Reborn in the 70s: Pampered by Regiment Commander
Chapter 397 - 270: Face Off

Chapter 397: Chapter 270: Face Off

"Three pounds of white sugar, three pounds of peach crisp, three scented pork kidney pills, and three cans of orange slices..." Xiao Hua listed the items she wanted to buy, then turned and smiled at Zhao Yulan, "Little sister, what do you want to buy? Tell this comrade quickly because otherwise, they’ll have to run back and forth." She then looked at Chuxia, "Chuxia, the comrade who brought us here asked you to help with shopping, look at what you need, and let’s buy everything together."

If this were Chuxia who had just arrived in this era, she genuinely wouldn’t have been able to grasp the underlying meaning of those words, but now, well... it was clearly a setup to fleece a fool! The problem was, did she look like a fool?

"Comrade, please pack the items she wants and settle the bill first. We, on our other hand, will buy separately." Chuxia didn’t bother with Xiao Hua and directly spoke to the donkey-faced salesperson behind the counter.

Xiao Hua’s face fell, but Zhao Qiyan quickly pulled her back and she squeezed out a forced smile, "Comrade, then... let’s calculate how much it costs."

The salesperson looked at Chuxia and rolled their eyes, "Are you going to buy or not?"

The attitude of salespeople in this era was generally poor, and Chuxia had gotten used to it, but this one had been frowning since they entered, speaking with rolling eyes, and spitting while talking. Although she knew it was best not to stoop to their level, her emotions were getting the better of her. She simply turned her head away, pretending she hadn’t heard.

As for Lin Baohe and Zhao Yulan, their motto was always siding with their daughter, right or wrong; anyone who dares to upset her was not a good person, hence they completely ignored the salesperson.

"If you can’t afford it, don’t come in and browse!" the donkey-faced salesperson snapped as he turned to weigh the white sugar and peach crisp. After gathering the items, he dumped them on the counter, "Twenty-one food coupons, one Yuan and fifty cents."

Xiao Hua, wincing at the expense, counted out a stack of food coupons and handed them to the salesperson, then sheepishly pushed the soap back, "Comrade, I... I’d better not take this one."

The salesperson glared at her displeasedly, "Look here, comrade, if you can’t afford it, why waste our time? Wasting other people’s time is shameful, do you understand?"

Xiao Hua apologized repeatedly, "I understand, I understand, I’m sorry, I’m running low on money, comrade, I’ve troubled you, really sorry!"

The donkey-faced salesperson snorted through his nose, put the soap back on the counter, and when he looked at Chuxia’s family again, his disdain was clear, practically written on his forehead.

"Chuxia, let’s go buy somewhere else." Zhao Yulan whispered to Chuxia.

"Yeah." Chuxia nodded and started walking out. In this era, resources were scarce, and many items were limited; thus, working in a supply co-op was a regarded position.

She disliked the salesperson’s attitude, but if she really had to pick a fight, it would only cause Brother Jing to have to find a backup for her, which would simply be making trouble out of nothing.

So, the best thing she could do was not to buy at all.

Of course, whether or not she purchased anything didn’t affect the salesperson at all. They weren’t paid on commission; whether you bought something or not, they earned the same amount, a peculiar phenomenon of those times. Let her be arrogant for now; eventually, she would pay the price for her arrogance.

It has to be said, someone had quite an Ah Q spirit...

"If you can’t afford it, just say so, you’re obviously from the countryside, so stop acting all high and mighty..." the donkey-faced salesperson mocked, as Chuxia turned back and saw an older salesperson across the counter desperately signaling her to leave quickly.

Forget it, to argue with such a person was indeed beneath her; probably, this woman’s attitude was due to deep-seated insecurity, yes, she must feel very insecure about her looks...

"Brother, I didn’t get anything for you." Once in the car, Chuxia said to Jing Zhe, spreading her hands, "I couldn’t help it, I’m too good-looking, the salesperson inside was jealous of me, didn’t give me any respect, and I didn’t want her to profit off me, oh no, off your money."

Jing Zhe shook his head with a smile, started the car, and slowly drove away.

Zhao Qiyan hurriedly said, "Big Brother Jing, please don’t be mad at Chuxia; that salesperson was so rude, probably because they saw us as country folks and decided to bully us.

My aunt and uncle treasure Chuxia more than their own eyes. How could she tolerate such insult? That she didn’t rush up and beat that person is already commendable."

"Am I that fierce?" Chuxia looked at Zhao Qiyan with a deep meaning, "Are you talking about me?"

Zhao Qiyan anxiously grabbed Chuxia’s wrist, "Chuxia, I’m just trying to protect you, I’m not speaking ill of you. Did you misunderstand what I meant?"

"No misunderstanding, you’re just trying to show you’re sweet and compliant, but..." Chuxia poked Jing Zhe playfully, "Bro, my cousin here fancies you, give it to her straight, do you like her or not? Otherwise, she’s just going to keep undermining me in such a roundabout way, and I’m getting unfairly blamed."

"No, no..." Zhao Qiyan waved her hands, "Chuxia, I really have your best interests at heart, I want to speak well for you, you misunderstood me, really..." she said, all the while gazing hopefully at Jing Zhe.

