Chapter 66: Being Deceived
I was half-forced into the coffee shop by Xu Shu's sister. I didn't know how to refuse this overly enthusiastic girl. For the sake of her brother Xu Jian and sister Xu Shu, I just let her do what she wanted.
After entering the coffee shop, Xu Shu's sister pulled me to a seat by the window. There was already a boy and a girl about the same age as Xu Shu's sister sitting there.
Xu Shu's sister smiled and said to them, "I have found Uncle Lei Feng. Do you believe it now?"
The boy sitting on the seat said, "How come you know everyone? You're one of them!"
Xu Shu's sister smiled proudly and said to me, "Uncle Lei Feng, please take a seat." She then shouted to the waiter, "Miss, give this gentleman a golden steak!"
I saw that there were already three steaks on the table, and they were almost finished. I chose to sit down next to the boy and said, "What Uncle Lei Feng? My last name is not Lei."
The other girl smiled and said, "In this world, there are really too few good people like you who are so enthusiastic about helping blind people cross the road. We all thought you were Lei Feng's reincarnation. Calling you Uncle Lei Feng means we admire you. Don't you think so, Xu Xin?"
Xu Shu's sister sat down opposite me and nodded, "Yes! I told you that I knew this living Lei Feng, but you didn't believe me. Now you have nothing to say, right?"
"Well! I have nothing to say. I have nothing to say."
The two girls looked at each other and started to giggle. I couldn't tell whether they were saying I was a living Lei Feng in a compliment or in a derogatory way, so I could only ask, "What kind of competition are you guys here for?"
The boy next to me was stunned for a moment, and said in surprise: "Competition? What competition..." Suddenly he saw Xu Shu's sister gave him a vicious look, and hurriedly changed his words: "Ah... yes! Competition! We are here to participate in the competition." Then Xu Shu's sister continued with a smile: "We are here to participate in the National Middle School Student Speech Competition, and the venue is nearby No. 16 Middle School. It was not our turn this morning, so we came out to eat lunch first. We will be on stage in the afternoon. I am really a little nervous! Tang Qian, if you have nothing to do, can you cheer me up?"
The girl beside her turned her head away when she heard this, as if she was trying hard to hold back her laughter, while the boy lowered his head and ate the steak on the table.
I looked at the innocent smile of sister Xu Shu across from me, and I had a bad feeling in my heart. I felt that something was not right, but I didn't know what was wrong. I should just keep an eye on it for now.
I pretended to hesitate and said, "I... have something else to do this afternoon, so I'm afraid I won't be able to go."
Sister Xu Shu didn't care and said, "Is that so? That's fine, it doesn't matter!" Then she started eating the steak. After a while, my steak came up, and when I opened the lid, it was steaming hot, golden, and full of meaty aroma. You can't say, this expensive thing is good, and it looks very tempting.
Anyway, I don't have to pay for it myself, so I'll just eat it. I know that Xu Shu alone is worth over 100 million yuan in the Xu family, and I'm afraid that this sister has been accustomed to spending money lavishly since she was a child and doesn't know how to save. I don't need to say anything to her. Since she insists on treating me, I won't be polite.
Xu Shu's sister felt full after eating for a while. She smiled and said to me, "Sorry, take your time eating. I'm going to the bathroom." I picked up the knife and fork and said, "Go ahead!" Then I started eating.
I didn't notice that after Xu Shu's sister stood up, she winked at the girl, and the girl understood and nodded slightly with a smile.
Less than a minute after Xu Shu's sister left, a cell phone rang between us. I saw the girl quickly took out a cell phone, turned it on and answered it: "Hello? Ah... Teacher Liu, we are eating outside... OK, OK, yes, I'll be right back!"
The girl put down her phone and said to me, "Oh no! Our teacher couldn't find us and got angry, and ordered us to go back immediately. So, the two of us will go first, and when Xu Xin comes back, you tell her to pay the bill and go back quickly."
I said, "You left without waiting for her?"
"It's too late. The teacher is angry! Go and report first. Guo Zheng, let's go!"
The boy agreed and stood up. I quickly made way for him to go out. The two of them waved to me, said goodbye, and left in a hurry. I ate while waiting for Xu Shu's sister to come back, but when I almost finished my steak, she didn't come out of the bathroom.
My heart suddenly moved, and I suddenly understood, and I thought to myself, "Oh no, could I have been... fooled?"
I waited for a while and was sure that the girl must have played a trick on me and would not come back. I was so angry and annoyed that I threw the knife and fork on the table. I couldn't calm down for a long time. Just then, a waitress came over. To confirm, I reached out and called her over and asked her, "There was a girl who went to the bathroom just now. She has been there for a long time. I am afraid that something happened to her. Can you go in and help me check?"
