“Huh?” The girl paused, this price clearly exceeded her expectations. “That’s a bit expensive.” If Chen Jian hadn’t been thinking he was on Shan Yu’s side, he would have “huh’d” too. This sidecar ran on gas, and a day’s worth of driving would certainly cost more than an electric bike, but an electric bike rental for a day elsewhere was only forty or fifty yuan. Even if this sidecar ran on 98 octane, it wouldn’t cost that much. It must be running on olive oil. Chen Jian felt a little embarrassed for Boss Shan.
“Expensive?” Shan Yu, however, was calm, completely unperturbed. Leaning on his crutch, he walked into the house and added, “Feel free to take pictures. You can even take pictures at the entrance, no charge.”
Chen Jian stood by the door, holding a bag of mushrooms, and watched him. Before entering, Shan Yu exchanged a glance with Chen Jian but said nothing else. What does that mean, boss? Don’t leave! What are you trying to express? Are you asking me to cover for you? How am I supposed to do that?
“Wow,” another short-haired girl was a bit upset. “Is that your boss? Why is his attitude like that?”
“He’s not,” Chen Jian denied without thinking. “He’s the boss’s friend, here to help out.”
“He doesn’t know anything,” Chen Erhu said. “Don’t mind him.”
Chen Jian shot him a look. That’s enough, no need to seize every opportunity to go all out.
“Then what about this car…” The short-haired girl pointed at the sidecar.
Chen Jian put a finger to his lips, “Shh,” and glanced inside. Shan Yu had already entered the elevator. Alright.
“A hundred,” Chen Jian said. “If you don’t have a motorcycle license, don’t drive too far. Just ride around nearby. You can get good distant shots of the forest near the barbecue area, it’s quite nice.”
“For two hours?” the girl asked.
“How many days are you staying?” Chen Jian asked.
“Two nights, leaving early the day after tomorrow,” the girl said.
“Go ahead and drive it,” Chen Jian said. “If you haven’t driven one before, be slow. You’ll still have to pay for any scratches.” This car isn’t ours.
San Bing happened to walk out from inside just then and pointed behind him. “Boss Shan…”
“San Bing, go tell the young ladies about the precautions for this car,” Chen Jian quickly interrupted him.
San Bing looked at him, his eyes filled with “I’m Boss Chen’s outsourced employee,” who are you to be directing me?
“Right,” Boss Chen was quick to react this time, their cooperation perfectly in sync. “San Bing, explain to the guests that this car is prone to tipping over if you turn too fast…”
“Alright,” San Bing walked over.
The guests gathered around the sidecar and began listening to San Bing explain what to pay attention to when driving it. Chen Jian overheard a bit and figured nothing would go wrong. He quickly got up and went inside, planning to talk to Shan Yu.
“Are we going out for dinner tonight?” Zhao Fangfang walked over. “You said you wanted to eat donkey meat sandwiches earlier, and I was already preparing the dough. Now we’re not eating it?”
“We’ll eat it for breakfast tomorrow,” Chen Jian said. “The generous boss is treating us tonight.”
“One idea after another,” Zhao Fangfang shook her head.
The elevator was on the fourth floor. Chen Jian was too lazy to wait and ran up the stairs directly. Shan Yu was indeed in the office, standing by the window looking down. This window offered a clear view of the “teaching session” downstairs.
“Two hundred eighty,” Chen Jian walked into the office. “Did your discount go up?”
“Was it too expensive?” Shan Yu asked. “How would I know what it should be?”
“If you don’t know, you don’t have to say anything,” Chen Jian sighed. “Just let them take some pictures, wouldn’t that be enough?”
“I later told them they could take pictures, didn’t I?” Shan Yu said.
“Is that the same thing?” Chen Jian looked at him.
“We happen to have guests, so let’s just try it. Make a little money,” Shan Yu looked downstairs. “It’s not impossible to get a few of these later, but they’d have to be electric.”
“I just told them you’re not the boss. You should cooperate these next two days,” Chen Jian reminded him.
“Okay, Little Boss Chen,” Shan Yu nodded.
