"Besides, to be honest, I also feel that this place of yours, boss, is really not very peaceful. If something were to happen to you while you're here, you could at least be used as a shield, right?"
Ye Tiancheng's last statement caused the innkeeper to tremble like a sieve.
The innkeeper, filled with both anger and fear, spoke with a shaky voice.
"You! You..."
Ye Tiancheng showed no outward reaction, but inwardly he was somewhat surprised.
Judging by his demeanor, the innkeeper seemed quite afraid of what might happen at night. Did he know something?
However, if that were the case, then this innkeeper was likely not the one who had been banging on doors and screaming last night, causing so much noise pollution.
Otherwise, what would the innkeeper have to be afraid of?
Perhaps yesterday, because Ye Tiancheng and the others refused to let him in and used talismans to defend themselves, the other party couldn't gain entry. Moreover, with the dawn breaking and multiple factors at play, they were forced to retreat.
But if the innkeeper were the same person from yesterday, upon hearing that Ye Tiancheng intended to keep him in the room, why would he be so terrified? He should have been as happy as a weasel entering a chicken coop.
These thoughts flashed through Ye Tiancheng's mind in an instant.
He smiled at the innkeeper and said, "We brothers aren't afraid of anything. If we can have you, the boss, as a backup, then it's really not a loss, is it?"
Nie Chongyang and Liang Ping covered their faces.
Little Fox watched with great interest.
To their surprise, even at this point, the innkeeper still wouldn't fully agree.
The innkeeper said, "You talk so tough, if you have the guts, try staying outside for a night! My place is already peaceful enough. Stay if you want, leave if you don't!"
"Double! You have to pay double the price, otherwise, it's the same no matter where you stay!"
Ye Tiancheng's gaze swept over the innkeeper, who appeared to have given up all pretense and seemed unwilling to budge further.
Little Fox, Nie Chongyang, and Liang Ping all exchanged glances with Ye Tiancheng, wanting to know his decision.
After a moment's thought, Ye Tiancheng released the innkeeper's collar, even reaching out to smooth out the wrinkles caused by his grip. Before the innkeeper could relax, Ye Tiancheng slung an arm around his shoulders.
He smiled cordially and said, "Alright, double it is."
Ye Tiancheng paused for a moment.
"However, we've agreed on this. Boss, you can't go back on your word," Ye Tiancheng said with a smile. "We want a receipt, and we'll pay double the price. You'll give us a receipt, right?"
The innkeeper was startled and looked at Ye Tiancheng with shock and surprise.
Ye Tiancheng said, "This isn't an unreasonable request, is it?"
"Otherwise, if the boss pulls another stunt like today, won't this double price become four times tomorrow morning?"
Nie Chongyang and the others hadn't expected Ye Tiancheng to actually intend to pay the money.
However, they also felt that Ye Tiancheng must have his reasons, so they didn't say anything. In the innkeeper's eyes, this was tacit agreement to Ye Tiancheng's terms.
The innkeeper remained silent for a long time.
Ye Tiancheng patted the innkeeper's shoulder again, his arm around the innkeeper's shoulder tightening slightly. "What? Does this still make things difficult for you, boss?"
"It seems the boss feels a kinship with us and wants to spend more time with us."
As soon as Ye Tiancheng finished speaking, the innkeeper immediately struggled and shouted, "I agree, I agree!"
"You want a receipt, I'll give you one! Let go of me, and I'll go get it for you!"
Although the innkeeper verbally agreed, Ye Tiancheng had no intention of letting go.
Ye Tiancheng said, "Then let's go together. I need to pay you, boss, don't I?"
The innkeeper looked extremely reluctant, but he was helpless against Ye Tiancheng. He could only yield and be led by Ye Tiancheng towards the inn's front desk.
Upon reaching the front desk, the innkeeper, with a look of displeasure, asked Ye Tiancheng to pay first. Ye Tiancheng refused, stating he wanted to see the valid receipt before handing over the money.
Finally, they compromised. The innkeeper would issue the receipt, and upon receiving it, Ye Tiancheng would pay.
Carrying a large amount of cash was clearly not easy. Once the amount was significant, transporting it became even more difficult. Fortunately, Ye Tiancheng and his companions had spatial storage, allowing them to retrieve and carry large sums of cash.
However, it was naturally impossible to take cash directly from their spatial storage in front of the innkeeper.
But Ye Tiancheng would always keep some cash on hand. For this kind of shady inn, not only was no identification required, but it was also very cheap. Therefore, even after booking an entire room for their beds, Ye Tiancheng had enough cash in his pocket.
Ye Tiancheng clearly remembered how much he had paid for the beds the previous night. He counted out the same amount from his person and placed it on the counter.
Seeing the money, the innkeeper immediately reached out to grab it.
However, Ye Tiancheng obviously wouldn't let him do that. He placed a hand on the cash and smiled at the innkeeper, saying, "Boss, don't rush. Please issue the receipt first."
