Chapter 40

After yesterday’s events, Xu Zhaomu had learned from her mistakes. Today, she wore her uniform and left the house with her school bag.

She even stuffed her homework into her bag with Housekeeper Lin watching. She was demonstrating to Housekeeper Lin that she was truly going to her classmate’s house to do homework.

In order to take things one step further, she even took the initiative to ask the driver to take her to a female classmate’s house.

Just as she expected, Housekeeper Lin did not suspect anything.

After walking into her classmate’s house, she strolled around the backyard for a while. Once the driver sped off, she swaggered right out of their house.

She didn’t believe that she would get caught by Shen Chi again. He was such a busy person and had left very early that morning. He would not be able to check on her.

Xu Zhaomu went to the shopping mall first as she planned to buy something for Luo Yanli. She wasn’t someone who liked to take advantage of other people. Since Luo Yanli had given her something, she also needed to give him something in return.

At the same time…she would buy something for Shen Chi. After all, he had helped her to vent her resentment.

She didn’t know what boys typically fancied. Since Luo Yanli appeared quite scholarly, she decided to pick out a few books.

She was someone who could spend the entire day reading entertainment magazines and age-restricted manga. She truly didn’t know what type of book to buy for him. She caught sight of the “Book of Songs” and “The Analects of Confucius” on the shelves and thought that they were fantastic choices. So she bought them and shoved them into her bag.

After she’d finished shopping at the bookstore, she realized that she was back at the place that Shen Chi and she had driven past the day before.

The gown and shoes advertisements were still being displayed on the digital screen. Xu Zhaomu looked up and stared at them in a daze for a very long time.

Would she look good if she wore them?

She decided to muster up her courage and try them on.

The interior of the shopping mall was spick and span, and everything in sight could double in function as a mirror. Because it was the weekend, it was quite crowded. The white lights illuminated the shop counters and shelves, causing the vicinity to appear radiant and dazzling.

On the first floor, there were many outlets that sold perfume. Hence, the entire shopping mall was filled with the aroma of perfume.

Xu Zhaomu was dazzled by the scene. There were loads of pretty clothes, jewelry, shoes, and cosmetic products here.

There were also numerous beautiful women who walked past her. Their faces were caked in thick makeup, and, although they couldn’t compare to the beauties she’d seen at the dance, they each had their own unique sense of charm.

Xu Zhaomu walked along looking at the shops and searching the signs. Her eyes were getting sore from searching for such a long time.

She didn’t really recognize all the brands in this shopping mall. However, she had memorized the names of the two brands from the day before. Hence, she focused on looking for them.

She searched from the first floor to the second floor, and from the second floor to the third floor…

Before she found them, she caught sight of an eye-catching tie at a men’s counter.

It was from another English brand that she didn’t recognize. She finally understood her English teacher’s efforts. Learning a foreign language was such an important skill.

Xu Zhaomu plastered her face against the glass cabinet and stared at it. She kept her eyes fixed on that navy-blue silk tie and didn’t look at anything else.

She felt certain that this blue tie would complement the black suit that Shen Chi always wore. It would definitely look great.

Before Xu Zhaomu could ask the shop assistant to take it out for her to have a look, an attendant walked over in heels.

“Little girl, we’re very busy today, you should get going. This is not a place for you.”

A thick layer of makeup had been applied to the woman’s face. The moment she saw Xu Zhaomu, she assumed that she was here to mess around.

“I want to take a look at this tie.” Xu Zhaomu pointed to the tie in the cabinet.

“Little girl, no one is free to entertain you. You should hurry on downstairs. It’s only appropriate for you to be studying. When you grow up, you’ll realize that you can’t afford this tie.”

The woman towered over Xu Zhaomu, looking over her condescendingly.

“Your doors are wide open. Aren’t you guys running a business here? All these people are customers. Are you telling me that I’m not considered one?” Xu Zhaomu found this hard to accept.

There were even a few couples in the store. The attendants served them with utmost enthusiasm and picked out whatever they fancied. On the other hand, they had all decided to completely ignore her.

“Little girl, I’ve already said what needed to be said. If I speak any further, I’m afraid I will hurt your self-esteem. You cannot afford any of the items here. You won’t even be able to afford them in ten years.”

“Miss Attendant, let me have a look at this tie.”

At that moment, a tall, blonde beauty walked over. She pointed at the tie that Xu Zhaomu had been looking at.

Xu Zhaomu stood in front of the glass cabinet and said, “I took an interest in it first. I should be the first one to see it.”

When the blonde beauty realized that she was a little girl who was wearing her school uniform, she smirked at her in an exaggerated manner. “I didn’t realize that high school students nowadays had such good taste in fashion. Little girl, who are you buying this tie for?”

“It’s none of your business.” Xu Zhaomu glanced at her.

“Little girl, you better get out of here. Otherwise, I’ll have to force you out, and it won’t be a pretty sight.” The attendant spoke solemnly. Condescension and disdain could be seen in her eyes.

The blond woman also smirked at her as she said, “Little girl, do you have the money to buy this tie? If you don’t, this big sister can teach you a few good methods. There are lots of old fogies who like young female students like you. As long as you go to the bar and throw yourself at them, you can ask for whatever price you fancy. Your earnings for the night would be enough to purchase a few ties.”

The moment she said this, a few of the other attendants giggled as well.

Xu Zhaomu spat onto the ground and grinned. “No wonder you can afford it. But judging from your appearance, you must have had to work for a few nights before gathering enough money to buy a tie.”

Pfft, she was Xu Zhaomu. Did they think that she was ignorant of all these things?

She was one of the best hooligans and hoodlums out there. She feared no one!

“F*ck, who do you think you’re insulting!” The blond woman’s complexion instantly turned green. She sent a slap toward Xu Zhaomu.

Xu Zhaomu dodged her. “I’m cursing at you. Was I wrong to curse?”

“Miss, Miss, calm down. It isn’t worth bickering with a high school student. She looks like a wild child who has appeared out of nowhere. Someone must have raised her, but no one taught her correctly.” The attendant stepped forward to break up the fight.

Another attendant also ran over with a cup of tea. “Miss, calm down. I’ll get the tie for you, please have a look.”

Xu Zhaomu stood before the glass cabinet and blocked their way. “Is your shop intending to bully its customers? I was clearly here first. Why is she allowed to have a look, while I am not?”

“Someone come and drag this girl out. Don’t entertain her anymore, she doesn’t know what’s good for her. She really thinks she is a big shot.” The attendant in charge ordered a few male shop assistants to throw her out.

They walked over and started to shove Xu Zhaomu. “Have some self-awareness and walk out by yourself. Don’t f*cking hinder us from doing our job.”

Xu Zhaomu was pushed forcefully by one of the men. She lost her balance and stumbled over a platform.

Her little hand reached out to grab a counter. However, another person shoved her and caused her entire body to fall forward.

Just before she landed flat on her face, a strong hand grabbed her arm and scooped her up.

Xu Zhaomu smelled a familiar scent. Her face instantly broke into a cheerful grin.

She threw herself into Shen Chi’s arms. “Fourth Brother…someone swore at me.”

She rubbed her face into his chest. Shen Chi frowned and glanced at her in disdain. “Your snot is all over my body now.”

“Someone swore at me. Don’t you care?” Xu Zhaomu wrapped her arms around him and refused to let go.

Shen Chi stroked her head with his large palm. He raised his eyebrows and asked, “So you finally recognize your Fourth Brother again? You told me not to interfere anymore, what should I do?”