Chapter 36.1

It wasn’t surprising that Qin Qingman made a sarcastic comment; after all, they had encountered Liu Hechang, a thoroughly detestable man, who shouted out to a woman named Lin Cuixiang, the woman he had just married. Lin Cuixiang, a widow, was no simple village woman either—she had even managed to send her daughter to school in town, a feat that took some skill and resourcefulness.

Lin Cuixiang understood Liu Hechang’s true nature; she knew he wasn’t exactly a good person. However, since she dared to marry him, she had her own reasons and confidence. She was also drawn to his power and wealth. Even before the wedding, Lin Cuixiang had visited the Supply and Marketing Cooperative multiple times, noting all the valuable items she wanted to buy once married. Among these was the watch Qin Qingman was currently holding, which Lin Cuixiang had already set her heart on.

The fact that this twice-widowed woman could convince Liu Hechang to willingly buy her a watch showed just how persuasive Lin Cuixiang could be.

But now, feeling she had finally found her support in Liu Hechang, Lin Cuixiang was momentarily struck speechless by Qin Qingman’s pointed question: “Have you paid for it yet?” Her face flushed with anger, but she was helpless to respond. After all, admiring an item and buying it were two different things.

Yet, she genuinely coveted the watch Qin Qingman held. She had admired it at least ten times by now, and today, she had finally persuaded Liu Hechang to buy it for her. There was no way she was going to give it up so easily.

She stole a glance at Qin Qingman, who wore clothes full of patches, and then looked surreptitiously at Wei Ling. She couldn’t quite make out their relationship. They seemed like husband and wife, yet, strangely, the man’s clothes bore no signs of wear, while the woman’s were clearly mended. But then again, the tenderness between them was unmistakable to anyone watching.

Lin Cuixiang, who had managed to maneuver herself into a marriage with Liu Hechang, was astute enough to recognize the situation. She had already noted that Wei Ling was an officer and dared not cross him, which meant she couldn’t easily provoke Qin Qingman either. Still, her longing for the watch was overpowering, so she set aside her pride, put on a smile, and said, “Comrade, here’s the thing: we just got married and have been waiting to buy this watch as our wedding gift. Would you consider stepping aside for us?”

Qin Qingman raised an eyebrow slightly at Lin Cuixiang’s words. She had expected the woman to throw a tantrum, but was somewhat surprised at her approach. She glanced down at the watch in her hand thoughtfully.

It was a Shanghai brand, with a round face and golden hands—a luxury item for the time. To someone who had lived her life in a rural area, it was hardly essential; rural life had its own ways of keeping track of time.

More importantly, this watch was the only one available at the Supply and Marketing Cooperative.

The fact that it was the only one meant that many people had admired and tried it on before. To be honest, Qin Qingman wasn’t too keen on having something that countless others had already handled.

Just as Qin Qingman was about to take a step back, Liu Hechang, recognizing her, felt a surge of resentment. He had been humiliated by Qin Qingman and Wei Ling more than once before, and although he didn’t dare openly confront them, the grudge had been festering in his heart.

Seeing Qin Qingman examining the watch in her hands so carefully, a surge of impulsive bravado took hold of Liu Hechang, and without thinking, he called out, “Comrade attendant, wrap up the watch for me, please. Here’s the cash and the ticket.”

Initially, Qin Qingman hadn’t planned to respond to Liu Hechang, but she hadn’t expected him to step forward with such arrogance. Her expression darkened, and her tone became steely. “Comrade, shouldn’t it be first come, first served?”

“We looked at this watch before. We just went back to get the money and came a bit late.” Liu Hechang replied defiantly, casting a mocking glance at Wei Ling, clearly betting that Wei Ling’s resources couldn’t compare to his own. Since he couldn’t have Qin Qingman, he was determined to undermine Wei Ling’s position in front of her.

Wei Ling’s gaze toward Liu Hechang grew sharp. The man was challenging him as a man—something he absolutely wouldn’t tolerate. In his previous life, Wei Ling had been a noble heir, commanding wealth and influence rivaling that of entire nations, and money meant little to him. He had never shied away from a show of wealth.

