Seeing that Li Yan was about to actually walk away, An Chutang quickly called out to stop him. “Wait, I haven’t bought a greeting gift for your younger sister yet. I promised to give her a bracelet. Whatever others have, our family has to have one too.”
Li Yan came to a halt, staring at An Chutang with a meaningful gaze and saying nothing.
An Chutang felt a bit guilty. He admitted that he had deliberately tried to draw the two of them closer just now by using the phrase “our family.”
Anyway, since the other person did not explicitly refute it, he simply decided to brazen it out to the end. “What? You’re the first good friend I’ve made since coming here. Do you not consider me one of your own?”
After finishing, he put on a look of feigned disappointment, grievance, and dejection.
“Hey, hey, Little Tang, don’t be sad. I really have to speak up for Brother Yan here. I’ve seen it with my own eyes today; I’ve never seen Brother Yan show that much patience with anyone.”
An Chutang ignored him and simply waited for Li Yan to nod.
Li Yan’s tongue gave his canine tooth a fierce flick, and he slowly spoke up, “Alright, go ahead and buy it, good friend.”
An Chutang always felt his tone was off, but he could not worry about that now.
He greeted Li Qing like a gentleman. “Miss Li, since you’re Li Yan’s sister, you’re my sister too. Don’t be polite with me at all. Come on, let’s go over and pick out whatever style you like.”
Li Qing had been dazed ever since she heard the two of them talking just now. Seeing that the other person was genuinely going to buy her a gold bracelet, she looked towards Li Yan with a troubled expression.
“Brother…”
Li Yan raised an eyebrow. “Why are you looking at me? Your Brother Tang wants to buy you something, so just accept it.”
She had originally wanted to refuse, but Zhang Cuicui, who hadn’t left yet, was both intimidated by Li Yan and filled with unwilling envy as she muttered under her breath, “Who are they trying to fool? I don’t believe that someone you just met would buy you a gold bracelet right off the bat.”
Actually, she had no confidence in her heart either, because after all, the man who had come along with Li Yan did not look like someone from an ordinary family judging by his clothes and bearing. It was just that she had lost face today, so she didn’t want to watch Li Qing looking so pleased.
Since she had already offended Li Yan, the guy surely wouldn’t hit her, right? Today, she just wanted to see whether this stranger would actually be willing to buy a gold bracelet!
Hearing this, Li Qing irritably walked over toward the gold jewelry counter, not forgetting to say to An Chutang, “Thank you, Brother Tang.”
An Chutang thought smugly that since people are soft-handed after taking gifts, Li Yan shouldn’t have the face to chase him off to the hotel anymore.
However, he only had six hundred yuan in cash left now, so he hoped he wouldn’t end up making a fool of himself after talking so big. He also had no idea whether US dollars could be used around here.
Without batting an eye, he quietly asked Li Guangtao, “Hey, Brother Tao, what’s the current price of gold per gram?”
Li Guangtao was inwardly wincing in financial pain, silently complaining about who would buy such impractical things just out of spite. Buying a bracelet on top of that had to cost a fortune.
Hearing An Chutang ask, he immediately leaned close to his ear and whispered, “Brother, it’s twelve yuan a gram. Pace yourself.”
Just as he finished speaking, Li Yan reached out, yanked An Chutang right over to his side, draped his arm directly over the other’s shoulder, and cast a faint glance at Li Guangtao.
Li Guangtao felt a sudden chill wash over his entire body and shivered inexplicably. When he looked at Li Yan again, the other man was already standing with An Chutang in front of the counter.
His words had happened to be overheard by Zhang Cuicui nearby, making her even more smug. It seemed the other party was nothing special after all.
An Chutang now knew the price and felt reassured. He had genuinely never had to worry about money; he just felt that not being able to swipe a card or use a mobile phone was way too inconvenient.
“Little sister, just pick whatever you like. That friend of yours is over there too, don’t be polite—everyone gets a share, pick one you like as well.”
An Chutang felt that jewelry priced at twelve yuan a gram was an absolute steal. Shouldn’t he stock up on some gold? Compared to the money those spoiled young masters usually spent buying jewelry for their little lovers, this wasn’t even worth mentioning.
Xue Yingmei instantly blushed, looking a bit shyly at An Chutang as she said, “No, no, this is too precious. Thank you.”
“Why be polite? We should be thanking you for speaking up for Little Qing just now.”
“Really, no need.” Xue Yingmei waved her hands repeatedly.
Li Yan’s brow furrowed slightly, and the hand resting on An Chutang’s shoulder tightened involuntarily.
An Chutang gave him a strange look.
The other didn’t have any particular expression. “What is it?”
“Nothing.”
Turning his gaze back to the counter, An Chutang clicked his tongue twice. “These styles seem a bit too ordinary.”
