Chapter 873: Scapegoat
Translator: Atlas Studios Editor: Atlas Studios
As he expected, Xia Ling smiled a little deviously. “Getting rid of her tracks.”
She was not going to let Su Tang keep these outfits, how could her man’s belongings be in another woman’s hands? Even if he wasn’t going to wear them, they had to keep them.
She took a casual glance at the gown Su Tang gave her before tossing it aside and focusing on the other paper bags lying around. Opening up every bag, she saw that the outfits Su Tang had brought for Li Lei were of splendid quality. She had even taken the effort to pick out matching ties, cuffs, and shirts for him.
Xia Ling was even more unhappy after seeing this. “Hmph, how attentive she is.”
Li Lei tried to appease her. “How could these hold a candle to the one you got me?”
“You haven’t even seen what I bought, how’d you know it’s better?” Xia Ling was happy to hear this but knew full well he was just coaxing her. Hence, she decided to expose him this way.
Li Lei went on. “I trust your judgment.”
This time, Xia Ling couldn’t help but smile.
She picked at the pile of clothes and had to admit that Su Tang’s judgment was pretty good—be it color, material, or design of the suits. But… she took a label out of one of the bags and saw that it was one size smaller than the measurements she had handed the tailor.
“Well, I’ve already said it.” Xia Ling said smugly. “But she insists on getting them for you, and she doesn’t even know they’re one size too small. All things aside, the size itself would make a world of difference when it comes to suits. How could you even wear suits out when they aren’t fitting?” Now that she’d put it this way, he had enough reason to tell Li Rui why he couldn’t wear matching outfits with him—his mother didn’t get his father the right size, so there was no way he could wear it.
Li Lei smiled. “I wouldn’t wear it even if it fit me.”
Xia Ling was delighted to hear that. It was an amazing feeling to know something her love rival did not. She happily handed the paper bag to Li Lei. “Take a look, do you like it?”
Li Lei received the bag and opened it. What greeted him was an extravagant set of a haze-shaded suit of rare color and texture, giving it an air of uniqueness. He was never too particular about clothing and dressing, but after seeing such a wondrous outfit before him, he thought, So what if Su Tang’s judgment is good? It’s simply from the experience she gained over the years. Meanwhile, only one person could create something with such a unique aura—Xiao Ling.
“I like it a lot,” he told Xia Ling. “It’s the best suit I’ve ever received.”
Xia Ling felt a touch of sweetness in those words and hurried him. “Quick, put it on and I’ll have a look.”
Li Lei did not decline her request. He took off his top right before her and put on the haze-shaded suit. He was handsome, to begin with, and looked good in anything, but putting on something so rarely seen and yet so fitting made him appear even more attractive.
Xia Ling reached out and touched his face. She looked at him without blinking as she took in every part of the masterpiece that he was. “Spin around.” She said subconsciously.
Li Lei actually did it. He turned a full circle on the spot and smiled. “Do you like it?”
She nodded vehemently with the expression of a love-struck fool. She made it a point to dress him up more often in the future; it was such a pity if a man as handsome as he did not try on more clothes.
“A good height, long legs, firm chest muscles…” Xia Ling continued staring at him, starry-eyed. “With the outfit I picked out this is simply perfect! Wait… no.”
She suddenly stopped.
Li Lei was puzzled. “What’s wrong?”
She furrowed her brows before taking a step forward and resting her hand on his shoulder, and then his waist. “It looks, a little big…” Her voice sank. Having been a celebrity for two lifetimes, she was extremely particular when it came to clothing. She could tell at once whether the outfit truly fit a person or not. And this outfit here happened to be…”One size too big…”
She felt her heart sink.
“It can’t be.” Li Lei did not know what was going on. “I just got a new measurement and handed it to Ah Nuo, it can’t be wrong.”
“It’s obvious that it’s wrong once you put it on.” She bent over and casually picked up a piece that Su Tang brought. “Try this on instead.”
Li Lei was stunned for a while, and in that time, Xia Ling had removed his current outfit and put on Su Tang’s for him.
This time, it was neither too tight nor too loose. It was just right.
“How did she have your measurements?!” Xia Ling was agitated.
“I-I don’t know.” Li Lei was just as bewildered. Although Su Tang was the one who bought most of his clothes in the past, it had been a long time since he allowed her to take charge of such personal matters. Ever since he got together with Xiao Ling, he’d avoided gossip and speculations by distancing himself from Su Yang. “Even if Su Tang has my measurements, it should be an outdated one…”
Li Lei stopped himself mid-sentence.
It was a fact that Su Tang held onto his old measurements, but this lady was meticulous; maybe she could make a precise estimate of his figure the way he could with a lady’s “three measurements”? After all, she’d been getting clothes for him since they were young—she was probably aware of any changes he might have physically.
Xia Ling did not think that far. She glared at him. “Tell me! Did you leak out your most updated measurements?”
“I really didn’t.” Li Lei wouldn’t dare admit to something like that, or say that Su Tang could gauge his figure so accurately since Xiao Ling herself couldn’t! He’d be agitating her if he said that.
Li Lei racked his brain and came up with an unconvincing reason. “Coincidence. It has to be a coincidence.”
“How could this be a coincidence?!” Xia Ling was fuming mad. “How could it be that the outfit she ordered is just the right size, and mine is one size bigger? Do you dislike me, and not want to marry me, that’s why you’re getting Su Tang to do this? Did you deliberately give her the correct measurements and hand me the wrong ones?!”
Li Lei felt wronged but had no way of declaring his innocence. “Do I look like such a cold-blooded person?”
“You do!”
Li Lei had to coax her for a long while.
His wife-to-be seemed to be getting increasingly difficult to deal with, but he knew full well that she was being unreasonable only because she cared too much. On the other hand, if she was as cold and shut off from the world as she was when they first met, he’d be crying. He gently wrapped her in an embrace and coaxed her until she calmed down.
“So tell me how it could’ve happened.” She sniffled. She knew that she was being unreasonable as well, but she enjoyed being pampered this way and refused to be released from his embrace.
“Maybe, Ah Nuo got it wrong?” Li Lei figured that the only way was to find a scapegoat.
“Yes, it’s Ah Nuo!” Xia Ling’s eyes lit up. She found that it was a plausible reason and got him to call Ah Nuo into the office.
The moment Ah Nuo entered the office, he felt something that was amiss about the atmosphere in there. Boss and his future wife were looking right at him with strange, solemn expressions.