"What we admire most is that she doesnât rely on men at all, believing men are completely unreliable. As an outsider, sheâs managed to build a life for herself in this city."
Luis couldnât help but ask curiously, "Has she never been with a man???"
Nancy shook her head and said, "As far as we know, there isnât. She has always only trusted herself, believing that men are completely unreliable."
"Sometimes we feel that her personality is more like that of an independent man."
"We didnât realize it back in school, but after she resigned and we graduated and entered society, everyone discovered that Teacher Blanche was far more impressive than we had imagined."
"She has thoroughly figured out how to make money. Whenever anyone encounters something, they are willing to consult her or ask for an introduction. You can always find a solution with her."
"Later, everyone said that being with Teacher Blanche was especially comfortable. She has high emotional intelligence, high IQ, is cultured and yet very realistic. She truly is someone we all feel we need to learn from."
Luis was somewhat surprised; he hadnât expected them to hold such a high opinion of Blanche.
Speaking of which, I did get that feeling too. Being with Blanche, setting aside matters of the bed, whether in her speech or actions, she always made you feel exceptionally comfortable.
Moreover, no matter what topic was discussed, she almost never showed off, yet she could always give you a clear and logical explanation.
When you find interacting with someone particularly pleasant and comfortable, it is often because she has observed you carefully and completely outmatched you in both emotional and intellectual intelligence.
Blanche soon sent a message: the MercedesâBenz store currently had no cars in stock, which frustrated Luis immensely.
In the car, Nancy said, "Then why not just buy any ordinary car for getting around? You hardly drive yourself anyway."
Luis took her hand and said gently, "What car I drive myself doesnât matter. Mainly, I want to buy one for you, my dear sister. A beautiful woman must be paired with a fine car, after all."
"Buy it for me? Then how will you explain it to Lily?"
Nancy said, both happy and somewhat worried, "If Daniel asks about it, I wouldnât know what to say either."
"Just say itâs something I bought for the family, and you can take it and drive it."
Luis continued to coax her, saying, "My dear sister is the treasure of the household. You married into their family, you werenât sold to him. Whatâs wrong with driving a car from your own? Right?"
After this round of persuasion, Nancy found a reason to comfort herself.
Deep down, she was quite vain. She had already been thrilled driving that Cayenne; if she could drive a MercedesâBenz, wouldnât she be over the moon?
Hearing that MercedesâBenz offered no kickback, and that the local store only had display modelsâif she wanted a car in stock she would have to order and wait two or three monthsâNancy was already quite dismayed.
When Blanche inquired further, she learned that the store only sold domestically produced jointâventure cars, which completely killed Nancyâs interest.
"One advantage of a used car is that the breakâin period has already been handled by someone else, and the formaldehyde has been inhaled by them already."
So Luis took her to the flagship store in the suburbs of the provincial capital. Blanche was already waiting there early, smiling warmly and saying, "You two are really something. That Cayenne hasnât even been driven for long, and already youâre thinking about buying a new car."
Blanche was dressed elegantly and alluringly today. She did not have a stunningly beautiful face, but she was definitely pretty. Combined with her exceptional sense of style, she was radiant, standing there like a scenery all her own.
"Teacher, you look so beautiful today."
Nancy did not have many friends; Blanche could be considered both a teacher and a friend, and their relationship was quite good. They often made appointments to go to beauty treatments and fitness clubs together to maintain their figures.
She went up and affectionately hugged Blancheâs arm. Blanche smiled brightly and said, "Letâs go, have a cup of coffee first, and then Iâll tell you something interesting."
Imported and higherâend MercedesâBenz models had to be found at the flagship store in the provincial capital, which wasnât actually far, located at the border between Bathek City and the provincial capital.
The provincial highway was very wide, lined with flagship stores of various car brands, 4S stores, and usedâcar markets.
There was a cafĂ© downstairs from a hotel by the roadside. They each ordered a coffee; Luis really couldnât stand the stuff, so he got a glass of watermelon juice instead.
