The elevator doors slowly opened, and Liu Chen stepped out. The doors beside her began to close.
Because the mall had heating, Liu Chen took off her long down jacket and slung it over her arm, revealing a form-fitting white cashmere base layer and her slender legs in tight-fitting jeans.
She ambled to the nearest Laomiao Gold store. Liu Chen’s gaze lingered on a golden phoenix crown displayed outside for a few seconds before she and Ren Yu entered the store together.
As the Chinese New Year approached, the store was busy with customers looking at gold, with virtually no salespeople available.
However, as Liu Chen and Ren Yu walked in, the observant salespeople immediately took notice of the pair, all eager to finish their current transactions.
Liu Chen naturally felt the intense gazes falling on her, but she calmly ignored them, instead focusing on the pure gold ornaments.
"This one?"
Ren Yu pointed at a golden Maitreya Buddha statue.
Liu Chen glanced at it. The Maitreya Buddha was about the size of Ren Yu's entire palm. The price tag indicated it was 999 pure gold and weighed 1527 grams.
"Sir, you have a good eye. This Laughing Buddha is a new model released by headquarters this year. The entire Maitreya is exquisitely lifelike and solid. It has significant weight. Madam, you can feel the weight."
"Alright."
Liu Chen knew that gold at 270 per gram, compared to a steady 400 per gram before her rebirth, was a godsend of an investment opportunity.
She was also contemplating whether to buy a gold bracelet or something similar as a gift for her mother, whose baby was due soon. She hadn't given her mother anything for her wedding.
As she thought, Liu Chen took the pure gold Maitreya Buddha handed to her by the salesperson.
Over two catties of gold felt heavy in her hand. More importantly, the other customers browsing gold noticed the small, exquisite gold ornament and curiously asked the salesperson attending her.
"How much is this?"
Upon hearing the question, the salesperson smilingly took a small calculator from her uniform pocket and quickly tallied the price.
"With today's gold price, after discounts and craftsmanship fees, it's 419,640."
Liu Chen nodded, her gaze sweeping over the display cabinets under her arm. She then pointed to another pure gold ornament, about the size of her palm, depicting a little Fuwa holding a carp.
"Wrap this one up too."
With that, Liu Chen took out her bank card from her bag and swiped it. Ren Yu didn't rush to pay. He wouldn't hesitate to give a hundred million, so forty thousand was nothing.
However, thanks were still in order.
Taking the gift bag handed to her by the salesperson, Ren Yu smiled and leaned down to Liu Chen, who was putting her card away. "Thank you for treating me, I'm very happy."
After speaking, Ren Yu reached out and rubbed Liu Chen's head, his face beaming with satisfaction.
At these words, the female customers who had been admiring Liu Chen and casting envious glances at Ren Yu suddenly changed their expressions.
Their gazes towards Liu Chen now held a hint of disappointment, as if lamenting her choices. "What's the use of a handsome man if he spends your money? You can't keep a man, no matter how handsome, who spends your money like this!"
The men standing beside their female companions' eyes, however, lit up. "What a heaven-sent woman! So much better than my girlfriend!"
But as their eyes shifted to the men beside the girls, the men's eyes lost their spark. "And! She's superficial, judging men by their looks!"
Liu Chen was unaware that her simple act of swiping her card had triggered such elaborate internal monologues. She was still thinking about the display shelves. After tossing the ornaments into her bag, she picked it up and turned. "Let's go."
Descending to the first basement level, the supermarket's foot traffic was noticeably higher than on the first floor. Liu Chen walked into the supermarket with her hands in her pockets, while Ren Yu grabbed a shopping cart from the side.
"Are you buying something?"
Ren Yu nodded. "Might as well buy some snacks for the company guys. Otherwise, they're always looking for food before meal times."
There was also something Ren Yu didn't voice: he felt that pushing a shopping cart and picking out snacks with Liu Chen made them look like a newly married couple.
Liu Chen walked slightly to his left, while Ren Yu pushed the cart to his right. As they entered the supermarket, Andy Lau's "Gong Xi Fa Cai" was playing, and a large red Chinese knot hung from the ceiling.
The advertising boards on either side proclaimed "Welcome the New Year" and "Special Offers."
In her previous life, Liu Chen had neither the interest nor the money to celebrate the New Year. This was her first New Year's shopping trip since her rebirth, after being busy arranging her mother's relationship with Chen Long. Today was the first time she was genuinely shopping without any burdens before the holiday.
The two soon arrived at a shelf adorned with a beautiful banner. The shelf had five tiers. The bottom tier displayed Mei Mei sausages, and the top two tiers held Mei Mei pork jerky.
However, the shelf was noticeably sparse. Although Liu Chen had confidence in her Mei Mei sausages and Mei Mei pork jerky, she worried that the mall might be playing tricks and hadn't stocked the shelves fully.
Glancing at a staff member in a Bear Two toy costume nearby, Liu Chen walked towards them.
Hu Qian had spotted Liu Chen long ago. Yes, Liu Chen, with her fair and radiant skin, like a peeled egg among the crowd, was hard to miss.
When she started work that morning, Hu Qian had seen the products on the shelf she had been assigned to yesterday removed. After meticulously cleaning the entire shelf with a rag, she watched in disbelief as the supermarket supervisor hurriedly led people to put up advertising posters.
The moment the posters were put up, Hu Qian felt her breath catch.
Mei Mei brand!
It was Liu Chen's Mei Mei brand!
At that moment, Hu Qian felt as if the people changing the advertising boards were stepping all over her.
Fortunately, the newly set-up shelves, according to the supermarket supervisor, were exclusively for the Mei Mei brand, stocking only Mei Mei products. Therefore, she wouldn't be responsible for promotion.
Hearing this news, Hu Qian finally felt a sense of relief. However, she never expected Liu Chen to actually visit the supermarket where she was working to check on her shelves.
'That's right, these are her shelves, she's bound to check them. It's fine, I'm wearing a mascot costume. With such a large costume, even Hu Xingfa wouldn't recognize me, let alone Liu Chen. I've met her so few times...'
While thinking this, Hu Qian couldn't help but glance at Liu Chen, who was standing in front of the shelves.
'The person pushing the cart beside her looks like her godmother's son? My aunt introduced him to me last year at her wedding.
But the way he looks at Liu Chen isn't like how a godmother's son should look. Her godmother seems to be the boss of a chain hot pot restaurant, so this son is a proper rich second-generation.
This Liu Chen is indeed like her mother, relying on men. Calling it entrepreneurship, wasn't she just using her stepfather's money...'
As Hu Qian was muttering to herself, she looked up, intending to see what was in the shopping cart, when she noticed Liu Chen walking towards her.
She noticed me?!