Chu Jiangyue’s words brought a look of surprise to many faces.
"We have money! We have money!"
"Jianglin Hotel doesn’t accept pre-apocalypse notes. We only take gold, silver jewelry, Crystal Cores, or anything valuable."
To avoid misunderstandings, Chu Jiangyue decided to make things clear.
Otherwise, if they thought they could pay with pre-apocalypse notes, it would create a major confusion.
"I know, you mentioned it back at the base before. I’ve prepared everything."
"What! Only accepting Crystal Cores and gold, silver jewelry?"
As soon as Chu Jiangyue finished speaking, different voices emerged from the crowd, but she ignored them, because rules are rules, she would not change them for anyone.
"How can it be like this? We came all this way, and you only accept Crystal Cores and gold, silver jewelry, isn’t this messing with people?"
"Boss Chu made it clear back at the base, if you didn’t listen, who can you blame?"
Among the dissenters, there were also reasonable people who spoke up for Chu Jiangyue.
Chu Jiangyue led the crowd to the office lobby: "That’s our hotel’s housekeeper, you can go to him with any issues.
Now, please queue up. Everyone needs to register for an Identity Card. Whether or not you stay in the hotel is up to you; you can queue up either here or with Housekeeper Chu."
"Hello!"
Chu Jiangyang gave a slight smile towards the voice, as a form of greeting.
Chu Jiangyang is a humanoid robot, and his looks made him quite appealing in the crowd, with many young girls’ eyes lighting up upon seeing him.
Since they could get registered on either side, the young girls flocked around Chu Jiangyang.
Chu Jiangyue was pleased to see this, saving herself from extra work.
"Boss Chu, I’d like to stay at the inn."
The first person Chu Jiangyue attended to immediately expressed their intent to stay.
Chu Jiangyue was more than happy to make a deal, but currently, only residential Zones B and C had rooms available; they were slightly pricier, and she wasn’t sure if the person would find it acceptable.
"Sure, let’s register your Identity Card first. Just decide what you will use to recharge and place it here."
Chu Jiangyue pointed at the exchange device on the front desk, instructing him to place his items there.
The young man didn’t hesitate and directly placed his backpack on the exchange device, emptying its contents.
His food had run out on the way, leaving only the gold, silver jewelry, and Crystal Cores he had planned to use for recharging at Jianglin Hotel.
The backpack was quite large, likely an oversized travel bag, and once emptied, the items formed a small mound on the exchange device.
However, the exchange device had a protective cover, so even if the items overflowed, they wouldn’t fall to the ground.
Once the items were placed, the exchange device began reporting, and after some time, the process was completed.
Ultimately, the items the young man brought converted to 20 gold coins, 60 silver coins, and 50 copper coins.
If converted to pre-apocalypse currency, it would be equivalent to 206,050, quite a significant amount.
An ordinary family might not earn 200,000 in a year.
It’s uncertain if this met the young man’s expectations, but in Chu Jiangyue’s opinion, it was acceptable.
"Currently, there are no rooms left in Zone A; the prices in Zone B and Zone C are a bit high. The cheapest right now is a 3-bedroom, 1-living room in Zone B for 12 silver coins a day; if you’re okay with it, I’ll book the room for you."
Since the young man had recently exchanged for over 20 gold coins, Chu Jiangyue felt he wouldn’t mind spending this bit.
"But Boss Chu, can I have someone stay with me? It’s too much for one person at 12 silver coins a day."
"Of course, it’s a 3-bedroom, 1-living room, so you can have up to two more people stay with you. Splitting the cost, each person would only need to pay 4 silver coins a day."
Four silver coins, equivalent to four Level 1 Zombie Crystal Cores, didn’t sound like much.
"Alright, thank you, Boss Chu. I’ll find someone to share the room with me as soon as possible."
Sharing the cost is undoubtedly beneficial, and while the young man wasn’t the smartest, he wasn’t foolish either.
"Your room is in Residential Zone 1, room 306. Just swipe your Identity Card on the door sensor. Remember, don’t try entering other rooms.
Three warnings will be given, but after the third, you will be expelled and blacklisted from Jianglin Hotel, and never allowed in again."
"Rest assured, Boss Chu, I’ll be careful to check the room number."
Hearing Chu Jiangyue’s earnest warning, the young man listened, assuring her he would be cautious.
He certainly didn’t want to be driven out of Jianglin Hotel due to a momentary lapse.
As Chu Jiangyue finished speaking, a few people in the queue showed a change in their expressions.
Chu Jiangyue noticed it, but she didn’t point it out.
As long as they didn’t cause trouble, they were guests of Jianglin Hotel. Of course, if they repeatedly failed to heed warnings, she wouldn’t be courteous.
With the young man setting the example, everyone subsequently knew what to do. No further prompting was needed from Chu Jiangyue to place their items in the exchange device; once exchanged, they received their Identity Cards.
"I want to ask, after recharging with these items, if we decide not to stay here anymore and there’s leftover money, can we get a refund?"
Everything was going smoothly, and Chu Jiangyue didn’t expect someone to suddenly raise this question.
"Before each recharge, the exchange device will prompt you to confirm if you wish to proceed with the exchange?
If you don’t confirm, you can choose no.
If you’re uncertain about staying here long-term, I advise against recharging too much in one go.
If a decision is made later to leave, no refunds will be given for already recharged items, including gold, silver jewelry, and Crystal Cores."
This is the hotel’s policy. Chu Jiangyue couldn’t change it for anyone.
Otherwise, every guest would come to her daily: Boss, I want to return two Crystal Cores, I want to return my golden bracelet, I want to return my jade bracelet.
She’d do nothing but process returns all day long.
"Boss Chu, don’t you feel this is an oppressive contract?"
"Oppressive contract? You may think so, if you cannot accept it, you can choose not to register for an Identity Card, not to recharge, and not to spend at Jianglin Hotel."
The clientele at Jianglin Hotel was already quite stable and Chu Jiangyue didn’t need this one patron.
Expecting fairness from a seller’s market is wishful thinking.
Another young man asked, and from the start, displayed a calculating attitude, unlike the first one who made a good impression on Chu Jiangyue.
Rendered speechless by Chu Jiangyue’s response, his expression showed he was unhappy, but ultimately, he wasn’t going to forego staying at the hotel. He ended up recharging, obtaining an Identity Card, and booked a room.
Chu Jiangyue smirked to herself, with all the high-minded talk, he ultimately compromised.
Feeling somewhat awkward, after securing accommodation, he left the office lobby without looking back.