You know, this kind of request is actually quite rare.
There are two types of people who stay at Ascott: the first are genuinely wealthy individuals who, due to personal preferences or business affairs, need to stay in Jiangcheng for a few months.
These people are often very strict about budgeting. They have money, but they don’t waste it.
After all, they’re society’s elite—calculating and meticulous.
Negotiating prices with this type of customer can be quite exhausting.
The second type are those whose expenses are covered by their institution, like the visiting scholars Xia Lin had explained to Su Bai earlier.
In these cases, their university or Jiangcheng University reimburses the costs, so the pricing follows the agreed-upon rates without much negotiation.
This type of customer is easier to deal with, but they usually opt for the lowest-tier room and demand all sorts of complimentary perks. In short, you don’t earn much from them.
These two categories basically make up 99% of the clientele for high-end serviced apartments.
But, clearly—
Su Bai belongs to the remaining 1%.
Commonly referred to as the “rich guy who spends money just to experience life.”
He went straight for the best option—maxed out, everything maxed out.
The manager immediately understood, flipping through the gold-embossed brochure in his hands and going straight to the final section.
“Mr. Su, I’d like to recommend our Supreme Mountain View Duplex Suite. It’s a two-story duplex with a total area of 302 square meters…”
Listening to the manager’s vivid description, combined with the brochure images and the 3D virtual tour video playing on the manager’s phone, Su Bai’s eyes lit up.
Indulgent. This was pure indulgence.
Originally, Su Bai had just planned to rent the best large flat available, but he hadn’t expected this high-end apartment to offer a duplex option.
From the layout to the interior design, and even the functionality of each room, the understated luxury and comfort perfectly suited Su Bai’s needs for long-term residence.
The system even popped up a notification in his mind, confirming that this expenditure met its definition of “indulgence.”
It was probably just that outrageous—after all, what kind of university student lives in a 300-square-meter apartment?
Perhaps Xia Lin also found it a bit over-the-top, as she asked Su Bai with a playful smile, “If you live in a place like this, won’t your parents be upset?”
“They won’t. My family is very lenient with me, and besides, this isn’t particularly expensive. Look, the brochure says the nightly rate is only a little over five thousand.”
Only a little over five thousand…
The manager silently marveled, keeping his professional smile intact as he pulled out a calculator and began tapping away:
“Mr. Su, if you choose this Supreme Mountain View Duplex Suite, all the associated perks will be complimentary for you. If you opt for monthly payments, we can offer a discount of 20% off the standard rate of 5,299 per night… That comes to… 127,000 per month.”
“Monthly payments are too much of a hassle. Can I pay annually? I’d rather settle everything in one go and not have to worry about it later.”
“…Of course! If that’s what you prefer, we’d be delighted!” The manager’s mind raced. “Please hold on for a moment while I contact our regional headquarters to see what additional discounts might be available for annual payments.”
In truth, this Mountain View Duplex Suite was notoriously difficult to rent out.
After all, wealthy individuals in Jiangcheng were relatively few compared to those in top-tier cities, and most of them were local tycoons who preferred building countryside villas to leisurely tinker with.
In a city center luxury apartment with a business style like this, the target audience is relatively young. The problem is, where do young people get so much money?
The manager went out to make a phone call.
Su Bai could have directly asked for a 20% discount, since paying more would mean more cashback.
But this kind of behavior seemed a bit too flashy, and Su Bai thought it best not to act like this in front of Director Xia.
Director Xia was obviously a well-educated and cultured beauty from a wealthy family, surely she would dislike overly ostentatious behavior typical of the nouveau riche.
When it comes to courting women, you have to cater to their preferences.
Talk about ideals with Chen Yusheng, talk about money with the senior, and act sophisticated in front of Director Xia.
"Su Bai, living in such a big apartment by yourself, don't you feel lonely?" Xia Lin asked casually.
In truth, she was concerned about Su Bai's mention of a "female companion" to the manager earlier.
Which girl would Su Bai bring here?
In Xia Lin's mind, the image of Chen Yusheng immediately appeared.
Her intuition told her there might be something between Chen Yusheng and Su Bai.
But Chen Yusheng seemed like a very conservative girl, probably hadn't developed that kind of relationship with Su Bai yet?
Hmph, this little rascal, talking about "female companions," really knows how to play.
A typical college guy would just say he'd bring his girlfriend to live together, right?
"Female companion" has a feeling of changing partners every time, quite the player.
However, Xia Lin didn’t let this diminish her good impression of Su Bai.
A bit of a player is good; precisely because he's a player, conquering him gives a sense of achievement.
As a sporty beauty from a wealthy family, Xia Lin's heart was actually quite wild.
She herself didn’t like messing around; at 22, she was still a virgin. But she liked men like Su Bai, who had the aura of a lion.
Facing Xia Lin's question, Su Bai replied with a cheeky smile, "If Director Xia is willing, you can come over as a guest anytime."
"Alright, since you said so, I'll take it seriously."
"I do hope Director Xia takes it seriously. Look, this mountain and water duplex even has a small gym," Su Bai pointed at the floor plan and said, "Director Xia must be quite skilled at working out, right?"
"Yes, during my undergraduate years, I took a fitness course for a while, so I understand the related exercises. But I don't train professionally; for girls, being too professional doesn’t look good."
"Oh, I see, moderation is key. To me, Director Xia's figure right now is the most perfect."
