Chapter 35: Binding the 1st Partner
Chapter 35: Chapter 35: Binding the 1st Partner
Regarding the "test" Zhang Yan had set yesterday, the junior schoolmate had chosen all the right answers. If he had wanted to, Zhang Yan could have completely devoured her last night. If he were a bit more of a scumbag, he could have just played with her for a few days before swapping her out. However, Zhang Yan had already upgraded the junior schoolmate from "a girl of interest" to "a beloved partner."
He originally planned to buy her something today to commemorate their relationship leveling up, but Brother Tongzi provided an assist at the perfect time.
That morning, while scrolling through his phone, Zhang Yan heard a sharp DING.
[Partner System Activated.]
[A successful middle-aged man will never mistreat his woman.]
[Detected that a high-quality female (Chi Xinyue) is secretly in love with you. Do you accept her feelings?]
Zhang Yan hadn’t thought much of it at the time and simply tapped [Yes].
[Chi Xinyue has been bound as the host’s partner. Awarded 1,000,000 yuan in exclusive consumption funds.]
Zhang Yan had been quite excited. He figured that with his handsome looks, even if he didn’t work hard to complete missions, he could get rich just by living off women! But then he noticed the three restrictions: "high-quality," "secretly in love," and "exclusive."
Although he didn’t know the passing mark for "high-quality," he guessed it had to be at least at the level of Chi Xinyue, who was beautiful enough to compete for the title of campus belle. "Secretly in love" seemed simple, but despite their rapid development, it wasn’t until this morning—triggered by some unknown catalyst—that the requirement had finally been met.
The "exclusive" part went without saying. The money hadn’t been transferred to his account at all. He deduced that he had to actually spend money on her first and be reimbursed afterward.
He thought to himself, "I pour my heart out to Brother Tongzi, yet he spends every day guarding against me!"
Originally, Zhang Yan planned to buy a necklace he had previously eyed for the junior schoolmate as a "token of appreciation," gradually upping the stakes as their relationship progressed. After all, his current pocket money was a "mere" sum of less than four million yuan. But now that Brother Tongzi was footing the bill, he could afford to be a lot more extravagant.
When the two walked into the Louis Vuitton store, their sales associate was coincidentally the same young woman from last time. She was incredibly enthusiastic, not just out of professional courtesy, but because Zhang Yan and the junior schoolmate had decisively spent around 50,000 yuan in the store a few days prior, proving both their purchasing power and willingness to buy. Of course, another reason was Zhang Yan’s handsome appearance. Men naturally favored beautiful women, and women naturally favored handsome men; it was an innate bias.
"You’re back! What are you planning to buy today?" the saleswoman asked warmly.
"I’m buying some clothes for my baby today," Zhang Yan replied.
"Then I must recommend our new summer arrivals. You two are in luck. We just got a few new pieces in today, and they are very hard to find."
Seeing that Zhang Yan was actually going to buy her clothes, the junior schoolmate nervously grabbed the hem of his shirt. She was afraid he felt obligated to buy her clothes as an "apology" for a joke she had made that morning. More importantly, she feared that if she casually exhausted his goodwill now, he wouldn’t respond when she finally brought up her pressing matter.
"Senior, I still have a lot of new clothes. You really don’t need to buy me any," she whispered.
"Are any of those clothes bought by me?"
"Well... definitely not."
"Exactly. How can my baby’s wardrobe not have anything bought by me? Wouldn’t that mean I’m failing my duties?"
The junior schoolmate’s heart began to pound wildly again. She wondered, "Failing his duties? He’s been calling me ’baby’ all day. Could he mean..."
The two followed the sales associate to the new summer arrivals section. Zhang Yan casually scanned the racks. Looking back at the junior schoolmate, he noticed she didn’t seem inclined to pick anything out herself, so he selected a few pieces based on his own taste.
"This pair of white denim shorts, this little white vest, and this white off-the-shoulder crop top. Please find them in her size. Go try them on, baby."
Since Zhang Yan had already picked out the clothes, the junior schoolmate couldn’t bring herself to refuse. She took the garments and headed into the fitting room.
"Sir, take a look at this Capucines series bag that we just restocked. It has stellar reviews online, and girls absolutely love it!" the saleswoman pitched.
Zhang Yan truly had no eye for women’s handbags. "Bring it over here. We’ll see if she likes it in a bit."
Shortly after, the junior schoolmate emerged in her new outfit. She had first put on the white vest and denim shorts. The set matched quite well, though to Zhang Yan, it looked just alright. If it were purely based on aesthetics, Zhang Yan felt that unbranded everyday clothes often looked better. These luxury items might add a touch of elegance, but they were hardly breathtaking.
However, watching the junior schoolmate twirl left and right in front of the full-length mirror, striking poses with a smile she couldn’t suppress, Zhang Yan already knew what to do.
"Try on that off-the-shoulder top too," he suggested.
The junior schoolmate changed as told, her footsteps seemingly much lighter. This top was also just decent. Zhang Yan still couldn’t give it a stellar review; if not for the off-the-shoulder and crop-top design, he probably wouldn’t have given it a second glance.
He carefully observed the corners of her mouth again. He thought, "Alright, I’ll take this one too."
"Look at this bag. Do you like it?" he asked.
Reluctantly tearing her gaze away from the full-length mirror, the junior schoolmate looked at the white mini handbag in Zhang Yan’s hand.
"Wow! I’ve seen this one before, I absolutely love it! I can’t believe it’s the rare limited-edition snakeskin and lychee leather style!"
Seeing the stars practically popping out of her eyes, Zhang Yan smiled faintly and turned to the sales associate. "We’ll take all of these."
The saleswoman grew even more radiant. "Wonderful, sir! Please come this way to pay."
The white vest was 12,700 yuan, the off-the-shoulder top 19,000 yuan, the white denim shorts 16,882 yuan, and the mini handbag 52,000 yuan, bringing the total to 100,582 yuan.
Watching Zhang Yan pay, the junior schoolmate appeared somewhat fidgety. Half of her heart was filled with the joy of finally obtaining so many things she had dreamed of, while the other half was torn by the contradiction: "If only these things could be converted into cash."
"Senior... Should I stop calling you ’Senior’ now?"
Faced with her hesitant question, Zhang Yan chuckled. "Then what do you want to call me?"
"I... I don’t know. What do you want me to call you?"
From her demeanor, it seemed she wanted Zhang Yan to define their relationship, and she was willing to accept whatever that might be.
"There are many unique terms of endearment in this world. Brother, darling, hubby, dadd—ahem. ’Senior’ is quite a unique title itself. You can keep calling me that; it won’t hinder our relationship."
The junior schoolmate seemed quite satisfied with this answer. Regaining some of her vitality, her eyes curved into crescents as she smiled and asked, "Senior, where are we going next? Should we visit that designer toy store we missed last time?"
"No rush. We aren’t finished shopping here yet."
"Huh?" Looking at the receipt for over a hundred thousand yuan, her mind momentarily went blank.
She thought, "There’s more?"