“…Aren’t you going to ask why?” Chen Jian couldn’t help but ask. Shan Yu, being inexplicably removed from his own business by an employee, showed no sign of questioning it.
“The guests already complained about the attitude, so I definitely can’t be the boss anymore,” Shan Yu chuckled. “How much money did you take?”
“Off-season discount, one hundred a day,” Chen Jian said.
“For a whole day?” Shan Yu raised an eyebrow.
“This town isn’t that big, and the car can’t go into the mountains, so they’ll just drive around nearby,” Chen Jian said. “They’ll probably get tired of it after a few hours at most. Plus, there are four of them, and there will always be two who can’t get on the car when they drive out. Maybe they’ll only play for two or three hours in the end. Saying a hundred a day just sounds better.”
“Quick thinker,” Shan Yu said.
“Also… Boss Shan,” Chen Jian cleared his throat.
“Hmm?” Shan Yu responded.
“What kind of business were you in before?” Chen Jian asked.
“Why do you ask?” Shan Yu leaned against the window.
“Your attitude,” Chen Jian said. “That attitude just now was a bit… I don’t know if it’s appropriate for me to say this…”
“It’s appropriate,” Shan Yu said.
“Alright,” Chen Jian nodded. “Just your attitude… your attitude at the farmhouse restaurant was so good. Keep it consistent.”
Shan Yu was amused, and after a while, he nodded. “I’ll try.”
“You’ve worked hard,” Chen Jian turned to leave.
“Ask Sister Zhao what we’re having for lunch,” Shan Yu said.
“You… don’t ask anymore. You said we’d have donkey meat sandwiches for dinner, and she was already preparing, then you said no,” Chen Jian said. “You said not to bother with our lunch, and now you’re asking what we’re having for lunch… You’re having a bento box for lunch. I’ll go buy it later.”
“Aren’t Chen Erhu and San Bing eating?” Shan Yu asked.
“They ate at home before coming. There wasn’t supposed to be any work today… for the outsourced plan,” Chen Jian said.
“Got it,” Shan Yu smiled. “Little Boss Chen, go do your work.”
Little Boss Chen was indeed quite busy today. Taking Shan Yu out was already an unscheduled event. Today, he had to take the bedding and curtains that Zhao Fangfang had cleaned to be washed. A pile of everything was stacked in the guest room next to the back door on the first floor. Normally, with fewer items to wash, Zhao Fangfang could just wash them herself and hang them in the yard, but now with a large pile, they had to be sent to a cleaning company in the old town. The town was too remote, and they wouldn’t pick up, so he had to deliver them himself… He still didn’t know how to deliver them. The job right now was to pack up all these used items.
Chen Erhu didn’t do such rough work. Chen Jian called San Bing to help. “In here…” San Bing was willing to work but needed some confirmation. “Is there… the third floor’s stuff…”
“The stuff in that room is thrown away directly,” Chen Jian pulled open a bedsheet and spread it on the ground, starting to put duvet covers and pillowcases on it. “Who would wash and reuse that?”
“Oh,” San Bing nodded, came over and piled things with him. After thinking, he asked again, “Hey, are the mattresses thrown away too?”
“Of course, the blood has seeped in. Boss Shan said to throw them away,” Chen Jian pulled up the corners of the bedsheet, San Bing helped hold them down, and he tied the corners.
After packing the second bundle, San Bing spoke again. “Hey Chen Jian.”
“Hmm?” Chen Jian glanced at him. From his understanding of San Bing, after this conversation, he had already somewhat guessed what San Bing wanted to say.
“That mattress…” San Bing said.
“It’s still in the room, not taken out yet,” Chen Jian said. “If you want it, go move it tonight.”
“No, no,” San Bing awkwardly waved his hand. “Just asking casually, just a random question.”
“The blood, Sister Zhao said there’s a special cleaner that can wash it off, it just takes some effort,” Chen Jian said.
“Yes,” San Bing chuckled twice dryly.
Chen Jian didn’t say anything more, and San Bing didn’t speak again. The two of them packed up all the bedding in the room. Several large bundles, they looked daunting.
“Do Brother Erhu and us have to send these to town to be washed?” San Bing asked.
