Chapter 30: The VIP Card

The elevator stopped at the seventh floor.

Lu Mingfei’s room number was 0717. Rooms 0710 through 0723 were all occupied by his class. Specifically, rooms 0710 to 0713 were assigned to the eight girls in the class, while 0714 through 0722 were for the seventeen boys. The remaining room, 0723, was for the teacher.

Naturally, with seventeen boys and nine rooms, one boy would inevitably be left to room alone. Needless to say, this kind of rotten luck usually fell on Lu Mingfei.

In truth, having a room to oneself is much freer and more comfortable than sharing with someone else. The catch, however, was that if Lu Mingfei stayed alone, he would have to pay for the entire room by himself.

"When it rains, it pours; a single penny can stump a hero," Lu Mingfei muttered, flopped onto the bed, and stared at the ceiling.

*Show me the money.* He wondered if that cheat code still worked; if only it did. But even if it did, the money would be fake—good for looking at, but useless for spending.

*Sigh, I’ll have to rely on myself.* Or, more accurately, rely on Brother Feng. *Brother Feng, good luck!*

Just then, the doorbell rang with a chime.

Lu Mingfei dragged his lazy body off the bed. Who would be coming to see him at this hour? Could it be Qiao Yiran again, trying to play matchmaker with his life?

"Who is it?" Lu Mingfei asked, lazily opening the door.

He had guessed wrong. Standing there was a young waitress in a black uniform with a white bowtie. She had large eyes and lips like cherries, her aura hovering somewhere between girl-next-door sweetness and professional maturity. At first glance, Lu Mingfei was stunned, wondering if the capital was really this wild—did they send serving girls to your door in broad daylight?

Before he could react, the waitress bowed respectfully.

"Hello, are you Mr. Lu Mingfei?" she asked with a smile.

"Yes," Lu Mingfei nodded blankly.

"Hello, I am a waitress at this hotel. My name is Lily."

With that, she pulled a gold-plated black card from the inner pocket of her tailcoat and presented it to him with both hands.

"This is the VIP card for our Black Prince Hotel. With this card, you can enjoy all of the hotel’s services for free, including our Golden Key concierge service."

The so-called Golden Key service was, simply put, a high-end errand service—much like the delivery apps of the future, though its scope was far broader. Generally speaking, as long as it did not violate local morality, conventions, or the law, anything fell under the Golden Key’s purview.

Usually, only the most top-tier luxury hotels provided such services to their VIPs.

Lu Mingfei stared at the black card. Instead of taking it immediately, he hesitated and asked warily, "Is there a charge?"

Lily was taken aback, clearly not expecting such a question, but she quickly returned to her smile. "Golden Key services are always free for our VIP guests."

Lu Mingfei took the gold-plated VIP black card, feeling flattered. The front featured the Black Prince Hotel’s logo in gold foil. Expensive hotels really did have their reasons for charging so much; the supporting services were truly top-notch. Now he wouldn't have to go stand in line at the Zhaofu Street grocery store to buy bean paste for his aunt, and he could even have them buy him pickled vegetables from Liubiju.

"Thank you, thank you very much," Lu Mingfei nodded gratefully.

"Do you have any need for my services right now?" Lily asked, tilting her head. "Any request you have, I can fulfill."

*Damn, don't say such ambiguous things!* he thought. *My classmates are all staying right next door. If they hear that, they’ll think I’ve ordered some kind of special service. I’ll be socially dead at Shilan High School.*

But then Lu Mingfei reconsidered; even if they heard, it probably wouldn't matter. They had likely all received these VIP cards and knew it was just a hotel service. Buying bean paste and pickles was probably a bit too early; the weather was hot, and he feared they might spoil. He would just have the waitress buy them on the day he left.

"No, that's fine," Lu Mingfei waved her off. "I'll call you if I need anything."

"Understood. My phone number is on the card; you can reach me using the phone in your room."

Lu Mingfei flipped the card over and sure enough, found a phone number written next to the name "Lily."

Lily bowed gracefully and took a step back. In the blink of an eye, she had vanished from the hallway.

"The service is really thorough," Lu Mingfei murmured, peering at the string of numbers. "Though the hygiene could use some improvement."

The black card felt greasy to the touch and smelled faintly of Lay’s original flavor potato chips.

