The second guard’s words did nothing to placate him.
If anything, they only turned the fire in his chest into a colder, more calculated resentment.
Liu Qiang lowered his head, watching the marble floor beneath his feet reflect the golden hotel lights, and allowed his mind to drift, as it always did on nights like this, back to the beginning.
He was, after all, only a mountain-village boy until a dacade ago, who had crawled his way to this city with nothing but empty dreams in his pockets.
He came from a remote village in the northeast.
At nineteen his mother’s cousin, a man he had called uncle since childhood, returned to the village for a visit.
That single visit changed the course of his life.
The uncle arrived draped in city clothes, a gleaming phone in hand, his every word dripping with the perfume of prosperity.
The entire village swooned over him as though he were visiting royalty.
And Liu Qiang, still a naive boy who had never once set foot beyond the county line, was dazzled beyond reason.
“Money is everywhere in Shanghai,” his uncle had said, laughing as he said it.
“Anyone with two hands and a will to work can become rich there.”
Those words planted themselves like a seed of greed in young Liu Qiang’s chest, and once planted, no amount of reason could uproot them.
So he stole money from the village chief’s house under cover of night and boarded a southbound train.
When he arrived in Shanghai, the glittering skyline nearly brought him to tears.
This is it, he had thought.
My days of poverty end here.
But heaven, it seemed, was not so generous to a boy who had never learned to look past appearances.
He found his uncle’s residence with some difficulty, and what greeted him there was not the palace of gold he had imagined, but a cramped, suffocating dormitory room shared between fourteen men, each person allotted nothing more than a single bed, upon which they were expected to stack their entire life.
One shared bathroom.
One shared kitchen, thick with the smell of a hundred hurried meals eaten standing up.
His “rich” uncle, it turned out, was nothing more than a low-level laborer in a toy factory, his gleaming phone and clothes purchased on credit, worn like armor to hide a poverty no different from the one Liu Qiang had fled.
The illusion did not merely crack, it shattered beneath his feet like thin winter ice.
He confronted his uncle in his anger and humiliation, foolish enough to believe the man might feel some shame.
Instead, the uncle gathered several of his roommates, beat him without mercy, and threw him out into the cold Shanghai night as though he were nothing more than a stray dog.
It was in that moment, bleeding and alone on an unfamiliar street, that Liu Qiang first understood the true face of this world.
But understanding came too late.
There was no going back, he had stolen from the village chief, and to return empty-handed and disgraced meant prison, perhaps even banishment from the only home he had ever known.
Forward or backward, both paths led to ruin.
So he chose forward, because at least forward, there was still a sliver of hope to cling to.
For an entire month, he lived beneath a bridge, wrapped in newspaper and cardboard, enduring a winter so bitter it seemed to gnaw at the very marrow of his bones.
Hunger became a familiar companion.
Pride became a luxury he could no longer afford.
Then, one gray morning, he came across a hiring notice, pasted crookedly on a wall.
It was, by fate’s strange design, this very same Bulgari Hotel.
He was a high school graduate, and years of labor in the village fields had given him a body far sturdier than most city-bred boys his age.
It did not take long before he was taken on.
Because he had not come through any proper security firm or agency, his wages were a fraction of what the other guards earned, but a fraction of something was infinitely better than the nothing he had known beneath that bridge.
At first, he had been almost content.
Working in a place as grand as this, sleeping in a room shared with only one other person instead of thirteen, eating three free warm meals a day, receiving small but steady bonuses, compared to the toy factory his uncle worked, this felt like paradise regained.
He threw himself into his duties with quiet gratitude.
But gratitude, like snow in springtime, does not last forever.
Day after day, he stood at this very entrance and watched wealth pass through it as easily as water flows downhill, young heirs stepping out of cars worth more than his entire village, women wearing jewelry that could feed his family for three generations, birthday parties that burned through more money in a single night than he would earn in his lifetime.
Slowly, the desire he thought he had buried began to claw its way back to the surface.
And once he truly understood the chasm between himself and them, a gap as vast and unbridgeable as the distance between heaven and earth his old, simple contentment curdled into something far darker.
Resentment.
Yes, he resented his lowly lifestyle, but more than that, he had come to harbor a quiet loathing for the wealthy, a loathing that had festered in silence for ten long years.
He was now thirty-one, still unmarried, still trapped in the same uniform he had worn for dacede.
It was not for lack of trying to better himself.
It was simply that his monthly wages could not buy so much as a foothold in this city, not a house, not even a decent rented one in a respectable district in suburbs.
And what family would give their daughter to a man who could not even promise her four solid walls to call her own?
