Chapter 258: Chapter 249: If the Relationship Is Special, You Don’t Have to Pay It Back
Xue Rui noticed Qin Tong and Gu Muxue looking at them. He said, "Even with brothers, you have to settle your debts. He owed me money from before."
When Qin Tong heard the part about owing money, she inexplicably felt like he was singling her out, because Xue Rui was looking at her as he spoke.
"But if the relationship is special, then there’s no need to pay it back. It’s all our money anyway," Xue Rui added quietly.
The corners of Gu Muxue’s mouth lifted slightly. Xue Rui still owed her money, too. With his current financial situation, he could pay her back at any time, but he hadn’t. Instead, he had said something like that.
She knew, too, that the relationship between her and Xue Rui was very special.
Xue Rui noticed Qin Tong’s expression was a little unnatural. ’Maybe this girl isn’t so bad at heart,’ he thought. ’But this is just how society is. Guys have to pay a huge price to chase after girls.’
’Right now, Qin Tong might feel a little indebted, but once she deals with a few more simps in the future, she’ll start accepting it without a second thought.’
It was only 2014. The economy was on an upswing that would last for a long time to come. The "simp economy" hadn’t reached its peak yet, and a girl’s "value" would soar in the future along with the rise of the real estate market.
The holy trinity—a house, a car, and a betrothal gift—would cost hundreds of thousands even in a small city like Hedong...
His childhood friend’s family was actually quite well-off. His parents were honest and hardworking. Being a fishmonger was considered an upper-middle-income job in a small city. It just didn’t sound very respectable. That, coupled with their habitually frugal lifestyle, made Qiu Mengze think his family was poor...
In reality, from Xue Rui’s perspective, Qiu Mengze’s family had a solid financial foundation, far exceeding that of most working-class people. As long as Qiu Mengze didn’t do anything reckless and just followed his parents’ arrangements, he could live a stable and peaceful life.
Unfortunately, if a family like this ran into a gold digger, half their savings would be wiped out.
Xue Rui thought this Qin Tong girl was actually decent enough. At least she hadn’t dragged her best friend along to fleece Qiu Mengze together.
But it was hard to say what would happen once she got to college. Simps in college were a dime a dozen. With Qin Tong’s barely-passing looks and her increasingly proficient makeup skills in the future, she wouldn’t lack for followers.
The girl was already showing signs of going down the wrong path.
When he occasionally chatted with the factory workers or the old folks at the nursing home, he would often hear stories about so-and-so’s wife running off with all the money...
’Never test human nature. Once a person gets used to a life where they can make money just by standing there, they can never go back to the days of toiling away, taking crap from a boss, and earning only a few thousand a month...’
"Let’s see what you do when you run out of money," Xue Rui said under his breath.
He had asked last night. The kid had enough money left to buy a computer, but to avoid being broke when he ran into Qin Tong, he had slashed his computer budget.
Qiu Mengze’s heart skipped a beat. What Xue Rui said was exactly the same as what that old guy at the internet cafe had told him.
The man had told him a lot. If you started out spending beyond your means to impress a girl, but couldn’t maintain that high standard of spending after you got together, she would quickly be lured away by another guy...
His dad had given him ten thousand yuan for a phone and computer. At first, he thought he’d never be able to spend it all. But in just two short days, he only had a little over five thousand left. And who knew how much would be left after this meal...
"I can earn it," Qiu Mengze said seriously.
The corner of Xue Rui’s eye twitched. Making money without capital was incredibly difficult. He had experienced that feeling in his past life; every step from zero to a million was a struggle. In the end, it was his dad who gave him the startup capital.
However, once you crossed a certain threshold and entered the upper circles, a qualitative change occurred.
Take his dad, for example. He hadn’t had much schooling, but now it was hard for him to lose money doing business locally. For instance, Xie Jianfeng had invested in a winery this year. The wine was only produced after securing fixed sales channels, and those channels were exclusive to a small, private circle...
Then there was his family’s resort hotel. It had a conference hall that could hold a thousand people. Without connections, it would sit empty year-round.
Hearing Qiu Mengze’s words now, he was reminded of his own young and reckless self. He just gave a noncommittal smile and changed the subject. "Did you make a reservation?"
Qiu Mengze was confused. "Do we need one? They said we could come anytime."
Xue Rui looked in the direction Qiu Mengze was pointing. Sure enough, there was a Western restaurant on the third floor.
He turned back and placed the hat on the little lady’s head, joking, "Muxue, order the expensive stuff. Someone else is paying, anyway."
Gu Muxue laughed and playfully slapped Xue Rui. Who would swindle their good friend like that? But she knew he was just kidding.
Qiu Mengze felt the cash in his pocket and said magnanimously, "Be my guest."
