At the dining table, the little fox still held chopsticks in his hand, and he said softly to Ye Tiancheng and Fatty, "Actually, although I've made some not-so-good guesses, I have a hunch that Boss Mei isn't a bad person, right?"
Fatty asked the little fox, "Why do you think so? Is there any basis for it?"
Ye Tiancheng understood the little fox's meaning more quickly and said, "It's intuition, isn't it?"
Fatty looked at Ye Tiancheng, then at the little fox.
The little fox nodded slightly, "I can't explain why, I just have this intuition. I can't guarantee it's reliable."
Ye Tiancheng nodded thoughtfully.
"There's no rush to think about these things. We still have plenty of time to verify. We should try not to wrong good people, but it's better to be more cautious until we can confirm the truth."
Fatty and the little fox both nodded in agreement, acknowledging the logic and promising to be careful.
The restaurant was bustling with people coming and going, making it not a good place for conversation. At least, the matters Ye Tiancheng and the others were discussing were not suitable for mentioning in such a setting.
Yesterday, Ye Tiancheng and the others had probably returned too late, which was why they hadn't seen many people.
On the second day, when Ye Tiancheng and the others came to the restaurant for breakfast, they finally confirmed that the guesthouse was indeed fully booked, and the customer flow was not fake at all.
There were indeed many guests at the guesthouse.
These guests didn't seem to have anything unusual about them. If one were to find a similar guesthouse in another tourist attraction or resort area, the guests would likely be similar.
However, it would be difficult for other tourist attractions or resort areas to be like this one, where guesthouses and hotels were fully booked everywhere, and rooms were snatched up shortly after. Ye Tiancheng felt that the distance of the villa area might be a reason, but it was likely far from the only reason.
Among the guesthouse guests, there were people of all ages and genders, and even regardless of status. Ye Tiancheng, having married Hou Mingzhu, had some insight and could tell that some guests were likely of high status.
It seemed a bit strange that such people would choose to stay in guesthouses in the village, even if it meant living in slightly less comfortable conditions, instead of staying in the villa area.
After all, especially in the guesthouse they were currently staying in, Ye Tiancheng had learned from the guesthouse owner, Mei Mei, that there were no luxury suites. The rooms were basically single rooms, double standard rooms, rooms with large beds, family rooms, and dormitory-style rooms for over a dozen people, rented by the bed. Some of these rooms even lacked private bathrooms.
All of these circumstances seemed unusual no matter how one looked at them.
Under such circumstances, it was difficult for Ye Tiancheng not to be curious. He was almost certain that this place likely held greater secrets waiting for them to uncover.
After sorting out breakfast and satisfying their appetites, it was time to get down to business.
Fatty asked Ye Tiancheng, "Brother Ye, what are we doing now? Are we really going to that 'farmhouse'?"
Ye Tiancheng wiped his mouth with a paper and then replied to Fatty, "Of course. These are things that have already been planned. Do you think I was just joking?"
Fatty quickly shook his head and said, "It's just a bit surprising. If you look at it purely from the outside, we really do look like ordinary tourists who came here to play. We walk around, stop and ask about things that 'interest' us, and wander everywhere. Isn't that what ordinary tourists do?"
Ye Tiancheng said to Fatty, "Isn't that good? Do you prefer something more exciting?"
Fatty smiled sheepishly and said, "No, Brother Ye, don't slander me. I wish for less excitement. My psychological trauma is too great, and I'm hoping nothing will happen."
The little fox, who was listening nearby, curiously asked Ye Tiancheng and Fatty, "What exactly do farmhouses do? I've only heard of them, but I've never been to one."
Ye Tiancheng and Fatty both reacted at once.
The little fox had indeed never experienced such things. Whether it was before he lost his memory and grew up, or after he lost his memory, the little fox had been running around the world with Ye Tiancheng. However, they were mostly busy with important matters, encountering dangers, and rarely had peaceful days. The little fox was indeed not very familiar with these things.