These small grievances, accumulated drop by drop over a decade, had long since filled the cup of his heart to overflowing.
Tonight was no exception.
He had already completed a full evening shift, and just as he allowed himself to imagine the comfort of his narrow bed, word came down that a gathering of wealthy young heirs required an emergency night shift, and once again, his rest was stolen from him before it had even begun.
He knew his colleague was not wrong.
What could a man like him do against people like them?
Just as he was shimmering in his resentment he noticed a young girl approaching the hotel’s entrance, and his brows drew together instinctively.
She was an odd sight to behold.
Her clothes were cheap and faded, clearly washed too many times to count, hanging loosely from a frame that seemed too thin beneath them.
A school bag, patched crudely at the seams, hung from one shoulder, while an old, worn duffel bag weighed down her opposite hand.
Her hair was in complete disarray, unkempt strands falling forward to obscure most of her face, and behind a pair of thick, heavy-framed glasses, her eyes were barely visible at all.
Had one encountered such a figure alone on some deserted street in the dead of night, they might have mistaken her, at first glance, for something far less ordinary than a mere girl.
The second guard’s frown deepened the moment his eyes landed on her.
“Why is she coming this way?” His eyes widened a fraction.
“We should send her off at once, if the lobby manager or the team leader catches sight of her standing here, there will be trouble for us both.”
He had barely taken a step forward when his transceiver rang, summoning him to retrieve a departing guest’s vehicle.
He turned instead to Liu Qiang, his tone quick and low.
“Go deal with her.
Send her away before she causes a scene, don’t let this drag out.”
Liu Qiang gave a dismissive nod.
Homeless beggars were nothing he could not handle.
Mu Wanqing, meanwhile, walked toward the hotel’s main entrance at an unhurried pace, savoring the cool night breeze against her skin.
She had barely set foot upon the first stair when a voice, thick with disdain, cut through the quiet, “Do you not know this is the Bund?
This is a beggar-free zone.
Leave now, before I have public security drag you away.”
For a moment, Mu Wanqing assumed the words could not possibly be directed at her, and she continued climbing the stairs without pause.
It was only when a shadow fell across her path that she looked up and found a bulky, middle-aged man in a security uniform blocking her way entirely, his eyes narrowed in open contempt.
“I am speaking to you,” the guard said, his voice sharpening.
“Are you a beggar and also deaf?”
A flush of humiliation crept up Mu Wanqing’s neck.
Her gaze dropped briefly to the name tag pinned to his chest, Liu Qiang, before she straightened her spine and replied, cool and clipped, “Get out of my way.
I am here to check in.”
She could not entirely blame him for the mistake, frustrating as it was.
She was, after all, painfully aware of just how much grooming her present appearance required.
Liu Qiang let out a short, scornful laugh.
“You?
Check in here?
Has something addled your brain?
This is the Bvlgari Hotel. You are reading on g.com, the official source.
The cheapest room here costs nine to ten thousand yuan a night, and you expect me to believe you intend to check in?” A thought struck him then, and his eyes narrowed further.
“Are you one of those livestreamers?
Don’t tell me you’ve come sneaking in undercover to crash that young master’s private party upstairs.” But his gaze fell next to the cheap, cracked phone clutched in her hand, and he dismissed the thought almost as quickly as it had come.
Something else occurred to him instead.
“Wait, have you come for the food rescue?
This hotel does not run such a program.
You will have to look elsewhere.”
Mu Wanqing stared at him, utterly bewildered by the absurdity unfolding before her.
Livestreamer?
Food rescue?
She had not the faintest idea what the man was talking about.
System 888, who understood perfectly well what food rescue implied, felt a wave of secondhand humiliation wash over him, for if his host was being insulted, was that insult not also, by extension, aimed at him?
He spoke up at once, his tone thick with indignation.
[Host, he has just called you a beggar of surplus food, the sort of person who lingers outside establishments like this, waiting to scavenge leftover scraps meant for the trash.]
“You…” Mu Wanqing’s breathing became errartic as she heard the meaning, but still tried to calm herself, afterall to enter the hotel she must deal with this man first, “I’m not here for some food rescue or live streaming, I simply want to checkin and rest.
Is it that difficult for you to understand?”
Liu Qiang barked out a laugh.
“Check in?” he repeated, drawing the word out as though tasting something sour.
“Do you take this place for a roadside inn?
Do you think the Bulgari Hotel opens its doors to whoever wanders up off the street?” He let his eyes travel over her deliberately.
“Look at yourself.
Do you even own a mirror at home?
Or did you sell that too?
Get lost, people like you don’t deserve here.”
