Chapter 154: The Red-Hot Proxy Buying Business
"Mom, what are you talking about? I’m not," Grace Winslow muttered in dissatisfaction.
Remembering Archer Rhys was still present, she decided to set the thought aside.
’I’ll write out the plan later and map everything out properly.’
’There’s no rush.’
’Besides, I really don’t have enough capital on hand right now, so it wouldn’t hurt to wait a bit longer.’
After dinner, Archer Rhys insisted on helping to clear the table.
The more Irene Lynch looked at him, the more pleased she was. She nudged Grace Winslow with her elbow. "Look how great Archer is. Don’t you dare miss out on such a wonderful man, or you’ll live to regret it."
Grace Winslow’s mind was completely occupied with thoughts of a fast-food restaurant and food delivery. Hearing Irene Lynch’s words, she snapped back to reality and retorted irritably, "Oh, Mom! Why do you want to marry me off to every single man you see?"
"You said the same thing back when it was Sean York. You really can’t be like this. Mom, your ideology is problematic! Even the old leaders said that women can hold up half the sky. I’m going to be one of those women, so when would I have time to think about romance?"
"I’m going to my room. You can see Archer Rhys out in a bit. I have things to do."
Tossing those words over her shoulder, Grace Winslow ran straight back to her room.
Irene Lynch looked completely helpless.
’Such a wonderful man, yet Grace Winslow isn’t the least bit interested. I really don’t know what’s gotten into her.’
Grace returned to her room, took out a notebook, and began scribbling and sketching in it.
She wrote down some of her ideas, including a long list of dishes common to fast-food restaurants.
But after writing them down, she crossed them out one by one.
’When I’m just starting out, I probably won’t be able to find a good head chef, so offering too many dishes wouldn’t be smart. If I can’t find the right person, the whole plan will be dead in the water.’
’I should think of a fast-food concept that doesn’t require a wide variety of dishes but will still sell really well.’
Grace Winslow sat there, racking her brain for a long time. Finally, her eyes lit up as an idea struck her.
Pig trotter rice!
’That dish was incredibly popular in my past life. There were restaurants selling it all over the country.’
’I saw places selling it everywhere.’
’If so many restaurants could be opened, it must have its advantages.’
She’d eaten it before, but she honestly didn’t know how to make it.
But that was okay. She had Irene Lynch.
’My mom is a treasure. She knows how to cook so many things.’
’After all these years of serving the family, young and old, if there was one thing she’d mastered, it was cooking. Her skills were absolutely top-notch.’
Grace Winslow jotted it down in her notebook.
’Even though I don’t know how to cook it, I’ve eaten it, so I have a rough idea of the ingredients.’
’It doesn’t matter if Mom doesn’t know how. We can experiment a few times and eventually figure out the recipe.’
’If I can master this dish myself, it won’t be a huge problem even if I can’t find a chef later on.’
’I’ll just need to hire a couple of people for washing dishes and cleaning, two servers, and a few delivery drivers.’
Grace Winslow wrote down a rough draft of her plan. She read it over, growing more and more satisfied with it.
Meanwhile, Irene Lynch had already seen Archer Rhys out.
When she returned, she saw Grace Winslow still hunched over her notebook, writing and drawing. Irene shook her head but didn’t disturb her.
Grace Winslow wrote for several hours. Stretching, she realized it was already the middle of the night.
She quickly got up, took a shower, and then burrowed under her covers.
The next day, she got up before dawn and hurried back to school.
’Good thing they don’t do room checks, or else I’d have to explain why I didn’t come back to the dorm last night.’
When Grace Winslow arrived at school, she went straight to her classroom.
She sat down, opened her textbook, and felt her energy return.
"How does Grace Winslow have so much energy? She gets up before dawn every day to run, and she’s still such a good student and a favorite of the teachers. I’m so jealous. When will I ever be as brilliant as she is?"
"If you spent more of your daydreaming time on studying, you could be too."
A few classmates whispered among themselves.
Grace Winslow pretended not to hear them.
At noon, she managed to slip away to go home and bring back the selected clothes for the classmates who had already paid for their orders.
When the students who had bought the clothes saw what Grace Winslow brought, their eyes lit up.
The style and the fabric were both top-notch, and moreover, there was nothing else like them in Coronet.
This meant that when they wore them out, their outfits would be completely unique. Who wouldn’t be thrilled about that?
Wendy Quinn had taken some time off after Archer Rhys publicly humiliated her, only returning to school today.
Seeing a few classmates holding up the clothes they’d bought from Grace and admiring them, she was so furious she could have ground her teeth to dust.
However, she wasn’t in the mood to cause trouble right now, so she just returned to her seat with a cold expression on her face.
After Grace Winslow distributed the clothes, the other students who had placed orders grew excited with anticipation.
As a result, the very next day, several more classmates came looking for Grace to pre-order clothes.
"Hey, my sister-in-law can only send a few outfits each time, and there’s already a long waiting list. I’m not sure when it’ll be your turn. Maybe you should wait and pay me later?" Grace Winslow said, feeling a little embarrassed.
’Taking their money before I’ve even delivered the goods...’
’I’m making money pretty easily.’
"Grace, we trust you, so just take the money. I saw the outfit Mandy Warren bought—it’s gorgeous! I want that style, too."
"No way! I don’t want to have the same outfit as you. Can’t you pick a different style?" Mandy Warren piped up, instantly displeased.
Everyone wanted to be unique and avoid wearing the same thing as someone else. After all, when that happens, it’s always awkward for whoever wears it worse.
Grace was also a bit apologetic. "If I’m getting clothes for so many people, it’s impossible to avoid repeating styles. It’s inevitable that some will be the same. There’s really nothing I can do about it. Why don’t you all think it over? I can refund your money."
"I’m still ordering! Don’t worry about whether it’s the same style or not. Just bring them for us."
No matter what Grace Winslow said, it was useless. The students insisted on shoving their money at her.
Resigned, Grace Winslow had no choice but to accept. "Alright, I’ll do my best to talk to my sister-in-law and see if she can bring more next time so you won’t have to wait so long. Otherwise, summer will be here before you know it, and you’ll miss your chance to wear these pretty trench coats."
"Okay, great! Thank you, Grace! You’re such a good person."
Grace Winslow found herself being called a "good person" over and over.
She felt completely helpless.
’I’m making money and earning a good reputation at the same time.’
’I’ve never had it this good before.’
「Economics and Management Department」
"Have you heard? There’s a student in the Foreign Languages Department who brings back really beautiful clothes from the south. They’re super cheap, way less than what you’d pay at a department store. A ton of students in her department are buying from her now."
"I saw them! I’m so jealous. I want to ask her to get me a couple of things, too."
"Me too! My family set me up with someone, and I was hoping to buy a couple of nice outfits to make a good impression when I meet him."
"I wonder if she’d be willing to get some for us. Should we go ask?"
Yvonne Hale overheard her classmates’ discussion and couldn’t help but perk up her ears. "What are you all talking about? Something about getting clothes?"
"Yvonne Hale, do you want to come with us? The fabric is incredible. The same thing would cost at least one or two hundred yuan at a department store, but these are less than a hundred, and they even come with a slip and blouse to wear underneath."
Yvonne Hale’s eyes lit up. She had been wanting to buy some nicer clothes for a while, and she still hadn’t spent much of the money she’d brought from home. Hearing what her classmates said, she agreed almost without hesitation.