Zhu Qianying didn't want to say anything more about the driver's persistence. Since he wanted to come along, she would let him be. In any case, she would just consider him as someone else to help carry things.
Accompanied by Yan's driver, Zhu Qianying entered a jewelry store with a clear goal in mind.
As soon as she entered, someone came up to her with a big smile, "Fifth Miss, what kind of jewelry would you like to buy?"
Zhu Qianying glanced at the man in his thirties opposite her, wondering why he remembered her.
This wasn't her first time visiting this jewelry store.
However, in the past, she always appeared as a supporting character here. Basically, she would accompany her aunts to come and look around. They would buy things, while she, her sister Zhu Qianyu, and their mother Chen Jing would mostly just watch.
As for how her aunt would explain this huge expense to her father after they got back, Zhu Qianying didn't care. In short, for so many years, her aunts and their children had always dressed smartly and spent money lavishly, while her mother, along with her and her sister, had always been terribly poor.
What could be done? With my mother's soft and cowardly nature, among those shrewd concubines who were capable of scheming and devouring people, it was already a miracle that she and her two daughters were able to survive. What more could we ask for than wealth and status?
Zhu Qianying glanced at the name tag hanging on the man's chest. "Manager Deng, I'd like to buy a jade pendant that would be suitable for an elderly person."
Zhu Qianying dared not buy inexpensive gifts that could please them, after all, she knew nothing about the temperaments of Old Madam Yan and Old Master Yan.
Expensive gifts might be appreciated by wealthy families like the Yan family, but she couldn't afford them.
After much deliberation, I finally decided to buy a jade pendant. I think the old man is more likely to like it.
Manager Deng led her to the jade counter with great enthusiasm, "Miss, would you like to buy a decorative piece or something to wear?"
Zhu Qianying glanced at the jade items displayed in the counter and said, "Let me see this ornament."
This is a white jade ruyi ornament with some yellowish-brown spots, carved with persimmons and lingzhi mushrooms. The persimmons are plump with their stems facing upwards, and a pair of lingzhi mushrooms are carved beside them, with curled branches and leaves entwined around the persimmon stems. A pair of peony stamens adorn the other side.
Seeing that Zhu Qianying was examining the item carefully and seemed to like it very much, Manager Deng introduced it, "Fifth Miss, this Ruyi is exquisitely crafted, with an adorable shape and auspicious meaning. You see, 'persimmon' is a homophone for 'things,' and with this lingzhi mushroom, it symbolizes that everything goes smoothly. The peony symbolizes wealth and prosperity, and the lingzhi and peony together symbolize a happy married life and good fortune. Most elderly people would like this kind of ornament."
Zhu Qianying remained silent, holding the jade ruyi in her hand and examining it carefully for a while. She agreed with Manager Deng's words, but...
Zhu Qianying's gaze swept quickly across the price tag still on the tray: 88,000.
For the entire Zhu family, apart from Zhu Qianying and her two daughters, no one would think this amount was a large sum. But for Zhu Qianying, it was quite a lot of money, after all, it was equivalent to Xiaoyu's tuition for two semesters.
You can't catch a wolf without risking your cub. If she's not even willing to spend this little bit of money, how can she confidently step into the Yan family's door?
Thinking of this, Zhu Qianying's eyes clearly darkened.
She admitted that her motives for trying to please and ingratiate herself were not pure.
But when Young Master Yan put out those conditions in black and white, wasn't it obvious that he just wanted to exchange money for a wife, and didn't ask for anything else?
Since that's the case, she doesn't really have anything to feel guilty about.
Anyway, she'll just play along with him and put on a good show in front of the old man.
There are many couples who appear loving and affectionate in public, but act like complete strangers in private!
After some internal struggle and self-consolation, Zhu Qianying took out her card, gritted her teeth, and paid the money.
It hurts a little to think that all the money I earned in just a few days has been spent in one go.
The driver from the Yan family was supposed to take her into the compound, but she asked him to stop at the gate and then went around to the back of the compound to enter.
She did this because she didn't want to deal with her father's excessive enthusiasm and his intentional or unintentional probing.
She slipped into the house through the back door and stealthily returned to her room. She took the SIM card from the broken phone on the floor and put it into the new phone that Yan Shao had bought for her.
The first call I made after turning on my phone was to Xing Bolun.
"Aaron, you gave Xiaoyu 50,000 yuan for me that day, right?"
Because of Yan Shao's matter, Zhu Zhizhou, the patriarch of the Zhu family, also tricked Zhu Qianying's younger sister, Zhu Qianyu, into coming back. Zhu Qianying was eager to protect her sister, so the next day she asked her friend Xing Bailun to escort Zhu Qianyu to the airport and ask him to advance the money for Xiaoyu's tuition and other expenses for the next semester.
Zhu Qianying, her younger sister, is two years younger than her and is currently studying at R University. Because she did not study hotel management as her father wished, her father cut off her tuition and living expenses. Therefore, all of Zhu Qianyu's expenses are now borne by Zhu Qianying.
"Well, I'm not in a hurry to use the money. You can deal with it when you have time. So, how's things going on your end?"
Xing Bailun is Zhu Qianying's good friend, and over the years, he has become her lending institution when she has financial difficulties.
However, no matter how much Zhu Qianying borrowed, she would always find a way to pay it back before long, and she would even pay back the interest on the credit card debt.
"Yes, I'm a bit short on cash lately, and I estimate it will be three or four months before I can pay you back."
Zhu Qianying had originally intended to use the money for her younger sister's tuition to buy a jade ruyi, so she had to owe her friend the money for now.
"No problem, you can return it whenever it's convenient for you. How's things going with Young Master Yan?" Xing Bailun didn't give up on the question just because she deliberately ignored him.
Zhu Qianying herself was unsure about this matter. Besides, even if Young Master Yan really acknowledged her identity, the news should have come from his side, not from her.
"It's not clear yet, let's wait and see!"
Zhu Qianying's ambiguous answer clearly conveyed a message to the other party: Let's leave this topic here; I don't want to talk about it.
Xing Bailun clearly knew her temperament well and immediately changed the subject.
"By the way, Xiaoyu said the other day that she was interning at Xinying Entertainment. That girl is quite capable; she actually managed to get into Xinying."
Zhu Qianying was naturally protective of her own, and upon hearing this, she became quite displeased. "Hey, what do you mean by 'sneaking in'? Xiaoyu has always been very capable; she got in through her own abilities, not by sneaking in!"
Zhu Qianying knew, of course, that Xiaoyu went to Xinying for her internship because her foreign language teacher recommended her.
However, Zhu Qianying also knew that the larger the organization, the clearer the system. Recommendations were one thing, but whether one could stay depended on one's own ability.
Therefore, she believed that her younger sister did indeed have the ability to make people look at her differently.
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