“The likes of me?” Mu Wanqing’s brows drew together, her temper fraying at the edges.
“You don’t know the first thing about me, so how can you judge?”
“Don’t know the first thing?” He tilted his head.
“I’ve worked this entrance for ten years.
I can tell a real guest from a fake one before they’ve even opened their mouth.
Look at yourself, clothes that look like they were fished out of a donation bin.
You think a duckling can waddle in here and call itself a swan?”
“Is it a crime now,” she shot back, “to not dress the way you think a paying guest should?
Since when did the Bvlgari Hotel start hiring fortune tellers to judge a person’s wallet by their sleeves?”
A ripple of guests passing nearby glanced over, and Liu Qiang’s face darkened at being spoken back to so boldly.
His voice dropped, uglier now.
“Fortune teller or not, I don’t need one to know beggars don’t carry Bvlgari room cards.
You want to make a scene?
Fine.
I’ll call public security myself and let them decide whether you belong on this street or in a holding cell.”
“Then call them,” Mu Wanqing said, chin lifting despite the tremor of fury running beneath her calm.
“Let them see for themselves who is in the wrong here.
A mere security guard acting like you own the place.”
Liu Qiang sneered and leaned closer, clearly intending to intimidate her into silence.
“Such bold words from a little beggar girl,” he said contemptuously.
“So what if I am only a security guard?
I am still better than you.
Unlike you, I do not have to scavenge around for food.”
It was that final jab that finally cracked the last thread of her patience.
Her hands curled into fists at her sides, and for one blinding moment, she wanted nothing more than to march past this insufferable man, slap her room card onto the front desk, and book the very Presidential Suite, not merely to complete the system’s mission, but simply to watch the color drain from his smug face.
Mu Wanqing took a slow breath and glanced around, searching for someone from the hotel’s management.
A lobby manager, perhaps, or another member of staff who could deal with this ridiculous security guard.
Unfortunately, the entrance was relatively quiet.
Apart from several guests standing at a distance and watching the commotion with curiosity, there was no one else nearby.
Her frustration rose sharply.
Without thinking, Mu Wanqing lifted both hands and ran her fingers through her messy hair.
The thick bangs that had covered her face fell back and her entire face was exposed beneath the lights outside the hotel.
Liu Qiang froze as his smug expression disappeared.
He sucked in a sharp breath.
The girl standing before him was breathtakingly beautiful.
Heavens, who would have thought this begger will be such a breathtaking beauty behind those messy bangs.
What a waste, he thought.
Such a face, and yet scavange food.
But almost immediately, another thought entered his mind and his gaze changed.
His eyes slowly traveled over her face, becoming increasingly unpleasant.
Mu Wanqing immediately noticed and her expression turned cold.
Liu Qiang glanced around.
His colleague had not yet returned, and the guests nearby were standing far enough away that they could not clearly hear every word.
A sly smile gradually appeared on his face.
“Little girl, there is no need to be so fierce with me,” he said, taking a slow step closer, “I work here, you know,” Liu Qiang continued with a smug expression.
“The salary is not bad.
There is a place to sleep, and three warm meals every day.
Everything is provided.”
He paused deliberately.
Then his smile became more suggestive, “If you are clever enough to…
follow my lead, I can make sure you never have to beg on a street corner again.”
Mu Wanqing’s stomach twisted with disgust.
She understood perfectly well what this disgusting man was implying.
In her previous life, she had encountered countless people who looked down on her because of her poverty when she worked at that noodles shop, the son of noodles shop owner was one of such people.
But that was the Mu Wanqing of her previous life.
She had absolutely no intention of allowing some insignificant security guard to humiliate her again.
A cold light flashed through her eyes and before Liu Qiang could react, Mu Wanqing suddenly moved.
She stepped forward and drove her knee sharply upward.
“Ah…!” A miserable scream echoed outside the hotel entrance and Liu Qiang’s entire body stiffened.
His face turned pale in an instant.
Then he collapsed onto the steps, clutching himself as pain overwhelmed him.
No one had expected the delicate-looking girl to make such a decisive move.
Mu Wanqing, however, merely looked down at him coldly, “Serves you right,” she muttered.
Liu Qiang finally recovered enough to raise his head.
His face was twisted with pain and fury, “You little bitch!” he roared.
“How dare you attack me?!”
His eyes turned bloodshot.
With one trembling hand supporting himself against the steps, he reached toward her with the other, attempting to grab her.
Mu Wanqing immediately stepped back.
She avoided his grasp with ease.
Then, without wasting another second, she turned and walked straight into the hotel entrance.
The guests who had been watching from a distance were momentarily stunned.
