Chapter 7

Chapter 7: Take a Look at Yourself—What Do You Have to Compete with Me? "Shopkeeper, don't listen to her. She must be blinded by jealousy. What kind of distinguished guest is she?" In her past life, she had known everything about Jia Qingcheng. Even without her stripping bare, she knew her inside and out. Now, seeing Jia Qingcheng actually wanting to enter the private room, she was truly overestimating herself. "Sister, don't make a scene. I'll apologize to you if that's what it takes. Let's not embarrass ourselves, alright?" After saying this, Song Jiaojiao reached out to pull Jia Qingcheng away from the place. Naturally, in her heart, she wanted to see her make a fool of herself, but her uncle had instructed her not to bring shame to the Jia family and to keep an eye on this ugly thing. Even if it was just an act, she would play it to the fullest. "Move aside!" With a gentle push from Jia Qingcheng, Song Jiaojiao suddenly fell to the ground... "Ah!" "Jiaojiao, are you alright?" "Brother Wuliang, I'm fine. Sister didn't mean it!" "Jia Qingcheng, you've gone too far!" Pei Wuliang hadn't expected Jia Qingcheng to resort to violence. He immediately helped Song Jiaojiao to her feet. "Jiaojiao, are you okay?" "I'm fine, Brother Wuliang. Don't be angry. Sister didn't do it on purpose!" "Apologize to Jiaojiao!" Pei Wuliang coldly rebuked Jia Qingcheng. She had truly crossed the line! What? Apologize to Song Jiaojiao? "I did nothing wrong. Why should I apologize?" "Jia Qingcheng, you disappoint me. When did you become such a repulsive, jealous shrew?" A jealous shrew? Jia Qingcheng was almost amused into laughter. She had done nothing, and yet she was already a jealous shrew. This Song Jiaojiao's methods of bewitching men were indeed extraordinary. "Brother Wuliang, don't be angry. I'm fine." "You've gone too far!" Seeing that she refused to apologize, Pei Wuliang immediately helped Song Jiaojiao up. "Jiaojiao, go change your clothes first. I'll wait for you." "Brother Wuliang, don't blame sister. She didn't mean it." As Song Jiaojiao was escorted by her maid to change clothes, she deliberately passed by Jia Qingcheng, curling her lips slightly and whispering, "Does it hurt? Since the Lantern Festival that year, Brother Wuliang has only loved me. As for you—take a look at yourself in that sorry state. What do you have to compete with me?" That year's Lantern Festival... In an instant, she felt as if she had fallen into an ice cave. She remembered that Lantern Festival clearly. The night had been lively and bustling. Naturally, it was also the day of her coming-of-age ceremony. She had known Pei Wuliang since she was five years old—at five, when she knew nothing at all, she had followed him all the way into adulthood. And that Lantern Festival was also the night Pei Wuliang and she had pledged their love. The fireworks that night blazed with abandon, celebrating their beautiful union. And the reason she had helped Pei Wuliang all these years was for the promise of marriage he had made. But she had never imagined that they had already been carrying on long before that! "Miss, what's wrong?" Seeing her mistress's face turn deathly pale, Chunyan immediately steadied her. "Young Master, my miss looks very unwell." "Still putting on an act of being ill? Qingcheng, what you've done today is truly disgraceful!" With that, Pei Wuliang couldn't be bothered with her any longer and walked directly to the shopkeeper. "Shopkeeper, wrap up that dress and put it on her tab." The shopkeeper glanced at Jia Qingcheng and gave an awkward smile. "Young Master, that's against our rules. Even if Miss Jia is buying clothes, she must pay in silver immediately." Pay immediately? Hearing this, Pei Wuliang was irritated. He turned to look at Jia Qingcheng. "Look at yourself now. Even putting it on credit, no one will vouch for you." With that, Pei Wuliang turned to the shopkeeper. "Shopkeeper." The shopkeeper immediately bowed and scraped. These were all important figures—he couldn't afford to offend any of them. "At your service." "Do you know who she is? She's the eldest miss of the Jia family. If you don't even give her face, do you not want to stay in the capital?" The shopkeeper naturally knew of the Jia