Chapter 5, Lipstick_1

Early on Saturday, a few people took the bus to the city for fun. The restaurant Ye Siyu suggested was conveniently located on the sixth floor of a shopping mall that matched her princess-like taste and budget.

Girls shopping together. They started from the beauty and skincare section on the first floor, explored up to the clothing and accessories on the fifth floor, then strolled back down to the first, purposefully yet leisurely.

While Li Ran and the others were at makeup counters, Meng Xiao snuck away to the one Yang Yi had previously visited with another girl.

The perfume he gave her yesterday was from this brand.

To her honor, she got a share of that brand's whopping sales.

The salesgirl, who happened to be the same one from before, introduced their products to Meng Xiao with a warm smile and was not affected by her casual jeans and canvas shoes.

Their perfume selection was extensive, and Meng Xiao couldn't find the one she was given. She didn't know how to describe it and was at a loss.

Ye Siyu came over, didn't spare a glance at Meng Xiao, picked up a lipstick, and seemed quite satisfied with the color.

"I'll take these shades, and also one of your newest perfumes." She looked up, her eyes full of superiority over Meng Xiao as she lavishly picked out products, seemingly ridiculing Meng Xiao's awkwardness.

The salesgirl turned to Meng Xiao with an apologetic smile.

"Sorry miss, we haven't launched any new perfume recently. Are you sure you didn't mistake it with another?" She explained while finding the lipstick shades requested by Ye Siyu.

Ye Siyu frowned and said, "It's impossible, I've seen it, it comes in a black box with floral patterns on the logo."

The salesgirl's eyes widened in realization, "Ah, that perfume is a gift we give to members once they earn a million points. Moreover, this perfume was specially designed for domestic customers and isn't available overseas."

As she spoke, the salesgirl acted somewhat proudly.

"No wonder, check how many points I have now," Ye Siyu feigned having understood and asked the salesgirl to check her points.

Meng Xiao stood there, rigid.

She had a rival, and as a girl, her innate competitiveness led her here to compare this perfume. But in return, she was humiliated.

He had gone to France and returned on her birthday. To please the girl, he gave away this gift as a birthday present, lying that he'd brought it from France.

It seemed that while he was in France, it never crossed his mind to pick something up for her. To him, she was merely worth a gift that came free with purchase.

While the salesgirl was checking the points, Ye Siyu casually engaged in conversation with her. Gradually, they appeared as if they were long-lost friends.

"Ugh... I'm so far behind. My friend is going to tease me for so long, how humiliating." Ye Siyu found out she didn't have enough points to redeem the gift and was upset.

"Could you check how many points my friend with the surname Yang has? I must work harder, I need to overtake her." She referred to Yang carefully, wondering how lucky this poor girl would be today.

If her boyfriend used the girl's names for his transactions, Ye Siyu would not be able to find out. If he used his own details, one could only blame Meng Xiao for not knowing him better, as he might already have other plans.

"His name is Yang Yi." Ye Siyu stressed the specific way Yang Yi's name was written.

This kind of competition might seem ostentatious amongst kids from wealthy families, but the salesgirl was used to it. Seeing that points weren't confidential and in order to maintain Ye Siyu as a potential customer, she quietly told her about it.

"Mr. Yang Yi currently has one point one-four million in spending."

One point one-four million, a number Meng Xiao wouldn't dare to even think about. Back home, it could buy a pretty decent house.

It seemed laughable to Meng Xiao. A few years back, when Yang Yi got injured in a car accident, their financial situation was tight due to medical expenses and they were both working extra jobs to pay off the debt.

She was working more, feeding two people with one meal card. In their senior year, when they seemed more financially stable, he had been spending over a million on cosmetics for another girl behind her back.

His first expenditure was four years ago and it had been continuous ever since. While her meal card was feeding him, he was spending thousands on someone else.

She felt incredibly foolish. Only now did she understand why their living conditions hadn't improved since Yang Yi started his internship.

He was always tight on money and never took her out for meals or shopping. It seemed like all his money was being spent here.

They have known each other all the while, they were always in touch. She just didn't know if the other girl knew of her existence.

Ye Siyu paid, and left with her shopping bags, pretending not to know Meng Xiao the whole time.

But Meng Xiao did not seem to mind and she followed Ye Siyu to the rest area.

Not too far from there, Li Ran and Zhou Yao were in another place, completely oblivious that the two had just left.

The eager smiles on their faces gradually merged with the image of the other girl in Meng Xiao's mind. It was a smile of a girl who was oblivious to the hardships of life.

"Here." Ye Siyu tossed the shopping bag at Meng Xiao, giving her a stern look.

"…?"

"Don't get me wrong. They both gave you birthday gifts, and if I were to be isolated because of my financial status it would not be worth it. I can afford this petty cash."

Meng Xiao looked down. In the bag were several lipsticks, popular shades that would stand the test of time. As beauty novice, even Meng Xiao knew they were always in demand.

"Don't say that I look down upon you. Gift items from that brand have labels on the bottom of the box. There's a bit of glue on the bottom of your perfume box. Anyone who knows would suspect it's a gift. Only an unworldly girl like you, who worked diligently with no comprehension, spending your hard-earned money on others without a second thought, would fall for such lies," Ye Siyu said contemptuously.

Her words were harsh, but true.

Meng Xiao gave a bitter smile. So, Ye Siyu had known all along. That's why she asked about the perfume and Yang Yi's points and purchase histories for her.

"Thank you."

"Please don't. Just consider this as my poverty-alleviation effort."

Ye Siyu didn't think much of it. She got up swiftly, acting as if she feared Meng Xiao would cling to her to show her gratitude, and went to join Li Ran and the others.

Meng Xiao was unmoved by her attitude. She took out one of the lipsticks from the bag and put the rest back into Ye Siyu's bag.

Li Ran and the others were tired from shopping and were eating barbecue on the upper floor, while Meng Xiao, for some reason, was very cheerful and joined them.

After eating, Li Ran took them through the winding streets to their next stop, shopping for treasures in secret stores.

It was already dinner time when they returned to the campus. They were initially planning to have dinner and then leave the college, but as Meng Xiao had a night shift at work, they returned to the college early.

There were many small stalls around the entrance of the college. They all bought a lot of snacks for later.

Meng Xiao indulged a little too. She was heartbroken over Yang Yi's behavior, but the thought of not having to worry about this in the future ignited hope in her heart.

Now that she wouldn't have to support another person, she wouldn't need to worry about why Yang Yi never spent any money on her. And the money she earned could make her future life a bit easier.

Let Yang Yi and his princess go. Holding grudges didn't suit her character, she was content with a full meal.