Mu Zhaozhao sneered, “Hold on. Are you sure you won’t leave a single piece for me?”
“Absolutely and positively!” Song Tingting held her head high. As long as she could spite Mu Zhaozhao, spending a little extra money didn’t matter to her at all.
Song Zhoubai tried to interject from the side, but Song Tingting cut him off, “Cousin, stay out of this! I just want to make sure this b*tch can’t buy the fabric she wants.”
Mu Zhaozhao clapped her hands. “Fine. Why don’t you write a purchase guarantee then? Make sure you don’t back out.”
Saying that, she borrowed a piece of paper and a pen from the sales clerk and handed them to Song Tingting.
“Just write down that you guarantee to buy up all of this silk fabric in the department store. If you don’t write it, I’m going to place my order right now.”
Hearing this, Song Tingting hurriedly snatched the pen and paper. “I’ll write it! You’re definitely not buying anything today regardless!”
With a few quick strokes, Song Tingting finished writing and handed the guarantee to the sales clerk.
Seeing no issues, the clerk took out an abacus and calculated the total, saying, “If you want to purchase all of it, the total comes to 10,800 yuan, plus 163 fabric coupons.”
Only then did Song Tingting realize the gravity of her action, her eyes widening in shock. “What? That much?!”
Mu Zhaozhao looked at her as if looking at a complete fool. “Yep. You should buy it all. After all, I don’t really care for this outdated fabric anyway. Oh, and don’t forget—you signed that guarantee. If you don’t buy it, the store has every right to report you to the police for fraud and lock you up.”
Song Tingting was dumbfounded.
Her family had a bit of spare cash, but both her parents were ordinary wage earners. At most, they had a few thousand yuan saved up. Where on earth was she supposed to get that much money? If her parents found out she had racked up a lifelong, unpayable debt, they would beat her to death.
Mu Zhaozhao couldn’t care less. She happily purchased two types of Dacron fabric—one in light pink and one in white—both perfectly suited for making clothes for a girl her age.
As Song Tingting wept in frustration nearby, Song Zhoubai pleaded on her behalf, “Mu Zhaozhao, why don’t we drop it? I know Tingting offended you first…”
“Song Zhoubai, you don’t need to say another word to me. Right now, Song Tingting owes money to the department store. You should go plead with them instead.”
With that, Mu Zhaozhao took her purchased fabric, turned on her heel, and walked away. A foolish person like Song Tingting wasn’t even worth her time to fight with.
Not far away, two tall, erect male figures happened to appear at the end of the department store corridor.
Ruan Jingsheng narrowed his long, slender eyes and asked, “Doesn’t the back of that female comrade ahead look a bit familiar? Is that Mu Zhaozhao?”
Shan Chengming took a closer look and said carelessly, “Isn’t that the Song Tingting we ran into on the train? Jingsheng, did Elder Yuan ask you to find Mu Zhaozhao so much that everyone is starting to look like her to you?”
He wanted to find Mu Zhaozhao too, but Shanghai was vast. Searching for one person here was like looking for a needle in the ocean.
Earlier, to avoid drawing attention, Mu Zhaozhao hadn’t bought much fabric. Before she could finish stockpiling supplies, her mood had been ruined by Song Tingting.
Leaving the department store, she headed straight for the Friendship Store.
This place carried plenty of daily necessities, including shampoo, soap, vanishing cream, toothpaste, toothbrushes, laundry detergent, and more.
Once inside, Mu Zhaozhao went on a buying spree, hoarding enough of each item to last until their expiration dates. One could never have too many daily supplies; keeping them in her pocket dimension meant she could retrieve them whenever needed.
After purchasing the consumables, she moved on to household items like shoes, underwear, and sleepwear.
Under the sales clerk’s stunned gaze, it seemed as if she was practically buying out the entire Friendship Store.
The clerk swallowed hard and asked, “Comrade, are you sure you want to buy this much?”
Mu Zhaozhao nodded, having long prepared an excuse: “Yes, I have a big family with many siblings, so I need to buy extra.”
The clerk nodded in understanding and calculated the total. Mu Zhaozhao paid, packed everything up, and carried the bags out of the Friendship Store.
Using her usual method, she found a deserted corner and swept all the items into her pocket dimension.
When she stepped into the space again after a brief moment, the fruit trees she had planted earlier were already in full bloom.
Mu Zhaozhao looked in astonishment at the saplings that had grown in just a short while. She hadn’t expected her dimension to actually have the power to accelerate plant growth. Combined with the irrigation from the spirit spring water, at this rate, she would probably be eating peaches, apples, and pears by tomorrow.
Delighted, Mu Zhaozhao stepped back out of the dimension.
At the corner of an alley, she spotted a familiar figure holding a five- or six-year-old boy.
She looked closely at the car’s license plate—it really was Mu Shangyu.
It seemed he was heading straight to his other hideout. That was even better; saving her the trouble of searching for it.
With that thought, while Mu Shangyu carried the child into the Friendship Store, Mu Zhaozhao slipped into his car and concealed herself inside her dimension.
Her dimension had the ability to move alongside external objects while remaining invisible. In other words, they couldn’t detect her, but she could see everything they did. She decided to use this opportunity to investigate Mu Shangyu’s background.
A moment later, Mu Shangyu came out holding two pounds of egg cakes and a tin of malted milk for the child. He then got into the car and drove the boy home.
Hiding inside her dimension, Mu Zhaozhao heard the little boy affectionately calling Mu Shangyu “Daddy” over and over again.
She curled her lips into a satisfied smile.
When the car finally pulled to a stop, Mu Zhaozhao followed Mu Shangyu as he opened the car door and stepped out.
She watched as Mu Shangyu carried the boy into a small courtyard tucked inside a lane.
Mu Zhaozhao noted the house number: No. 169-2, Baoan Road, Baoshan District.
Stealthily following behind Mu Shangyu, she walked into the yard.
Peering through the window, she saw a woman in her early thirties walking out with a warm, welcoming smile. “Shangyu, you’re back? Jiye, were you a good boy and listened to Daddy?”
Mu Shangyu offered a cold response, then walked over to the sofa inside with an expressionless, heavily burdened face and sat down.
Su Wanxing sent Mu Jiye off to play nearby, then gently comforted Mu Shangyu: “Shangyu, is something bothering you? I’m willing to help share your burden.”
Exhausted, Mu Shangyu closed his eyes and pinched the bridge of his nose, his tone laced with resentment: “It’s that wretched woman at home. She actually had the nerve to steal eleven boxes of my gold bars! Her courage is growing by the day. She even dared to have Mu Yunxing bring me a message, threatening me with what happened sixteen years ago.”
“What happened sixteen years ago? What was it?” Su Wanxing probed upon hearing this.
Mu Shangyu suddenly snapped his eyes open. Realizing he had almost blabbed, he sharply reprimanded her, “A woman shouldn’t pry into things that aren’t her business!”
Seeing him angry, Su Wanxing immediately put on a tearful, aggrieved expression. “Shangyu, I’m sorry. I was just worried about you.”
Seeing her like this, Mu Shangyu’s heart softened. “Wanxing, I wasn’t snapping at you. Let’s not talk about that for now… Just remember to pack up all the valuables I hid at your place. I’ll send a car to pick them up tonight, and then I’ll take you and our son to Hong Kong to enjoy life. We’ll never come back.”
Su Wanxing gave a gentle smile. “Alright, Shangyu. Don’t worry.”