“That’s for sure. With Jiabao’s grades, maybe even city leaders will personally come to congratulate him! Just imagining that scene it would be so glorious!” Sun Maocai said, his face glowing red with excitement.
The two of them talked back and forth, flattering each other, laughing so hard their teeth were showing. They hadn’t even gotten the results yet, but they were already fantasizing.
Zhang Meilan’s mind was full of visions of her son becoming the top scorer, bringing honor to the family. In a couple of days, she absolutely had to throw a grand celebration banquet for his admission to university.
Everyone she knew and even those she didn’t, as long as they had even the slightest connection would be invited!
She had to make a big show of it and let those who once looked down on them see clearly with their own eyes!
Her son was the top scorer of the college entrance exam, a promising talent bound for Peking University!
Just thinking about the envious and jealous looks from relatives and friends made Zhang Meilan so excited her steps felt light, as if her bones had become a couple of taels lighter.
If it weren’t for having to take Song Qiaoan to the department store in the afternoon, she would have rushed home right now to start preparing.
On the way to the mall, Zhang Meilan said to Song Qiaoan, “At the birthday banquet, all the guests will be important, respectable people. You’re now the fiancée of the Wang family’s future daughter-in-law your manners and etiquette can’t have even the slightest mistake. You absolutely can’t embarrass Young Master Wang.”
“It’s just a birthday banquet. Since when have you been this attentive?” Song Qiaoan found it strange.
In the past, for occasions like this where she might steal the spotlight, Zhang Meilan would always keep her cooped up at home, afraid she would outshine Song Weiwei.
Was the sun rising from the west now? Not only was she letting her go, she even wanted her to dress up properly?
Something was off. This woman definitely wasn’t up to anything good.
“You’ve got a different status now you’re Wang Shichang’s fiancée, of course you need to dress up nicely,” Zhang Meilan replied casually, though she sneered inwardly.
She was planning to send this girl to a man’s bed how could she not dress her according to Wang Shichang’s preferences? Otherwise, she wouldn’t even bother spending money on this little bitch.
With a face like a vixen’s, she might as well do vixen-like things.
She casually picked up a dress and handed it to Song Qiaoan. “Go on, try this.”
Song Qiaoan only glanced at it and didn’t take it.
It was a tight-fitting wine-red velvet cheongsam with a shockingly high slit, paired with black lace-trimmed stockings. It was seductive and overly sexy clearly designed to cater to male fantasies.
Anyone who didn’t know better would think she was going to a birthday banquet; someone might even mistake it for something else entirely.
“This is indecent. Is this what you call manners and etiquette?” she said coldly.
“You!” Zhang Meilan’s face flushed red with anger, unable to speak for a long moment.
“What do you mean ‘you’? If you like it so much, you wear it yourself,” Song Qiaoan said flatly. “I’m not interested in using my looks to please men. If Wang Shichang has a problem with that, then forget the engagement. That suits me just fine.”
Without another glance at Zhang Meilan’s ashen face, she turned and went off to pick other clothes on her own.
Since she was already here, she might as well buy something. After all, someone else was paying.
She was going to be sent down to the countryside soon anyway, so she needed more clothes. Might as well take advantage of it.
She couldn’t dress too conspicuously in the countryside either she didn’t want people gossiping about her so she picked several plain military-style outfits and gray-blue cadre-style sets, along with practical jeans, white shirts, and jackets, all modern and neat without being flashy.
In the end, she also picked a few skirts in understated colors that gave off a scholarly, refined air.
Song Qiaoan deliberately chose the expensive items. Even though the styles were simple, the fabrics and workmanship were top quality.
She carried the selected clothes to the counter and smiled slightly at Zhang Meilan. “Pay up, Aunt Zhang.”
“Two… 200?!” Zhang Meilan’s eyes nearly rolled back when she saw the total on the abacus. She almost fainted.
This damn girl was definitely doing it on purpose! Even robbery wasn’t this ruthless why didn’t she just steal instead?
“Too expensive?” Song Qiaoan sneered. “Didn’t you personally say you’d reward me after the exam and buy things for me? What, now you’re going back on your word? When you spent money on Song Weiwei and Jiabao, you didn’t even blink.”
“I… I didn’t…” Zhang Meilan stammered.
The sales clerk behind the counter and several nearby customers looked over curiously. Under all those stares, her face turned the color of pig liver.
Even so, she still refused to give in.
When Jiabao’s results came out, she and Song Jianren would run off with the money. They still had plenty of places to spend it how could she let this little bitch take advantage of them?
“You’re buying too much, Qiaoan,” Zhang Meilan tried to argue. “We should be frugal and hardworking. We can’t be wasteful.”
“Aren’t these all for the birthday banquet?” Song Qiaoan said lightly. “If you don’t want to pay, forget it. I won’t go either. Saves me the trouble.”
With that, she turned and walked away without the slightest hesitation.
After just two or three steps, Zhang Meilan urgently called out behind her, “Wait!”
Song Qiaoan stopped and turned back innocently. “Oh? What is it?”
Zhang Meilan’s eye twitched. After struggling internally, she forced out the words through gritted teeth: “Buy it! I’ll buy it! You must attend the birthday banquet!”
Her heart bleeding, she pulled out the money and coupons to pay.
Song Qiaoan looked at her thoughtfully, narrowing her eyes slightly. “Is there something important about this birthday banquet? You seem very nervous.”
Zhang Meilan stiffened, then forced a natural smile. “Of course not! What important thing could there be? Don’t overthink it.”
“I’m not overthinking,” Song Qiaoan said with a smile, leaning in slightly and staring directly into her eyes, not missing a single change in expression. “I just thought you seemed so nervous… I wondered if there was some ‘surprise’ planned at the banquet.”
Zhang Meilan’s gaze wavered. “No… no surprise. Nothing at all. You’re imagining things.”
“Alright then.” Song Qiaoan pretended to be disappointed, then suddenly smiled mysteriously. “But I’ve actually prepared a little surprise for Wang Shichang.”
“A surprise?” Zhang Meilan’s eyes lit up with interest.
This girl was unexpectedly becoming sensible? Just earlier she was still acting so proud and reluctant now she was actually trying to please him?
She really was cheap at heart.
Still, this was good. If she could keep Wang Shichang happy, it would save them trouble too.
“You putting in effort will definitely make Young Master Wang happy!”
Song Qiaoan smiled faintly, lowering her gaze to hide the flash of coldness in her eyes. “Mm, I’ve put in a lot of effort. And there’s a part for you too. You should look forward to it.”
This “gift” wasn’t just for the two of them.
Song Jianren, Song Weiwei, Song Jiabao… none of them would escape.
Zhang Meilan didn’t notice anything unusual at all and was still thinking about the birthday banquet plan.
That bottle of medicine had been sitting there for a long time if she didn’t use it soon, would it expire?
A couple of days ago, Wang Shichang had contacted her again, subtly urging her to act quickly. Clearly, he was getting impatient.
But you can’t rush good soup especially when what he wanted to eat was meat.
She told Wang Shichang her plan, repeatedly assuring him that everything was foolproof, and only then did he calm down.
When they returned home, Song Jianren was chatting with neighbors, spitting everywhere as he boasted about his son’s good results.
“Your second child took the college entrance exam this year too, right? How did he do? Have you estimated his score?”
“Oh, didn’t do well? What a pity… this year’s exam was really hard, the questions were too tricky!”
“Our Jiabao didn’t do well either. He told me his estimate when he came back he only got 148 in math! Can you believe it? I’m about to be mad to death! I don’t even know where those two points went! This kid is just too careless!”