At this moment, outside was bathed in brilliant sunshine, and checking the time, it was already ten o'clock. Lin Chuan hurriedly got up. Nuo Xiaoxi quickly went to the kitchen, took out the breakfast from the thermos, and served it to Lin Chuan.

After washing up, Lin Chuan hastily had his breakfast, and amidst the rush, it was already half-past ten. He originally planned to go to work at the City Committee but then thought differently. What was the use of going? Tang Yumeng had already abandoned him; she just wanted him to leave of his own accord. After getting drunk yesterday and waking up today, it all felt like a dream, helping Lin Chuan to see many things clearly. Instead of shamelessly clinging on, it was better to take the initiative to resign and leave.

"Brother Lin, are you still going to work?" Nuo Xiaoxi propped her chin with both hands, curiously sizing up Lin Chuan.

"I... won't go." Lin Chuan glanced at Nuo Xiaoxi. This girl's clothes were very old; who knows where she had scrounged them from. The Nuo family was poor, so many people would offer a helping hand, with some giving away old clothes they didn't need. Nuo Xiaoxi wasn't picky; as long as they kept her warm, that was fine.

"Really?!" Nuo Xiaoxi said excitedly: "How about... we make lunch together today?"

"No, thanks." Lin Chuan shook his head.

Nuo Xiaoxi looked at Lin Chuan with a face full of disappointment. Lin Chuan smiled and said, "Today I'll take you to go shopping."

"Ah?" Nuo Xiaoxi was stunned. Shopping was a very distant concept for her since shopping meant spending money, which is why Nuo Xiaoxi rarely did it. Even if her female classmates occasionally invited her, she would always refuse. Over time, they stopped inviting her. Nuo Xiaoxi's face blushed as she said, "Shopping costs money."

"Brother Lin will pay." Lin Chuan smiled and said, "Isn't it just a month until the New Year? I'll buy you a few new outfits, okay?"

"Really?" Nuo Xiaoxi was immediately overjoyed. She excitedly hugged Lin Chuan, kissed him on the cheek, and then, with a flushed face, rushed into her room.

"This girl." Lin Chuan chuckled bitterly.

After a brief preparation, Lin Chuan drove the jeep, taking Nuo Xiaoxi with him to go shopping. All along the way, Nuo Xiaoxi was very excited. This girl, wrapped in her old padded jacket, appeared somewhat rustic, but her porcelain doll-like features were very exquisite and beautiful. With a little dressing up, she would surely be an exceptional beauty.

"Brother Lin, your car is really bumpy," Nuo Xiaoxi laughed, without any hint of disdain.

"An old antique," Lin Chuan said with a smile, cigarette in mouth: "A product from the eighties and nineties, how good do you expect its suspension system to be?"

"Oh." Nuo Xiaoxi didn't know much about cars, so she had nothing to add.

Fortunately, they arrived quickly at the bustling streets of Jiangbei City. Lin Chuan found a spot to park, which cost five yuan for the first hour and an additional two yuan for each subsequent hour.

"Parking is so expensive?" Nuo Xiaoxi said with surprise, her mouth hanging open. Little did she realize that this parking fee was already very low.

"Not expensive," Lin Chuan said, pulling Nuo Xiaoxi along: "Come on, let's go buy clothes. Buy whatever style you like and don't even think about saving money."

"Hehe..." Nuo Xiaoxi leaned her head sweetly against Lin Chuan's shoulder.

Wandering the streets, Nuo Xiaoxi entered some brand-name clothing stores, and upon seeing the prices, she became restless. A white down jacket she liked was priced at one thousand eight hundred yuan, and a long Bohemian skirt was an astonishing one thousand and eighty-eight yuan. Seeing this, Nuo Xiaoxi almost turned around and left.

Lin Chuan hurriedly pulled her back, saying, "If you like it, then buy it."

"Brother Lin, it's too expensive," Nuo Xiaoxi said, with her face red, not knowing if it was because of the mall's heating or her own shyness.

"It doesn't matter." Lin Chuan quickly gestured to the sales associate, calling out, "Come on, wrap up these two for me."

"Okay!" The sales associate's face immediately beamed with joy, saying, "Sir, we have a promotion today. The entire store is ten percent off, and the second item is twenty percent off."

"Deal, buy two more sets," Lin Chuan declared generously. The sales associate's smile blossomed even wider.

Anxious, Nuo Xiaoxi on the side spoke up: "Brother Lin, it's too pricey. Maybe... maybe we could go somewhere else? I know a place where clothes are cheap, just one or two hundred is enough, my classmates often go there."

"No need," Lin Chuan shook his head, saying: "The clothes here are cheap enough already."

Lin Chuan had seen his fair share of the world; he had worn Armani suits worth several hundred thousand yuan and never shunned clothes from street vendors either. Lin Chuan wasn't picky and never looked down on anything. Buying clothes for Nuo Xiaoxi, Lin Chuan didn't want to be stingy. Girls should be raised like princesses. Dressing her up as if she were from the nobility, in the future, she could aim for a higher-class boyfriend.

"Sir, you are absolutely right, our clothes here are comparatively the best deal in this mall," the sales associate nodded and spoke: "Moreover, they are of high quality, employing French techniques and German imported materials..."

