最佳契合 (Perfect Match) – 十九瑶
Chapter 37
Compared to Yuanjiang, there’s no snowfall on Luotan Mountain during the winter.
The town is surrounded by mountains and the sea and has pleasant weather. As soon as the autumn flowers under the roof fall down, a bundle of light and white willows grows by the water. Visitors from the north often stare in awe at the sight of laurel and willow trees, thanks to the stunning scenery of the area.
Early in the morning, Cheng Xiu was deeply asleep when he was suddenly woken up by a blaring alarm.
In the bed on the other side of the room, Dai Xiao was still sleeping without a shirt on. Snoring so loudly, one after another, like a tractor in the field that was puffing out smoke but couldn’t start. It had its own noise of 100 decibels, which completely subdued the alarm clock.
How fantastic!
Cheng Xiu threw a pillow at Dai Xiao, hitting him right in the face.
Thrilled by his action, Cheng Xiu quickly put on his clothes, rushed into the bathroom, and squeezed out some toothpaste while Dai Xiao was swearing at him. Before the other party managed to put on his pants, he grabbed a cup and slipped outside.
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As soon as he opened the door, the morning breeze blew in his face.
The bougainvillea in the small courtyard waterfalled, mimicking a fire. He An was holding Linglan while basking in the sun.
The little girl today was wearing a printed cloth skirt. No braids, her hair is so fluffy and soft, showing a beautiful light brown color in the sunlight. She drank her milk, while Liubailiu, who was beside her, looked at her with excitement, its pink nose twitching, eager to have a taste.
“Morning!”
Cheng Xiu raised his toothbrush and said hello.
“Morning.” He An arched his eyebrows at him and asked, “Have you checked your phone?”
”Not yet; what’s wrong?”
As he spoke, he raised his head and took a large mouthful of water.
He An mysteriously said, “Last night, someone made a big reservation at our inn.”
Big reservation?
Cheng Xiu puffed out his cheeks, and his eyes widened.
He had been living with Dai Xiao for nearly a year, and he had been trained to master the art of calmness, but hearing the sound of money, he couldn’t help but get himself excited. He held up his dental cup in his left hand, his toothbrush in his right, and gestured an exaggerated arc with both hands—how big are we talking about?
He An smiled, “It’s very big, so we have to be well-prepared.”
Cheng Xiu’s eyes suddenly turned bright. While brushing his teeth, regardless of the “beast” in the room, he turned around and went in to look for his phone. Shortly after, he came out with his mobile phone in hand, his shoulders slumping in disappointment, “No need to prepare. It seems like a system bug. How can this be a real reservation?”
He An looked up at him, “We can’t be sure.”
”Not 100% sure, but 99%.” Cheng Xiu sat next to He An, pointing at his phone screen, and counted one by one, “Look, the user is anonymous, paid in full, didn’t pick a room, didn’t put their contact number. Check-in time is still nine o’clock in the morning; how many guests have you seen who arrived at that time?”
”Hmm….” He An nodded, thinking.
Despite feeling downhearted, He An put a smile on his face, “Maybe this guest is different from the others? For example, they could be an elderly person who lives in a big city, is retired, and wants to come to our town and stay for a year. The full payment is because they have the ability to do so, and the anonymity is because they forgot to sign up. When choosing a room… Hmm, maybe they’re used to staying in hotels before where they choose a room for you and thought that small inns are the same.”
This theory actually sounded bizarre and far-fetched, but when Cheng Xiu saw his energetic look and glistening eyes, he was a bit convinced.
He An lowered his head and asked Linglan, “Is Dad right?”
“Yes!” the little girl sweetly responded and blinked her long eyelashes.
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Frankly, when this reservation first appeared, He An’s reaction was exactly the same as Cheng Xiu’s.
It seemed like a system glitch.