“Yes,” Chen Jian nodded.
“Where’s the car?” San Bing asked a soul-piercing question. “Where’s the guesthouse’s car?”
The car was still in the used car dealer’s parking lot.
“Boss Shan will arrange it,” Chen Jian said. Boss Shan might arrange for your Pigsty Security Team to collectively carry it to the old town, after all, he dared to charge two hundred eighty for two hours for a sidecar, and that was even a discounted price.
Just after they finished packing, Chen Jian was about to call Tang Rui to ask him how soon he could contact a used car, when his phone rang first. It was Zhao Fangfang.
“Sister Zhao?” He answered the phone.
“The elevator maintenance people are here,” Zhao Fangfang said. “Can you arrange it?”
“Oh,” Chen Jian replied. “You can just tell Boss Shan about this.”
“He said to find you!” Zhao Fangfang said.
Chen Jian could only leave the packed room, run to the lobby to explain the elevator situation to the maintenance people, and only after seeing them start checking did he run back up the stairs to the fourth floor.
“For things like elevator maintenance, just arrange it,” Chen Jian said, looking at Shan Yu who was drinking Coke. “The call went to you, but you still forwarded it to me…”
“I’m not the boss,” Shan Yu said.
“…You’re a hands-off manager, then,” Chen Jian said. “Also, the bedsheets and stuff need to be sent to the old town for washing, and then we have to pick them up ourselves.”
“Mhm,” Shan Yu nodded.
Mhm what, mhm!
“Where’s the car?” Chen Jian asked.
“Ah…” Shan Yu looked at him. “Right, we don’t have a car.”
Chen Jian looked at him too, and after a moment, couldn’t help but laugh. “What are we going to do?”
“Let’s borrow one or rent one for now,” Shan Yu said. “Ask your brother Rui if he’s free tomorrow to take us to look at cars.”
“Don’t rent. We’d have to rent from the old town anyway. I’ll secretly borrow one,” Chen Jian said. “I still have to borrow from Brother Rui; he has a small minivan.”
“Why secretly?” Shan Yu asked.
“Taking over such a fancy guesthouse, but you can’t even afford a car and have to borrow one,” Chen Jian said. “The whole town will know in less than a day.”
Shan Yu tutted. “It’s not like I’m not buying a car.”
“Used,” Chen Jian said. “Buying a used car is fine, just don’t let people know you’ve opened for business and still have to borrow a car.”
Shan Yu chuckled, sat on the chair, and slowly propped his leg on the desk. “You’re just an employee, yet you’re more concerned about appearances than the boss?”
“It’s not about appearances,” Chen Jian frowned. “In small places, when business is good, there’s a lot of trouble. When business is bad, there’s even more trouble. These shop owners, they’re usually divided into groups. Which family is friends with which, which family has grudges. In the few years since the town opened, there have been countless fights. You’re already quite…”
Chen Jian paused, and Shan Yu looked at him with interest. “Go on, besides being dark and crippled, what else am I ‘quite’?”
“You’re quite unlike someone who can work here long-term,” Chen Jian said directly. “At first glance, you won’t have any connections with anyone here, and they’ll ostracize you.”
“That’s why,” Shan Yu tapped his finger on the table. “It has to be you. Fourteen thousand wasn’t given in vain.”
“That’s not true,” Chen Jian was a bit embarrassed. “You could ask anyone, and they’d pretty much know these things.” He then realized. That fourteen thousand wasn’t a consulting fee! You’re really ruthless.
“Knowing is one thing, the perspective on things is another,” Shan Yu said. “Do you know…”
Chen Jian looked at him.
“You’re actually different from everyone else here too,” Shan Yu said.
Tang Rui was coming to the town tonight, bringing his car to lend to them, so the problem of washing the items tomorrow was solved. However, the car wouldn’t arrive until tonight, so when they went to the Old Village for dinner in the afternoon, they still had to join the “Pigsty Motorcycle Gang.” Moreover, the sidecar had been driven away by the guests, so Shan Yu had to sit behind Chen Jian on his motorcycle. Boss Chen thoughtfully removed a strap from his car and tied it into a loop, putting it around Shan Yu’s left ankle.
