Chapter 219
"Thank you, Marshall."
Her voice was soft, her eyes sparkling brightly.
Marshall watched her lower her head to caress the necklace. The frustration that had been bottled up by customer service finally eased a little.
He turned to the clerk. "This one. Wrap it up."
The clerk nodded, pulled out a tablet, and handed it to Allegra. "Miss, please verify your identity. The brand requires all customers purchasing from the Royal Heritage Collection to register under their real name for future maintenance services."
Allegra took the tablet and entered her name on the screen, then pressed confirm.
A green circle spun on the screen twice, then stopped.
A bright red warning box suddenly popped up.
[This customer has been blacklisted by this mall and is unable to make purchases. For inquiries, please contact the mall's customer service center.]
The smile on Allegra's face froze.
She stared at the red text for several seconds, as if unable to comprehend its meaning.
Then she looked up at the clerk, her voice dry. "This… the system must have made a mistake, right?"
Her voice tightened. She turned to the clerk, forcing a smile. "Your system must be broken. I've never been to this store before. How could I possibly be on a blacklist? Try again."
The clerk glanced at her without saying much, took back the tablet, and swiped again.
The red warning box popped up again, every word crystal clear.
Allegra's smile froze at the corners of her mouth.
Marshall stood beside her, his frown deepening.
He stepped forward half a pace, glanced down at the screen, and his expression darkened. "What's going on? What kind of system does your mall have? How could my fiancée be on a blacklist? Did you make a mistake?"
The clerk's tone remained polite. "Sir, the system records are managed uniformly by the brand. We don't have the authority to modify them. If a customer is indeed on the blacklist, it means they were previously placed on an unwelcome list by the brand or the mall. This record applies across all categories in the mall."
Marshall's expression grew even grimmer.
He opened his mouth to say something, but his gaze fell on Allegra's slightly pale face, and he swallowed his words.
He turned to the clerk. "Bring out another one."
The clerk nodded, turned, and retrieved another necklace from the display case.
A platinum chain. The pendant was an emerald-cut diamond, larger than the sapphire from before.
Marshall took it and held it out to Allegra. "Try this one."
Allegra reached out to take it.
Her fingers had just touched the chain when the clerk's voice came from the side, carrying a hint of reminder. "Miss, this one is also from the same brand. The system records should be shared."
Allegra's fingers froze.
She looked down at the diamond necklace in her hand. It was heavier than she'd expected.
But holding it, she felt like it was burning her palm.
She placed the necklace back on the tray, her voice hoarse. "Then… I'll just go to another store. Marshall, this store's service is terrible. Let's go upstairs."
She turned to leave, but before she could take a step, a cool voice drifted over from the other end of the corridor. "Maybe it's not the experience that's bad. Maybe it's just you—because you're the only one who's blacklisted."
Allegra's steps halted.
She whipped her head around and saw Lucinda leaning casually against a pillar in the corridor, phone in hand, posture relaxed.
The hem of her trench coat hung at her sides. Her gaze landed on Allegra's face, carrying a faint, almost careless hint of amusement.
Allegra's face flushed red. "What are you talking about? How could I possibly be blacklisted? I haven't done anything!"
The more agitated she became, the more onlookers gathered.
Lucinda continued calmly. "Is that so? But I remember—in this entire mall, you're the only one restricted from making purchases."
That single sentence ignited Allegra's fury. "Lucinda! What are you saying?! What gives you the right to slander me?"
Marshall's expression darkened as well. "Lucinda, if you're going to say something, you need evidence. Don't maliciously defame people just to win an argument."
Lucinda ignored both of them. She walked straight to the counter.
The clerk froze, not yet reacting, when Lucinda reached out and turned the computer screen around.
"Miss…" The clerk instinctively tried to stop her.
But Allegra suddenly laughed—a laugh full of schadenfreude.
Inside, she couldn't help but think that Lucinda must have truly lost it to dare touch a staff member's computer.
When the manager arrived, this would be the perfect handle against her.
Tampering with staff equipment, disrupting business operations…
Today, she probably wouldn't even be able to leave.
Thinking this, Allegra's earlier gloom lifted considerably. She even began to look forward to Lucinda's impending humiliation.
Marshall frowned as well. "Lucinda, have you lost your mind? Put the computer down!"
But Lucinda acted as if she hadn't heard him. Her slender fingers flew across the keyboard with practiced ease, as if she'd done this many times before.
A light click of the mouse, and the backend management page opened directly.
The clerk stood beside her, completely stunned.
How…
How does she know how to access the backend?
Allegra, however, hadn't noticed. She was still waiting to watch Lucinda embarrass herself.
Just then, Lucinda opened the member system and entered a name: Allegra.
The page refreshed quickly. The next second, Lucinda stepped slightly aside.
"See for yourself."
Every gaze in the room snapped to the screen. In the center, a glaring red notice stood out starkly.
Member Level: Intermediate VIP.
Member Status: Permanently restricted from transactions.
Restriction Scope: All operating areas of this mall.
Below that was an even more conspicuous note: [Allegra Wipere is prohibited from entering all consumer systems in this mall.]
The entire exhibition hall fell silent instantly. Then, a burst of murmurs erupted from the crowd.
"She really is blacklisted."
"Not just the jewelry store—the entire mall."
"No wonder she couldn't verify her identity."
"She kept saying the system was broken. Turns out it wasn't the system that was broken."
"This is the first time I've seen an entire mall blacklist a single member."
Eyes turned toward Allegra, and many couldn't help but laugh quietly.
The color drained from Allegra's face bit by bit. She stared at the screen, her lips trembling slightly. "No… that's impossible… How could this happen…"
Marshall's expression grew darker and darker. He slowly turned his head to look at Allegra, doubt flickering in his eyes for the first time. "Allegra. You told me… it was just a misunderstanding with the jewelry brand, didn't you? So why is the entire mall restricting you now?"