"A friend of yours?"
Coming out of the fitting room, Qi Sheng saw Tan Hua deep in conversation with a sales associate and asked with a smile.
"This is Xu Ying. She's a good friend I made at the store."
Tan Hua introduced them openly, not at all worried that Qi Sheng would be interested in Xu Ying.
"Hello there, handsome. Your Huahua is very popular, you know. She has more than a few admirers."
Xu Ying shook Qi Sheng's hand and teased with a smile.
"Of course. My girlfriend's charm is second to none."
Qi Sheng was unconcerned.
He was well aware of the allure of an exceptionally beautiful woman.
However, he was confident in his own abilities.
'Those richer than him weren't as talented.'
'Those more talented than him weren't as rich.'
'Once I conquer Tan Hua, my looks and physique will improve even further.'
'By then, Tan Hua will find it even harder to leave me.'
"A confident man is the most handsome. I'll let you two get back to it. We should grab a meal sometime."
Xu Ying was taken aback for a moment. 'No wonder he's a rich kid,' she thought.
'That kind of confidence isn't something an ordinary man possesses.'
'Compared to the self-assured Qi Sheng, her own boyfriend was just so lacking.'
'He was paranoid all day, terrified she'd be whisked away by some male customer.'
"Let's go with these four outfits. Could you also help me pick out a handbag to match? I quite like the style with the LV monogram print."
After all, they were all new arrivals, so the employee discount wasn't that big—only ten percent off.
Qi Sheng mentally calculated the price.
The four outfits, a versatile necklace and bracelet set, plus a handbag.
The total would come to exactly 200,000, which was within his budget.
"Then let's go with this POCHETTE VOYAGE SOUPLE handbag. It's 8,350 yuan."
Tan Hua picked one out for Qi Sheng, then led him to the checkout counter.
As the POS machine printed out the receipt, Tan Hua completed a sale in the 200,000-yuan range, earning her a special round of praise from the store manager.
It was rare for a new employee to land such a major client right after starting.
Even though the client was Tan Hua's boyfriend, it didn't stop the manager from praising her at all.
As for the other sales associates' jealousy, if they were so capable, they could find their own rich-kid boyfriends willing to spend that kind of money on them.
Getting off work early, Tan Hua changed out of her LV uniform.
She wrapped her arm around her boyfriend's, chattering away happily about the trivial matters with her colleagues.
Qi Sheng listened patiently, offering advice from time to time.
"By the way, where are you staying now?"
It occurred to Tan Hua that Qi Sheng had rushed over and probably hadn't found a place to stay yet, and she felt a little conflicted.
If she let Qi Sheng stay at her place, she was afraid he would eat her all up, leaving no crumbs behind.
They had been together for less than half a month.
She wasn't ready to give herself to him so hastily.
"I've rented an apartment at National Gold Mansion and had the concierge arrange for someone to clean it, but I'll just stay in a hotel tonight."
Qi Sheng deliberately played pitiful, his intentions transparent.
"What do you mean, a hotel? That's a waste of money. Just stay at my place for now. But let me be clear, I'm not ready yet. I hope you can understand."
Tan Hua rolled her eyes at Qi Sheng, refusing to let him stay in a hotel.
Since they had decided to be in a relationship, she naturally didn't want Qi Sheng to spend money unnecessarily.
"Don't worry. Until I have your consent, I'll be a perfect gentleman."
No matter how impatient Qi Sheng was, a few more days wouldn't kill him.
'As long as we're living together, is there any fear of not getting a taste of the meat?'
"Okay, then let's go get hot pot first. We'll go back to my place later tonight. Once your apartment is cleaned, I'll go with you to buy some daily necessities, and then you can move in."
Tan Hua linked her arm through Qi Sheng's, methodically laying out their plans.
"Okay, whatever you say."
Qi Sheng was naturally happy to relax. Having a girlfriend was really different.
He didn't have to worry about these trivial things anymore.
