“Isn’t this amount a bit too little?”
Seriously? You’re even using that as an excuse? The men Xu Lu finds all look good but are useless.
“Sir, skincare products are always like this,” Zhou Yali said with a professional smile.
Xu Lu felt uncomfortable seeing that smile. It was as if she was implying, if you can’t afford it, just admit it—don’t make excuses.
“Lulu, is one set enough? Let’s get three sets.”
Chen Qi’s words made Xu Lu’s heart bloom with joy. She hadn’t expected him to say that at all.
Xu Lu immediately grabbed Chen Qi’s arm and leaned her whole body against him. “Thank you, Brother Chen. You’re the most handsome.”
[favorability +1. Current: 22]
“Miss, let’s check out.”
Chen Qi scanned the code and paid. The 66,000 yuan went through instantly. Zhou Yali felt a sour bitterness in her heart as she handed him the receipt.
Her favorability is increasing—shouldn’t she give something back? Otherwise, even if it reaches full favorability, doubling 20 million won’t amount to much.
Whether someone gives something back doesn’t entirely depend on favorability. Some gold diggers only care about money. If you spend on them, they love you. Once the money stops, the feelings drop to zero. That’s just reality.
“Lulu, your boyfriend treats you really well.”
Damn it, this little bitch really caught herself a rich husband. Three sets? Can you even finish using them?
“Of course. Brother Chen is the best,” Xu Lu said deliberately, raising her voice.
Both Zhou Yali and Xu Lu were naturally beautiful. They had always dreamed of marrying a rich second-generation, stepping into a wealthy family, and entering high society.
But their family backgrounds were both ordinary. They studied in a county high school, and their parents were just regular salaried workers.
When it comes to marriage, rich second-generation families place great importance on the woman’s family background—unless she is exceptionally skilled in manipulation.
Even someone like the famous Shanghai tycoon heir had fallen for a top-tier manipulative woman who was divorced, reportedly paying 900 million yuan in child support.
Chen Qi really does have strength… not like those fake rich guys who only know how to brag.
Xu Lu held onto Chen Qi’s arm tightly. In the middle of summer, with light clothing, Chen Qi could clearly feel the soft, warm touch pressing against his arm.
It stirred something in his heart.
Xu Lu was in an excellent mood now. With a slightly coquettish tone, she asked, “Brother Chen, what are we doing later?”
“The day before yesterday, The Amazing Spider-Man 3 was released. I haven’t watched it yet. Let’s go see it.”
Last night, he had originally planned to watch it with Li Ting after dinner. He had even bought the tickets for 182 yuan.
“Sure, I haven’t seen it either.”
Has it already reached part 3? I haven’t even seen the earlier ones.
In truth, Xu Lu wasn’t interested in Marvel movies. At most, she had seen a few highlight edits on Douyin. But seeing that Chen Qi liked it, she naturally pretended to be interested.
Chen Qi heard her thoughts and couldn’t help but sigh—having money really was great. When you have money, others will change their preferences for you.
Li Ting also didn’t like Marvel movies. Whenever Chen Qi suggested watching one before, she would immediately pull a long face and say, “Then go watch it yourself.” Even yesterday, he had to persuade her for a long time before she reluctantly agreed.
“Let’s go buy the tickets.”
They went up to the fifth floor and bought two IMAX tickets at Bona Cinema for 182 yuan.
“Brother Chen, sit here for a bit. I’ll go to the restroom.”
Chen Qi sat on the bench, filled with emotion. In just one night, his life had undergone a complete transformation.
The same 182 yuan ticket—yesterday it made his heart ache, but now he felt nothing at all.
Xu Lu took quite a while. Nearly ten minutes passed and she still hadn’t returned.
Did she get a stomachache?
Soon, Xu Lu appeared on the escalator, holding a Starbucks bag.
So she went to buy coffee.
Xu Lu walked over with a bright smile. “We’ve been out for two hours and haven’t had anything to drink, so I went to get Starbucks. This one is an oat latte, and this one is a caramel macchiato. Which one do you want, Brother Chen?”
Chen Qi’s mind raced. Which one was more expensive? He had drunk Starbucks before with Li Ting, but he couldn’t remember the prices.
When they went out, Li Ting never spent a single yuan—everything, food, drinks, and entertainment, was paid by Chen Qi.
“I’ll take the oat latte.”
[Received 30 Soft-Rice Coins, cashback Huaxia currency]
“You can’t even freeload properly. The other one costs 34 yuan. With skills like yours, how are you supposed to survive?” the system suddenly spoke.
“system, stop it. I can’t just pull out my phone and check the prices,” Chen Qi thought helplessly.
He wasn’t a regular Starbucks customer. Whenever Li Ting wanted it, he would grit his teeth and buy it. Couldn’t drinks that cost a dozen yuan from other brands be enough?
However, Xu Lu’s action instead increased Chen Qi’s favorability. In an instant, it went up by another 300,000.
This girl was worth keeping around. Some gold diggers knew how to fish—they would give small gifts to men, letting them taste a bit of sweetness.
Then they would leverage the small for something bigger, making the man willingly give more expensive gifts.
Chen Qi didn’t know if she was that type, and he didn’t care. As long as she could help him earn Soft-Rice Coins, that was enough.
When the time came, he wouldn’t mind spending several million yuan on her.
“Lulu is really thoughtful,” Chen Qi praised.
Although he knew it was all because he had money, comparing Xu Lu and Li Ting in his mind made Li Ting lose completely.
“Brother Chen has worked hard accompanying me shopping.”
Xu Lu handed him the oat latte, and Chen Qi took it.
“Is it iced?”
“What’s wrong? Don’t you like iced drinks, Brother Chen?”
“My stomach isn’t very good.”
“Oh no, both cups are iced. Should I go buy new ones?”
Chen Qi suddenly noticed something. “Both are iced?”
Seeing him repeat it, Xu Lu became slightly shy. “What are you thinking? It’s just too hot, so iced drinks are more refreshing.”
Chen Qi had thought she was hinting at something.
“No need to buy new ones. I’ll just drink this one. If I get a stomachache, you’ll be responsible.”
“How should I be responsible?”
“Marry me and take care of me for the rest of my life.”
“You’re so annoying. Just a cup of coffee and you already want me to devote my life to you.”
[favorability +1. Current: 23]
Damn it. When rich people say nonsense, it somehow doesn’t make people angry. If I were a poor loser, I’d have been slapped already, Chen Qi thought helplessly.
Chen Qi had bought seats in the last row—the couple seats. The movie hadn’t started yet, and advertisements were playing.
“Brother Chen, why did you say you were my boyfriend at La Mer?”
“I felt like you didn’t get along well with that sales assistant. Saying I was your boyfriend was just to back you up.”
Xu Lu was a bit surprised. “How did you notice?”
“I just felt that you didn’t like her. Maybe it’s just mutual understanding.”
“Brother Chen is amazing. I really hate her. Thank you for helping me vent my anger.”
“When you were paying earlier, her expression was hilarious.”
“As long as you’re happy.”
The movie started. The moment Doctor Octopus appeared, Xu Lu got scared and leaned into Chen Qi’s arms.
This is a sci-fi movie, not a horror film.
Chen Qi felt the soft warmth in his arms and wrapped his arm around her.
The fragrance coming from Xu Lu made it hard for him to hold back. At that moment, he felt like leaning in and kissing her.