Chapter 982: I’m a natural in business.

"Sir, what is that?!" Allen wept as he entered the driver’s seat while Atlas removed his blazer from the backseat. "You just blew up two of your dates in a span of five minutes! Are you trying to break the world record?! At this point, it’s best to go on speed dating!"

Atlas casually placed his blazer down and glanced at the driver’s seat. "Speed dating? What is that?"

"What?"

"Does that mean I can finish this abominable arrangement in an hour?" Atlas asked seriously. "This thing is tiring. If there’s a way to end it quickly, why not do it? Work smart, not hard."

"..." Allen’s mouth quivered, opening and closing, his voice stuck in his throat. After a moment, he slowly looked away from the backseat, his eyes gleaming with tears. "Oh, good lord. He’s going to grow old single and die a virgin."

Atlas tilted his head to the side while his assistant buzzed in the driver’s seat like a bee. He shrugged nonchalantly, thinking Allen was just there to assist him for nothing. He wasn’t as helpful as one would expect.

"Let’s go," he said, snapping Allen out of his dramatic thoughts. "I’m having lunch with everyone. Don’t cry anymore. I’m sure I’m doing better than the rest. If there’s a grading system here, I would’ve passed with an A++, while the rest might have a failing grade."

Allen glanced back at the backseat. ’Sometimes, he’s kind of delusional as well.’

"Sir, I think your brothers and uncles are doing fine," said Allen. "But... okay, I’ll drive now."

Atlas shrugged nonchalantly, not thinking much about Allen anymore. However, in his mind, he was still doing better than his brothers and uncles. After all, Atlas was "very kind" in talking to all his dates.

*****

At the same time...

Hugo leaned against the table, staring at the gorgeous woman seated across from him. He smiled from ear to ear until his eyes squinted. The woman, on the other hand, tucked a portion of her hair behind her ear.

"Why are you looking at me like that?" Her voice was meek and gentle, her cheeks blushing from Hugo’s intense stare since the moment she walked in.

It was flattering to receive this kind of attention from someone as charming as Hugo. Even though he wore a simple shirt with his jacket draped over his chair and his hair was a little long, as if he hadn’t had a haircut in a while, he still gave off a bad boy vibe. Yet, the wide smile on his face contradicted his simple clothing.

"Didn’t you say you’re the daughter of this digital bank?" he asked after a moment of silence.

"Uh... yes," the woman smiled with pride. "I actually work in our family company... oh, is a woman with a career fine with you?"

"Of course!" Hugo’s grin stretched from ear to ear. "Why would that matter? I have female colleagues at the base and believe me when I say they’re fiercer than male soldiers. Besides, in today’s world, equality is more accepted, right? It’s more admirable for a woman to work; my sister has a company, and my mother runs a restaurant with her friend."

Hearing his kind words made her smile. "That’s good to hear. Most of the men I dated before didn’t like it when women worked. I mean, I guess they didn’t mind until the woman started earning more and becoming more successful than they were."

"What a bunch of assholes!"

"Pfft—" The woman covered her lips with the back of her hand. "I guess... they are like that."

"Why wouldn’t they want their partners to be successful? That doesn’t make sense. I would be grateful if that were me. After all, someone needs to put food on the table."

"Excuse me, what?"

Hugo sighed and shook his head. "You know what’s amazing these days?"

"What?"

"The 50/50 rule." He grinned again. "I’m poor, but I’m kind. I make bad financial decisions that leave me wondering where the hell my money went."

"???" Deep lines appeared between the woman’s brows, confused by Hugo’s train of thought. It felt like she was either slow or Hugo had a lot to say. This didn’t seem like what they were supposed to be talking about.

"Thing is..." Hugo hummed a tune, rubbing his index finger on the table. "I applied for a loan at your bank, but I haven’t heard back. Can you check?"

The woman blinked, confused. "Is this why you keep saying everything at once?"

Was he trying to make her feel comfortable first before asking for a favor?

"Hehe. I don’t have the money," he chuckled. "After I paid for your order, I’m going to leech off my siblings for food. I’m this close to applying for a dishwasher job at my mother’s restaurant. Please help."

"..." The woman pursed her lips into a thin line, trying to maintain a smile but failing. She sighed, looking at him pitifully.

’He’s handsome, and I thought he wore so casually for a date because it’s his style. I guess I was wrong,’ she thought. ’Isn’t he from the Bennet family? Why is he acting like he’s about to be homeless? Is he not interested in me? Or am I thinking of a different Bennet Family?’

Her eyes then fell on the cake in front of her and the glass of water in front of him. The food at the café wasn’t expensive, but he hadn’t ordered anything for himself. Does this mean he didn’t have money to pay for his meal?

"I’ll see what I can do," she replied kindly, reaching for her glass of water. As she took a sip, her eyes glanced down at her phone. Even though it didn’t ring, she picked it up and placed it against her ear. "Hello? Oh, right... it’s okay."

Hugo raised his brows as his date flashed him an apologetic smile. "I’m sorry, but my assistant called. There’s an emergency at the company, so I have to go and fix it."

"Sure! No problem."

"Sorry again." With that, the woman quickly grabbed her purse and rose from her seat. She almost ran away from the table, only to walk back and place a bill on the table. Smiling at Hugo, she whispered, "Please buy yourself something to eat."

"..." Hugo blinked, then glanced at the bill, quickly taking it without shame. "Today’s time and day are really the best!" — for a seasonal bum like me.

The woman forced a smile and nodded before walking away. Sensing that his gaze was on her back, she held her phone in front of her ear and pretended to talk.

RING!

"Ah!" she flinched as her phone suddenly rang, freezing in place as it continued to ring. Slowly, she pulled her phone away and awkwardly looked back at Hugo. She flashed him one last smile before answering her phone, and walking away without a pause.

Hugo furrowed his brows and tilted his head. "She was already talking on the phone, but it still rang. I didn’t know there was that new feature. What a strange feature. All of my dates were surprised by it."

After all, that woman wasn’t the first one to walk away from a date while pretending to be on the phone. In fact, all of them did.

"Hehehe..." Hugo chuckled, taking the folded bills from his pocket. He counted the money and added the bill the last woman gave him. "I didn’t know going on dates could be such a good business. I guess I’m a natural in business."