The employees of the Ling family inn were quite ecstatic when the wife of Xing Hongqi appeared in front of them.Xiulan was oblivious to the popularity of their love story that"s why she was so surprised to see these people to happily greet her like they saw their idol.
"Welcome to our humble inn, Mrs. Xing. I am Yi Sha, the head manager of this inn. We are deeply delighted to have you as our guest." Yi Sha, or more known as the culprit and ex-trusted confidant of the Ling family, greeted Xiulan with the utmost respect.
Xiulan regards everyone with a charming smile and a humble greeting. Though, she specifically raised her hand to have a handshake with Yi Sha.
Yi Sha happily took Xiulan"s business yet humble greeting. Looking at Xiulan, her eyes were already sparkling in Yuan sign just seeing the wife of the famous Xing Hongqi.
She"s not sure why an important figure is in this tiny town, but nevertheless, she was ecstatic to serve an important celebrity. She knew that she"s an important relative of the Ling family but she"s somewhat confused why stay here instead of using the Ling family mansion.
Though she was confused and a little bit suspicious, she disregards this thinking and will concentrate on how to curry favor from this important guest.
Yuyin coughed awkwardly near Xiulan when she saw that money thirsty face from Yi Sha. She rarely comes here in the inn because she didn"t like mingling with two-faced people. As possible, she doesn"t want to include herself in any Ling family business.
She chose to be a history professor because that"s what she likes. She was never interested in business. Now that she"s entangled in taking care of her cousin and this entrapment plan, she"s not sure if her peaceful life would suddenly change.
"Little Xiulan, I"m going back to the university. I"ll leave you for now. Just message me if you need anything." Yuyin bid her goodbyes and quickly winked at Xiulan.
Xiulan only smiled and bid farewell to Yuyin and put her attention back to the head manager Yi Sha.
Xiulan followed Yi Sha inside to her designated floor which is on the sixth floor. The Ling family inn has a total of twelve floors. It may be not that tall but the inn is wide enough that it has its own four hot springs.
This will be Xiulan"s third time coming here and the old inn was still the same, except that some decorations have gotten old and the care takes didn"t even bother to change them. "It must be because this Miss Yi Sha took all the budget for the maintenance." she crudely thought.
"Head Manager, may I kindly ask if there are still hot springs in this inn." Xiulan initiated a topic to discuss even though she already knew the answer.
"Yes, Mrs. Xing. We still have them. Please let me know if you want to use it tonight so we could arrange a new schedule. We have a lot of guests tonight and all four hot springs might be unavailable for you to use." Yi Sha humbly answered Xiulan"s inquiry.
On the outside, this Yi Sha woman looks fine and friendly. She displays an aura that you can trust your whole life and business to her. Outside appearances can tamper anyway.
It"s quite scary to think that she can act like this and then steal to her employers that treated her family already. Xiulan can"t believe that a person could exist. Reality is scarier than fiction.
Yi Sha toured Xiulan for an hour before Xiulan decided to take a rest. Well, she traveled for so long and even walked a lot with high heels on. She wanted to take a nap for an hour or two.
Xiulan took her time to freshen up and change to more comfortable clothes. When everything is good, she excitedly jumps on her bed and rolled on the sheets like a little kid. New and clean bedsheets are so good to feel on the skin. It"s something that satisfies her so much.
She ready herself to sleep when she remembers to call that paranoid husband. Her phone was on silent ever since her foot landed in this town.
She checks the notifications on her phone and she"s not surprised anymore that the haughty husband sent a lot of messages and missed calls.
Xiulan quickly dialed her husband"s number and after two rings the husband answered the call.
Without any greetings, Hongqi sulked. "Well, at least you didn"t forget to call me." Hongqi"s dismayed voice was evident.
Xiulan rolled her eyes hearing her husband sulking just because she"s not answering her phone. Without any greeting as well, Xiulan teased her husband. "You are very popular here. It seems that I underestimated your good looks and golden thigh."
"What is this about? Did someone made you angry?" Hongqi anxiously answered. Whenever the word "popular" pops up in his wife"s mouth, it means a random woman is involved in swooning over him.
He"s not sure if his wife would pettily get angry at this kind of issue when a lot of women like her husband but some women don"t like it. A lot of women are territorial. He"s not a woman but he"s very territorial towards his wife. He"s not sure if she feels the same way.
"Huh? Why would I be angry? I"m actually proud. I can"t believe in this small town, they knew you too well. You aren"t even a professional actor. Please put your autograph on the back of my phone for bragging rights [1]." Xiulan continued her teasing.
She laid her head comfortably on the pillow and hugged the other extra pillow. She wrapped her snowy white legs on the extra pillow and wait for her husband to end his ramblings and call.
"Why would you need my autograph? Just raise your hand with the ring finger. That"s the ultimate bragging rights." Hongqi smoothly and suavely said to his wife. Why would his wife need his autograph anyway? Just raise the ring and everyone will eat vinegar.
Xiulan"s hazy mind suddenly cleared when she heard Hongqi muttered such corny romantic lines. It woke her up. d.a.m.n. "Husband, I can"t raise my hand. My wedding ring is too expensive and precious. Someone might s.n.a.t.c.h it."
"Then I will buy you another one and much more expensive. Don"t worry." The husband answered arrogantly.
Xiulan rolled her eyes again and it hurt so much. This narcissistic husband will try his very best to expose how rich he is. "Then prepare the new wedding ring. I will really display this in front of everyone." Xiulan joked. "I will take a nap now, Hongqi. I will call you later."
"Okay. Let me know if you hate the food they will serve you. I will send someone to give you a tasty meal." Hongqi doesn"t want to end the call yet. More time, please.
"I"m not that picky in food. I"ll end the call now. Talk to you later." Xiulan was about to end the call but the haughty husband was muttering something.
"Okay… Talk to you later. I love you."
Hongqi didn"t end the call yet since he was waiting for his wife to end it instead.
Xiulan on the other line froze like Anna in the first Frozen movie. Did she hear that right? It must be a slip of the tongue. She quickly ended the call, put it on silent and threw it near the lamp.
Her heart was thumping. She aggressively shut her eyes and muttered. "Get some sleep and clean your ears later. I"m just tired and hearing things. My ears might be clogged too. Aiya… this is not healthy."
--------------------------------------------------------------------
[1] A popular celebrity signing the back of the mobile phone is quite a popular fangirl/fanboy method when a paper is not present for an autograph. When fans see their co-fans that they have an autograph at the back of their phones, they usually get jealous. Sometimes the value of that phone with an autograph rises and can be sold tenfolds the amount if the celebrity is very popular.