As Su Mei remained silent, Hou Jun swiftly changed the topic and said:
"It should have been an 800 yuan fine. But the absence on the sixth day constitutes continuous absenteeism and is of a serious nature. Therefore, the fine for him should be heavier. I suggest that the supervisor and manager double the fine for the sixth day, to prevent other employees from following suit..."
Double the fine?
There was a collective sigh from the crowd.
Our monthly salary as waiters is only 1,000 yuan.
Doubling the fine, as Hou Jun mentioned, would mean deducting one and a half months' salary for me.
Luckily, I had some savings before.
Otherwise, I would be struggling for these two months.
Others might choose to resign directly in such a situation.
But I remained silent, looking out the window.
It seemed as if everything happening now had nothing to do with me.
After Hou Jun finished speaking, he looked at Sister Mei again and respectfully asked:
"Sister Mei, what do you think?"
Instead of directly answering him, Su Mei looked in my direction and asked:
"Liu Liu, do you have any objections?"
The gaze of everyone in the lobby once again turned towards me.
Everyone assumed that I would definitely defend myself or say something.
However, I simply shook my head lightly and uttered two words:
"I have none."
Last night, Su Mei took me to the casino, and she should have explained for me, but she intentionally didn't mention it.
I knew she was still angry.
She was a highly regarded professional manager.
With a heavenly beauty and captivating charm.
Many men regarded her as a goddess.
But such a woman, in front of me, set aside her dignity, took off her skirt, and apologized to me.
Yet I still rejected her request to become a hidden light.
So, she didn't intervene.
Allowing Hou Jun to challenge me.
But I cared even less about Hou Jun.
If the Blue Daoqian Gate is likened to a wolf pack.
Then I, without a doubt, am a lone wolf aspiring to become the wolf king.
If I aspire to become the wolf king, how could I care about the barking of a mere puppy?
Seeing that I had no objections, Hou Jun thought I was afraid, afraid of losing my job.
He became even more arrogant, pointing his chin in my direction and disdainfully said, "No objections, just pay the fine now..."
I turned my head and glanced at Hou Jun, who was also looking at me.
His gaze held a protest, a provocation.
More than that, it was a domineering certainty.
I was about to speak.
Suddenly, a woman's voice came from the crowd.
"I'll pay for him!"
With just one sentence, everyone present was shocked.
All eyes involuntarily gathered towards the source.
Even Su Mei was looking as well.
However, her expression held a hint of disdain and disgust.
The one speaking was Chen Xiaoxue.
Chen Xiaoxue seemed to greatly enjoy the attention from everyone's gaze.
She held a handbag and walked towards Hou Jun on her high heels.
With her long, slender legs covered in black stockings and her willowy waist, she swayed with every step.
She opened her handbag, swiftly took out one thousand six hundred yuan, and handed it to Hou Jun.
"I'll pay for Chun Liu, one thousand six hundred. You can count it..."
Looking at Chen Xiaoxue.
Hou Jun's expression changed from astonishment to anger, slowly but surely.
Even though they broke up, it can be felt that Hou Jun still harbors feelings for Chen Xiaoxue.
As everyone knows, she is Hou Jun's ex-girlfriend.
Surprisingly, she publicly demanded another man to pay a fine.
For him, this was an absolute humiliation.
"What do you mean, Chen Xiaoxue?"
Chen Xiaoxue seemed indifferent and casually replied,
"It's nothing. He didn't earn much on the sixth day of the month, so I helped him pay the fine. We're colleagues, after all, and we should help each other..."
Chen Xiaoxue's words were clever.
Those who were watching the scene would surely secretly admire her generosity.
As for me, it relieved my embarrassment in public and gave me a significant favor.
She knew that I would definitely repay this favor.
And not only would I repay it, but I would also double it.
Hou Jun's lips trembled, and his face turned pale.
He turned around and stared at me, asking, "Chu Liu, are you trying to be a gigolo and live off women's money?"
A gigolo refers to a man who relies on his good looks to live off women.
In Haibei, such men have always been looked down upon.
Before I could reply, I heard Chen Xiaoxue snort coldly.
