Chapter Eight: Mr. Lin?

Xia Tao and Zhao Huan did not leave; they stayed to watch from the side, especially Xia Tao, whose eyes were filled with resentment.

Lin Yi paid them no mind. He pointed at a pink dress not far away and said, “Could you please take down that dress for me?”

“Certainly, sir,” the saleswoman replied with a smile.

Lin Doudou tugged gently at Lin Yi’s sleeve and whispered, “Lin Yi, what are you doing? That dress costs over eight thousand; if we dirty it, we can’t afford to pay for it.”

“It’s fine. If it gets dirty, I’ll just buy it,” Lin Yi replied nonchalantly. He patted Doudou’s shoulder lightly and said, “Go ahead and try it on.”

Doudou hesitated, biting her lip, then carefully took the dress into the fitting room. The dress was indeed beautiful, and she liked it very much.

After Doudou went in to change, Lin Yi’s gaze suddenly turned cold.

He made a call to Wang Yang. “I need you to look into the background of two people.”

“Who are they, sir?” Wang Yang was shrewd enough not to ask further. He knew that whether the Wang family could rise among the top circles in the provincial capital depended on whether Lin Yi was willing to lend them a hand.

“Xia Tao and Zhao Huan from No. 3 High School,” Lin Yi said.

He wasn’t afraid of trouble, but Doudou was just an ordinary girl. He could handle open threats, but he worried about schemes in the shadows. To preempt any trouble, he decided to act first and issue a stern warning. If that didn’t work, he’d simply buy out and suppress their families.

“I understand,” Wang Yang replied.

Lin Yi hung up.

Soon, Doudou came out, looking bashful in the expensive dress. Every step she took was careful, afraid she might damage it.

“Lin Yi, does it look good?” she asked shyly.

“It looks great,” Lin Yi praised sincerely. She was beautiful to begin with; anything she wore would suit her.

The pink dress made her skin look even fairer and more delicate. Her refined features, coupled with her petite five-foot-three frame, made her look like she’d stepped out of a painting.

It was no longer the dress setting off the beauty, but the beauty elevating the dress.

Lin Yi couldn’t help but marvel at how the girl he’d once casually taken in had grown into such a lovely young woman.

“Really?” Doudou asked, a secret delight in her voice.

“Hmph, country bumpkin. What’s the use of being pretty if you can’t afford it?” Zhao Huan sneered, jealousy clear in her eyes.

Though she and Doudou were rivals, even Zhao Huan had to admit that Doudou was stunning at that moment.

Doudou’s expression dimmed. She knew she didn’t have enough money to buy even a corner of the dress.

Lin Yi glanced at Zhao Huan and said with a faint smile, “Whether I can afford it is my business, not yours. How much is this dress? I’ll take it.”

Zhao Huan’s face turned green with anger; she wished she could kick Lin Yi on the spot. But recalling her own family’s recent misfortunes, she had no choice but to swallow her resentment.

“It’s eight thousand six hundred, sir. We’ve rounded off the change for you,” the saleswoman said.

Doudou quickly tugged Lin Yi’s sleeve. “Don’t be impulsive.”

Lin Yi patted her hand, reassuring her. He took out his phone, scanned the code, and paid. Then he asked, “Is there anything else you like?”

Doudou was always thrifty. Just this one dress pained her enough.

She wanted to refuse, but seeing the look in Lin Yi’s eyes, she inexplicably nodded.

“All right then, but don’t blame me for not saving you any money,” Doudou joked.

Lin Yi smiled. Even if Doudou emptied the store, he wouldn’t mind in the least.

For him, money was nothing more than a string of numbers.

Doudou picked out a more affordable summer outfit, spending another six thousand eight hundred.

After paying, Lin Yi and Doudou left the Chanel store.

All the way, Doudou kept glancing at Lin Yi.

He chuckled. “What’s wrong? Is there something on my face?”

Doudou rolled her eyes at him. “How do you have so much money? These few items cost tens of thousands. Did you win the lottery?”

“I’ve always had money—you just never asked,” Lin Yi replied.

She found his answer hard to believe. She’d always thought their finances were running low, working hard to earn or save money every day.

Her thoughts were written all over her face. Lin Yi shrugged and said, “Fine, I did win the lottery—the jackpot.”

“Really?” Doudou’s eyes lit up, but then she frowned. “But Lin Yi, we’ve really offended Xia Tao and Zhao Huan this time.”

“Don’t worry. They’ll be begging for our forgiveness soon enough,” Lin Yi reassured her.

Just as he finished, Wang Yang called.