As soon as they sat down, Blanche lowered her voice and said, "Do you know who works there? Deewa works there."
"Deewa, sheâs selling cars?"
"Yes, she said before that she worked at a nightclubânot as a hostess, but her soâcalled boyfriend was an agent for a brand of alcohol, and he put her in charge of promotion there."
"You know her foul temperâshe doesnât know how to flatter or say nice things."
Blanche said with a hint of schadenfreude, "That alcohol simply couldnât be promoted, and besides, sheâs always been arrogant and looked down on such hardâearned money."
"In a place like that, still putting on airs and not even letting people take verbal advantageâhow could she possibly get by?"
Blanche described it vividly: "Her soâcalled boyfriend is just a minor shareholder with a 5% stake in a nightclub. His hardware wholesale business doesnât make much money either."
"No way, Deewa would go for someone like that?"
Nancy was also quite gossipy, her face full of excitement.
"Of course she wouldnât. A smallâtime boss, a nouveau riche. Probably he was willing to splash some cash at the beginning. And heâs 50, not much to look at either."
"Sheâs so selfâimportant. Even as a mistress, she got jealous of other women and had a public fight with that boyfriend."
Nancy could not hide her disdain: "There are plenty of beautiful women out there, sheâs not the only one. With that awful temper, always dreaming of snagging a rich husbandâwhat wealthy young master would put up with that?"
Luis could easily imagine what kind of woman she was. Come to think of it, Nancyâs temper wasnât great either, but compared to this, it seemed almost normal.
"He probably got tired of her, was embarrassed in public, got angry and slapped Deewa, then dumped her."
"Deewa felt too ashamed to stay, so she ran here, got someone to introduce her, and now works as a salesperson at the flagship store."
Nancy said with a puzzled look, "Sheâs in sales? With that mouth of hers and her attitude, she wouldnât even qualify as a hostess, let alone become a top salesperson."
Blanche said with a smile, "She definitely wonât be satisfied with the income from that kind of job. She still wants to be a car modelâthatâs where the fast money is."
It had to be said that Blanche was truly adept at gossip. She handled interpersonal relationships well, so she had lots of inside information. If you wanted to dig up someoneâs dark history, going to her was always right.
But she deliberately shared this clearly to cater to Nancyâs tastes, knowing that Nancy would be gleeful hearing about her rivalâs embarrassing mishaps.
Among the people from their circle, apart from Chloe who came from a wealthy family with connections and became a flight attendant with a formal job, those without family ties generally hadnât done well.
Mainly, their vanity was right out in the open. Seeing too much of other peopleâs lavish, decadent lives made it easy to fall into corruption.
Becoming a hostess or entering the sex trade wasnât unusual, nor was it something they did willingly. Many dreamed of becoming celebrities or big internet stars, making that easy, quick money.
After sharing this important piece of news, Blanche checked the time and said, "Iâve sent you Phillipaâs contact information. I need to go look at marble building materials next door. Iâll head back on my own later."
"Okay, thank you, Teacher Blanche."
Nancyâs smile was especially sweet.
Blanche was quite resourceful. This Phillipa was also a salesperson at that flagship store, originally considered the top salesperson there.
But after Deewa arrived, she did fairly well thanks to her looks, subtly threatening Phillipaâs position. In fact, several of Phillipaâs clients had gone to Deewa to place orders.
Sales at a store werenât just about selling cars; maintenance and servicing were also major revenue streams, and competition among sales staff was especially fierce.
After understanding the situation, Luis took Nancy to the luxuriously decorated MercedesâBenz flagship store.
The salesperson Phillipa was already waiting at the entrance, looking very eager. Her appearance was ordinary, but she wore a professional smile and promptly ushered the two inside.
The moment they entered the store, Nancyâs eyes narrowed, filled with unmistakable hostility.
Luis followed her gaze and was momentarily stunned by what he saw.