Both He Yan and the sales assistant breathed a sigh of relief.
Even without Wu Yuejiang’s reminder, He Yan knew his younger brother was different from his sister. He had genuinely worried Wen Xue wouldn’t follow them in, and there was nothing he could do about it—he certainly couldn’t carry her inside.
The sales assistant felt even more relieved than he did. She had seen this scenario countless times: men often took it upon themselves to buy clothes for their partners, only for the recipients to dislike them, leading to returns and exchanges that doubled her workload. Who could she complain to?
Wen Xue walked over, ignoring He Yan, and apologized to the sales assistant, “Please put back all the clothes he picked out.”
Understanding immediately, the sales assistant smiled and said, “Of course. Would you like to browse on your own, or shall I recommend some items?”
“I’ll look around myself, thank you.”
He Yan hadn’t expected her to reject every single piece, but he said nothing, deliberately ignoring the helpless expression on her face. He murmured, “Choose whatever you like,” then paused and added, “Don’t just pick anything. You’re the one wearing them.”
Wen Xue knew he was determined to buy her clothes and there was no talking him out of it.
She nodded gloomily, raised her eyes, and began carefully examining the clothes in the store. Shopping malls always displayed seasonal collections months ahead of real life—though it was the depths of winter outside, the store already featured spring arrivals.
He Yan glanced around and spotted a sofa in the store. He walked over and sat down, but his gaze followed Wen Xue as she moved, tracking her wherever she went.
She seemed interested in a velvet dress, studying it for a while before reaching out to feel the fabric.
Then she stealthily slipped her hand to the inner side of the dress, searching for the price tag to sneak a peek at the cost.
He Yan cleared his throat softly.
Wen Xue immediately straightened up as if caught red-handed, turning toward the sound. She met his deep, penetrating eyes. Though he said nothing, his meaning was clear: don’t worry about the price, just focus on what you like. Their eyes locked; she pressed her lips together and, despite her embarrassment, asked the sales assistant to fetch her size.
Following the assistant’s guidance, she took the dress into the fitting room.
He Yan averted his gaze, spotting the clothes he had carefully selected for her earlier. He felt a pang of confusion—those pieces were quite lovely, so why hadn’t she liked any of them?
Before he could ponder this further, the fitting room curtain swished open. He glanced up and his gaze stilled. The store’s spotlights cast a bright yet soft glow on Wen Xue. She had removed her sweater and coat, now wearing the beautiful dress that revealed her fair, slender legs. Perhaps for easier zipping, she had loosely tied up her waist-length, silky hair as the sales assistant suggested. The casual updo swayed gently as she walked toward him.
He Yan was momentarily stunned but quickly composed himself, nodding calmly. “Not bad.”
Wen Xue had long given up on his hopeless taste. She ignored his comment and headed toward the full-length mirror. The dress’s draped hem brushed past his bent knee without her notice. The sales assistant chatted warmly with her, praising both her and the dress.
Fortunately, Wen Xue had been eating well lately, and her improved complexion kept the dress from looking too loose or empty on her.
“Should we get this one?”
He Yan had somehow appeared behind her. Their reflections crowded into the same mirror as he looked down at her calmly and said, “Pick a few more.”The sales assistant’s smile grew even brighter.
Wen Xue shook her head, hesitating as she said, “Maybe I’ll look at something else?”
Before He Heng’s unexpected passing, she had been like the other girls in her dorm—fond of shopping for trinkets and buying pretty clothes. But she strictly controlled her monthly living expenses. Whenever she needed new clothes, she would always compare prices, styles, and fabrics across multiple stores, never making a purchase without thorough consideration.
Moreover, she had checked the price tag while changing—even with a 20% discount, it wasn’t cheap. In her life experience, she would never impulsively buy any clothing item priced over four digits. Her impulses were strictly limited to under fifty yuan.
