David Thompson and Eric Brooks only realized what was happening at this point. After glancing around, the two finally gritted their teeth, turned on each other, and started fighting among themselves. In the blink of an eye, two more bowls were filled.

Everyone at the table stared at each other wide-eyed. The small bowls in front of them, which had just been empty, now looked like little graves, silently announcing their doom.

Brian Young suddenly burst out laughing. Of the six people, only his bowl was still empty.

Grace Bennett's face turned cold, and she called out loudly, "Boss, bring a big bowl for soup!"

The attentive boss responded immediately. To show how generous his restaurant was, he deliberately picked out a giant sea bowl. As soon as he set it on the table, Grace Bennett didn't even bother with chopsticks—she grabbed two plates and dumped them straight into the big bowl, then shoved it in front of Brian Young. She quickly switched to a hostess's tone and said sweetly, "Brian Young, you should eat more too."

Her voice was as sticky-sweet as taffy, but at that moment, everyone felt much better. Compared to that voice, the food in front of them didn't seem so disgusting anymore. Only Brian Young still stared miserably at the big soup bowl.

Everyone was stunned for a moment, then suddenly burst out laughing, laughing so hard that tears nearly came out. The boss peeked his head out from the kitchen to check on the table, especially noting the two cases of liquor under the table, which were still mostly full, and finally felt at ease.

After laughing enough, Grace Bennett said, "Eat, everyone, go ahead and eat. Don't judge this place by its looks—actually, all the restaurants around here are like this. Students from the Normal University always come here for a bite, and I've never heard of anyone dying from the food."

With that, Grace Bennett took the lead, picking up a slice of boiled pork and stuffing it into her mouth. Suddenly, she exclaimed, "Hey, it's actually pretty good!"

Ethan Bennett looked at her and said, "We're not falling for your trick!"

Grace Bennett protested, "It's true." Then she picked up another slice and held it to Ethan Bennett's mouth, saying, "Try it if you don't believe me." Brian Young and the other three stared so hard their eyes were about to pop out, fixated on the two of them.

Ethan Bennett felt awkward and quickly grabbed his chopsticks, saying, "I'll do it myself, I'll do it myself." With that, he picked up a slice for himself.

Grace Bennett paused, then pulled her chopsticks back and stuffed the slice into her own mouth, sneering, "Tch, I don't even think it's a big deal, but you, a grown man, sure know how to put on a show."

Definitely bold. Ethan Bennett felt even more certain that his first impression of Grace Bennett had been spot on.

Volume One, Chapter Fourteen: Dessert After the Meal

With the two leading the way, everyone finally started eating, and soon discovered that although the restaurant didn't look great, the food was actually pretty good. Once the table was cleared, everyone began to regretfully stare at the contents of their bowls. Since everything had been mixed together into a big mess, the flavors were all jumbled and it was really inedible. The four of them were still hungry, looking pitifully at Grace Bennett. Grace Bennett looked back at them, feeling both annoyed and amused, but in the end had no choice but to ask the boss to bring out a few more dishes.

Suddenly, as if remembering something, she shouted, "Where's the wine? What happened to your wine? Why haven't you been drinking?"

The four each picked up an empty bottle and said in unison, "We drank it."

Grace Bennett glared and said, "That's all you drank?"

The four, as if rehearsed, replied in unison, "Can't drink any more."

Looking at their shameless faces, Grace Bennett was truly at her wits' end—her scheme had ultimately failed.

Whether or not they'd had enough to drink, at least they'd eaten their fill. The four walked out, rubbing their bellies in satisfaction, leaving Grace Bennett gritting her teeth as she paid the bill behind them.

By now, it was already dark. The lights from the restaurants along the alley shone brightly, not quite turning night into day, but enough to see the road. Still, as soon as Brian Young stepped out, he bumped straight into someone.

A moment of silence. Both stood stiffly, neither apologizing nor moving away.

Ethan Bennett and the others came out as well. Although it wasn't very bright, Ethan Bennett immediately recognized the other person as one of those who had been with William Carter earlier that day.

The man reeked of alcohol, his breath thick with it. His bleary eyes lifted and he recognized Ethan Bennett too, mumbling, "It's you."

Brian Young looked at Ethan Bennett in surprise and asked, "You know him?" Earlier, he and Grace Bennett had only seen the scene from a distance and hadn't recognized the faces.

Ethan Bennett whispered in his ear, "One of the guys from earlier today."

But the other man had already started cursing: "You little punk, what are you whispering about? So you guys are together—no wonder you're all so blind."

Brian Young made as if to step forward, but Ethan Bennett held him back, saying, "He's drunk, ignore him, let's go!"

But unexpectedly, the man suddenly shouted, "Hey, everyone, come out! Look who I ran into!"

Not long after he spoke, several people staggered out of the restaurant next door. Ethan Bennett glanced over and saw that all the people they'd run into earlier that day were there, plus a few unfamiliar faces. William Carter wasn't among them, though.

A group of people swayed over. One of them, who'd been there earlier, came right up to Ethan Bennett, almost pressing his face to Ethan Bennett's, glaring and saying, "Hey, isn't this that cocky kid? Oh, I'm so scared!" As he spoke, he shrank back, and the group burst out laughing, spreading out to surround the six of them.

David Thompson clenched his fists, moved close to Ethan Bennett, and whispered, "They've got more people, but they're all this drunk—nothing to be afraid of. Damn, first day of school and we're already getting into a fight. Who would've thought!"