Chapter 279: It Won’t Go Through
The server hadn’t been trying to trick Xia Jiajiao, so when she made the demand, they took the credit card back from her hand and tried running the transaction again.
Predictably, the card was declined on the second try as well.
"How can this be?"
Xia Jiajiao had never imagined her credit card would actually get declined.
"Try this one."
Xia Jiajiao took another card from her purse and handed it to the server.
Without any sign of impatience, the server took the other card and tried to process the payment.
Unfortunately, the result was the same.
Xia Jiajiao’s brow furrowed. ’I clearly haven’t maxed out my spending for the month, so how could it be declined!’
"This one! This one will definitely work!"
’This is the one my mom gave me. There’s no way it’ll have a problem.’
As of yet, Xia Jiajiao had no idea that Zhang Yiqin was already in police custody.
The server didn’t say much. They just took the card Zhang Yiqin had given her and tried running it.
The result was the same.
"I’m sorry, this one was declined as well."
Although the server kept a smile on their face, Xia Jiajiao felt as if they were laughing at her internally.
"Impossible! You must have done something to it!"
With all three credit cards declined, Xia Jiajiao started to panic, unsure of what was happening.
But her pride wouldn’t allow her to show any weakness in front of the server, so she could only lash out and place the blame squarely on them.
"Ma’am, I ran the cards right here in front of you. What could I possibly have done?
Your cards were declined. They wouldn’t work anywhere else, either.
In any case... your and your friends’ total bill today is 10,890 yuan. How will you be paying, cash or card?"
The server maintained their smile throughout the exchange, showing no sign of dissatisfaction with Xia Jiajiao’s behavior.
The service industry was all about putting up with difficult customers.
"Jiao Jiao, what’s taking you so long to settle the bill?"
Just then, the people drinking with Xia Jiajiao noticed she had been gone for a while. Worried she might have left without paying, they all came over to the counter.
Seeing Xia Jiajiao standing at the counter with a sour look on her face, they guessed there must be a problem with the bill.
’This won’t do.’ They had come here tonight specifically to mooch drinks off her. After spending so much, no one there besides Xia Jiajiao could afford to pay such a hefty bill.
The only reason they’d invited Xia Jiajiao tonight was because they didn’t want to pay themselves; they were just looking for someone to foot the bill.
These were all fair-weather friends Xia Jiajiao had met at bars; not all of them came from wealthy families with money to squander.
Just as Xia Jiajiao was about to answer, her phone rang.
The caller ID showed Xia Zhiyun.
She didn’t dare ignore a call from Xia Zhiyun.
"Hello... Brother..."
Xia Zhiyun, who was driving, felt a bit strange hearing Xia Jiajiao call him "Brother."
Even though they were half-siblings—sharing the same mother—hearing her call him "Brother" still felt incredibly awkward.
"Yeah. Where are you?"
Right now, Xia Zhiyun’s only goal was to find out where Xia Jiajiao was and get her home as soon as possible.
’No matter what, Xia Jiajiao is still my sister.’
"Brother, I..."
Since her cards were declined and she didn’t want to be at the mercy of the people at the bar, Xia Jiajiao suddenly had the urge to tell Xia Zhiyun her location.
But then she remembered her "good girl" persona. Xia Jiajiao opened her mouth, then closed it again, unable to bring herself to say it.
"What’s wrong? If you have something to say, just say it."
When Xia Jiajiao didn’t say anything for a while, Xia Zhiyun, as her older brother, instinctively expressed his concern.
"Brother, I... I’m not actually at the library. I’m... at a bar."
With everyone staring at her, unable to leave or make a scene, Xia Jiajiao really couldn’t stand it anymore and had no choice but to tell Xia Zhiyun the truth.
’I can’t count on anyone else.’ Xia Jiajiao’s only hope was that Xia Zhiyun would get to the bar quickly.
Hearing this, Xia Zhiyun frowned instinctively, but ultimately, he was still too worried to ignore it.
"Which bar are you at?"
’No matter what, she’s the sister I watched grow up.’
"At Zuo’an Bar."
Xia Jiajiao wasn’t fond of Sheng Yang, so of course she wouldn’t go to his bar.
"Got it."
With that, Xia Zhiyun hung up, stepped on the gas, changed direction, and sped toward Zuo’an Bar.
Xia Jiajiao, on the other hand, heaved a sigh of relief. She then shot a smug look at the server. "My brother is coming to pay the bill, so you can just wait."
Knowing Xia Zhiyun was on his way, Xia Jiajiao’s sense of superiority came flooding back. She looked at the server with her nose practically in the air.
"Jiao Jiao, your brother is coming?"
The girls among Xia Jiajiao’s group of fair-weather friends were the most thrilled to hear this.
’They knew Xia Jiajiao was a rich man’s daughter, which meant her brother must be a rich young master.’
’If they played their cards right, they might even be able to start something with him.’
’Whether it lasted or not, wasn’t it standard practice for a rich heir to buy his girlfriend bags and clothes?’
’If he was really generous, he might even buy her a house or a car, letting her jump several rungs up the social ladder in an instant.’
"Yeah, but don’t even think about hitting on my brother. He’s way out of your league."
Xia Jiajiao tossed out the warning, then sauntered back toward the private room they had booked.
The two girls smiled but gave no hint of their true intentions.
Xia Zhiyun was fast. It took him less than half an hour to get to the bar after hanging up with Xia Jiajiao.
Perhaps because he’d been in a car, safe from the wind, not a single strand of his meticulously styled hair was out of place when he arrived.
He immediately stood out from the other people in the bar, looking completely out of place.
Xia Zhiyun scanned the area but couldn’t find Xia Jiajiao, so he pulled out his phone to call her.
An excited Xia Jiajiao answered the call and ran out of the private room, with the two other girls trailing behind her.
"Brother!"
Xia Jiajiao immediately spotted Xia Zhiyun, who stuck out like a sore thumb in the bar’s atmosphere, and ran toward him.
Xia Zhiyun frowned instinctively upon seeing Xia Jiajiao dressed in a crop top and a miniskirt.
But considering they were in a bar, he stopped himself from commenting on what he deemed her inappropriate attire.
"Brother, for some reason, all of my cards got declined.
I came out with friends today and promised it would be my treat. Can you please pay the bill for me?"
All Xia Jiajiao wanted now was to get the bill paid as soon as possible.
’Any further spending after this wouldn’t be her problem.’
Xia Zhiyun hadn’t expected her first words to be a demand for him to pay. But with the thought of Xia Zhengguang, still fuming at home, he didn’t want to get into a pointless argument with her.
"I can pay the bill, but you have to come home with me."
’As for what would happen to her once she got home... well, that was something he couldn’t predict.’
"Okay, I’ll go home."
Unaware of the full situation, Xia Jiajiao thought Xia Zhiyun’s demand was incredibly simple.
"Hi, you must be Jiao Jiao’s brother. I’m her friend, Qingqing. I was wondering if I could add you on WeChat?"
"Yeah, me too! I want to add you!"