Chapter 525: Lu Fan: Booking the Entire Banquet Hall, a Feast of Flowers! Is This a Proposal?

The weather in Yangcheng grew hotter by the day.

Jiang Yixia squatted by the door, pruning branches. SNIP, SNIP. The clipped twigs formed a small pile. Her phone buzzed. She picked it up to see an unknown number.

“Hello, is this Boss Jiang, Jiang Yixia?” a woman’s voice came through the line, polite and professional.

“Speaking,” Jiang Yixia said as she stood up and dusted the dirt from her hands.

“I’m the Banquet Department Manager at the Ritz-Carlton Hotel, Manager Zhou. We have a VIP client who wants to set up a banquet hall with a rose theme. They want fresh roses covering the entire hall. Our hotel’s partnered florists are fully booked, and someone recommended you. Are you available to take this order?”

Jiang Yixia froze, her heartbeat quickening. The Ritz-Carlton Hotel was one of the most luxurious hotels in Yangcheng. Clients who hosted banquets there were either wealthy or highly influential.

“Yes, absolutely,” she agreed hurriedly. “May I ask how large the venue is? Roughly how many flowers will be needed? And for when?”

“The banquet hall is three hundred square meters in total. The main table, the reception desk, and the entire hall need to be decorated with roses. The client requested that only the finest variety of red roses be used. It’s for the evening after tomorrow, so the setup needs to be finished the day prior. As for the floral budget, the client said there is no limit.”

Jiang Yixia’s hand holding the phone trembled slightly. Three hundred square meters, an entire hall of red roses, and a limitless budget. Completing this single order would bring in more than her flower shop’s revenue for half a year.

“Manager Zhou, I’ll take the job.” She tried her best to keep her voice steady. “I will head to the hotel tomorrow to check the venue and finalize the specific design.”

“Alright, I’ll be expecting you.”

Hanging up, Jiang Yixia stood at the entrance of her flower shop. Watching the pedestrians come and go on the street, she couldn’t help but smile.

Sister Li walked over from next door. Holding a cup of tea, she leaned against the doorframe and looked at her. “Sister Xia, what are you so happy about?”

Jiang Yixia explained the order to her. Sister Li’s eyes widened in surprise. “The Ritz-Carlton Hotel? That’s a five-star hotel! Can you handle it all by yourself?”

“I have to handle it even if I can’t,” Jiang Yixia said with a smile. “If I miss out on an order like this, I might never get another chance.”

“Then you should hurry up and find someone to help,” Sister Li reminded her.

Jiang Yixia nodded. The first person to pop into her mind was Lu Fan. She hesitated, picked up her phone, then set it down again. She didn’t want to trouble him, but she couldn’t find anyone else suitable on such short notice.

Just as she was stressing over it, the wind chime at the door sounded. JINGLE.

Lu Fan walked in wearing a light, pale gray jacket and carrying two cups of coffee. He asked cheerfully, “What’s wrong? Why are you spacing out at the door?”

Jiang Yixia glanced at him and sighed. “I took a massive order for the Ritz-Carlton Hotel. A three-hundred-square-meter banquet hall filled entirely with red roses. I can’t manage it alone, and I’m stressing over finding help.”

“What’s there to stress about?” Lu Fan placed the coffees on the counter and smiled. “I’ll help you.”

“You?” Jiang Yixia shot him a look, her tone laced with disbelief. “Do you know how to arrange flowers?”

“I can learn if I don’t.” Lu Fan grinned. “Isn’t it just sticking flowers into floral foam? How hard could it be?”

Jiang Yixia let out an exasperated laugh. “Stop messing around,” she said helplessly. “This is a serious business deal, not playing house.”

“Who’s playing house?” Lu Fan replied, feigning total seriousness. “I’ll do the work for you, and you pay me a wage. It’s a fair trade. Just treat it like you’re hiring a temp.”

Jiang Yixia looked at him, gave it some thought, and asked, “Are you up for it?”

“Won’t you find out if you let me try?” Lu Fan asked with a smile.

Jiang Yixia hesitated before nodding. “Fine. The wage is three hundred a day, and you work until the evening. If you quit halfway through, you won’t get a single cent.”

“Three hundred?” Lu Fan chuckled. “Sure, it’s a deal.”

Jiang Yixia glanced at him. The corners of her mouth twitched as if she wanted to say something, but she swallowed her words. She turned around, took out a pen and paper from the drawer, and began listing the floral materials. Red roses for a three-hundred-square-meter banquet hall; she needed to estimate the quantity first. Lu Fan stood beside her, watching her sketch and write without interrupting.

Early the next morning, Jiang Yixia headed to the Ritz-Carlton Hotel.

The banquet hall was on the third floor. As the elevator doors opened, a spacious corridor was revealed. It was covered with a dark carpet, and several oil paintings hung on the walls. Manager Zhou was already waiting at the entrance. She wore a dark blue professional skirt suit, her hair was pulled back into a flawless bun, and she wore a picture-perfect smile.

“Boss Jiang, this way please.” She stepped aside to lead the way.

Jiang Yixia followed her into the banquet hall, her footsteps faltering for a moment. The hall was massive. The ceiling was at least six meters high, adorned with hanging crystal chandeliers. Even though the lights were off, the sunlight pouring in through the floor-to-ceiling windows made the entire space bright and airy. The floor was made of light-colored marble, polished to a mirror-like shine.

“The client requested that the main table be placed right in the center, completely surrounded by red rose decorations,” Manager Zhou explained as they walked. “The reception desk is at the entrance and also needs to be adorned with roses. You can design the exact layout. The client only has one requirement—it must be romantic.”

Jiang Yixia walked a lap around the hall, silently planning the layout in her mind. The main table would need to be encircled by floral pillars. She could create a moon-gate arch at the entrance, hang some floral garlands from the ceiling, and pave a pathway of petals on the floor. She took out her phone, snapped over a dozen photos, and jotted down several notes in her memo app.

“Manager Zhou, the flowers will be delivered the morning after tomorrow. I’ll start setting up in the morning, and I guarantee it will be finished before the banquet begins.” She put her phone away, her tone resolute.

“Alright, thank you for your hard work, Boss Jiang.” Manager Zhou nodded.

At seven o’clock on the third morning, Jiang Yixia arrived at the hotel.