When Tian Jing called for the shop, Ouyang Lei and his group escorted the Li family to the adjacent shop.
Tian Jing said to the still stunned shop assistant, "Your hearing must be faulty. I said 'swipe card' twice, didn't you hear me?"
The shop assistant looked at the manager.
The manager looked at Mrs. Gong and Mrs. Tang.
Tian Jing was truly annoyed, "Manager, are these two ladies the owners of this establishment?"
"It has nothing to do with me." Mrs. Gong lifted her leg to leave the shop. Having finally encountered Ouyang Lei, she hurried to try and get close to him.
Mrs. Tang gently nudged her own mother.
The old lady, who had been squinting since entering the shop, finally opened her eyes and examined Tian Jing carefully.
After looking her up and down, her gaze settled on the cloth shoes on Tian Jing's feet.
Tian Jing was fed up. She took her card back from the shop assistant, grabbed the POS machine attached to the landline phone on the counter, and swiped her card herself, inputting the four-digit amount shown on the tag of the tattered cloth strip.
Before long, the three-part credit card slip was printed.
Tian Jing signed her name, took her copy, and left the shop, leaving the tattered cloth strip behind.
The old woman nudged her daughter, "Quick, go and see the signature."
When Mrs. Tang read out the name 'Tian Jing', the old lady hurried to go outside, "Quick, let's go and apologize."
In the shop next door, after a group of people entered, two shop assistants blocked the entrance.
When Mrs. Gong arrived, she was stopped by the shop assistants.
Mrs. Gong pushed the two shop assistants, "Do you know who I am? Get out of the way."
The nanny also came to help.
The two shop assistants were pushed into the shop, and of course, they could no longer stop Mrs. Gong and the nanny.
Li Min and her elder sister-in-law were selecting clothes for their mother when they turned to see Mrs. Gong entering. They spoke to the store manager who was attending them,
"Didn't you say you had cleared the shop? Why are people still coming in now?"
The store manager turned to see Mrs. Gong and politely said to her,
"I'm sorry, Mrs. Gong, we cannot accommodate you at the moment. Please visit us another time."
Mrs. Gong pushed past the store manager and extended her hand to Ouyang Lei, "Hello, Manager Ouyang. I am the wife of Gong Jingqiang. We met at your company's sales office."
Seeing that Ouyang Lei hadn't recalled her, Mrs. Gong reminded him, "I am Shen Xiaoping's sister-in-law."
Shen?
The Shen family?
Ouyang Lei's hand, which had been about to grasp the hand extended towards him, was pushed away by Ouyang Meihua.
"Little brother, this woman said we are hicks. In this day and age, she still calls her mother, she must have come from the mountains."
"Why are you shaking hands with her? Don't get dirt on your hands."
Little brother?
This hick is Ouyang Lei's sister?
Mrs. Gong quickly put on a smiling face, "Sister Ouyang, I really didn't know..."
"Stop!" Ouyang Meihua interrupted her, "Don't call me, a hick, your sister, or you'll become a hick too!"
"I don't have a noble sister like you. Hurry up and get out. Don't disrupt our shopping spree."
Saying this, Ouyang Meihua even pushed Mrs. Gong towards the exit.
Just then, Tian Jing walked in. Seeing this pair, mistress and servant, enter, she asked the store manager if they were still doing business.
The store manager quickly told the shop assistants to escort the nanny out.
After Mrs. Gong also left, he asked the shop assistants to close the shop door and hang up a "Temporarily Closed" sign.
Tian Jing and her group could finally select clothes in peace.
With Han Lushi looking after their daughter, Tian Jing also joined in the selection of clothes.
The evening gowns here were no less than those in the shop next door, and the shop was also much larger. Tian Jing asked the store manager why they had no business.
The store manager sighed, "The manager next door knows how to win over customers, and they attract high-end clients who then bring in acquaintances, making it difficult for us."
"However, we also offer some mid-range evening gowns to increase our revenue."
Tian Jing nodded, "I'll help you bring in customers."
As she spoke, she took out her phone and called Shen Jianrong.
Shen Jianrong was surprised that her frequently visited evening gown shop was so snobbish. She stated that she would not patronize it anymore.
She prepared to recommend another shop to Tian Jing. Tian Jing, however, smilingly praised the sharp shop assistant from the shop next door.
She also asked Shen Jianrong to bring her friends and relatives to patronize the shop next door in the future.
Shen Jianrong agreed, saying she would call her friends and relatives right away and tell them not to patronize that shop anymore.
After Tian Jing hung up the phone, the store manager thanked her and said that to celebrate surpassing the shop next door in advance, all items in the store today would be discounted by ten percent.
Tian Jing gave her a thumbs-up, with such a smart and thoughtful store manager, the shop's business was sure to prosper.
Meanwhile, outside the shop, after Mrs. Gong was escorted out, she took out her phone and called her sister-in-law.
Mrs. Tang and her daughter, seeing Mrs. Gong being asked out by the shop assistants, also took out their phones to make calls.
After Shen Xiaoping heard her sister-in-law's words, she frowned, "Among the group of people you described, was there a particularly beautiful woman?"
"Yes," Mrs. Gong nodded. "At first glance, she didn't seem like a respectable..."
"Sister!" Shen Xiaoping quickly interrupted her sister-in-law, "That beautiful woman is Captain Tian."
"You were unobservant and offended someone. What do you want me to do? Do I still have the face to go?"
Shen Xiaoping yelled at her sister-in-law and hung up the phone. She then called her aunt.
Shen Jianrong finally learned who had driven Tian Jing out of the evening gown shop.
She was so angry that she berated her second niece, "What kind of people are your in-laws? Whose influence does your Gong family rely on?"
"On one hand, they use the Shen family's name to try and win the Jingyuan Company project, and on the other hand, they look down on Jingyuan Company's behind-the-scenes boss as a hick, not worthy of entering an evening gown shop to buy clothes."
"When Captain Tian called me, I was so embarrassed. That shop was the one I introduced her to."
"It was your elder aunt who strongly recommended we patronize that shop. How much kickback did she take from them?"
"For Ziyu's wedding, you are coming alone. If your in-laws dare to come, don't blame me for kicking them out!"
Just as Shen Jianrong finished scolding her second niece, her elder niece called her again.
Her eyebrows twitched. Could it be such a coincidence?
Were the two people Tian Jing mentioned both her family's in-laws?
As Shen Xiaohui began to speak, Shen Jianrong interrupted, "Did your elder aunt and your mother-in-law go out to buy evening gowns?"
"Yes."
"Did your elder aunt and your mother-in-law encounter a group of outsiders?"
"Yes."
"Did your elder aunt bully people by flaunting her influence?"
"Yes."
Shen Jianrong stomped her feet in anger, "Yes, yes, yes. Since it's yes, what face do you have to call me?"
"They had already tried on the clothes they wanted, and just as they were about to say they wanted them, they rushed to say they wanted them."
"Your Tang family has always relied on the Shen family's influence. It was acceptable before, but now that your grandfather has risen, they have become even more arrogant."
"Whose influence does your grandfather rely on? Huh? Tell me."
"Auntie," Shen Xiaohui stammered, "Please don't be angry. What do you think we should do now?"
"Get lost!" Shen Jianrong swore, "You scoundrels offended the person who supports your grandfather, and now you're avoiding responsibility and asking me what to do?"
"Fine! I'll figure something out for you. I'll tell your grandfather right now to cut ties with the in-laws."
Shen Jianrong didn't give her elder niece a chance to speak. She hung up the phone and called Grandpa Shen.
After Grandpa Shen heard the whole story, he said he would call his two granddaughters to ask about their plans.