Ma Danzi’s triangular eyes shifted from side to side. “I’m talking to you, Xia Xiaowan. You little pushover, what are you pretending for?” As he spoke, he raised a hand as if to strike her.
Xia Xiaowan raised her hand and slapped Ma Danzi across the face!
Caught completely off guard, Ma Danzi pointed at Xia Xiaowan and cursed, “You little bitch! How dare you hit me?”
“So what if I hit you? Don’t think I don’t know about all the shameful things you’ve done. Maybe one day, when I’m in the mood, I’ll tell everyone everything and let them all know!” After Xia Xiaowan finished speaking, she took off one of her high heels, raised it, and looked ready to throw it at Ma Danzi.
Xia Xiaowan did not usually frighten Ma Danzi. But once, when he had gone to Liu Wei’s house to sleep with Liu Wei’s wife, Xia Xiaowan had seen him coming out early in the morning.
Ma Danzi was most afraid of Liu Wei. That man was tall and powerfully built. If he found out that Ma Danzi had slept with his wife, wouldn’t he chop him to death, piece by piece?
“All right, Big Sister, I give up. I’ll be going first!” Seeing people gathering around, Ma Danzi grew frightened and slipped away.
Xia Xiaowan put her shoe back on and wiped away her cold sweat with a handkerchief.
That Ma Danzi really was a piece of trash. She had to think of some way to teach him a lesson.
It was especially hot today.
Xia Xiaowan was nearly drenched in sweat. She raised a hand to shade her eyes and looked at the sign by the roadside: Changqing Road. The next street was Taiping Road, and the department store was there.
There was a cold-drink stall at the intersection. Xia Xiaowan bought a bottle of orange soda and took a large gulp. How refreshing! When she raised her head, she saw someone walking toward her.
“Older Female Cousin, why are you alone? Didn’t your husband come with you?” Xia Xiuxiu’s voice drifted over. Jiang Cheng was walking beside her, wearing a blue shirt that had been washed until its color had faded.
Xia Xiaowan had originally intended to retort, but seeing that her cousin’s husband, Jiang Cheng, was there too, she put on a very gentle expression. “That’s right, I’m alone. Mother-in-law gave me some money and told me to go to the department store to buy some clothes. Where are you two going? Are you going to buy new clothes too?”
When Xia Xiuxiu heard that Xia Xiaowan was going to buy new clothes, her face immediately turned livid.
The clothes she had worn for her own wedding had all been provided by her family.
Jiang Cheng was completely penniless. Let alone buying clothes—even buying a bottle of soda required him to think it over carefully for a long time. Wasn’t Xia Xiaowan’s remark like stabbing a knife straight into her heart?
That damned Xia Xiaowan! Wasn’t she merely married to the richest man in Peony City? Wasn’t it only because she had a little money?
There was no need for Xia Xiaowan to get smug. Before long, she would be left a widow in all but name, go mad in the Liu household, and eventually be sent to a mental hospital, where she would die miserably!
At the thought of this, Xia Xiuxiu’s eyes narrowed with delight. “No matter how beautifully you dress, your husband can’t even see you, right? Jiang Cheng and I still have things to do, so we’ll be going!”
With that, she pulled Jiang Cheng away by his stiff arm.
Watching Xia Xiuxiu’s retreating figure, Xia Xiaowan chuckled softly. Xia Xiuxiu, did you really think I was as foolish as you?
Jiang Cheng looked very honest on the surface, but in his bones he was truly cold-hearted and an extreme male chauvinist. Xia Xiuxiu simply did not know that yet!
—But she would find out gradually.
Xia Xiaowan finished her soda and paid ten cents. She felt refreshed from head to toe, full of energy.
She arrived at the department store.
She went inside.
The first floor sold clocks, watches, and jewelry. Xia Xiaowan felt somewhat awkward; this was her first time here.
In her previous life, after Jiang Cheng had become a high-ranking official and taken a lover, he had brought Xia Xiaowan here out of guilt and bought her a watch. Xia Xiaowan had been so moved that she could not sleep for several days.
