Chapter 21: Why Do I Have To Pamper Her?
Su Xing looked at Zhou Tingting and her group. She mustered up her courage and said, “I don’t understand why you have to keep haggling over something like this. Fu Zhi is the daughter of the Lu Family. Of course she can wear designer brands!”
Tian Nuo sneered, “These shoes are limited edition. One has to preorder them, and it takes at least three months for the shoe to be back in stock. She was adopted three days ago, so how is there any chance that she could get her hands on an authentic version so soon?”
She was standing right in front of Fu Zhi’s desk. With her arm stretched, she pointed at her and barked, “She put on counterfeits because she thought she could become one of us. If she’s not a hypocrite, then who is?”
Fu Zhi raised her head silently. She shot a glance at Tian Nuo and said, “Put your finger down.”
Her clear almond eyes held no emotion, and her tone was calm, but... was that an illusion? Tian Nuo had no idea why but she felt that Fu Zhi would break her finger if she refused to put it down.
As the two of them stared at each other and refused to back down, a girl sitting next to the window shouted, “Lu Yumo is here!”
Some of the girls in the class craned their necks and looked outside.
Lu Yumo had been born with a flawless appearance. His eyes were slanted and deeply set, he had finely-chiseled features, and a faint smile was tugging at the corners of his lips. At school, his popularity amongst the other students was second only to Lu Yubai and Songfang.
When Zhou Tingting went out of the classroom, he naturally grabbed her wrist and pulled her over to the back of the door. He ran his fingers over the girl’s hair and asked affectionately, “Did you get the bracelet that I bought you?”
“Yeap. I received it yesterday.”
“Then why didn’t you wear it? Don’t you like it?”
The two of them were standing outside the classroom, and everyone inside could hear them perfectly well.
“It’s not that I don’t like it...” Zhou Tingting frowned and said, “You should just stop giving me expensive gifts. I don’t want others to think that I’m a materialistic girl.”
Zhou Tingting came from a poor family, and her father was a gambler. Had it not been for the Lu Family’s support, she would have needed to return to the countryside and work as a farmer after graduating from primary school. However, all the curveballs that life had thrown at her had not transformed her into a greedy girl who coveted small advantages.
Lu Yumo chuckled as he pinched her cheek. “I like you, so I naturally want to give you only nice things. However, I’ll be more mindful of this in the future if you don’t like it.”
Zhou Tingting was not satisfied with Lu Yumo’s answer.
‘If he likes me, why doesn’t he persuade Mrs. Lu to adopt me? Why didn’t he do anything before Fu Zhi came to school and humiliated me with a pair of counterfeit shoes?’
The more she thought about it, the more uncomfortable she felt. Pouting her lips, she pointed to the classroom and said, “Your sister is in there. Don’t you want to go over and say hi?”
Lu Yumo jerked his head up when he heard what Zhou Tingting had said and gazed in the direction she was pointing at. When his eyes met Fu Zhi’s, the smile on his face froze and a surge of mixed feelings welled in his heart.
He soon averted his eyes and said apathetically, “I don’t know her well, so maybe next time.”
Even though Lu Yumo was talking under his breath, it was still loud enough to hear. All the people in the classroom turned their heads in unison and zeroed in on Fu Zhi.
They were brother and sister, yet they were not close to each other. This could only mean one thing—Fu Zhi had not been welcomed into the Lu Family.
Tian Nuo smacked her lips and sneered, “Someone thought she would turn into a phoenix after becoming a member of the Lu Family. Who knew that, in reality, she’d still be a peasant.”
Zhou Tingting looked at Fu Zhi with a half-smile playing at her lips. The gloom in her heart dissipated as she said softly, “Even if you’re not close to her, she’s now my classmate. Shouldn’t you do something, such as give her a pair of designer shoes?”
Her voice became lower as she spoke, so Lu Yumo could only hear part of it. Frowning in confusion, he asked, “Why should I buy her shoes?”
Zhou Tingting wanted to say something, but she stopped on second thought. She shook her head and said, “Forget about it. It’s nothing.”
After a slight pause, she added, “Actually, do you know that your sister is wearing fake shoes?
“Well, it’s not that big of a deal, but her shoes happen to be similar to mine. There is only a slight difference, but we all knew at first glance that the pair on her feet is fake. After all, even you have to preorder to get the authentic version, let alone someone like her.
“Therefore, I figured that since she has become your sister, why shouldn’t you pamper her a little and buy her a pair of authentic shoes?”
Zhou Tingting did not say anything outright, but the disdain in her voice was apparent.
‘She could not afford a pair of authentic shoes even though she’s the foster daughter of the Lu Family.’
The contempt in the eyes of Zhou Tingting’s group grew more intense when they looked at Fu Zhi.
‘She couldn’t even afford better clothing, so she had to buy counterfeits to keep up appearances. Even Zhou Tingting, who comes from a poor family and is supported financially by the Lu Family, has better clothing than her.’
Lu Yumo’s face was clouded with confusion after he listened to what Zhou Tingting had said.
“Who told you that her shoes are counterfeit?”
“There’s a golden lining around the logo on her shoes, but I don’t have it on my shoes,” Zhou Tingting explained. After all, Lu Yumo had bought plenty of Kimorty garments for her, so she was very familiar with the brand’s logo.
“Her shoes are a one-of-a-kind design that my mother purposely asked the designer of Kimorty to rush and make overnight, while yours are a pair I preordered from them after saving up money. The price was different, so the logo is naturally different too!”
Zhou Tingting’s smile froze on her face.
“My mom is a premium member of Kimorty. She has special privileges, so she doesn’t need to wait if she orders a whole cart of clothes for Fu Zhi.”
Lu Yumo sounded a little sad and dazed. “Fu Zhi has all kinds of limited-edition clothes. She may even have more than me, so who am I to pamper her?”
Zhou Tingting’s group was stunned. They had been making fun of Fu Zhi, but they had not expected that not only would Fu Zhi’s shoes be authentic, but they would be even more high-class than Zhou Tingting’s.