He Yan: “…”
He didn’t understand—buying clothes was nothing like buying a house. Was there really need for such hesitation?
After giving her outfit another look, he declared decisively, “It looks good. Buy it.”
Then he turned to the sales assistant, “Where can I swipe my card?”
The assistant cheerfully called out to her colleague, “Lingling, hurry up and prepare the bill for this gentleman!”
Wen Xue was so anxious she wanted to stamp her feet, wishing she could make them all stop. But she could only watch helplessly as he went to the cashier to pay. Her emotions were in turmoil, completely unaware of how vividly her irritation showed on her face in the mirror.
…
“Let’s keep browsing.” After leaving the store, He Yan showed no intention of leaving. “Since we’re rarely out, we might as well buy everything we need.”
Wen Xue glanced at him and protested softly, “No more shopping.”
She resolved never to go shopping with him again.
He looked puzzled: “Why not?”
“Winter is almost over,” she explained gently. “If we buy down jackets and coats now, they can only be worn for a few days. Besides, most stores are already stocking last year’s spring collections.”
Actually, these were just excuses. After all, mall clothing stores had never been her usual shopping destinations. Earlier, she had no choice—if she didn’t pick something, he really would have bought all those clothes for her.
He Yan remained unconcerned, “Spring has begun, but there’s still the chance of a cold snap. We’ll wear them for as many days as possible.”
Wen Xue: “…”
Could he really not understand what she was implying?
They stared at each other until He Yan detected her hidden thoughts. He almost laughed—she really wore everything on her face. He wasn’t blind; how could he not see how much she liked that dress?
He tilted his head, signaling for her to follow, and said, “Let’s go.”
“Hey…” she called out helplessly from behind.
He Yan repeated his earlier tactic. This was Wen Xue’s first time experiencing such shopping—she had clearly discussed with him before entering the changing room, and he had nodded in agreement. Yet when she emerged wearing her own coat, he had already completed the payment.
Wen Xue rarely experienced emotional instability. Gentle and slow to anger, she seldom argued with others. Faced with his unreasonable behavior, she grew increasingly silent, eventually complying with whatever he said without objection.
Within an hour, He Yan was carrying shopping bags in both hands—a truly fruitful haul. A satisfied smile appeared on his face.
But soon his smile faded. He clearly wasn’t as familiar with the mall layout as Wen Xue. Following her up the escalator, he realized too late that this floor exclusively sold menswear when he tried to turn back.
Wen Xue said softly, “Since we’re already here…”
He frowned slightly: “I don’t need to buy anything.””It’s fine.” She tucked her hair behind her ear, a smile blooming in her eyes as she mimicked his earlier tone, “If you can’t decide, I’ll pick for you.”
He Yan: “?”
He was about to firmly decline when Wen Xue gracefully entered a men’s clothing store. Compared to the women’s section downstairs, this floor was much quieter. The rare customer prompted the sales assistants to eagerly approach Wen Xue. A few women whispered among themselves until Wen Xue suddenly turned, pointed at him, and from her lip movements and scattered words drifting over, it seemed she was saying she wanted to pick clothes for him. The other two women simultaneously turned to scrutinize him from head to toe, their gazes measuring him like rulers.
He Yan stiffened uncomfortably, feeling as if he’d been physically inspected by them, while the instigator looked back at him with an innocent expression.
After a moment of locked gazes, he stiffly walked over to her, stopping before her. She seemed delighted and pleased, letting out a light, cheerful laugh.
He sighed helplessly.
He Yan had the ideal physique for modeling clothes—tall with long legs, broad shoulders and back, coupled with sharp facial features that made even the simplest outfits look striking. The previously listless sales assistants grew enthusiastic; it wasn’t just about sales—after all, what woman wouldn’t enjoy dressing a handsome, well-built man?
They gathered around Wen Xue, professionally helping her coordinate outfit after outfit with keen interest. He Yan wasn’t completely indiscriminate either—he avoided light colors entirely, sticking only to dark shades.