The two went down to the underground parking garage, where Qi Sheng placed all the shopping bags in the trunk.
Following the navigation, Qi Sheng drove for half an hour before arriving at the Global Center.
Tan Hua said there was a hot pot restaurant here that was the absolute best, and she insisted on bringing Qi Sheng to try it.
They went up to the fourth floor and found the hot pot restaurant, named Moonlit River. It wasn't too crowded.
After all, it was almost nine o'clock.
The restaurant would be closing at ten.
"Hi there, how many in your party tonight?"
The waitress greeted them enthusiastically.
"Just the two of us. Could we get a table, please?"
Tan Hua, holding onto Qi Sheng's arm, drew some envious glances from the other diners in the restaurant.
A woman of her level of beauty wasn't a common sight.
She would turn heads wherever she went.
"Of course, right this way. Our specialty is the layered tripe. As for the broth, what spice level would you like?"
The waitress handed them a menu and waited for their answer.
"What spice level can you handle?"
Tan Hua looked at Qi Sheng with a bright smile. "I can eat any spice level. How about we get medium spicy? Mild is no fun."
"Sounds good. Since we're in Chengdu, I have to experience that insanely spicy feeling at least once."
Qi Sheng also nodded with a smile and asked curiously, "What's your most famous signature dish?"
"Their signature dish is the slurping noodle with layered tripe. Let's get one of those. For the meat dishes, let's get shrimp paste, spicy beef, fresh duck intestines, rattan pepper snakehead fish slices, and a side of luncheon meat. That should be enough for us."
Tan Hua had clearly been here often, as she immediately ordered a slew of their signature dishes.
"Let's start with that. It would be a waste if we can't finish it."
It was true that Qi Sheng had money, but he wouldn't deliberately be extravagant or wasteful.
"Okay, that's it then. For drinks, we'll just have a pitcher of plum juice."
Tan Hua didn't add anything else. She was definitely treating him to this meal.
Qi Sheng had come all this way to see her; the least she could do was buy him a meal.
Soon, the kitchen brought out a block of solidified spicy broth that would make a Northerner's scalp tingle just looking at it. The sight alone suggested an astonishing level of heat.
Qi Sheng had been to Sichuan and Chongqing a few times, but that was all in his past life.
To be honest, he never dreamed he would end up with a woman from Sichuan or Chongqing.
He hoped Tan Hua wouldn't turn into one of those fiery, domineering women in the future.
"Did you have any plans for what you want to do while you're here?" Tan Hua asked curiously.
"My main reason is to be with you. I'll also check out some projects and see if there are any suitable investment opportunities."
Qi Sheng didn't reveal the truth. After his shopping spree at LV, he only had 600,000 yuan left in his pocket, which really wasn't enough.
'Conquering Tan Hua is my top priority right now.'
'Otherwise, I'll have to wait until next July for my income to refresh.'
"That's nice. But I just started my job, so I'll be pretty busy and won't have as much time to spend with you."
As she said this, Tan Hua lowered her head, looking a little embarrassed.
Qi Sheng had come all this way to be with her.
But she barely had any free time, which made her feel a little guilty.
"It's fine, work is important. It's a good thing for a girl to have her own career."
Qi Sheng, however, didn't mind at all.
'With money, why would I ever worry about being bored alone?'
'Besides, a little distance between a man and a woman is a good thing.'
'Otherwise, things would definitely get stale after a while.'
'And considering how my system modifies its permissions after an upgrade, I'm afraid I'll end up attracting a lot of 'high-score' girls in the future.'
'If Tan Hua is a bit busier, it'll give me opportunities to manage my time.'
'Otherwise, if they were stuck together every day, how the hell would he complete his missions?'
"I'm glad you understand. Once I get the hang of things at work, I'll definitely make more time to be with you."
Tan Hua hadn't expected Qi Sheng to be so understanding. The way she looked at him grew even more affectionate.
'Rich, a great personality, and he understands me—he's literally my ideal boyfriend!'