shopping mall

After the promise of twenty, the car fell into silence.

The reason was simple: Xu Feifei didn't know how to end the conversation, let alone how to start a new one. Besides, she might not even be in this Mary Sue world anymore after she turned twenty.

Looking at the birth date on "Xu Feifei's" ID card, which matched her own birth date, she realized she was a 17-year-old girl in the prime of her youth.

After Lin Yuan finished speaking, a self-deprecating smile appeared on his lips. But Xu Feifei didn't see it; she was turning her head to look out the window, avoiding the topic.

The scenery outside the window rushed past her, and all she could think about was, since jumping into the lake wouldn't bring her back to reality, what should she do?

Based on her years of experience reading novels, usually before returning to reality, the female and male leads fall in love, the female supporting character becomes evil, and then the male and female leads kick out the evil female supporting character together. At the crucial moment when they are happily together, the sky becomes abnormal, colorful and dazzling, like a disco...

No, that's not right. My mind is wandering.

Xu Feifei shook her head, dismissing this sudden, whimsical thought. She continued to recall the tropes of novels: unusual celestial phenomena, a white rainbow piercing the sun, auspicious clouds and propitious clouds. Dazzling light shone upon her, bathing her in sunlight, and she instantly transformed into a celestial being, soaring towards the sun, wanting only to stand shoulder to shoulder with it...

No, no, this is all nonsense. These ideas just keep popping up one after another, completely disregarding reality and logic. He shook his head vigorously, interrupting his unrealistic thoughts.

Lin Yuan's face turned cold. He turned his head and saw Xu Feifei shaking her head repeatedly beside him, then falling into deep thought, repeating this cycle over and over again.

Upon seeing this, he did not speak up to stop it, but instead curled his lips and drove straight ahead.

Xu Feifei continued to think about the plot of the novel when she saw a dazzling light shining on her. Then, she opened and closed her eyes and returned to reality.

That's right, as long as she wins over the male lead, she can return to reality in no time. Thinking of this, Xu Feifei couldn't help but get excited, clapping her hands together and completely immersing herself in her own world.

"There's no need to be so excited just because we're at the mall," Lin Yuan said with a smile.

"Huh?" Xu Feifei looked out the window and realized the car had already arrived at the parking lot. Composing herself, she realized her blunder and laughed awkwardly, "I...I was just happy at the thought of not having to wear wet clothes anymore, ha...haha..."

"Okay, let's go up together quickly!"

After parking the car, Lin Yuan unbuckled his seatbelt. He got out and led Xu Feifei towards the elevator. Xu Feifei, unfamiliar with the area, could only follow Lin Yuan closely.

"Ding!" The elevator stopped on the third floor, then turned a corner and arrived at a clothing store.

The storefront was spacious, decorated in a European style, and looked magnificent. The signboard was in English, which looked somewhat like the trendy Martian script, and it was written in cursive. Plus, Xu Feifei's knowledge was limited, so she really couldn't understand what the store was called.

Upon entering, the interior is decorated primarily in golden tones, with some reliefs on the walls, creating a magnificent and opulent atmosphere that occupies a large area.

Xu Feifei looked around. Compared to the real place, the store had a somewhat nouveau riche feel, and it was quite different from the high-end and fashionable decor she had seen online.

Perhaps the aesthetic of Mary Sue from back then is vastly different from today's. Moreover, fashion is often fickle.

As soon as they entered the store, a salesperson came forward to greet them with a smile and asked warmly, "Miss, sir, is there anything you need? I can help you with your shopping."

Xu Feifei was still caught up in the contrast between the Mary Sue world and the real world, and didn't notice the shop assistant's question, so she didn't answer her.

Seeing this, Lin Yuan said, "Give her a towel to dry her hair, and then pick out some comfortable clothes for her to change into."

"Okay, this way please, miss." The shop assistant's voice rang out again.

This time, Xu Feifei heard it and turned to follow the shop assistant. The shop assistant first handed Xu Feifei a towel, and then led her to choose clothes.

Xu Feifei took the towel from the shop assistant and thanked her.

The shop assistant smiled and replied again, "You're welcome, it's our duty."

As Xu Feifei walked, she dried her hair. After a while, the shop assistant picked out a dress for her. "This dress is the latest style this year. The fabric is soft and comfortable, and it really flatters your figure, Miss."

Xu Feifei looked at the dress in her hand; it was a long dress. She took the dress from her and went to the dressing room to change.

After changing, she looked at herself in the mirror. The skirt was five centimeters too short, ending at her ankles. It was a spring/autumn style. It fit her perfectly now; it was a bit loose, but still showed off her figure.

After pushing open the dressing room door, the sales assistant stepped forward and complimented Xu Feifei, saying, "Miss, your figure is absolutely amazing. Even though this dress is a loose style, it can't hide your perfect figure and makes your skin look as white as snow..."

Xu Feifei blushed with embarrassment after hearing this, feeling that the shop assistant's praise was a bit exaggerated, but she couldn't help but cheer with joy inside.

