Chapter 133 It Was Him
A few minutes later, Jonathan saw Tavion’s car below Tavion Tower.
It was a black Rolls-Royce that appeared extremely grand, sparkling under the sunlight.
As soon as Tavion got downstairs, the driver immediately stepped forward and opened the car door for him.
Surprisingly, Jonathan saw no sign of the two men who were purportedly waiting for him in the waiting lounge. Instead, the secretary got into the car with Tavion.
“How’s it, Jonathan? This is a pretty nice ride, isn’t it?” Lighting a cigar, Tavion leaned back against the seat and puffed out a cloud of smoke at the starry sky above.
“Not bad,” Jonathan answered blithely.
Tavion casually flicked the cigar as he revealed the price of the car, saying, “I spent over thirty million on this car and had it air-freighted over. You can’t buy this here, but then the maintenance is just too expensive. It costs me hundreds of thousands every year!”
He seemed to be chatting with Jonathan about the car, but in reality, he was using that method to widen the gap between them.
It’s just been a mere four years, yet there’s already a world of difference between us! So what if he was vastly capable back then? He’s still doing so dismally now that he can’t even afford to buy a decent set of clothes! Contrarily, I already have a fortune of a few billion and am currently sitting in a car worth over thirty million! Just the amount of money I’m spending on this car’s maintenance is enough to last him half his lifetime!
“Oh, really?” Jonathan responded nonchalantly.
That attitude of his had chagrin flooding Tavion.
I initially thought that he would appear envious or resentful, but I never thought that he would be apathetic as though a luxury car worth tens of millions is nothing to write home about in his eyes. He’s unimpressed?
At once, his expression darkened.
If he weren’t with me, would he have the opportunity to ride in this car?
Half an hour later, the car came to a stop before Empyrean Palace.
No sooner had they alighted from the car than beautiful and alluring female servers came forward, ushering them into the most lavish and stately private room in Empyrean Palace—the Supreme VIP Room.
“This way, please, Mr. Callahan!” The server’s voice was a touch coquettish, and she even seemed to be fawning over him. “Mr. Whittaker and Mr. Ziegler have been waiting for you in the room for a long time!”
“Got it.”
Nodding, Tavion followed the server to the Supreme VIP Room.
While walking, he turned to Jonathan and remarked, “You’ve never been to Empyrean Palace, have you? This is the most expensive restaurant in the whole of Jazona. The minimum spend for the Supreme VIP Room alone is eight hundred and eighty thousand! Also, it’s not open to the public. It’s only for patrons of Diamond VIP and above. To be a Diamond VIP, one has to spend at least eight million in a single bill!”
As he walked, he boasted of his grandeur and magnificence to Jonathan.
It was as though he could only flaunt his superiority through such a method.
“So you’re a Diamond VIP patron here?” Jonathan inquired casually.
“Yes!” After saying that, Tavion added, “But I don’t spend that much. The most I spent was a little over ten million. I heard that Mr. York spent over thirty million here in a single bill to woo the heiress of the Hansley family!”
When he mentioned ten million, he was so blasé that it was as though he was speaking of a thousand.
However, Jonathan was quite surprised that the heir of the York family was actually interested in Luna.
“Go on in, Mr. Callahan!”
A short while later, the beautiful and alluring server pushed open the door to the Supreme VIP Room.
They were greeted by the sight of a huge sliding screen in the room.
The murmur of a stream drifted into the air. A few carp were swimming in the stream.
On both sides of the stream were two young ladies in traditional clothing playing the harp.
The stunning visual and dulcet melody complemented each other. It was an absolute delight.
“Mr. Callahan!” As soon as Tavion stepped into the room, two middle-aged men in black suits instantly came forward to greet him. “It’s really difficult to ask you out for a meal, Mr. Callahan! We’ve waited for over a week!”
“I’m sorry, but I had too many things to handle at work that I truly couldn’t spare the time!” Chuckling, Tavion shrugged his shoulders slightly. Immediately, his secretary behind him stepped forward and removed his jacket for him.
Then, he continued, “If I hadn’t bumped into my good friend whom I hadn’t seen in years, I might not even have been free today.” After that, he glanced over his shoulder at Jonathan and declared, “Let me introduce them to you, Jonathan. These two are the general managers of Zion Group, Mike Ziegler and Vincent Whittaker. Rumor has it that their net worth had long since exceeded a billion, but they staunchly refuse to admit it.”
“Nah, not at all! Don’t listen to Mr. Callahan! He’s just joking. We’re mere employees at Zion Group! The middle-aged man introduced as Mike chortled before shifting his gaze to Jonathan and querying, “And this is…”
“My good friend, Jonathan Goldstein!” Tavion answered. “But something happened back then, so I haven’t seen him in several years.”
“Since you’re Mr. Callahan’s good friend, you’re naturally our esteemed guest! Do have a seat!” Mike was exceedingly enthusiastic.
Right after saying that, he lifted a hand and beckoned at the server, booming, “You may serve the food now!”
“Sure!”
The alluring server bowed before leaving the room.
When she had left, Mike turned to Jonathan while the strains of the harp were still floating in the air and asked, “Where are you currently employed, Mr. Goldstein?”
“I’m unemployed,” Jonathan answered airily.
“Unemployed?” Mike’s brows abruptly scrunched together when he heard that. “You’re really hilarious, Mr. Goldstein. All who are friends with Mr. Callahan have a net worth of a billion at the very least! How could you be unemployed? You’re too modest!”
Despite his words, the contempt in his eyes was plainly evident and the corner of his lips curled scornfully when he noticed that Jonathan’s attire didn’t even cost five hundred in total.
Where did this impoverished guy come from? And how is he worthy of sitting at the same table with us?
Glimpsing the disdain in his eyes, Tavion explained, “Jonathan hasn’t been doing too well recently, but don’t underestimate him! He was a billionaire a few years ago, and he started from scratch at that! Do you remember me saying some time ago that I once partnered with someone and started a company a few years back?” At that, he offhandedly glanced at Mike and Vincent before announcing, “He was my business partner back then!”
”He was your business partner back then?” In a thrice, the expressions of both Mike and Vincent changed. The contempt in their eyes as they regarded Jonathan intensified, and a trace of repugnance crept in. It was as though they were sickened to even look at him. “So he was the one who caused the company to go bankrupt and even owe a shedload of debts, Mr. Callahan?”
