I walked from the upper section of Renmin Road to the lower section, and then stopped in front of the bar where Taozi worked. I calculated that it was about time for Taozi to change shifts with another bartender, so I decided to wait for her for a while and then chat with her.
In the time it takes to smoke a cigarette, Peach changed out of her business attire and came out of the bar. When she saw me, she was a little surprised. I smiled and said to her, "I just happened to be passing by and saw that you were about to get off work, so I wanted to chat with you."
"Shall we find a place?"
"Let's choose something nearby."
...
There's no shortage of places to while away the time in the ancient city. Peach and I turned from the lower section of Renmin Road to Foreigners' Street, which is full of all kinds of cafes and bars. But Peach and I chose a milk tea shop. Since we both like to drink, one of us ordered milk tea and the other ordered a cup of Longjing tea.
How's the inn doing lately?
Taozi replied, "We've been fully booked lately. Tie Nan even raised the room rates from the first to the sixth day of the Lunar New Year to 3,000 to 5,000 yuan per room, and they're almost all booked." After a slight pause, she sighed, "The rich people these days are really rich. They can even book rooms that cost 5,000 yuan a night. We people who come from the countryside can't even imagine it... I remember when I was little, my parents worked from dawn till dusk on our few acres of land, and we only earned about a thousand yuan a year!"
"Sea view rooms are scarce, and there are so many wealthy people. It's not easy to have the opportunity to take the family on a trip during the Chinese New Year, so they won't care about the cost."
"Yes, not only Dali, but Lijiang's tourism market has also exploded this year. I heard that the best guesthouses in the old town are selling for a sky-high price of 12,000 yuan a night... Not many guesthouse owners in Dali and Lijiang have lost money this year."
I nodded and then asked, "How long do you plan to keep your inn open?"
"By the sixth or seventh day of the Lunar New Year, people from relevant departments had gradually returned to work, and we didn't dare to go against the policy and stay open for too long... What about your situation?"
"I should be able to stay open until the Lantern Festival, but I estimate that the peak tourist season will be over around the tenth day of the first lunar month, so I'll close around that time."
"Your place is better. You do business openly and honestly, and I feel more at ease... These past two days, Tie Nan and I haven't dared to sleep much, afraid that someone will come to inspect us."
I looked at Peach. Not only did she not look well, but she also had two obvious dark circles under her eyes, which were clearly caused by staying up late. After weighing my options, I still said to her, "You've made quite a bit of money these past few days. If you're not doing well, then quit while you're ahead and stop making money by suffering like this."
“I talked to Tie Nan about it, but he was reluctant. He said that the real money-making period is from the first to the sixth day of the Lunar New Year. If nothing goes wrong, we can earn at least 100,000 yuan more... That way we can settle the transfer fee with the previous owner and there won't be any pressure afterward.”
"His idea of solving the problem once and for all is not wrong, but what if something goes wrong?"
Peach remained silent, clearly indicating that she had no opinion on the matter.
After a moment, she finally spoke to me, saying, "It's no use me saying it; in the end, Tie Nan will make the decision."
I sighed, not knowing what else to say. All I could do was advise Taozi. If I said the same thing to Tienan, he would misunderstand me again, thinking I was creating a scary atmosphere to prevent him from seizing this opportunity to make money. Especially when I was also making money, his thoughts would only become stronger.
After a moment of contemplation, I finally said to Peach, "You still owe 100,000 yuan in transfer fees, right? How about this: you can close the inn first, and I'll cover the cost for you."
"You've had it tough too, we can't take any more of your money!"
"As long as the green hills remain, there will always be firewood. If you stumble on this matter, it will be really difficult to get back on your feet!"
Peach's attitude was firm: "Michael, I saw what hardships you went through to earn this money... Even if something really happened, let alone the inn being fine now, we can't take your money."
There's no need for us to be so calculating.
“This matter must be taken seriously… Don’t bring it up again, and even if I take the money back, it will be difficult to explain to Tie Nan… He has a very strong sense of pride, and he is unwilling to accept this kind of help; you know, if he were willing to bow his head to his father, he wouldn’t be living such a life in Dali… So in his eyes, some things may be more important than money.”
I sighed, "How can I advise you?"
“You don’t need to be too nervous for us. Right now, most of the seaside inns in Majiuyi are operating illegally. Only you have heard the news that there will be inspections… I think Sun Jiwei is not very reliable. You should only believe half of what he says.”
"Alright, since things have come to this point, I won't try to persuade you anymore... Just be careful yourselves."
"Well, there are only about ten days left, so nothing should happen."
I nodded, then picked up my glass, took a sip, and after a brief silence, Peach changed the subject and said to me, "By the way, I think I saw Ye Zhi when I was working at the bar yesterday. Is she also in Dali?"
"Yes, I've been here for a few days."
"you?"
I looked at Taozi; she seemed very curious about the current relationship between Ye Zhi and me, but I didn't know where to begin...
"What's wrong?"
"Let's not talk about Ye Zhi... You know Lu Jia is here too, right? We just had dinner together today."
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