Such a young age? Yang Kai was speechless upon hearing that. He was already a hundred or two years old, and someone was calling him young? Granted, the proprietress had lived far longer, so she had the right to say that.
But saying it was one thing — why resort to hitting him?
Yang Kai shouted angrily, "Stop it already! Hit me one more time and I won't be so polite!"
The proprietress halted her blows and gazed at him with an air of leisure, her lips curved in a half-smile. "Oh? And how exactly won't you be polite?"
Yang Kai stuttered for a moment but couldn't produce a coherent answer. The main problem was that he couldn't beat this woman — otherwise he'd have made sure she got what was coming to her.
"Just this once. There won't be a next time. Try staying out all night again and see what happens!" The proprietress snorted suddenly and put away the feather duster.
Only then did Yang Kai slowly get to his feet, twisting his body around and grumbling, "You really don't hold back, do you?"
Each strike had stung like hell. The frustrating part was that this woman had exquisite control over her strength — she made sure you felt bone-deep agony without leaving a single mark.
"If there's a next time, I'll show you what real harshness looks like," the proprietress said coldly. "Follow me!"
Yang Kai didn't know what she was planning, but his heart was already sinking. He had no choice but to tag along. Before long, the proprietress led him outside to the courtyard and stopped in front of Bai Qi.
Old Bai flashed a sheepish grin. "Proprietress…"
"Shut up!" The proprietress glared at him, and Bai Qi immediately fell silent.
"Stand properly!" The proprietress turned her gaze to Yang Kai and pointed to the spot beside Bai Qi.
Yang Kai's mouth twitched. He was beginning to understand what the proprietress had in mind, and he suddenly realized why Old Bai had been out in the courtyard in the middle of the night, squatting up and down over and over.
"Proprietress, is this really necessary?" Yang Kai asked, eyeing her sideways.
The proprietress let out a soft laugh and raised her hand. The feather duster materialized in her grip once more.
Yang Kai swallowed hard, then nodded. "Fine. You'll regret this!" With that, he walked over and took his place beside Old Bai.
"Enough talk!" The proprietress snorted coldly. She reached out and grabbed — from where, it was impossible to tell — a round wooden log, which she placed across Yang Kai's shoulders.
Yang Kai's body immediately buckled under the weight. The log looked unassuming, a mere three feet of rounded wood, but it had to weigh at least a hundred thousand catties. No wonder Old Bai had been grunting and groaning while carrying his.
This wood was clearly some kind of rare forging material.
"Next time you dare stay out all night, it won't be just standing here. I'll toss you right out into the street, guaranteed!" The proprietress snorted, flicked her sleeve, and headed back inside.
Behind her, Old Bai bobbed and bowed. "Get some rest early, Proprietress!"
With a thunderous slam, the door shut in his face. The proprietress didn't so much as glance back.
In the courtyard, a cool breeze drifted through. Two brothers in misfortune each shouldered a round log, staring blankly at each other.
"This is just bullying," Old Bai suddenly muttered. "So I didn't come back for two nights — was there really any need to make such a big deal out of it?"
Yang Kai shot him a sidelong look and let out a derisive scoff. Then he closed his eyes and focused his mind. The situation was awkward and embarrassing, sure, but at least no outsiders had witnessed it. He might as well treat it as Cultivation.
He'd originally planned to collect the ten-million-Pill debt and give the proprietress some good news, but that mood had evaporated entirely. Old Bai, meanwhile, kept grumbling and fuming at his side until the proprietress finally lost her patience. A palm strike came hurtling through the air from inside the room, sending him sprawling face-first to the ground. After crawling back up, he was considerably more subdued.
In the second half of the night, the guests had mostly left. The accountant, the cook, and the rest of the servants had nothing better to do, so they all wandered into the backyard to gawk. The sight nearly drove Yang Kai and Old Bai to their graves.
It wasn't until dawn that Yang Kai finally spoke up. "Proprietress, we should head out to collect debts now."
"Get lost!" The proprietress's voice drifted from within the room.
Yang Kai and Old Bai exchanged a glance, hurriedly set their logs on the ground, and bolted out of sight before you could blink.
Having learned their lesson the hard way, both Yang Kai and Old Bai were on much better behavior over the following days. They dutifully returned each evening to wait tables, then headed out during the day to collect debts.
After several days, nearly all the debts had been collected. All that remained was waiting for the one-month deadline. Luo Haiyi had paid her fees on schedule, and Yang Kai even treated her to a meal as a gesture of thanks.
In truth, Yang Kai had considered recommending Luo Haiyi for a position at the First Inn. Business had been doing well lately, and the staff were stretched thin — an extra pair of hands would ease the load. If she could join the First Inn, it would be a good thing for Luo Haiyi. Setting aside whether the pay would match what she earned as a guide, at least there would be something stable to look forward to. After all, this was the First Inn — even the maids and servants weren't people ordinary folks could afford to offend.
But Yang Kai felt he didn't have enough pull at the First Inn yet, and the proprietress had been finding fault with him at every turn lately, disapproving of everything he did. Bringing it up now would almost certainly backfire.
He decided to wait — once he'd collected all the debts, he'd seize a suitable moment to mention it. If the proprietress agreed, wonderful. If not, no great loss.
He hadn't mentioned any of this to Luo Haiyi. There was no rush; he could tell her once things were settled. Surely she wouldn't refuse such an offer.
The days that followed passed quietly. During the day, he worked at the First Inn waiting tables and running errands. Only once the evening guests had departed could he finally steal some time for his own Cultivation.