My Child and I Married a Billionaire

Chapter 139: Chapter 139: What? You Think I’m Spending Too Much Money?

"Cecelia, hurry and eat. The more you talk, the more excited I get. I can’t wait."

And so, under Mrs. Vaughn’s vigorous urging, Cecelia Archer hastily finished her breakfast and changed into the clothes she had been given.

To be fair, they were very beautiful.

The superior quality, the perfectly tailored fit, and the elegant, tasteful color made Cecelia look like a professional model—tall, curvy, and fair-skinned.

Even without a trace of makeup or any hairstyling, she was beautiful enough to make people unable to look away.

Because of his age, the old master had a particular fondness for cheongsams.

Seeing Cecelia dressed like this was like seeing his wife in her youth, and the old man’s eyes lit up.

"Beautiful. It’s all thanks to your good taste, Jessica. It suits Cecelia perfectly."

Mrs. Vaughn had to admit, there was a reason Damien Vaughn had fallen for Cecelia Archer.

She had good skin and a great figure. Although her features weren’t exactly to her liking, they were above average. She wouldn’t be an embarrassment to take out.

’A pity. Compared to Gwen Morgan, she’s still a notch below.’

"See? Grandpa thinks it looks good too, so just wear it. I haven’t been back to Veridia in over a decade, and I have no idea how much it’s developed. Wear this and come out for a stroll with me."

Although the old master and she were singing its praises, Cecelia herself didn’t think so.

The cheongsam was a modernized version, not as long as the traditional kind. It only reached her knees and had a slit, which made her feel very insecure.

And those shoes—they were beautiful, yes, but far too high. Going shopping in them, it would be a miracle if she wasn’t dead tired by the end.

But those weren’t the most important issues. Most importantly, she was keenly aware of how out of character Mrs. Vaughn was acting. ’I can’t believe she’s being sincere with me. I don’t want to be played for a fool by her again.’

"Thank you. I love the clothes, but I’ll have to pass on going shopping in them. Candy is still little, and I have to carry her from time to time, which would be inconvenient. Besides, Grandpa’s physical therapy has been paused for several days now. I can’t delay it any longer. I have to stay home and give him his therapy today."

"Candy is still little; she wouldn’t understand a thing about shopping anyway. We’ll leave her home for today. I’ll take her to the amusement park another day, just the two of us. As for the physical therapy, you can do that in the afternoon or evening. It doesn’t have to be in the morning. Just come with me."

Mrs. Vaughn hadn’t slept well last night either. She had spent the entire night mulling over ways to deal with Cecelia for the sake of her son’s future.

She had already brought her plan this far; she couldn’t let Cecelia back out now.

"I was planning on buying you some gifts. What’s the fun in me going alone if you’re not with me? Or are you still angry with me?"

She was using that line to pressure her again.

Cecelia was utterly speechless and could only turn to Damien Vaughn for help.

Unexpectedly, Damien was on the same side as his mother today.

"Since Mom has put it that way, you should just go. Grandpa’s physical therapy isn’t urgent."

Cecelia was beyond exasperated.

’When on earth will they schedule Candy’s surgery? Once Candy has the operation and recovers her health, I won’t need to rely on Damien Vaughn anymore. You couldn’t pay me to stay in the Vaughn Family household a moment longer!’

First thing in the morning, Cecelia was made up, had her hair put up, and was dressed in a cheongsam and high heels. Looking as glamorous as a Miss Universe contestant, she was dragged out of the house by Mrs. Vaughn.

The driver took them to Veridia’s largest shopping mall, which had just opened its doors.

The two got out of the car, and as soon as they were out of the driver’s sight, the smile on Mrs. Vaughn’s face vanished.

"I was so busy taking care of you this morning I didn’t eat a single bite. I’m starving. Come have a cup of coffee with me."

The two went to a café, and as soon as they walked in, they saw Gwen Morgan’s beaming face.

"Ma’am, I’m over here. Cecelia, you’re here too?"

’No wonder she wanted to come to a café. She had already arranged to meet Gwen Morgan here.’

’Since Gwen is here to keep her company, why did she insist on dragging me along?’

Cecelia had a bad feeling, but Gwen Morgan was acting so perfectly that Cecelia couldn’t guess what the two of them were planning.

"Their coffee here is wonderful, the flavor is especially pure. Ma’am, Cecelia, you two must try it."

"You must not have eaten breakfast, coming out so early. I ordered a few of their specialty pastries for you. Let’s eat our fill before we go shopping."

She was polite and well-mannered the entire time. The three of them chatted intermittently for nearly an hour before leaving the café.

The mall was filled with major luxury brands, all of which Cecelia had heard of but never patronized.

Mrs. Vaughn and Gwen Morgan were in their element, entering every single brand-name store they passed.

The two of them were dressed in simple, elegant clothes, not as formal as Cecelia, but not in a way that would make people look down on them. The sales associates were extremely enthusiastic toward them.

Mrs. Vaughn quickly took a liking to a handbag in one of the brand’s stores.

A sales associate came over and explained that it was their store’s crown jewel, recently brought in from abroad. It was a global limited edition of only three, and their store had the only one in the entire country. The price was over four million.

Mrs. Vaughn didn’t even bat an eye. After hearing the introduction, she turned to look at Cecelia.

"Do you like it? If you do, I’ll buy it for you."

’A handbag for over four million? That could buy her brother two houses.’

’And who knows if Mrs. Vaughn is just testing me? Even if I were a real daughter-in-law of the Vaughn family, there’s no need to be this extravagant, right?’ ƒгeeweɓn૦vel.com

Cecelia didn’t dare accept it, and she genuinely wasn’t interested.

But Mrs. Vaughn seemed quite sincere, so she couldn’t refuse her directly.

"I have plenty of bags. Let’s not buy one for now."

Mrs. Vaughn didn’t press her and turned her attention to other items.

With every item she liked, she said she would buy it for Cecelia.

But everything she picked out was priced at a million or more. Cecelia was planning to leave at any moment; she had no desire to owe anyone favors, so she refused them all.

After they finished in one store, Mrs. Vaughn spoke with a hint of mock reproach.

"I didn’t realize you were so picky. You don’t want this, you don’t want that. In that case, I won’t bother looking for you anymore. But don’t you go feeling upset and saying I’m stingy."

Cecelia was silent.

’So it’s wrong of me to save you money now?’

Only today did she truly understand what it meant for someone to get what they want and still complain.

But she couldn’t argue back directly.

"How could I? I don’t lack anything. Ma’am, you should just buy things for yourself."

Mrs. Vaughn linked arms with Gwen Morgan, openly leaving her behind.

Entering the second store, the two of them began a frantic shopping spree.

"Wrap this one up for me, and that one too. This pair of shoes is quite nice, I’ll just wear them now. Wrap up my old pair. Cecelia, would you mind holding these for me?"

After just four or five stores, both of Cecelia’s hands were filled with their spoils.

Luxury goods had complex and heavy packaging, with large, cumbersome boxes. Dressed in a cheongsam and high heels, Cecelia found it difficult to walk and was on the verge of collapsing from exhaustion.

But the other two showed no signs of stopping. Chatting and laughing, they were about to enter the next store when Cecelia, unable to bear it any longer, called out to them.

"Ma’am, you’ve bought so much already. Are you still going to shop?"

Mrs. Vaughn turned around, her displeased gaze sweeping over Cecelia from head to toe.

"What? You don’t want the things I offer to buy for you, but the moment I start buying things for myself, you complain that I’m spending too much?"