"Chuxia, are you teasing me?" Jing Zhe shook his head, then added solemnly, "By the way, I’ve got some official news for you, I’ve made things official with Zeng Meili, it won’t be long before you’ll have to call her sister-in-law."

"Really?" Chuxia sat up straight, surprised, "When did this happen?"

"Just these past few days." Jing Zhe raised his eyebrows proudly, "Let me tell you, it was your sister-in-law who chased after me, pretty awesome, right?"

"Awesome!" Chuxia gave a thumbs up, somewhat conflicted, "The problem is, she’s Zhou Mikang’s close cousin; going forward, should I be calling her sister-in-law, or should she be calling me sister-in-law?"

"Of course, you should call her sister-in-law..." Jing Zhe replied matter-of-factly, "I was the first to fall for you, but that bastard Zhou Mikang was unreasonable, never giving me a chance. So, I could only helplessly watch you marry him.

This time, if I don’t take some advantage of him, I won’t feel right. Later, when he sees me, he must greet me properly as his elder brother—he better not dare not to call me that, or you can divorce him!"

"Deal! That’s settled then." Chuxia smiled, her eyes crescent with delight, suddenly looking forward to seeing Zhou Mikang, begrudgingly wrinkle his brows and reluctantly call Jing Zhe ’brother’.

Zhao Yulan and Lin Baohe exchanged glances, both showing an expression of helplessness.

Oh, their own daughter, they’ll need to talk to her later—such things, how could they just let slide?

What would the Zhou family think if they heard this, how uncomfortable would they be?

Zhao Qiyan had been keeping her head down ever since Jing Zhe declared his intentions, but her hands were unconsciously clenched into fists.

Just as the car reached a supply cooperative near the train station, Zhao Qiyan suddenly exclaimed, "I forgot to buy the knee braces I promised Grandpa—Big Brother Jing, could you stop the car?"

Jing Zhe, expressionless, pulled the car over.

"Chuxia, come with me, will you? Help me choose, okay?"

Seeing Chuxia nod her head, Zhao Qiyan turned to Lin Xiaohua, "Mom, you chat with Aunt and Uncle for a bit. Chuxia and I will be back soon; otherwise, you all could go buy the tickets and then come here to pick us up, Big Brother Jing, is that okay?"

Jing Zhe then asked Lin Baohe and Zhao Yulan, "Uncle Lin, Auntie Zhao, what do you think?"

Lin Baohe nodded, "Sure, let’s do as Qiyan says, but don’t miss buying the tickets."

Zhao Qiyan then pulled Chuxia out of the car. As they passed Lin Xiaohua, the mother and daughter exchanged a glance and quickly averted their eyes. Upon closer examination, both of their legs were slightly trembling.

The cooperative named Guangrong was larger than the previous one and had a lot more goods inside. Three sales clerks, who had been chatting, returned to their posts when they saw someone enter.

Zhao Qiyan then said, "Xia, this place has good service, why don’t you also help buy Big Brother Jing’s things? Since we are here a bit longer."

"Sure." Chuxia responded, walking towards the fabric and clothing section, "Could you please show me the knee braces?"

"There are two kinds, military and regular. The military ones are more expensive but warmer," said the sales clerk, a pretty girl in her early twenties with a pleasant voice and attitude, giving off a refreshing vibe.

"The military ones." Chuxia replied without hesitation.

Zhao Qiyan looked troubled, "Chuxia, I... I didn’t bring any cloth coupons or money, maybe... maybe you could cover for me first, I’ll pay you back later, is that okay?"

"Buying something for Grandpa and you didn’t bring money?" Chuxia glared at her coldly, "Are you being serious? If I was going to buy it, would I even need you to play nice? I can just send it to Grandpa myself."

"I’ll pay." Following the voice, Xiao Yuwen approached from behind.

Chuxia glanced out of the corner of her eye. The moment Xiao Yuwen appeared, two men positioned themselves on either side of the cooperative’s doorway, a sneer spreading across their faces, "Letting Brother-in-law pay, how embarrassing."

"It’s only right." Xiao Yuwen glanced at the sales clerks and disappeared behind the curtain in a blink, "Heh, there’s something I want to make clear—I’m no longer your brother-in-law. I’ve divorced Zhou Aiping, you might as well just call me Yuwen."

Suppressing her urge to vomit, Chuxia looked at Zhao Qiyan calmly, "Why do I feel like you deliberately brought me here to run into Brother-in-law Xiao? You know the Zhou and Xiao families don’t get along. Are you trying to harm me?"

"Yes, I intentionally brought you here." Zhao Qiyan quickly moved towards the door, "Why should you have everything you want and I have nothing? Do you know how much I’ve suffered these days? If it weren’t for you, would I have to endure all this? Since you don’t treat me as a sister, I have no reason to treat you as one."

"You should know what he plans to do to me, right?" Chuxia still maintained an indifferent demeanor. (To be continued. If you like this work, please visit qidian.com to cast your recommendation and monthly votes. Your support is my greatest motivation. Mobile users please visit m.qidian.com to read.)