“Sir, I’ve finished looking into it. Xia Tao’s father is Xia Sheng. He runs a hotel with assets around twenty million. Zhao Huan’s father is Zhao Chenggong—a man with some background, but not much to worry about. He mainly deals in seafood wholesale, also with assets in the tens of millions.”

“Warn both Xia Sheng and Zhao Chenggong to keep their daughters in line,” Lin Yi said, his words revealing his underlying anger.

“Yes, sir,” Wang Yang replied respectfully.

Meanwhile, Zhao Huan and Xia Tao were both grim-faced. Xia Tao muttered, “I’ll remember this grudge.”

“Should we ask Boss Huang to step in and break one of their legs each?” Zhao Huan whispered, as if this sort of thing was nothing new to her.

“Breaking a leg isn’t enough. I want to scar that wretch’s face and see how she seduces anyone then,” Xia Tao spat venomously.

Zhao Huan agreed eagerly. “Let’s do it your way.”

Xia Tao took out her phone to call Boss Huang, but just as she found his number, her phone rang. The caller ID read: Dad.

She answered, and her father’s voice came through: “Where are you right now?”

“I’m out shopping with Zhao Huan,” she replied.

“Tell me, did you just provoke someone called Mr. Lin?” Xia Sheng’s voice was calm, which only made Xia Tao more nervous.

“Mr. Lin?” Xia Tao was puzzled, but then realized—it must be Lin Yi, given Doudou’s surname.

“That’s right. I really have to thank you for being such a troublemaker. With just a word, Mr. Lin could ruin our family. The Wang family, one of the ten great clans of Lancheng, called me personally to warn me. Do you think someone like that is a bumpkin?”

“That can’t be,” Xia Tao stammered, stunned. She knew full well what the ten great clans of Lancheng represented; they could crush her family as easily as swatting a fly.

But wasn’t Lin Doudou just a poor country girl? How could she possibly know someone so powerful?

“Go and apologize immediately, and do it sincerely. If Mr. Lin isn’t satisfied, don’t bother coming home,” Xia Sheng ordered sternly.

“Okay, Dad,” Xia Tao replied, though her heart was full of unwillingness.

But she understood that everything she had depended on her family. Without them, she was nothing.

Zhao Huan received a similar warning from her own father.

The two girls exchanged shocked glances, unable to calm their nerves.

Suddenly, the Doudou they had always mocked had become a phoenix from a sparrow.

“Lin Yi, do you really think Xia Tao and Zhao Huan will apologize to us?” Doudou asked skeptically.

It wasn’t that she didn’t believe Lin Yi, but she knew those two girls’ personalities better than anyone—both were proud as peacocks. For them to apologize was harder than climbing to the heavens.

Lin Yi nodded.

Just then, a breathless female voice called out from behind, “Mr. Lin! Mr. Lin!”

Doudou turned around to see Xia Tao and Zhao Huan, both panting, clearly having run all the way.

“What do you want?” Doudou asked warily.

Xia Tao forced a stiff smile. “We’re here to apologize. Mr. Lin, Doudou, everything that happened before was our fault. We hope you won’t hold it against us.”

Doudou could hardly believe her ears. What could have happened to make these two proud swans lower themselves so much?

Lin Yi looked at Xia Tao coldly. “I slapped you in public—do you resent me for it?”

Xia Tao shook her head quickly. “No, not at all. I’m honored that you would even bother with me.”

Lin Yi then looked at Zhao Huan. “Did you call us country bumpkins? Uncultured?”

Zhao Huan shook her head fervently. “Mr. Lin, you heard wrong. I’m the one who’s uncultured, who has no manners.”

Lin Yi gave a cold laugh, then turned to Doudou. “Doudou, I’ll let you deal with this as you see fit.”

“I…” Doudou was at a loss.

Zhao Huan, sensing the mood, quickly said, “Doudou, we’ll cover all your expenses today.”

“That’s not really necessary…” Doudou replied, glancing uncertainly at Lin Yi.

He had already given her so many surprises today that her heart was pounding.

“It’s no trouble. Doudou, I know there’s a Dior boutique up ahead with some gorgeous pieces,” Zhao Huan said enthusiastically.

Of course, she had her own motives—if she could latch onto Lin Yi, her future would be set.

Though Doudou was timid and gentle by nature, she had a mischievous streak hidden deep down. For the next few hours, her sole goal was to shop till she dropped.

Dior dress? Several thousand? Buy it!

Chanel bag? Eighteen thousand? Buy it!

After all, it wasn’t her own money. Doudou felt no guilt as she spent over a hundred thousand of Xia Tao and Zhao Huan’s money in just a few hours.

The two girls were heartbroken, repeatedly calling their fathers for more money.