Chapter 132: Bought a Watch

"What lover? You brat, if you dare to run your mouth again, see if I don't give you a beating!" As she spoke, she stood up and reached for Xiao Cui's armpits. There was no way Xiao Cui would let Lady Fu catch her; she turned and bolted.

The two of them had stopped dressing up and were now wrestling playfully around the room.

Zhou Yi had been waiting outside for a long time without seeing Lady Fu emerge. He opened the door, stepped inside, and his jaw dropped so wide he couldn't close it for a long while.

Lady Fu and Xiao Cui froze in their tracks. Lady Fu's hands were at Xiao Cui’s armpits, while Xiao Cui’s hands were pressed against Lady Fu’s chest. Lady Fu’s hair was half-undone, and her rouge was only half-applied. The two of them stared at Zhou Yi with wide eyes, neither having expected him to enter just then.

"Ah!" Once Lady Fu came to her senses, she rushed to the bed and buried her head in the quilt, letting out another shriek. "Get out!"

Zhou Yi dared not linger. If he stayed in that room any longer, there was no telling what Lady Fu might actually do.

He turned and left the room, then, remembering the sight of her, he couldn't help but cover his mouth to hide a laugh.

"Brother Yi, what are you laughing at?" Baozi appeared out of nowhere, tapping Zhou Yi on the shoulder from behind.

Zhou Yi shook his head repeatedly. He couldn't talk about this; if a loudmouth like Baozi let it slip, those two ladies would surely skin him alive.

The autumn air was crisp, and a gust of wind blew a few leaves from the fruit trees.

Zhou Yi leaned back in his chair, enjoying the morning sun. He suddenly felt that life was incredibly pleasant—with his beloved by his side and his brothers for company.

Lady Fu spent an hour getting ready before she finally pushed the door open to come out. When she emerged, Zhou Yi was stunned once again. He had never realized how beautiful she could be. She wore a beige qipao with a white mink fur shawl. Her delicate, pretty face had been touched with powder, showing a faint blush beneath the white skin. Her eyebrows were like willow leaves, her lips red, and her teeth white. As she walked out, she gave Zhou Yi a shy smile, revealing shallow dimples on her cheeks.

"Let's go!" Lady Fu walked up to Zhou Yi and said softly.

Zhou Yi finally snapped out of his daze and hurriedly stood up to head out. Seeing the look on Zhou Yi's face the moment he saw her, Lady Fu felt a sense of satisfaction; that hour had not been wasted.

The shops along the street had just opened. Although Lady Fu had been out for a long time, she had never really gone shopping. While nothing seemed particularly novel to her, she couldn't help but look here and there.

Without realizing it, they arrived at the Zhou Family Rice Shop. The shop was not yet open, even though it was past nine o'clock and it should have been doing business by now. Zhou Yi didn't pay it much mind, wondering what might have happened.

Opposite the rice shop was a watch store. Upon reaching it, Lady Fu pulled Zhou Yi inside. "I’ll pick out a watch for you so you won't have to keep looking at the sun to tell the time!" she said with a smile.

Zhou Yi had no idea what a watch was and couldn't help but ask, "What is a watch?"

Lady Fu smiled slightly and pointed to a watch of moderate size. "Take this one out for me to see." After the clerk retrieved the watch, Lady Fu personally fastened it onto Zhou Yi’s wrist and explained how to tell the time.

"The time on this watch corresponds to our traditional hours; each of our traditional hours is two hours on this," she said. After a detailed explanation, Zhou Yi finally understood how to read it.

"How much is this watch?" Zhou Yi thought that since it was such a useful item, he shouldn't keep it all to himself—he would buy one for everyone back home.

"Fifty silver dollars!" the clerk replied without even looking up.

Lady Fu hadn't expected the watch to cost fifty silver dollars. The one she wore was a gift from a high official, and she didn't know the actual market price of such things.

Since Zhou Yi had left, Lady Fu had been in charge of the household finances. She did a quick calculation: fifty silver dollars would be enough to feed their family of six for an entire year.

"Let’s go, we aren't buying it," Lady Fu said, pouting.

Seeing Lady Fu take the watch off Zhou Yi and put it back on the counter, the clerk couldn't help but feel a touch of contempt. "This watch is two silver dollars; the lady and gentleman can buy this kind instead!"

Lady Fu was a woman of status; she could tell at a glance that the low-end goods were poorly made and clunky in style. She curled her lip, refused, and pulled Zhou Yi toward the door.

The clerk muttered under his breath, "This place is for high-end goods, meant for rich people. Dressed so nicely, but turns out they're just poor wretches."

In every dynasty, there are those who judge people by their appearance. Especially those who think they deal with the wealthy; after rubbing shoulders with the rich for so long, their arrogance naturally grows.

Although the clerk had muttered softly, Zhou Yi heard him perfectly. They had been having a lovely time, and he didn't want this incident to ruin Lady Fu’s mood. But when he turned his head, he saw that Lady Fu’s expression had darkened; she had clearly heard it too.

How could he let this slide? Zhou Yi turned back to the counter. "Call your boss out here!"

Seeing Zhou Yi return, the clerk sneered. "If you can't afford the high-end watches here, calling the boss won't help. We don't give discounts!"

Zhou Yi’s temper flared. He hadn't brought his pistol, but it had become a habit to tuck a dagger into his pant leg. He drew it and slammed it into the counter.

"I’ll say it one more time: call your boss out here!"

Seeing Zhou Yi draw a blade, cold sweat instantly broke out on the clerk’s forehead. "Yes, sir! Right away, sir!" He scrambled to the back room to find the owner.

"Let's go. It's not worth getting angry at such a lowly person," Lady Fu said, tugging on Zhou Yi’s sleeve, hoping to settle the matter.

Zhou Yi shook his head. "People must be held responsible for their actions. Today, I’ll teach them what it means to look down on others."

As they spoke, the shop owner came out. Seeing the dagger in the counter, he quickly put on a sycophantic smile and hurried toward them.

"Whatever the gentleman needs, just say the word. Why all this? We wouldn't want anyone to get hurt. Please, sir, put it away!" The owner tried to pull the dagger from the counter, but the counter was made of fine sandalwood, and Zhou Yi had plunged it in with such force that the owner couldn't budge it.

Zhou Yi gave a contemptuous laugh, pulled the dagger out himself, and returned it to his pant leg.

"Bring me five of your best watches!" Zhou Yi said, pulling a banknote from his pocket. That single note was worth a thousand silver dollars—more than enough to buy five watches.

Seeing a god of wealth before him, the shop owner's mouth couldn't stop grinning. He rushed to get the watches, but Zhou Yi stopped him.

"The condition is that you fire this man!"

The owner knew he could hire another clerk for money; one clerk was hardly worth the value of five watches. The math was simple.

He took five silver dollars from his pocket and tossed them at the clerk. "This is your pay for the last two months. Get out of here!"

Watching the clerk with the "dog eyes" leave, Zhou Yi felt an inexplicable sense of satisfaction.

Just as the watches were being wrapped, a man hurried into the shop. Upon seeing Zhou Yi, he fell to his knees with a thud. "Master Zhou, please save us..."