The group arrived at the entrance of the Western restaurant. A trellis outside was decorated with ivy and some pink roses. Qiu Mengze was secretly delighted, feeling that the atmosphere here was perfect—the kind of place only couples would go to.
Inside, the restaurant was brightly lit, with lush green vines hanging from the wooden ceiling. Xue Rui took a closer look and saw they were fucking plastic.
Xue Rui felt the decor was a bit unlucky. ’A sea of green above your head... not a good omen.’
He glanced back and saw Qin Tong holding up her phone, taking a picture of the decorations at the entrance. She was probably getting ready to post it on her social media.
"Hello, how many in your party?" a waitress in uniform asked.
"Four," Qiu Mengze replied.
After they entered, a waitress led them to a table. She stood by with menus to give them an introduction, holding a small notepad to take their order.
Qiu Mengze took the menu and glanced at it. It wasn’t as expensive as he had imagined. The priciest set meal for one was only 108 yuan.
He handed the menu to Qin Tong. "You go ahead. What would you like to eat?"
Qin Tong gave an awkward smile. It was her first time in a place like this, too. She simply passed the menu to Gu Muxue. "You order first."
Gu Muxue nodded, but just as she took the menu, Xue Rui covered it with his hand. "Just bring us your house specialties."
His family was also in the restaurant business. If Gu Muxue ordered a set meal that wasn’t popular, the ingredients might have been frozen for months and wouldn’t be fresh.
Qiu Mengze nodded. ’I’ve learned something new,’ he thought. ’When in doubt, order the house specialty...’
"Of course, sir. How would you like your steaks done?" the waitress asked.
"How well-done can you make it? Twelve-tenths? Is that an option?" Xue Rui joked.
Qiu Mengze froze for a second. ’This wasn’t in any of the guides I looked up online for how to act cool,’ he thought.
He blurted out, "Why don’t you just get barbecue then?"
The waitress asked, "So, well-done, correct?"
Then she looked at the others.
"He and I will both have medium-well," Gu Muxue said, pointing at Xue Rui.
She turned to Xue Rui and explained, "Xiaorui, you won’t be able to chew a well-done steak."
She knew Xue Rui’s preferences and made the decision for him.
Qiu Mengze shot them an envious glance. ’Xue Rui definitely doesn’t know anything about this either, but Gu Muxue didn’t laugh at him. She even made the choice for him.’
"Muxue, these are reconstituted steaks. The quality control is questionable. Medium-well might give you an upset stomach," Xue Rui said in a low voice.
He knew a fair bit about the restaurant industry. This place spent most of its money on labor and rent. They’d even gotten a piano for the center of the dining room, and the decorations must have cost a lot.
For a set meal that cost around a hundred yuan, the ingredient cost couldn’t possibly be more than twenty. Otherwise, the owner would go broke.
Gu Muxue blinked, her eyes filled with confusion. ’What’s a reconstituted steak?’
The waitress overheard Xue Rui. The chef in the back had told her something similar before. ’Looks like we’ve got an expert here...’ she thought.
She smiled and said, "Then let’s make them all well-done."
Neither Qiu Mengze nor Qin Tong objected.
Soon, several standard, assembly-line set meals were brought out—steak and spaghetti. The waitress set out the knives and forks for them.
Xue Rui and Gu Muxue sat side-by-side, with Qin Tong and Qiu Mengze sitting across from them.
It was Qiu Mengze’s first time eating at this kind of restaurant. He had completely forgotten proper table etiquette—whether the fork went on the left or the right.
The cutlery was placed with the knife on the right, but Gu Muxue was actually using them the other way around. This made him a little unsure of himself...
But he firmly believed that it was always right to copy Gu Muxue. She definitely wouldn’t be using them incorrectly.
As for copying Xue Rui? That guy wasn’t even using a knife and fork. He’d asked the waitress to have the steak cut for him and was using chopsticks, while playing on his phone with his left hand. It was no different from how he usually ate...
He actually wanted to use chopsticks too, but with Qin Tong here, he couldn’t bring himself to do it.
Qin Tong noticed both of them were doing it that way, so she also started copying Gu Muxue.
Gu Muxue watched as the two people across from her both held their knives in their left hands to cut. She asked in surprise, "Are you guys left-handed too?"
"Uh... no," Qiu Mengze said, shaking his head.
He had forgotten that detail. Gu Muxue was a lefty, so she often used things the opposite way from most people. He had copied her in reverse. No wonder it felt so awkward.
Gu Muxue took a small bite and instantly understood what "reconstituted meat" meant. She couldn’t help but marvel at how much real-world experience Xue Rui had...
She put down her utensils and her gaze shifted to the piano in the middle of the restaurant.
After hesitating for a long while, she gently squeezed Xue Rui’s leg. "Xiaorui, I’ll play a song for you."
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