"Who are you trying to scare?
Eating a meal can rack up 27 million purple gold coins.
Did you stew it for King Tatu?
To put it bluntly, even if it was actually placed on this table, and you devoured it raw, it wouldn't cost 27 million purple gold coins. That's a staggering 2.7 billion gold coins!
Ronie Elton, holding out her crystal card, twitched the corners of her mouth slightly.
'Could you repeat that? I might not have heard correctly.'"
The Nine Heavens Cloud restaurant was renowned, after all. Ronie didn't believe they would engage in malicious price gouging. Besides, even with malicious intent, they wouldn't hike the price to 27 million purple gold coins.
Anyone who heard it would know the price was fake.
The waiter was also bewildered.
When he saw the number on the bill, he instinctively thought his eyes were deceiving him.
"Miss, the bill clearly states 27 million gold coins. I haven't misspoken," the waiter said with a wry smile in his eyes.
"Do you think this is possible?"
Ronie Elton was amused to the point of being angry, shaking her head.
"What dish could possibly be worth 27 million purple gold coins?"
What could be done?
Even if he knew the price was unreasonable, the bill stated the price, and he had to settle it accordingly. That was his job!
Unreasonable or not, it was beyond his concern.
The waiter offered an apologetic look, and Ronie slowly exhaled.
"Never mind, I'll ask your manager directly," Ronie Elton said, tapping her wristband projection.
While she wasn't a regular at Nine Heavens Cloud, her special status meant she was treated as a VIP.
During her previous visits, she had the contact information of the restaurant's manager. Now that there was an issue, she needed to clarify what was going on.
It couldn't be that her expenses had become so exorbitant in the few months she hadn't visited, could it?
"Pfft."
Just as Ronie was about to contact the manager, a laugh filled with palpable mockery echoed.
"No way, the eldest daughter of the illustrious Elton family can't even afford a meal?"
"???"
Hearing this exclamation, Chen Yu and the others instinctively frowned.
"This annoying voice, it sounds so familiar," Black Bean muttered. Chen Yu also turned his head to follow the sound, and immediately saw Lu Silid, followed by a few lackeys, standing in the restaurant with a mocking expression.
"Who are you?"
Ronie frowned slightly, looking at the person in front of her who seemed familiar yet she couldn't place him.
Although she had seen Lu Silid's face before, she paid no mind to such an unremarkable nobody.
A brief encounter was certainly not enough to remember.
"Hoh, Miss Ronie is indeed forgetful. Didn't we just meet?" Lu Silid chuckled.
Ronie Elton stared at him for a long while, her brows furrowed.
"Ah, it's you, you insignificant nobody!"
*Poof!*
Chen Yu and the others at the dining table couldn't help but burst into laughter.
The top floor was arranged with individual private rooms, which offered excellent soundproofing, preventing other customers from noticing them.
If they were on the first floor of the restaurant, Lu Silid's face would likely have been completely disgraced at that very moment.
Being called an insignificant nobody, Lu Silid clenched his fist slightly, his malice surging uncontrollably.
However—
He didn't show any anger, maintaining a smile on his face.
"Miss Ronie is correct. In your eyes, I am indeed a minor figure. You may call me that, but you should at least settle your bill at my restaurant."
"Your restaurant?" Ronie frowned.
Lu Silid smiled and opened his hands.
"I am but a humble individual. Nine Heavens Cloud is indeed one of my properties. Of course, compared to a behemoth like your Elton family, mine is nothing."
"Where is the previous owner?" Ronie asked.
The last time she visited Nine Heavens Cloud was last year. The owner then was a beastman, a very kind individual.
Nine Heavens Cloud had always been doing good business; it wouldn't be an exaggeration to say it was making a fortune daily.
Ronie genuinely didn't understand how such a profitable restaurant could simply be sold off.
"He went back home."
Lu Silid spread his hands with a smile.
"I heard there was a major event in his clan, and he urgently needed money, so he sold off all his properties in our Tatu Kingdom. This Nine Heavens Cloud was acquired by me."
A sudden clan incident?
Such an explanation was plausible.
Ronie couldn't help but lament the missed opportunity.
She hadn't even received news of the transfer. Otherwise, she would have bought the restaurant no matter what, especially if she were to manage it herself.
She was confident that within three years, she would recoup her investment.
After that, it would be pure profit.
Wait a minute!
It was one thing that she hadn't received the news, but her father surely would have known about the sale of Nine Heavens Cloud. If her father knew, he would definitely have bought it.
After all, her father had repeatedly expressed his envy for Nine Heavens Cloud.
It was clearly just a restaurant, yet its annual profits could rival half of the Elton family's industries.
Could it be that the family's strategic expansion during this period had left them with insufficient liquid assets?
Ronie pondered, feeling perplexed.
Regardless, the Elton family hadn't taken over the restaurant. The immediate issue was settling the bill for this meal.
"Since you are the owner of this restaurant, then explain this bill to me," Ronie said, nodding towards the bill. "I am a regular here, and I am well aware of the prices of the dishes. Even with some fluctuations, it shouldn't be this much. Explain it?"
"Hahahaha…"
Lu Silid suddenly burst into laughter.
"Can't Miss Ronie afford it? It's just 27 million purple gold coins. Surely the current Elton family can afford that?"
Ronie: "???"
"Is something wrong with your head?" Ronie said with a laugh, showing no regard for Lu Silid's feelings. "In the entire kingdom, who eats meals that cost 27 million purple gold coins? That money could probably buy a large city! You're truly an interesting person. If I don't pay, it means I can't afford it? What business is it of yours whether my family can afford this sum?"
"If you can afford it, then pay."
Lu Silid shrugged his shoulders and said.
"I am the owner of this establishment. Whatever price I say for the dishes you've eaten is the price. Either pay, or..."
"You're deliberately looking for trouble, aren't you?"
With things having reached this point, Ronie whispered with a darkened complexion.
"Don't say I didn't warn you. Think carefully before you speak!"