I feel right at home in the world of the courtyard house.

The French woman led him around and into a small hotel behind them. Only then did Li Jing'an understand why there were so many prostitutes here—it was convenient; there was a small hotel every few steps along the road, catering specifically to these kinds of customers.

"What? I have to pay for the room too?" Li Jing'an stared at the hotel owner and the French girl, his face full of confusion and anger. It turned out that the room fee was to be paid by the guest, 30 francs.

There was nothing he could do; he was already there, so he reluctantly took out his wallet and paid. The French woman skillfully took the keys from the boss and led him upstairs.

The room was simple, containing a wooden bed, a table, and a wardrobe, with the curtains drawn tightly shut. The French woman went in, hung her bag on a chair, and started unbuttoning it. Li Jing'an quickly stopped her: "No, no, no! Stop, stop!"

The French woman stopped what she was doing, looking at him with a puzzled expression. Li Jing'an gestured awkwardly to her—meaning, "I spent so much money, and you're not even going to have any emotional connection? What's the point of just getting straight to the point?"

The French woman was getting increasingly impatient with this picky and stingy customer and started arguing with him. After only a couple of rounds, Li Jing'an gave up – it turned out the timer had started from the moment he entered, and he only had fifteen minutes. "Damn it, these businessmen are so greedy! They start charging before we've even done anything!" he thought.

Li Jing'an started unbuttoning his shirt while cursing, urging her not to waste time.

The French woman was sitting on the bed unbuttoning her clothes when she looked up and saw Li Jing'an standing naked in front of her. Her eyes widened instantly. She looked up at Li Jing'an's face with an expression of amazement, then gave him a thumbs up. Li Jing'an was extremely proud—this was a glory for his country! He stood there as if declaring to the world: We Asians have finally stood up!

"O~M~G~Oh yeah~OOO... OOOOOOO~M~G!"

Li Jing'an is in excellent condition right now, like a motor.

"Oh yeah~ Oh yeah~ The world is going to be great."

Just as things were getting really heated, the French girl suddenly broke free from Li Jing'an and pointed to her watch—time was up. Li Jing'an was furious; this was the kind of service you get in capitalist countries! He was about to explode in anger, but he couldn't vent it, feeling incredibly frustrated. He could only admit defeat and add another hour.

This time, Li Jing'an unleashed his pent-up anger.

As the movements became more intense, the entire corridor was filled with the woman's screams.

Hiss~ Oh yeah~ Oh yeah~ Oh~ Oh~ Oh yeah~ Oh yeah oh yeah oh yeah!

A shirtless man opened the door and peeked out, thinking that some kind of superhuman fighting was taking place in the hallway. However, he discovered that the noise was coming from a certain room, and he was immediately filled with envy, jealousy, and hatred.

The hotel owner downstairs was frantic, listening to the commotion upstairs and cursing inwardly: "Where the hell did this animal come from? I hope I don't attract the police!" In France, it's not illegal for customers and businesspeople to do this kind of business, but providing a venue is a serious crime!

Just as the hotel owner was feeling like each day was an eternity, the commotion upstairs finally subsided. A short while later, Li Jing'an, looking triumphant, walked down the stairs ahead, while the French woman behind him looked dejected. The hotel owner gave him a thumbs-up, while Li Jing'an raised an eyebrow in a lewd manner.

The French woman behind him muttered to herself, "This deal is too unprofitable, the wear and tear is too great, I probably won't be able to do any other orders tonight." She glared resentfully at the man walking ahead. Li Jing'an seemed to notice, turned around, raised an eyebrow, and thought smugly: "What? Conquered, aren't you? This is the power of the red!"

After a reluctant farewell to the French girl.

Li Jing'an took a taxi and returned to the hotel via the same route.

-

The next morning, he appeared in the lobby, supporting his back. The external liaison officer from the Ministry of Metallurgy asked with concern, "Minister, what's wrong? Didn't you get enough rest?"

"Sigh, the bed in the room is too soft. I used to sleep on a hard bed in the army, so it's not quite right for me to sleep on a soft one now. I think capitalism not only erodes the mind, but it also damages the body!" Li Jing'an said with a sigh. The liaison officer could only smile and agree.

"By the way, what's for breakfast?" Li Jing'an asked.

"Minister, I just inquired, and the hotel offers breakfast, but it costs extra."

"How much?"

Ten francs.

"What? That expensive? Ten francs for a meal? You might as well rob a bank!"

The liaison officer said with a wronged and cautious tone, "But we have to go to the airport after we finish eating, and we don't have time to go out and find something to eat in between." The other members of the group also looked at Li Jing'an.

Li Jing'an glimpsed the buffet laid out in the restaurant through the window and secretly swallowed. But he still said, "You all know our country is short of foreign exchange! What are we here for? To contact suppliers and import gold production line equipment to increase the country's foreign exchange reserves! How much foreign exchange will this meal cost? Can you even bring yourselves to eat that much?"

He looked around, and the group members all avoided his gaze, lowering their heads in "shame".

"Minister, what do you suggest we do?" the external relations officer asked cautiously.

"Hmph, what kind of liaison are you? Go buy some French specialties, we can eat them on the road!"

The group members were somewhat comforted – if they couldn't have the buffet, getting some local specialties wouldn't be bad either.

On the bus to the airport, members of the Ministry of Metallurgical Industry's inspection team each held a baguette, taking a bite with a lifeless expression, swallowing with difficulty, and quickly handing over their water bottles. They exchanged glances, wry smiles, and secretly stole a look at the minister in front of them, who was resting with his eyes closed, silently wondering what he was thinking.

"Is this some kind of local specialty? It's so hard it could be used as a weapon..."

"Let's just make do with this; at least it's white flour."

The other person quickly gulped down some water and swallowed the baguette that was stuck in their throat.

Li Jing'an wasn't asleep. He was simply reliving the previous night's experience with his eyes closed—he had performed exceptionally well yesterday. Fueled by resentment towards capitalism, he had unleashed his full potential. It was just a slight regret that, being his first time, he hadn't been able to fully utilize the knowledge he'd learned in Europe and America. But it didn't matter; he wasn't going straight back to China, his next stop was Switzerland, there would be other opportunities.