Then curiosity got the better of them.
One after another, several people followed her inside.
Liu Qiang’s expression changed drastically when he saw what she was doing.
She was actually entering the hotel, “No!” he shouted.
“You cannot go inside!”
He attempted to stand.
Unfortunately, the pain was still far too intense.
His legs weakened, and he nearly collapsed again.
Meanwhile, Mu Wanqing did not look back.
She pushed open the glass doors and entered the magnificent lobby.
Mu Wanqing walked directly toward the front desk with the burning anger.
She reached the counter and dropped her old duffel bag heavily onto the desk.
The sound immediately drew the attention of the receptionists.
Mu Wanqing looked directly at the nearest employee, “Tell me,” she said, her voice cold but clear, “is this how your hotel staff treats its guests?”
The receptionist blinked in surprise, “Miss?”
Mu Wanqing’s expression darkened, “Calling people beggars.
Accusing them of scavenging for food.
Insulting them outside the entrance.” She paused, then her eyes turned even colder, “And harassing a minor, when she is alone?”
The receptionist’s expression immediately changed.
Her words were loud enough to be heard by several people nearby.
The lobby of the Bvlgari Hotel was bustling with activity at that time and it was fairly crowded.
The guests checking in at the surrounding counters instinctively turned their heads.
One by one, their eyes fell upon Mu Wanqing and for a brief moment, the lobby became more livelier, the moment they heard Mu Wanqing’s words.
Whispers immediately began to spread through the lobby, “What is going on?
Why is such a young girl checking into a hotel alone in the middle of the night?”
“She is accusing a member of the hotel staff of harassing her.
Can something like this really happen here?”
Another guest frowned thoughtfully, “The Bvlgari Hotel is supposed to have strict standards for its employees.
Don’t the staff receive regular professional and ethical training?
How could someone like that be working here?”
“Who knows whether she is even telling the truth?” someone else said skeptically.
“These days, there are all kinds of people.
Some deliberately create trouble at expensive hotels, make accusations against the staff, and then demand compensation.
The hotel usually gives them something just to settle the matter.”
The words had barely left his mouth when a man standing nearby spoke up, “Don’t say such things.”
Everyone turned toward him.
The man had been among the guests who witnessed the confrontation outside.
“I saw the entire incident with my own eyes,” he continued seriously.
“That security guard did humiliate this young lady.
As for what happened afterward, I could not hear every word clearly because I was standing too far away…” He glanced toward Mu Wanqing, “But I saw the way that man was looking at her and there was nothing decent about it.”
The lobby fell quiet.
Another voice soon followed, “Then perhaps what she is saying is true.”
An elderly woman, supported by a member of the hotel staff, slowly turned her gaze toward Mu Wanqing.
Her eyes rested on the young girl’s face for several seconds.
Then she sighed softly, “It is entirely possible.
This girl is far too beautiful.
A man with bad intentions might indeed become tempted.”
The old woman’s blunt words caused several people to look at Mu Wanqing properly for the first time.
And once they did, their expressions changed.
Her appearance simply did not match her circumstances.
Her clothes were plain and slightly worn, yet her face was unforgettable.
Several guests exchanged meaningful looks and without even realizing it, many of them had already reached the same conclusion.
Perhaps the girl really had been harassed.
The receptionist listened to the growing whispers around her, and her heart immediately tightened.
If the accusation proved true, this would no longer be a simple disagreement at the hotel entrance.
The hotel’s reputation was involved.
She briefly panicked, but years of professional training quickly allowed her to regain her composure, “Miss, please calm down,” she said politely.
“Could you tell me exactly what happened?”
Mu Wanqing slowly turned her head toward the glass doors.
Outside, Liu Qiang was still struggling on the steps.
A faint, cold smile appeared on her lips.
“Of course.” She turned back toward the receptionist, “I would be more than happy to tell you everything.
Because I intend to hold him legally responsible.”
Those words immediately caused another wave of whispers to spread through the lobby.
And the receptionist’s expression became serious.
Meanwhile, outside the hotel, Liu Qiang finally managed to stand.
His face was pale, but he still gritted his teeth and slowly forced himself toward the entrance.
Originally, he had intended to drag Mu Wanqing outside before she could cause any further trouble.
But the moment he stepped into the lobby, he froze.
Dozens of eyes turned toward him.
A chill ran down Liu Qiang’s spine.
His eyes immediately found Mu Wanqing and his throat tightened.
He did not even know what Mu Wanqing had told everyone.
But the expressions surrounding him were enough to make him panic.
“She is lying!” The words burst out of his mouth almost instinctively, “I didn’t do anything!”