Chapter 208: Midnight Encounters and Hotel Woes

“What? What’s going on?” I was completely out of the loop regarding the hotel’s situation. Before the lobby manager recognized me, I hadn’t even known this hotel was a Xia family enterprise.

It was only after the manager’s detailed explanation that I learned the hotel had originally been personally managed by Xia Yubing’s mother. It specialized in high-end gourmet cuisine, primarily catering to distinguished guests.

These esteemed clients were mostly contacts cultivated by Xia Yubing’s parents. The hotel had served as an exclusive venue for their discussions with clients and business partners.

To ensure impeccable etiquette and prevent any mishaps in front of clients and partners, only the finest ingredients were sourced. The hotel even trained dancers, employed musicians, and hired chefs—in short, everything was designed to be luxurious, grand, and sophisticated.

Consequently, the hotel’s operating costs were extremely high. To a large extent, its function outweighed its profitability, with the Xia couple previously covering the expenses.

However, due to its excellent reputation, the hotel gradually attracted other business professionals for their meetings, slowly turning a profit.

Just as it was flourishing, devastating news arrived: the Xia couple had been murdered. The hotel’s funding chain was abruptly severed, and its operators were gone, plunging the establishment into crisis.

The hotel’s managers, chefs, and even service staff had been discussing the matter constantly, holding a pessimistic view of the future. Without the Xia couple’s investment, the hotel would inevitably return to a loss-making state.

Furthermore, without Mr. Xia’s network, the number of important guests would significantly dwindle. Most critically, no one wanted such a money-burning enterprise.

No other Xia family member had approached them during this period, signifying that the hotel had been selectively abandoned.

After their discussions, they reached a largely unanimous conclusion: the hotel would go bankrupt, they would be laid off, and the remaining capital would be inherited by the Xia family.

Although the manager did not state it so explicitly, I understood the general gist. They were all worried about their future, with some, like the senior chefs who possessed specialized skills and faced no immediate employment pressure, already seeking new opportunities.

However, others were more concerned. Even if they found new jobs, it would be difficult to match the high salaries and benefits offered here. Most of the management staff held their positions due to their connections with Mr. Xia, being people he trusted.

Based on their qualifications and abilities, they might not find equally good employment elsewhere.

What could I do about their worries? I had only just discovered that my ‘cheap’ parents actually owned a hotel. I was completely unaware of their specific challenges and utterly clueless about business operations, far less knowledgeable than the lobby manager standing before me.

They asked me what to do. My internal answer was ‘cold salad’ (a pun for ‘nothing’), so I could only tell them, “Tomorrow there will be a memorial service for my parents. The Xia family will discuss asset distribution then, and the hotel’s ownership should also be decided. Someone will then be put in charge of you all.”

“Alas!” The manager sighed deeply. He held no hope that someone would inherit the hotel and keep it running. None of the other Xia family members possessed Mr. Xia’s status or reputation, and they had no need for such a high-end establishment.

Being taken over by other relatives would lead to only one outcome: they would all be dismissed, the hotel would close, and the remaining assets would be embezzled.

Yet, the young Miss Xia before him was also unsuitable. She was merely a girl with no experience in the business world, let alone a network of connections. Her taking over might even be worse than another Xia family member.

Realizing that discussing it with me would not yield more information, the manager could only say, “My apologies, then I won’t disturb young miss anymore. I wish you and your friends a pleasant time. At least, before I am relieved of my duties, I will ensure this hotel operates normally.”

“Thank you. I will do my best to convey your concerns to my other relatives,” I replied. This manager was remarkably loyal. Was it because he had been promoted by Xia Yubing’s parents?

‘I regret their predicament, but I am powerless to help.’

We played for a while longer before Mo Qingyan settled the bill. It was nearly eleven o’clock, so we set off for the training grounds Mo Qingyan had mentioned.

This was my first time lingering outside so late. In the dead of night, the number of people and cars on the main road had noticeably thinned, and it was impossible to be certain that those we did see were all human.

For instance, there was a person standing under a streetlamp with their back to us, their feet casting no shadow. Then, a dilapidated car, seemingly severely damaged in a collision, floated past at an incredible speed, its wheels appearing not to touch the ground.

“Sister Mo, is it really okay for us to be walking on the road this late at night? You used to tell me to avoid going out after ten o’clock, didn’t you?” Xiao Qing asked with some unease.

Although she couldn’t discern ghosts and humans at a glance like I could, the surrounding silence still made her feel a little scared.

“If you were alone, of course, you shouldn’t be out,” Mo Qingyan said, cradling the petite Bai Yue in front of her. “But with Yue’er here, there’s absolutely nothing to fear. When it comes to night wandering, she’s even more experienced than I am.”

I noticed that Bai Yue was more energetic than during the day, even subtly exuding a sense of excitement, a stark contrast to her listlessness or unfocused gaze in daylight.

A faint chirping, similar to crickets, emanated from her. Ahead, several individuals turned and walked away or circled around us, keeping their distance, upon seeing us.

One of the individuals who slightly detoured left a bloody footprint on the path he walked, stretching for over a dozen meters before slowly fading away.

Those who heard the chirping and did not avoid us must have been ordinary living people. As a person with a face shrouded in dark energy was about to pass us, a small, decaying ghost leaped from their body and vanished into the bushes.

“Junior Sister Xia, don’t look around,” Xushan reminded. “Although Little Yue’s Gu worms are deterring them, most ordinary ghosts should avoid us. But if you show any signs of seeing them, they might take notice of you.”

“Oh, right, I remember,” I quickly replied, fixing my gaze forward. Xiao Qing had reminded me before not to show any signs of seeing ghosts. The others also chatted casually as they walked, completely ignoring those around them.

“There’s no need to be too afraid,” Jia Cheng added. “Although the probability of encountering ghosts on the road at night is higher, the vast majority of wanderers are minor spirits. What’s truly terrifying is seeing ghosts in broad daylight.”

“Why?” I asked, puzzled. “Don’t they all say that nights are more dangerous, and ghosts only appear after dark?”

“While a hundred ghosts may roam at night, they aren’t necessarily after you,” Jia Cheng explained. “If you see a ghost in broad daylight, there are only two possibilities: either the malevolent spirit is so powerful that it no longer fears sunlight, or that ghost’s target is specifically you. If you see a ghost during the day, you can only pray for good fortune.”

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