Hi, Three and six depends on the currency and what era/ country your book is set in. If it is English from a period before 1971 this may be referencing the use of shillings and pence in which your answer would be three shillings and six pence. If not reply to me with the era and country and I will look into what the term means :)

Ay the good old days!!! Three and six is indeed three shillings and six pence, in 1971 that would buy you a pint and a half of beer and you'd have fourpence ha'penny (halfpenny) change. A pint cost two and a penny, and a half pint cost one and an ha'penny, some of us still refer to it as 'proper money'. A sixpence coin was 'a tanner', a shilling coin was 'a bob', and a two and sixpence coin was 'a half crown'.

Yes, three and six was three shillings and six pence. When I was a child I got about two and six a week pocket money - which was quite good in those days. A chocolate bar was sixpence, and a few sweets tuppence (two pence). Horse riding lessons were about seven and six - but my parents paid for those. Bed and breakfast could be got for seventeen and six a night when you went on holiday. Ah! The days of real money! Never have got used to going decimal!

Yes, I think it is three shillings and six pence. The story is from a collection of short stories by British writer Rebert Aickman (1914 - 1981), a search on Google shows. There were 20 shillings in a pound (£), and twelve pence in a shilling. I looked up a relative comparison site for historical currency, and the answer is, "In 2014, the relative value of 3s 6d from 1960 ranges from £3.36 to £11.99 (on a purchasing power basis)." It would have been so much more interesting for us, and helpful, if Cloud had given the names of the story, the book and the writer, as well as the fuller context. Who paid three and six for what in which city during which historical period? Next time Cloud will give all the relevant information, so that all of us will do a better job and enjoy the process even more.

3+6=9. It's a simple arithmetic problem, but apparently, the lady in question had had too much to drink and couldn't remember the answer.