Su Bai praised sincerely.
Honestly, in Su Bai's eyes, Xia Lin, Chen Yusheng, and Zhou Jialu each had their own merits, with diverse charms.
But since the conversation had reached this point, telling a little lie was normal.
Indeed, Su Bai's words made Xia Lin very pleased, and she laughed with delight, "What perfect, it's just so-so. Su Bai, you're exaggerating... But if you're interested in fitness, I can really come and give you some pointers. I also want to try the best room type at Ascott, see what a private gym is like."
"Then it's happily decided; we'll schedule some time to work out together with Director Xia."
"Mm-hmm, sounds good."
[Ding! Xia Lin's favorability has increased, current favorability: 65]
The two exchanged smiles.
Their eyes seemed to hold a hint of adult understanding.
The returning manager happened to see Su Bai and Xia Lin exchanging a somewhat ambiguous gaze.
His heart skipped a beat.
Oh wow, this young lady from the Xia family seems to have quite an unusual relationship with this young man.
The manager didn’t ask about the relationship between Xia Lin and the young man she brought along.
Some questions are better left unasked.
Having mixed in the business world long enough, one’s emotional intelligence should not be too low.
“Mr. Su, I just consulted with the leadership, and if you rent the Supreme Waterside Duplex annually, the highest discount we can offer is thirty percent off, and additionally, we provide you with a special service—”
“We will arrange for a dedicated butler to take care of your daily needs, on standby 24/7, ready to serve at any time.”
“That sounds good,” Su Bai nodded. With a 300-square-meter house, having a butler to manage it is indeed necessary; otherwise, just tidying up would be exhausting.
Actually, Su Bai had recently realized while staying at a hotel that even tidying up the riverside suite was quite troublesome, and for anything, he had to call the front desk staff.
This manager is quite adept at business, even knowing to apply for a dedicated butler service from the leadership.
Thus, after the manager took Su Bai to inspect the apartment in person, Su Bai decisively swiped his card and paid.
Heart] Chen Yi traversed the cultivation world for eight hundred years, charging his way to the Tribulation Transcendence stage. Just as he was outwitting his 81st Heavenly Tribulation to ascend to immortality, he was suddenly pulled into a chat group called the "Multiverse Transmigrators Support Group." To his surprise, the group was filled with nothing but fresh-faced newbies who had just transmigrated. [Help! I transmigrated into a disgraced concubine in the cold palace, and the tyrant emperor is about to execute me!] [I ended up as a cannon-fodder villain, and the protagonist is still chasing me—WTF!] [I woke up as the protagonist’s father, but I’m about to be sacrificed in a ritual! What do I do? Urgent!!!] Chen Yi stared at the chaotic flood of desperate pleas in the group and fell into deep thought. "Seriously? You drag me into a newbie transmigrator chat group… only after I’m one step away from becoming an immortal?"
Cheng's father told him he was getting remarried—to a wealthy woman. Cao Cheng realized his time had finally come: he was about to become a second-generation rich kid. Sure, it might be a watered-down version, but hey, at least he'd have status now, right? The wealthy woman also had four daughters!! Which meant, starting today, Cao Cheng gained four stunning older sisters?? But that wasn't even the whole story... "My name is Cao Cheng—'Cheng' as in 'honest, smooth-talking gentleman'!"
u Chenyuan transmigrated into a female-oriented novel about a real and fake heiress, becoming the CEO elder brother of both. Unfortunately, the entire Lu family—including himself, the CEO—were mere cannon fodder in the story. Determined to save himself, Lu Chenyuan took action. The spoiled, attention-seeking fake heiress? Thrown into the harsh realities of the working class to learn humility. The love-struck real heiress? Pushed toward academic excellence, so lofty goals would blind her to trivial romances. As for the betrayed, vengeful arranged marriage wife… the plot hadn’t even begun yet. There was still time—if he couldn’t handle her, he could at least avoid her. "CEO Lu, are you avoiding me?" Mo Qingli fixed her gaze on Lu Chenyuan. For the first time, the shrewd and calculating Lu Chenyuan felt a flicker of unease.
Explosive Plot Song Gua crossed over into another world, bringing along a whole crew of his doppelgangers—all of them mischief-makers. This was a world where everyone could choose a class. Song Gua became a "Bondweaver," capable of borrowing power, while his doppelgangers took on a wide variety of classes, covering just about everything. The number of doppelgangers grew day by day, each one a talented individual with a charming way of speaking. Under Song Gua's brilliant leadership, they would "greet" each other daily and engage in friendly "sparring," pulling off one major scheme after another on Earth. Sometimes they were bandits—stealing bosses, plundering mines, snatching resources. Sometimes they were saviors—descending like divine warriors to face world bosses threatening to massacre cities. Sometimes they even went undercover, infiltrating various major factions to stir up trouble from within, keeping their enemies constantly on edge. To prevent their doppelganger abilities from being exposed, Song Gua made them wear masks with mahjong tile patterns and don Taoist robes in various colors. "Remember, in front of outsiders, call me 'The Dice.'" "Got it! Boss!" "Not 'Boss'—it's 'The Dice.' Think about the vibe, pay attention to the vibe." "Yes! Boss!" "For crying out loud..." From then on, whenever they appeared, they would have their own theme song playing: ~Hey~ paying respects at the mountain stronghold at night~ whose arm is draped over whose shoulder~ gather your courage and follow along...
