The saleswoman retreated behind the counter, arms crossed, face sour. But underneath the sourness was something else, a flicker of unease she couldn't quite hide.
In all her years working at the counter, no customer had ever called a manager down over her before.
Usually one look from her, one sharp word, was enough to make people back down without another word. This was one of the biggest department stores in the city. Who would dare make trouble here?
And yet this woman had argued back without blinking, and then had the nerve to demand the manager himself. Why wasn't she afraid?
Qin Lian paid her no more attention. She turned to Xu Yinchen instead. "Did you step out just now?"
"Xu Hao needed to use the washroom," Xu Yinchen said, his voice low. "I didn't think something like this would happen while I was gone."
His eyes darkened as he glanced at the saleswoman. "I shouldn't have left you alone. It was my fault."
A young woman, mocked in public over an old husband and three children, how would she not feel wronged by it? He was afraid she'd start regretting the whole marriage before it had even properly begun.
But Qin Lian only laughed under her breath. "It's nothing. That woman has a foul mouth. She needed to be taught a lesson." She looked back at him, calm as ever. "I can handle this much."
Xu Yinchen said nothing, but something shifted in the way he looked at her. From what he had heard about her, she was known for her princess-like, unruly personality, and she'd even cracked her head open just to not marry him.
Watching her now, steady as still water while a stranger tried to provoke her, he wasn't sure if he should believe those rumors or the version of Qin Lian in front of him.
Footsteps approached.
A man in a neat grey suit walked in, another saleswoman trailing behind him.
Xin Li rushed forward the moment she saw him, eyes already red-rimmed. "Manager Xiao, you have to stand up for me! I was only doing my job, and this woman started humiliating me."
"She even used her husband to threaten me!" Her voice cracked. "I was so scared, I didn't even dare speak back."
Her shoulders trembled. Not a single tear actually fell.
Qin Lian almost wanted to applaud. "If you're going to act," she said flatly, "at least learn to squeeze out a real tear. This is pathetic."
A ripple of low laughter passed through the small crowd that had gathered.
"She wasn't scared a minute ago," someone muttered. "She was the one shouting the loudest."
"That's right, it wasn't her first time. She was known for causing trouble like this in this store. She has the rudest personality of all."
Xin Li's face went pale. "You're all talking nonsense—"
"Enough."
The manager's voice cut through, calm and practiced. He stepped forward, already composing his expression into something professional, and then his eyes landed on Qin Lian and froze there.
"...Qin Lian?"
Xu Yinchen, who was standing there holding Xu Hao, frowned. He noticed the familiar, strange way the man looked at Qin Lian and tightened his grip on the boy, wondering who he was.
He looked at Qin Lian, but she looked just as confused as he felt.
Qin Lian's brow creased slightly. She searched his face, tried to remember him. Nothing. Not even a hint of memory. Though she had the original owner's memories, they were still hazy, and she didn't remember everything completely.
But she couldn't let that show. After all, this man knew her name. Seeing her confused expression, the man cleared his throat and straightened, his tone turning formal, as though he too had decided not to bother pressing further.
"My name is Xiao Dong. I'm the manager of this store." He glanced between her and Xin Li. "What exactly happened here?"
Qin Lian didn't hesitate. "Your saleswoman sat behind that counter the entire time, ignoring customers, gossiping with her friend over there, looking at customers like we'd crawled in from the gutter."
"Earlier, when my son tried to touch a cloth, she slapped his hand away and rudely pushed him aside. Her tone was very rude. When I stepped in, she raised her voice at me in front of everyone and questioned my character, making filthy remarks."
Her tone stayed even, but every word landed. "I'd like to know, is this the kind of service your store is known for? Or is it only for customers who look like they can't afford anything?"
The crowd murmured its agreement, louder now.
"That's exactly what happened."
"She's always like that with anyone who doesn't look rich enough."
"Ask anyone here, we've all seen it."
Xin Li's face drained of color entirely. She frowned and argued back, "What... what are you talking about? When did I slap his hand away?"
"I was simply following the rules. If he touches the clothes and they get ruined, who will be responsible for it?"
Xiao Dong's jaw tightened, not at Qin Lian, but at the girl who'd clearly landed him in a mess he now had to clean up in front of everyone watching.
