Chapter 155: Making a Living at the Grand Hotel Beijing

...Chu Dong, Wei Tianhu, Ma Hui, and Liu Ang were abandoned outside just like exiles, left without a single coin, and even their cars—except for the one driven by Chu Dong—were impounded.

The four of them looked at each other, their eyes filled with question marks. What should they do?

Just now at the Li family residence, of course, they had felt helpless, but now, the other three besides Chu Dong were completely dumbfounded. The Li family's villa was not in a bustling downtown area; it was quite a long distance from the city center. With not a single penny in their pockets, walking all the way there would take an entire day. But if they didn't walk, there was little chance they could make it back anytime soon.

The Li family's villa sat halfway up the mountain. It wasn't isolated, as there were dozens of other mansions scattered around, but not a single car was in sight. The environment was truly pleasant—ancient trees scraped the sky, and from a distance, the towering skyscrapers of Beijing were clearly visible. The air quality was incomparable to anything inside the city. However, the area was so sparsely populated that even if they wanted to ask for help, they couldn't find a soul.

Liu Ang, a seasoned Beijing local, instinctively reached for his phone to call for help, but then let his hand drop. This was a rule-breaking situation; even if he didn't have a good idea, he couldn't just admit defeat so easily—above all else, he couldn't afford to lose face in front of that man. Besides, if letting go meant giving up the delicate and lovely Orchid, he would even be willing to run naked through the streets.

Wei Tianhu certainly didn't want to admit defeat either. The moment he laid eyes on Li Youlan, he had been deeply captivated. If someone had told him to give up before coming here, he would have gladly accepted, but now, wanting him to retreat? No way in hell.

Ma Hui was much the same. Though he couldn't claim to have seen countless women, he was far from a pure and abstinent monk. Upon seeing Li Youlan, he thought she was an absolute celestial beauty, and even while playing mahjong, his mind had remained entirely focused on her.

Chu Dong's motivation was different from the other three. Tan Xue's words of encouragement from the previous night still rang in his ears. Seeing that Liu Ang and the others had no ideas, he simply strode forward on his own two legs and started walking down the winding mountain road.

Seeing Chu Dong leave, the others hesitated for a moment before setting off as well.

None of the four wanted to fall behind. At first, they walked quite slowly, but later they were practically race-walking. Only Chu Dong maintained a steady, unhurried pace, quickly falling behind.

After walking for just over ten minutes, Chu Dong could no longer see the other three ahead of him. Pulling out a cigarette and lighting it, he felt a twinge of regret. What kind of nonsense was this? They were supposed to be here for a competition, yet it had turned into a walking race. Just as Chu Dong was beginning to sweat from the walk, a silver-gray Audi drove toward him from the opposite direction.

Without a second thought, Chu Dong stood right in the middle of the road with his legs apart and waved his arms frantically to flag it down.

"Do you need something?" The car came to a screeching halt. The window rolled down, and a middle-aged man in his forties poked his head out, looking rather displeased.

"Big Brother, I'm really sorry. Here's the deal: I came here to visit some people, but my friend wasn't around and my car broke down at his place. I was hoping to catch a ride back to the city," Chu Dong said, rubbing his hands together with an embarrassed expression.

"What a coincidence? But I'm not heading that way," the middle-aged man said. Initially, his guard was quite high, but listening to Chu Dong's explanation actually amused him. Who hitchhikes by flagging a car down from the wrong direction?

"Do you know the old Li family further up the mountain? Li Tianming's place. His daughter and I get along quite well, and I came to visit him," Chu Dong said as he walked closer to the car door, bargaining with the driver, "If you don't believe me, call him and ask."

"You don't say, I actually do know Chairman Li." Adhering to the principle of safety first, the middle-aged man locked the car doors, rolled up the window, and pulled out his phone.

The man genuinely knew Li Tianming. They had minor business dealings, though not extensive ones. One could say he had always wanted to establish a connection with Li Tianming but had never succeeded. Today, he had come specifically to find Li Tianming, only to be told halfway up the mountain that Li Tianming was not around. Skeptical, he dialed Li Tianming's number.

"Chairman Li, it's Xiao Wu from Yinghua. I was hoping to pay you a visit today, but when I called your office, they said you weren't there, so I came straight to your house. Are you at home?" Wu Yingfei asked cautiously.

"Ah, Xiao Wu. You see, if you had given me a heads-up earlier... I really do have some matters to attend to and I'm not around. Are you in a rush? If not, let's talk at the office tomorrow?" Li Tianming's household was currently in complete chaos trying to find a husband for Li Youlan; there was no way he would let an outsider into his home right now, so he brushed him off by claiming he was away.

"Oh, is that so? It's fine, I was a bit reckless myself. Talking tomorrow is fine too. By the way, let me ask you something." Saying this, Wu Yingfei rolled down his car window slightly, covered the phone's mouthpiece with his hand, and asked Chu Dong, "What's your name?"

"Chu Dong. Just tell him you're Orchid's friend," Chu Dong replied without the slightest trace of panic. That Li Tianming would give this kind of response was entirely within his expectations.

"There's a young man named Chu Dong who is a friend of your daughter's, right?" As soon as the words left his mouth, Wu Yingfei regretted them a little. Asking like this felt slightly impolite.

"Oh, Chu Dong? Right, yes. What about it?" Li Tianming was stunned for a moment before understanding the situation.

"Nothing, haha. I just happened to run into a young man, and we had a nice chat. It's nothing. Well, Chairman Li, let's set it for tomorrow. I'll call you again tomorrow morning. Okay, sounds good!" Wu Yingfei let out a long sigh of relief. Fortunately, Li Tianming hadn't said anything extra.

