Distance Creates Beauty

After parking the car in the lot, Shan Ye walked to the front and shouted, "Alright, folks, we've arrived at Little Golden Mountain Hot Spring Hotel. Follow me, and I'll take you all to the front desk to check in!"

"Sweet, this place isn't bad. Sure, it's a bit out of the way, but the scenery is beautiful—really relaxing."

"Yeah, it's like a natural oxygen bar. Let's go."

Shan Ye got out of the car first, and everyone else grabbed their things and quickly followed.

The eight Korean tourists in the back row were the last to step out. As they got off, Su Yang and Meng Wenzhou were immediately drawn to one of the girls in the group.

She was around 165 to 170 centimeters tall, standing out among the eight—not because of her height, but her looks. She had long black hair and skin so fair it almost matched the two blonde girls in the group. With a soft oval face and delicate features, she vaguely resembled some Korean celebrity named Won-young. Overall, she gave off a very sophisticated vibe.

She wore a white Korean-style lace halter top, a black-and-white spotted silk scarf around her neck, and a Chrome Hearts necklace. Her bottom half was a dark gray fitted pencil skirt, paired with white sneakers and light gray calf-length socks.

Her looks were around a 90 out of 100—just the right balance, not too thin, not too heavy.

'Wait, what? How did I miss this stunning beauty hiding among them earlier?' Su Yang thought to himself as he stared at the Korean girl.

'Oh, I remember now—she was looking down at her phone when we got on the bus. That explains it.'

Just then, Meng Wenzhou leaned over and nudged Su Yang with his shoulder. "Total babe," he whispered.

Su Yang nodded. "Didn't notice her on the bus."

"Me neither. She's got great vibes, too. Kind of reminds me of Pan Pan's cold, aloof style."

"Nah, not the same. Pan Pan is like 'stay away from me.' This girl looks a bit distant, but it's not that intense," Su Yang said.

While they were whispering, Zhuang Mengli jogged over with a grin. "Stop staring, or your eyes are gonna pop out."

"Whoa, when did you sneak up!?" Meng Wenzhou jumped, startled by her sudden appearance.

"We've got plenty of gorgeous girls right here, and you're busy checking out others. Men are all the same—always chasing something new!" Zhuang Mengli said with a smirk before turning and walking away.

Su Yang ignored her, still eyeing the beauty not far off.

—System, scan her.

[Han Su-yeon, Age: 21]

[Height: 168 cm]

[Weight: 49 kg]

[Looks: 92]

[Figure: 90]

[Romantic History: 0, Single]

[Combat Count: 0]

[Traits: Slow to warm up, cold on the outside but passionate inside, fashion-forward]

—Not bad. Kinda makes me want to lock her in, but I'm full up right now. Gonna keep an eye on her.

All the hotel guests had disembarked, and Shan Ye waved his hand and called out, "Everyone, follow me."

They turned and dragged their suitcases after Shan Ye toward the hotel entrance.

The hotel was a traditional Japanese-style hot spring resort, with the lobby and decor all leaning heavily into that aesthetic.

Once inside, everyone lined up to check in.

The process went smoothly. Liu Bo had booked one room per person.

When Meng Wenzhou saw the eleven room keys in Liu Bo's hand, he was stunned. "No way, why did you book so many separate rooms?"

Liu Bo spun his eyes and grinned. "There are three guys total. You and Brother Yang get a girl in your room every night, but I'm all alone. That stings, so I split you all up."

"Are you kidding me?" Meng Wenzhou was at a loss for words.

Jiang Xiaotang walked up to Meng Wenzhou and hooked his arm. "Fatty, that's a bit much. We finally get a trip together, and you're breaking us up?"

Liu Bo chuckled. "Having your own room isn't so bad. You don't have to be glued together all the time—sometimes a little distance keeps the spark alive."

"So I'm supposed to thank you for that?"

"What else?" Liu Bo burst out laughing.

"Alright, alright, fine."

"Honestly, I think Fatty has a point." Zhuang Mengli walked over and patted Liu Bo approvingly on the shoulder.

