Chapter 182: Checking into the City Hotel

After leaving the bus station, Li Yi didn’t go to the Municipal Bureau to find Wang Anguo; instead, he headed straight for the state-run hotel in the city center.

Like state-run guesthouses, the State-Run Hotel was a state-owned accommodation facility, though the two catered to entirely different clientele.

Guesthouses generally accommodate employees of various organizations and lower-level officials—for example, a workshop director or office director from a factory—who typically stay at state-run guesthouses when on business trips.

State-run hotels, however, are a different story; they typically accommodate high-ranking officials or foreign guests.

Consequently, the room rates and other expenses here were significantly higher than those at guesthouses, making them completely unaffordable for ordinary people.

The state-run hotel was located in a bustling part of the city; Li Yi didn’t even need to take a taxi—he walked there in about ten minutes.

But when he arrived at the front desk to check in, the staff thought he had come to the wrong place.

“Comrade, this is the City Hotel, not some ordinary guesthouse.”

Hearing the staff member’s rude remark, Li Yi shot back without hesitation: “What’s wrong with the City Hotel? Is it lined with gold? Isn’t it meant for people to stay in?”

“Comrade, how dare you speak to us like that? The City Hotel doesn’t accommodate just anyone! Besides, a night’s stay here isn’t cheap—can you even afford it?”

“Hah, what era is this? Still looking down on people based on their appearance? How do you know I can’t afford it?” Li Yi said coldly.

“How dare you insult me?”

“Which ear did you hear me swearing with? It seems you’ve completely forgotten the principle of serving the people—otherwise, why would you be arguing with me like this?” Li Yi said coldly.

To be honest, regardless of whether the prices here were high or not, Li Yi found the service attitude alone to be absolutely terrible.

If he hadn’t known that Huang Lixing and the others were staying at the state-run hotel, there was no way he would have chosen to stay here.

Just as the argument was heating up, Li Yi suddenly heard a voice from behind him: “Brother Li Yi?”

Li Yi turned to look and saw it was Liu Jingshan.

He was dressed in a white chef’s uniform and wearing a white chef’s hat; anyone who didn’t know better would have thought he was a master chef from somewhere.

Upon seeing Li Yi, Liu Jingshan burst out laughing: “Brother Li Yi, it really is you! What brings you here?”

Li Yi smiled and said, “I came to the city to run some errands. I can’t go back, so I planned to stay here for a few days, but I didn’t expect to run into trouble!”

Liu Jingshan had been drawn over by the commotion just moments ago. He immediately frowned and said, “Brother Li Yi, how did they give you a hard time? I’ll go find Director Yan for you!”

Hearing this, the staff members who had been so aggressive moments ago turned pale.

They didn’t know Li Yi, but they certainly knew Liu Jingshan.

The director of the Qingshan County State-Owned Hotel wasn’t exactly a big shot, and he certainly didn’t have the authority to boss them around.

But the reality was that he had been invited by the Prefectural Party Committee and the government to serve as one of the catering managers for VIP hospitality, and there were even rumors that higher-ups were considering appointing him as the deputy director of the Municipal Hotel.

Setting aside all that, they knew for a fact that Director Yan of the Municipal Hotel treated him with the utmost courtesy.

If he really were to report this to higher-ups, even if only to save face for this man, they would still get reprimanded.

Just getting scolded wouldn’t be so bad, but they knew Director Yan loved to use any excuse to dock the staff’s bonuses.

That’s five yuan, after all—it would hurt so much to have it taken away.

At that, the staff member who had been so aggressive just moments ago suddenly backed down a bit, though she was too embarrassed to speak up.

Instead, the woman standing nearby who had been watching the spectacle hurriedly interjected, “It’s a misunderstanding, really a misunderstanding! We didn’t mean to give this comrade a hard time, it’s just…”

“Cut the crap and check me in!”

Li Yi couldn’t be bothered to listen to their nonsense, especially from this woman speaking now.

She’d been standing by watching the show while they were arguing, and now she was stepping in to play the good guy—she was clearly the manipulative type.

“Fine, fine, fine. Please present your letter of introduction and personal ID!”

Li Yi immediately handed over the letter of introduction he’d obtained yesterday along with his household registration booklet, secretly relieved that he’d gotten the letter yesterday—otherwise, he really wouldn’t have been able to check in today!

“Comrade, our room rates vary. We have standard rooms for two yuan a night, and others for five yuan a day…”

Before the woman could finish, Li Yi said calmly, “Building 2, Room 315, dxmbang!”

Hearing the room number Li Yi had given, the two women were instantly stunned.

“Comrade, the third floor of Building 2 is all VIP rooms. They cost 15 yuan a night. Are you sure you want to stay there?”

“I’ll take it!”

Liu Jingshan, standing nearby, was also dumbfounded. He knew Li Yi was wealthy—in the past two months alone, he’d taken at least 20,000 yuan from their state-run hotel.

But he never imagined that Li Yi would actually choose to stay in a room costing 15 yuan a night—an amount equivalent to nearly half a month’s wages for an ordinary person.

Li Yi clearly sensed what Liu Jingshan was thinking. He smiled and said, “It’s for business—I have no choice!”

Hearing this, Liu Jingshan got it instantly.

So Li Yi was here on business—no wonder. He had to maintain his image!

By then, the front desk staff had already completed Li Yi’s check-in.

After asking Liu Jingshan for directions to his room, Li Yi said, “See you later,” and followed the staff member to Building 2.

The main reason Li Yi insisted on staying in Room 315 was that he knew Huang Lixing and his group had been assigned to Room 314 upon their arrival.

At the time of the incident, he and his wife had been staying in that very room.

This led to frequent rumors that Room 314 in Building 2 of the City Hotel was haunted, providing plenty of after-dinner conversation for the people of Ning City.

Since he was here to ask this Mr. Huang for a donation, staying right next door would give him more opportunities to meet him.

Who knows, maybe an opportunity would arise!

Besides, if all else failed, he could simply rush into the next room to save the day when the bodyguard-turned-murderer struck—that would achieve the same result.

In short, it’s all about being in the right place at the right time!

Standing outside the room and looking at the master key in his hand, Li Yi couldn’t help but shake his head.

This was supposed to be the most upscale hotel in Ning City, yet this massive key alone had already cut the hotel’s prestige in half.

However, once he opened the door, the interior decor and furnishings caught Li Yi’s eye.

It was a suite, with a bedroom inside, a living room outside, and even a bathroom with a bathtub.

In addition, it was fully equipped with a sofa, coffee table, and color TV.

It had to be said that this 15-yuan-a-night hotel was quite unique; at the very least, in this area, it could be called luxurious.

Not to mention that the room also included breakfast for two!

Looking at it this way, it seemed well worth the price!

Of course, if it weren’t for his own plans, Li Yi wouldn’t have chosen this place.