I'll wait for you amidst the romance of nature.

I turned my gaze back to Taozi, hoping her resolve would waver. I understood that her biggest worry now stemmed from the fact that after giving up everything in Shanghai, she would no longer be able to maintain her previous income, and she had become accustomed to this high-cost lifestyle, which might even cause her to neglect her struggling family.

After a moment, under everyone's gaze, Taozi finally replied, "I am very grateful for everyone's kindness, but these really cannot be a reason for me to stay in Dali, so I still cannot make this decision."

After Taozi said that, everyone looked somewhat disappointed, especially Tienan. However, since everyone had already tried to persuade her, Taozi was still unwilling to change, so it was really not good to continue to force her.

After that, no one mentioned the matter again. Everyone tacitly focused their attention on drinking and having fun. But I had a little something on my mind. I was the only one here who knew what Taozi did, so I longed for her to escape that environment and live a dignified life more than anyone else.

Currently, we don't have the ability to ensure that she can maintain the same income level she had in Shanghai while living in Dali, and that's the fundamental reason why Taozi doesn't want to stay here.

I thought about it again: instead of trying so hard to persuade her now, I should try to make the inn better and bigger, and then welcome Taozi to join us when it is profitable. At that time, Taozi will not have such a heavy mental burden.

……

After dinner, Ye Zhi returned to Ma Jiuyi alone, but left her car with me so I could take Taozi around for the next few days. This was definitely a good friend's gesture, but what puzzled me was her refusal to offer any helpful advice as a friend regarding the inn. She seemed very pessimistic about our inn's prospects. But the truth is, if we can reopen as soon as possible, we'll definitely become a highly popular, trendy seaside inn.

It must have this market position, because we have all given everything for this inn.

Back at the inn, Coach Ma had already spent the afternoon removing the original "Fragrant Flowers and Clouds" sign. Although this made the inn look even more deserted, it was a very important start for us, as it marked the official launch of our "Romantic Journey" today.

……

After entering the inn, everyone washed up and rested, but Peach and I remained sitting on the second-floor platform overlooking Erhai Lake...

Peach lit a cigarette, took a puff, and said to me with a sigh, "We've been friends in Shanghai for so many years, and I never felt you changed. But now that we're meeting in another city, you seem like a completely different person."

"How do you look like a completely different person?"

Do you remember how busy you were when you were in Shanghai?

I thought for a moment and replied, "Seven days a week, five of which I had to work overtime. Sometimes I really felt like I was carrying a lead weight on my back, and I always felt like I was about to collapse! But now it's much more relaxed."

"That's right! Back then, it was so difficult for Wang Lei and me to ask you out for dinner! ...Let alone us, even Lu Jia probably couldn't get you to agree to a meal, right?"

I nodded and replied, "Yes, in the months before we broke up, Lu Jia would complain every time she called. She felt that my presence or absence made no difference to her life... But looking back now, it was truly a waste of time and energy."

Peach smiled, then lowered her voice and asked me, "Has Lu Jia contacted you again after she left?"

"No, not even once."

Peach sighed, "That woman is so heartless! You two were together for three whole years, and she just left like that."

I lit a cigarette, remaining silent, but my mind was filled with thoughts of the past three years...

Do you hate her?

I exhaled the smoke from my mouth and replied softly, "There will be some resentment, but I hope she can find a man more suitable for her than me... Peach, you know what? It's precisely because we loved each other so deeply that we can't remain friends after breaking up, because that would only cause us more pain!"

"Don't talk about love with people like us... I don't understand."

I tapped my forehead with my finger, then fell silent again...

Just then, Taozi suddenly took a file folder out of her handbag and handed it to me, saying, "I withdrew 100,000 yuan in cash from the bank this afternoon. You can take it..."

I looked up at her...

"Take it. Tie Nan told me that your inn is doing very well right now, but you're a little short on funds... I happen to have some spare cash here."

"I can't take this money; you've already had it tough enough!"

"Oh my... stop being so dramatic. I didn't give you this money entirely because I wanted to... I can't just watch Leilei's dream only get halfway through and then give up... Besides, I'm not giving you this money for nothing. I'm much more realistic than Leilei. Once your inn really starts making money, you have to give me shares, or you'll have to pay me back with interest."

I joked back, "If you hadn't said anything, I would have really thought you gave it to me for free!"

Peach slapped me on the back and scolded, "You sneaky little devil, keep dreaming!"

After a moment of silence, Peach said to me again, "It's getting late, I need to get some rest. There are still so many places I want to visit tomorrow."

"Okay... I'll definitely make time to be with you tomorrow."

……

I was the last one to return to my room from the inn, but I just couldn't fall asleep. This insomnia was entirely due to stress. I was afraid I wouldn't run the inn well and would let Taozi down, who also trusted me completely. For them, making money is said to be easy, but it's actually the hardest thing, because every penny they earn is earned by exchanging their dignity and their bodies.

I believe Peach still has at least several hundred thousand yuan in savings, but she feels that she has lost even the right to pursue love. From another perspective, isn't this money the knife that ruined her?

The more I thought about it, the less sleepy I became, so I simply sat up in bed, put on my coat, and went up to the third floor. I knocked on Yang Sisi's door...

She guessed he was on the verge of falling asleep, so she asked impatiently, "Who is it? Can't a person get some sleep?!"

"Damn it, get up quickly, I have something important to talk to you about."

"Are you sleepwalking? Go back to your own place, I don't have the energy to play along with your craziness."

I knocked on her door a few more times...

"Michael, are you annoying me?! Ah! I'm going crazy!..." Yang Sisi roared while kicking her bed repeatedly.

I persisted, saying, "Come out, I have an important task for you."

Finally, I heard Yang Sisi get out of bed. She slammed the door open and, with red eyes, demanded, "What time is it? How can you treat someone like this?"

Ignoring her questioning, I asked in return, "Do you consider yourself part of this inn?"

"Of course, I'm unanimously recognized as the most beautiful receptionist!"

"It's enough that you recognize yourself as one of the lowest rungs of the inn... As the owner, I'm now solemnly announcing a decision to you: I'm going to implement a military-style management system for the inn, so from now on, you may have to accept tasks from me anytime, anywhere... including late at night, or before dawn!"

Yang Sisi retorted fiercely, "Have you lost your mind? Military-style management, my foot! Why don't you just put a missile launcher in the inn, and send a missile at whoever's an enemy?"

I almost laughed at her words, but I remained serious and said to her, "You have absolutely no sense of responsibility as a receptionist! Are you saying that if the inn reopens and guests arrive after midnight, you won't serve them?"

Yang Sisi was a little speechless for a while before replying, "Well, the inn hasn't reopened yet."

"Many things require developing good habits in advance. If I let you do whatever you want now, and you can't get up later, which delays the guests' check-in, then it will be because I, as the boss, have failed to manage my employees properly. So I need to make you feel the pressure in advance."

Yang Sisi glared at me through gritted teeth, but I was happy to see her like that because I really didn't want her to stay at this inn any longer, so this was the only way I could make her hate her job.

Unexpectedly, Yang Sisi suddenly calmed down and said to me, "Didn't you just say you had an important task to give me? Well then, say it! Don't just stand there like a block of wood at my door. People who don't know better might think you're up to no good."