Chapter 265 - 264 Taxi_1

Translator: 549690339

“Julius Reed, what are you playing at, acting all high and mighty here! It’s gonna be a hefty bill with the five of us eating, drinking, and having fun—what kind of money can you have as a son-in-law staying at the Radcliffe Family! If Quella were here today, I wouldn’t mind one bit, but you’re spending the Radcliffe Family’s money, so stop putting on airs!”

Seeing that Julius Reed was about to fall for her trap, Anna Harris could only use such provocative words to needle him.

Over the years since marrying into the Radcliffe family, Quella had grown quite close to Anna Harris, telling her everything without holding back, including the details of her family life.

As for this live-in son-in-law, Anna Harris naturally had some understanding of him. He didn’t like to go out and earn money but rather stayed at home all day doing house chores and laundry, seemingly quite content with this routine.

Moreover, according to Quella, the Radcliffe family basically only gave him an allowance for groceries, leaving Julius Reed without any excess funds.

If he were to lead everyone in their outing, where would he find the money for all the expenses?

Feeling that she might have been too harsh, Anna Harris quickly explained, “Young Master of the Martin Family’s family is local, and his uncle is loaded with cash. We came to Five-river Province this time to take down local tycoons, don’t be the scapegoat, okay!”

“Anna! I’ll get my hands on those local tycoons sooner or later, but look at Brother Reed’s outfit—it doesn’t look cheap. He can’t be broke! Besides, how much could the five of us really spend on food and drink? As the husband of your best friend, you wouldn’t be too stingy to spend that little bit of money, would you?”

Joel Martin, seeing Anna Harris defend Julius Reed, felt a surge of jealousy, yet he kept a smile on his face.

Having muddled through abroad for so many years, if he hadn’t learned anything else, he had certainly mastered the art of concealing daggers with smiles.

How could he miss such a golden opportunity?

“Exactly! Anna, are you worried about hanging out with us? If that’s the case, it would be like not even being friends. If you’re worried about the spending, I can cover it,” Isandro chimed in.

Isandro certainly had to side with Joel Martin, understanding that only by making a good impression could he hope to gain Joel’s favor.

And demeaning Julius Reed was also a jab at Anna Harris—how could Isandro resist such an opportunity?

“Come on! Are you folks looking down on me that much? Just food and lodging for five people—how much could that possibly cost? Quella is my wife, and I won’t do anything to embarrass her!”

It was all just money to Julius Reed, whose concept of finances was basically limited to…

Someone else paying.

He didn’t even know how much wealth the Ten Thousand Mountain Alliance really had, but at least he knew the money was endless.

“Ha-ha! Brother, you’re quite something—I wouldn’t even dare say what you just did!”

Another man chuckled lightly from the side, then fell silent again. His family was a household of merchants from a neighboring province, and having encountered these folks abroad, they had ended up traveling together.

As such, he wasn’t particularly interested in their personal grievances.

“Anna, now that he’s said that, wouldn’t it be rather disrespectful for you to refuse as your best friend?” Joel feigned a touch of discontent as he asked.

“All right then!”

Seeing Julius Reed speak so, Anna Harris nodded her head reluctantly. With Isandro and the others already suggesting they would pay, if Anna persisted in her refusal, it would indeed be a slap in the face to her friends.

“Just don’t go putting on big airs and carelessly spend our Radcliffe family money!”

She glanced at Julius with annoyance, the flicker of positive feelings she had for him just moments ago disappearing in an instant. n/o/vel/b//in dot c//om

Even though Quella was born into the Radcliffe family, Anna knew all too well the difficulties she had faced in recent years. Despite being better off than most, that didn’t warrant Julius squandering their wealth.

Especially when recalling Quella’s past remarks about Julius staying at home without going out to earn money, Anna found him all the more hypocritical. Using his wife’s money to save face made him utterly worthless in Anna’s eyes.

“Ah! Fine! Then what plans do you all have?”

Julius was hardly bothered by these matters, knowing that the total sum wouldn’t amount to much. Moreover, all the influential people in Five-river Province were his underlings, and nearly everything could be had for free.

“Let’s find a hotel first!”

Joel’s eyes darted about, and he turned to Isandro, “Isandro, where would you like to go?”

“I’m here for the first time; how would I know where to go!”

Isandro Jackson glanced at him disdainfully and turned to Heather Gonzalez, “Your family is local, do you know where we should go?”

“Right! Heather’s family is from around here, so why don’t we just go to her place? That way, we all get to visit and it’s convenient, isn’t it?”

Anna Harris immediately picked up the conversation.

Everyone knew the Gonzalez family was wealthy, and although they weren’t on the same level as the Potter Family, they still owned their own villa in Five-river Province. Their villa could accommodate all of them, even fifty people if necessary.

This would not only solve everyone’s accommodation problem but also bail out Julius Reed and save Quella Radcliffe a bundle.

“Alright…”

“No rush! Let’s not alert our families about our return this time. We can just go to Heather’s place after we’ve had our fun!”

Joel Martin immediately cut Heather off. He had not easily secured this chance; how could he miss it?

“Hurry up! I don’t have time to dawdle with you all! If you’re staying with someone, let’s go, if not I’ll book a top-tier hotel for your service!”

Julius Reed was getting impatient. Did they not understand how precious his time was? What was the big deal about staying in a hotel and eating food? He had even stayed in the Imperial City, yet he still preferred sleeping on the mountains.

“Look! He’s announced it, a top-tier hotel! Heather, what are some of the top-tier hotels in Five-river Province?”

The more Julius acted like this, the happier Joel Martin became.

He was digging his own grave, and no one was stopping him.

“The Water Pearl, I’d say. It’s quieter there and the view is nice. Whether it’s eating, drinking, or having fun, they’ve got it all pretty much covered.”

Heather considered for a moment before responding.

As soon as she finished speaking, Anna Harris immediately seemed displeased. She knew, of course, about The Water Pearl, a place that would cost thousands per person a night, and with meals, the six of them could end up spending tens of thousands on just one occasion.

And that was just the initial expense upon arrival. If they kept spending at this rate over three to five days, they would need at least hundreds of thousands.

While this amount might not mean much to these wealthy second-generation heirs, Quella Radcliffe’s income simply wasn’t enough to cover such expenses.

In fact, Anna Harris’s own annual income was only about two hundred thousand, so she could especially empathize with Quella.

“Then it’s decided, The Water Pearl! Let’s go quickly, or I won’t wait for you anymore!”

Julius turned and walked straight out of the airport.

The Water Pearl belonged to Miguel Abbott, and they could eat and drink there completely free of charge.

But Julius still preferred to keep a low profile; he couldn’t reveal his identity. So, he reminded Miguel Abbott not to act like they knew each other.

Soon, the group, each with their own thoughts, arrived at the airport entrance.

“Hey, buddy, how are you going to pick us up?”

Joel Martin looked around but didn’t see any decent-looking private cars.

He was well aware that Julius Reed might not have a car, but his question was more about shaming than genuine curiosity.

“We’ll just take a cab!”

Julius casually hailed a taxi.

He turned to the people behind him: “Get in.”

“Just this?”

Joel Martin frowned once more.