"Don't brag," Lin Chuan glanced at him and said, "It's clearly made in China."

The salesperson laughed awkwardly and remained silent.

Lin Chuan spent over four thousand in one go, and when he swiped his card, Nuo Xiaoxi's eyes filled with excitement. This was her first shopping spree in her life. She actually bought so much stuff. After leaving the mall, Lin Chuan took Nuo Xiaoxi to an Apple store.

"Brother Lin, are you buying a mobile phone?" Nuo Xiaoxi asked.

"Yeah, I'm planning to give you one," Lin Chuan said with a smile. "You're such a big girl now, yet you don't have a phone. How can I contact you in the future, right?"

"But, iPhones are very expensive," Nuo Xiaoxi hurriedly clutched Lin Chuan's arm and said, "If you really want to buy one, just get a two or three hundred one, it works just as well."

"iPhones are in fashion now." Lin Chuan chuckled. "Surely a lot of your classmates use them, don't they?"

"Yes," Nuo Xiaoxi nodded and said, "Xiao Hong slept with a man from outside school three times just to get an iPhone; Ah Ya threatened to die unless her family bought her one…"

Hearing this, Lin Chuan couldn't help but click his tongue in amazement at how crazy these high school students were.

With Lin Chuan's insistence, Nuo Xiaoxi did not reject the mobile phone. In her view, she was bound to belong to Lin Chuan sooner or later, so why should she refuse his gift? Nuo Xiaoxi, holding onto Lin Chuan's arm, entered the Apple phone dealership. The salesperson immediately came to greet them, but upon seeing the two dressed plainly, even a bit shabby, she turned to welcome two stylish guys instead: "Gentlemen, looking to buy a phone?"

Lin Chuan and Nuo Xiaoxi didn't mind, and after entering, they started to play with the demo phones on display and began to select curiously. After some choosing, Lin Chuan finally decided on the latest model of iPhone and asked, "Do you like it?"

"I love it, a pink phone. No one in our class has such a pretty one," Nuo Xiaoxi said, overjoyed.

"Alright, then let's get this one," Lin Chuan nodded, and another salesperson quickly approached: "Sir, would you like this model?"

"Yes, help me place the order, I'll pay with my card," Lin Chuan nodded without any hesitation.

The salesperson was delighted upon hearing this, as another purchase went through her hands; it was just too good. The two trendy guys who had just come in took a glance at the latest rose gold model, were taken aback by the price, and then walked away. When the salesperson saw that Lin Chuan and Nuo Xiaoxi had made the purchase without any hesitation, she felt as though she had swallowed a headless green fly, finding it disgusting.

Holding the newly bought phone, Nuo Xiaoxi's cheeks flushed with excitement; holding the phone, she was ecstatic, nearly jumping with joy. She had never used a phone before, but often played games and surfed the net on her friends' iPhones, so even with a new phone, Nuo Xiaoxi was adept at using it.

Lin Chuan got her a mobile SIM card, and they stored each other's numbers.

"Brother Lin, you are so good to me," Nuo Xiaoxi said, almost crying with excitement.

"Silly girl, if I don't treat you well, who should I treat well?" Lin Chuan said with a sense of grievance in his heart. The person who was really good to her didn't know how to cherish him. She had abandoned him. At that moment, Lin Chuan's eyes revealed a touch of sadness and sorrow.

Upon hearing this, Nuo Xiaoxi's face turned even redder. Holding the iPhone, she felt extremely happy. She fantasized that once she graduated from college, she would definitely marry Lin Chuan, take good care of him afterward, and also earn a lot of money to spend on him. A young girl's thoughts are pure and clean.

After a whole day of mall shopping, around three to four in the afternoon, Lin Chuan returned to Changlin Community.

Nuo Xiaoxi carried her things, her arms full of hauls. Lin Chuan personally took her home. When Nuo Xiaoxi's mother learned that Lin Chuan had bought so many things for Nuo Xiaoxi, she immediately said it was a waste of money and shouldn't have been so extravagant. Lin Chuan quickly said, "Auntie, Xiaoxi has grown up now, and she should dress herself well. I just bought her a few new outfits, look at Xiaoxi, she barely has any new clothes. The New Year is coming soon..."

Nuo Xiaoxi's mother felt ashamed by Lin Chuan's explanation: "Yes, Xiaoxi has always been a well-behaved and sensible child. She has been living a hard life with me all these years, ah, it's been tough on her. But now she has met you, and it's like she's found a good place to belong."

Lin Chuan was caught off guard by her comment: "Auntie, rest assured, I will take good care of Xiaoxi."

"That's good, that's good."

"Mom, look at my phone, isn't it beautiful?" Nuo Xiaoxi ran excitedly to her mother and said, "Brother Lin bought me a new phone, it's over six thousand. It's so pretty, here, let me take a picture of you."

"Oh, okay." Her mother posed for a photo with the phone for the first time, so she seemed a little awkward. Sitting up straight, she had a stiff smile on her face.

"Click..."

The photo was taken, very clear. Nuo Xiaoxi quickly showed it to her mother, who said after seeing it, "The world is progressing now, and science and technology have developed so much, I didn't expect a phone could take such clear pictures. How wonderful..."

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