"You accuse others of being gigolos and spending women's money. Hou Jun, have you spent less of my money?"
As soon as she finished speaking, a low chuckle spread through the crowd.
Everyone knew about their relationship.
Chen Xiaoxue appeared to be a masseuse.
But occasionally, she would take on some "special services."
She earned much more than Hou Jun.
Rumors among the employees suggested that Hou Jun was being supported by Chen Xiaoxue.
Hou Jun intended to insult me but ended up insulting himself.
He was trembling with anger.
He even clenched his fist, wanting to slap Chen Xiaoxue.
But this was a staff meeting, and he didn't have the guts to do so.
The atmosphere became awkward for a moment.
Sumei, who had been silent with a cold face, suddenly looked at me and asked, "Chu Liu, are you sure you want Chen Xiaoxue to pay your fine?"
I didn't say anything but walked out of the queue.
When I passed by Chen Xiaoxue, I calmly said, "Thanks, you don't need to pay this money."
Then, I approached Sumei.
"I'll pay the fine myself, but Manager Su, don't you owe me money? Shouldn't you return it?"
My tone sounded respectful but was actually indifferent.
As soon as I finished speaking, everyone present was shocked.
I, a low-level server at Tianxiang, and Sumei, who aside from the owner, held the highest authority at Tianxiang.
And she owed me money?
How was that possible?
Even Su Mei looked at me with confusion and asked, "What money do I owe you?"
"The ten thousand yuan from last night!"
Yesterday, I went to the casino and bought chips with my ten thousand yuan.
I ended up winning two million chips and gave them back to Su Mei.
After our falling out, she never gave me back the ten thousand yuan.
Although that ten thousand yuan was the red envelope Su Mei gave me before.
But since she gave it to me, it's mine.
So, I have to have it.
"Well, you have a good memory," Su Mei sarcastically said.
But she still opened her purse and took out a wad of money, handing it to me coldly, saying,
"Ten thousand yuan, is that enough?"
Looking at Su Mei, I didn't take the money but slowly shook my head.
"Not enough!"
My words startled Su Mei.
I had clearly mentioned the ten thousand yuan, so why did I suddenly say it's not enough?
Su Mei's face grew even colder.
She lowered her voice and spoke with a harsh tone,
"Chu Liu, you don't really want the money you won last night, do you? I already told you, yesterday was just a test for you. And that test was meant to be in good faith..."
As she spoke, she stared at me fiercely, her words carrying a hint of threat.
"Chu Liu, don't bite off more than you can chew. Forget about that money from last night. Otherwise, you'll invite trouble, and you won't be able to handle the consequences!"
Perhaps, in Su Mei's eyes,
I was nothing more than a person who knew a little magic tricks but was insatiable.
I certainly don't care to explain to her.
"It's not about the money!"
I said.
"What other money is there?"
Su Mei was puzzled.
Our financial transactions have only been twice.
Su Mei couldn't understand why she still owed me money.
"The taxi fare! I spent 87 yuan on the taxi ride back from the place you took me to. That money should be paid by you..."
Su Mei was speechless.
My words seemed absurd and ridiculous to her.
I can win two million with just two rounds of cards using ten thousand chips.
I can also wave my hand and refuse her offer of a million annual salary.
Yet here I am, fussing over this insignificant sum of eighty-something yuan with her.
Of course, Su Mei doesn't understand.
There are rules to the game.
What's mine is mine.
What the financier should pay must be paid.
It's not that I don't understand social norms.
In the trade of a swindler, one must understand the rules.
Otherwise, no financier would respect you.
They would only see you as a skilled tool.
Su Mei took out a hundred yuan from her bag, along with the previous ten thousand.
With a slap, she put them in my hand.
"Is this enough now? Oh, there's thirteen yuan left. But you don't need to give me change. Consider it your tip..."
With that, Su Mei angrily turned and went upstairs.
Ignoring the bewildered employees standing in the lobby, looking at each other.
No one knew what had happened.
But they could guess that there must be some kind of relationship between me and Su Mei.
More precisely, some kind of connection.
But the nature of that connection was beyond their comprehension.
(End of chapter)