The System suggested cautiously, “Host, maybe you could find a place to sell it?”

Zhao Xing was on the verge of tears. “Sell it where? With this thing, I wouldn’t even make it through a security checkpoint!”

After thinking hard for a while, he finally cleared out a storage room. He wrapped the dagger in a floral cloth, covered it with three layers of plastic bags, and shoved it into a corner, with no plans to ever take it out again.

He never thought that after twenty-plus years of being a law-abiding citizen, he’d end up being framed like this!

Once everything was put away, Zhao Xing finally mustered the energy to check the rewards from his latest guest.

First was the guest review panel.

【Review Grade: S

Review Comment: Senior has helped me greatly. I will certainly return to repay the favor one day!】

Please don’t, Zhao Xing grumbled internally. You’ll get me thrown in jail.

Still, an S-grade meant double points. Xue Yu’s reception points were 100, so double that was 200!

He did a quick calculation and felt a jolt of excitement. He could level up!

Next, he looked at the favorability rewards. He’d figured it out by now: there were rewards when favorability hit 30, 60, and 90. Hosting otherworldly guests was way more profitable than hosting locals!

And he still had two favorability rewards he hadn’t checked yet.

【Congratulations, Host, on receiving the favorability rewards: Delicious Iron Wok, Clear Rhyme Tea Set.】

【Delicious Iron Wok: Legend says this wok has sealed within it the soul of a top-tier chef. Even the most common ingredients will become a supreme delicacy when cooked in it. Note: The exact level of deliciousness depends on the preferences of the chef’s soul.】

【Clear Rhyme Tea Set: A tea set refined by a great ascended medical cultivator. Simply add clear water, and it will pour out a mellow, fragrant tea. This tea has the miraculous effect of nourishing the body.】

Zhao Xing was delighted. “These two rewards are great! From now on, we’ll have all the necessary food and drink! I hope that the chef’s soul likes meat!”

The System closed its eyes in pain. Seriously, can we stop talking about meat…

Zhao Xing paid it no mind. When his phone rang, he was about to open the system panel again to see if he had enough points to level up.

It was Wang Fang.

Yesterday, Wang Fang and her husband drove home. They didn’t even dare rest, taking Qi Baozhu straight to the treatment center.

They had already communicated with the doctor on the way, and the primary physician was waiting for them.

The physician’s face was grave after a therapeutic conversation with little Baozhu.

Wang Fang and Qi Jiangming’s hearts started pounding. They had thought little Baozhu enjoyed a good last day at Zhao Xing’s guesthouse and had been feeling relieved and grateful toward him.

But now, it seemed, had they missed some crucial mistake?

Wang Fang asked cautiously, “Dr. Wang, how is Baozhu now?”

The physician said sternly, “You’re saying that after smelling the fragrance in that guesthouse, Baozhu’s episode stopped on its own, and after staying there for one night, she was happy and calm the next morning, and was even willing to play some little games?”

“Y-yes…” Wang Fang stammered. “Is there something wrong with that?”

The physician didn’t reply, but he was thinking, Yes, there’s something very wrong with that.

Was it possible for a child with an emotional disorder to stop an episode on their own?

Of course, but the conditions were extremely strict: first, the child’s condition had to be mild and stable for a long period beforehand.

Second, it had to happen in a familiar environment, with the presence and companionship of parents or relatives.

Finally, even if the episode stopped, it would only happen after a long period of emotional release. It was completely impossible for it to stop instantly.

That guesthouse didn’t meet a single one of those criteria!

More importantly, his professional knowledge told him that in the current medical field, no medication could treat emotional dysregulation disorder. All those so-called miracle drugs and folk remedies claiming to be cures eventually proved to be scams.

Although the physician didn’t say it directly, he had already concluded that this person named Zhao Xing was either a con artist, or the whole situation was a misunderstanding, or the parents were lying to avoid criticism for not paying enough attention to their child’s health.

As a doctor, he’d seen this kind of thing many times.