family's ugly, disgraced daughter. But how much was her face worth? "You flatter me, Young Master." Pei Wuliang snorted coldly, then looked at Jia Qingcheng, who had remained silent the whole time. "See that? Now that I'm not marrying you, even these shops won't give you face. They're afraid you can't pay back the silver." Faced with Pei Wuliang's humiliation, Jia Qingcheng didn't want to acknowledge him. Soon, Song Jiaojiao came out in her changed clothes, and Pei Wuliang hurried over to support her. "Jiaojiao, take the dress. Let's go!" After saying this, Pei Wuliang turned and ordered Jia Qingcheng, "You were utterly thoughtless today. You should be the one paying for Jiaojiao's dress." What? She should pay? Why should she? Just as Jia Qingcheng was about to speak, Pei Wuliang looked at the shopkeeper. "Shopkeeper, tell her how much silver it costs. Don't worry—she's the Jia family's eldest miss. There's no way she can't afford it." The shopkeeper had no choice but to obey. After Pei Wuliang left, Jia Qingcheng was about to leave as well, but the shopkeeper immediately blocked her way. "Miss, you still need to pay for that dress!" "Whoever bought it pays for it. Steward, go after them at once!" ... After the steward led the men to chase after them, Jia Qingcheng found the whole affair tiresome. "Chunyan, let's go check the next shop." "Miss, aren't you angry at all? How could Young Master Pei treat you like this?" Angry? Why would she be angry? For a faithless husband who had long since betrayed her, anger was hardly worth the effort. After selecting several beautiful outfits, her mood was quite good. Night fell heavily. Candlelight flickered mournfully within the room. She hid inside her chamber, concealing the prepared Heavenly Silkworm Gu in her sleeve, and was just about to head out with Chunyan when, all of a sudden, a respectful voice came from outside. "Eldest Miss, Young Master Pei has arrived." Pei Wuliang? She quickly hid the Gu vessel. In her previous life, she had personally given him the Heavenly Silkworm Body-Protecting Gu for the sake of his health, hoping only to shield him from all illness and pain for the rest of his life. But now, she would never part with such a treasure again. Outside, the moment Pei Wuliang entered, he saw her about to leave. "Where are you going?" Jia Qingcheng, seeing him running toward her courtyard again, was greatly displeased. "What are you doing here?" "Still throwing a tantrum? Let me ask you—why didn't you settle Jiaojiao's bill today? You got us chased all over town by that shopkeeper demanding payment. What a complete loss of face!" Having said that, Pei Wuliang immediately made a beeline for her room, just as he always had—with not a shred of hesitation or propriety, as casually as if he were walking into his own home. Watching Pei Wuliang move about with the same ease as in her past life, she narrowed her eyes slightly. It was time to consider posting more guards outside—no more letting just any stray cat or dog wander in. "Miss, what do we do?" "It's fine. Go wait for me in the carriage." She took the opportunity to hand her precious Heavenly Silkworm to Chunyan to carry out, then walked back inside. The moment she entered, she saw Pei Wuliang searching for something in the room—he was even crouching down to look under her bed. This made her somewhat tense. "What are you doing?" Pei Wuliang immediately straightened up and brushed the dust off his clothes. "I heard you went to the black market?" Just as she suspected—he was looking for the Heavenly Silkworm treasure. In her previous life, she had already given the Heavenly Silkworm to him as a gift by this time. No wonder he was still thinking about it, even coming to her home in person to demand it. Jia Qingcheng stood up straight. "What does where I go have to do with you?" Pei Wuliang knew she was still upset about him making her give up her clothes for Jiaojiao today. He didn't think it was a big deal—after all, it was simply a fact that Jia Qingcheng was ugly, and such fine garments would be wasted on her anyway. "Alright, Qingcheng, stop sulking. A little tantrum here and there, and I can forgive you. But if you keep being this unreasonable, I really won't like you anymore."