Do We Look Like Beggars

"Oh! Great! Please wait a moment!" The manager thought this was a good idea and hurriedly rushed upstairs to fetch his boss.

Soon, a rotund middle-aged man came down, with tiny eyes and a large nose, his whole body as round as a garlic bulb.

Yet his steps were steady and light—clearly, he was a skilled Spirit Practitioner.

The moment he saw Sophie Sun, his little eyes squinted into a smile and he hurried down the stairs, exclaiming, "Oh my! Isn't this President Sun? What brings you here today? Why didn’t you send someone ahead to reserve a nice room? Gosh, it’s the Lantern Festival—so many people tonight!"

Sophie Sun instantly felt her pride restored. She politely saluted Mr. Giles and said, "Mr. Giles! I brought a few relatives to stroll around the lantern market. It was a last-minute decision."

"You really do have a lively spirit!" Mr. Giles replied with a beaming smile, then turned to scold the manager: "Can’t you see what’s going on? Hurry and arrange the Presidential Suite for President Sun!"

"Well... it’s very crowded tonight, all the private rooms are full. One just opened up, but these two ladies..."

The manager, an honest man, pointed at Grace and Bianca Whitefan: "They arrived first."

Mr. Giles immediately understood what was going on.

He plastered on a big smile and said to Grace and Bianca, "Oh? Just you two ladies?"

"There are lots of people! The rest will be here soon," Grace said.

"Oh... well..." Mr. Giles said awkwardly, "How about this? We'll clear a spot for you in the main hall. Tonight, you can eat as much as you want—it's all on the house. How does that sound?"

Grace was about to answer when Sophie Sun called out, "Mr. Giles!"

"What can I do for you, President Sun?"

"I'm not here to make you lose money today!" Sophie Sun smiled, pulled out a ten-tael gold ingot from her pocket, and tossed it to the manager. "Put everything they eat tonight on my tab!"

Mr. Giles grinned so widely his eyes disappeared, and tried even harder to persuade Grace, "You heard that, right? President Sun is picking up the bill, so please bear with us and dine in the main hall for now!"

Grace shot the owner a sideways glance and raised an eyebrow, "Hey, boss, do you think the two of us look like beggars to you?"

"Ah? No, no! You ladies are clearly extraordinary—I'd never dare disrespect you," the owner replied quickly. "It's just... there really aren't any rooms left. Please understand! If you don't like the main hall, maybe you could wait a bit? A private room should open up soon."

Standing together, Grace and Bianca Whitefan looked like two fairies—elegant and beautiful, clearly not ordinary people.

But Mr. Giles didn’t know who they were!

Naturally, he wanted to treat people he knew with extra care.

Besides, he knew exactly what kind of background Sophie Sun had.

She was a member of the Spirit Alliance.

"If there are no rooms, then they should be the ones waiting! Why should we, who arrived first, have to wait? That makes no sense!" Grace said.

"Well... President Sun is—"

"Why should I care who she is? I got here first, she came later—the private room is mine, that’s only fair!" Grace interrupted him.

"Hmph!" Sophie Sun sneered at Grace, "At the end of the day, this restaurant belongs to Mr. Giles! He can give the private room to whoever he wants! Right, Mr. Giles?"