The last time Shen Xiyan had gone to a physical store to buy clothes was probably back in elementary school.
On weekends, when school was out, his aunt—trying to preserve what she called their “still-fragile parent-child bond”—would take him and his sister out shopping.
They’d buy whatever caught their eyes, eat whatever looked good. Pure, unfiltered indulgence.
But once he entered middle school, the mountain of homework became unbearable. Online shopping quickly became the norm.
He’d skim a few product pictures, glance at the reviews, pick a size, hit pay, done.
Wenwen, on the other hand, always made things a bit more complicated…
“Let me just say this upfront—we’re in and out, quick and clean. Don’t give me any of your weird excuses to stall, got it?” Shen Xiyan warned, dead serious.
The walk here had been torturous. How could Qin Sheng possibly talk that much?
She’d laugh at her own stories, even if they weren’t remotely funny.
Sometimes Shen Xiyan honestly thought she looked like a total goofball when she laughed. And for what? What was she so happy about?
“How could I possibly stall?” she said innocently.
“Heh,” Shen Xiyan snorted coldly.
“Hmph!”
Under normal circumstances, Qin Sheng might have dragged her feet just to tease him.
But not tonight. Tonight was prime time. No way was she going to waste a single second.
Without hesitation, she marched him straight into a lingerie boutique.
The mall had no shortage of luxury international brands, and Qin Sheng wasn’t the kind to pick what suited her—she picked what was expensive.
She dragged Shen Xiyan into one of the priciest stores like it was routine.
A casual glance at the price tags was enough to give anyone heart palpitations—each piece cost about a month of their living expenses.
Some even ran into five figures. For two tiny scraps of fabric?
It was summer, so the store had plenty of browsers, but not many buyers. Most people looked like they were just killing time.
Sales assistants stood politely near each rack, ready to answer questions, but thankfully, none of them followed customers around like overly eager flies.
After all, who wanted to waste time on people who clearly weren’t going to buy anything?
At the back of the store, a couple were huddled together. The guy held up bras to his girlfriend’s chest, whispering something in her ear.
She giggled shyly. He grinned like a creep.
Soon, one of the salesgirls, spotting potential “prey,” came over with a practiced, cheerful smile.
“Looking for something specific today?”
Wow, what a pretty girl!
She’d worked here for years and rarely seen a bare-faced beauty this stunning.
“Where’s your lingerie section?” Qin Sheng asked coolly.
“Turn right at the front.”
“Thanks.”
With an expressionless face, Qin Sheng tugged Shen Xiyan by the sleeve and marched forward.
Along the way, she asked, “Xiyan, what style do you like? Should I pick out a few for you too?”
“Buy your own and let’s get out of here,” he snapped.
That was the moment Shen Xiyan realized: this world is fundamentally unfair.
Women had endless options—lace, thongs, styles with names he couldn’t even pronounce. Men?
A single sad pair of boxer briefs.
Lace?
A thong?
What kind of sick pervert—
Qin Sheng shook his arm vigorously, whining, “Come on, let’s buy some together~ Please~”
A nearby salesgirl listened in with quiet amusement, doing her job with keen observation. She noted that the guy looked like he was wearing bargain-bin clothes, but the girl?
Stunning face, expensive outfit—her whole look screamed high-end. The purse she carried could’ve easily paid for a mortgage down payment.
Now that’s a true rich beauty.
Every seasoned salesperson knew the truth: men were puppets. Women pulled the strings. She’d learned that lesson long ago, back when she’d had to shimmy her hips and beg her boyfriend to buy her a handbag.
If the guy was paying? He was just a walking wallet.
If the girl was paying?
Well, that said it all.
Like now.
The girl kept asking her “boyfriend” which one looked better—this one?
That one?
Trying on one after another like it was the highlight of her day.
Single people would never understand the strange joy found in such tedious rituals. But couples like them?
They thrived in it. They were disgustingly cute.
And the fact that they were here, buying lingerie at this hour?