Therefore, he didn’t expose them, simply saying lightly, “Baozhu’s condition is very stable. You don’t need to worry. Just continue…”

Wang Fang let out a huge sigh of relief. “That’s good, that’s good!”

The matter would have ended there, but unexpectedly, the parents of the other children found out.

This treatment center had a total of four children with emotional dysregulation disorder. Unlike Wang Fang and her husband, the parents of the other three children were all relatively well-off and held higher social standing.

After their children were diagnosed, they had flown all over the world for treatment, tried all sorts of therapies, and sought out the top authorities in the field… but nothing had worked.

After exhausting all options, the news Wang Fang brought was, for these parents, the last straw to clutch at.

They were unwilling to give up even the slightest possibility.

Moreover, because their children all had the same condition, the four families had started a group chat and often exchanged information. Because of this, these parents trusted Wang Fang’s character and judgment more than they trusted the doctor’s.

The other three families discussed it for a long time, asking Wang Fang for all sorts of details, and finally decided that it was worth a try!

They were pragmatic about it. It was a guesthouse, after all. If the “treatment” didn’t work, they would treat it as a family vacation.

To be blunt, for a child with an emotional disorder, you had to take them out to see the world while you still could. When they were little, the parents could still manage an outburst.

Once they got older, the parents wouldn’t dare take them out. So they might as well seize this chance to go out and have some fun.

With all this in mind, they asked Wang Fang to help them contact the guesthouse and book rooms.

The primary physician, however, found out about this and became quite annoyed. He was upset that these people didn’t trust his judgment and even more angry at this guesthouse for making a joke out of a patient’s illness.

Secretly, he wrote down the guesthouse’s address. If anything actually happened, he would call the police!

And so, Zhao Xing received a booking call from Wang Fang.

“Huh? All four families are coming?” he said. “There are enough rooms, but you might have to share one room per family. And the conditions are pretty basic, you know that, Jie. You have to make it clear to them… Okay, okay, I’ll book you all in.”

After hanging up, Zhao Xing’s eyebrows danced with joy. “Did you see that, System? Our guesthouse is fully booked!”

The System immediately laid on the praise. “The Host is amazing! To be fully booked so quickly, I can hardly imagine it!”

Zhao Xing stroked his chin. “But this means if another otherworldly guest comes, there won’t be anywhere for them to stay. Four rooms are still too few… Wait, what were we just doing? Oh, right, leveling up! According to the usual process, leveling up should increase the number of guest rooms, right?”

He opened the system panel.

【Host: Zhao Xing

Home World: Blue Star Realm

Guesthouse Name: Immortal’s Rest Inn

Guesthouse Level: 0 (Points to next level: 545/500)

System Price: 30 Yuan/Person

System Evaluation: Humble Hovel】

【Host has met the requirements for leveling up. Upgrade?】

Zhao Xing quickly tapped: 【Yes】

His vision blurred, and he instantly found himself outside the small building.

At the same time, a light breeze stirred in the mountains, and a thick fog rolled in from nowhere, completely covering the building.

The sound of hammering and banging came from within, and the silhouettes of tools like hammers and chisels occasionally flashed through the fog.

After about five or six minutes, the sounds stopped. The fog dissipated, revealing the upgraded building.

The first thing Zhao Xing saw was the hole in the wall.

He was silent for a long moment. “…Are my eyes playing tricks on me? Why do I feel like that hole in the wall is still there?”

The System replied, “The Host’s eyes are as sharp as an eagle’s. The hole is indeed still there!”

“You have the nerve to say that?” Zhao Xing fumed. “Isn’t this an upgrade? How can it not even fix a single hole? Where did the upgrade even go?!”

“Please check the system notifications, Host.”

Grumbling, Zhao Xing opened the notifications.

【Congratulations, Host! The guesthouse has been upgraded to Level 1! Added: Guest Rooms x4, Vegetable Plots x2, Flowerbeds x2, Water Well x1! Please continue to work hard and level up soon!】

Seeing that the number of guest rooms had indeed increased, he relaxed and ran inside to check.

