Chapter 378: A Couple in Youth, Companions in Old Age

The bill was split three ways. After Pan Xiaomei paid her family’s portion, the remaining amount for Luo Xiwen’s family and her aunt’s family totaled nearly 280,000 yuan.

“Oh…”

“Manager Zhou, just put it on my tab.”

Luo Xiwen’s expression didn’t change as she looked up and spoke calmly to Zhou Shun’an.

“Of course.”

Without a moment’s hesitation, Zhou Shun’an replied, then turned to Pan Xiaomei. “Ma’am, will you be continuing your meal?”

“Excuse me?”

“What do you mean by that?”

Seeing Luo Xiwen casually settle a bill of nearly 280,000 yuan, Pan Xiaomei was completely dumbfounded. “She says to put it on her tab, and you just do it?”

“Ms. Zhou, Miss Luo has always put her meals on a tab when dining at our restaurant.”

Zhou Shun’an responded with a smile, “Forgive me for speaking out of turn, but the dishes and wine Miss Luo ordered are genuinely some of her regular favorites. As for your feeling that Miss Luo was trying to gouge you, you’re completely overthinking it.”

‘She always puts it on a tab?’

‘She regularly eats meals that cost tens of thousands of yuan?’

‘She’s just some senior employee at China Merchants Bank. What gives her the right?’

Pan Xiaomei felt like she had walked into a setup orchestrated by the rich and powerful, yet she was utterly speechless.

Faced with Pan Xiaomei’s profound confusion, Zhou Shun’an merely smiled and said nothing.

“Aunt Pan, I really didn’t expect you to have such a strong reaction over a few dishes. It’s my fault; I clearly overestimated your financial standing and spending habits. I was originally going to treat everyone to this meal to avoid losing face in front of guests, but I never thought you’d insist on going Dutch.”

Here, Luo Xiwen sighed softly. “The wild yellow croaker at the Zhenshui Banquet is truly excellent; it’s one of their signature dishes. Even the Zhenshui Banquet’s VIP customers have to reserve it in advance. I just wanted to let you all have a taste, but I never imagined you’d misunderstand.”

“I saw none of you touched your chopsticks just now. Why don’t I have Manager Zhou pack up this fish for you to take home? It won’t taste as good cold, but it should still be decent after you reheat it.”

Luo Xiwen’s voice was gentle, but every sentence was like a dagger aimed straight for Pan Xiaomei’s heart. All of Pan Xiaomei’s earlier arrogant words had been turned into boomerangs, flying right back to strike her.

Pan Xiaomei’s current embarrassment and humiliation were a direct measure of her earlier arrogance and posturing. It was only then that she finally realized she had bitten off more than she could chew.

‘Putting a meal on a tab at a high-end establishment like the Zhenshui Banquet wasn’t something just anyone could do. It required, at minimum, the approval of a Vice President or someone of higher rank from the Zhen Cui Group, the restaurant’s parent company. Moreover, there were always limits to the amount one could charge.’

‘A customer like Luo Xiwen, who could put 280,000 yuan on a tab just by asking… there couldn’t be many people like that in the entire Zhenshui Banquet. And those who did have such qualifications were, without exception, prominent figures in Beichun.’

“Never mind…”

“…packing it up.”

Pan Xiaomei, who had been looking down her nose at everyone just moments ago, was now completely deflated. All her arrogance had vanished, and she could barely bring herself to look Luo Xiwen in the eye. “We’ll be leaving now.”

What Pan Xiaomei could figure out, Shen Zhengsheng naturally could as well.

The two of them pulled Shen Haichen up and scurried out of the private room with their tails between their legs.

“Miss Luo, please enjoy the rest of your meal with your family.”

Seeing that only Luo Xiwen’s family was left, Zhou Shun’an tactfully took his leave. “I’ll show my staff out. Please don’t hesitate to call if you need anything.”

“Thank you for your trouble.”

Luo Xiwen gave a slight nod.

Soon, Zhou Shun’an and the others left the room one by one. At last, only Luo Xiwen’s family and her third aunt’s family remained.

“Eat the seafood while it’s hot. It won’t taste good once it gets cold.”

Luo Xiwen gently reminded her parents and aunt, then picked up her own chopsticks and began to eat. Her expression seemed as calm as ever, but anyone could tell she was seething inside.

“Xi Wen, don’t be angry.”

Luo’s Mother, Hou Meilan, explained, “We had no idea that family would show their true colors like that. If we’d known what they were really like, we never would have asked you to come today.”

“Yes, yes!”

Her third aunt, Hou Meixia, quickly chimed in to explain, “For business reasons, we usually only interact with Shen Zhengsheng. We’ve only met Pan Xiaomei a few times, and she always seemed perfectly pleasant. We truly never expected them to reveal such an ugly side today.”

“This is the first time you’ve tricked me into a blind date. I hope it’s also the last.”

“If any of you ever pressure me about marriage again, I will block every single one of your contact methods.”

Luo Xiwen put down her chopsticks, her tone exceptionally grave. “I’m telling you all one last time: do not interfere in my personal life. I’m very happy with my life as it is now, and I love the way I’m living.”

“Sigh…”

“Meilan, let it go.”

“Our children will make their own way in life. Just let Xi Wen follow her own heart.”

Father Luo sighed softly. “Marriage really comes down to fate. These blind dates today are just about comparing checklists of qualifications. It’s all too mercenary and uninteresting.”

“Xi Wen, your parents only push you to get married because they’re afraid you’ll end up alone and regret it when you’re older. As the saying goes, a couple in youth becomes companions in old age. The couples who can truly share in hardship and happiness are the ones who commit to a life together when they’re young.”

“If you don’t make the most of your time now, you’ll get older and start meeting men who are on their second marriage or divorced with kids. And no matter how much love he shows you or how great his credentials are, his heart will never be completely with you.”

Luo Xiwen’s third uncle-in-law, Ye Taihong, added a few words of persuasion. As a businessman, he’d seen a lot of people and situations, and being older, he was speaking from the heart.

“Mom, Dad, Third Aunt, Third Uncle-in-law, I know you all genuinely want what’s best for me, but right now, that concern feels like a heavy burden. So please, can you stop interfering with my life? Okay?”

Luo Xiwen’s expression softened considerably as she asked this with sincere earnestness.

“Fine.”

“We won’t mention it again.”

“Never again. It’s your life, you decide.”

After everything that had just happened, Luo’s Mother, Hou Meilan, was finally starting to let it go.

‘A child’s happiness is the most important thing, after all.’

‘If she really married into a family like that, living under the thumb of such a vicious mother-in-law, she’d probably be depressed enough to jump off a building within two years.’

With everything out in the open, the atmosphere in the private room eased somewhat.

“Huh?”

“Xi Wen.”

Her third aunt, Hou Meixia, asked with belated realization, “You really confused all of us just now. You said you eat here all the time and can put a bill of over two hundred thousand yuan on a tab. What’s that all about? And do you actually have to pay that bill in the end?”

“Um…”

“Don’t worry about the bill. I don’t have to pay for it.”

Luo Xiwen didn’t explain further, speaking evasively.

When they saw that Luo Xiwen didn’t intend to elaborate, they exchanged glances. Realizing she must have her secrets, they wisely decided not to ask any more questions.

Once Pan Xiaomei and her family left, the blind date gathering turned back into a family banquet. The two families hadn’t gotten together in over two years, and with fine wine and delicious food before them, the private room was soon filled with the sound of laughter and cheerful chatter…