Just as Lu Mingfei was about to close the door, a familiar figure drifted into his field of vision.

"Four o'clock this afternoon, Miaomiao and I are heading out to Quanjude for Peking Duck. Are you coming?" Qiao Yiran walked over and tossed the question at him.

"Not going," Lu Mingfei answered decisively, leaving out the "because I have no money" part. From today until he went home, he wasn't joining any activity that cost more than a buck.

"Really not going?"

"Really not." Lu Mingfei sighed.

Seeing the hallway was empty, Lu Mingfei hesitated for a moment before saying to Qiao Yiran, "That business with Liu Miaomiao and me is a total rumor... She actually likes our senior, Chu Zihang. If you want to play wingman, you should find a way to help her get closer to him."

Qiao Yiran rolled her eyes, then suddenly hung her head.

"I’m Miaomiao’s best friend," Qiao Yiran sighed, looking down. "Do you think I don't know who she likes? Every time it rains, she drags us to the snack shop because Senior Chu is almost always standing under the eaves of the teaching building watching the rain. Every time she brushes past him, she finds an excuse to look back—either asking if she has a pimple or if her bangs look messy. She doesn't actually care about those things; she just wants to see his face. She thinks we don't know."

"Then why do you..."

"Because her longing is so hopeless. She isn't in love with a person; she’s in love with a sun. Everyone at Shilan High knows Chu Zihang is bright and dazzling, but he hangs high in the sky. She can’t be a sun-chasing bird forever; she has to land eventually."

Qiao Yiran looked at her own toes and continued, "I don't know if you’ve ever had a crush on someone, but I know it’s... quite painful. Sometimes on rainy days, watching Miaomiao stare at the rain outside the window, my heart aches for her. I know Miaomiao might not like you, but I can tell she doesn't dislike you either. I just wanted to use this opportunity to give her a hand, to help this sun-chasing bird land a little sooner."

*So that’s it.* Lu Mingfei understood. He realized why he had always felt a bit sorry for Liu Miaomiao. He wasn't pitying her; he was pitying himself.

"So..." Qiao Yiran looked up at him. "You’re still not going, right?"

"Not going!" Lu Mingfei’s tone was firm; the money in his pocket gave him strong principles.

"Fine," Qiao Yiran nodded slightly, then added, "Sorry, I wanted to use you as the rope to pull Miaomiao down."

"It's alright, it's alright," Lu Mingfei waved, watching Qiao Yiran walk away gracefully before he retreated into room 0711.

He felt a pang of emotion. *You want to save Liu Miaomiao, and I want to save Liu Miaomiao. Ultimately, our goals are the same, but we can't cooperate. Because the only one who can save her from the sea of misery that is Chu Zihang is Zhao Menghua, and the only one who can save her from the sea of misery that is Zhao Menghua is Chu Zihang.*

"Sigh, all living things suffer," Lu Mingfei murmured. Humming a tune, he wandered toward the elevator, intending to see what the hotel restaurant had to offer. He hadn't had his fill of the airplane food, and his stomach was growling. Lily had said the VIP card allowed him to enjoy all the hotel's services, so that should include dining, right?

*Ding.* The elevator doors opened. Coincidentally, Zhao Menghua was inside.

He was surrounded by a circle of followers, chatting animatedly about something. Whether he was blocked by his lackeys and truly didn't see Lu Mingfei, or simply didn't want to acknowledge him, Zhao Menghua didn't say a word.

Lu Mingfei stuffed his hands into his pockets and leaned his head to the side as he stepped into the elevator. Since Zhao Menghua hadn't greeted him, he wasn't going to subject himself to a cold shoulder.

Voices came from behind him.

"Boss, where are we going to eat later?" one of Zhao Menghua’s cronies asked.

"Since we're in the capital, we have to eat some authentic capital cuisine," Zhao Menghua said, beaming. "Let’s go to Quanjude for Peking Duck for dinner. One duck per person, my treat."

*What the hell?!*

Lu Mingfei’s legs trembled in shock. His fingers immediately scrambled to the elevator panel, mashing every floor button from bottom to top.

*Open the door, open the door!*

*Qiao Yiran, I’m coming to Quanjude with you guys! Don't leave yet, wait for me!*