After passing through another intersection, they finally arrived at the Computer Plaza. Just when Liu Xue’er parked the car in the underground parking lot and got down, the Land Rover arrived and stopped beside the Porsche. Wen Yipin leaped out of it and rushed ahead, intending to grab Liu Xue’er’s hand, “Xue’er, listen to my explanation!”
Liu Xue’er withdrew a step backward and placed her hand behind her as she stated in a flat tone, “Chief Wen, I don’t know what you wish to explain. I have things to do, so could you move aside?”
Liu Xue’er was in a foul mood. [Explanation, my foot! What are you even to me? It would have been fine if you just left quietly along with your woman, yet what exactly have you come to explain?]
Xia Yan also revealed an annoyed expression. If someone unaware had seen how Wen Yipin was acting, they would have thought he and Liu Xue’er were lovers that were quarreling because of a misunderstanding.
Although Liu Xue’er didn’t care much about what random nobodies thought, Wen Yipin’s actions disgusted her.
“Xue’er, I was in the wrong! It’s a misunderstanding!” Wen Yipin stated with utmost sincerity, “Actually, this is an artist working under my friend’s film studio, a student of the music academy. She just finished her audition, and I also wanted to discuss some business with her, so I thought I’ll drop her back at the academy in passing. Our relationship isn’t like the kind you’re thinking about. Xiao Yue, come help me prove the truth!”
That woman got down from the car unwillingly, and nodded, saying nothing. To Xia Yan, it seemed like she was on edge, just a slight nudge, and she would undoubtedly explode.
“Xue’er. See? I didn’t cheat on you!” Wen Yipin stated.
[What a weirdo!]
Xia Yan had widened his horizons. [Just how strong of a mental fortitude do you possess to say that with so much ease? Any person with an IQ higher than 80 can make sense of the situation, all right?]
“Chief Wen, please call me by my full name, Liu Xue’er, or it’s fine to even call me Chief Liu,” Liu Xue’er shot Xia Yan a glance and felt peeved after seeing him just watch with his hands folded. Hence, her tone turned sharp instantly.
[Chief Liu?]
Xia Yan felt stunned. Liu Xue’er seemed just a year or two older than him, so he believed she was also a university student. It was a surprise to him that she was in the ranks of chiefs.
“Xue’er, believe me, I…” Wen Yipin continued, intending to explain further, but Liu Xue’er didn’t wish to speak to him any longer. She turned aside then said, “Xia Yan, shall we go?”
“All right,” Xia Yan smiled and walked towards the exit of the parking lot with her.
Wen Yipin’s eyes lit up with fury as he saw their backs. He shouted suddenly, “Xue’er, did you fall for this kid? Is that why you’re so indifferent to me now?”
[Fudge!]
Xia Yan was ready to kneel before him in admiration. The adjective ‘thick-skinned’ just wasn’t enough to describe Wen Yipin’s brazenness. His bottom line had dropped to the center of Earth’s core! His words had reached the Ph.D. level in terms of imagination. If someone else were to hear them, they would believe Liu Xue’er had a change of affection. In reality, they didn’t even have such a relationship.
“Wen Yipin, you’re a scumbag!” Liu Xue’er stopped, her face wholly flushed, partly because of anger, and partly because of the words Wen Yipin had said — Did you fall for this kid.
[He won’t misunderstand, right?]
Liu Xue’er glanced at Xia Yan and found no change in his expression. This relieved her, but she also felt a little disheartened, although she didn’t know why.
“I got it right, didn’t I?!” Wen Yipin possessed a discerning gaze. He went crazy after seeing this kind of expression in her eyes, “You really like this fraud. I’m better than him in all aspects, so why don’t you like me?!”
“Brother Wen, just forget this fickle woman, let’s just…” That pointy-chinned woman moved closer and hugged Wen Yipin’s arm, suggesting cutely.
Before she could even finish speaking, Wen Yipin slapped her hard, “Bit•h, you dare call Xue’er fickle?! Scram!”
The slap had stupefied the woman. She returned to her senses moments later, and left with her hand on her cheek, tears welling up in her eyes.
“Kid, I should have taken you to the police station that day. To think you dared to approach Xue’er after getting driven away by Elder Liu. What are you scheming here?” Wen Yipin lambasted Xia Yan.
He only knew Elder Liu had sent Xia Yan away, making him leave the Liu family’s villa dejectedly. As he wasn’t aware that Elder Liu had been admitted to the hospital later that day, he believed Xia Yan was a fraud.
Xia Yan remained silent. [Bro, I was just chilling today. What did I ever do to you? Why can’t you just let me be?!]
“Wen Yipin, that’s enough!” Liu Xue’er was in a poor mood after hearing the word — fickle — and now that Wen Yipin had targeted Xia Yan, she had finally lost it.
“What’s going on between Xia Yan and me is none of your business! Also, Xia Yan isn’t a fraud!” As a woman, Liu Xue’er found it hard to curse. Therefore, although she said this in a solemn tone, they were ineffective towards Wen Yipin.
“Xia Yan, let’s go,” Liu Xue’er had told her piece, so she didn’t bother with Wen Yipin anymore and walked towards the exit.
Wen Yipin’s expression turned ugly as he saw them leave. He took out his phone and called a number, “Houzi, come to the Computer Plaza. I need you to deal with something!”
After ending the call, he stalked Liu Xue’er and Xia Yan carefully, like a hyena trailing its prey.
The outside was bustling with excitement even though the heatwave was going strong. It was the opening season now for universities, so a lot of students had arrived at the Computer Plaza with their parent’s money to buy a laptop and a phone. They had constructed a platform in the plaza where a few scantily clad girls were dancing sensually.
