12 – Competing with the Manly Bitch for the Fish Pond
“What’s wrong?” Yu Ai looked clueless. “Why aren’t you saying anything?”
Han Haoyu ignored her.
The nearby sales assistant was still marveling at how young people couldn’t even tell when their boyfriend was angry.
She quickly stepped in to smooth things over: “This pink pressure cooker is our new product. Not only does it have complete functions, but it also cooks things particularly quickly.”
The sales assistant said to Han Haoyu: “Actually, color isn’t important – the most crucial thing is performance. See, your girlfriend considers things quite thoroughly. She doesn’t just look at the color – practicality matters most.”
Hearing this, Han Haoyu frowned and wanted to explain, but before he could speak, Yu Ai asked first.
“Does this pressure cooker have any other features?”
“Yes, of course it does…”
Listening to Yu Ai seriously discussing pressure cooker usage with the sales assistant, Han Haoyu felt somewhat annoyed.
When it came time to pay, they still ended up taking the pressure cooker.
After storing their purchases in the supermarket lockers, Han Haoyu glanced at Yu Ai’s clothes. “The shopping mall is upstairs.”
“Huh?” Yu Ai didn’t understand what he meant, but then saw Han Haoyu already striding toward the escalator with his long legs. She immediately quickened her pace to follow.
The entire third floor of the mall sold women’s clothing.
Han Haoyu turned to ask Yu Ai, “Which brand do you usually wear?”
“Anything works.” Yu Ai thought for a moment. “I usually buy more online.”
Han Haoyu’s brow furrowed. “Ying Yi is a professor after all. It’s not like he can’t afford to spend this little money, right?”
Yu Ai defended him: “It’s not that he’s unwilling – it’s that I’m unwilling.”
“But since you’re paying today, I’m willing!”
Han Haoyu felt a pang in his chest – was she deliberately trying to anger him!
“What? Unwilling to spend?” Yu Ai looked up at him with a smile. “A professional race car driver should earn more than a professor, right!”
“Buy whatever you want.” Han Haoyu randomly pointed at a store. “Want to go in and try something on?”
Yu Ai glanced at the store Han Haoyu had pointed to. “The clothes in this store aren’t nice. I just saw a piece on the mannequin at the store around the corner that looked quite good.” She pointed toward the store at the front corner.
Han Haoyu naturally followed her lead. After entering the store, he felt like he’d seen this store’s decor somewhere before.
Upon entering, Yu Ai looked at every piece of clothing several times, taking her time to slowly browse. She glanced sideways at the sales assistant tapping on her phone screen but didn’t say anything.
Finally, she selected one item. Just after entering the fitting room, she heard movement outside. Yu Ai raised an eyebrow – they’d arrived faster than she expected.
She still calmly changed out of her clothes, planning to stay longer in the fitting room to give the people outside enough time.
“Haoyu?”
Hearing someone call him, Han Haoyu turned and saw Zhou Hui, immediately standing up from the sofa where he’d been sitting.
“Zhou Hui?”
Zhou Hui walked over. “What are you doing here? This is a women’s clothing store. Are you here to buy clothes?”
The store manager was from her hometown. Last time she had brought Han Haoyu here, she had given ambiguous answers.
Her hometown friend had always thought Han Haoyu was her boyfriend. She had just received a message from her friend saying her boyfriend had brought another woman to try on clothes in the store, so she had immediately asked for leave from school and rushed over.”I…” Han Haoyu didn’t know how to respond. Should he say he brought Yu Ai to buy clothes? But Yu Ai had a husband. Even though they grew up together, it still didn’t sound right. For some reason, he felt a bit guilty.
Zhou Hui looked at his expression and felt as if she had been betrayed. Was Han Haoyu secretly accompanying another woman to buy clothes behind her back?
Click! The fitting room door opened.
Yu Ai stepped out. Han Haoyu turned around and froze at the sight.
The woman wore a white strapless dress that ended just above the knees, with a slightly low neckline edged with white lace. Her fair skin glowed warmly under the mall lights, complementing her clean, makeup-free face. She looked both pure and alluring.
Han Haoyu’s gaze darkened slightly.
Zhou Hui clenched the strap of her backpack. It really was Yu Ai!
“Oh, Hui Hui, when did you get here?” Yu Ai walked over, adjusting her shoulders with her hands, and said sheepishly, “This is my first time wearing something in this style. Is it a bit too revealing?”
Zhou Hui took a few steps back. Today, she was wearing a plain T-shirt and jeans. Standing next to Yu Ai, she felt completely overshadowed, as if she had no presence at all.
She thought Yu Ai was doing this on purpose. She used to think Yu Ai was foolish, but now she seemed like a scheming bitch. Couldn’t she tell if it was revealing or not?
Just as she was about to speak, Han Haoyu said, “It’s fine. Let’s get this one.” He took out his wallet and headed to the cashier to pay.
Zhou Hui was nearly furious. How was it not revealing? Just because her chest and face weren’t exposed, did that make her a proper lady? Her collarbone was showing so much!
Yu Ai was clearly wearing something in the pure-and-alluring style—nothing was exposed, yet it was more tempting than if it were! Typical straight guy!
“Hui Hui, I think this dress looks really nice. Do you want to buy one too?” Yu Ai said to Zhou Hui. “I remember this dress comes in larger sizes. You should be able to wear it.”
Was Yu Ai deliberately calling her fat in front of Han Haoyu? Zhou Hui forced a stiff smile. “No need. This style doesn’t suit me. There’s too little fabric, and I’d feel uncomfortable if people stared at me on the street.”
Yu Ai raised an eyebrow inwardly. Was she implying she dressed provocatively to attract men?
“Is that so? It’s not that bad.” Yu Ai took a few steps forward to look at herself in the mirror. “Xiao Yu said it’s not revealing.”
She then spoke earnestly to Zhou Hui, “Hui Hui, you can’t always dress like a boy. Sometimes you need to change your style. Girls should be a bit more reserved.”
This time, Zhou Hui didn’t even want to force a smile. She hadn’t realized Yu Ai was so cunning before. First, she called her fat and encouraged her to try on clothes. Zhou Hui’s skin had always been yellowish, and wearing white would only make her complexion look worse. Then she implied she wasn’t reserved—was she trying to say she had too many male friends?
“Not really. Style is about what people like.” As long as Ying Yi liked it! Thinking this, Zhou Hui felt much better.
She smiled at Yu Ai. So what if you’re pretty? Your husband doesn’t even want to look at you and won’t even come home. You’re still useless.
“That’s true. Conforming to popular taste is a kind of alternative aesthetic too.” Yu Ai smiled back at her. After all, there was a reason so many men liked Zhou Hui’s type. A shared cafeteria—everyone fights over the food, and that’s what makes it delicious.
Zhou Hui felt there was something more to Yu Ai’s words but couldn’t pinpoint what was off.
“What are you talking about?” Han Haoyu walked over. “The bill’s already paid.””Then let’s go.” Yu Ai turned and asked, “Hui Hui, what are you here for?”
“I…” Zhou Hui glanced at her fellow townsfolk behind the counter and said, “I just came to pick something up from my friend.”
Zhou Hui walked over to the counter, gave the other person a meaningful look, and immediately, the person understood, casually saying, “The clothes you wanted the other day haven’t arrived yet. I’ll contact you when they come in next time.”