She walked towards Lin Yuan with a smile in her eyes. Reaching his side, she said, "Isn't what this sales clerk said a bit... a bit over the top? They're really going all out to sell clothes!"

Lin Yuan looked around carefully. "It's not an exaggeration; what she said is true."

Xu Feifei's face lit up with delight, her eyes sparkling as she looked at him and said, "I think so too! The shop assistant just praised me a ton of times! I thought she was exaggerating, hahaha~"

His face was beaming with joy, and his tone was smug.

Perhaps influenced by Xu Feifei's emotions, a smile appeared on her face as she said gently, "You were always beautiful!"

Xu Feifei felt inexplicably shy, a blush creeping up her ears and cheeks. Compliments about someone's looks always sound especially sweet. She noticed he had changed his clothes too, wearing slim-fitting trousers and a simple thermal undershirt, looking clean and neat, his long legs straight and long.

Fortunately, Lin Yuan turned around behind her and didn't notice the blush.

"Your outfit is quite..."

Xu Feifei suddenly felt her hair being gently wiped. Startled, she quickly turned her head and saw Lin Yuan using a dry towel to dry her hair.

"I can do it myself!" Xu Feifei tried to take the towel from Lin Yuan's hand to stop him from doing anything further.

Lin Yuan didn't let go, and said softly, "It's okay, I'll be quick." After saying that, he increased the speed of his hand.

"But I'm not used to having someone dry my hair for me, it makes me feel a little embarrassed," Xu Feifei said awkwardly, trying to take the towel from Lin Yuan's hand.

Lin Yuan paused, wiped her hands a couple more times, and then handed the towel to her. His eyes dimmed slightly as he asked, "Is there anything else you want to buy?"

"No, that's all," Xu Feifei replied, wiping her hair.

Lin Yuan listened without speaking. He simply gazed at her quietly for a while. Xu Feifei felt a little uncomfortable under his gaze and was about to speak when Lin Yuan walked away.

Lin Yuan walked up to the dresses, looked at them, picked out a few, and handed them to the shop assistant.

He then followed the clerk to pay the bill, and Xu Feifei, seeing this, quickly went up and called out, "Let me pay!"

"No need, I can pay, just swipe my card." Lin Yuan refused her and took out his bank card to hand to the clerk.

Xu Feifei quickly grabbed his arm to stop him, looking into his eyes and saying, "Really, it's not necessary. I have money. And I don't want to owe you too many favors."

His voice dropped several octaves towards the end, and his eyes held a hint of pleading.

Lin Yuan looked directly into her eyes, a hint of anger flashing in his eyes as he thought about his repeated rejections. He clenched his left hand, took a deep breath, and then slowly released it.

"good."

Upon hearing this, Xu Feifei was secretly delighted; her Supreme VIP Black Card could finally be put to use. She confidently pulled out the black card—one of only three in the world—and said with a hint of smugness, "Swipe the card."

The clerk took the card with a smile, inserted it into the POS machine, and said, "Miss, please enter your PIN."

"What?"

Xu Feifei was completely stunned, her heart skipped a beat, and she silently cried out in her heart: Isn't Mary Sue's black card supposed to not require a password?! And can the clerk recognize people by their cards and know my incomparably noble status?

"You'll need to enter your PIN to swipe your card."

She quickly calmed herself down, suppressing her panic, and randomly pressed a few numbers on the POS machine before pressing confirm.

"Miss, the password is incorrect. Please try again," the clerk's voice rang out again.

Xu Feifei entered the password again, but it was still incorrect.

This was the third time. This time, my hands were trembling slightly, and my pale, weak fingers pressed a few more numbers, but the password was still wrong.

The clerk's voice reminded her, "Miss, I'm sorry, if you enter the wrong password three times, your account will be blocked for one day. Do you have any other cards to pay with?"

Xu Feifei only had one card on her person and nothing else. So she turned to Lin Yuan and looked at him pleadingly for help.

Seeing her expression, Lin Yuan couldn't help but want to laugh, but he restrained himself.

Seeing that he didn't move, Xu Feifei walked to his side and said, "I think it's better if you pay me. I won't take credit for your work."

Lin Yuan curled the corners of his lips and handed a card to the waiter, saying, "This one."

After paying the bill, Lin Yuan took the bag and went out, asking, "Want to get your hair washed?"

"No need, I've almost dried my hair. I want to go back and take a shower and change my clothes. After all, my clothes haven't been washed. Could I see the receipt for the clothes?"

Lin Yuan handed her the receipt from the bag. Xu Feifei looked at the total amount on the receipt and was shocked. It was a six-figure sum. She clicked her tongue a few times under her breath, thinking, "That's way too expensive!"

"It's not expensive. It's only right to buy you new clothes!" He seemed to read her mind.

"What are you talking about?" A blush crept onto Xu Feifei's face, her heart fluttering.

"Didn't we agree on this before? I want to solidify it. What do you think?" Lin Yuan teased her.