Cheng Che retreated to the inside of the entryway and put his phone on silent.
There was no sound outside the door.
The girl didn't knock on the door again, but she didn't leave either.
Cheng Che could sense that she was still standing there, separated by that door, like a nail driven into the wall, impossible to remove.
Without hesitation, he turned and went into the bathroom, locked the door, and turned on the shower.
The sound of water drowned out everything.
Then he dialed Chen Wei's number.
I answered it after it rang twice.
"Boss?" Chen Wei's voice was hoarse from being woken up.
"Sixth floor, there's someone outside my door." Cheng Che lowered his voice, "A young woman, wearing a bathrobe. I checked with the system, her True Heart Value 80, and she has a 'morbid infatuation' tag. A sasaeng fan."
There was a pause on the other end of the phone.
Then Chen Wei's voice cleared, tinged with obvious tension. "What? How did she get up here? You need a room card to get into the elevator on the sixth floor."
"I don't know. Contact the hotel manager now and let them handle it. Don't come up here directly; talk to the manager first. I don't want to make a scene."
"I understand," Chen Wei said, "Boss, please don't open the door."
"I know."
After hanging up the phone, Cheng Che leaned against the bathroom wall, listening to the sounds outside.
The sound of water is still ringing.
About four or five minutes later, he heard footsteps in the corridor.
There was more than one person, at least three or four, their leather shoes making a dull sound on the carpet.
Then came a man's voice, low but firm. "Madam, this is a private area. Please leave immediately."
The girl's voice rang out.
It was very light, very subtle, as if it were talking to itself. "I'll just look at him... I'll just look at him..."
"Madam, please cooperate."
"You don't understand." Her voice suddenly rose a little. "He's mine. What right do you have to stop me?"
Cheng Che frowned slightly in the bathroom.
"Ma'am, if you don't cooperate, we'll have to call the police."
"Call the police?" The girl suddenly laughed, a soft laugh with a strange, cloying sweetness. "Go ahead and call the police. I just want to see him, is that wrong? I flew all the way from Magic City to Hang City, checked into this hotel, and waited all day. I just want to see him, why can't you let me?"
Her voice grew louder and shriller.
" Cheng Che! Cheng Che, come out! I know you're in there! Come out and see me!"
The door was slapped.
Then came the second and the third.
" Cheng Che! Come out here! Why aren't you looking at me? Why aren't you looking at me!"
The voice began to sound like it was crying, but it wasn't a normal cry; it was a suppressed, stubborn cry, tinged with a sense of threat.
"I've done everything for you... I took time off work, I spent money, I followed him all the way... Why won't you look at me...?"
The manager's voice rang out again, this time more urgent. "Security, take her away."
A flurry of footsteps.
The girl began to struggle, Cheng Che heard the sound of the bathrobe fabric rubbing together, as well as her sharp screams.
"Let me go! Cheng Che! Cheng Che --!!!"
The sound gradually faded into the distance.
The corridor returned to silence.
Cheng Che turned off the shower, stood at the bathroom door, and listened for a long time.
He muttered speechlessly, "Do I even know you? You're making it seem like I, a single guy, have let someone down."
Then he heard a knock on the door.
This time it was three taps, very rhythmic, and Chen Wei's voice came from outside. "Boss, it's me."
Cheng Che walked to the door and peeked through the peephole.
Chen Wei stood outside the door, her face pale, followed by a middle-aged man in a suit.
Cheng Che opened the door.
Chen Wei looked him up and down. "Are you alright?"
"It's alright." Cheng Che stepped aside to let him in. "Come on in."
Chen Wei entered the room, with the manager following behind.
The manager was probably in his forties, with neatly combed hair, but his forehead was covered in sweat.
He bowed deeply as soon as he entered, his posture so perfect it looked like he had practiced it countless times.
"Mr. Cheng, I'm very sorry. It was our security negligence that caused you this fright."
Cheng Che didn't speak. He first opened the system panel, brought up the True Heart Glasses, and glanced at Chen Wei.
True Heart Value: 60.
Just like the day of the interview.
Nothing has changed.
Cheng Che nodded inwardly.
Chen Wei did not disclose his information.
So the problem lies with the manager.
He looked at the manager.
True Heart Value: 35.
The range is friendly; it's not high, but there's no malice involved.
He seemed a little guilty, a little nervous, and a little ingratiating.
"Mr. Cheng, I have handed that lady over to the local police station," the manager said. "She used someone else's room key; we are still investigating how she obtained it. But regardless, this is a management loophole on our part, and we will definitely give you an explanation."