If she hadn't been related to the previous manager, who'd given her this job and still looked after her even after he'd gone to the head office, he wouldn't have bothered with her at all.
But knowing about her relationship with old Manager Zhen, he sighed. Still, he forced a smile, glancing between the two women.
"There's no need to make this bigger than it is," he said smoothly. "A young girl made a mistake. It happens in every store." He gave Qin Lian a look that was meant to be persuasive, patient, almost pleading. "Comrade, why not be generous about it? We can settle this quietly, and I promise she'll be spoken to."
"Also, she was indeed doing her job. She needs to keep the clothes clean and undamaged. What if your child had damaged it?"
Qin Lian raised her brows. "Manager Xiao, is it? You're saying my son could have damaged it, but not the other customers here? How come she only stopped my son from touching the clothes?"
"The problem isn't that she stopped him from touching it. The problem is her behavior, how she only stopped him, and did it so rudely."
"And speaking of treating the clothes nicely, she was the first one to make a mess of it. Have you seen the state of your store? It's supposed to be one of the biggest stores, but right now it looks no better than a roadside stall. It's messy, untidy, and your salespeople are always gossiping instead of working."
"Is this really how one of the biggest stores in the department store operates? I'm starting to doubt your work ethics entirely."
Xiao Dong's face darkened. He clenched his fists. "Miss Qin Lian, this isn't the first time you've come into this shop. You know exactly how this store operates. Why are you making such a fuss out of nothing?" he said, gritting his teeth.
His eyes lingered on her a beat too long, as if waiting for her to take the hint and let it go.
Qin Lian's brow lifted. Why did this man keep looking at her like she owed him something? And had she really come here before? She wondered why she couldn't remember it.
Xu Yinchen frowned, feeling uncomfortable for some reason. He looked at the man coldly, then at Qin Lian, questions in his eyes.
"Manager Xiao, is that what you call it, letting your staff neglect their duty, insult a child, and humiliate a customer, a small matter? You want me to be generous after your staff hit my child?"
His smile stiffened at the edges. "I only mean there's no reason to escalate—"
"No reason?" Qin Lian's voice sharpened, though she still didn't raise it. "I don't care about anything else. But she insulted my son, slapped his hand away, and pushed him. Then she lied about it to your face the moment you walked in. And your answer is to ask me to be the bigger person?"
"I'm sorry. You can be a bigger person when someone humiliates your family, but I can't."
Somewhere in the crowd, someone snorted. "Even that manager is good for nothing."
Xiao Dong's expression darkened, the practiced calm cracking slightly. "Qin Lian, watch how you speak. I'm trying to resolve this properly, for everyone's sake—"
"For whose sake, exactly?" Qin Lian asked, tilting her head. The question landed soft, but it cut clean.
Then, slowly, something clicked into place in her mind: the way he'd said her name like an old acquaintance, the way he kept glancing at her as though she were meant to defer to him.
A name surfaced from the original Qin Lian's memory. Xiao Dong. Lin Chengyan's closest friend since childhood.
He was also the second lead in the novel, who was in love with Mu Ruoyu, but she married Lin Chengyan, while this man was only used like a tissue in the whole story.
No wonder. To this man, she was still the shameless woman who had stolen Mu Ruoyu's childhood, who used to trail after Lin Chengyan.
She even tried to gain favor from a fool like him because he was his friend, hoping he'd put in a good word for her with Lin Chengyan. No wonder he thought a few soft words would be enough to make her back down.
She almost laughed at the absurdity of it. That woman is gone. This isn't her anymore.
Before she could open her mouth to say as much, Xiao Dong's tone hardened. "This is a department store, Comrade, not a place to make a scene. It's better if you could step aside to discuss this matter and not make a fuss over a small mistake."
Xu Yinchen moved before she had to answer.
He stepped up beside her, not hurried, but deliberate, his broad shoulder angling slightly in front of hers. His gaze settled on Xiao Dong, flat and cold in a way that made the manager's next words die in his throat.
"A small mistake," Xu Yinchen repeated quietly. "Is that what you call it? Or are you just trying to cover for her because it's easier than admitting your staff did wrong?"
The air around the counter went tight.