The Substitute Bride and the Cripple

The customer service officer explained, “Our company clothes are easy to recognize because of their unique markings. Our label is never on the back of the collar, but on the inside of the pockets, so as to not chafe against the nape of the wearer’s neck. Ma’am, this coat of yours is a poor-quality defective good, not even a high-quality imitation.”

“But…” Feng Yao sputtered, face contorted.

“Hear that? Now move aside. How about this coat? Is it real?” Xie Qingqing lifted Tang Qiu’s coat to the camera.

“It is, ma’am. It’s currently our top-trending item, but there’s only one of it in the world. It’s worth 1111000 yuan. You’re lucky to have it.”

“Thank you for your help. I take back what I said about suing you!” Xie Qingqing hung up the video call and raised a brow at Feng Yao. “What are you still hanging around here for? You mocked Tang Qiu for wearing authentic goods, dressed in those inferior goods of yours? Qiu might not want to argue with you, but I won’t let you off so easily.”

The truth of Feng Yao’s malice and vanity began to settle over the crowd.

“Is the Feng family’s business going bankrupt? Why else would Feng Yao be wearing inferior goods?”

“Maybe she’s trying to make up for not being pretty enough. Still, she didn’t have to kick up a fuss and compare her fake clothes with the original. She must be crazy.”

Understanding dawned on Feng Yao: she had been cheated. When she saw everyone staring and pointing at her, she hurled her faux coat on the ground in a rage. That bitch Tang Qiu had humiliated her–and she wouldn’t forget it.

Tang Qiu slipped her coat back on. Meanwhile, Feng Yao scooped her faux coat up and fled–if only so she could toss it into a trash can on her way out. What a waste. Fake or not, that coat was a perfectly functional piece of clothing, and that spoilt girl threw it away just like that.

Xie Qingqing must have picked up on what she was thinking, because she pulled Tang Qiu away before she could retrieve the faux coat. “Aren’t you curious how your husband could afford this coat?” she asked.

“Not really,” Tang Qiu said dismissively. “Who would buy such an expensive coat? The store must have held a promotion to sell it off. My husband’s aide has many connections. He bought this from a friend in the fashion industry.” She was such a prudent spender that it didn’t occur to her that some people would indeed be more than willing to splurge on a designer coat.

Xie Qingqing wasn’t half as thrifty as Tang Qiu. Although her family wasn’t as rich as the Fengs, they were still amongst the upper-middle-class. “QZL is a luxury brand. Have you ever seen their goods mass-produced? I assure you, many people would be willing to buy their clothes, expensive or not–and you’d be insane to think otherwise. If your husband can afford that coat, he isn’t just rich, he has connections. I doubt he had to drain his bank account just to get his hands on it; he’s the young master of the Jiang family, after all.” 𝒇r𝙚𝙚𝓌𝙚𝑏𝗻𝑜𝘷𝗲𝘭.c૦𝑚

Hearing her talk about money had Tang Qiu itching in discomfort. Despite herself, her heart melted slightly. When she got back, she had to express her gratitude with a few more kisses than usual. “I told you, my husband treats me very well,” she said.

Xie Qingqing was speechless. Her friend truly operated on a different wavelength from her.

Most of the onlookers had dispersed, but some curious spectators lingered. “So it’s true,” one of them said to Tang Qiu. “You married a rich man’s son.”

“Weren’t there rumors about you and Ning Mufan? Why did you suddenly marry someone else?”

“They say your husband is an elderly man who needs a wheelchair. Are they telling the truth?”

Their disdain for her husband made Tang Qiu’s brows furrow in displeasure. “Ning Mufan and I were never a couple, and my husband isn’t an old man. And, for your information, he’s very kind to me. Now, if you’ll excuse me, I have to go to class.”

The crowd watched her retreat with contempt and resumed their discussion.

“She didn’t dare to answer us directly, so it must be true: her husband is an old cripple. He couldn’t find a proper wife, so he had to settle for her. She thinks she’s so high-and-mighty, strutting around to show off that branded coat of hers.”

“Exactly. That slut got jilted because Ning Mufan lost interest in her, so she ran off to an old man.”

***

When Tang Qiu sat down in class, she texted her husband, saying that the clothes he bought were very comfortable.

His reply was prompt:?I’ll buy more for you next time!

There’s no need, she responded. I have enough. Stay strong for your rehab training today, okay, dear?

Unknown to her, her husband was seated in his study, his handsome features uncovered by his usual false-skin mask. His dark eyes turned gentle as he stared down at his phone. Her kisses and hugs were what gave him strength every day.