No words were exchanged throughout the night.
The next morning, after breakfast, Su Zelin spread out his hands and said, "Dad, give me some money. I need to go buy clothes today!"
"Buy, buy, buy, all you know is buying clothes. Look at your wardrobe; it's stuffed full, and it's all those bizarre outfits—expensive and hideous!"
Zhao Lixia couldn't help but complain.
In the eyes of the parents, Su Zelin's "fashion" wardrobe was simply an eyesore.
"That's right, those clothes are too ugly. I'm planning to replace them all with something normal!"
Su Zelin blushed slightly.
"Are you sure?"
Su Jianjun was skeptical.
With his understanding of his son, those bizarre outfits were the real "normal."
Su Zelin got angry all of a sudden: "Dad, with your intelligence, could I possibly fool you? If you don't believe me, you can come with me!"
"That's true!"
Su Jianjun was quite flattered by this comment.
"Your mom and I are busy today; the shop will be very hectic!"
After hesitating for a moment, he made a decision.
After talking with Su Zelin yesterday, he found that his son was indeed different from before, even having the idea of starting a business after entering college. Naturally, he should support changing his image.
He pulled out five big red bills from his leather bag and stuffed them into Su Zelin's hand.
In those days, the cost of living was still cheap, and this money was enough to buy several decent sets of brand-name summer clothes.
"You little brat, remember, don't buy those ripped clothes, or the colorful, flashy ones. If you dare to deceive us, you'll be in big trouble!"
Zhao Lixia reminded him, initially considering having Qin Shiqing go with him to keep an eye, but then she worried about wasting her precious study time, so she skipped the idea.
"Got it, mother dear!"
Su Zelin grinned as he took the bills and casually stuffed them into his pocket.
"Keep that money safe; watch out for pickpockets!"
Zhao Lixia frowned.
"Don't worry, granny. In Jianglan, who would dare steal from me, Su Zelin? I'd smash their head!"
Su Zelin replied in a carefree manner, though he spoke the truth.
He had been unruly since childhood, frequently getting into fights, with classmates and even with small-time thugs, fighting across countless streets. Known for his fierceness and bravery, he was deemed a street tyrant, well-known in his circles.
Besides, small-time thugs and thieves usually target easy prey. Even if they didn't recognize Su Zelin, seeing his tall, sturdy, and defiant demeanor, they could easily guess he's either a peer or someone not to be trifled with, so nobody would look for trouble for no reason.
"You're a grown man now and all you know is fighting!"
Zhao Lixia nagged for a few more moments, then she and Su Jianjun went out the door, hopped on a Jialing motorcycle, and left the alley.
On the bike, Zhao Lixia grumbled, "You, you're too indulgent with our son, giving him so much money just to buy a few sets of clothes. A lenient father ruins his child!"
"The boy wants to change his image, that's a good thing. Besides, Zelin is more sensible than before. I chatted with him last night and asked about his plans for the future. He said he plans to start his own business in college!"
Su Jianjun replied while driving, without turning his head.
"Did he really say that?"
"Yes, he did. And I don't think he's lying. Zelin truly seems to have his own ideas!"
"That's good to hear!"
Zhao Lixia breathed a sigh of relief. Her biggest worry was that her son would continue to drift aimlessly.
"By the way, while doing dishes last night, Shiqing told me that Zelin was well-behaved at school last week, often staying in the classroom after class."
"Haha, it seems our Zelin has really grown up!"
"..."
As soon as the two elder ones left, Su Zelin also rode his bicycle out the door.
Jianglan was still a relatively small place and hadn't been a city for long. You could count on your fingers the places people frequented to buy clothes.
The affordable places were the central market, the southern market, and a few other big markets.
After touring around, Su Zelin was disappointed to find that almost everything was street vendor merchandise, and the styles and quality weren't promising, with "Nike" and "Adidas" everywhere.
The prices, though, were very cheap, with some clothes priced at thirty or forty yuan, and you could even bargain them down by 20%.
This was advice Zhao Lixia gave Su Zelin before going out: if buying clothes in those two places, you must haggle. If the price doesn't drop by 20%, walk away. You wouldn't even take five steps before the vendor calls you back, offering reasons like "just hit the market today" or "because you're a student, I'll sell it cheaply" to make the deal.
Before being reborn, Su Zelin only wore branded clothes. Not that he was vain, but because brand-name clothes indeed had good fabric quality, enhancing his image and providing comfort.
Moreover, his family's financial situation was quite good, and he was confident in quickly making money, so there was no need to wrong himself to save just a little money.
Having run through two markets, and guessing other markets were generally the same, Su Zelin didn't waste more time and headed straight for the brand-name street in the city center.
The clothing styles here were abundant, and alongside the higher prices came some sense of design.
Strolling down from the end of the street.
Caesar, Old Master, Youngor, and K-Boxing were all too old-fashioned, unsuitable for young people, so he passed on them!
It wasn't until he reached the fifth shop that Su Zelin stopped.
This was a Jack Jones specialty store, specializing in denim aimed at the young group.
This is it!
He parked his bicycle at the shop's entrance and walked in.
"Hello, welcome!"
Jack Jones understood the mentality of young consumers well. All the store clerks were fashionably dressed handsome men and beautiful women, making the girl who greeted him quite pleasing to the eye.
Currently, not many domestic brands focused on the young market. Businesses hadn't realized the shift in future consumer trend tides. This brand was on the right path, and opening a few specialty stores in any city would yield profits.