Ye Tiancheng thought for a moment and explained to the little fox, "Actually, there's nothing special about it. Many tourist attractions have such places. They are activities for city dwellers who have nothing to do to experience rural life."
"Although I say that, real rural life is not so leisurely. It's definitely not about digging soil, eating pollution-free, natural farm products, and living each day slowly, relaxing the body and mind. Real farmers work much harder."
Ye Tiancheng, whose own background was not very good, knew the hardships of such a life.
"Generally speaking, you can experience planting vegetables, picking vegetables, and having the owner help prepare them to eat. You can even do it yourself. The environment is usually good, and the scenery should be nice, otherwise, it wouldn't attract people."
"If the local customs and traditions are more distinctive, it can be even more popular."
The little fox nodded, seemingly understanding yet not fully grasping.
It sounded like an activity for those who had nothing better to do. However, saying so might be too biased. People who come to play are here to relax, and they have the freedom to choose their preferred way of relaxation, so others have no right to comment.
However, since these activities were all advertised as experiencing rural life, it was city dwellers experiencing rural life, but experiencing an overly idealized and false pastoral life. In the eyes of some farmers who lived by farming, they must have found these city dwellers quite strange.
The little fox said, "It doesn't sound very fun."
Ye Tiancheng said to the little fox, "It's okay, we're not here to play. And we don't have to follow the usual procedures. We can just get some fish, shrimp, and vegetables, and have a barbecue there ourselves. It's also okay. Besides, I heard that the farmhouses here are very popular, and there should be quite a few tourists. A large flow of people is good for gathering information."
"It's a way to relax while working."
The little fox then said, "Hearing it this way, this activity seems to have some value, albeit barely."
Ye Tiancheng looked at him helplessly.
The farmhouses in this village were indeed one of the most popular places to visit. Upon entering, there were so many people that it was quite crowded. Although Ye Tiancheng and the others had discount coupons, this likely represented the favor of Boss Mei. Despite enjoying the discounts, Ye Tiancheng and the others received even more attention.
These personal connections and favors brought more benefits to Ye Tiancheng and the others than the actual value of the discount coupons.
Farmhouses could also accommodate guests, and some tourists stayed in the farmhouses. However, the farmhouses were clearly among the first to be fully booked, so there were no more beds or rooms, and it was impossible to squeeze in even if they wanted to.
When Ye Tiancheng and the others arrived at the farmhouse, the owner personally entertained them for a while, which was considered giving them face. After all, the owner was also very busy, and with the farmhouse's current booming business, it was already difficult for him to spare this much time.
After the owner left, Ye Tiancheng and the others had more freedom to move around, so they cautiously began to inquire about some information.
When there were many people, it was indeed easier to gather information. Intentionally or unintentionally, it was easy to overhear new information, but it required careful discernment to determine if some information was worth investigating.
According to the information Ye Tiancheng and the others later learned, although the current customer flow was already large, it was not the total number of tourists in the village. Most of them were here or would come here.
In fact, more than half of the tourists who flocked to the village at this time each year were there for a special evening party in the village.
This party was held only once a year, at a fixed time, and many people wanted to attend, so they needed to prepare in advance. Otherwise, if they couldn't book a room, they couldn't come here alone, as it would be dangerous.
Because these people had their own goals and were only there for the party, even if they had booked rooms in advance and even checked into these rooms, they might not necessarily go out to play. In fact, many of them stayed honestly in their rooms, basically only coming out for meals or similar occasions.
And among them, only a small portion, feeling that they had nothing else to do, might wander around the village, considering it as a form of sightseeing.
Therefore, under the influence of these factors, the tourists that Ye Tiancheng and the others could see actually accounted for only about half of the total tourists in the resort area.
Looking at it this way, the biggest story here lay in the upcoming evening party. However, there was no need to rush. Soon, Ye Tiancheng and the others would be able to personally understand what attracted them to this party, causing them to gather here in large numbers.
Of course, it was also very necessary to collect more information in advance. Otherwise, when the time came and something happened, it would be too late to seek help. Ye Tiancheng preferred to be prepared and avoid unnecessary risks.