"How about that? You heard it, didn't you? Now you can give up, can't you?" Gou Huli turned her head in triumph and looked at Wei Zhao, Gu Mengyao, and Shen Yushu. "Embarrassed now, aren't you? Didn't you have membership cards? But so what if you do? The item is sold out! Never mind three membership cards — even a hundred of them couldn't conjure one up!"

"Are you certain this style is out of stock?" Wei Zhao frowned and asked the sales assistant. At that moment he finally understood where Gou Huli's confidence came from. She must have known long ago that this dress was out of stock — that was why she had dared make such a boast!

"Yes. Apart from the one on display in the window, there is no stock left," the sales assistant said apologetically.

"Can the one in the window not be sold?" Wei Zhao asked.

"I'm sorry, sir, I don't have the authority to open the display window," the sales assistant explained. "The goods in the window are arranged by our mall's sales department, and they can only be changed on a fixed schedule. Ordinary staff and sales assistants like us don't have the key to the window."

"Oh, I see." Wei Zhao nodded and looked at Gu Mengyao. "Take out your membership card and give it to me."

"?" Gu Mengyao was startled, not knowing what Wei Zhao meant to do, but she took the wallet from her pocket all the same and drew out the membership card, handing it to him.

Wei Zhao took the card, passed it to the sales assistant, and said, "Take this card to your sales department manager and ask him whether the sample in the window can be sold."

"A diamond card?" The sales assistant was slightly taken aback, but then shook her head. "I'm sorry, sir. Although you are an honored diamond VIP member, we still cannot sell it, because this is a rule the mall laid down long ago..."

"Ha! You three servants really have never seen the world!" Gou Huli sneered the moment she saw what Wei Zhao was doing. "You think flashing a diamond membership card lets you put on airs? You've got that wrong! I have a diamond membership card too, but this is the mall's rule. Who do you think you are? You think you can change their rules? It's killingly funny. I've never seen anyone as tacky as you lot. I wonder how your master usually teaches you, to be so ignorant. You think pulling out a diamond card lets you show off? How naive!"

Gou Huli's words were truly biting and mean; even the sales assistant standing nearby could hardly bear to listen. She thought: the man had only asked whether a diamond card carried such a privilege, and said nothing else. Yet you — you just stand there mocking and sneering. Did he do anything to you?

Wei Zhao did not take up Gou Huli's words at all. All along he had treated her as nothing but a mad dog, and speaking to her was a waste of breath. He said directly to the sales assistant, "Just do as I say. Show this card to your sales department manager, and he will tell you whether that dress can be sold!"

"This... all right." Hearing Wei Zhao insist, the sales assistant had no choice but to nod and agree. After all, this was a request from a diamond customer, and the employees of the Gu Group were all trained to put customers first; they could not simply ignore a customer's request.

Even if a customer's request was somewhat unreasonable, one still had to explain patiently or report it to a higher department.

"Still going to try? Try what? How ridiculous!" Gou Huli had not expected the sales assistant to actually agree to Wei Zhao's request, and was instantly annoyed. Why not just refuse him outright? Why waste the time?

"Of course we're going to try. Someone in our household is waiting to watch you perform pulling your head off," Wei Zhao said mildly.

"Oh, oh, oh — that person is me!" Shen Yushu hastily raised her hand to declare her intention.

"Hmph!" Gou Huli glared at Wei Zhao and Shen Yushu. She thought: fine, then let them gloat a little longer. The two of them truly were the sort who would not give up until they saw the Yellow River and would not weep until they saw the coffin!

Seeing Wei Zhao hand the membership card to the sales assistant and send her off to the sales department manager, Gu Mengyao had more or less guessed his intention: he meant to use her identity as the eldest daughter as a stepping stone.

In fact, that was indeed what Wei Zhao had in mind. From the face of the parking lot guard he had already glimpsed a clue: the guard had seen the information on Gu Mengyao's diamond card and recognized her — recognized her as the eldest daughter of the Gu Group! Just think: if even a parking lot guard could recognize Gu Mengyao's identity, how could the sales department manager of Pengzhan Mall possibly fail to know her?

Once he saw the information on Gu Mengyao's membership card, he probably would not care about any rules at all — he would simply take the dress out and sell it to Gu Mengyao! Who managed Pengzhan Mall? The Gu Group, of course! And who was the highest authority in the Gu Group? None other than Gu Pengzhan.

Gu Mengyao was Gu Pengzhan's only daughter, the future heir of the Gu Group — how could these petty managers below fail to curry favor with her?

So Gou Huli's fate was already sealed: it was merely a question of how she would perform pulling her head off.

Though puzzled, since Wei Zhao insisted, the sales assistant took the membership card he had given her and hurried to the door of the mall's marketing and sales department manager's office. This was the office of the direct superior of sales assistants like her, so she felt a little nervous; she drew a deep breath before knocking.

"Come in!" A deep male voice came from inside.

The sales assistant pushed the door open and went in, saying nervously, "Manager Wang, I'm sorry to disturb you..."

"Oh? And you are?" Manager Wang clearly did not recognize the sales assistant. There were far too many sales assistants in the mall; how could he possibly recognize every one of them?

"I'm Chen Lili, ***customer sales assistant at the luxury counter of the clothing department..." the sales assistant introduced herself.

"Oh. What is it?" Manager Wang had no impression of Chen Lili, but hearing that she was one of his subordinates, he nodded and asked.

"It's like this — there is a diamond ***customer who wants to buy the display item in the window..." Chen Lili stated her business.

"Oh? Haven't we already laid down a rule about this? Display items cannot be sold; the items in the windows all have replacement cycles..." Manager Wang frowned. Such a small matter had already been emphasized in ordinary meetings — why had this sales assistant come running to ask in person?