“Such a crowd!” Xia Yan sighed, turning his head as he walked, his gaze lingering on their thighs and above. Liu Xue’er got angry when she saw this and stepped on his heel.
“Ugh!” Xia Yan almost tumbled down.
“I’m sorry!” Liu Xue’er apologized stiffly, then said, “Let’s hurry. Do you want to buy a PC or a laptop?”
Xia Yan shifted his attention back to proper matters, “A laptop, I’ll get a Fruit. Right, are tablets any good?”
“They are handy, but no good to type and the battery lasts only a few hours,” Liu Xue’er stopped, “If you like products from Fruit, how about visiting their store? You can buy a laptop, tablet, and phone altogether.”
“All right, let’s do as you say!” Xia Yan nodded.
The Fruit store was just beside the Computer Plaza, and there was a considerable crowd here too. The salespersons had lost their wits dealing with the crowd.
The inside of the store was cooler because of the air conditioning; it dispersed the humid air. Xia Yan checked out all the products with zeal and gasped in shock occasionally.
“So expensive!” Xia Yan felt dumbfounded by some marked prices. Fortunately, he had a lot of money on his card now, so it wouldn’t put a dent in his wallet.
“What specifications are you planning to get?” Liu Xue’er asked him.
“No idea,” Xia Yan replied. He hadn’t done his research about these things before.
After a moment of silence, Liu Xue’er asked another question, “How much are you planning to spend then?”
“20,000 at most!” Xia Yan replied instantly. He had already decided on this. He planned to spend 20,000 for a phone, laptop, and tablet, set aside ten thousand for personal use, and send the remaining 6.97 million to his master.
“20,000 is more than enough,” Liu Xue’er nodded, “You can get the latest gold, 128G Fruit phone, then get a tablet for 7000, and spend the remaining 7000 to buy a laptop.”
“All right, let’s do that!” Xia Yan had no clue about these things, so he had no suggestions to make, and just left it all to Liu Xue’er to help him choose.
“This phone and tablet are nice, but the laptop’s performance lacks a bit. It’s decent enough for personal use,” Liu Xue’er explained it to him with simple words.
“I will just use it for browsing and playing games, so it’s good enough,” Xia Yan stated.
“You’re so different from yesterday!” Liu Xue’er didn’t call the salesperson and instead stared at Xia Yan before passing such a comment.
“Where exactly?” Xia Yan questioned.
“You’re wealthy now. Hehe!” Liu Xue’er giggled.
“You’re referring to how I acted like a country bumpkin that had just entered the city yesterday, yet I’m spending so extravagantly now, right?” Xia Yan asked, letting out a chuckle.
“Isn’t that so?” Liu Xue’er took off her sunglasses and stared at him attentively.
“I just don’t want to treat myself shabbily. Since these are things I plan to use, it’s natural to get the best ones. If it were those useless things, I wouldn’t feel like spending a single coin for it!” Xia Yan stated.
“So, you’re a sensualist!” Liu Xue’er giggled.
“It’s all good as long as we don’t put on airs,” Xia Yan also laughed along.
“That’s true!” Liu Xue’er nodded, expressing her approval.
Xia Yan found a beautiful saleswoman and handed over the things he wished to buy. She grinned at him and unboxed them immediately. First, she connected the laptop to a power source and began the testing procedure.
After inspecting and paying for the things, Xia Yan requested the little beauty to transfer his sim card to the new phone and then left with the items.
“Xia Yan, shall I drop you at the university?” Liu Xue’er stated.
“No need, Sister Xue’er. Sihe University is just beside the Computer Plaza. It only takes a few minutes to reach there. Also, if I got down at the university from your car, I will become the center of attention for sure!” Xia Yan declined her invitation tactfully.
“I’m not afraid, so what are you afraid of!” Liu Xue’er laughed so hard that her shoulders shook. At this moment, her phone began ringing. She exchanged a few words on the call, then apologized, “Xia Yan, I’m really sorry. Something happened at the company, so I need to rush back immediately!”
“Go then. You had no reason to drop me back anyway!” Xia Yan urged. The passersby kept glancing at him and Liu Xue’er, and this placed him under a lot of pressure.
“I’ll leave then. Let’s have fun on some other day. Don’t you turn down this sister then, okay?!” Liu Xue’er stated.
“No one would turn down a pretty woman!” Xia Yan replied.
“Huh-huh. You have learned to flatter!” Liu Xue’er left behind another sentence, went to the parking lot to find her car, and then left.
Xia Yan looked at the boxes in his hands and walked over towards the university. Sihe University was just a block away from the Computer Plaza, so he would reach there soon.
On the way, his shoulder got bumped by someone suddenly, followed by the sound of something breaking after falling to the ground. He looked down and saw a green bracelet had broken into pieces. The owner grabbed his shoulder soon after.
“Kid, you dare to break my family’s heirloom!” The speaker was a huge, bald guy. He wore a black tank top and had bulging muscles all over. Both his arms were a hideous mess full of tattoos. The only thing he lacked was the word — thug — on his forehead.
Xia Yan felt stunned for a moment, before he laughed and smacked away the man’s hand, “If I haven’t got it wrong, this is the so-called porcelain drop scam that’s so famous?”
“Porcelain drop scam, my ass!” Feeling the sharp pain from his wrist, the man felt shocked by the strength of the kid before him, “What? Are you trying to evade responsibility after breaking my jadeite bracelet?”
Xia Yan ignored him and looked around. The incident had attracted the attention of the pedestrians, and they had gathered around in a circle around him. There were also a few crooks ready to pounce forward inside this crowd. They were undoubtedly the bald man’s accomplices.
Looking farther, he discovered Wen Yipin’s figure and couldn’t help but chuckle.