So, that's why there were suddenly so many more people near the hotel.
Gu Wanyin, seeing so many survivors waiting for vacant rooms, felt sorry for their pitiful state. She mentally asked the system, "Are there any new tasks? I want to complete them quickly so I can unlock more rooms and earn more points."
"Wait a little longer, the task list hasn't refreshed yet," the system replied.
Since that was the case, Gu Wanyin had no choice but to wait.
"Oh, I have an idea! We can open supermarkets outside, right? Since so many people are already at the hotel entrance, why don't we bring out some of the hotel's supplies to sell? Even though they're not hotel guests yet, we could set the prices slightly higher than inside the hotel. We'll explain the pricing to them and let them choose whether to buy or not. What do you think, system?"
"It's possible, but for now, we can only sell food. Anything else would be difficult to justify to the interstellar authorities," the system said.
"Food is fine!" Gu Wanyin said with a smile.
People staying in the hotel no longer worried about food and drink, so they were willing to spend on clothing stores, toy shops, and the like.
But for those still struggling to survive outside, what was most important? Food, of course!
Although there was a Peace Supermarket outside, it only had bread, instant noodles, self-heating hotpots, and other snacks.
Inside the hotel, however, there were all kinds of hot dishes, rice noodles, spicy snail noodles, spicy hot pot, and more.
People definitely needed these.
Plus, it would earn more points.
After discussing with the system, Gu Wanyin went out to announce this news to the people at the hotel entrance.
As expected, people were excited when they heard the news.
"I've heard that the food in the Peace Hotel is especially delicious and fresh. I thought we'd have to wait until we checked in to eat it. I can't believe we can have it now!"
"Yeah, I wonder if we can have hotpot? Or barbecue! Even spicy hot pot would be great!"
"I'm craving meat... The last time I ate canned meat was probably a year ago?"
"Forget meat, even if I could eat some vegetables with flavor, I could die without regrets!"
"My mouth is watering already."
After discussing with the system, Gu Wanyin set up a small restaurant near the hotel.
The restaurant sold various dishes from the cafeteria, rice noodles, spicy hot pot, desserts, and milk tea.
The prices here were three times higher than inside the hotel.
But Gu Wanyin had already explained this to them clearly.
Whether to buy or not was their own choice.
There were ten tables inside, with each table seating up to four people.
This was the best the system could do for now.
Of course, takeout was also available, but apart from the forty people who could be seated, only twenty people could queue inside for takeout.
The rest had to queue outside.
As for those dining in, although it wasn't a buffet, considering the number of people waiting outside to eat, and to prevent people from occupying tables indefinitely, a one-hour dining limit was set.
Those who wanted to eat at the small restaurant had to go to the hotel lobby and get a meal card from Xu Shi or Fang Yang, then load it with points.
Like the Peace Supermarket, any remaining points on the meal card could be transferred to their room card once they checked into the hotel.
After entering the restaurant, customers could order their meals themselves. Once they swiped their cards, the dishes would appear.
The restaurant rules were similar to those in the supermarket.
Fighting, brawling, or trying to eat without paying was absolutely impossible.
Moreover, if a customer bought food from the restaurant for takeout, no one could steal it unless the buyer willingly gave it away. Others were not allowed to use violence or other means to coerce the buyer into giving it away.
As soon as the restaurant opened, many people went to get meal cards and then entered to dine.
Although the prices were three times higher than inside the hotel, they hadn't eaten normal meals for nearly two years! They couldn't resist!
Of course, some people were reluctant to spend extra points, but most couldn't withstand the temptation.
Gu Wanyin smiled as she saw the long queue forming at the restaurant entrance.
It was great – she could earn more points while satisfying people's cravings.
However, as she looked around, she felt like something was missing.
At that moment, Dong Yue's family returned from outside.
Dong Yue was clutching her stomach and hurrying into the hotel. She passed by Gu Wanyin without even greeting her.
Suddenly, Gu Wanyin realized what was missing.
Toilets!
Although the system automatically cleaned within a 200-meter radius of the hotel, it would still be awkward if someone couldn't control themselves near the hotel.
Moreover, now that people could not only buy food at the Peace Supermarket but also eat at the restaurant, the demand for toilets would definitely increase.
When Gu Wanyin brought this up with the system, it seemed somewhat reluctant.
"We can charge points for it," Gu Wanyin suggested.
"Alright!" the system agreed.
Although the system agreed, it still had to apply to the interstellar authorities.
Unsurprisingly, the interstellar authorities approved again.
Gu Wanyin really wondered if the system had some kind of backdoor connection.
How come everything it proposed was approved by the interstellar authorities?
"Well, this isn't too unreasonable," the system said. "It's a normal human need. If you wanted to open a cosmetics store outside right now, the interstellar authorities definitely wouldn't agree."
"Fair enough."
Under Gu Wanyin's planning, toilets appeared.
They were separated by gender, with ten stalls each, all individual cubicles.
The toilet fees weren't high, just one point for five minutes.
If they exceeded the time limit, it was still one point per five minutes, with any time less than five minutes still costing one point.
There were also some rules, such as queuing and remembering to flush after use.
Each cubicle had a large sign reminding users to flush.
When the toilets appeared, Gu Wanyin received unanimous praise from the people.
The toilet fees weren't high, and if they needed to use them, they were happy to do so!
Although it was the apocalypse, most people still had a sense of shame in this regard.
It was different before, but now, they were all going to be hotel guests sooner or later. If they were too careless, they would definitely be criticized by other hotel guests...
And they were really shocked! They had been near the hotel all along, but suddenly, a restaurant appeared, and then toilets appeared out of nowhere!
Although they had to pay points, to them, this was already like heaven!
In the restaurant, some people were on the verge of tears as they ate their steaming hot meals.
"Just being able to eat this is exciting enough. Can you imagine how many more good things there must be inside the hotel?"
"Oh, there's so much more! What we can buy now is just the tip of the iceberg!"