Cheng Che looked at him, but didn't rush to speak.
The manager felt a little uncomfortable under their gaze, wiped the sweat from his brow, and continued:
"To express our apologies, the hotel is willing to upgrade you to the Presidential Suite, which you can check in tonight. That floor is a separate floor, requiring a special room key to access the elevator, and has the highest level of security. In addition, we have prepared a lifetime Platinum Card for you, which will ensure you receive the highest level of service at any hotel under our group in the future. And--"
"No need," Cheng Che interrupted him.
The manager was taken aback.
"I'll take the presidential suite," Cheng Che said. "Just change rooms. I don't need the Platinum card."
He paused, looking into the manager's eyes. "I only want to know one thing. How did she know I was on the sixth floor?"
The manager broke out in a sweat again.
"Well... from our initial understanding, it's possible that a staff member at the front desk recognized you during check-in and mentioned you to a friend. We're still investigating."
Cheng Che looked at him but didn't say anything.
My True Heart Value jumped from 35 to 41.
He cared.
He was concerned about whether Cheng Che would pursue the matter.
Cheng Che thought for a moment, then sighed.
"After you've investigated, tell my assistant the results," he said. "I won't pursue the hotel's responsibility, but I hope the same thing won't happen again."
The manager visibly relaxed and nodded repeatedly.
"Yes, yes, definitely. We've already arranged for someone to check the surveillance footage, and we'll definitely give you a full explanation."
Cheng Che nodded.
The manager went out to arrange the room change.
Chen Wei stayed in the room and waited until the manager had walked away before speaking:
"Boss, I'm sorry. It's my fault for not doing my job properly; I didn't check the hotel's risks in advance."
"It's not your fault," Cheng Che said. "Someone just couldn't keep their mouth shut."
Chen Wei pursed her lips and said nothing more.
After moving to the presidential suite, Cheng Che locked the door, drew the curtains, and lay down on the bed.
The room was very large, almost three times the size of the previous one.
The room includes a living room, study, master bedroom, and walk-in closet. There's also a floor-to-ceiling window next to the bathtub with a view of West Lake night.
But he wasn't in the mood to appreciate it.
He closed his eyes, recalling the girl's voice from outside the door.
The obsession lurking in his tearful voice was like a needle piercing his brain.
Just as he was about to fall asleep, his phone lit up.
Qin Lie's phone call.
Cheng Che answered the call.
"Are you alright?" Qin Lie's voice was urgent, and there was the sound of wind in the background, as if they were outside.
"It's alright. The person has already been taken away."
"What happened? Chen Wei messaged me. I booked the earliest flight, arriving in Hang City at 4 AM."
"You don't need to come," Cheng Che said. "It's really nothing."
"What exactly happened?" Qin Lie asked again.
Cheng Che briefly recounted what had happened.
Stalker fans, bathrobes, manager changing rooms, presidential suite.
Qin Lie remained silent for a while on the other end of the phone.
Are you sure you don't want to pursue this?
"What's the point of pursuing this? The hotel has already apologized, and the person has been taken to the police station. Pursuing this further will only escalate the situation; it won't do any good."
Qin Lie paused for a moment, then said, "Okay. I'll arrive tomorrow morning, and we'll talk then."
Cheng Che hummed in agreement and hung up the phone.
He had just put his phone down when the screen lit up again.
This time it's Weibo.
He opened the super topic and saw that there were hundreds of new comments under the pinned post.
He clicked on it and saw a message posted by an unfamiliar ID:
"I saw Cheng Che at the Hang City Four Seasons Hotel today, but it seems he encountered some sasaeng fans. Some of them were causing trouble in the sixth-floor corridor, and he was taken away by security."
The comments section has exploded.
What??? Sasaeng fans???
[Sixth floor??? That's his floor, how did the sasaeng fans get up there???]
How are hotels managed???
[Holy crap, holy crap, holy crap, is he alright???]
[ Cheng Che Studio, speak up!!!]
[I'll never trust the Four Seasons Hotel again; their security is absolutely terrible.]
Sisters, go give this hotel a bad review!!!
[Wait, don't rush in yet, wait for official news]
The comments are increasing, and the urgency is growing.
Some people started organizing to flood the hotel's official Weibo account with comments, some started investigating the ID of the obsessive fan, and some even called the hotel's front desk directly.
Cheng Che frowned as he looked at the comments.
He didn't want to make a big fuss.
But it's already blown up.