Zhōuzi arrived at the village where the Shen family resided by car early in the morning.
He had reached Pǔhé County the previous night. Since the farmstead wouldn't open until the next day, he found a hotel in the county.
He had also specifically inquired about the Shen family's farmstead, but everyone he asked claimed to be unclear about it. This inexplicably made him feel uneasy.
Logically speaking, for such a large farmstead, it was unlikely that no one would know about it. The fact that no one had even heard of it was quite strange.
Therefore, as Zhōuzi checked out of his hotel and set off in the morning, some netizens, who enjoyed a bit of excitement, urged him to start his broadcast.
Zhōuzi had already begun his live stream after getting into the taxi and headed towards the destination, guided by the navigation.
"Young man, what brings you here?" the taxi driver asked.
"I'm here for tourism. I booked a farmstead online and I'm heading there now," Zhōuzi replied. "Brother, have you heard of the Shen family farmstead?"
The taxi driver thought for a moment and looked towards the destination. "You mean the one that's built like those ancient houses on TV? I've been there! Wow, that place is built beautifully!"
"Really? Can you tell me about it, brother? I booked it after seeing the photos online, and it really looked beautiful," Zhōuzi, finally seeing someone who knew about the farmstead, eagerly asked.
"I don't know much either. I drove a craftsman there who was doing renovations for that house before. I only got a glimpse from afar, but that house was even more beautiful than what you see on TV..."
And so, all the way, Zhōuzi listened to the driver praise the farmstead's beauty and grandeur.
Fortunately, Shen Yǎo's home was only about a ten-minute drive from the county. Otherwise, Zhōuzi really wouldn't have been able to bear listening any longer.
The netizens in the live stream, seeing Zhōuzi's attempts to interject but being unable to, were mocking him unmercifully.
Zhōuzi paid the taxi fare and got out. Before he even reached the farmstead's entrance, he saw a large number of flower baskets and piles of firecrackers from afar.
The place where he got off was precisely the small terraced fields the Shen family had leased from the villagers to use as a parking lot.
Those small terraced fields were only a few meters wide and were filled with small stones. Villagers would mostly use them to cultivate water chestnuts and taro, or to raise ducks.
Because there were too many small stones, it was impossible to grow rice or other crops, so they could only fill them with water and raise other things.
Shen Yǎo had chosen this spot for this very reason, so she negotiated with the villagers to lease them. The price was not low, and the owners naturally agreed.
Zhōuzi walked along the red carpet to the farmstead's entrance. The main gate of the Shen family farmstead was also a typical siheyuan (quadrangle) gate, modified from the original design of a princely mansion's gate.
Upon entering, Zhōuzi saw a young girl walking towards him. "Hello, are you a guest with a reservation?"
This young girl was named Āyù. She was a young girl Shen Yǎo had hired from the village. After finishing high school, Āyù did not continue her studies and had been working in the county town. Another girl with a similar background was named Xiǎohuā.
Both of them came from families with financial difficulties, and their elders had health problems, which was why they couldn't pursue university education and stayed to help at home.
"Yes, I have a reservation online. I booked the Hongyuè small suite," Zhōuzi said, holding up his phone.
He completely forgot about the viewers in his live stream. The moment he saw the magnificent gate, he knew his trip was worthwhile!
Āyù led Zhōuzi to the reception desk. The reception area was also decorated in an ancient, refined style, much like inns of olden times.
After Āyù completed the check-in procedures for Zhōuzi, she found a room card for him and informed him that his room was on the second floor, telling him to go up himself.
Originally, Āyù and Xiǎohuā had intended to escort him upstairs, but Zhōuzi politely declined.
Āyù and Xiǎohuā did not insist, as their own first impressions of the place when they first arrived were not much different from Zhōuzi's.
As Zhōuzi walked upstairs, he finally had time to address the viewers in his live stream. "Did you see it? Did you see it? This place is simply a paradise on earth!"
The netizens in the live stream were also very enthusiastic, with comments flooding the screen.
"Holy cow, if I had known, I would have booked along with Zhōuzi too. Back then, I thought what could be fun in such a remote place, and I thought those photos were false advertising. I apologize now, my perspective was too narrow!"
"Streamer, please, walk slower. I want to properly admire this beautiful scenery!"
"This courtyard perfectly fulfills all my fantasies of time travel. It must be stunning to take photos here!"
"Zhōuzi, Zhōuzi, hurry and check out the room. I'm extremely curious about the room right now!"
...
Zhōuzi didn't have much luggage, just a small backpack containing two sets of clothes and his toiletries.
Since he had only planned to stay for two days, he hadn't brought many things. Seeing this place now, he regretted only booking for two days!
"Do you guys think it's still possible to extend my stay?" Zhōuzi asked.
Soon, the netizens in the live stream provided their answer.
"Don't even think about it, all the rooms at the farmstead are booked up for ten days from now! Crying!"
"That's right, that's right. I just searched on the app, and there are no available rooms! Dozens of rooms, not a single vacant one!"
"Ahhhhhhhh! I know why!"
"What why? Hurry up and tell us, upstairs, or I won't be able to control my 40-meter-long dao!"
"Phew, it's too late, I've already unleashed it. There's no saving it, it's all Barbie Q."
"I can still save it! I just discovered that the owner of this farmstead is also a blogger! She has over 600,000 followers!"
"Wow, so she's quite a big blogger then!"
"Which blogger is it? I want to follow her too."
...
Zhōuzi was also looking at the comments and didn't mind at all when someone mentioned another blogger in his stream, as he also wanted to know.
After walking around upstairs for a while, Zhōuzi finally found his room near the second courtyard.
"Beep"
After swiping the card to enter, Zhōuzi inserted the room card into the slot, and the room instantly lit up.
The interior was exquisitely decorated, the room was spotless, and there was even incense burning, a faint sandalwood scent that was both refreshing and invigorating.
After looking at the rooms in the small suite, Zhōuzi decisively chose the one with the canopied bed!
After putting his belongings down, Zhōuzi set up his phone and started chatting with the viewers.
"Looking at this bed, I feel like the price of 888 yuan is too low. Am I getting carried away?"
"Zhōuzi, this kind of canopied bed is for girls. Come back, I'll go check it out for you."
"Upstairs, I could hear you all the way in City A!"
"I could hear you in City N too!"
...
Zhōuzi looked at the comments, then lay down on the canopied bed and sighed comfortably, "Ah, it's okay. From now on, I can be a girl too."