Chapter 29: Hmph, Scummy Man
Liu Qianqian’s seemingly casual greeting was actually a subtle way of implying she had a close relationship with Lu Qinglin, deliberately trying to mislead people.

Su Tangxue, who had helped her best friend in the present world see through countless “green tea” types, immediately saw through Liu Qianqian’s petty tricks.

She curled her lips and said flippantly,
“Liu Qianqian, Sixth Brother is my fiancé now. Why should he greet you just because he brought me here? Are you two that close?”

Liu Qianqian’s expression stiffened for a moment—truthfully, no, they weren’t close at all. The last time Lu Qinglin came to the supply store, he didn’t even recognize her. She had to greet him first.

Just as she was trying to say something to save face, Su Tangxue pulled Lu Qinglin toward another sales clerk.

She didn’t want Liu Qianqian to serve her. Just the sight of her made her lose all desire to shop—she needed someone else to help her.

Ma Yuanyuan, seeing them approach, straightened her hair and immediately put on a standard smile.
“How can I help you, comrade?”

She and Liu Qianqian were both temporary workers at this county supply and marketing co-op. Since the place was small, only one of them would eventually get a permanent position. During this probation period, their supervisor would make the final decision based on their performance.

Before Su Tangxue walked in, Liu Qianqian had already snatched several customers. So when she saw Su Tangxue heading toward Ma Yuanyuan, she was secretly thrilled.

Su Tangxue took out the shopping list she wrote the night before—afraid she’d forget.
“Do you have egg sponge cakes today?”

Ma Yuanyuan remembered a new batch just arrived at the warehouse.
“Yes, comrade. How much would you like?”

“I’ll take five pounds (about 2.5 kg) of egg sponge cake!”

Egg sponge cakes were loved by both the old and young—buying in bulk wouldn’t be a problem.

“And give me five pounds of milk candy, a can of malted milk, three pounds of flour, five pounds of rice, three pounds of white sugar…”

Su Tangxue listed all the snacks she wanted first, then moved on to grains and oils.

She sneaked a glance at the person next to her and suddenly remembered—she was buying so much, how would they carry it all home?

But Lu Qinglin didn’t seem worried in the slightest.

Whatever. If he wasn’t stopping her, he must have a plan. Worst case, they could each carry some and walk back!

It was rare for her to come out, and her shopping instincts had fully kicked in—she wanted to buy everything.

In the end, she even added a kettle and a washbasin.

While Ma Yuanyuan packed the items, she couldn’t stop smiling. Just this one purchase from Su Tangxue was already equivalent to Liu Qianqian’s sales over the last two days. How could she not be happy?

“Comrade, some items are running low. Please wait here a moment while I go to the warehouse.”

“Sure, go ahead!”

Su Tangxue was just about to pull Lu Qinglin over to sit on a nearby bench when Liu Qianqian came over.

She glanced at the pile of goods on the counter and nearly cracked a molar. She thought Su Tangxue wouldn’t buy much—who would’ve guessed she’d immediately order five pounds of egg sponge cake?

Usually, people coming to the co-op for egg sponge cake would pinch every penny—at most buying one pounds, sometimes just a few pieces to snack on.

She glanced at the counter—everything was packed except the sponge cake.

Looking at the ones that hadn’t sold over the past couple of days, Liu Qianqian smiled coldly and took some coarse paper to wrap them up.

Su Tangxue silently watched her. The thought that her favorite snack had been handled by the detestable Liu Qianqian killed her appetite.

“Here, Xiaoxue, this is two pounds of egg sponge cake. You can take this first—once Yuanyuan comes back, I’ll pack the rest.”

Liu Qianqian offered the sponge cake, but Su Tangxue didn’t take it. Liu Qianqian awkwardly had to set it aside.

Still, she thought smugly: I cleared out the old stock and that dumb Su Tangxue paid for it—perfect.

So what if she came back from the city?

She’s still as dumb as she was when she was little.

“Xiaoxue, next time you plan to buy so much, come straight to me. I’ll set aside whatever you want as soon as it arrives.”

Su Tangxue glanced sideways at the bag of sponge cake and replied,
“No thanks. I think that salesgirl just now was pretty nice. I’ll find her next time.”

In other words: I’d rather go to anyone else than you.

Liu Qianqian’s smile finally crumbled. Su Tangxue had already hit her with two burns in one day—how could she not be furious?

She turned her eyes toward Lu Qinglin.
“Brother Qinglin, that’s a lot of stuff you’re buying. How are you two going to carry it home? Want me to help bring some after I get off work?”

Su Tangxue raised an eyebrow. Liu Qianqian didn’t directly criticize her for spending too much, but she still tried to hint at it while showing off her “kindness” to Lu Qinglin.

Typical manipulative supporting female character.

“No need to trouble yourself. We’ve got our own way.”

Suddenly, Lu Qinglin spoke.

Su Tangxue looked at him twice—so this man actually had a tongue and knew how to bite back?

Then again, in the book, he had always stood up for Ning Honglian too.

Hmph. Scummy man.

Liu Qianqian’s face froze. Her hand beneath the counter clenched tightly into a fist.

Ma Yuanyuan returned from the warehouse carrying a fresh batch of egg sponge cake. From a distance, she saw Liu Qianqian standing between Su Tangxue and Lu Qinglin, and her heart sank. Was Liu Qianqian trying to steal her customer again?

Panicking, she quickly jogged back inside.

“Sorry, comrade—I’m back a bit late.”

Seeing it was the same salesgirl as before, Su Tangxue smiled,
“No worries.”

Ma Yuanyuan opened the new batch of sponge cakes and started weighing them. Liu Qianqian, noticing the weight wasn’t right, quickly interrupted,
“Ma Yuanyuan, did you mess up? The customer asked for five pounds.”

Ma Yuanyuan looked at the scale and frowned,
“Nope, this is five pounds.”

“I already weighed two pounds earlier. You only need to weigh three more.”

Only then did Ma Yuanyuan realize there was already a packed bag of sponge cakes on the table, and the shelf was now empty.

Her frown deepened. Since Su Tangxue had bought so much, she probably wouldn’t eat it all right away. The sponge cakes on the shelf were leftovers from a previous batch and wouldn’t last long—so she thought it was best to get fresh ones from the warehouse.

After all, it wasn’t every day she got such a big customer.

“No, Liu Qianqian. Those on the shelf are from the previous batch—they won’t keep for more than a few days. What if she gives them to a child and it causes a stomachache?”

Liu Qianqian curled her lips. That’s exactly what she wanted—Su Tangxue to get sick. If she did, it’d be her own fault for buying so much.

Though their argument was quiet, Su Tangxue still overheard it.

So that’s what Liu Qianqian was trying to do.

She suddenly lost all interest in the sponge cake Liu Qianqian had wrapped.

“If it’s too much trouble, then I don’t want the sponge cake anymore.”

Su Tangxue’s voice was calm.

She bought that much to stock up and eat slowly—yet now they pulled this stunt on her. How could she not be mad?