Volume One, Chapter 11: A Tailored Suit for Three Thousand?

After finishing their meal, Miaomiao Cheng rubbed her round belly, feeling incredibly happy.

“Mom, since you married into the family, I haven’t had a chance to give you a gift yet. We have nothing planned for the afternoon—how about we go shopping at the mall? I’ll buy you a few new outfits, okay?”

She had been observing for a while and noticed that Yaxuan Yu didn’t have a single decent piece of clothing. The most expensive items she saw were all under five hundred yuan. In contrast, the clothes Miaomiao wore, even her underwear, cost at least ten thousand yuan. This new mother was surprisingly frugal.

“You just came back to the country and don’t have a job yet. Why would you buy clothes for me? If anyone’s buying, it should be me, the elder. Whatever clothes you want, we can go shopping this afternoon, and I’ll buy them for you,” Yaxuan said kindly.

Miaomiao was a kind and warm child, and Yaxuan enjoyed spending time with her. Especially since Miaomiao never treated her stepmother with coldness—a rarity for any child. As a stepmother, Yaxuan felt she should indeed buy a gift for the child.

“Oh, Mom, even though I don’t have a job here, I earned quite a bit abroad. Plus, Dad often sends me living expenses. I have more money than I can spend. Let me buy you something this time, and you can buy me something next time, okay?” Miaomiao linked arms with Yaxuan and pouted playfully.

Yaxuan’s heart was melted. She used to have a good relationship with her youngest daughter, but that daughter hadn’t acted so affectionately towards her in years. Now, with such a sweet daughter showing affection, who could resist?

She glanced at Zhengchu Cheng, who didn’t seem to object, so she nodded.

“Don’t refuse, both of you. This time, I’ll pay. Pick whatever you like!”

Seeing father and daughter insist, Yaxuan didn’t refuse any longer. She would have an income starting next month anyway and could make it up to her beloved daughter then.

The group returned to the mall they had visited before. At the entrance, Yaxuan stopped and held back Miaomiao, who was about to enter.

“What’s wrong, Mom?”

“The clothes here are too expensive. I just glanced at the outfit on the model—ninety thousand yuan! This is way beyond what we can afford. Let’s leave quickly,” Yaxuan said, pulling Miaomiao and Zhengchu, intending to leave.

“Mom, the prices here are inflated. The tags look scary, but it’s actually quite cheap!” Zhengchu chimed in.

“Since we’re here, let’s take a look,” Miaomiao agreed.

Seeing their determination, Yaxuan hesitantly entered the store.

“Try this one, and this one, and also this,” Miaomiao said, picking out several pieces for Yaxuan as soon as they stepped inside.

“No, Miaomiao, one is enough. We don’t need so many,” Yaxuan replied. Even with the inflated prices, the clothes didn’t seem cheap. For ordinary working families, buying such fine clothes was unnecessary. She could just shop at the market and get the same quality.

“The prices here are quite affordable. Don’t you think so, miss?” Miaomiao said, pulling out her black gold card.

The sales clerk immediately understood and nodded repeatedly. “Yes, madam, our clothes are very reasonably priced. The pieces this young lady picked are very suitable for you. You can try them on first.”

“Go ahead and try them on. It’s the child’s heartfelt intention,” Zhengchu said gently.

Yaxuan looked at Miaomiao’s hopeful face and reluctantly nodded, heading to the fitting room.

A moment later, Yaxuan emerged in a soft pink long dress, looking somewhat shy as she asked the two for their opinion.

It was her first time wearing such high-quality clothing. The texture was gentle and elegant, far better than the market stall clothes she usually bought. Although she had splurged on two garments before divorcing Jingcheng Lin, this dress made those pale in comparison.

Zhengchu looked up, following the line of sight.

Yaxuan wore a lotus-pink long dress that accentuated her graceful figure. Her delicate features, beautiful peach blossom eyes carrying a faint smile, and slightly parted lips with a tempting gloss made her look stunningly captivating, hardly resembling a woman nearing fifty.

For some reason, Zhengchu’s heart beat faster.

After years of detachment and simplicity, he found himself unexpectedly stirred by this mature woman’s charm.

No, the woman before him was not old at all.

“Do I look good?” Yaxuan asked, a little uncertain as she noticed their silent gazes. She had never worn this style before and felt unsure.

“You look beautiful! Mom, you look amazing! Look, Dad is completely mesmerized,” Miaomiao said affectionately, linking arms with Yaxuan and smiling at Zhengchu.

Zhengchu snapped out of his trance and forced a calm tone, “You do look good. Let’s buy them all.”

“What? I only want this one!” Yaxuan exclaimed.

“No worries, it’s a token of our daughter’s filial affection, and it’s not that expensive,” Zhengchu stopped Yaxuan from refusing further while Miaomiao had already paid the bill.

Yaxuan felt a pang of guilt. “How much did it cost... You can’t just spend money like this. It’s not easy for you to earn now…”

Her biological daughter had been working for a long time but never bought her a single piece of clothing. Now, in her second marriage, she hadn’t expected to meet such a wonderful daughter. She vowed to wholeheartedly care for her and never let her down.

Seeing Yaxuan’s eyes redden, Miaomiao winked at the cashier. “Is it three thousand yuan in total?”

The clerk was stunned. The clothes worth hundreds of thousands—how could she say three thousand? This wasn’t even a fraction of the actual price. Even the young lady’s custom Shijia outfit cost over two hundred thousand yuan. Rich people truly kept a low profile.

“Yes, madam, the total is three thousand yuan. Our prices are very reasonable,” the clerk confirmed.

Yaxuan breathed a sigh of relief but still felt that three thousand yuan for three pieces was somewhat expensive. Fearing they’d spend more, she quickly pulled them out of the store.

“Oh? Isn’t this my old classmate Yaxuan Yu? I heard after being kicked out by Jingcheng Lin, you married an electrician? Honestly, how did you end up going backwards?” sneered a familiar voice.

“Lin Jingcheng was such a good husband, and you let him go for this? Dressed like a proper lady, yet shopping in a place like this? Let me tell you, your husband couldn’t afford anything here even if he worked a whole year. Don’t embarrass yourself!” said Chen Xiaoli.

Yaxuan’s face darkened instantly. She and Chen Xiaoli had never gotten along. Since middle school, Chen Xiaoli had liked to compare herself to Yaxuan for no reason. When Yaxuan married Jingcheng Lin, Chen Xiaoli had mocked her numerous times. After Lin became deputy manager, Chen Xiaoli disappeared for a while. Fate brought them face to face again.

Why was Chen Xiaoli so obsessed with her life? Didn’t she have anything better to do?

“Ma’am, please respect my wife, or you’ll have me to deal with,” Zhengchu said firmly, stepping in front of Yaxuan before she could retort.

A long-lost feeling surged through her. After twenty years of marrying into the Lin family and being treated like a servant, with Jingcheng Lin either pretending not to notice or smoothing things over during conflicts, this was the first time she truly felt protected.

She was moved, her eyes inexplicably moist.