Lin Xingyao didn’t catch the boastful tone in his earlier words and clicked her tongue twice. “Empty out the entire mall? What a grand gesture! If I really emptied it, wouldn’t you feel the pinch? That’s quite a lot of money.”
She then giggled again. “But don’t worry, I’m not that greedy. At most, I’ll only empty half the mall. Hahaha!”
With the card in hand, she hummed a cheerful tune and left.
Jun Xuanye watched her retreating figure, a faint smile appearing on his originally cold face. “So easy to please.”
Lin Xingyao had no intention of emptying the mall, mainly because she was afraid there wouldn’t be enough space for everything—it would be too much trouble. Over the years, she had lived a nomadic life, drifting from one corner of the world to another for missions. She had saved up quite a bit of money, but when it came to physical items, she only bought what she needed and never indulged in excessive purchases.
Today, her main goal was to buy some clothes. The Lin family had bought her quite a few outfits, but they were all cheap street-market goods, many of which were unwearable. Zhao Meijuan had sent over a few bags of clothes at the beginning, but few of them suited her taste, and there were no undergarments.
Lin Xingyao wandered around the mall and first visited a hair salon for a new hairstyle. With a slight trim to her bangs, her entire appearance was refreshed, and her aura elevated to a new level. She no longer looked dowdy but instead resembled a pure and innocent college student.
After finishing her hair, she headed to the clothing section on the third floor.
As she walked, her gaze was suddenly drawn to a set of black lingerie in a shop window. The design was exquisite, especially the bra, which was crafted in the shape of a butterfly. Lin Xingyao fell in love with it at first sight.
She entered the lingerie store, and a sales assistant immediately came to greet her.
Lin Xingyao pointed directly at the set in the window. “Can I try this on?”
“Of course,” the sales assistant replied, just as she was about to take the set off the mannequin. An older employee emerged from inside, her face stern as she scolded, “I’ve told you before, this piece is very delicate and shouldn’t be taken down casually. Why can’t you remember?”
The young sales assistant stammered, “But a customer wants to see it, I…”
“A customer?” The older employee glanced at Lin Xingyao’s attire. Although her clothes were branded, they were the lower-end products of well-known labels, far from the same tier as their own brand. Her tone grew slightly arrogant. “Miss, this is a limited-edition lingerie set from our brand, the only one in the world. Naturally, the price is quite steep. Are you sure you want to buy it?”
Lin Xingyao replied, “I haven’t even taken a closer look or tried it on. How can I be sure if I want to buy it?”
“I’m sorry, but all other styles are available for try-on. Only this one requires a purchase before trying.”
“Your colleague just said I could try it on.”
“She’s new and doesn’t know the rules. I’m the store manager, and if I say no, then no try-on is allowed.”
Lin Xingyao could tell she was deliberately making things difficult. Just a small store manager, yet acting like a big shot.
“Fine, then I’ll buy it.”
The store manager was taken aback, her tone instantly changing. “Ah, you really want to buy it? This set costs 580,000. Are you sure?”
“I’m sure.” Lin Xingyao had a quirk of her own: if she wasn’t spending money, it was fine, but once she started, she never cared about the price. Even without the Heijin Ka in hand, she could afford it herself.
The store manager was overjoyed and pushed the young sales assistant aside. “Alright, please come over here to make the payment.”
This commission secured, the commission alone is quite substantial! For such high-end luxury goods, the consumer base is just that small, and it’s rare to sell a piece. And today’s sale is the most expensive item among all the store’s single pieces!
But then Lin Xingyao said, “Sorry, I don’t really like you. Please have that salesperson help me with the purchase.”
The salesperson she pointed to was the young clerk from earlier. The young clerk wasn’t old, still carrying a bit of rustic simplicity in her youthfulness, clearly someone who had just come to the city to work.
“Huh? Her? She’s still in her probation period, I’m afraid she won’t serve you well. How about…”
Lin Xingyao didn’t give her a chance to speak, directly taking the set of lingerie and tossing it to the young salesgirl: “What are you standing there dumbfounded for? Hurry up and ring me up!”
Right at that moment, more people entered the store. And as luck would have it, it was actually Lin Xingwei, the cousin who had looked down on Jun Xuanye as a madman and pulled Lin Xingyao into a substitute marriage.
Lin Xingwei had recently made a new friend, Song Qianqian, the daughter of one of the three major wealthy families in the capital. Relying on Song Qianqian, Lin Xingwei had just entered the capital’s socialite circle and was even planning to move her family to the capital.
Song Qianqian was an illegitimate child. She had lived a difficult life in her early years, suffering a lot, and only returned to the wealthy family at the age of 18. Once she became suddenly wealthy, her lifestyle immediately became extravagant.
“Oh, Qianqian, look! Isn’t this the limited edition lingerie we saw in the magazine yesterday? The real thing is even more beautiful than in the photos!” Lin Xingwei said, directly snatching the set of lingerie from the salesgirl’s hands.
She wanted to buy it, but as soon as she saw the price tag, her enthusiasm deflated. The Lin family was just ordinary wealthy merchants; Lin Xingwei couldn’t afford to spend that much money on a set of lingerie.
Song Qianqian also fancied this set of lingerie, but seeing the price tag, she felt it was a bit expensive too. As an illegitimate child, her status in the Song family wasn’t high, and her monthly allowance was only 600,000 yuan. Spending nearly a month’s allowance on a set of lingerie was a bit extravagant.
Just as she was hesitating, the store manager who had been bullied by Lin Xingyao earlier, upon seeing Song Qianqian, immediately acted as if she had found a backer, putting on a fawning and servile expression: “Miss Song, this piece is a global limited edition, the only one of its kind. The design is unique, especially the butterfly’s eyes, adorned with sapphires, luxurious and grand. It matches your noble and transcendent temperament perfectly. How about you try it on?”
Song Qianqian indeed loved this piece, and hearing the manager’s flattery, she thought she might as well try it on. If it looked really good, she’d buy it; she could just tighten her belt on other expenses.
Lin Xingyao was a bit annoyed: “Why is it that when I said I wanted to try it on, you absolutely refused, but as soon as someone else comes, you rush to let them try it?”
Before the salesgirl could speak, Song Qianqian already said smugly: “This kind of limited edition lingerie is too precious. Usually, only VIP customers in the store can try it on. Ordinary customers, without knowing their background, what if they secretly took off the gemstones and smuggled them out?”
“You’re Lin Xingyao? What are you doing here?” Lin Xingwei finally recognized Lin Xingyao. Mainly because Lin Xingyao had dressed too plainly when she was with the Lin family before, completely different from her current pure and beautiful appearance.
Lin Xingyao found it amusing: “What’s so strange about me coming to shop at the mall?”
Song Qianqian asked Lin Xingwei: “Do you know her?”
If it were before, Lin Xingwei wouldn’t have wanted to acknowledge this cousin either. But now, her perspective was quite different.
“Qianqian, let me introduce you to my cousin Lin Xingyao—the one who was sold off for Chongxi.”
Song Qianqian then looked at Lin Xingyao with a hint of mockery in her expression: “So this is the cousin you mentioned before, the one who sold herself for two million to marry a madman. No wonder she can afford to shop in luxury stores like this—after all, she did sell herself.”