The innkeeper reluctantly lowered his head again, filled out a receipt, and handed it to Ye Tiancheng. As promised, Ye Tiancheng released the cash he had placed on the counter.
The innkeeper picked up the money and began counting it, saying, "I need to count it."
Ye Tiancheng had no objections.
"Alright, boss, count it. I'll watch you count."
At this point, Ye Tiancheng wouldn't go back on his word and give less money. He had counted out the exact amount.
However, even so, Ye Tiancheng couldn't guarantee that the innkeeper would be as honest and wouldn't try to cheat by undercounting or pocketing a few bills and then claiming he hadn't been paid enough.
With Ye Tiancheng's arm still around him and hearing his words, the innkeeper felt the implicit threat and dared not do anything mischievous. He diligently counted the cash several times, ensuring it was correct before stopping.
He said, "Alright, alright! The money is correct, and I've opened the receipt. You can let go of me and go back now, right?"
Ye Tiancheng said, "Since we've booked all the beds in the room, can we also have the room keys for now?"
The innkeeper was very unwilling but also very afraid of Ye Tiancheng. And now that the matter was settled, he had no other options. Offending Ye Tiancheng again, who knew how he would be treated.
He had no choice but to find a set of keys from the counter drawer, take out one, and hand it to Ye Tiancheng.
"Fine, fine! Here you go! Is that all?"
Ye Tiancheng smiled and said, "There are four of us brothers, and our belongings are in the room. We're worried about security. Can you give us all the keys to that room?"
The innkeeper was exasperated.
"Don't push your luck!"
Ye Tiancheng ignored his attitude and said, "If I were to come and collect them myself, that would also be acceptable."
No matter how angry the innkeeper was, it was useless. Ultimately, he compromised under Ye Tiancheng's silent threat and took out a small bunch of keys from a large ring, handing them over. "They're all here."
Ye Tiancheng, not trusting him, directly snatched the large ring of keys and checked them one by one before he was truly at ease.
Seeing that the man was finally not causing any more trouble, he also stopped pestering him.
"Alright, I'm leaving. I hope this morning's incident is the last time, okay?"
Unable to fight back, the innkeeper dared not repeat such an incident. Earning an extra sum of money was already good enough, so he remained silent and even acted as if he were sending away a plague.
Ye Tiancheng took the receipt and left. Just as he turned to walk back, the inn's main door chimed, indicating someone had entered.
He instinctively looked towards the entrance and saw a woman holding a paper umbrella, dressed in a qipao, with a gentle demeanor, standing at the inn's doorway. She slightly lowered her head, closed the opened paper umbrella, and then, holding the umbrella, gracefully walked to the inn's front desk to book a room.
Her entire being was fair to the point of luminescence, not an offensive glare, but rather, when looking at her, one couldn't help but feel a hazy halo surrounding her. Her face was impossibly beautiful, so much so that words could barely describe even a fraction of her beauty.
She didn't seem like a real person, but rather like a spirit from a painting that had come to life.
Even with Ye Tiancheng's experience, this was the first time he had ever seen such a beauty.
Ye Tiancheng also sensed, almost subtly, a hint of imperceptible reverence in the innkeeper's attitude towards this woman.
This was very interesting.
He couldn't help but look at the qipao-clad woman again. Unexpectedly, she seemed to sense Ye Tiancheng's gaze and turned her head, her eyes meeting his.
Ye Tiancheng was slightly taken aback. The qipao-clad woman nodded slightly towards Ye Tiancheng, as if greeting him.
Although his intentions weren't malicious, being caught observing someone was indeed quite awkward. Ye Tiancheng simply nodded back in return, then withdrew his gaze, no longer looking at the qipao-clad woman, and truly turned to leave.
Upon returning to the room, Ye Tiancheng knocked on the door.
A voice from inside asked who it was. Ye Tiancheng answered, and the door was immediately opened.
As Ye Tiancheng was about to enter, he looked up and saw the three people inside gathered at the door, watching him. He was almost startled. As he walked into the room, he asked in surprise, "What are you all gathered at the door for?"
Nie Chongyang looked at the items in Ye Tiancheng's hand and asked, "What are you holding? Is this the receipt? And so many keys?"
Ye Tiancheng replied, "Yes. We're staying here, and we can't stay in the room all day. We'll have to go out at some point. We can't do without keys, right? But if someone else had the keys, I wouldn't feel safe, so I had the innkeeper give me all the keys to this room."
Nie Chongyang nodded.
"That's definitely much safer."
After Nie Chongyang finished speaking, Ye Tiancheng said, "You still haven't answered my question. Why are you all gathered at the door? You almost scared me."
Hearing Ye Tiancheng bring it up again, Nie Chongyang finally explained.
"Oh, when you went out, Liang Ping and I just discovered that Little Fox had secretly made several talismans at some point. We were just curious."