That heartless, faithless man had enjoyed what was at home while still pining after the vixen outside.
Back then, Xia Xiaowan had been very foolish. She had always believed that if she took care of Jiang Cheng’s parents and children, he would eventually be moved and return to her side. But in the end, she had still died miserably at home.
She had never waited for Jiang Cheng to change his mind.
Xia Xiaowan sighed and pushed those unpleasant thoughts away. Straightening her back, she stopped at a watch counter.
“Salesclerk, take out the best watch here and let me have a look!” Xia Xiaowan said boldly to the salesclerk behind the counter.
The salesclerk was a fresh-faced young woman. Seeing that Xia Xiaowan was dressed very appropriately and was also beautiful, she immediately nodded.
“All right, miss. Please wait a moment!” The young salesclerk moved quickly and took a Shanghai-brand ladies’ watch out from inside the counter.
Xia Xiaowan accepted the watch and examined it carefully. What an exquisite watch! It had a white-steel face, black hands, and a white-steel stretch-link band whose length could be adjusted.
The watch face was round. The larger ones were for men, while this face was much smaller and clearly meant for women. She placed it on her slender wrist. The band seemed too large; it would have to be adjusted before it fit properly.
“Comrade Salesclerk, this watchband is a little too large. Could you have the repairman shorten it?” Xia Xiaowan’s voice was very pleasant to hear, and the salesclerk nodded when she heard her.
“Miss, it can be adjusted. However, this watch costs one hundred and forty yuan and requires one industrial coupon. You’ll have to confirm that you want it before we can alter it for you.” The salesclerk smiled as she looked at Xia Xiaowan.
“All right, I’ll take this watch. But I’d like one that’s completely new and unopened. Is that possible?” Xia Xiaowan wanted one that no one else had tried on. She had a small personal obsession with cleanliness.
“We didn’t originally have one, but a customer reserved one and still hasn’t come to collect it after an entire month. I’ll discuss it with my group leader and see whether we can give it to you first.” After speaking, the salesclerk turned and walked toward the office outside the counter.
Xia Xiaowan admired the new-style watch, feeling very happy inside. All the money she earned from working had gone to her aunt, Wang Xiumei. She could only do some handicrafts at home to earn enough for a little spending money and daily necessities. A watch this expensive was something she had only dared to imagine; she could never afford one.
Before long, the salesclerk returned carrying a white wooden box and placed it on the counter.
The corners of Xia Xiaowan’s lips lifted as she opened the wooden box. “I really like the style of this watch. Can you adjust it for me now?”
The salesclerk nodded, took out a payment slip, wrote down the watch’s style and price, and handed it to her. “The cashier is behind that pillar.”
Xia Xiaowan walked to the cashier behind the pillar.
“Hello, I’d like to pay.” Xia Xiaowan lowered her head, took an envelope from her handbag, pulled out the money, and handed it to the cashier.
“Wait, isn’t that Xia Xiaowan? She actually dares to come here to buy a watch?” The girl’s eyes widened as she stared at her, her face filled with disbelief.
Jiang Wan was wearing a light-pink chiffon dress. She had originally been very thin, but she was a full one meter seventy tall. Combined with her long hair falling over her shoulders, she looked like a completely different person.
How was this possible?
How could a poor wretch like Xia Xiaowan come to such an upscale department store to shop?
The man beside the girl tugged at her. “Let’s go over there and look at the clothes. It’s your birthday today, so you can pick anything you like.”
The girl turned toward the man. “Big Brother Daqiang is still the best to me. Let’s go take a look on the second floor. That’s where they sell women’s clothes!”
With that, she took the man’s hand and headed toward the stairs.
There were ceiling fans hanging from the roof on every floor of the department store. In this sweltering season, they felt truly wonderful.
The girl looked as though the heat had exhausted her. She led the man beneath a fan and stood there enjoying the breeze for quite a while. Only after the sweat on her body had gradually dried did she head upstairs.
When they reached the second floor, the girl pretended that she needed to use the restroom and quietly made her way over to Xia Xiaowan.