C18 A Skyhigh Meal

"Heh, you got that right. Someone like you, Jiang Chen, would never set foot in this hotel if not for me."

Jiang Chen just sneered in response, choosing to remain silent.

"Sure you're footing the bill, Young Master Wei? In that case, I'll help myself," Jiang Chen said with a chuckle.

"Go ahead, order whatever you want. It's not hard to get rid of a beggar like you, is it?"

With that, Wei Rui dismissed Jiang Chen and turned his attention elsewhere.

Before long, the hot dishes arrived, and the wine was poured.

Once everyone's plates were full and their cups brimmed with wine, they each took turns toasting Wei Rui.

As Jiang Chen raised his glass, Wei Rui swelled with pride. He shot a glance at Murong Xiang, his look implying, "See, this is the guy you used to fawn over, and now he's cowering before me."

Murong Xiang let out a sigh. Back in their school days, she was drawn to the untainted Jiang Chen who was indifferent to fame and fortune, not this submissive version of him, bowing down to money.

This realization filled her with disappointment.

She glanced at Wei Rui, who was throwing money around without a care, and it seemed as though she could already envision their future.

In a moment of clarity, Murong Xiang decided, "Wei Rui, this toast is for you."

With that, she downed her glass of wine in one go.

Wei Rui watched, thrilled by her gesture. Surely, this meant she was accepting his advances?

With this thought, Wei Rui's eyes gleamed with cunning. He excused himself to the restroom, taking a few others with him, seemingly conspiring.

The rest of the party continued to eat and drink merrily, but Jiang Chen hardly touched his food.

Truth be told, even without his Immortal Venerable physique, he didn't need food to sustain his energy.

Murong Xiang kept drinking, her eyes occasionally drifting towards Jiang Chen. His continued indifference only deepened her sense of disappointment.

Jiang Chen, oh Jiang Chen, you were so fond of me back in our school days. Why do you seem so indifferent to me now?

Why can't you understand?

Murong Xiang's frustration grew with each thought, and before she knew it, she had polished off half a bottle of whiskey.

With another glass downed, Murong Xiang's cheeks were a deep shade of red.

Wai Rui's face was also flushed with excitement. He called out to the waiter, "Hey, waiter! Get my Uncle over here. I'm footing the bill for everything today!"

Upon hearing the call, Uncle Wai quickly made his way over.

"My dear nephew, you've earned me a hefty commission this time," Uncle Wai said, his eyes alight with the vision of himself behind the wheel of his dream car.

Wai Rui was in distress. "Uncle, after the discount... how much do I owe?"

Uncle Wai did a quick tally and then provided Wai Rui with a precise figure. "You racked up a bill of 119,800 yuan. Let's round it down to an even 100,000 yuan."

Wai Rui's face turned ghostly white, his expression a mix of shock and dismay.

One hundred thousand?

His monthly salary was barely seven or eight thousand. No matter how much money he had, he couldn't sustain this kind of spending!

"Um, Uncle, can we talk about something?"

Wai Rui pulled his uncle aside.

"Is there any way I could owe you for a bit...?"

"No way!"

Uncle Wai's refusal was immediate, his spit flying across Wai Rui's face.

All eyes were on Wai Rui now.

To keep from being found out, Wai Rui led his uncle further away, making sure they were out of earshot before he continued in a hushed tone.

Then, Uncle Wai spoke with gravity, "Listen, my boy, it's not that I don't want to help, but the hotel simply won't allow it. Unless you're acquainted with the hotel owner, I'm afraid if I do this for you, I could lose my job..."

Hearing this, Wai Rui's complexion turned the color of liver. He was at a loss for what to do next.

Jiang Chen observed Wai Rui, a hint of understanding flickering in his eyes.

Many glanced at their watches, realizing it was nearly time to get back to work, and began to press impatiently, "Wai Rui, are you finished yet? I've got things to do."

"Come on, speed it up!"

"I've got a client meeting tomorrow; I can't afford to be late! Move it!"

Amid the chorus of prodding, Wai Rui offered only half-hearted assurances, "Almost there, almost there."

Meanwhile, Wai Rui was still pleading with his uncle.

Upon bringing up the bill, his uncle demanded an explanation.

It didn't make sense; a meal for a dozen people shouldn't run more than ten thousand yuan. How did an extra ninety thousand appear out of thin air?

After Wai Rui recounted the events, his uncle was livid.

"That little scoundrel, taking advantage of my nephew!"

"Nephew, hold on. I'll sort this out for you!"

With that, Uncle Wai, brushing aside Wai Rui's attempts to stop him, confronted Jiang Chen.

Wai Rui tried to intervene, but the thought of that astronomical bill choked back his words.

"Kid, did you tack on an extra ninety thousand yuan to my nephew's bill?"

Uncle Wai stood before Jiang Chen, puffing himself up with indignation. To him, these were just naive students, a thought that bolstered his confidence.

"Yes, what about it?" Jiang Chen's response to Uncle Wai's accusation was cool and unruffled.

But the calmness of the young man only unsettled Uncle Wai further.

"You should pay for what you eat. It would be one thing if you ate normally, but you deliberately chose the most expensive items. You're clearly trying to swindle my nephew."

"I won't mince words. Call your parents and have them come here, or you're not leaving this hotel today."

Wai Rui, overhearing his uncle's demands, was reluctant to step forward.

Under the scrutiny of the crowd, Wai Rui shrank back, too embarrassed to show his face.

"Oh, there's no need for that. Use this card."

Jiang Chen remained stoic, effortlessly producing a bank card from his pocket.

At this turn of events, the onlookers couldn't contain their laughter.

"Wai Rui, cut it out. We're talking about 100,000 yuan here. Are you really sure your account can cover that? Having even 10,000 yuan would be impressive!"

"Exactly. I let it slide when you strut around in class because, hey, it's just school. But this is a fancy hotel, in front of all these people. You're not seriously trying to show off here, are you?"

"Who are you kidding? I could claim I've got a billion yuan in my bank account too."

Wai Rui just scoffed and yelled across the room to Jiang Chen, about fifteen meters away, "Hey, Jiang Chen, better call your folks. If you've actually got 100,000 yuan in your account, I'll eat sh*t right here and now!"