Chapter 50

Initially, Li Luo didn't pay much attention to this matter.

The school never said the military training uniform must come with a belt.

Moreover, the pants of this uniform already have elastic waistbands; most people can walk normally without them falling off, though they might slip during exercise.

It was just that Ying Chanxi was particularly slim, especially her slender waist, so when she put on the military pants, they hung loosely.

After walking just a few steps, the pants felt like they were slipping down—though they'd catch on her hips and not fully fall, this was still a suggestive way of wearing them.

If she made any large movements during military training, they'd definitely drop.

"No belt?" Li Luo looked puzzled, opened his own uniform set, then pulled out a belt, "Aren't there one here?"

"Not this one," Ying Chanxi shook her head, went back to the bedroom and returned, holding another belt, which she fastened around her waist, "Look, this one's so thick—it's meant to tie the top down, it won't even fit through the pant's belt loops."

Li Luo paused, then bent down to examine it, realizing she was right: "Probably they never included a belt to begin with."

Thinking this, Li Luo pulled out his phone and walked toward Xu Youyu's bedroom.

He first called Zhao Rongjun, urging him to check his military uniform immediately to see if it lacked a belt.

After confirming this, Li Luo knocked on Xu Youyu's door and asked about last year's military training.

"Oh, yeah, there wasn't a belt for the pants," Xu Youyu poked his head out, listened to Li Luo's question, scratched his head, and recalled, "But across from the school there's a clothing store—many students bought belts there last year; you can go check tomorrow too."

"Is that so…" Li Luo nodded, understanding.

If this were an ordinary Gao Zhongsheng, they'd probably just wait until tomorrow and buy a belt at that store.

But Li Luo thought of something else, so he pulled out his phone again and called his uncle, Lin Xiufeng.

"Hello? Xiao Luo?" Lin Xiufeng was surprised—Li Luo calling at this hour? "What's up?"

"Uncle," Li Luo paused, then said, "I remember Grandpa San's family runs a clothing business, right? Managed by your cousin?"

"Yeah," Lin Xiufeng was puzzled but nodded, "I work at your cousin's company—I haul tons of clothes every day."

"Really?" Li Luo raised an eyebrow, then smiled, "Do you have belts? Doesn't need to be expensive—just cheap ones that won't break after a few days or half a month."

"Probably," Lin Xiufeng thought back, "I recall there's inventory in the warehouse, but I'll need to check—why are you asking?"

"I've got a small business opportunity," Li Luo cleared his throat, "See if you're interested, Uncle."

…

August 25, Monday morning.

The owner of Yi Mei Clothing Store rarely opened at eight a. m. —today she opened at six, and had hung all kinds of belts on the rack outside her door.

Every year, when Fuyi High School and Qianjiang University opened, it was the owner's harvest season.

On Zhenxing West Road, their store was the closest clothing shop to both schools.

And the owner's relative was a leader in Qianjiang University's logistics department—each year, when purchasing military uniforms, they deliberately didn't include belts for the pants.

Fuyi High School's procurement department always ordered the same goods as Qianjiang University.

As a result, every year at this time, students would find ways to buy belts.

After all, most students never bought belts for daily wear, so the Yi Mei Clothing Store owner made several thousand yuan annually from these one-time sales.

The small convenience stores in Qianjiang University's dormitory area mostly sourced their belts from her.

As for Fuyi High School, there was only one small supermarket downstairs in the dorms, open after evening classes—and the owner had connections at the school, so the clothing store owner didn't bother supplying it, just opened early and waited for students to come to her.

Fuyi High School's campus and dormitory area were separate.

Only Gao San students had dorms inside the campus.

Gao Yi and Gao Er students lived in dorms across the street from the school gate, and had to cross the road every day to get to and from class.

Under these conditions, if a student wanted to buy a belt after leaving the dorm, they only needed to turn left a few steps and reach Yi Mei Clothing Store's entrance.

Early in the morning, the owner moved all the belts outside, sat on a stool, and waited patiently for her prey to arrive.

The belts beside her were divided into three tiers: 15 yuan, 25 yuan, and 40 yuan—but their wholesale cost was only one or two yuan each.

Fuyi High School had over six hundred students per grade, over a hundred of them day students; if more than half bought her belts, the owner could easily make several thousand yuan.

But just as she thought this, a truck slowly drove to the space between the clothing store and the dormitory gate.

Due to its parking direction, the truck's front faced the clothing store, while its rear cargo door faced the dormitory gate exit.

Lin Xiufeng jumped out from the driver's seat, walked to the cargo area, and opened the rear door.

The owner glanced at the truck but paid it no mind.

She sat inside the store entrance, under the ceiling fan, her angle allowing her to see the truck's front—but not its rear.

So from six a. m. until half past six, almost no students came to buy belts.

At first, the owner wasn't worried, thinking the students were just excited about their first day on campus, staying up late and sleeping in.

But when two students in military uniforms came in, asked the belt prices, heard the cheapest was 15 yuan, and immediately turned around and left, the owner was stunned.

"What's going on?" the owner muttered, "If not here, where else could they go?"

Thinking this, she frowned and stepped outside, glancing toward the dormitory gate—and froze.

There, behind the truck's cargo door, a crowd of Gao Yi freshmen in military uniforms had gathered.

As the owner approached, she saw the truck's interior was full of belts—students lined up, buying one belt each for ten yuan, much cheaper than her prices.

Seeing this, the owner's head spun, and she nearly fainted from rage.

"Where did you get these? Selling here? Is this legal?" she stormed up to Lin Xiufeng and demanded.

Surprised by the sudden accusation, Lin Xiufeng looked confused, then turned to Li Luo beside him.

Li Luo, also in military uniform, was squatting on the truck bed, cheerfully selling belts—he glanced at the owner and asked curiously:

"Auntie, aren't you the owner of the clothing store next door?"

As he spoke, Li Luo turned to the surrounding students and said sincerely, "Auntie might be stressed—after all, everyone needs to make money. If you're in a hurry to line up, you can also check out her store."

"Check what?" a student scoffed, "Her cheapest belt's 15 yuan, the most expensive is 40—this is just military training, why buy such expensive belts?"

Hearing this, students who had been considering switching lines stopped in their tracks.

The shopkeeper, seeing the students standing still, flushed with anger but could not say anything; finally, she gritted her teeth and said, "I'll sell it for ten too!"