novelraw Chapter 153: Borrowing Money
Chapter 153: Borrowing Money
[I love dumplings! 19.9 RMB per person? I’ve never seen an all-you-can-eat place this cheap where I live.]
[The show must be filming in the north. The locals are all dressed pretty warmly. How are the prices so low here?]
[I know where this is! It’s Griston. The wages are generally low there, and so is the cost of living. It’s a great place to retire.]
After leaving the small eatery, Riley Perry said her goodbyes to Master Quenton and hailed a cab back to the hotel. ’Hmm, I’m actually the first one back!’
She used her smartwatch to contact Chloe Sterling. The girl had actually found a gig playing piano in a hotel, but she would barely be able to scrape together enough money by nine-thirty tonight.
The girl was really working her tail off. Her hotel gig started at five, but they were only paying her a hundred yuan an hour. So, she had also taken on an odd job in the afternoon, stringing skewers at a barbecue joint for four hours to earn another 120 yuan. Added together, it was just enough to meet her goal.
Fortunately, it wasn’t long before Roxanne Fulton and Ethan Shaw returned.
"How did you two end up together?"
Roxanne Fulton looked thrilled. "I can only play the guitar, and he can’t play an instrument while he’s singing and dancing, so we teamed up. We were busy until just now trying to scrape the money together. We couldn’t even bring ourselves to buy dinner."
"Seriously? A boxed meal outside only costs ten or twenty yuan. You couldn’t even bring yourselves to spend that?"
"It’s just so hard to make money, especially with faces like ours. None of the young people were willing to give us a second glance. We only managed to make enough because Irving was so smart."
Hearing her praise, Ethan Shaw was bursting with joy, unable to hide the smug look on his face.
He really was quite clever. At first, no one paid them any mind after two songs, so he switched to singing oldies. That quickly attracted a large crowd of older folks. A crowd draws a crowd, so the presence of all the seniors eventually drew in the younger people as well.
Once one person tipped, others followed suit, tossing in a yuan here and two there. Of course, some were more generous, giving ten or twenty. It all added up, and after singing for several hours, they finally earned enough.
Of course, they took breaks in between; otherwise, singing for hours on end would have ruined even the best of voices.
When Director Warren heard they were back, he had someone send over two boxed meals.
Ethan Shaw cried out in frustration, "Director Warren, this is all we get to eat?"
"You’re welcome to order from the restaurant, but you’ll have to pay for it yourselves."
Ethan Shaw instantly deflated, slumping onto the sofa to focus on his boxed meal.
Even a hero can be felled by an empty wallet. They truly didn’t have a single yuan to spare. *Sigh*.
"Ronnie, I’ve got some pork ribs here. Have some."
Roxanne Fulton replied, "It’s okay, you have it. I’ve got some braised pork belly here. You have some of mine. You worked so hard today."
Their heads were practically touching. They were acting so lovey-dovey that Riley Perry almost thought she’d stumbled onto the set of a dating show.
Riley Perry: ... ’I’m already so full from dinner. If I have to stomach this public display of affection, I think I might actually burst.’
To stir things up, Riley Perry turned to the camera. "Calling Director Warren, come in, Director Warren. It’s nine-oh-five. Can I go back to my room and rest now?"
Jenson’s walkie-talkie crackled to life, the voice on the other end absurdly loud. "Don’t even think about it! The livestream doesn’t shut down until ten. You’ll stick it out until then, even if you have to prop your eyes open! Otherwise, I’m docking your pay!"
Riley Perry: ...
Riley Perry gave a perfect demonstration of what "losing the will to live because you can’t leave work early" looks like. All expression instantly vanished from her face.
Thankfully, the other cast members started trickling back in, and the two lovebirds finally dialed down their public displays of affection. It was much more interesting to have everyone chatting together.
Victoria Koenig and Holly Summers were the last to return. Riley Perry could see clearly that the expressions on their faces were not good.
"Victoria, what’s wrong? Did you earn enough money?"
Victoria Koenig slumped onto the sofa next to Riley Perry, her face a mask of misery. "Ria, I didn’t make enough money."
"Hmm? How much are you short?"
"I only earned 360 yuan. I’m still short 95."
Riley Perry said, "Oh, is that all? No big deal. I happen to have some extra. I’ll just lend you a hundred."
Victoria Koenig looked ready to fall to her knees. She grabbed Riley Perry’s arm and started gushing, "Ria, you’re a true sister to me! A modern-day Jasper Sutton! Without this hundred yuan, I’d have to face the punishment."
Riley Perry immediately yanked her arm back, shooting Victoria Koenig a look of disdain. But just as she was about to speak, Holly Summers sidled up. "Riley Perry, could you lend me some money, too? I’m just so exhausted today, and I really don’t want to face that punishment."
"No." Riley Perry’s reply was instantaneous, her tone cold and merciless.
"Why? We’ve been friends for years! How can you lend money to someone else but not to me?"
Riley Perry finally turned to Holly Summers, whose expression had soured. Holly hadn’t had time to conceal the hatred in her eyes, and Riley let out a derisive snort. "A ’friend’ who stabs me in the back? A ’friend’ who schemes against me at every turn? A ’friend’ who’d sell me out for money? A ’friend’ who won’t rest until I’m ruined? Anyone who wants a friend like that is welcome to her!"
Holly Summers flinched. She never thought Riley Perry would dare to openly turn on her during a live broadcast. Once word of those accusations got out, she could already imagine the storm that awaited her.
’So, I absolutely cannot admit to any of it.’
"Riley Perry, why would you say that about me? I honestly don’t know what I did to offend you. From the moment we met on this show, you’ve been nothing but sarcastic, and now you’re trying to slander me!"
Riley Perry scoffed. "Are you daring to say that what happened a couple of days ago had nothing to do with you?"
Holly Summers’s pupils constricted, and a look of pure horror flashed across her face. Her lips trembled, but for a long moment, she was utterly speechless.
’That damn bitch, she actually knows? How is that possible?!’
’No, she can’t be talking about that. She can’t be!’
[HOLY SHIT! Holly Summers looks guilty as hell!]
[You can tell from her expression she was up to no good!]
[Bullshit! Is Riley Perry just going to target our Holly and no one else? They’re not friends, they’re mortal enemies!]
[I’m not a fan of either of them, but does anyone actually like how caustic and mean Riley Perry is?]
[To the Holly Summers fan above, why are you pretending to be neutral? Maybe change your username before you post next time.]
[Then why don’t you fans tell your idol to stop getting in Riley Perry’s face! Every time she gets close, she gets shot down. And she’ll probably do it again next time. She’s just a glutton for punishment!]
[Riley Perry only made a little over seven hundred yuan herself. She lent it to Victoria Koenig because she could afford to, and because they formed that ’comrade-in-arms’ bond last episode. That’s why she helped her.]
[Holly Summers just demanded to borrow money without even asking how much Riley had. If I met someone like that in real life, I’d stay far, far away. Because if you say no, they’ll end up hating you for it.]
"Riley Perry, you can’t do this..."
The one thing Riley Perry hated hearing most was "Riley, you can’t..." ’I’ve already done it,’ she thought. ’What’s there to ’can’t’ about it?’