After several hours of flying, the plane finally landed in Malé, the capital of the Maldives.
Malé is small, and so is its airport, but the tarmac was filled with an array of luxurious private planes.
As a global vacation destination, despite its modest local economy and low per capita GDP, the Maldives attracts the world’s top tycoons.
The rich love this place because of its stunning scenery, pristine waters, and pleasant climate. More importantly, it’s an archipelago nation with over a thousand islands, completely separated from one another. Some islands are densely populated by locals, resembling slums, but many others are leased to top global hotel groups and tycoons.
These groups and tycoons invest heavily to transform scenic islands into ultra-luxurious resorts.
Aside from landing in Malé, these tycoons have no contact with the local population, so the relatively underdeveloped economy doesn’t affect their vacation experience.
After the plane landed, the family of four cleared customs and saw, in the most prominent spot, a dark-skinned young man in a white shirt and black trousers holding a sign that read “Mr. Ye and Family.”
Beside him were three others dressed identically. One held a sign that read “Mr. Li and Wife” in Chinese.
Their skin was a brownish hue, suggesting they were either locals or South Asians.
Baima Island, known as the Maldives’ most luxurious resort island, lived up to its reputation. The staff wore uniforms with the Baima Island logo embroidered on their chests, along with name tags. The signs they held featured Louis Vuitton’s iconic pattern as a backdrop, also bearing the Baima Island name, exuding sophistication.
Seeing it was for him, Ye Chen waved to the group. The four quickly jogged over, and the young man holding the sign, seeing the group of four, asked respectfully in fluent Chinese, “You must be Mr. Ye, correct?”
Ye Chen nodded, “That’s me.”
The young man said deferentially, “Mr. Ye, it’s an honour to serve you and your family. I’m Hani, your butler for the next four days on Baima Island. These are my colleagues, two of whom specialise in airport VIP services. You can entrust all your luggage to them, and they’ll transport it to the seaplane. I’ll take you and your family to the VIP lounge to rest briefly. Once the seaplane is ready, I’ll escort you to board for the hotel.”
Ye Chen smiled, “Your Chinese is excellent.”
Hani replied politely, “Thank you, Mr. Ye, for the compliment. To serve our Chinese guests well, I’ve studied Chinese for years. At Baima Island, we offer services in the world’s ten most common languages to make you and your family feel at home!”
Ma Lan exclaimed, “Wow, a top-tier island is really different. I was worried my English wouldn’t be good enough to communicate, but now I see there’s no need for that concern.”
At that moment, the middle-aged man surnamed Li and his wife approached. Seeing Ye Chen’s group chatting with the staff, he glanced at the Baima Island logo on their uniforms. His expression soured, and he muttered glumly to his wife, “That old woman surnamed Ma is going to the same island as us. We might even take the same seaplane. Watch what you say and try not to speak carelessly.”
