Song Hui's eyes widened: "How is that possible? Your machine must be broken. How could my card have insufficient balance..."
The waiter maintained his smile, but inwardly he was contemptuous. He said the balance was insufficient to save face for the customer, but the truth was that the card Song Hui took out was empty, even more so than a newly issued card.
Song Hui refused to believe it, so he opened his wallet, took out a stack of cards, and swiped them one by one, but none of them had any money.
"Sir, do you have any other cards?"
Song Hui stood there, stunned, his face flushed with embarrassment.
He already realized what had happened; all the funds in all his cards had been withdrawn, and he knew without asking who had done it.
Mo Ningyu also felt deeply ashamed. She and Song Hui often went to high-end places together and were used to receiving envious glances from those around them. This was the first time she had been treated like a monkey by the crowd.
The waiter's smile grew increasingly stiff, a hint of wariness creeping into his eyes. Could these two be pretending to be rich to dine and dash?
They looked like a perfect couple, both well-mannered and respectable, yet they did something like this—freeloading.
Just as the waiter was about to turn around and call for the manager, Mo Ningyu forced herself to endure the embarrassment and asked, "How much is it? I'll pay."
Song Hui immediately looked at Mo Ningyu as if she were his lifeline.
Waiter: "Your total bill is 8,800 yuan. Would you like to pay by card or cash?"
Eight thousand eight?
Mo Ningyu wanted to shout, "Are you ripping us off? Are we eating gold?"
However, the commotion had already attracted the attention of other diners. Mo Ningyu couldn't speak up, nor did she want Song Hui to think that she was petty and unseemly.
Under the watchful eyes of the waiter, Mo Ningyu reluctantly took out her phone to scan the QR code and pay for the meal.
When she saw the deduction notification, her heart ached terribly; it was almost two months' salary for her.
As Song Hui walked out of the restaurant, he breathed a sigh of relief and said gratefully, "Thank you, Ning Yu. I owe you so much today, otherwise I would have been utterly humiliated."
Mo Ningyu forced a smile: "Brother Song Hui, what are you saying? What's mine is yours, and I'm willing to spend money on you."
Moved, Song Hui hugged Mo Ningyu tightly: "You're so kind, Ningyu. I'll make it up to you in the future."
The car was confiscated, the bank cards were frozen, and naturally, the property was gone too.
Song Hui had originally planned to book a presidential suite at a five-star hotel for a while, but now that he was penniless, he had no choice but to follow Mo Ningyu back to her rented apartment.
Mo Ningyu rented a one-bedroom apartment of about 30 square meters, complete with a kitchen and bathroom. To be fair, it wasn't bad at all.
But Song Hui had lived in a big house or villa since he was a child. The living room in his house was more than 30 square meters. When he entered the house, he was even a little surprised that there was such a small house.
Song Hui then started living with Mo Ningyu and began to live off her.
Song Hui was used to spending money lavishly and had been waited on since childhood. He was completely unreliable when it came to cooking and housework, and he was particular about everything he ate and wore. Soon, Mo Ningyu's savings were depleted.
Since hooking up with Song Hui, Mo Ningyu has never gone to work again, and had no choice but to return to the bar.
Song Hui gritted his teeth and waited for a month, but no one contacted him. He went to the company with a heavy heart, only to be told that someone had already filled his position and he had been fired.
Mo Ningyu felt increasingly panicked. She seduced Song Hui to marry into a wealthy family and enjoy a life of luxury, not to develop true love with him and live a simple, ordinary life together.
She tentatively suggested that Song Hui should just apologize to his mother, but Song Hui refused in a fit of anger and embarrassment.
"Hmph, you think I'll admit defeat just like that? I'll show her that I can still make something of myself without her."
Upon graduation, Song Hui joined his family's company as a senior manager. His projects all went smoothly, and he never even had to deal with difficult business partners. He always considered himself a gifted business prodigy.
So he decided to borrow money from his old friends to start a business.
I made more than a dozen calls, but no one answered. Their phones were either switched off or they had blocked me.
Those who used to surround him, calling him "Brother Hui" this and "Brother Hui" that, have all disappeared.
After finally getting through, the person on the other end stammered for a long time before finally saying, "Brother Hui, I'm risking my dad breaking my legs to answer your call. You should go back and apologize to your mom. We've received orders not to lend you money..."
Song Hui, unable to bear it any longer, hung up.
Still unwilling to give up, he contacted a supplier with whom he had previously had a very pleasant working relationship, thinking of first obtaining a batch of goods on credit, and then paying back the money after making a profit from reselling them.
The other party refused outright.
Song Hui roared angrily: "Brother Wang, that's not fair of you. You made a lot of money off me when we worked together before. You can't be so ungrateful. Besides, you know my abilities. I'm only asking you out because it's a win-win situation."
Song Hui began to ramble on about how much he had done for Brother Wang. Brother Wang held back for a long time, but finally broke down.
He cursed, "You fucking better tighten your belt. I was going to give you some face, but you're pushing your luck."
"You really think you're so capable, you worthless bastard? Do you know why I always liked to collaborate with you before? Because you're a complete idiot. Every project you handled had problems."
"Your mother always loses money and makes concessions to me to clean up your messes, to protect your self-esteem and reputation among your subordinates, and to make up for my losses. That's why I like to cooperate with you, understand?"
He sneered, "I heard you broke ties with your mother. What a moron! Without her, you wouldn't even be able to find a place to eat shit. If I had a mother like that, I'd be too busy being filial. You're a good-for-nothing who doesn't know how lucky you are..."
Song Hui dared not listen any longer and hurriedly hung up the phone.
His throat felt like it was being choked, and he couldn't speak for a long time.
In his heart, Song Hui screamed, "No, that's not true! What he said isn't true! His previous success was all due to his own efforts..."
But then he couldn't help but recall some details, such as how project stages that were initially stalled inexplicably proceeded smoothly, and how, despite not being able to find suitable suppliers, people suddenly came to his door offering low-price cooperation...
He always thought it was because of his outstanding abilities, but now he's being told it's because he has a good mother...
Mo Ningyu listened to his phone call the whole time, her expression a mix of emotions. Suddenly, she felt a little confused, wondering if she had made the wrong bet.
She said softly, "Apologize to your mother."
This time, Song Hui did not refuse. Mo Ningyu's words gave him a way out. He was no longer as confident as before and took out his phone to call Zhang Yufen.
However, he couldn't get through; he had been blocked.
Song Hui couldn't believe it and called Song Si again, but the result was the same.
The two exchanged a glance, their faces turning deathly pale.
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