The waitress was surprised and said, "She left a long time ago? And she even said you would pay the bill!"
My eyes darkened, I gritted my teeth in anger, and said with a forced smile: "Of course, I'll pay the bill. I didn't even know she was gone. She must have... something urgent!"
The waitress asked, "Would you like to pay now?"
I waved my hand and said, "Okay, let's settle the bill."
After a while, the waitress brought the bill over. When I saw the number on it, I almost jumped up and down: "How much? One thousand eight hundred and fifty? Did you calculate it wrong?"
"No? Three cups of coffee, $150 each, that's $450. Four steaks, $350 each, that's $1,400. The total is $1,850, isn't it?"
I was so angry that I almost had a brain hemorrhage, and I kept cursing that girl in my heart. She looked innocent, but she was a complete liar!
As I pulled out my wallet helplessly, I thought: Am I in conflict with the women in the Xu family? First my elder sister insulted me with money, then my mother looked down on me, and now this seemingly harmless younger sister is playing tricks on me! She’s teasing me! I’m so unlucky!
Thinking of their brother Xu Jian's bold and upright character, I was puzzled. Why are boys and girls so different from each other even though they both have the same surname Xu? Is it because they are not born from the same mother?
Luckily, I still had the five thousand yuan Hua Jingjing returned to me last time in my wallet, otherwise, with the cash I always have in my pocket, I would have made a fool of myself today. Gritting my teeth, I counted out nineteen hundred-yuan bills and handed them to the waitress, who gave me a fifty-yuan bill in change. I left this damn coffee shop angrily.
As soon as I got out of the door, I immediately took out my cell phone and called Xu Jian in a rage. I remembered the cell phone number he left me last time very clearly. The phone rang three times before it got through, and Xu Jian's loud voice came through: "Hello! Who's looking for me?"
"Brother Xu, I'm Tang Qian."
"Brother Tang? Haha! You remembered me so soon? Well, brother, you are really nice! Where are you? Let's go have a good drink together sometime!"
"Next time, I have something to ask you."
"What's the matter? Ask!"
"Today I met your sister in City B. She is your younger sister. What kind of person is she? How could she play tricks on others?"
"Xiao Xin? She's in City B? How did she play tricks on you?"
I told Xu Jian what happened just now. Xu Jian laughed on the phone and said, "My sister is a little witch. I can't afford to offend her. You are unlucky to meet her. To be honest, I have been fooled by her many times. I can't avoid her when I see her. Only Xiao Shu in my family can deal with her. Even my father, the commander, can't do anything about her. If you are really angry, wait for Xiao Shu to come back from the United States and tell her to catch the little witch and apologize to you. How about that?"
I was so angry that I said, "Even you can't do anything about it? Didn't you teach Xu Shu a lesson yesterday and ask her to apologize to me? I think you are quite dignified as the eldest brother!"
"Ahem, that depends on who she is. Xiao Shu is a sensible adult. She will listen to reason. The little witch is used to being lawless. If you are fierce to her, she will be fiercer than you. If you make her angry, she will think of revenge on you all day long. She is the darling of my father and stepmother. She has a strong backing and cannot be beaten. I have suffered more than you, but I still have to swallow my anger and give up. Brother Tang, I advise you to think more open-mindedly. Adults do not remember the mistakes of villains. At most, I will buy you a drink and apologize to you on her behalf. Want to teach the little witch a lesson? Difficult!"
I was speechless for a long time, thinking how could there be such a scary little girl? She is such a nuisance! I really don't know how her parents and teachers taught her. But what Xu Jian said was also reasonable. Adults don't remember the mistakes of villains. It's just a trick I got once, and I lost a little money. I can still bear it. For the sake of Xu Jian and Xu Shu, let it go. If you get angry, it's your own health.
I gradually recovered from my extreme anger and said to Xu Jian, "If that's the case, forget it. Next time you have time, come to City B and I'll treat you to a drink."
"Okay! I'll come. That's it for now? I need to call the school to see if the little witch is going to skip classes again, right?"
"Okay, let's talk next time."
I put down the phone, feeling calm. I smiled bitterly. I could only blame myself for this kind of thing. She was my friend's sister. But if she teases me like this again, I won't care what commander her father is or what big star her sister is. I will teach her a lesson!
I thought viciously in my heart!
But that lunch cost me nearly two thousand yuan, half of my savings! It was really painful to think about it. Xu Xin! I remembered this name firmly and warned myself that from now on, I must never trust those women who look pure and lovely, even if she is just a child, otherwise I might suffer a great loss!