Except for a few discounted rooms, a booking for a standard room at Olive Inn costs nearly CN¥100,0001Approximately $13,918 USD. a year. Even if the guest is wealthy enough to not care about the money, paying the lump sum is irrational spending. Moreover, in terms of market trends, inns in Luotan Town have been competing for popularity, and Olive Inn has been barely hanging at the bottom of the rankings. Where did the luck of being chosen come from? Plus, it was booked anonymously, no specific room selected, and the early morning check-in time… Everything about this has the word “glitch” written all over it.
But what if it’s real?
By any chance, is it possible for Dai Xiao to recover a bit of the losses he suffered from taking him and Linglan in? Making an effort to clean and tidy up the place could be nothing compared to the potential earnings.
“Cheng Xiu, I want to push my luck.” He An said with a smile, “We’re a small inn, and the vacancy rate is so high during off-season that we only get booked one room at a time. What if this time, our lucky stars worked well and we met a big-hearted and approachable guest?”
“Alright.” Cheng Xiu patted He An on the shoulder and said, “I trust your intuition.”
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Although Cheng Xiu is a rough and clumsy guy, he understands He An completely.
He An is both soft and tough by nature. So while staying at the Olive Inn for about six months, he had always felt guilty about Dai Xiao because he stayed in a guest room without paying a fee and felt that it was dragging his business down.
Meanwhile, from Cheng Xiu’s point of view, at that time, the inn didn’t seem to be in operation at all.
Dai Xiao has the advantages of being handsome, enthusiastic, sensible, and reliable, but on the downside, he’s a slacker, stingy, and impractical. It’s very comfortable to be friends with him, but if they ran an inn together, they’d lose all their money by being idle. Especially Cheng Xiu, who was mentored by Zheng Feiluan, knew exactly what characteristics a person should have to become an outstanding businessman. Dai Xiao was dispassionate, and every step he took was out of bounds.
When he took them in, the Olive Inn was on the brink of bankruptcy. All rooms were empty, rents were pouring out, and there was no income at all. On the contrary, their arrival somewhat brought a bit of fireworks to the tenantless little inn.
After staying there for two days, the owner of the inn, whom no one had ever paid attention to, suddenly became interesting, even to the dullest people.
Dai Xiao didn’t hide anything and told them the truth. Before the idea of Internet celebrity inns became a trend, he was actually famous here for a while, but he couldn’t compete with the modern marketing strategy of showing off cats and dogs, and he slowly started feeling left behind.
He An lowered his eyes and thought for a moment, then said, “Shall I help you?”
Cheng Xiu didn’t understand it at the time and assumed that He An meant to help by working odd jobs. Unexpectedly, the next day, Dai Xiao handed over full control of the inn to He An, and demoted himself as the second in command. Becoming a driver, a security guard, and a porter.
As a way to compensate Dai Xiao, He An spent almost all of his energy on the inn, managing it as his own, while looking after Linglan.
Since then, the life of the inn has been improving day by day.
Dai Xiao became fascinated with He An and asked him if he had managed an inn before. He An said no, but he minored in Hotel Management for two semesters when he was in college, so he knows a bit about it. Cheng Xiu found out that day that He An actually attended university, but dropped out at some point.
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“By the way, aren’t you and Dai Xiao going to pick up several guests today? When are you leaving?”
He An asked, interrupting Cheng Xiu’s thoughts.
Cheng Xiu almost forgot about that. He lowered his head to look at his watch, turned around, and called out into the room, “Dai Xiao, let’s get moving. Hurry up!”
They’re going to pick up a small tourist group, about seven or eight people, mainly traveling, mostly visiting the film and television set in the north of Luotan Town. A big-budget ensemble film has just started shooting there, and it’s full of stars. Fans came after hearing the news and occupied various inns in the town. Olive Inn was also lucky enough to get a piece of the pie, booking four rooms at once.
At half past seven, Dai Xiao drove his nine-seater minivan and took Cheng Xiu with him to the airport to pick up another guest.
Olive Inn doesn’t provide breakfast, so the tenants woke up and went out one after another. After they played with Linglan and then Liubailiu, they packed their bags and started a new day’s journey.
Soon, the usual bustle every morning passed, and the small courtyard became quiet again.
