Thus, she picked up her baggage and walked into the hostel.

  There was no one manning the reception when she entered the lodging. After announcing her arrival several times, she finally heard some noises coming from a dark room nearby.

  “I’m coming!” Out came a middle-aged man in flippers, who was somewhat surprised to find a beautiful and innocent-looking lady standing in front of the reception.

  Yan was a tiny and dilapidated city which was pretty much unknown, and most of its population were natives who grew up here. While the locals would venture out to the bigger cities, city-dwellers coming into Yan City were practically unheard of, unless they were there to visit relatives.

  The boss stared at her dumbly for a good while. Despite his age, he had never met any female as good-looking as her before!

  As Yan City was surrounded by mountains, the women who grew up there learned how to herd the cattle on mountains from a young age. The strong winds in the mountains caused their skin to become rough. Knowing zilch about skincare products, the young ladies there, thus, looked as if they were in their thirties or forties with their unkempt hair and untidy clothes.

  He could tell at once, from her decent dressing, pretty face, and smooth, porcelain skin, that she grew up in good environments. Her eyes, in particular, were as exquisite as a painting. Even though she was bare-faced, all it took was a slight moving of her eyebrows for others to marvel at her beauty!

  The boss sighed inwardly.

  Upon noticing her frail and pale appearance, however, he could not help asking out of curiosity, “Where are you from, miss?”


  Meng Qingxue did not answer him. Instead, she cut to the chase, enquiring, “Do you have any available rooms, mister?”


  The boss took a moment to respond to her. “Yes! For you alone?”


  “Yes, just me.”


  “You don’t sound like a local. Are you here to visit someone?”


  “No, I’m just passing by. I’ll be leaving tomorrow morning.”


  Feeling wary, she did not say much to the boss.

  Having run the hostel for a long time and encountering all sorts of people every day, the boss naturally could read faces and knew that she was guarded against him, so he did not pose any more questions to her.

  “Please pass me your identification card for registration.”


  She immediately rummaged through her bag but realized straightaway that Mu Yancheng might be able to find his way here if she used her ID to register for her stay.

  Worry consumed her as she instinctively stroked her belly. Looking up, she forced a smile at the boss. “I think I forgot to take it with me. Is it necessary to produce my ID?”


  “How could you not bring it with you? Hotels and other lodging places require identification cards for registration purposes.” Suspicion crept in the hostel owner right there and there, prompting him to ask, “Are you of legal age, miss?”


  “Of course, I’m twenty!” she nervously replied.

  Laughingly, the boss said, “Oh, well. We can’t do anything about it if you’re unable to produce your card! It’s late at night now, and there aren’t many lodging places around here. Hailing a cab will also be difficult. I’ll just let you stay.”


  She cried gratefully, “Thank you, sir!”


  “Standard room costs sixty yuan a night. Deposit is a hundred yuan.”


  She was pleasantly astonished by what he said.