Chapter 305 - 302: The Green Tea’s Punishment (Finale)

Chapter 305: Chapter 302: The Green Tea’s Punishment (Finale)

「10:00 p.m.」

"Ma’am, has your friend arrived yet? Our restaurant is about to close." The waitress came over, asking for what felt like the umpteenth time.

Zhang Yuanyuan stiffened. She was now the only customer left on the second floor of the restaurant. Many of the staff were already cleaning up.

Sweat beaded on her forehead from anxiety. "I’m sorry, I’m so sorry. Please, just a little longer. I’ll try calling my friend again."

Her arm trembling, she picked up her phone to call President Jiang. However, it was the same as the previous twenty-some times.

"Sorry, the number you have dialed is switched off. Please try again later."

It was as if President Jiang had completely vanished. No matter how many times she called or texted, there was no reply.

Even though she had a feeling she might have been tricked tonight, she couldn’t bring herself to believe it. ’There’s just no reason for it.’

This was the first time she and President Jiang had met. They’d had a wonderful conversation, and it was obvious to anyone that he was interested in her. She had even been ready to throw herself into his arms. Besides, they had no history, no grudges. There was no reason for him to target her like this.

But that was the cold, hard truth.

"Ma’am, why don’t you settle the bill first? As for your friend, you can sort that out after you get home, alright?" the waitress said with a faint smile.

She’d seen this coming a mile away. The girl had probably been stood up. She couldn’t comment on that, but the dishes on the table were, without a doubt, ordered by the girl herself.

If you eat a meal, you have to pay. That’s just how it is.

Zhang Yuanyuan swallowed hard and asked weakly, "I was wondering... how much... how much is it in total?"

"The red wine is 3,680, the food is 4,370, for a total of 8,050. Here is the bill. Will you be paying with cash or card?"

"How much?! E... 8,050?!"

Zhang Yuanyuan’s eyes went wide. Although she knew this meal would be expensive, she never imagined it would be *this* expensive!

’If I had known, I would have ordered fewer dishes! And that bottle of red wine... I only had one small sip!’

She was studying in the Imperial Capital, and her family only gave her about 1,500 a month for living expenses. This one meal was equivalent to half a year’s allowance. Not to mention, she was a big spender—always buying clothes, makeup, and bags. Even if she sold herself, she couldn’t come up with that much money right now.

"I... I don’t have that much money right now. It... it was Mr. Jiang, the one who made the reservation, who said he was treating me to dinner here. But-but-but he still hasn’t shown up," Zhang Yuanyuan stammered incoherently.

"Ma’am, that’s an issue between the two of you. Right now, you’re the one who ate the meal. You’re not planning to dine and dash, are you?" the waitress said flatly.

She glanced at the table. Every dish had been picked clean. It was clear the girl had been starving earlier.

Zhang Yuanyuan’s breath hitched. The words left her speechless, with no way to defend herself.

"But I really don’t have that much money." She miserably emptied out her belongings. Her purse only contained a little over a hundred in cash. Besides that, there was just lipstick, makeup, her ID card, her student ID, and a single morning-after pill.

"Ma’am, you could call some friends to borrow the money. Otherwise, our restaurant will have no choice but to call the police."

The moment she heard the word "police," Zhang Yuanyuan panicked. She couldn’t afford to get a police record over a meal. She was still so young, with a brilliant future ahead of her. She couldn’t let it be ruined like this.

"No, no, no! Please don’t call the police! I... I’ll figure something out."

She picked up her phone again. After another fruitless call to President Jiang, she set her sights on Wang Ming. As the original artist for *Cat and Mouse*, his monthly salary must be high. Right now, he was the only one who could possibly pay the bill for her.

Zhang Yuanyuan took a soft breath and pressed the call button hard.

Wang Ming had just finished showering. After eating lamb hot pot with Jiang Xia, he returned to his mom’s rental apartment. Jiang Xia had laughed and told him that the "green tea" might call him later and that he should handle it as he saw fit. He warned that if Wang Ming acted like a simp, he would mock him for the rest of his life and even tell Shen Ying about it.

He’d thought it was just a joke, but unexpectedly, the call actually came.

Wang Ming looked at the caller ID. After deliberately letting it ring for a long time, he answered the phone unhurriedly.

When the call connected, Zhang Yuanyuan’s heart leaped with joy. As if grasping at a lifeline, her voice was laced with anxiety. "Senior Brother Ming, are you still on Chongwenmen West Street?"

"What’s wrong?"

"I came looking for you. I wanted to thank you in person for yesterday," Zhang Yuanyuan said in a small, trembling voice. "Can I treat you to a late-night snack?"

"Hmm... Where are you?" Old Wang asked, feigning ignorance.

"I’m right at Maxim’s Restaurant on Chongwenmen West Street," she blurted out.

’Her original plan was to ask Wang Ming to lend her money for the bill, but she’d have to pay back a loan. It was better to say she was treating him to a meal. When the bill came, what kind of guy would actually let a girl pay?’

’At worst, she could just sweet-talk him a bit and shower him with compliments. If that didn’t work, she could sleep with him to pay off the debt. After all, her first time had to be worth at least this much.’

Hearing her words, Wang Ming instantly understood what Jiang Xia had meant. This "green tea" had eaten at a high-end Western restaurant, probably ran up a huge bill she couldn’t afford, and now she wanted him to be her fall guy.

But he was just slow when it came to romance, not stupid.

’Does she really take me for a total sucker?’

He sneered.

"A Western restaurant? Aren’t they all closed by now? A barbecue stall or something would be fine. I’m not that hungry right now anyway."

"But I’m already here. Senior Brother Ming, can you come pick me up? I didn’t wear many clothes today, and it’s so cold outside. We can go for barbecue together then," Zhang Yuanyuan said pitifully.

"Maxim’s Restaurant, right? Okay, I’ll be there in a bit." After saying this, Wang Ming hung up, turned off his phone, got into bed, and went to sleep—all in one smooth motion.

The thought of that green tea bitch waiting there until the flowers wilted put him in an exceptionally good mood.

"Senior Brother Ming? Senior Brother Ming?"

She had wanted to ask about President Jiang, but the busy signal from the receiver forced her to put the phone down.

Although Wang Ming had promised to come over right away, after the precedent set by President Jiang, she had a bad feeling he couldn’t be trusted. Then again, she remembered how he had braved the blizzard to pick her up from the bar after midnight just last night. ’He wouldn’t stand me up today, would he?’

"Ma’am, how did it go? Did you reach someone?" At that moment, the waitress walked over and asked.

"My friend said he’s on his way. Please, just give me a little more time," Zhang Yuanyuan said nervously.

However, twenty minutes passed, and Wang Ming, too, had become unreachable. She was completely dumbfounded.

"Miss, we are now closed. Will you be paying with cash or card? If you don’t have the money to settle the bill, I will have no choice but to call the police and let them handle it."

The person speaking to her now was no longer the waitress, but the restaurant’s lobby manager, who delivered the ultimatum without any courtesy.

Zhang Yuanyuan nearly collapsed to the floor. She looked at the lobby manager and made a pitiful plea.

"I... I really don’t have that much money right now. Can I pay on credit? I... I’ll leave my ID card and my student ID here as collateral. I’ll write an IOU. Please, just give me a few days. I promise I’ll pay it back."

...

(Phew, the green tea arc is temporarily over. Old Wang’s tragedy from his past life has been completely rewritten. From now on, even if other green teas appear, they will only be mentioned briefly.)