The smile on the receptionist’s face gradually stiffened. If it were not for her professional training, she would have smashed the mouse in her hand straight into Wu Yuejiao’s heavily made-up witch face and cursed her out.
Rolling her eyes inwardly, the receptionist refused her request with a polite yet firm tone.
“Sorry, Miss Wu, but I can’t agree to that. Our hotel has its own rules. Every guest who walks through our doors is a valued guest whom we are committed to serving, and no one is above or below anyone else.”
“If you really want to book a Business Deluxe Suite, then please wait until Miss Tan has made her choice. Everything has to follow the principle of first come, first served.”
Wu Yuejiao’s spoiled temper flared instantly upon hearing that.
“What? You’re just some poor girl working for someone else, and you dare give me an attitude? After working your ass off for an entire month, do you even make five thousand?”
“A single outfit of mine costs a hundred thousand. That’s enough to cover two years of your salary! If you know what’s good for you, hurry up and get the room for me. If you refuse, I’ll complain to your boss and make sure you get fired!”
The receptionist was a woman of strong principles. No matter how loudly Wu Yuejiao shouted, she refused to give in even an inch.
She was determined to stand her ground.
“Wu Yuejiao, do you really want the Business Deluxe Suite on the second floor that badly?”
Tan Zhizhi lowered her eyes slightly and asked in an indifferent tone.
Wu Yuejiao hated seeing her act so calm and unbothered. That pretentious look of hers, as though she would not even frown if a bird pooped on her head, irritated Wu Yuejiao to no end.
She turned her head away and ignored her.
“…”
“If you want that room so badly, then you can have it!”
Wu Yuejiao turned back around with an expression as though she had seen a ghost.
“Tan Zhizhi, what are you plotting now?”
She did not believe Tan Zhizhi would give up the room so easily without fighting for it. There was no way she was being that kindhearted.
Tan Zhizhi could not be bothered to answer her. According to the timeline from her previous life, a massive storm would strike at five o’clock the next morning. Anyone staying below the third floor would experience a terrifying disaster.
Perhaps she really was a little mean, but she wanted to see Wu Yuejiao with her makeup washed away by the floodwater, her hair disheveled as she clung to that greasy man and cried miserably.
“Since Tan Zhizhi has no objection, why are you, a poor little employee, still acting so high and mighty? Hurry up and process my check-in!”
No matter what Tan Zhizhi’s motives were, Wu Yuejiao was extremely satisfied with her decision to back down so obediently.
This feeling of victory was simply too addictive!
Not only had she stolen the man who once liked Tan Zhizhi, but she had also taken the room Tan Zhizhi wanted.
The more Wu Yuejiao thought about it, the better she felt. She shot Tan Zhizhi a smug look, wrapped her arm around Liang Shuo’s, and said sweetly, “Come on, darling. Let’s not waste our time on these annoying people.”
Her ten-centimeter heels clicked against the clean, brightly lit floor tiles as she strutted away in a twisting, snake-like gait.
However, before she had even enjoyed her moment of triumph for ten seconds, Tan Zhizhi’s haunting voice suddenly rang out behind her.
“Oh, right, Wu Yuejiao. There’s something I almost forgot to tell you. If you don’t want the video of you throwing a tantrum to be uploaded online and leave you open to everyone’s ridicule and criticism, then you’d better apologize properly to this beautiful and lovely receptionist.”
As soon as the words fell, Wu Yuejiao’s expression, which had only just softened, turned icy once again.
“Tan Zhizhi, what do you mean by that?”
“Oh, I was bored just now, so I casually recorded the entire process of you insulting the receptionist. You care a lot about your image, so I’m guessing you wouldn’t want all those rich socialites you hang around with laughing at you, right?”
Her words struck directly at Wu Yuejiao’s weak spot.
“Tan Zhizhi, I order you to delete that video right now! Immediately!”
Wu Yuejiao shouted as she reached for Tan Zhizhi’s phone.
Tan Zhizhi slapped her hand away and smoothly dodged her attempt, her tone remaining infuriatingly calm.
“Even if I delete it now, it’s already too late, Miss Wu Yuejiao. A minute ago, I sent a copy to my computer, and that computer is sitting at my house right now. If you refuse to apologize, I’ll upload the video online later.”
“What? Tan Zhizhi, you actually dared to play dirty with me?!”
“Why make it sound so ugly? We’re old classmates, after all!”
Of course, they were classmates who could barely stand each other.
“You…” Wu Yuejiao’s face turned livid. After a long moment, she finally muttered, “If I apologize, will you keep your word?”
“That depends on how well you perform!”
Completely unwilling, Wu Yuejiao was forced to lower her head and stiffly say to the receptionist, “I’m sorry.”
Tan Zhizhi raised an eyebrow.
“Again. That was far too perfunctory. An apology needs emotion and sincerity. Give her a sixty-degree bow and slap yourself a few times while you’re at it.”
Liang Shuo could no longer stand by and watch. He stepped forward to play the role of the gallant protector.
“Zhizhi, Jiaojiao didn’t mean it. She’s just a little too straightforward, but she’s actually a good person. Can you please do me a favor and stop making things difficult for her?”
Tan Zhizhi shot him a cold glare.
“What does this have to do with you? If you have something to say, go say it somewhere else!”
Liang Shuo awkwardly pursed his lips and did not dare say another word.
“…”
Wu Yuejiao was so furious that she nearly crushed her teeth, but with her weakness in someone else’s hands, she had no choice but to accept her fate.
She tremblingly raised her hand and closed her eyes.
“Smack!”
She slapped her left cheek.
“Smack!”
Then she slapped her right cheek.
After slapping herself more than ten times and giving an exceptionally standard sixty-degree bow, Tan Zhizhi finally lifted her chin and signaled for her to stop.
Wu Yuejiao raised her swollen face, which now resembled a pig’s head, and grabbed Liang Shuo as she spoke to Tan Zhizhi in a threatening tone, emphasizing every word.
“Tan Zhizhi, I’ve apologized exactly as you demanded. If you dare spread that video online, I swear I’ll bring my family’s bodyguards and kill you!”
Before entering the elevator, Liang Shuo secretly looked back several times. His gaze remained fixed on Tan Zhizhi, as though he wanted to say something, but in the end, he said nothing.
Once the two of them were gone, the receptionist hurriedly made Tan Zhizhi a steaming cup of tea and thanked her sincerely.
“Miss Tan, thank you so much. I really have to thank you for what happened tonight.”
“It was nothing. Don’t worry about it.”
Even without this incident, Tan Zhizhi would have taught Wu Yuejiao, that foul-mouthed woman, a lesson sooner or later.
She needed to learn which people she could provoke and which people she could not.
“Miss Tan, did you… really record the video?” the receptionist asked curiously.
Tan Zhizhi paused for a moment, then lifted her beautiful lashes.
“No. I was bluffing her!”
She had genuinely considered recording the entire thing, but unfortunately, her phone battery had only been at 2%.
Even if she had wanted to record it, she could not have.
…
“Click!”
With the keycard in hand, Tan Zhizhi opened Room 803.
The layout of the Business Deluxe Suite came into view.
The living room was approximately twenty square meters and came fully equipped with a sofa, air conditioner, refrigerator, LCD television, and everything else one could need.
The kitchen and bathroom were also fully equipped.
The windows were made of double-layer tempered glass, while the door was constructed from sturdy aluminum alloy. The floor was covered with a thick blended-fabric carpet.
Overall, the suite had decent security and was well supplied with the necessities of daily life.
Most importantly, it was high enough to perfectly avoid being flooded.