Wen Xue seemed to have discovered a new amusement.
While he was in the fitting room, she lifted her chin slightly and said softly, “I’ll take both sets he’s trying on.”
The sales assistant suppressed a laugh and cooperatively asked, “Very well, ma’am. Will that be card or cash?”
“Card!”
Wen Xue lowered her head to retrieve her wallet from her small crossbody bag, then suddenly froze, stunned. Where was her bag??
Swish—
He Yan swept aside the fitting room curtain, walking tall toward her. His changed shirt and coat were draped over his left arm, while his right hand held her bag—he’d been hiding it all along. Seeing her astonished expression, a faint, composed smile flickered across his brow.
He asked deliberately, “What’s wrong?”
Wen Xue fumed, recalling what Nana had said that morning and feeling profound agreement. She couldn’t bring herself to snatch the bag from him either—he was clearly preventing her from paying, how cunning.
The other sales assistants struggled to contain their laughter.
Both returned from the shopping trip with purchases, the back seat piled high with shopping bags. Wen Xue drove back, her anger evaporating quickly and completely disappearing by the time they reached the Residential Building. He Yan, sitting in the passenger seat, glanced at her occasionally, watching as her tightly pressed lips gradually relaxed into a smile again, his own tension easing along with hers.
Inopportunely, he recalled an incident from his previous life.
Back when she and He Heng were freshmen, during Wu Yuejiang’s birthday party, He Heng had shown up. After distractedly exchanging a few words, he’d retreated to a corner alone, drinking beer with his head hung low like a defeated dog—his dispirited appearance was irritating to behold.
Wu Yuejiang, ever the peacemaker, had asked He Heng with a kindly expression what misfortune had befallen him, suggesting he share it so his “older brothers” could enjoy the story.After much persuasion, He Heng finally spoke up, muttering that he had made Wen Xue angry and she hadn’t spoken to him for a whole day.
At that moment, both he and Wu Yuejiang really wanted him to go somewhere cool and just leave, as long as he stopped acting crazy there.
He Heng’s voice was hoarse as he said, “Brother, you don’t understand. When she ignores me, I feel terrified.”
Now He Yan understood that feeling all too well, because he finally got it.
Wen Xue believed she had driven better today than yesterday, giving herself a perfect score in her mind. Cheerfully unfastening her seatbelt and getting out of the car, she stood waiting for He Yan. After he locked the car, they walked into the building corridor one after the other as usual. He accompanied her to the third floor, but when handing her the shopping bag, he wore an expression of hesitation, as if wanting to say something but holding back.
For a man like He Yan, many three-word expressions of emotion didn’t exist in his life dictionary. He found them affected and had never said them to anyone.
Like “I’m sorry.”
He couldn’t say it, no matter how hard he tried.
Wen Xue looked at him puzzled, wondering what else he had to say.
Swallowing those inexplicable emotions, he finally advised, “Get some rest early.”
“Mm.”
He Yan turned and left with his shopping bag. Unlike his usual unwavering, steady pace, this time he seemed slightly hesitant. Leaning against the door, Wen Xue watched his figure grow increasingly distant. She knew he meant well—among all the people she had met, he had been the kindest to her. She was younger than him and should be more accommodating. Thinking this, she stopped hesitating, took a few steps forward, placed her hand on the railing, stood on tiptoe, and leaned out. In the quiet night, braving the cold wind, she called down, “Hey.”
Not calling him “brother” but “hey” meant she had a temper, and today she was still a little angry.
Because he could be somewhat domineering, and because he applied double standards—what was allowed for him wasn’t allowed for others.
He Yan was grimly searching his pocket for his keys when he suddenly heard the familiar voice. After a brief moment of surprise, his body reacted faster than his mind, and he was already at the railing looking up. The night was dark, and she was backlit, but her eyes were clear and bright.
She said with a smile, “Thank you.”