“Then Chen Jian, you hold this end,” he instructed. “This way, Boss Shan’s leg won’t have to rest on the foot pedal and won’t get bumped.”
Although Chen Jian found the idea of him holding Shan Yu’s left leg rather strange, it seemed to be the best solution. Then Zhao Fangfang got on San Bing’s motorcycle, and they set off.
Shan Yu’s intention was to have Boss Chen call all the security team members, but Boss Chen was deeply in character and only called Lao Si and Lao Wu, and arranged for two other security personnel to guard the guesthouse. After meeting up with Lao Si and Lao Wu at the intersection, several motorcycles roared towards the Old Village.
It was still bright, and it was dinner time. Many people on both sides of the street were setting up stoves in front of their shops to cook. The “Pigsty Party’s” team-building members today were very different from usual, attracting many glances. As he drove through the various gazes, Chen Jian suddenly felt an indescribable feeling. He had just said that Shan Yu didn’t seem like someone who would last long here, but now he suddenly realized that Shan Yu seemed to have perfectly integrated, even bringing him along, although the angle of integration was somewhat bizarre.
When several motorcycles roared up to the entrance of the farmhouse restaurant, the owner was already standing outside with a solemn expression. When he saw Chen Jian, Shan Yu, and even Zhao Fangfang among the group, the owner’s solemn expression turned into shock. He clearly hadn’t expected the “generous boss” to bring this group of people to dinner today.
“Old Zhang, long time no see,” Chen Erhu jumped off his motorcycle and greeted the farmhouse owner, then looked back at Shan Yu. “Boss Shan, you’ve already reserved a private room, right?”
“Let’s see where Boss Zhang arranges for us,” Shan Yu said.
“Big private room, big private room,” Boss Zhang called out to inside the house. “They’re here. Take them to Private Room One.”
A group of people followed him into the restaurant. As they passed the small private rooms, Chen Jian saw that there were still guests inside. Just as he clearly saw who they were, the short-haired girl inside had already stood up and waved to them. “Hi! You guys came here to eat too?”
It was the four young guests staying at the guesthouse.
“Mhm,” Chen Jian nodded. He originally wanted to keep walking, but the short-haired girl had already gotten up and opened the door, so he had to stop. Shan Yu remembered that he wasn’t the boss and followed Chen Erhu and the others into the big private room.
“We just found this place randomly. We were worried the food wouldn’t be good, but seeing you guys eating here too makes us feel relieved,” the short-haired girl said with a smile.
“The farmhouse restaurants here in Old Village are all quite good,” Chen Jian said. “We always come here to eat… Was the car easy to drive today?”
“It was great. We parked the car in the barbecue area’s parking lot,” the short-haired girl said. “We’ll go there tonight to take night photos. The weather’s good today, so the moon will definitely look beautiful tonight.”
“Mhm,” Chen Jian nodded, wanting to walk inside.
“Hey, big brother, let me ask you something,” the short-haired girl called out to him again, whispering, “Is your guesthouse… is it… is it…”
A haunted house? Chen Jian immediately felt a little nervous. No. I don’t know! Don’t listen to others’ nonsense!
“…Is it the kind that specifically takes in ex-offenders?” the short-haired girl asked.
Chen Jian was stunned. What?
“The kind that’s a bit like a charity,” the short-haired girl said.
Chen Jian’s mind flashed with images of the “Pigsty Party,” led by Boss Chen Erhu. He had to admit, it was very similar.
“Not exactly… it’s just…” Chen Jian didn’t know what to say. He didn’t have Shan Yu’s glib tongue. His brain was practically smoking before he managed to blurt out, “We help where we can.”
“That’s great,” the short-haired girl nodded. “Seriously, this is the first time we’ve seen a guesthouse like this. We all think it’s very cool.”
Shouldn’t you find it very dangerous?! What’s so cool about it?!
Chen Jian entered Private Room One. The seat next to Shan Yu was empty, so he went and sat down.
“What’s wrong?” Shan Yu glanced at him. “Do the guests have any requests?”
“No, they just praised our business philosophy,” Chen Jian said. “Said it was very cool.”
