Free Web NovelChapter 57: Chapter 31: Holy Court Seafood Buffet, Massage, Barbecue, and KTV All-in-One
Jiang Li bought four cups of milk tea and four desserts.
After she passed them out, the three women thanked her in unison.
After they sat down, Sister Xia sipped her milk tea and asked, "Xiao Jiang, you look quite young. What do you do for work?"
Jiang Li gave a sheepish smile. "Right now, I’m just an unemployed bum."
Sister Xia’s eyes immediately lit up. "Hey, you know, we women don’t need to be so career-driven. Being an unemployed bum is great. Your Sister Mei and I are both unemployed bums."
Just as Jiang Li was about to protest, Zhou Jiawen chimed in, "Isn’t that the truth? Being an unemployed bum is great. Otherwise, how could we have the leisure to play mahjong like this?"
With that, she took out her phone, typed something out, and shot Jiang Li a meaningful look.
Jiang Li paused, then took her phone out of her bag. She saw the message Zhou Jiawen had just sent.
"Zhao Xia’s husband is the mayor, and Yang Mei’s husband is the secretary-general. They’re both terrible at mahjong but completely addicted, and they hate it when people go easy on them."
Jiang Li turned off her phone screen and looked at Zhou Jiawen, a little surprised.
’Why would she introduce me to two such important people?’
Zhao Xia burst out laughing and looked at Zhou Jiawen with approval. "No wonder so many people like you. I like you a lot; you’re exactly my kind of person."
Zhou Jiawen smiled faintly. "It’s an honor to earn Sister Xia’s favor."
Yang Mei observed for a moment, and seeing that the ice was broken, she finally spoke up. "Xiao Jiang is new here, so she doesn’t know our rules."
"We play for 10 yuan a point, capped at five *fan*. We swap three tiles and declare a void suit. We play with ’Gale and Rain’ and ’Transfer Rain’ rules, and you have to win by self-draw."
Jiang Li asked, a little surprised, "Chengdu-style Mahjong?"
"That’s right~"
Jiang Li nodded in understanding. ’She played all variations anyway.’
’A little Chengdu-style Mahjong would be a piece of cake.’
Once the rules were clarified, Zhao Xia, being the most senior, rolled the dice.
Jiang Li was seated opposite Zhao Xia, with Zhou Jiawen to her right and Yang Mei to her left.
In the initial tile swap, she exchanged tiles with Zhao Xia and ended up with a hand perfect for a full flush.
After everyone declared their void suit, Zhao Xia beamed. "Xiao Jiang, you passed some great tiles!"
As she spoke, she drew a tile and declared a concealed kong of Eight-dot.
Zhou Jiawen gave her a thumbs-up. "Sister Xia, what great luck! A concealed kong right at the start. That’s 60 yuan in the bag."
Jiang Li smiled sheepishly. "Those just happened to be the only three I could pass. It must be because Sister Xia rolled the dice so well."
Yang Mei joked, "Xiao Jiang, if you end up losing a big hand to Sister Xia, you might have to pay for the rest of us."
Jiang Li chuckled. "No problem, no problem."
Aside from some initial stiffness, after a few rounds of mahjong, the atmosphere became increasingly congenial.
Although they were the mayor’s wife and the secretary-general’s wife, both were very easy to get along with. They didn’t put on any airs, showing only a pure passion for mahjong.
Even when they lost money, they were still cheerful, showing excellent sportsmanship.
After four hours of play, Jiang Li had won 6,800 yuan.
The women added each other on WeChat, and Zhao Xia transferred the money, unable to resist remarking, "Xiao Jiang, you’ve really got some skills!"
Jiang Li smiled faintly. "I was just lucky."
She glanced at her watch. "Sister Xia, Sister Mei, if you’re not busy, how about I treat you to a meal?"
’They didn’t have to say anything, but she knew she couldn’t be tactless.’
’After winning so much money, not even offering to treat them to a meal would be a serious social blunder.’
Zhao Xia nodded, pleased. "Sounds good. As it happens, my husband is away on a business trip."
Yang Mei smiled. "In that case, it would be rude to refuse."
Jiang Li turned to Zhou Jiawen. "Wenwen, you’re coming with us, right?"
’There was no reason not to invite Zhou Jiawen. After all, if it weren’t for her, I wouldn’t have met Zhao Xia and Yang Mei.’
Zhou Jiawen grinned. "Of course I’m going! I have to eat back the money I lost."
Jiang Li smiled. "Well, since you put it that way, I’ll have to treat you all to something nice."
"I hear the seafood buffet at the Holy Court is good. How about we get seafood?"
Zhou Jiawen looked at Jiang Li in surprise. "The Holy Court is 2,888 a person!"
’She had eaten there once with Shen Yuchu. The food was definitely good, and the seafood was exceptionally fresh.’
’Even with her winnings, a meal for four would be over ten thousand yuan. She’d have to chip in her own money.’
’Although her sister-in-law had money to burn.’
Zhao Xia pursed her lips, disagreeing slightly. "That’s right, Xiao Jiang. 2,888 a person isn’t really worth it. We can just grab a casual bite somewhere."
’Jiang Li had said earlier that she was just an unemployed bum.’
’If she really went to the Holy Court, what if it caused a fight with her husband when she got home?’
Jiang Li waved her hand dismissively. "It’s fine. I can afford a single meal."
’She used to be strapped for cash, but now... forget 2,888 a person, she could afford it even if it were 288,000 a person.’
