Chapter 228: Why Are Formal Dresses Always Single-Use?  

That Night. 

Duncan's Apartment. 

"What?!" 

The moment Max heard Adam mention the coming-of-age party, she couldn't even maintain her classic post-reaction expression like Amy's. She shook her head repeatedly. "I'm not going!" 

"Don't worry, it's just a party." 

Adam reassured her. "You can't seriously let me go alone, right?" 

"Just a party?" 

Max exclaimed, "This is a party hosted by the daughter of a billionaire! I've never even been to a millionaire's party. If I go, I'll embarrass myself to death." 

"It's not that dramatic." 

Adam laughed. "Whether it's a millionaire or a billionaire, they're all just people. Besides, I've already handed you over to Rachel—she'll help you pick out a dress and give you a few pointers. I'll be with you almost the entire time. All you have to do is look stunning and exude confidence like a queen. Just do me this favor, alright?" 

"Exuding confidence like a queen? Now that I can do." 

Max smirked, then added in her usual sarcastic tone, "But doing you a favor? No thanks. The last time you said that, I took a day off, and your kind of favor isn't easy to help with." 

"You're really just throwing it back at me now." 

Adam teased, "You were the one who challenged me first, and now you're acting like I tricked you." 

As he spoke, he explained the reference to My Own Swordsman, where a character described "eating and then throwing up" as a metaphor. 

"That's such a guy thing to say, always thinking wishfully." 

Max rolled her eyes. "Throwing up after eating actually makes sense scientifically. Just because I didn't go to a 'real' university doesn't mean I don't understand science. Trying to use science to fool me? Unless you demonstrate it in person." 

"…" 

Adam's mouth twitched. He suddenly didn't feel like talking anymore. 

Max's level of wit was too high—even he couldn't handle it. 

The Next Evening. 

In the end, Max was dragged out shopping by Rachel. 

Monica had originally planned to join them, but she got invited on a date by Peter instead. 

Meanwhile, Chandler finally recognized who Peter really was. 

It turned out that Peter had been a programmer who developed a successful software and started his own company. Almost overnight, he became a millionaire, posed for photos with the President, and secured his status as a rising star in the tech world. 

Note: American millionaires and Asian millionaires are not the same. 

In America, the numerical system isn't as segmented as in Asian. After thousands, the next jump is to millions, then billions. 

So, an American millionaire starts at one million and can go all the way up to just under a billion. This category includes what would be called multimillionaires or even lower-tier billionaires in Asian, making it a broad range. 

An American billionaire, on the other hand, starts at ten figures—meaning ten billion, a hundred billion, and so on. 

Most of the time, people don't bother distinguishing between millionaires and multimillionaires, but if needed, they can. 

For example, a Asian multimillionaire or billionaire would be categorized in America as a tenfold or hundredfold millionaire. 

Adam was a tenfold millionaire. 

Peter, on the other hand, was a hundredfold millionaire and a rising tech entrepreneur—someone with far more influence than Adam. Hugging the President for a photo op? Just another day for him. 

After learning Peter's true identity, Monica initially refused to acknowledge it, but her actions betrayed her words as she took the $20,000 tip check and went to confront him. 

Peter casually tore up the check… 

And just like that, Monica accepted his explanation and agreed to go on a date. 

It wasn't about materialism—Monica had already liked Peter before. This new information just amplified those feelings. 

It's the same as when a good person does good deeds all their life—no one is particularly surprised. 

But when a bad person suddenly does one good thing, everyone takes notice. Some people even get emotional, feeling moved and eager to redeem them. 

Villains, bad boys, and rebels always seem more attractive. 

Because they either have power, money, or looks. 

A person with none of those things? They don't even get to be the villain. It's not a joke—it's just reality. 

This is human nature. 

Nothing more, nothing less. 

Late at Night. 

Rachel and Max finally returned home. 

Clearly, someone had gone overboard with shopping. 

But the results were spectacular. 

There was a reason Rachel always wanted to work in fashion. 

Having been pampered since childhood, she had her own unique understanding of style. 

With her help, Max's dress perfectly highlighted all her best features. 

The result? 

The dress barely lasted the night before it got ruined—clearly, the quality was awful. 

So, Adam simply called the store and had them send over a few more, ensuring Max would have something to wear to the coming-of-age party in a few days. 

The Next Day. 

Monica finally returned. 

(At this moment, please imagine a totally random and nonsensical promotional text in between!) 

"You look like someone in a great mood." 

Chandler teased, "That smile looks familiar. Oh, wait—has Peter also been 'undisclosed' for two years?" 

"Haha." 

Adam immediately burst out laughing. 

Back in the day, Monica had fallen for a bartender's sob story about not having 'done the deed' in two years, leading to a one-night stand. The aftermath, where she ranted about all men, was still fresh in everyone's minds. 

Of course, Monica caught the reference and hurled her handbag at Chandler. 

"So, where did you two go on your date?" 

Adam quickly changed the subject. 

"Yeah, tell us how a hundredfold millionaire plans a date." 

Chandler caught the handbag and grinned. 

"We just had pizza." 

Monica smiled sweetly. 

"Just pizza?" 

Chandler scoffed, "That's kind of cheap, isn't it?" 

"Hold on." 

Adam chuckled knowingly. "I bet it wasn't just any pizza." 

"You're right—it was in Italy." 

Monica's grin widened. "And I paid for it. Only $0.60 a slice—cheap and delicious. I wish I could eat it every day." 

"Well, once you factor in the airfare, I doubt you'd still want to." 

Adam joked, "That might be the most expensive slice of pizza ever." 

"Rich people sure know how to have fun." 

Chandler quipped, "Flying all the way from New York to Italy just for a $0.60 pizza." 

"That's what you call 'romance.'" 

Adam explained, "There's an old saying: 'If she is innocent to the world, show her its splendor. If she is weary of the world, take her on a carousel.' 

Monica isn't materialistic, nor has she been through a lot of hardship—she's more of a hopeless romantic. Spending a fortune to fly her somewhere exotic, but making her pay for something small? It creates the illusion of equality, which is the most powerful strategy. 

Plus, a flight from New York to Italy takes eight or nine hours. Once you're there, you don't just fly right back, do you? 

You wait for the next flight. And while you wait, you find somewhere to rest… 

In that kind of atmosphere, the usual 'third-date rule' goes out the window. This is Italy—the land of romance." 

At this point, Adam stopped talking. 

Because Chandler and Monica were both staring at him. 

Especially Monica—her eyes practically burned with fire. 

"Ahem." 

Adam coughed awkwardly. "I'm just saying, maybe that's not what he was thinking…" 

His only response was a flying pillow.