When Dongfang Yi woke up again, she found herself in a strange environment. The splitting headache immediately reminded her of how she got drunk last night. She couldn't help scolding herself inwardly, "Dongfang Yi, if you can't hold your liquor, why show off!"
Suddenly, she thought of Situ Qing. She wondered if he was awake. So she got out of bed, covering her head, and left the room.
She walked over and pushed open the door. What greeted her first was a magnificent lobby. The circular ceiling bulged upwards, carved with patterns of unknown mythical beasts. All the beasts were outlined in gold, looking quite imposing.
Dongfang Yi was on the second floor. She looked around and found that there were rooms with various doors all around the second - floor corridor. She thought the decoration of each room should be different.
She walked to the railing and looked down. All kinds of people filled the lobby below. Only then did she feel the hustle and bustle. But when she was in the room, it was extremely quiet. She thought the inn must have used special sound - insulation materials. She couldn't help feeling a bit of admiration for the inn's owner from the bottom of her heart.
"You're awake?" Suddenly, she heard a male voice. She quickly turned around and saw Situ Qing not far away.
He had changed back into his favorite red robe. His hair was tied up in a small topknot. With a big smile on his face, he looked like a handsome young man, making people feel at ease.
"Why do you like wearing red clothes so much?" Dongfang Yi blurted out. But without waiting for the man opposite to answer, she answered herself, "Because it's so 'sao'! Haha."
After saying that, she looked at Situ Qing with a naughty smile. But she saw that he was just looking at her in confusion. Only then did she remember that he wouldn't understand what she meant.
"What does'sao' mean?" he couldn't help asking.
His inquisitive look almost made Dongfang Yi burst out laughing. But she still randomly explained to him, "Ah—'sao' means good - looking."
"Oh—so that's it." Situ Qing nodded, looking thoughtful.
Then he continued to say to Dongfang Yi, "Well, Xiaodong, you're also quite'sao'."
As soon as Dongfang Yi heard this, the smile on her face froze. She was immediately speechless.
"You... you..." She wanted to scold but had no reason. So she just gritted her teeth, stamped her feet, and went downstairs.
Situ Qing behind her was even more confused. Why was she so angry after being praised for being good - looking?
After Dongfang Yi and Situ Qing got to the first floor, they could see the scenery outside the inn. At first, Dongfang Yi was surprised that she couldn't see any buildings outside. Then gradually, she realized that she was actually on a boat. This was an inn built on a boat!
She couldn't help becoming more curious about the inn's owner. So she asked Situ Qing beside her, "Do you know what this inn is called?"
"Duoyu Inn," Situ Qing replied.
"Do you know who the owner of this inn is?" Dongfang Yi then asked.
"Me," Situ Qing stared at her without blinking and replied.
"Come on, stop joking. I'm really curious," Dongfang Yi rolled her eyes at the man in front of her and asked anxiously.
"What? Is it so hard to believe that a former prince like me owns an ordinary inn?" Situ Qing looked at Dongfang Yi a bit angrily. He thought to himself, what was this woman thinking? Wasn't he, Situ Qing, worthy of owning an inn?
Seeing how serious he was, Dongfang Yi finally believed him. Her heart couldn't help feeling excited.
"Then isn't this our inn now!" Dongfang Yi's tone was full of undisguised joy.
Situ Qing rolled his eyes at her and said, "It's mine."
"Come on, yours is mine. And I can make money for you!" she continued to flatter.
But Situ Qing still said firmly, "It's my inn."
Dongfang Yi suddenly stood up and paced back and forth on the ground for a few steps.
Her biggest dream in modern times was to open a restaurant that provided a one - stop service of eating, drinking, and having fun. But unfortunately, she was just a poor paycheck - to - paycheck person who couldn't even afford the rent for a restaurant. Now that such a great opportunity was right in front of her, she of course had to seize it.
So she suppressed her anger, sat down again, and massaged the man's arm, saying, "Haha, my dear Boss Qing, I want to discuss something with you."
"Um?" Situ Qing felt quite comfortable with her massage, so he half - closed his eyes and asked.
"Just give me half of the ownership of Duoyu Inn. I guarantee that I'll make you a fortune within a year... no, within half a year!" Dongfang Yi flattered.
"No. I don't need to make a fortune. I'm not short of money anyway," unexpectedly, Situ Qing refused.
Hearing the man's refusal, Dongfang Yi immediately stopped massaging and sat there with her head down.
Situ Qing felt the movement stop and slowly opened his eyes. As soon as he opened his eyes, he saw the somewhat dejected look of the woman beside him. Suddenly, he thought, was she really that fond of this inn? Was he being a bit too harsh just now?
So he said to Dongfang Yi, "Alright, alright, I promise you. Anyway, I don't really manage this inn."
Hearing this response, Dongfang Yi suddenly raised her head. She thought that acting pitiful really worked! Haha.
Then she ran to the second floor to get paper and a pen. With a serious look on her face, she wrote:
Party A: Situ Qing Party B: Dongfang Yi
Today, Party A voluntarily gives half of the ownership of Duoyu Inn to Party B. If there is a breach of contract, Party A shall compensate ten times.
Situ Qing stared blankly at the woman beside him writing these words. She even carefully copied two copies. So he asked, "What is this?"
"It's a contract," Dongfang Yi replied seriously.
Then, seeing Situ Qing's confused look, she continued to explain, "A contract is a kind of agreement. Once two people sign a certain contract, they must follow what's written in the contract. They can't break the contract, or they'll have to accept the punishment."
"Contract..." Situ Qing murmured to himself after listening to the explanation.
"Do you have any inkpad... Ah—do you have cinnabar?" Dongfang Yi asked.
Situ Qing called a waiter to fetch it. After it was brought, Dongfang Yi dipped her hand in cinnabar and pressed it on the two "contracts". She also grabbed Situ Qing's hand and pressed his fingerprint on them.
The warmth from Dongfang Yi's hand was transmitted to Situ Qing's hand through the close contact. That warmth slowly flowed into his heart.
In a short while, the two "contracts" were completely drawn up.
"You should keep this thing well. I won't be responsible if you lose it," Dongfang Yi said to him shrewdly.
Situ Qing blankly stuffed the paper into his bosom. His eyes were fixed on Dongfang Yi and never left for a moment.
It seemed that he was becoming more and more fond of this little woman in front of him.