Over the weekend, a press conference was held in Zhao family's house. Coincidentally, Autumn's birthday was also at the same day. With both these events, both the Zhao family and Lu family were pretty busy and occupied recently.
Autumn got up quite early in the morning, got dressed and did an extensive make-up routine. She put on the clothes bought by Chris especially for the event. In Chris' view, every lady should dress well and enjoy fashion when she was young, otherwise it would be too late for her to spend time on her appearance when she was old.
Autumn instantly laughed as she heard Chris say that. "You got a smart mouth."
"Isn't that true?" Chris stared at Autumn's delicate face, then said, "Autumn, you're so pretty. Why don't you take good care of your skin?"
"I don't consider beauty as a useful and important aspect, somehow." Autumn never thought she could get an edge or receive undue benefits owing to her beauty. When she was a child, her father Bowen always told her that her mother was very beautiful in her early 20s.
Wendy, however, hurt Bowen badly.
Therefore, Bowen always taught her one lesson: Do not care about your appearance, but instead work on your personality and inner beauty. This was the most valuable aspect.
"But beauty is a big advantage." Chris yet again tried to convince Autumn of her perspective, "For example, if two young girls are seeking jobs in your company, one is good-looking and the other one is rather ugly, who would will you select?"
Chris smiled bitterly, and then continued in a soft tone, "That's the bitter truth. In this society, everyone will choose the former one. And the two girls will diverge to take separate paths in life."
Chris helped Autumn fix up her outfit, gently pushed her in front of the mirror, and said in a cheerful voice, "Well, Autumn, look at yourself in the mirror. Don't you think you look elegant and so much more refined?"
Autumn took a quick and yet casual glance at herself. However, she could not conceal her shock to see that nice clothes had actually made such a magical and transformation effect on her rather humble appearance.
Seeing Autumn's shy smile, Chris knew that she was satisfied with this look and approved of it. She quickly picked up a small box from the dressing table, and then asked Autumn, "You still need some jewel. Autumn, do you like this?"
A diamond necklace was discreetly lying in a small, velvet box. Even though the day was gloomy, this necklace was shiny and bright. Chris wanted Autumn to wear it, but the latter refused the generous offer.
"No, Chris. This is way too expensive. I cannot accept it." She guessed for certain that this delicate piece of jeweler was much more expensive than the one she had given Chris earlier, unless she's a fool. How could she accept such an extravagant offering?
"Autumn, if you don't accept this, I will be deeply hurt and unhappy. Don't you regard me as your younger sister?" Chris pretended to be angry. "When you gave me a birthday gift, I just happily accepted it with no questions. Now I want to give you one. Why don't you just accept it? It is just a necklace."
"But it's too... expensive and extravagant..." Autumn could not accept it with it's high price tag. She was afraid she could never repay her.
"What are you worried about?" Chris smiled in good humor and said, "Autumn, I have to remind you that all the clothes I'm wearing are bought by my brother, who is your husband. All my pocket money is also still given by him. And now I used my pocket money to buy you a gift. It's almost like he has bought you this gift. Why won't you just accept it?"
Autumn could not find another good reason to turn her down or even reply, but she did feel embarrassed. She then mildly said, "Okay, you are right. Please help me wear this beautiful necklace, Chris. And...thank you for your gift."
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