The Substitute Bride and the Cripple

Tang Qiu went to school in her new clothes the next day. Xie Qingqing’s eyes widened when she caught sight of her. “Did you get rich overnight? What’s your secret?”

“Don’t be an idiot,” Tang Qiu snorted.

“Look at your earrings! Your watch… your coat. What other explanation can there be? There’s no way they were cheap.” Xie Qingqing was almost salivating.

“Don’t be dramatic,” Tang Qiu replied, amused. “They were bought on discount. My husband helped pick them out. Aren’t they nice? And comfortable, too!” Even crippled and ill, her husband took truly excellent care of her.

“I must say, his taste isn’t bad.” Xie Qingqing eyed the accessories skeptically. Were they just a high-quality faux of the original? They looked just like the real thing.

As they were talking, they bumped into a woman. It was Feng Yao–dressed in an outfit identical to Tang Qiu’s!

Tang Qiu didn’t mind; it wasn’t out of the ordinary that they should have picked out the same clothes in the mall.

Unfortunately, Feng Yao wasn’t of the same mind. “How much did you spend on this high-quality ripoff?” she asked Tang Qiu.

“Not much. And they’re not a ripoff; I got them on sale at the mall.” Tang Qiu’s expression was calm, but she silently searched for a way to escape the conversation.

Feng Yao looked her up and down. Did this mean her outfit consisted of authentic goods? Her coat was from a new high-end brand: the QZL family. Every piece of QZL’s clothing was unique; only one of its kind existed, which made every item incredibly exclusive, not to mention expensive. Feng Yao had to practically bleed her wallet dry to obtain the clothes she was wearing. Tang Qiu’s outfit had to be a fake. Feng Yao had heard that Jiang Shaocheng had lost his income; he couldn’t possibly have the means to spoil her so extravagantly.

“There’s no need to feel ashamed, Tang Qiu. You’re already wearing these clothes in broad daylight.”

“You’re right,” Xie Qingqing taunted. “There’s nothing to be ashamed of–which is more than be said for others who dare to show their ugly faces in public.”

The silver tones of Tang Qiu’s coat accentuated her porcelain skin, and it hugged her shapely figure, emphasizing her daintiness. Feng Yao, on the other hand, had no curves to boast of, and the yellowish tan of her skin clashed awfully with her coat.

......

“I didn’t say Tang Qiu was ugly,” Feng Yao gritted out, obviously sensing Xie Qingqing’s sarcasm but missing its meaning. “I was just giving her a friendly reminder that if she doesn’t have the money to buy branded goods, she shouldn’t buy fake ones with questionable quality. It’ll just make it even more embarrassing to run into someone wearing the real thing.”

Tang Qiu shook her head calmly. “I’m not embarrassed. They’re only clothes.”

Feng Yao couldn’t be bothered to play along with her. “That’s true,” she sneered. “You’ve always been vain, but that’s not my problem, is it?”

At her words, the students in the vicinity eyed Tang Qiu and began to whisper amongst themselves.

“She didn’t have the money to buy branded clothes, so she wore a high-quality imitation. She doesn’t even feel embarrassed after bumping into the real thing. How can someone be so thick-skinned?”

“Ah, she can’t help it. We can’t undo our upbringing. Look at how she went to seduce her senior…”

“Well, she got what she wanted. She’s Ning Mufan’s girlfriend, don’t you know? But Ning Mufan slept with Niu Caijie, so their relationship doesn’t really count for much. She was probably just something for him to toy with.” 𝙛r𝚎𝐞𝑤𝚎𝗯𝗻𝗼𝐯e𝚕.𝒄𝐨𝓂

Xie Qingqing’s temper mounted when she heard them gossiping, but Tang Qiu stopped her before she could intervene.

“It’s true that I don’t have the money to buy branded goods, but I’m not wearing fake goods, either. Let them say what they want. It’s not worth getting worked up over.”

But Xie Qingqing was too furious to listen. “Take off your coat and show them what ‘the real thing’ is!”

“Huh?” What was there to show? She wasn’t even wearing the authentic branded goods.

Her friend glared at her, and Tang Qiu acquiesced.

Xie Qingqing pointed at Feng Yao and demanded, “You said that Tang Qiu’s clothes were fake. Take off your coat, then, if you think yours is the real deal.”

Feng Yao laughed, shrugging off her coat. “If you insist. I just hope Tang Qiu won’t feel too embarrassed.”

Xie Qingqing whipped out her phone and video-called the customer service staff of QZL, claiming they had been sold faux goods and threatening to sue them. When they requested to see the item, Xie Qingqing showed them Feng Yao’s coat.

After examining the coat, the QZL staff responded, “Apologies, ma’am. This item wasn’t sold by us. It’s a fake.”

Feng Yao’s face turned red with anger. “That’s impossible! My friend bought this coat overseas. How can it be fake?”