I lit a cigarette and looked up at the migratory birds that flew to Dali for the winter. I was so lost in thought that I didn't feel so anxious anymore.

Half an hour later, my phone vibrated in my pocket. I took it out and saw it was a call from Peach…

I let out a soft sigh, not because I felt Taozi was bothering me, but because I was worried about her and Tie Nan's future... However, I had said what I needed to say and done what I needed to do; the reason I sighed was probably because of my own powerlessness. If there was any other way, I would not give up trying to stop them.

I answered the phone and asked, "What's up?"

"Come over for New Year's Eve dinner at my place... Tell me what you like to eat, and I'll go to the supermarket to buy the groceries later."

I thought about it for a moment and replied, "I won't go. It's the New Year, so I shouldn't upset Tie Nan."

"Are you still arguing with him? ... He's just a child, you should be more accommodating to him."

I replied in a low voice, "Peach, I'm not holding a grudge, nor am I joking with you. I feel that the conflict between Tie Nan and me can't be resolved in a short time... He doesn't trust me at all right now, and I still can't figure out why it's turned out like this... If we're talking about misunderstandings, do we really have any misunderstandings?"

Peach remained silent, clearly unsure how to respond to my words.

I changed the subject and asked Peach, "How's it going over there? Have you run into any inspectors these past few days?"

“Michael, you might be overthinking this time. We have no problems at all... We’ve also asked around among the other innkeepers, and they haven’t heard anything about any inspections. I’ve also heard that many government employees have already taken their annual leave. If this were to happen, they wouldn’t be allowed to rest so early.”

"If it's really like that, then I'm relieved."

"Well, if they really do shut down our guesthouses during the Spring Festival, with so many tourists and nowhere to accommodate them, they'll probably just turn a blind eye..." After a slight pause, Taozi continued, "I've already discussed it with Tienan. We'll only operate until the seventh day of the Lunar New Year. After that, we'll continue to support the government's policy of protecting Erhai Lake. We'll wait for further notice regarding when we can reopen... Actually, we're quite scared about operating illegally like this, but there's nothing we can do. We have so much debt to pay off... Fortunately, after finishing our business during the Spring Festival, we can finally breathe a sigh of relief... Things should only get better from now on... You and Tienan can't keep having such bad luck, haha!"

"Yes, luck is sometimes very important."

"Are you really not coming to our place for New Year's Eve dinner?"

"Let's not go. Let's get together next year when things have calmed down."

"Okay, then I wish you a Happy New Year in advance."

Happy New Year! Let's work hard together next year!

After ending the call with Taozi, I finally felt relieved. I also realized that I had made Sun Jiwei too nervous. It's the Lunar New Year, and the tourism market is so booming. If all these guesthouses were shut down, tourists would have nowhere to stay, which would ultimately affect the overall tourism image and experience of Dali. The higher-ups should weigh the pros and cons and not act rashly.

...

Time passed slowly, and at four o'clock, my wait finally came to an end, as I heard the airport announcement that Ye Zhi's flight had landed...

At that moment, I felt both eager and excited; I guessed that she was wearing a white dress today, because I like white, it's very pure and simple.