Downstairs, Qin Xixue's face darkened as she saw Leng Ruoli and the others being invited to the second floor by the boss of Yue Meiren Accessories. Her lips tightened, and she glared fiercely at Leng Ruoli as they went upstairs. She clenched her fists, the seeds of hatred gathering at her fingertips, her nails digging deeply into her palms.
She resentfully thought: Leng Ruoli, I will get revenge for today's humiliation.
“Sister Qin, that fool has gone upstairs. Let’s hurry.” Ye Meiqian kindly reminded her.
“I know, you don’t need to remind me!” Qin Xixue suddenly straightened up, glared at Ye Meiqian, and spoke to her in an unfriendly tone.
This startled Ye Meiqian.
Looking at Qin Xixue’s unsightly expression, she felt a surge of contempt for her. It’s only because you have a father who is a prime minister. If your father has bad luck one day, I’ll see how proud you, Qin Xixue, can be. But now, she only dared to be angry and not speak.
To avoid awkwardness, Shen Yuejia quickly said with a smile, “Sister Qin, the items in this accessory store are quite good. Let’s go take a look. The Empress Dowager’s birthday is approaching, and I haven’t prepared my birthday gift yet.”
Reminded by Shen Yuejia, Qin Xixue finally remembered her purpose for coming to Yue Meiren Accessories. She immediately regained her composure and said arrogantly, “Let’s go, we should go look at the jewelry.”
Afterward, Ye Meiqian suppressed her dissatisfaction and continued to follow Qin Xixue to choose jewelry.
For her father’s career, she couldn’t fall out with Qin Xixue now. She could only endure her anger and try to please someone who was indifferent.
The three of them came to the counter. Despite the repeated reminders from the shop assistants, Qin Xixue picked up the expensive accessories on the counter and tried them on indiscriminately.
“Miss, all items in the store must be worn with our permission, or you will bear the consequences.”
A thin shop assistant reminded her repeatedly.
“Why are you so annoying? You want us to buy things in your store but don’t let us try them on. How can we buy them?” Shen Yuejia said impatiently.
“But… after you try on our accessories, will you put them back in their original place? If you accidentally lose or break any of our store’s accessories, you’ll have to pay.” The shop assistant said with a frown.
“Are you worried we can’t afford them?” Qin Xixue suddenly turned around and asked the shop assistant.
“Miss Qin, I didn’t mean that. It’s just that our store has a rule. After trying on accessories, if the customer doesn’t want to buy them, it’s best to put the original accessories back before trying on the next one,” the shop assistant patiently explained.
Upon hearing this, Qin Xixue’s gaze sharply swept over the shop assistant who was speaking to her. A surge of anger instantly rose in her heart. Her outing today was truly unlucky. First, she was humiliated by Leng Ruoli and that Bai Yuxuan, and now she was looked down upon by a mere shop assistant. It was infuriating.
“No, I’ll buy all of these: this pair of white jade bracelets, this silver-plated gold hairpin with a blue sapphire dragonfly pattern, this pair of pearl and gold earrings, and this set of gold inlaid with stone beads and gems. I’ll take them all.”
“Alright, please wait a moment, I’ll calculate the bill for you.”
Hearing Qin Xixue’s words, the shop assistant was a little surprised. After a few seconds of daze, he quickly went to find the shopkeeper to settle the bill.
The shopkeeper of the store calculated Qin Xixue’s bill and whispered a few words into his ear.
After hearing this, the shop assistant quickly nodded.
He immediately returned to Qin Xixue and the other two.
“Miss Qin, I apologize for my earlier rudeness. Please feel free to try on any accessories you like. I’ve just had the shopkeeper calculate it for you. The accessories you’ve selected cost a total of thirty-five thousand six hundred taels of silver. Will you pay now, or later?” the shop assistant said with a broad smile.
However, when Qin Xixue and the other two heard the astonishing figure, all three of them widened their eyes, their mouths hanging open in an O-shape.
“Heavens! A few broken pieces for thirty-five thousand six hundred taels of silver? Your accessory store is too much of a rip-off!” Shen Yuejia said, her face full of shock.
“Miss, the items Miss Qin is holding are our store’s cheapest accessories,” the shop assistant said truthfully.
“What? These few accessories cost thirty-five thousand six hundred taels of silver, and you still say they are the cheapest? These few accessories would cost at most two or three thousand taels in other accessory stores,” Shen Yuejia said incredulously.
“Miss, the accessories Miss Qin is holding are very different from those sold in other accessory stores. The gemstones and pearls in every style of our store’s accessories are harvested from the deep sea and are extremely rare.”
“You’re saying the gemstones and pearls in your accessory store are harvested from the sea? Then why do they look no different from ordinary gemstones and pearls!” Shen Yuejia voiced her doubts.
Qin Xixue and Ye Meiqian were also shocked and found it hard to believe.
“Miss Qin, you can put the accessories in your hand close to your ear and listen carefully. See if you can hear the sound of the sea breeze?” the shop assistant coaxed Qin Xixue, stifling a laugh.
Qin Xixue frowned slightly, half-believing, half-doubting. She put a pair of pearl and gold earrings to her ear and listened carefully. It seemed she could indeed hear the sound of the sea breeze. (Shop assistant: Haha, the wind is blowing outside, so you can definitely hear the wind, but it’s definitely not the sea breeze.)
“Miss Qin, how is it? Can you hear the sound of the sea breeze?” the shop assistant said with feigned seriousness.
Qin Xixue nodded.
“Miss Qin, let me tell you a secret. The gemstones and pearls in your hand also have beautifying and rejuvenating effects.”
The shop assistant continued to coax her.
“Are you telling the truth?”
Qin Xixue was already tempted by the shop assistant’s words. After all, everyone desires beauty, and she, Qin Xixue, cared even more about her appearance.
“Miss Qin, I really didn’t lie to you,” the shop assistant said affirmatively.
Upon hearing this, Qin Xixue was still hesitant. Thirty-five thousand six hundred taels of silver was not a small sum. She only had forty thousand taels of silver on her, which was mainly intended for the Empress Dowager’s birthday gift. She hadn’t prepared the Empress Dowager’s gift yet, and the money had all been spent on herself. When she returned home, her parents would surely scold her.
But just then, Leng Ruoli and Madam An came downstairs with several gift boxes. This scene was seen by the guests on the first floor, and everyone was envious of Leng Ruoli.
It seemed that Consort Leng and the others had returned with a full haul this time.
Therefore, in a fit of anger, Qin Xixue bought all the accessories in her hands.