Chapter 18: The Robber

Wen Ci walked into the shopping mall. It had only been open for a short while, and the clerks were busily attending to their tasks in an orderly fashion. As she passed a clothing store, she paused.

Standing outside the display window, her eyes immediately landed on a dark-colored turtleneck wool sweater worn by a mannequin. In this era, the style looked incredibly fashionable.

She could buy it for Huo Jingyuan.

Wen Ci stepped into the store and noticed that every wool sweater had a clearly marked price tag. Upon closer inspection, her eyebrows arched slightly.

The price for each sweater was generally over one hundred yuan.

In this era, the average monthly wage was only a few dozen yuan. Huo Jingyuan's monthly salary and allowance totaled fifty-four yuan; one sweater was equivalent to two months of his wages.

Wen Ci thought it over carefully. The 1980s were in the midst of an economic boom, and making money needed to be prioritized, otherwise, she would regret it later.

Wen Ci spoke up, "Can I get a discount on this sweater?"

"This is an authentic Shan Hai brand wool sweater, produced by a genuine state-owned enterprise. We are the only specialty store in the entire Northwest. We don't offer discounts," the clerk replied.

Wen Ci: "..."

The clerk was dressed brightly and elegantly, yet her tone carried a subtle hint of condescension.

Wen Ci raised her hand to tuck a strand of hair behind her ear, inconspicuously revealing the gold bracelet on her wrist. She gave a faint smile. "Is there really no discount? I'll buy two at once."

She would buy one for Huo Jingyuan, but she needed one for herself as well.

The clerk stared at the gold bracelet on Wen Ci's wrist, sizing her up from head to toe. Though her clothes were simple, she hadn't expected her to be a woman of means. A smile appeared on the clerk's face.

"Miss, if you take two sweaters, I'll personally give you ten yuan off each. How does that sound?"

"Ten yuan off per sweater?"

"Yes."

Wen Ci did a quick calculation in her head. Having shaved off twenty yuan in total, she was satisfied. "First, get me this dark one, and then I'll pick another..."

Scanning the other turtleneck sweaters, Wen Ci chose a pale pink one. She went to the fitting room to try it on; the pink hue made her skin look as white and smooth as congealed fat.

Standing before the mirror, Wen Ci was extremely satisfied.

Wen Ci asked, "Since my husband isn't here, can I exchange it if the size is too small?"

"As long as the tags aren't removed, you can come back to exchange or return it anytime."

Wen Ci pulled two hundred-yuan bills from her dowry and handed them to the clerk. After receiving twenty yuan in change, she left the shop carrying her bags with great joy.

She then proceeded to buy many other items according to the list Huo Jingyuan had given her.

Wen Ci paid a worker to help her carry the items to the entrance of the guesthouse. She also bought a box of instant noodles for emergencies. After paying him, she said, "Uncle, please help me move these to the entrance of the guesthouse, just make sure they don't block the door."

"I'll make sure it's done properly."

Wen Ci stayed with him the whole time, as these items cost quite a bit of money.

Suddenly, she heard someone shouting breathlessly, "Robbery! That man is robbing me! Can someone please help!"

Everyone turned to look toward the sound.

The fleeing robber held a sharp blade in his left hand, which was stained with blood, and a bulging leather bag in his right.

Seeing the knife, the crowd scrambled to move away.

Robbers these days were extremely brazen, and some were even capable of taking lives. Everyone thought it was better to avoid trouble and kept their distance.

Seeing the robber running in her direction, Wen Ci calmly stepped toward the roadside and extended her foot, intentionally tripping him.

The robber crashed to the ground, and the leather bag flew out of his hand.

(End of Chapter)