“Little sister, you can try this one. This one looks great too. It will definitely suit you.”
The salesperson looked at Su Bai with sincere eyes, seeming not to notice the exhaustion on her face at all.
Yes. This conversation had already happened an unknown number of times.
Most of the morning had already passed. It was nearly noon, and Su Bai had been dragged around trying on clothes by Jiang Yuelan and Yu Xiaoyan the entire time.
They had gone through every women’s clothing store, sportswear store, and the like across all the floors of the various malls nearby. From the simplest short-sleeved shirts and knit tops to high-waisted slim jeans, all the way to elaborate lace-trimmed lolita dresses—every style imaginable.
Some of them were a bit too revealing, leaving Su Bai thoroughly uncomfortable.
The most excessive moment was when they passed a store that specialized in renting wedding dresses for brides and insisted on dragging her in to try one on.
Fortunately, Su Bai refused with a very resistant attitude. She was not an actual doll. Trying things on without buying them would only cause trouble for the store.
Though that was Su Bai overthinking it. These salespeople saw how petite, cute, and lively she looked and could not help introducing her to all the nice clothes.
Every time Su Bai finished changing, Jiang Yuelan would always reveal a satisfied smile and nod. It made Su Bai’s heart crawl, and she complained wildly inside.
Today it felt like Jiang Yuelan had taken the wrong medicine.
She had originally thought only Yu Xiaoyan would be interested in this kind of dress-up play, but now she realized Jiang Yuelan seemed to be enjoying it even more.
And could someone please explain why Yu Xiaoyan kept showing that meaningful smile every time she saw Su Bai and Jiang Yuelan standing together?
When it finally came time to buy clothes.
She had wanted to refuse on the grounds that she had no money and the clothes were too expensive. Things did not go as she wished. Su Bai was quickly shocked by the two little rich girls.
Jiang Yuelan needed no further explanation. Ever since the day Su Bai met her, she had understood that Jiang Yuelan definitely never lacked money to spend.
She had originally thought it was because of her identity as a witch. Now it seemed it might simply be that her family was wealthy.
As for Yu Xiaoyan, although she was not some second-generation rich kid, she had started an online shop right after graduating high school that specialized in secondary creative products related to magical girls. The business was thriving now, and she was not short of money at all. She did not need any support from her family.
Su Bai did not want them buying clothes for her either, but the wallet was in someone else’s hands. Just as she was about to stop them, she heard the two of them say, “This is something I’m buying for myself. You can’t stop me from buying my own clothes, right?”
Who buys clothes for themselves and needs someone else to try them on? But she could not resist, so what could she do about it?
How had a perfectly good shopping trip turned into this?
After going back and forth like that, counting the clothes that needed to be mailed (the ones in smaller sizes), this was already the tenth piece they had bought.
If one were to count the clothes she had tried on, the number would be even more incalculable.
“I’m just trying on clothes. What’s there to look at? By the way, aren’t you two going to try anything on? We finally came all this way.” Su Bai’s arms hung limp as she slumped onto the long bench inside the women’s clothing store and complained.
“Because we like it. Buying clothes for you makes us very happy. Don’t worry about us. When we see something nice and suitable, we’ll try it on.” Yu Xiaoyan waved her hand. They were not about to let such a good opportunity slip by.
“No more trying on clothes. I’m a little tired. How about we go eat something~~~” Su Bai was truly exhausted. It was not that her stamina was insufficient, but that these two had worn her out to the point of “mental fatigue.”
Jiang Yuelan swept her long black hair back, pushed up her glasses, and said, “Alright. I’m a little hungry too. Let’s go eat together and continue shopping in the afternoon.”
In any case, she was very satisfied with this morning. In the past she had never understood what was fun about dress-up play. Now she got it—it was simply missing a pure and beautiful clothes hanger like Su Bai.
The mall’s foot traffic was heavy, and with mealtime approaching it became even livelier.
The three of them carried the clothes they had just selected and walked out of the women’s clothing store, preparing to head toward the escalator.
Su Bai casually glanced toward a nearby corner and saw a little girl who looked about seven or eight years old standing there, looking around helplessly.
“Wait~ Look over there.” Su Bai stopped in her tracks, pointed at the corner, and called out to Jiang Yuelan and Yu Xiaoyan.
Hearing Su Bai’s voice, the two of them turned to look at her, then followed the direction of her finger.
That corner was rather secluded. Ordinary people really would not notice it.
“Did this kid get lost?” “Come on, let’s go ask.”
The three of them exchanged a glance, all nodded, and slowly walked over to the corner where the little girl was.
When the little girl saw people coming toward her, she first leaned forward to look, then seemed to realize that the people approaching were not anyone she knew. She tensed and shrank back into the corner again.
Seeing that the little girl seemed a little afraid of them, Su Bai immediately slowed her steps, stopped at an appropriate distance, and spoke in a gentle voice:
“Don’t be afraid. We’re not bad people. Big sister wants to ask you, what’s wrong? Why are you hiding here?”
Hearing Su Bai’s mild tone, the little girl’s panic lessened a good deal. She spoke in a choked voice:
“Mommy disappeared… She said she was going somewhere to get something, and then… I wanted to go look for her, but then…”
The girl spoke in broken fragments, but they could roughly understand.
It should be that her mother had gone to retrieve something and told her to stay put, yet she had still run off. Now she did not know how to get back and could not find her mother, so she could only hide here.
“Little sister, what’s your name? How about we help you find your mommy, okay?”
The little girl first nodded, then shook her head and said, “My name is Xiao Xi. Finding Mommy is okay, but I can’t go with you…
Mommy said I can’t go with strangers… Not even good people.”
“Haha, little missy, you’re pretty smart. This time you know to listen to Mommy.
Alright. We’ll help you find your mommy and have her come pick you up. How about that?” Yu Xiaoyan suggested from the side.
Xiao Xi nodded, indicating agreement.
Next they needed to discuss how to find her mother.
Yu Xiaoyan thought for a moment and said, “I remember there are those mobile police booths outside. How about we find the police and ask them to help look together?”
“That works. This building should have those broadcast speakers. We can find the management and have them make an announcement on every floor.”
Jiang Yuelan rested her chin on her hand, thought for a moment, and proposed a rather good method.
“Someone has to watch this child. How about this. Xiaoyan, you… go outside and find the police for help. If we really can’t find the child’s mother, they can serve as a backup.”
After speaking to Yu Xiaoyan, Su Bai paused and then looked toward Jiang Yuelan.
“Sister Xiaolan, you go find the building management and have them make an announcement on every floor asking Xiao Xi’s mother to come. I’ll watch Xiao Xi here. If anything happens, contact us by phone.
How does that sound? Any problems?”
“Alright.” “No problem.”
The two of them exchanged a glance and nodded. Su Bai had spoken clearly and thoroughly. There were no questions.
They were just a little surprised by Su Bai’s unusual composure and clear thinking.
Neither of them delayed. They immediately headed toward the elevator, preparing to act according to Su Bai’s plan.
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