After hearing the verdict from Hong Dali, the other contestants sighed in despair, blaming their parents for their inadequacy!
Looks didn"t matter? If a woman were not pretty, if a man were not fierce, there was no chance of becoming a lackey at all. Those who were not smart, whose reaction were too slow to please their master, had zero chance of becoming a lackey.
Hong Dali happily claimed, "Hmm, not bad, good choice. Where"s the driver?"
Driver: "I"m here."
Hong Dali: "One, two, three… six, seven, eight, nine… six women and three men, give them a luxurious car each. The men will be drivers. The women, pa.s.sengers. That will look good from outside."
"…" The driver wiped the sweat from his forehead. "I understand, I will arrange it immediately!"
The selected men and women were nervous but excited and wors.h.i.+ped Hong Dali as though they were wors.h.i.+ping G.o.d.
The contestants who had not made it stomped their feet and exclaimed how unfair G.o.d was.
"Okay, you, come here!" Hong Dali pointed at the prettiest among the lot, who looked about 22 or 23. "Pour your master and madam a drink." He then pointed at Tang Muxin and spoke to the others. "Do you see her? She will be your madam! Her words are my words! You should never go against her wishes, understand?"
The remaining eight lackeys nodded their heads and bowed. "Yes, Madam!"
Tang Muxin stood in the corner, furious. "Who is your madam? Only this prodigal is capable of doing something like this. Don"t get me involved!"
The eight lackeys: "Thank you, Madam, for your advice!"
"I said I"m not your madam!" Tang Muxin felt like she was on the verge of breaking down. She should not have come out with Hong Dali today. It had been a terrible mistake. This couldn"t get any worse! To think she was an exceptionally bright and intelligent girl, but being with Hong Dali was an utter disgrace to her intelligence.
Tang Muxin was deeply worried that if she remained where she was, she would rot away.
Hong Dali nonchalantly snapped his fingers, and a lackey came to his feet immediately. "What can I do for you, Master?"
Pleased with the lackey"s reaction, Hong Dali threw his bank card at the lackey. "Go, find the managers and give them each 5,000 yuan. Settle tonight"s charges as well."
One meeting was worth 5,000 yuan—that could be their private earnings. The eight lackeys were filled with grat.i.tude. "Thank you, Master! May you have an eternity of blessings and longevity."
It was as though they knew he had a weak const.i.tution. The words of the lackeys made him very happy, and Hong Dali laughed. "Good, good, make haste. Let"s go to the corner to sit down. Yes, how about the lights? The music? Let"s make it happen! That"s right, that singer—yes, you—why are you dreaming? Quick, start singing. I won"t forget to tip you."
What did it mean to be nouveau riche? What did it mean to squander money like a prodigal? This was it!
To sleep to one"s content, to count money till one"s hands ached? So what? The best feeling in the world was squandering money without a care in the world!
Upon hearing how much this sucker had spent, the singer sang with all his might. Hong Dali could not take it after just two verses. "Can"t you choose a better song? I can"t even swallow my water in this manner!"
"Yes, yes, yes," The singer trembled in fear and anxiously sang another song, but the song was still not to Hong Dali"s liking. Before Hong Dali could say anything, something came to his mind: Since I"ve tipped him, regardless of how dumb he is, he should know to sing a song he is good at. But he instead chose such a bad song, which the others seem to like. Does that mean songs like "Tears through the Metal Grill" are popular here? Dammit, I can"t live like this…
Hong Dali had loved listening to songs before he"d come to this world. It was one of the few things he had been able to relax and enjoy without spending a cent. The feeling of being in his own world as he enjoyed the music through his earphones and read a novel was the best thing in the world. If only the songs here were as good. "Tears through the Metal Grill" only turned his good mood bad.
"Young Master, Madam, your drink is here." Hong Dali paused his thoughts momentarily. The prettiest among the nine lackeys walked in holding an expensive-looking silverware tray. On the tray were two glistening purple gla.s.ses with an unknown liquid that smelled like jasmine flowers. What was worth mentioning was how shrewd this lady was. In no time, the lady had changed into a maid"s dress. Her dark hair and tiny waist, the black lace clinging to her thighs, those delicate red lips, big eyes, and rabbit ears on her head, that white furry bob on top of her b.u.m…
Hong Dali could barely hold in his excitement. When he came back to his senses, he praised her while taking his beverage from her. "Very good, very good. What is your name, pretty lady, and how old are you?"