The clerk rolled her eyes upon hearing that. “These are the newest styles in the capital. If you don’t understand, don’t just talk nonsense.”
Zhang Cuicui finally found an opening to speak up. “Comrade An, is it? Could it be that you can’t actually afford it and are deliberately picking faults?”
Li Guangtao, carrying several bags, put his hands on his hips. “Hey, I said Zhang Cuicui, why haven’t you left yet? Your skin is really thick, you truly and perfectly match Wang Qingshan.”
“Whether I leave or not is none of your business. I just can’t stand watching some people put on airs like a fat man slapping his face to look swollen. The bragging words are already out, so go ahead and buy it then.”
After saying that, Zhang Cuicui once again raised her ring-bearing hand and deliberately shook it near the stray hairs by her ear.
Li Qing also felt she was stuck in a tight spot. She hadn’t wanted any gold bracelet to begin with, and if she ended up implicating her brother’s friend, she would feel quite guilty.
An Chutang directly ignored Zhang Cuicui’s words and only asked Li Qing, “Is there any one you like?”
Li Qing thought for a moment, preparing to give the other an out. “No. How about we forget it? I don’t like it.”
“Hmph, I knew it.”
Before Zhang Cuicui could finish, An Chutang’s face suddenly turned cold as he looked at her. “You are so noisy.”
Zhang Cuicui’s words caught in her throat, and she instantly fell silent.
Although this young man named An looked quite easygoing and exceptionally refined in appearance, once he actually pulled a long face, even though his voice wasn’t loud, it radiated a chilling and noble air that made her involuntarily feel a sense of self-abasement.
Turning back, An Chutang’s expression softened. “If there isn’t one you like, just pick out the heaviest one then. Girls should always save up some jewelry anyway.”
Seeing that he was being serious, Li Qing hurriedly started to say she really didn’t need it when An Chutang looked at the clerk. “Never mind the styles, they’re really quite ordinary. Just bring out the heaviest bracelet you have here.”
Li Qing’s eyes rounded in surprise. The clerk wanted to retort for a moment but didn’t know how to phrase it, so she simply took out the heaviest piece from the locked cabinet inside.
With her nose practically tilted up to the ceiling, she announced, “This one is thirty-two grams, total price three hundred and eighty-four yuan.”
Thirty-two grams. The bracelet wasn’t overly thick, but the craftsmanship looked decent; the double happiness and dragon-phoenix design were standard and proper, and there was no processing fee.
Since buying it now meant it certainly wouldn’t lose value, he asked her, “Can foreign-exchange certificates be used here?”
Seeing that An Chutang had actually made them bring out such a thick bracelet—amounting to over three hundred yuan—Zhang Cuicui had been thinking of slipping away quietly. But hearing him ask about foreign-exchange certificates, she stopped in her tracks again, mocking derisively, “Foreign-exchange certificates? You clearly have no money to buy it and are just making up excuses now, Li Qing. Stop trying to find people to put on a show for you. Aside from how hard it is to exchange foreign-exchange certificates these days, who doesn’t know that nobody dares to openly accept foreign-exchange certificates here? Such a fake.”
“Hey, I said Zhang Cuicui, my Brother Li doesn’t hit women, but don’t you think I, Li Guangtao, wouldn’t dare beat you up?”
Zhang Cuicui stepped back two paces out of fear, but feeling it made her lose face, she stubbornly put up a front to compensate. “Li Guangtao, if you dare lay a hand on me, Brother Qingshan won’t let you off.”
Li Guangtao stepped forward. “That coward Wang Qingshan is worth shit! I…”
“Are you buying or not? If you want to fight, go somewhere else to do it, don’t make a scene here.”
An Chutang had had enough and was in no mood to dwell on it further. “Originally I wanted to buy a few more pieces. Since foreign-exchange certificates can’t be used, let’s just take this one for now. Brother Tao, pay up.”
“You got it, Brother Tang!”
Li Guangtao glared at Zhang Cuicui and spat on the floor. This time it was his turn to tilt his nose to the ceiling as he leisurely pulled a thick stack of cash out of the bag, broke the paper band on top, and began counting it bill by bill.
The surroundings grew quiet. Zhang Cuicui stared in utter shock, her mouth slightly agape. A newly made friend of Li Yan really pulled out several hundred yuan just like that to buy a gold bracelet for Li Qing?
Subconsciously, she pulled her ringed hand back, glared resentfully at Li Qing, and turned to leave.
Li Guangtao, still busy counting money, immediately turned his head and shouted after her, “Hey! Why are you leaving?! Aren’t you going to watch a bit longer? You looked like you liked it quite a bit—are you planning to go find Wang Qingshan and make him buy you one too?”
(Life Countdown: 8 hours 20 minutes.)