Shen Wanci would have had to be out of her mind to actually wait for Bo Jingzhou to show up. And yet, she had underestimated the man's speed. The moment she reached the doorway, she saw a tall, upright figure striding toward her.
Bo Jingzhou wore a black shirt cut close to his body and crisply pressed suit trousers. His features were handsome, his bearing refined and aristocratic, and that innate arrogance he carried was especially pronounced.
Good-looking, excellent presence, young and rich…
If you ignored what a scumbag he was, Bo Jingzhou was without question the god among male gods.
Chen Xu trailed at his side, and by comparison, that aura of dominance was impossible to overlook.
In the few seconds Shen Wanci stood there dazed, Bo Jingzhou had already come up in front of her. The furrow of his brows announced his displeasure. "Uncle Jiang says you didn't come home last night?"
He'd come all this way just to ask that?
"Didn't Uncle Jiang pass on my message? Not only am I not coming back last night—I'm never coming back, ever."
Shen Wanci turned to leave by the other side, but Chen Xu blocked her path. "Assistant Shen, President Bo only came up because he knew you were upstairs."
So? Was she supposed to be moved to tears over that?
Chen Xu was one of the few people by Bo Jingzhou's side who knew the true relationship between the two of them, yet he had always addressed her as 'Assistant Shen' or 'Miss Shen.'
Just look—she had been Bo Jingzhou's nanny for three years, and not only him, but even the people around him had never treated her as Madam Bo. They couldn't even be bothered to put on a surface show of courtesy.
Shen Wanci looked at Chen Xu standing in her way, and her temper flared. "Special Aide Chen, do you know what someone like you was called in ancient times?"
A castrated dog!
"Shen Wanci," Bo Jingzhou said, anger reined in his voice. "A little fuss is the spice of married life, but you've gone too far. You didn't take a single one of those clothes, shoes, jewels, or accessories at home—isn't it because you want me to come and coax you? Chen Xu, go order dinner."
Having given the order, he turned back to Shen Wanci. "We'll have dinner together tonight. There's a jewelry exhibition coming up—pick whatever you like."
This was Bo Jingzhou's usual way of placating her after a fight: a bag, clothes, jewelry—anything money could buy. Shen Wanci used to be able to comfort herself by thinking he was just a clueless straight man who didn't know how to treat a woman well. Then she saw the way he cared for Jian Weining, and understood exactly what it meant to be slapped in the face.
She let out a scornful laugh and mocked him sharply: "It's not that I didn't take those things—I gave them to Jian Weining. Doesn't she love picking up the junk other people throw away? Consider that pile of garbage my wedding gift to the two of you!"
Tao Qingyi, standing to one side, cut in. "Madam Bo, you've really misunderstood Ah-Ning. She may like President Bo, but she's never once thought of breaking up anyone's marriage! She asked President Bo to help reserve this bag only because she doesn't have a membership with this brand and couldn't place the order herself. If you like this bag, we'll simply let you have it. There's no need to insult people, throwing around words like 'mistress' with every breath, is there?"
If pure-and-innocent white-lotus acting had ranks, the one in front of her was absolutely top-tier.
Since they wanted to drag the conflict into a war over buying the bag… Shen Wanci turned back, smiling with allure. "Sure. Then I'll have to thank you."
This bag was genuinely hard to reserve—Qin Yuezhi would definitely love it.
And the key thing was… she didn't have to pay for it herself, so why not?
As for Bo Jingzhou, she couldn't care less what he thought.
Seeing the woman about to head toward the checkout counter, Bo Jingzhou seized her wrist. "Stop fooling around. If you like it, I'll reserve another one—it won't take much longer."
Shen Wanci's heart trembled, and her eyes couldn't help stinging a little.
Thinking of these three years of a widow-like marriage, of her own battered self, and then looking at the favored Jian Weining…
She understood what Bo Jingzhou meant: this bag was for Jian Weining, and she wasn't to touch it.
Her face went a little pale, but she didn't let him see it. She turned and casually pointed at a men's bag, telling the sales clerk: "Wrap up this men's bag for me."
Bo Jingzhou pressed his lips together. Seeing that she wasn't angry, that she was even buying him a gift, the mood that had been gloomy for days lifted a little.
Even though Bo Jingzhou didn't actually like that men's bag.
His voice softened. "We'll go to dinner tonight. I'll send someone to Qin Yuezhi's place to move your luggage back for you."
Shen Wanci ignored him and went on asking the clerk: "Can you write a gift card?"
The clerk nodded. "Yes."
"Then write: Mr. Qiao, happy Valentine's Day."
Bo Jingzhou's eyelid twitched hard, and the fingers gripping her wrist tightened. He demanded, "Who is Mr. Qiao?"
Shen Wanci answered offhandedly: "My date for tonight."
She wrenched her hand forcefully out of Bo Jingzhou's grip. "Stop fooling around, President Bo. If you like it, I'll reserve another one—it won't take much longer."
Hearing his own words handed back to him verbatim, the veins on Bo Jingzhou's forehead throbbed, and the taut line of his jaw turned sharp.
The clerk had finished writing up the receipt, but in a situation like this, didn't have the nerve to say a word.
Shen Wanci pulled out a card and handed it over. "Charge it."
A faint chill seemed to rise from the man's dark, handsome face. "Shen Wanci, do you really think you can afford this bag on that four thousand five hundred a month salary of yours?"
He had already cancelled the unlimited black card he'd given her before. Aside from that enormous hotel charge the night before last, she hadn't touched the money in it all year.
Even at four thousand five a month, saving for a whole year without eating or drinking would come to only fifty-some thousand—not even half the price of this bag.
Unexpectedly, there came a 'ding'—the card went through, and the POS machine started grinding out the receipt with a 'screech, screech.'
Shen Wanci took the gift box the clerk handed her, turned, and left.
Bo Jingzhou stared at her retreating back, his eyes nearly spitting fire.
Coming out of the mall, Shen Wanci was in low spirits. Seeing that it was getting late, she simply hailed a cab to Qin Yuezhi's antique shop.
Qin Yuezhi wasn't busy at the moment, and when she saw her come in, she hurried to her feet to greet her. "What brings you here? Weren't you going to cook hotpot for me yourself tonight?"
Shen Wanci tossed the gift box in her hands over to her and dropped wearily onto the sofa. "Don't even mention it. Bad luck all around."
Holding the gift box, Qin Yuezhi's eyes lit up with delight. "What's this? A birthday present for me?"
Eyes closed, Shen Wanci gave a vague reply: "Mm."
Qin Yuezhi happily tore open the wrapping, and when she saw the men's bag inside, she wilted like an eggplant hit by frost, utterly limp. "Even if you think I'm not womanly enough, you don't have to remind me this way."
Shen Wanci's tone was flat: "You can pass it on to your boyfriend."
Qin Yuezhi: "……"
Since when did she have a boyfriend? Did Kevin, Andy, and Jeff from the club count?
After Shen Wanci had rested a while and her mood had eased, she recounted everything that had happened at the mall.
When Qin Yuezhi heard about Bo Jingzhou insisting that Shen Wanci move back, she found it strange. After a moment's silence, she asked something shocking: "That dog Bo Jingzhou—he hasn't gone and fallen for you, has he?"