Huang Wanzhen took a sip of water and urged her repeatedly, "Go quickly, go get the food."

Xiulan replied crisply, "Okay! Please wait a moment."

Xiulan, with a smile on her face, hummed a little tune and went to the big kitchen.

Scrambled eggs with tomatoes, pork and mushrooms, a bowl of vegetable and tofu soup, and a plate of hutuzzi as the staple food.

Huang Wanzhen ate with gusto, but before she finished, Huang Dongshi came to visit.

Following the rules, Huang Wanzhen put down her chopsticks, stood up and saluted, "Greetings, Mother."

"Please sit down and eat. There's no need for so many rules between us, mother and daughter." Mrs. Huang smiled and pushed Huang Wanzhen back onto the stool.

"After dinner, come with me to the tailor shop to choose some clothes. Yunxia down the street also sells ready-made clothes. Pick out something you like, have them alter it, and wear it tomorrow."

Huang Wanzhen took a few bites and put down her chopsticks. "Can I not choose a skirt? I want to wear a new cheongsam or a Western-style dress."

Huang Dongshi shook her head in disapproval, "On ordinary days, I can do as you please, but not tomorrow."

"If someone sees us then, they'll think our girl is not serious."

Huang Wanzhen: "New cheongsams and dresses also have long skirts. What's so inappropriate about that?"

Huang Dongshi: "Showing off the chest, waist and butt, nothing is proper."

"The four daughters of your second aunt not only had their feet bound, but they also had their breasts bound."

"It was hot when you were born. You sweated just by sitting still. Whenever I squeezed your nipples, you cried until your whole body was covered in sweat."

"I felt sorry for you at the time, so I didn't squeeze it. Later, I didn't bind your breasts for you sisters, so your breasts looked bigger. When you were in your teens and went to your grandmother's house, your second aunt laughed at you, saying that you had grown up to be a frivolous person."

"You cried so hard back then, and even blamed me for not binding your breasts."

Huang Wanzhen: “…”

"I'm afraid my second aunt is mentally ill."

"Pa-pa-pa-pa" Mrs. Huang hit her shoulders hard twice.

"What nonsense are you talking about! Even eating can't shut your mouth!"

"If you can't speak, don't speak tomorrow. Act dumb the whole time. Do you hear me?"

Huang Wanzhen nodded twice.

Huang Dongshi shouted, "Speak!"

Huang Wanzhen: “I heard it.”

When she arrived at the tailor shop, Huang Wanzhen was so frightened by the short-sleeved cheongsams and Western skirts that she could not walk.

"It's so hot, Mom, put on a short-sleeved shirt."

Huang Dongshi ruthlessly refused, "No."

Huang Wanzhen: "Then I'll buy it myself when I earn money."

Looking at her disobedient daughter, Mrs. Huang Dong felt helpless.

The plump proprietress smiled and tried to smooth things over. "Mrs. Huang, this is a new society. Young people pursue freedom and fashion, unlike us old-fashioned people. If your daughter likes it, just buy her one!"

As he spoke, he pulled open the cloth curtain on the north side and said, "Come and take a look. Here are some student cloth jackets with three-quarter sleeves. They're very cheap, only fifty cents."

Huang Wanzhen fell in love with it at first sight. The reason was that the sleeves were short and the fabric was thin, so it would definitely be cooler than a jacket or skirt.

"Okay, give me one."

Facing the murderous gaze of Mrs. Huang Dong, Huang Wanzhen made the decision.

Immediately afterwards, Mrs. Huang Dong tried her best to help Huang Wanzhen pick up her jacket and skirt.

"This one, this one, and that one, try them all."

Huang Wanzhen was satisfied with the thin clothes. She stopped resisting Huang Dongshi and obediently took the clothes into the inner room.

She changed three outfits in a row, each one was in line with Huang Dong's aesthetic, but each one was missing something.

Until Huang Wanzhen changed into a light pink jacket and skirt, she looked like the first blooming peach blossoms in spring, soft and charming.

The stand-up collar is slightly high, outlining the graceful line of her neck. Several delicate buttons meander down the lapel, and the cuffs are embroidered with fine lace, which makes people unable to help but look at her white wrists.

The skirt is a light pink color of the same color scheme. The loose hem hangs down naturally, layered, and is embroidered with small flowers, making it lively and smart.

Huang Wanzhen just stood there lazily, with a few strands of hair hanging by her ears, her eyes firm yet a little cunning, adding a bit of charm that surpassed her peers.

It makes her look gentle like a mature woman, yet lively and innocent like a girl of her age.

"This one is good, I want this one."

The proprietress said: "Mrs. Huang has a good eye. This piece was just made by my old man. The embroidery on it is all the work of the old embroiderer."

"This dress is priced at twenty-two dollars. Since you're a regular customer, I'll charge you twenty."

When Huang Wanzhen heard this, she shook her head. This was enough to pay Axiang two months' salary.

Although she is willing to dress up to entertain her parents, she has to do it within her means.

"Forget it, Mom, I don't like it."

Mrs. Huang fondly touched the light pink skirt and asked, "What material is this made of?"

The proprietress said: "Please feel it. It's genuine gold-woven silk, worn by royalty and nobles. If you hadn't come to see it, I wouldn't have taken it out."

Mrs. Huang gritted her teeth and asked, "Can you make it cheaper?"

The proprietress said with embarrassment, "My dear! This is already the cheapest price. Otherwise, I'll give you the student's cloth jacket just now."

"I'll compensate you, since you're a regular customer. Come back when you're dressed."

Huang Wanzhen said nothing, walked quickly back to the inner room and changed back into her clothes.

"Mom, I don't like this one. The student's cotton jacket is enough."

Seeing that Mrs. Huang was still hesitating, Huang Wanzhen directly took out eighty cents and handed it to the proprietress.

"Please pack up that dress."

The proprietress took a step back and said, "No, if you don't like this one, you can look at something else. We have other styles of jackets and skirts here."

Huang Dongshi: "Let's take a look at something else."

Huang Wanzhen pulled Huang Dongshi out and said, "I'm tired and want to go back and rest."

Huang Dongshi advised softly, "Let's wait and see, it's still early."

Huang Wanzhen: "I've inquired about it. When it comes to marriages between officials in the new government, they don't like women with bound feet. They value the girl's own beauty."

"Even if I were to wear a coat of gold, it wouldn't change the fact that I have bound feet."

Huang Dongshi shook her head in disbelief. "This ancient technique is thousands of years old. How can it change so suddenly? It's impossible."

Huang Wanzhen stopped and faced her. "Then wait, I'll let the Zheng family tell you personally."

Huang Dongshi said with a worried look on her face, "Wanzhen, don't speak a word tomorrow. The moment you speak, your outward calm and elegance will vanish, leaving only hardness."

"Men don't like it."

Huang Wanzhen rolled her eyes to express her speechlessness.

After returning to the Huang Mansion, Huang Wanzhen thought that the novel she wrote this morning had not been sent yet, so she went straight to the study.

A few minutes later, she hurried out and said to Ah Xiang, who was cleaning the car in the yard, "Ah Xiang! Who came to the study this afternoon?"

Ah Xiang stood up in a daze, stroking his chin and thinking for a while, "The eldest and third young ladies have both been in there."

Huang Wanzhen: "Is there anyone else?"

Ah Xiang shook his head and said, "I didn't see anyone else."