Chapter 12: Fashion Design

After the rain, the sun came out, and the sky cleared up. The room also brightened as the sunlight streamed in. Gu Qingci looked at his niece, who was playing joyfully.

“Jiao Jiao, the rain has stopped. We should go now.”

“Ah! Uncle, I haven’t played enough yet!”

Zhao Jiaojiao pouted, trying to act cute and wanting to stay and continue playing. Gu Qingci walked up to her, crouched down in front of her, and patiently coaxed her.

“Jiao Jiao, be good. We’ve been out for a long time, and Grandma will be worried. Let’s come back to play next time, okay?”

“Alright!” Jiao Jiao put down the toy she was holding, gave the triplets a hug, and said,

“Little brothers and sisters, I’m leaving now. I’ll come play with you again next time, so don’t miss me too much!”

Jiang Huaijin rolled his eyes. “Who would miss you?”

Gu Qingci picked up Zhao Jiaojiao and walked over to Jiang Banyue. He lowered his head, gazing at her.

“Ban Yue, we’re leaving.”

“Okay.” Jiang Banyue smiled and gently patted Zhao Jiaojiao’s head.

“Jiao Jiao, next time you absolutely cannot run around everywhere, okay?”

“Got it! Thank you, pretty Auntie. Can I come play with the little brothers and sisters next time?”

“Of course, but you must come with an adult.”

“Okay, Uncle will bring me next time.”

After Jiang Banyue and Zhao Jiaojiao agreed to visit again often, Gu Qingci left the shop with his niece.

Jiang Banyue opened the door of the shop, took a deep breath of the fresh air after the rain. Outside, many shopkeepers were standing together, casually chatting while eating sunflower seeds. Jiang Banyue nodded and greeted them briefly before going back inside. The shopkeepers quietly resumed their conversation.

“Did you hear? She’s raising three babies on her own. Does she have no man in her family?”

“Who knows? Maybe she’s divorced?”

“She’s so beautiful, could she be the kind of woman kept by a man on the side?”

“Haha…”

The shopkeepers laughed and joked while munching on sunflower seeds, glancing toward Jiang Banyue’s shop.

Due to the rain, there were no customers in the shop, and Jiang Banyue was enjoying the quiet. She sat on the carpet, playing with the three babies.

Zhao Jiaojiao came by to play in the shop every now and then. Sometimes she brought toys to play with the babies, always accompanied by Gu Qingci. Over time, Jiang Banyue and Gu Qingci became more familiar with each other.

Through their conversations, Jiang Banyue learned that Gu Qingci owned a clothing factory, specializing in supplying major shopping malls. At first, the factory only made adult clothing, but Gu Qingci discovered the large market for children’s clothes and decided to open a workshop specifically for baby clothing. He was quite interested when he saw the jumpsuits worn by the triplets.

The jumpsuits were shaped like animals, with bunny ears on the hoods and tails on the backsides—so cute!

“Where did you buy the clothes your babies are wearing? They’re adorable.”

“I made them,” Jiang Banyue said as she kissed her cute daughter.

Gu Qingci’s eyes lit up, his heart racing. She was truly a woman with both talent and skill.

“I run a clothing business. These baby clothes are so cute! If we sold them, many people would definitely buy them. Could I make them based on this design? Don’t worry, I’ll pay you.”

When Jiang Banyue heard there was money involved, she was tempted. Raising three children by herself, she needed the money. Since buying a house, she had no more savings. Relying on making cakes wasn’t bringing in much income. The money she earned was just enough for the basics. If she could design clothes and sell the designs to Gu Qingci, it would be an additional source of income.

“Okay, I can draw the clothing designs and sell them to you. How about that?”

“Really!” Gu Qingci looked at her excitedly.

“You can design clothes?”

“Yes.”

Jiang Banyue put her daughter down, grabbed some paper and a pen from the front desk, and started drawing a design for a baby outfit. Gu Qingci stood behind her, bending slightly to look at the drawing. The more he looked, the more surprised and impressed he became.

Jiang Banyue had drawn a design for a sweet princess dress. The top was sleeveless, and the skirt was made of layers of tulle. A big bow tied at the back, and an outer jacket completed the look.

Gu Qingci stared at Jiang Banyue with admiration, as if looking at a sparkling treasure. When she finished, she handed the design to him.

“Take a look. Do you think it’s pretty?”

“It’s beautiful. This kind of princess dress isn’t just for little girls. I bet many grown-up girls would love it too.”

Gu Qingci took the design, amazed. The princess dress was drawn so vividly. Jiang Banyue let out a light laugh.

“How much would you pay for one design?”

She was mainly concerned with how much profit one design would bring her. She needed money—lots of money—to make plans for the future of herself and her babies.

“Sixty. How does that sound?” Gu Qingci wanted to help her. Raising three kids alone must be tough, so he offered her more money, hoping it would make her life a bit easier.

“Sixty!” Jiang Banyue was surprised. She had expected a payment of just twenty or so for a design, not this much.

“It’s not much,” Gu Qingci replied, adjusting his glasses with his long fingers. “Once the princess dresses are made, many women will want to buy them. Each one will probably sell for about ten dollars. I run the factory wholesale, so the sales will only be higher. I have a feeling this dress will sell well. I’m not just making sizes for babies, but also for adults. Many mothers will probably love the idea of matching outfits with their kids.”

“You’re talking about matching family outfits,” Jiang Banyue said, looking up at him.

“Yes, family outfits,” Gu Qingci smiled, the corners of his lips lifting. “The name sounds good. We’ll call it family outfits. That way, we can sell two at a time.”

Jiang Banyue thought of the various beautiful outfits she had seen in her past life. She had studied art, so she could easily draw them. This way, she could make a lot of money. With three little mouths to feed, she had to work hard to earn!

Gu Qingci’s gaze softened, and he smiled at her.

“I want to hire you as a clothing designer for my factory. I’ll pay you a monthly salary. What do you think?”

Jiang Banyue hesitated. “I run a cake shop and have to take care of three babies. I can’t really take a regular job.”

Gu Qingci chuckled.

“You don’t have to come to work. You can stay here and draw the designs. I’ll come to pick them up, and the factory will still pay you a salary.”

“Ah! That doesn’t seem right!” Jiang Banyue was skeptical. Was this some kind of lucky break?

Gu Qingci adjusted his glasses again.

“It’s fine. I started the factory myself. I’m in charge of everything!”

Jiang Banyue couldn’t help but smile. So, this person in front of her was going to be a future domineering CEO, huh?