Chapter 71

Cough—

All eyes turned over with doubt, Shu Lingchen rubbed their nose embarrassedly.

A bit, but I couldn't say it out.

How could I say it in front of everyone? Actually, he had been foolishly deceived by the Chu family mother and daughter for many years, letting them live in his house and spend his money, and then he ended up impoverished.

Damn, it's all his black history; it'll seriously damage his 'school bully' prestige.

"Let's eat first, we'll talk about this later, later." Shu Lingchen sat down again, not daring to meet Shu Shu's half-smile eyes beside him, and awkwardly changed the topic: "Hey, where were we just talking? Let's continue."

…

The meal ended happily, a group of people ate and drank their fill, laughing and chatting as they left the private room.

Upon reaching the lobby, they saw that the resting area was filled entirely with people who looked like students.

Unlike the carefree ease of Class 12 after eating and drinking well, the people of Yi Ban had been waiting here for over two hours, almost withering away.

Half an hour earlier——

Because they knew they could come to Quinxing Restaurant for dinner today, some people specially skipped breakfast and lunch, arriving with empty stomachs just to feast heavily tonight, feeling that missing even a bite of Quinxing's dishes would be a loss.

But who would have thought that Chu Lian would leave and not return, leaving them hungry until now.

They unconsciously pressed their growling stomachs, feeling as if their chest were sticking to their back.

Quinxing Restaurant does good business; during peak times, customers often queue for seats, so while waiting, the restaurant specially prepares tea and snacks for waiting guests.

All are provided free of charge, without limit.

Chu Lian has been gone for a while, and neither messages nor phone calls have been answered; is she still dealing with a complaint with the restaurant's manager?

In short, at that time no one thought about leaving.

This is Quinxing Restaurant; having a meal there is enough to brag about for a long time—who would bear to just leave like that?

After all, the Eldest Young Lady Chu Lian's image is deeply ingrained in everyone's mind, so no one suspected this meal would be stood up.

They glanced at the snacks on the self-service table in the supply area and immediately thought, waiting while hungry isn't an option, and they were getting a bit unable to bear it.

The group, unable to resist their cravings, started eating fruit tea and snacks.

They had only intended to casually fill their stomachs a bit, but to their surprise, although these were free desserts, they were all made by Quinxing's chef, with a soft, sweet texture and an astonishing flavor.

Thus, one small cake after another went into their stomachs.

With forty or fifty people, the consumption was easy to imagine; soon, the plates on the self-service table gradually became completely empty.

A few servers responsible for supplying the resting area came to clear the empty plates, about to push the cart to the kitchen to replenish snacks, when the lobby manager, who had just arranged a private-room guest to come out, saw them and called out.

The manager glanced at the resting area and asked, "Why haven't these students left yet?"

One of the servers said, "I'm not sure, manager; they've been sitting here for almost two hours—aren't they waiting for a seat?"

"What waiting for a seat? There are still several private rooms empty tonight." The manager glanced at the stack of empty plates on the cart and asked, "Did they eat these snacks?"

"Yes, that's right."

"They're not really guests." The manager frowned and immediately ordered, "Take them out; before everyone leaves, don't serve any more tea or snacks."

The customers who come to Quinxing Restaurant to eat are either wealthy and powerful or high-quality patrons; if they were genuinely here for a meal, who would treat appetizer desserts as a main course and eat them without restraint?

"Okay, manager."

…

Here.

Yi Ban's people still hadn't seen the snacks replenished; seeing the servers responsible for the resting area return, they were about to ask what was happening when they heard:

"Sorry, please leave Quinxing Restaurant; don't obstruct the customers who will come later to wait for seats."

Everyone was dumbfounded upon hearing that.

Zhang Lu was the first to stand up unhappily: "What do you mean by that? Aren't we customers too? On what grounds are you kicking us out?"

The server politely smiled: "But you've been here for nearly two hours, there are empty seats here, yet we haven't seen you sit down to eat."

Zhang Lu awkwardly choked: "Well, that's because we're waiting for a friend; she went in to find your manager, and once she comes out we'll surely have a meal, right?"

"I am the manager of Quinxing Restaurant——"

The lobby manager walked over and asked, "I've been busy all along; I haven't seen the friend you mentioned."

"Impossible!" Zhang Lu widened her eyes: "It's a girl in a white dress with long hair; she said two hours ago she was going to find the manager—you didn't see her? Or perhaps she wasn't looking for you."

Saying this, Zhang Lu also took out her phone and pulled up a photo of Chu Lian to show the manager.

…

The boss had once said that Quinxing Restaurant had issued two free consumption cards in total, a primary card and a secondary card.

Anyone holding a card is Quinxing's most important VIP, a benefactor-level guest, requiring the utmost hospitality.

Although Chu Lian had only come to Quinxing twice with the card, the manager still had a deep impression of her.

Even before, upon hearing she was coming here to celebrate her birthday, the manager had specially instructed the staff to prepare a several-layered luxurious cake and longevity noodles, making a big fuss for her occasion.

Today, it's the third time.

The manager had originally planned to continue arranging things for Chu Lian, but who would have thought— the front desk informed him that someone had come with the primary card to cancel the secondary card, on the grounds that the secondary card had been fraudulently used.

"Did you see clearly? It's her, she's my friend." Zhang Lu said: "Just now, because of some consumption-card issue, a misunderstanding arose, which is why she went in to find your manager to talk about this."

The manager nodded: "Right, the consumption card is one that only our boss's two important VIPs can possess; as long as you hold it, you can spend without limit at Quinxing."

"Yeah, then my friend is your VIP—her name is Chu Lian." Upon hearing the manager mention the boss's important VIPs, which are high-status, Zhang Lu immediately proudly explained: "Surname Chu, clear Chu, compassionate Lian, Chu Lian——"

But the manager cut her off with a firm statement: "But this consumption card isn't hers; she's fraudulently using it!"

As soon as those words fell, everyone's faces changed dramatically.

"How could that be?" Zhang Lu said: "My friend is a miss from a wealthy family; her family isn't short of money—what need would there be to fraudulently use it?"

At that moment, the manager glanced at the group from Class 12 exiting the private room after their meal, his gaze fixing on one of the people walking at the front.

After learning that the holder of the primary card had come to cancel the secondary card, the manager had checked the front desk's surveillance footage and instantly recognized Shu Lingchen.

The manager gestured with his hand, saying, "Because that person is the true cardholder—"

Everyone turned their heads.

Following the manager's gaze, they saw Shu Lingchen.