“Comrade.” Wei Ling said with more boldness than Liu Hechang, “please wrap up this watch, along with that radio, sewing machine, and bicycle.” At the same time, he glanced at Qin Qingman.

Every possession he had was in Qin Qingman’s hands. She might not care for a watch that had been handled by many others, but there was no way she’d let Wei Ling lose face in a moment like this.

The instant Wei Ling looked her way, Qin Qingman promptly reached into her bag, pulled out a thick wad of cash, and laid down the corresponding tickets. The sight of the substantial stack of money and tickets on the counter left not only the attendant breathless, but Lin Cuixiang as well, who swallowed nervously before gazing enviously at Qin Qingman, the woman who had access to such resources.

Lin Cuixiang’s envy was real. Qin Qingman could manage things on Wei Ling’s behalf, while she, on the other hand, had no control over Liu Hechang’s decisions. She had to please him and wait for his approval for any purchases. Thinking this, Lin Cuixiang turned her gaze toward Liu Hechang.

She hoped that Liu Hechang would continue the standoff with Wei Ling because she, as Liu Hechang’s spouse, would ultimately benefit.

But Liu Hechang hadn’t anticipated Wei Ling’s level of confidence, nor that he would actually back it up with the money and tickets necessary to buy all those high-priced items. Sweat began to trickle down his forehead.

Liu Hechang had the money and the tickets, but he had no intention of spending them—not for a second-marriage wife. Why should he lavish so much on a woman he deemed unworthy? But under Wei Ling and Qin Qingman’s faintly disdainful gazes, he couldn’t bring himself to admit he wasn’t going to buy anything.

“Uh… Comrade, are you certain you actually want to buy all this?” The attendant finally snapped out of her shock, her eager eyes fixed on Qin Qingman’s face. She knew whom to admire when it came to people willing to spend.

“Yes, we’re buying.” Qin Qingman replied with calm indifference, fully understanding Wei Ling’s intentions.

Wei Ling was pleased; he could never neglect his own wife. He wanted to give her only the best. If this era weren’t so lacking in luxuries, he wouldn’t even look twice at these items. In a different time, his bride price would’ve included pearls the size of a baby’s fist, top-grade jade from Xinjiang, fine silks from Suzhou and Hangzhou, countless treasures of gold and silver, entire estates, and land holdings…

Qin Qingman had no idea what was going through Wei Ling’s mind. She didn’t feel the least bit guilty about the purchase. She had seen everything in later years, and she knew how to make money herself. If the times were different, she would’ve matched Wei Ling’s grand gestures. Once the reforms took place, she was determined to make big money and buy Wei Ling the best the world had to offer.

Just as he was doing for her now.

“Old…Old Liu!” Lin Cuixiang’s voice broke in. She was getting anxious watching the sales clerk count through the stack of money and tickets Qin Qingman had laid out. That was the watch she had longed for, the one she had boasted about to the old ladies in the village. If she didn’t bring it home today, how would she show her face?

At her prompting, Liu Hechang’s restraint snapped.

“Hold on! I want all of those items he’s ordering as well. Wrap them up for me, too!” Liu Hechang shouted, refusing to let Wei Ling show him up in front of Qin Qingman. If he couldn’t win her over, he was certainly not going to let Wei Ling steal the spotlight either. He had to compete; there was no way around it.

“Comrade.” the sales clerk said, looking troubled, “we do have additional bicycles, sewing machines, and radios in stock, and we can package those up for you. But as for the watch—I’m sorry, there really is only this one. This brand took ages for our manager to procure for the Supply and Marketing Cooperative. It’s truly one of a kind.”

The clerk’s look conveyed genuine regret. It wasn’t that they didn’t want to sell the goods, but there was only this single watch—the only one.

“No, that watch has to be mine. I’m getting married today, and it’s supposed to be a wedding gift.” Liu Hechang said, unwilling to back down an inch.

He was determined to humiliate Wei Ling, determined to wipe the smile off his face.

The sales clerk could only cast a pleading look at Qin Qingman. They had noticed earlier that Qin Qingman had shown willingness to let the watch go. If Liu Hechang hadn’t started stirring up trouble, she might have already surrendered it.