"Ha, see? Dream Li gets it!"

Pan Ning shot Liu Bo a look. "Enough, just give us the keys."

"OK, OK, one per person. First come, first served—rooms aren't all together, by the way."

"Got it." The others stepped forward and grabbed their keys from Liu Bo's hand.

The hotel's guest room area was laid out like a traditional resort they'd stayed at before, divided into four zones. Each zone was named after a natural element: Chrysanthemum, Paulownia, Cherry, and Pine.

Su Yang and Meng Wenzhou hung back, letting the girls pick first. After they all grabbed theirs, the two stepped up and each took one.

"Brother Su Yang, which section are you in?" Meng Qianyu bounced over with a bright smile.

Su Yang checked his key card: Pine-0306.

Meng Qianyu glanced at hers: Chrysanthemum-0209.

"Ugh, we're not even in the same zone!" she pouted.

"It's fine. Doesn't matter where we are—it's all the same hotel." Su Yang patted her head.

"What zone is everyone in?" Liu Bo asked, picking up the last remaining key card.

"I'm in Cherry," Su Qingchen said from the sofa.

"Me too!" Lu Yun raised her hand with a grin.

Pan Ning also held up hers. "Same here."

"Anyone in Paulownia? Come with me!" Meng Wenzhou glanced around with a grin.

Liu Bo raised his hand. "I'm in Paulownia."

"You're in Paulownia?"

"Hey, don't mess with me, Brother Meng—it's named after the tree!"

"Ha, right, right. Anyone else?"

The others shook their heads.

"Well, that's just me and Fatty in Paulownia. Fine."

"By the way, Fatty, how many days did you book for?" Su Yang asked.

"Just two for now."

"That works. Let's start here. This place doesn't seem that far from the city center of Zha Huang, so we can decide later whether to switch."

In the end, everyone's zones were as follows:

Chrysanthemum — Meng Qianyu, Tang Ziyun, Jiang Xiaotang

Paulownia — Meng Wenzhou, Liu Bo

Cherry — Pan Ning, Su Qingchen, Lu Yun

Pine — Su Yang, Zhuang Mengli, Ren Lingxi

"Alright, everyone head to your rooms and drop off your stuff. It's almost seven now, so we won't go to Zha Huang tonight. Let's rest a bit in our rooms, then grab dinner at the hotel restaurant. After that, hot springs!" Meng Wenzhou announced.

"OK, OK, let's go!"

Just as they were about to leave, the other tourists who'd come on the same bus as them had finished checking in.

At that moment, four girls dressed in matching uniforms came out from behind a wall next to the hotel front desk. Each held a sign representing the guest room area where the attendees were staying.

One of them said in English, "Please find the staff member corresponding to your guest room area, and we will escort you there."

"Alright, thank you."

Su Yang, along with Zhuang Mengli and Ren Lingxi, walked up to one of the staff members holding a sign with the character for "Pine."

As they stood there, two of the four girls who had invited Su Yang to chat earlier also came over.

They were Winnie from England and Kari, who was local to the island nation.

Seeing Su Yang, the two girls beamed and ran up to him, laughing. "Su Yang, are you staying in the Pine area too?"

Su Yang nodded. "Yeah, you two as well?"

"Yes~" Kari held out her room card for Su Yang to see.

"Nice, looks like you're right next to me," Su Yang said, catching a glimpse of the number on the card.

"Really? What's your room number?" Kari stepped closer to Su Yang and asked.

"0306."

"It really is next to mine! I'm in 0305!" Kari exclaimed with excitement.

Winnie then spoke up. "I'm in 0209, so far from you two."

Hearing this, Su Yang was surprised. "You guys aren't sharing a room?"

"Nope, when we travel, we each get our own room. It's just what we're used to."

"Oh, I see. Makes sense."

"Shouldn't there be anyone else staying in the Pine area, right?" Kari turned to look around the lobby.

Su Yang thought so too and was about to ask the staff to take them to their rooms when, not far away, Han Soo-yeon, a beautiful girl from South Korea, and another ordinary-looking girl, both dragging their luggage, walked over.

......