"My name is Ling Xiaoyi. I am 22."
"Very good, tip her!" Hong Dali instructed the other lackeys. "Do you see this? Learn from her. This is how you should act! Remember this and tip Xiaoyi 5,000 yuan later."
"Yes, yes!" The lackeys nodded furiously. At the same time, they had started to think of what they could do to please the young master. As for work—to be tipped 5,000 yuan at once so easily by the young master and be equipped with a personal car, who cared about work!
Many had guessed the ident.i.ty of this young man. He had to be the well-known prodigal from the Hong family that squandered like there was no end, Hong Dali!
Sure enough, just listen to the ladies buzzing nonstop. "Hong Dali, you wastrel, do you know the value of 5,000 yuan? Who tips people 5,000 yuan?" On this end, Tang Muxin felt aggrieved. "My… my usual daily spending money is only 500 yuan…"
Without further ado, Hong Dali said, "Lackeys, do you know what to do now?"
The other lackeys looked at each other, not knowing what to do. On the other hand, Ling Xiaoyi was the smartest. She approached Tang Muxin respectfully. "Since Madam seems to be strapped for cash, please accept this money and take it as my way of respecting you."
Upon hearing this, the other lackeys panicked at once, pinching their own legs—how stupid, it was a good chance to display their loyalty…
Indeed, Hong Dali was very pleased with Ling Xiaoyi"s reaction. He laughed and said, "Hmm, not bad, not bad! Very smart, you are indeed suited to be a lackey!" He did not miss the chance to educate the rest. "Look at yourselves, missing out on such a good chance, stupid lackeys! Be on your feet all the time. Even a lackey needs to understand what needs to be done—I will tip Xiaoyi another 5,000 yuan. In the future, she will be your leader. If I am not around, you will listen to her, understand?"
The other lackeys stood in unison. "We understand!"
Tang Muxin watched on in despair. "This wastrel… I, I admit defeat…"
The other lackeys returned from the cas.h.i.+er, reporting to Hong Dali, "Master, tonight"s bills have been calculated. Until now, your total spendings, including tips given, is 73,588 yuan."
"Pu—" Upon hearing the total amount, Hong Dali spat out his drink and exclaimed, "How much did you say it was?"
"It"s 7… 73,588 yuan." Those lackeys could feel cold sweat on their back. "Young Master, is this… too expensive?"
"Expensive my foot!" So many people, including the tips that I have so generously squandered away, only comes up to 73,588 yuan? The Great Prodigal System came to Hong Dali"s mind. "The total bill was so little, yet the 50,000 tips did not count toward the spending. I must be doing something wrong!"
There was half an hour left to squander another 201,912 yuan in order to complete the mission! Yet tips would not be taken into account!
Despite the crowd in the nightclub, the total bill was only a little over 20,000. When would the mission be completed?
There was not enough time to go to another place. Hong Dali thought for a moment, then said without thinking twice, "Send my orders, inform the manager, the boss, and all the customers here to invite their friends and everyone they know! Tonight is on me. Hurry up!"
"O… okay!" The lackeys wiped the sweat from their foreheads and hurried to pa.s.s the message.
Looking at the situation, Tang Muxin was speechless. "This wastrel will do anything to squander all his money. I can"t marry him!"
Right at this moment, the boss of the Ye Lai Xiang nightclub sped over and stood in front of Hong Dali, wiping his sweat. "Young Master Dali, do you have some time? Could you spare me some time and hear me out?"
Hong Dali leaned back on the sofa. Several servants by his side were ma.s.saging his legs and peeling fruit for him. He could not look any more undignified. While eating a peeled grape, he hummed. "What"s the matter? Can"t you see I"m busy?" This is how a wastrel should behave. Any less than this would be a failed prodigal!