Internally, the clerks rolled their eyes in silent frustration. They couldn’t stand Liu Hechang. Even if he bought every item in the store, they would still find him insufferable. Clerks in this era were different from those in later times; there was no commission or incentive to sell more. They earned a fixed salary, so they didn’t have the motivation to tolerate difficult customers. If they hadn’t known that only well-off families could afford these expensive items, they might have already given Liu Hechang the cold shoulder due to his antics.

When the clerks saw that Qin Qingman wasn’t going to intervene, she gave them a helpless look. She wasn’t about to undermine her husband, Wei Ling, just to appease someone as obnoxious as Liu Hechang. That would have been pure foolishness.

Finding no solution with Qin Qingman, the clerks reluctantly turned their attention to Wei Ling. Wei Ling glanced lazily at Liu Hechang and then remarked casually, “This watch is a wedding gift for my wife, and it’s not something I’d go without.”

“What? You’re married?” Wei Ling’s words shattered the last bit of Liu Hechang’s composure.

Qin Qingman, worried that Liu Hechang might say something inappropriate, swiftly interjected, “Whether we’re married or not is none of your business. Someone like you, who abandoned an engagement because his future mother-in-law was seriously injured, really pollutes my eyesight. Disgusting.”

All the clerks on the second floor turned their gossiping eyes toward Liu Hechang’s reddening face. *Oh, so that’s what he’s like!*

In their eyes, he now seemed even worse—a heartless man, like a scoundrel from an opera. Whoever had been engaged to him was truly unlucky to encounter such a piece of trash. But at least she had seen his true nature before marriage; otherwise, she would have suffered.

The sales clerks now felt a rush of sympathy for the woman Liu Hechang had betrayed—someone they had never even met, Qin Caiyun.

Qin Qingman’s words left Liu Hechang’s face alternating between red and white. He couldn’t say a word in response. Wei Ling had previously warned him. He and Qin Qingman hadn’t even had a formal meeting, so if he dared to ruin her reputation, Wei Ling would see him punished—perhaps even shot. And if Wei Ling and Qin Qingman were indeed married, it would be considered a military marriage, which was legally protected in the country.

Liu Hechang’s face shifted through a range of colors, but he couldn’t say a single word.

Lin Cuixiang, aware of Liu Hechang’s poor character, hadn’t expected such a public humiliation. Qin Qingman’s words had slapped Liu Hechang in the face, and since they were now married, Lin Cuixiang felt the sting too. Mortified, she didn’t want to stay in the Supply and Marketing Cooperative a moment longer.

But as she looked around at the gleaming large-ticket items nearby, she felt a deep, greedy desire. Leaving empty-handed wasn’t an option she could easily accept. If she could showcase these luxury goods in her home, it would be a huge boost to her social standing. People would think twice before saying she was cursed or couldn’t marry a good man.

Realizing what really mattered, Lin Cuixiang lowered her head. So what if she lost a little face? Practical benefits were far more important.

“Comrade, please wrap it up. It’s getting late, and we have other matters to attend to.” Qin Qingman said, noting that Liu Hechang had been silenced. She had no intention of lingering any longer and signaled the clerks to get to work.

“Comrade, please wait just a moment. I’ll get the form for the manager’s approval.” replied the clerk assisting Qin Qingman, immediately pulling out a ledger from behind the counter.

In the seventies, buying everyday items at the Supply and Marketing Cooperative was usually straightforward; as long as one had the money and tickets, purchases could be made. However, high-value items were different. Besides money and tickets, an approval form from the Cooperative’s manager was also necessary. Without it, even money and tickets weren’t enough to secure the goods.

It was only after arriving in this era that Qin Qingman learned about these additional procedures.

As the shop assistant was writing a note, Qin Qingman patiently waited.

At this moment, Liu Hechang had already quietly pulled Lin Cuixiang away.

After both Wei Ling and Qin Qingman had repeatedly trampled on his pride, if he stayed any longer, it would truly be shameless of him.

—o—o—o—