May Parker Suffers a Setback

"Can't afford it? You think I can't afford it? Even you, Lily Evans, can buy it, so why say I can't?" May Parker was so agitated her hair practically stood on end. She fished out ten silver taels from her pouch. "Look, ten silver taels! Such a hefty sum—more than enough to buy a membership! What kind of lousy restaurant thinks they're made of gold?"

Lily Evans just raised an eyebrow. The attendant beside her stepped forward politely and said with a smile, "Miss, our restaurant's membership fee is fifty silver taels per person. If you want a hundred memberships, that'll be five thousand silver taels. Would you like to pay in cash or by silver note? Or perhaps leave your address, and when our next batch of memberships is available, we'll notify you right away."

"What? Fifty taels for one membership, five thousand for a hundred?" May Parker's eyes nearly popped out of her head. She'd thought memberships would cost maybe a hundred coins each at most—she never dreamed they'd be so expensive!

Even if she scraped together everything she had, it was only eleven taels. She'd put on a brave face just to look impressive.

The attendant, still ever so polite, handed over pen and paper. "Miss, could you please leave your address? That way we can notify you."

May Parker's face flushed bright red. She felt secretly annoyed—fifty taels per membership! Forget a hundred, she couldn't even afford one.

Meanwhile, the attendant kept smiling, and around them, a few onlookers waited to see how May Parker would react.

And Lily Evans, with that infuriatingly smug look, was just waiting for May to embarrass herself.

May Parker glared fiercely at Lily Evans. "Alright, you conniving little snake! You knew the memberships were this expensive and still tricked me into asking for one! Lily Evans, what are you up to? You just want to see me make a fool of myself, don't you? How vicious can you be? Aren't you afraid of getting your just deserts?"

Lily Evans spread her hands. "So now it's my fault for tricking you into buying a membership? Everyone here heard me clearly—I told you to think it over before you embarrassed yourself, but you wouldn't listen. Now you can't afford it and can't save face. That's on you, not me. Take your ten silver taels back and check the menu prices. Even a bowl of veggie porridge here costs fifteen silver taels! With your ten silver taels, you can't even afford a cup of tea!"

"Shut your mouth!" May Parker's face turned from green to white as she pointed at Lily Evans, so furious she could barely speak. Her expression shifted, and she gritted her teeth, "Lily Evans, don't think you're so special just because you came up with a few odd ideas. One day, I'll crush you under my feet and make you beg for a bite of food!"

Lily Evans shrugged nonchalantly. "I'll be waiting," she replied.

May Parker let out a frustrated grunt. Willow gently tugged at her sleeve and whispered, "Meixiang, look at all the people eating here—lots of scholars from Phoenix Academy. If the ladies from the academy hear about this scene, it's sure to cause you trouble."

May Parker's heart skipped a beat. She wasn't officially married yet, and if her fiancé, Howard Liu, found out she'd made a scene, and the Phoenix Academy students saw her, she'd be in real trouble.

May Parker thought for a moment, deciding she had to keep this from Howard Liu. She glared fiercely at Lily Evans and threatened, "Lily Evans, if you dare tell my husband about this, I won't let you off!"

Lily Evans sneered, "Not everyone is a gossip like you! I’d rather spend my time running my business than bothering with you."

May Parker spat a few times, her anger boiling over, then stormed off with her family.

Unbeknownst to them, Howard Liu had witnessed everything from inside the restaurant. His fists clenched tightly, face flushed with shame, wishing he could teach May Parker a lesson to vent his humiliation.