The breeze blew through the bougainvillea, making the leaves move like waves, and the wind chimes jingled and chimed under the roof. After drinking enough milk, Linglan hugged Liubailiu and fell asleep in the cradle. He An then closed the door of the inn and started tidying up the guest rooms one by one.
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In order to save money for Dai Xiao, He An didn’t hire a cleaner. He did all the work, like making the bed, taking out the trash, cleaning the rooms, and restocking daily necessities. His body has not recovered yet, but his condition isn’t that bad. Although sometimes, when he can’t stand it anymore, he sits down to take a breath and rest.
After working for more than an hour, he finally cleared up the last guest room.
A large and well-kept bedroom is located on the inner side of the second floor, quite a distance from the bar along the river. It will be very quiet at night. It also has a small balcony with an elegant tea table set and potted plants. The small balcony is hidden among the lavishly blooming flower branches. If you push out the flowers, you’ll see the mountain range and the river in the distance.
The scenery changes along with the seasons, not one person will ever get tired of it, even if they stay there for a year.
The mysterious anonymous guest… should like it, right?
After making the bed, dizziness came over him, perhaps because he had been bending his head down for too long. He An hurriedly held on to the bed’s headboard to catch his breath.
The dizziness didn’t go away for a long time, and his forehead was sweating. He had to sit down slowly to rest. While he was resting, he used the sticky notepad in the drawer to leave a welcome message for the guest, and placed it neatly on the bedside table.
As soon as he’s done, he hears a “squeak,” and the courtyard door downstairs is pushed open.
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Olive Inn doesn’t have a doorbell, so two old wooden doors serve as doorbells. They are heavy and old, and the door hinges have been corroded by rain. Every time they are pushed, they always make an ancient and distant creaking that can be heard wherever you go.
He An looked up at the clock, it was exactly nine o’clock.
Is it that guest?
Without much thought, he hurriedly smoothed out the wrinkles on the sheets, opened the door and went out to greet them.
After walking down a few steps, holding on to the railing of the small platform at the stairs, he looked down, but there was no one near the door. He An felt strange and subconsciously turned his gaze towards the yard. Just a single glance made him freeze instantly.
He saw someone who shouldn’t be there.
Zheng Feiluan.
The alpha stood in front of the swing, very close to Linglan. He then took a step closer and stretched out his hand to the sleeping little one.
Witnessing the scene, He An’s hand squeezed the rails tightly. The warm sun was shining, but he seemed to be engulfed by an avalanche. The fear at that moment was enough to make one’s blood run cold.
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There was a little child sleeping in the little swing cradle.
Linglan.
His daughter.
Zheng Feiluan stared at her, a hint of warmth in his usually calm eyes.
He didn’t expect that after a 10-hour trip, as soon as he stepped into Olive Inn, the first person to greet him would be Linglan – she was embracing a fat cat in her arms, sleeping innocently and adorably in the cradle, like a flower. A delicate flower in a bud.
The feeling of seeing her with his own eyes… was indescribable.
No blurred pixels or distorted colors, the child’s innocence and soft features can be vividly seen before his eyes.
Zheng Feiluan felt his fatigue dissipate. He took a step forward, bent down, and reached out his hand, eager to touch the child’s beautiful face. However, the moment he was close to touching it—
“Don’t touch her!”
A piercing command sounded from above his head.
He looked up immediately.
At the corner of the stairs, He An was latched onto the railing, leaning forward, looking at him in anguish. The threatening look in his eyes resembled that of a beast protecting its cub.
Zheng Feiluan didn’t have time to explain anything. He only heard a series of “thump, thump, thump” sounds hurriedly going downstairs, and then his shoulder was forcefully knocked away. A subtle fragrance of Lily of the Valley floated in front of him. When he reacted, the cradle was shaking. Leaving a cat with its belly upturned.
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Hi everyone! I’m Jane, and I decided to pick up this story. I haven’t decided on an update schedule yet, but I’ll be sure to announce it when I do. Hopefully, you’ll like my translations from here on out! Enjoy and thank you~ :)♥
Translated and edited (10/18/23)
