The waitress spoke to Horace with a smile. She then looked at Cayson who had already turned red with rage. She tut-tutted inwardly and sighed. 'Man, you set yourself up to be humiliated here today. How can you compete with our manager's superior? You picked the wrong man to trifle with. Asides from this 50% off coupon, he also has a special coupon. If he decides to use the special coupon today, he wouldn't have to pay a dime for the meal!'
As the waitress stood there, she remembered the scene she had seen a while ago. Horace had excused himself from the table and went to the washroom. There, he met Edna secretly and asked her to give him a 50% off coupon and an 100% off coupon.
'This is the first time our manager is giving out an 100% off coupon and a 50% off coupon to one person. It's most likely because Mr. Warren is her superior, not an ordinary diner.'
Meanwhile, all the customers around Horace's table were shocked to the bones.
Series of conflicting expressions flashed on their faces. They were shocked, doubtful, and happy that Horace had cleared half of the bill. But when they looked at Cayson, they felt pity for him. Some didn't pity him at all.
'Mister, the young man you have been speaking rudely to will offset half of the bill with his coupon. What about you?'
Cayson stared at the black coupon in Horace's hand in shock. He couldn't believe his eyes. "A 50% off coupon?"
With bloodshot eyes, he shouted at Horace, "You bastard, are you kidding me? You cheated!"
"I cheated? How?" Horace smirked and shook his head in disappointment. Afterward, he said, "I'll pretend that I didn't hear you call me a cheat. Anyway, just answer this question. Now that I have used this coupon, how much do we need to pay? Eight hundred thousand dollars or one million and six hundred thousand dollars?"
Instead of answering, Cayson snorted indifferently. He had heard the waitress clearly when she said that they just needed to pay eight hundred thousand dollars.
When it became obvious that he wasn't going to respond, Horace continued, "Well, have you suddenly lost your tongue? I just asked if you know that this coupon is worth eight hundred thousand dollars. Anyway, I sense jealousy. If you feel like I played a fast one on you, you can also use a coupon. Don't blame me for anything. Remember that I asked you to pay first out of respect, but you didn't!"
"You...you brat, don't try to play innocent now. You have been tricking me from the very beginning, haven't you?" Cayson shouted as he pointed at Horace.
The events leading to this very moment replayed in Cayson's head. He couldn't help thinking that everything was part of Horace's elaborate plan. 'It seems like this bastard didn't want to pay a dime, but wanted me to pay the remaining half!'
"Well, it doesn't matter if all this was a trick or not. All I know is that you lost. You have to serve your punishment as the loser. Kneel at my feet and admit defeat now! I'm waiting!"
Horace sniggered with mockery. The accusations Cayson leveled against him were baseless. He actually didn't intend to trick anyone today. They were the ones that made trouble and got on his nerves. They had no respect for Laila even though the lunch was organized in her honor. Despite Horace's good temper, he couldn't tolerate their excesses anymore. He decided to teach them all a lesson. Cayson was the scapegoat.
"You fucking trickster! You are cutting corners. This isn't part of the agreement. You made no mention of a coupon in the first place. It doesn't count at all!" Cayson shook his head to show objection. He was so proud that he couldn't admit defeat just like that.
"Wow! This is interesting. I thought you were a man of your words. Why are you chickening out now?"
The next second, Horace put on a fake angry expression and asked, "Do you want me to sort out the whole bill before you would admit defeat?"
"Yes! After all, the agreement says that you have to pay if I fail to do so. If you clear the entire bill, I will admit defeat without hesitation. It's your call!" Cayson quickly seized the opportunity to evade paying the bill as soon as Horace asked him that question. There was no way he could afford that amount.
"Humph! Your words don't hold water. I don't believe you at all!" Horace said disdainfully.
"Bastard, how dare you slander me? Do you want to get beaten up?"
The other diners were watching the drama going on. All of them snorted after Cayson shouted. They weren't on his side at all.
One of them said, "Quit quibbling here! What's your problem? The young man sorted half of the bill with a coupon. The end justifies the means. He has done his part. If you have a coupon, you can also use it. We all heard when he asked you to pay your half first. But you refused!"
"Yes, he gave you a fair chance. He has won fair and square. You are behaving like a rascal because you don't have a coupon!"
"Unbelievable! Who the hell do you think you are? You were behaving so arrogant a while ago! Now you want to force him into settling the entire bill? Have you no shame? You have proven that you are untrustworthy. Why then are you blaming him for disbelieving you?"
The diners all scolded Cayson. This angered him and he wanted to tell all of them to shut up. However, he managed to curtail his anger. He took the pen and wrote something on the piece of paper. It read, "I, Cayson Flores, pledge to admit defeat if Horace can pay the whole bill alone!"
He appended his signature at the end of the note.
He handed it to Horace and said, "You brat, I have written it down. Are you satisfied now?"
After reading Cayson's pledge, Horace chuckled and commented, "You broke your promise just now. Will you truly keep your words this time?"
Horace sighed and then waved to the waitress. He asked, "Miss, can the manager of this restaurant bear me witness?"
"Of course!" A determined voice rang out immediately. Edna walked out from a corner and moved to the epicenter of the brouhaha. She said to everyone, "Dear customers, nice to meet all of you. I'm the manager of the Country Music Restaurant, Edna. I can be the principal witness to this agreement!"
"What? Is she really the manager of this prestigious restaurant? Wow! She's so young!"
"She is not only young, but also cute. I didn't expect that the manager of this top restaurant would be a lovely young woman. She's totally my type. I must come here more often in the future!" Some customers talked about Edna's beauty excitedly.
With Edna's agreement, Horace turned to look at Cayson and asked, "What do you say to that? If you agree to let the manager stand in as a principal witness, I will accept the challenge!"
"Okay!" Cayson readily agreed because he didn't believe that Horace had eight hundred thousand dollars on him. He also knew how restaurant coupons worked. A customer couldn't use two 50% off coupons at the same time.
"Miss, it's settled then. Please be the principal witness!" Horace smiled at Edna.
"Okay, sir. I accept the role with enthusiasm." Edna winked at him.
"What? My heart is broken!"
"Is this guy really from a rich family? If not, why is the manager treating him differently?"
"Oh my God! This guy just snatched the goddess of my heart away! She even winked at him. I don't even stand a chance!"
Some of the male diners, who had been having a crush on Edna, were sad to see the exchange between her and Horace. They held their chests and expressed displeasure.
"Cayson, you are about to receive the greatest shock of your life. Open your eyes wide. I will pay the bill now!" Horace said proudly. He then took out another coupon from his pocket and put it on the table. "Miss, this 100% off coupon would make the meals free, right?" he asked with a smug smile.
A tangle of thoughts went through Edna's head as she stared at the special coupon. She couldn't help thinking that Horace was indeed different. Most rich men loved to show off their wealth at any given opportunity. But in Horace's case, he liked to keep a low profile. 'Hmmm. Why does it seem like Mr. Warren is afraid of revealing his true identity to them? Anyway, he did a good job today. This rude guy would learn a good lesson today. He completely lost!'
When Edna came back to her senses, she nodded at Horace and finally replied, "Sir, of course. This is the 100% off coupon made by our restaurant. As long as you tender it, your meal will be free!"
With a slight frown, she looked at Cayson and pointed at Horace. Then she declared, "Sir, this customer just tendered an 100% off coupon. That means he has cleared the whole bill. You have lost to him!"
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