However, Lai Chunjiao also knew that her boss’s intentions were absolutely good. Considering how much importance and investment her boss had placed on this project, taking slightly larger strides didn’t seem to be a big problem.
Thus, Lai Chunjiao said earnestly:
“Understood.
“I will start looking for suitable locations this afternoon.
“If there are no issues, I can probably find an appropriate site within two days.
“Do you need to personally confirm the location, Mr. Li?”
Li Xiao was unwilling to interfere with things like confirming locations; that would only create too much work for himself.
“I am only responsible for controlling the company’s general direction. I leave the specific, practical decision-making power to you,” he said.
“You can just choose the site directly.
“Oh, right, when the second branch opens, remember to notify me in advance. I will be there.”
After exchanging a few more pleasantries, Li Xiao hung up the phone. He scanned the code to pay the bill. This meal, plus the deposit for the large yellow croaker, came to nearly 100,000 yuan—more than what many people earned in a year of work. However, in Li Xiao’s eyes, this meal was quite worth it. After all, the ingredients themselves were very expensive. Combined with the chef’s excellent culinary skills, the meal was indeed worth the price.
The four of them left the private kitchen restaurant and returned to the Mercedes-Benz.
Zhou Shishi took out her phone and turned to look at Li Xiao in the passenger seat. “Mr. Li, are we heading to South Australia Island now? Or should we take a stroll around the city before going?”
Li Xiao checked the time; it was already approaching 3:00 PM. If they wandered around the city for a while longer, their arrival on the island would likely be delayed until nightfall. Since they had to head back tomorrow afternoon, their schedule would be relatively tight.
After a moment of consideration, he replied directly:
“Let’s save the city for another time.
“If we depart for South Australia Island now, we’ll still have a few hours to explore it.”
The little assistant immediately flashed an “OK” sign. Her fingers tapped rapidly on her phone, quickly setting the destination before starting the car.
Li Xiao glanced sideways at the navigation. They were currently in Longhu District. Without traffic, they could reach the center of South Australia Island within an hour. However, it was the weekend, and tourism in Shantou had been booming recently. As a result, Li Xiao and the others didn’t arrive at the homestay until nearly 5:00 PM.
There were indeed star-rated hotels on South Australia Island, even five-star ones. However, before coming, he had asked his assistant to look up information on these hotels and found that they had many negative reviews, with an overall rating of less than four stars. The reason was simple: the five-star hotel had opened over a decade ago. Over the years, its internal facilities had not undergone any major renovations. The entire place was quite old, and the service couldn’t keep up. The other four-star hotels suffered from similar issues. Therefore, they opted for a highly rated homestay on South Australia Island today.
Although it was called a homestay, the environment was quite excellent. This homestay was divided into two sections: high-rise single rooms and villas. While the high-rise rooms offered an ocean view, they were still a certain distance from the beach. The villa area, on the other hand, was located right on the seaside. Each villa was close to the ocean, featured its own private pool, boasted a better environment, and came equipped with a private butler. For someone like Li Xiao, who was not short on money, there was absolutely no hesitation—he chose a villa directly.
Since they had called ahead, a homestay butler in a suit came forward with a bright smile the moment the Mercedes-Benz pulled up to the main gate.
“Good afternoon, four distinguished guests. Welcome to our Tide Inn,” he said.
“I am your dedicated room butler. You can just call me Mr. Xu.
“This beautiful lady can park the car in the parking lot on the left. I will transport you for the rest of the journey using an electric cart.
“We will also move your luggage and transport it to the villa.”
Li Xiao was quite satisfied with this enthusiastic service.
Riding in the butler’s electric cart, the four of them quickly arrived at their villa. The villa wasn’t large, consisting of only two floors. The first floor housed the living room and entertainment area, while the second floor contained four guest rooms. The total floor area was perhaps around two hundred square meters. However, what pleased Li Xiao was that this so-called ocean-view villa was truly right on the beach, offering an exclusive 270-degree view of the sea. Aside from the massive infinity pool in the yard that exceeded two hundred square meters, the ocean was a mere twenty meters away. The sound of waves crashing against the reef could be clearly heard.
A small yacht sat An Jing at the pier outside the villa.
Mr. Xu introduced it to them:
“Although the weather has started to turn cool, you four distinguished guests can swim in the infinity pool without any worries.
“Because the pool has a constant temperature system, you only need to make sure you stay warm when you’re on the shore.
“In addition, the yacht at the pier is on standby twenty-four hours a day.
“It can take you on a scenic tour around the entire island, or visit some of the smaller islands next to South Australia Island.
“When you need to use the yacht, just contact Mr. Xu directly, and I will be here within five minutes.
“Also, every evening, you can see the sunset directly from the villa’s garden. It is extremely beautiful. If you are interested, you can keep an eye out for it.
“Of course, if you’re interested, you can also take the yacht out to sea to watch the sunset; the view will be even more special.”
After briefly introducing the villa’s amenities and related services, Mr. Xu politely took his leave.
The three women eagerly leaned against the railing, gazing out at the expansive coastline. Zhou Shishi stretched her back, instantly revealing her beautiful figure.
“My goodness, isn’t this scenery just too amazing?” she exclaimed.
“The ocean-view rooms I’ve stayed in before only allowed me to see the sea from afar!
“Now I can even smell the seawater!”
Wenchu People looked at this magnificent scenery, feeling somewhat intoxicated in her heart. Although she belonged to the Chaoshan People, the number of times she had been to the seaside could be counted on one hand, and she had never stayed directly on the beach like today. She hopped over the railing, her bare feet stepping onto the fine, white sand.
“The sea breeze is so comfortable!” she said. “It’s a pity that it’s already autumn and we can’t go swimming in the sea. Otherwise, it would definitely be even more pleasant.”
Wen Yaqian reminded her, “That butler just said that even though we can’t go in the sea right now, the swimming pool is heated. If you want to swim, Wenchu People, you can go into the pool.”
Wenchu People turned her head to look at the swimming pool in the garden, feeling a flutter of excitement in her heart. The pool had clearly been meticulously maintained by professionals; the water was crystal clear, and the bottom was impeccably clean without a single fallen leaf. The water quality was extremely pure, giving it a glass-like texture.