback for a moment, then his gaze fixed on the canvas bags in Li Yi and Li Yeqiao’s hands.

“You aren’t carrying money in those bags, are you?”

“That’s exactly what it is!”

“You managed to get it all together this quickly?” Jiang Longcheng asked, looking stunned.

To be honest, he was genuinely taken aback by Li Yi’s generosity.

Don’t get me wrong—the Jiang family is one of the most prominent clans in the entire capital. Not only is the old patriarch still alive, but his uncles and cousins all hold high-ranking positions, giving them ample political resources.

But when it came to money, they really didn’t have much.

Forget 200,000 yuan—without embezzling public funds, his family couldn’t even come up with 20,000 yuan.

“Come on, don’t look so wide-eyed!”

Li Yi then added, “Hurry up and notify your factory’s management to assemble. Let’s get this contract signed as soon as possible so I can go take a look at the samples!”

“You’d better think this through…”

“Once the arrow is released, there’s no turning back. Hurry up!” Li Yi said.

Seeing how resolute Li Yi was, Jiang Longcheng nodded immediately and said, “Alright, I’ll have them get everything ready right away!”

He then instructed his secretary to summon the factory’s management to the conference room for a meeting to prepare for the contract signing!

The entire signing process went relatively smoothly. When the finance director took the 200,000 yuan in cash from Li Yi and Li Yeqiao, He Tianming, Chen Rui, and the others all breathed a sigh of relief—only Jiang Longcheng looked deeply concerned.

Yesterday, he had called his third uncle to report on the matter.

He had no choice; he had to report it. He was afraid his third uncle would hold him accountable later.

Upon hearing the news, his third uncle remained silent for quite a while before finally instructing him to simply cooperate fully.

Although his third uncle hadn’t said anything, Jiang Longcheng could sense that his third uncle wasn’t very optimistic about the situation.

In contrast, the other factory officials were relieved—they had finally managed to sell off that batch of defective inventory!

With this emergency cash infusion, the factory’s situation could finally begin to stabilize.

Admittedly, for a large state-owned factory with nearly 2,000 employees, 200,000 yuan was merely a drop in the bucket.

But at least it would cover the overdue wages for the workers and cadres, giving everyone enough to get through the New Year, so they were all overjoyed.

What they didn’t know was that their current joy would soon turn into bitter regret!

PS: This is so painful—my whole body feels like it’s been run over by a car!