Yeah. The salesgirl understood exactly what was going on.
Teenagers… already playing dirty?
If she knew them, she might’ve scolded them.
But since they were strangers… hey, business is business.
“Handsome, take a look—ours aren’t like the cheap ones online. The fabric’s amazing. You get what you pay for,” she said.
“Mhm!” Qin Sheng nodded.
In her past life, she’d been more introverted and rarely went shopping—no close friends, no outings.
But after meeting Shen Xiyan, everything changed.
He not only indulged her every whim, but when the two of them walked into a store, heads turned. Compliments flew. They were the perfect pair.
She could then pretend to act modest, saying “Oh, it’s nothing,” while basking in all the envy.
That feeling?
It wasn’t something a simple shopping spree could give her.
Later, when Shen Xiyan started working, she’d gone back to her solitary routine. Now, with their time together so rare, this moment brought it all back.
It felt… a little like happiness.
“By the way, I saw your underwear on the balcony—those elastics are done for.”
His weren’t full of holes or anything, but they were clearly worn out.
In her past life, Qin Sheng had always wanted to throw out his sad old boxers and buy him new ones.
But Shen Xiyan didn’t like that. And she never did what he didn’t like.
Well, not this time. She’d been given a second chance, and this time, she was going to fix his bad habits early.
Underwear isn’t even expensive—she could buy him a pair every day if she wanted!
“Men’s underwear is supposed to be loose, okay? That’s what makes it comfortable… Are you buying or not? If not, I’m leaving!” Shen Xiyan scowled, already turning to walk off.
“No no no—I’m buying!”
Qin Sheng grabbed his arm with both hands, bent her knees like an anchor, and let herself be dragged a few steps across the slick marble floor.
Finally, she surrendered.
“Fine, but you have to wait for me, okay? No sneaking off~”
“Miss, did you have a specific style or size in mind?” the salesgirl asked, stepping in at just the right moment.
Qin Sheng whispered the model name.
The salesgirl blinked—wow. She glanced at Shen Xiyan with admiration.
Then Qin Sheng loudly read out her full measurements.
Shen Xiyan remained stone-faced. The salesgirl, however, looked at her like she was a literal goddess. That figure—absolutely unfair.
In the end, Qin Sheng practically snuck off to pay like she was committing a crime. When she came back out, she was loaded with bags.
“That’s a lot.”
“Some are for Auntie and Wenwen…”
“…???”
Before he could explode, Qin Sheng quickly clarified, “I didn’t buy anything for you, okay?”
“Then why’d you buy stuff for them?”
“What’s wrong with that?” she fired back, annoyed.
“Auntie’s been frugal for years. A woman should own a few decent sets of lingerie. Otherwise how’s she supposed to wear semi-sheer blouses in summer without feeling embarrassed?”
“As for Wenwen? She’s still developing! Those cheap online bras might look fine, but the materials and designs are so wrong. They’re uncomfortable and can mess up her growth. Seriously.”
“If you feel guilty,” she added, pulling out the receipt, “here—consider it a loan. You can pay me back once you’re earning. They’re your only family. A few fancy bras? Totally worth it.”
Shen Xiyan’s blood pressure spiked. He let out a heavy sigh.
“And how the hell do you know their sizes?”
“Isn’t it obvious? You can tell just by looking. Don’t underestimate a girl’s eyes.”
Shen Xiyan: …
“Now be good! Don’t go upsetting your creditor~” Qin Sheng said, handing him the bags. Then she clasped her hands behind her back, skipped ahead a few steps.
The evening breeze lifted a strand of hair by her ear. She gathered her skirt in one hand, giggling, and tucked the loose strand back with the other.
Moonlight coated her dress in a soft silver sheen.
She raised her hands high into the air and, like making a grand proclamation, shouted with a laugh: “Shen Xiyan—turns out I still really, really like you! Hahahahaha!”
In the quiet night, Shen Xiyan heard his own heart betray him—thump, thump.