The previous argument clearly didn't dampen He Qing's enthusiasm for window - shopping at all.
Her slightly slanted eyes scanned the various mirrors in the glass shop.
There were long ones and short ones, round ones and square ones. There were also some delicate ones as small as a palm, sold together with cosmetics.
Her eyes sparkled when she saw these novel items. Without hesitation, she placed generous orders one after another.
The two servants and a maid following behind were busy running around to settle the bills for her.
She passed by a furniture store and was attracted by the soft and elastic sofas. Then she bought three large blue - and - white porcelain vases in a porcelain shop in one go. After that, she walked into the last of the five shops - "Stuffed Toys".
As soon as she stepped into the shop, she was completely captivated by the huge polar bear in the middle, which was over a person's height.
Although she had never seen a bear in person, she had heard that bears were extremely dangerous and terrifying animals.
But when she saw the polar bear in the shop, she was so excited that she almost screamed!
"So cute!"
The fur of the polar bear looked delicate and soft, and the touch was indescribably comfortable.
On the huge, round head of the polar bear were two black glass eyes. Its mouth was slightly open, and its expression looked so cute and innocent!
Almost every woman or child in the shop who saw this polar bear was so covetous that they couldn't take their eyes off it.
He Qing's heart skipped a beat, and she hurriedly lifted her skirt and walked forward without caring about her image.
No matter what, she had to buy this polar bear!
She rushed through the crowd towards the polar bear in a hurry. Just then, she heard a clear voice of a woman in front.
"A thousand taels? It's not too expensive. I'll take it."
He Qing stopped in her tracks. She saw a slender, fair hand resting on the furry leg of the polar bear.
Her gaze slowly moved up along the arm, and she saw a woman who, like herself, wore a light veil on her face so that her features couldn't be seen clearly. Only a pair of black - and - white eyes were visible.
The woman was dressed in a flowing, colorful brocade in the color of sea - cloud red. Her jet - black hair was pulled up high, and there was a pair of delicate golden hairpins on her bun.
She was elegant and noble in every gesture.
At this moment, she was looking at the polar bear in front of her with a gentle smile in her eyes, full of joy.
"Qing Lian, do you think Ming'er will like it?" she asked softly.
The maid behind her lowered her head and replied gently, "As long as it's bought by the mistress, the young miss always likes it. Moreover, this polar bear is really adorable. I'm sure the young miss will love it dearly."
"Um..." The red - dressed woman smiled and kept nodding as her gaze lingered on the polar bear.
The maid understood and raised her voice, "Waiter..."
Hearing this, He Qing immediately got anxious and blurted out, "Wait!"
The waiter, who was smiling and bowing, and the woman who was happily stroking the polar bear all looked towards her.
He Qing stepped forward quickly. Having rich experience in snatching things and having succeeded once, she was full of confidence now. Without blushing or getting flustered, she calmly said to the red - dressed woman in front of her, "I'll take this polar bear. Name your price."
Hearing this, the red - dressed woman frowned gracefully. "What does this lady mean?"
"What I mean is, I'll take this polar bear. Did you spend a thousand taels to buy it? Well... I'll offer one thousand two hundred taels. Please let the bear go to me."
Obviously, He Qing was a person who sized people up before taking action.
The woman who had the "Ripple" perfume snatched from her by He Qing earlier could be seen from her dressing that she was from an ordinary family, so He Qing had no hesitation in snatching it right in front of her.
But now, seeing the red - dressed woman in front of her, whether it was the quality of her clothes or her noble demeanor, it was obvious that she had a remarkable background and a large fortune. So He Qing didn't offend her right from the start.
Adding two hundred taels was quite generous. When He Qing said this, her eyes were full of confidence, waiting for the other party to say yes.
She didn't believe that there was anyone in this world who wasn't tempted by money!
But the red - dressed woman frowned and didn't say a word for a long time.
It was the maid Qing Lian beside her who raised her head, calmly glanced at He Qing, and said indifferently,
"Our mistress doesn't care about these small amounts of money. This lady, you'd better give up the idea of this polar bear. There are many other nice things in this shop. If you like, you can pick something else."
Two hundred taels was still considered a small amount of money?
Everyone was immediately in an uproar.
Among the onlookers at this time, many had witnessed He Qing's overbearing act of snatching the perfume earlier, and they already had a very bad impression of her.
Now seeing her looking so aggrieved and being silenced by the other party, almost everyone clapped their hands in delight.
He Qing's face turned pale then red from being choked by Qing Lian's words. Seeing the people around mocking her, she was so angry that she was about to explode.
"You don't think two hundred taels is enough? Then five hundred taels. One thousand five hundred taels!"
She shrieked.
Qing Lian sneered, "Our mistress doesn't care about this money..."
"Then two thousand taels!" He Qing was extremely angry. She pointed straight at Qing Lian and the silent red - dressed woman. "Don't say you don't care about money. In the end, you just think the money is too little, right? You're just trying to raise the price with me here!
I'm telling you, I don't have much patience. Either you be sensible and give this polar bear to me, or you'll have a hard time in the future!"
He Qing's words made everyone gasp.
Although there were many high - ranking officials and nobles in Yongding City, after all, it was under the feet of the Son of Heaven. Even the princes and princesses usually behaved politely when they went out.
A person like He Qing, who dared to snatch someone else's things in public and be so arrogant, besides Chen Jian who had run wild on a horse in the street last time, if she claimed to be the second, no one would dare to claim to be the first.
However, He Qing's arrogance didn't intimidate the other party at all.
There was only confusion and surprise in the red - dressed woman's expression, but no trace of fear.
The maid Qing Lian behind her even smiled slightly and raised her chin a little. "This lady has such a big mouth! You don't even know who our mistress is, yet you dare to say such things? You're really overestimating yourself."
The onlookers who had been worried that the red - dressed woman would be bullied by He Qing immediately burst into laughter.
"It's really karma. Who asked her to be unreasonable and snatch others' things earlier? Now she's met someone she can't afford to mess with!"
"Finally, it's her turn to suffer! Being so domineering and lawless, she doesn't even know where she is. She deserves it!"
"Exactly! Look at her fussy look. If this polar bear is given to her, won't it be a waste!"
People were talking one after another, making He Qing blush to the ears and her eyes full of scarlet.
Her whole body was trembling slightly, ashamed and angry. She wanted to step forward to argue, but her arm was tightly held by the maid behind her.
"If the young mistress causes trouble outside, the young master will be unhappy."
Her voice was not loud, but it was like a bucket of cold water poured over He Qing's head, extinguishing all her anger.