The first floor was almost unchanged, but the second floor was different.

Originally, the second floor had only five rooms. Besides the bathroom at the end of the hall, there were just two guest rooms on each side, fewer than what you’d find in some large private homes.

But now, the hallway had been stretched to twice its length. The bathroom was still at the end, but there were now four guest rooms on each side, doubling the total number.

Moreover, these changes showed no signs of construction. It was as if they had been directly copied and pasted. The four new guest rooms also contained only a simple wooden bed, and even the bedding was identical to that of the other rooms.

At least he didn’t have to buy any more himself.

He inspected all four rooms one by one, then went downstairs to see the vegetable plots.

The plots were located behind the building, just outside the kitchen’s back door. This was where Zhao Xing had been feeding the birds for the past few days.

Before, although it was called a vegetable garden, the plants had long since withered, and it was overrun with weeds, looking no different from a patch of wasteland.

But now, it had been transformed into two neat, square plots. The weeds were gone, and the soil had been tilled, revealing a rich, dark brown earth, just waiting for seeds to be planted.

Zhao Xing tapped one, and a system panel popped up.

【Vegetable Plot Lv. 1 > Effect: Growth cycle of normal vegetables shortened by 10%. Growth cycle of system-produced vegetables shortened by 5%.】

It could even shorten the growth cycle? Zhao Xing decided to go buy some seeds that very afternoon.

Next to the vegetable plots, where there had been empty space before, a water well suddenly appeared. It also had a system panel.

【Water Well Lv. 1 > Effect: Can produce sweet, clear mountain spring water. Level 1 output is 10 buckets per day.】

The water Zhao Xing had been drinking these past few days was also mountain spring water. Living in the mountains, there was a spring nearby.

He hadn’t thought much of it at first. But when he drew a bucket of water from the well and took a sip, he made an instant decision: he didn’t care about anyone else, but from now on, the water he drank had to come from this well!

It was too delicious. What Nongfu Spring, what Ganten? They couldn’t even compare!

He couldn’t resist taking a few more sips, then went around to the front of the building to see the flowerbeds.

【Flowerbed Lv. 1 > Effect: Viewing period of normal flowers extended by 10%. Viewing period of system-produced flowers extended by 5%.】

Zhao Xing added buying flower seeds to his plan. “But I don’t think they sell flower seeds in the village. Should I buy them online? Or maybe I should make a trip to town while there’s still time…”

He opened the system panel again and found that it had changed:

【Host: Zhao Xing

Home World: Blue Star Realm

Guesthouse Name: Immortal’s Rest Inn

Guesthouse Level: 1 (Points to next level: 45/5000)

System Price: 50 Yuan/Person

System Evaluation: Humble Home with a Brushwood Gate】

…Fine, a humble home it is. At least the system price was up to 50 yuan now, the same price as a guesthouse from ten years ago!

Zhao Xing closed the page, not wanting to look at it anymore.

Just then, a rustling sound came from the nearby bushes.

There were many small animals in the mountains, so Zhao Xing didn’t pay much attention at first, just glancing over casually.

He saw a familiar little orange kitten emerge.

“Hey, it’s you! You…”

Before he could finish, he saw that the kitten hadn’t come alone. It was holding a struggling mouse in its mouth!

Zhao Xing leaped to his feet. “Don’t—!”

The little orange kitten was startled by his shout. It tilted its head. “Meow?”

As it meowed, the mouse fell out. Its four legs scrambled desperately as it shot toward the guesthouse as if its life depended on it.

“What the—! You dared to let go? Get it back here!” Zhao Xing yelled.

The little orange kitten replied, “Meow meow meow meow!”

“You idiot…” Zhao Xing fumed.

But he saw the mouse had already scurried to the guesthouse entrance. Just as it was about to enter, the dark black threshold suddenly flashed.

As if tripped by something, the mouse tumbled head over heels several times, landed face-first in front of the door, and stopped moving.

Zhao Xing: “…”