This 777-dollar set meal was already considered luxurious for college students.

But Ryan’s tip to the servers alone cost more than what the two of them were eating.

Suddenly, the salmon she’d just eaten tasted rotten, the oysters sour, and even the grilled king crab leg in front of her gave off a weird smell.

Kai’s eyes widened and he gritted his teeth: "You’re paid employees, yet you take tips and treat guests differently? I’m going to complain about you."

At that, the server’s face turned cold: "Sir, the complaint form is at the front desk. Feel free to help yourself if needed."

"Per company policy, we cannot actively solicit tips. Violators are fired immediately."

"However, if our service earns a guest’s appreciation, the tip belongs to the individual, and the company commends us."

"If there’s nothing else, I won’t disturb your meal."

With that curt reply, the server turned and walked away.

Tina instantly lost her appetite. She put down her knife and fork and said, "Kai, what’s going on? I never heard that Anna’s family was that rich."

"Pretending to be rich..."

Kai’s expression was awful. He gritted his teeth and said, "Tina, don’t be fooled. After this meal, the two of them will probably be drowning in debt."

He said that to comfort himself, but Tina felt like nothing tasted good anymore.

Kai quickly tried to please her, picking up a piece of lobster sashimi and putting it in her bowl, saying, "Ignore them. Don’t let them ruin such a romantic atmosphere for us."

"Okay."

Tina agreed verbally, but she was dazed and had lost her appetite completely.

She just wanted to know one thing, was Anna pretending to be rich, or could Ryan really afford this?

Kai immediately picked up the wine list, pointed to an 800-dollar red wine and said, "The food is so delicious, let’s have a drink to celebrate too."

The intention behind a man urging a woman to drink needed no explanation.

Just then, the restaurant’s background music stopped. In its place, a French man in a tuxedo entered, blonde and blue-eyed, looking every bit the artist.

He walked in slowly playing the saxophone, followed by several formally dressed servers carefully pushing a serving cart.

Both of their hearts pounded uncomfortably, because this procession had drawn the attention of everyone in the restaurant.

And they were heading straight for Ryan and Anna’s table.

On the cart, aside from that commemorative Louis XIII, were the hotel’s finest crystal glassware.

"What the!!!"

Kai’s expression darkened. He called the server over again: "The music was fine before. Why this sudden show?"

The server looked enviously toward the other table and said, "Sir, our boss has a commemorative Louis XIII in his collection, it’s our hotel’s signature piece."

"The bottle has always been kept here, but no guest had ever opened it."

"Today, Mr. Ryan opened that Louis XIII for Ms. Anna."

Tina immediately flipped to the back of the wine list. There was that Louis XIII, exquisitely pictured, but without a price.

"What’s all this hype about some fancy wine? How much could it possibly be worth?"

Kai said dismissively, "Don’t try to fool me."

"I’ve had drinks before, Louis XIII isn’t that expensive."

Tina was also curious. The server said with envy, "That bottle of Louis XIII was originally not for sale, but Mr. Ryan was very sincere, so our boss let it go at cost, 300,000 dollars."

"This isn’t a regular bottle. It’s the Louis XIII LE JEROBOAM Limited Edition 3-liter, which our boss bought at an auction ten years ago."

"They say if this bottle went to auction now, it would be worth even more."

The server left after speaking. The two were struck dumb as if by lightning.

Though they’d heard of Louis XIII, neither had seen this particular edition. Just the bottle alone screamed luxury.

Kai immediately gritted his teeth and said, "Tina, he must have bribed the staff here to put on a show."

"That guy’s done every kind of job, delivering food, hauling food waste at the cafeteria, probably washed dishes here too."

"He probably knows all these servers. They’re all his actors putting on a performance for us."

"That so-called limited Louis XIII, probably just a cheap domestic liquor bottle filled with iced tea to scare us."

Tina glanced over and said with a hint of resentment, "And those dishes, don’t tell me they’re just props for show."

That was harder to explain... She watched the manager attentively pouring wine for them, feeling terrible.

Kai forced himself to stay composed: "It’s definitely a trick. They might not even be able to pay for that meal."

"Tina, ignore them. How about we have this bottle? The mood is so nice now."

Tina shook her head wistfully: "No, I don’t really feel like drinking."

800-dollar red wine versus 300,000-dollar Louis XIII really got to her. She desperately wanted to know the truth.

The romantic set meal in front of her suddenly tasted like cardboard, and even Kai’s sour comments were starting to disgust her.

Seeing her distracted, Kai gritted his teeth in frustration, knowing he’d lost his chance for the night. He said bitterly, "When it’s time to pay, we’ll go over and see how they keep up the act."

Tina was also bothered by it and nodded, though she’d completely lost her appetite now.

On the other side, the atmosphere was wonderful.

The manager brought out the shark fin soup and said warmly, "Mr. Ryan, Ms. Anna, the shark fin soup is made with a rich broth, but the flavor can be a bit light."

"Some people like to add cilantro and aged vinegar, feel free to adjust to your taste."

Anna was almost intoxicated, her eyes dreamy and misty. She trembled as she raised the crystal glass to taste the amber liquid.

She’d forgotten what it actually tasted like, all she could think was that this wine cost 300,000... 300,000...

It was opened specially for her, the first time anyone had ever opened such a prestigious bottle at the garden restaurant. Her vanity was so thoroughly satisfied she felt drunk on it.

"This taste... yeah, I still don’t like it."

Ryan wasn’t as elegant. He took a big gulp and frowned.

Used to high-proof liquor, he found this too mild, and the oaky smell reminded him of paint.

This was textbook "fine wine wasted on a peasant." No matter how good the wine, it didn’t satisfy him, he simply couldn’t taste what made it so expensive.

The manager smiled warmly, "It seems Mr. Ryan really isn’t fond of brandy!!!"

In other people’s ears, Ryan’s words sounded like he was unimpressed by the 300,000-dollar premium wine, an incredibly high-class attitude.

Anna said coquettishly, "Ryan, it’s my fault. If I’d known you didn’t like it, I wouldn’t have said anything."

"It’s fine. This wine is for you. Food is always about personal taste."

Ryan smiled gently, "It doesn’t have to be rare delicacies. As long as it’s something you like, even simple meals are a feast."

What class, truly returning to basics. This was the upbringing of a true scion of a distinguished family, nothing like those nouveau riche and small-time "rich" folks.

The server who got 2,000 and the manager who got 10,000 looked at them with nothing but admiration.

The tenderness in Anna’s eyes grew deeper. Seeing that Ryan really liked the wagyu beef, she picked up a piece with her fork. Ryan assumed she was putting it in her own bowl and instinctively pushed his bowl toward her.

Instead, Anna stood up and brought the beef directly to Ryan’s lips.

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