Chapter 820 — A Doomed Tragedy

Manager Wang nodded. If the client had insisted, then Chen Lili had done nothing wrong. "Give me the membership card," he said. "Let me have a look first."

A man who had risen to marketing manager was no fool. Wang understood perfectly well that any client who could put things that way was likely someone of standing. If her status truly was distinguished — if she was one of the Gu Group's strategic partners — then he could ill afford to offend her. In that case he would have no choice but to phone Qing Bo, Gu Pengzhan's assistant, and ask for instructions.

Chen Lili handed Gu Mengyao's membership card to Manager Wang. There was a card reader in his office, and he swiped it directly at his computer; the information stored on the card appeared on the screen.

"Hiss—" The moment Manager Wang saw the name on the card, he drew a sharp breath. Gu Mengyao. He knew precisely what those three characters meant. Was this not the Group's young heiress? The heiress had come shopping in person?

Manager Wang found it a little hard to believe. Whatever the young lady took a fancy to, she need only mention it to Qing Bo and it would be taken care of, surely. There was no need for the heiress to come in person.

Then again, Wang suddenly recalled, this young lady had always kept a low profile. It seemed she really had never sent Qing Bo to buy anything from the mall; she always came to choose for herself, only without any fanfare. Wang had learned of the heiress's visits from the membership card usage records afterward.

At that thought, Wang understood. The young lady was likely simply a discreet person who disliked drawing attention. This time she had truly been left with no alternative — the style she wanted was gone — and only then had she reluctantly had the sales assistant produce her membership card and bring the matter to him.

"Come, I'll go over myself!" Manager Wang picked up Gu Mengyao's membership card and said to Chen Lili.

Chen Lili was taken aback. She could not fathom why the card should have provoked such a reaction from Manager Wang. Was there some secret hidden in that membership card?

Naturally, Wang had no intention of explaining anything to Chen Lili. Since the young lady was a discreet person, she surely did not want others to know her identity — otherwise she could simply have phoned Qing Bo and everything would have been settled. Or she could have had the sales assistant relay who she was outright, rather than use such a roundabout means of telling him.

On his way out of the office, Wang instructed an employee of the marketing and sales department to go and fetch the dress from the display window. Chen Lili was dumbstruck. Was Manager Wang really agreeing to sell the display piece? Had that ever happened before?

But Wang offered no explanation, and she did not feel it proper to press him. She accompanied him to the luxury counter of the clothing sales department. Wang strode over, produced Gu Mengyao's membership card, and said, "This membership card belongs to which—"

"It's mine." Gu Mengyao no longer concealed her identity, and gave Manager Wang a friendly nod.

"Hello, Miss Gu. This is your membership card!" Manager Wang hastily returned the card to her with the utmost deference, then said, "I've already sent someone to fetch the display piece from the window. It will be brought up shortly. Would you mind waiting a moment?"

"Certainly. Thank you." Gu Mengyao knew, of course, that Manager Wang now realized who she was. "Sorry for the trouble. I'll wait here myself — please go about your business."

"It's no trouble at all..." Manager Wang shook his head vigorously.

"Oh, oh — hey, old lady, when are you going to perform that head-twisting trick of yours? We've bought you an identical dress!" Seeing that the matter of the dress was settled, Shen Yushu could not wait to call out to Gou Huli.

Old lady? Who was an old lady? I'm only in my thirties, aren't I? In the prime of youth and beauty! Shen Yushu's words nearly made Gou Huli explode with rage. How had she suddenly become an old lady? Gou Huli had already been somewhat angry that Manager Wang had come out of nowhere to sell the dress in the window to Wei Zhao and the others; that Shen Yushu should now address her as an old lady sent her fury soaring.

"Who are you calling an old lady?" Gou Huli glared at Shen Yushu and demanded shrilly.

"Oh, I don't know either. Among the lot of us, whoever is oldest is naturally the old lady!" Shen Yushu blinked and said with an air of innocence.

"Hmph!" Gou Huli gave a disgruntled snort. But she had no mind now to squabble with Shen Yushu and the others; what concerned her was why the mall would sell the dress in the display window to Wei Zhao and his party.

She had made a point of asking about it beforehand: the goods in the window were not for sale. And this sales assistant, Chen Lili, had said as much herself — the display items were not for sale. Yet the moment Manager Wang arrived, he had agreed to sell it!

But if it was sold, did that not mean she had lost the bet? How could Gou Huli stand by and watch that happen? She had been so full of confidence, looking forward to seeing Wei Zhao and the others utterly humiliated, then taking them home to shame them further and make them labor on her behalf!

Now, however, the situation had turned sharply against her — she had lost. Did that not mean she would have to twist off her own head for them to see? How could Gou Huli possibly twist off her own head? Her expression darkened at once, and she glared menacingly at Manager Wang. "What's the meaning of this? Aren't the things in the window not for sale? Why are you taking it out to sell?"

Manager Wang was briefly taken aback. He had no idea who this Gou Huli was, but since she had asked, he explained, "Our mall naturally has its own rules. Whether something is put up for sale is the mall's decision!"

What Manager Wang meant between the lines was this: esteemed guest of our mall though you may be, surely you cannot interfere with the mall's normal operations? Aren't you overstepping your bounds just a little?

"You people go back on your word! I'll lodge a complaint against you! A complaint to the upper management of your group! Do you know who I am? And you dare ignore my wishes? Let me tell you something — even the chairman of the chamber of commerce in this backwater of yours has to watch my husband's face before he acts, let alone a piddling little shopping center like yours!" Gou Huli flew into a rage, jabbing a finger at Manager Wang as she shouted.

A complaint? Manager Wang was not the least bit concerned. He was selling goods to the eldest daughter of the Gu family; even if the complaint reached Gu Pengzhan himself, it would do no good — so why fear a complaint from anyone else? As for this woman's claim that even the chamber of commerce chairman had to look at her husband's face, Manager Wang took it with a grain of salt. Even a chamber of commerce chairman could not dictate whether he sold the clothes in that display window.