Rolling down his car window fully this time, Wu Yingfei put on a smile and did a complete 180-degree turn in his attitude toward Chu Dong. "Chu Dong, right? Get in, I'll give you a ride back."

"Well, sorry to trouble you," Chu Dong said politely, though his actions were not slow at all as he pulled open the car door that Wu Yingfei had just unlocked.

"Where does young man work?" Wu Yingfei asked casually as he made a U-turn.

"I'm from out of town, Dalian. I'm just here visiting and looking around," Chu Dong said, feeling much more comfortable once inside the car. His feet were starting to swell from all the walking.

"Then how did you meet Miss Li?" Wu Yingfei asked, feeling rather curious.

"Sigh, don't even ask. She's been pestering me relentlessly, insisting on marrying me. I ran all the way to Beijing to sort this out, only to find out she wasn't home." Chu Dong blurted out lies without even blushing.

With a sudden slam of the brakes—even harder than when Chu Dong had flagged him down—the car stopped abruptly. Chu Dong had just lifted his feet in the back to massage them when the jolt sent his head crashing straight into the front seat.

"Ouch! What the hell are you doing?" Chu Dong nearly bruised his lips, sliding right into the footwell between the seats. He crawled back up and began complaining loudly.

"The Li family's young miss is insisting on marrying you, and you're refusing?" Wu Yingfei was somewhat triggered. Why couldn't he ever run into such good fortune?

"I was just joking, and you actually believed it? Why didn't you believe what I told you earlier? You're being awfully gullible now. Orchid is my friend, sure, but there's no such thing as what you're imagining." Chu Dong spoke in an irritated tone. Even if catching a ride meant he owed a favor, it certainly shouldn't cost him his life.

"Haha, I was just saying. What kind of man would be that foolish?" Wu Yingfei restarted the car and headed toward the city. Within a few minutes, they spotted Liu Ang and the other two, who were still sprinting wildly down the mountain.

Chu Dong chuckled softly, crossing his arms behind his head and leaning back against the seat. This felt fantastic. He had no intention of greeting them; if those guys were smart enough to figure out how to hitch a ride too, he wouldn't have any fun left to watch. However, little did he know that because the other three overcomplicated things, it wouldn't be long before he was the only one left fighting his own battles.

Not long after, Wu Yingfei brought Chu Dong into the city and asked where he wanted to go, offering to drop him off directly since he had nothing else to do. This time, Chu Dong politely declined.

During the car ride, Chu Dong had been chatting with him casually. After just a few sentences, he could tell that Wu Yingfei had favors to ask of Li Tianming; otherwise, why would he be so enthusiastic? Catching a ride was already good enough; if he kept messing with Wu Yingfei's head, the man might try to arrange his whole life for him. That would violate the old man's orders. Naturally, Chu Dong wouldn't give anyone a handle against him, so he made up an excuse and got out of the car. Before leaving, Wu Yingfei even shoved a business card into his hand, telling him to stay in touch if he ever needed anything.

Having finally managed to shake off Wu Yingfei, Chu Dong finally stood on the streets of Beijing. The endless streams of pedestrians and the roaring traffic showed that this international metropolis truly lived up to its reputation. It clearly possessed a grandeur that Dalian lacked, though it also felt a bit short on scenic charm.

Making a living.

This was the first urgent task facing Chu Dong, Liu Ang, and the others. Since they couldn't ask for help, everything depended entirely on themselves. Chu Dong rummaged through his pockets; other than his smartphone, there was nothing useful. Right by the roadside was a pawnshop, but Chu Dong had even left his watch at the Li family residence, and he certainly couldn't pawn the clothes off his back. In this freezing weather, even if the pawnshop accepted them, it wouldn't fetch much money, and he would freeze half to death—completely not worth it.

This was Chu Dong's first time in Beijing. Looking at the street sign that read Jianguomen, Chu Dong had no idea where he was, so he simply started strolling forward down the avenue.

Compared to Chu Dong, Liu Ang and the other two had it much worse. Unlike Chu Dong who was wearing casual sneakers, they were all wearing leather shoes, and not even winter-lined ones. Walking in them made their feet ache and freeze horribly. Normally they always drove everywhere, so why would they ever need winter shoes? Not only did they fail to catch a ride, but even if a car passed by, their pride was too great to flag it down. Having walked all the way from the middle of the mountain, they felt even more helpless once they finally reached the city. They hadn't even eaten breakfast that morning, and after walking such a long distance, they were starving. Before, they hadn't felt it as much, but now the streets were filled with food stalls, rich aromas wafting through the air. Even the street vendors selling savory pancake rolls made their mouths water.

Chu Dong wasn't as pampered as them and had a certain amount of experience with ordinary street life. Feeling his stomach rumble, he tightened his down jacket and looked at a roadside directional sign. About five hundred meters ahead was the famous Beijing Hotel. He had heard of this place before, so he followed the main road and headed there to hustle for a living.

As soon as he reached the entrance, Chu Dong took a look and nodded in approval. True to its reputation, it was grand enough—definitely much larger than his own small hotel, and even the security guards at the entrance looked sharper than the ones at his own establishment.

Once inside, Chu Dong headed straight for the front desk. The receptionist was extraordinarily bright-eyed with two charming dimples when she smiled. She asked him what service he needed with a polite smile, and just that single greeting almost made him forget why he had come.

"Um, I'm not here to book a room. I wanted to ask, how can I find the management staff of the Western restaurant?" Chu Dong flashed what he believed to be his most charming smile.