A ghost house with a 500 yuan rent per month. Would anyone dare to live in it?
On a rental website in Shanghai, a suspicious commercial advertisement was released. Within a single day, it rose to the top of the list.
Lian Xia had just gotten the notice of eviction from her landlady when she came upon the advertisement.
She could not believe this listing to be real. She rushed to get on the waiting list, and an endless queue was formed overnight. Not even the rising sun could destroy their persistence.
It was clear that everyone in this day and age feared nothing but poverty.
A middle-aged man with a huge camera on his shoulder stopped her. With a fake yet professional smile on his face, he approached Lian Xia. "Hello, would it be all right for us to interview you? What made you decide on this haunted house?"
"Will my face be aired?"
"No, we'll cover it with mosaics."
Despite that, Lian Xia turned around and left.
"Hey! Don't go!"
Fortunately, the lady in front of Lian Xia had emerged from the haunted house, and Lian Xia was the next one to enter. However, the middle-aged woman's face was oddly pale. She was limping, which made everyone in the queue worry a little.
As she walked past the queue, she shouted, "This was a waste of time. They might as well rent it to a corpse!"
Her voice was loud and clear.
Lian Xia could not help but take a step back. She felt a little fearful.
Up ahead, an old man who was in charge of displaying the property stood by the shady stairs and yelled at Lian Xia, "Hey! If you don't want to have a look, leave! There's a massive queue of people who are waiting in line!"
"Come and have a look! Don't be afraid."
It was noon, and the sun was at its highest point. The scorching heat caused everyone to perspire uncontrollably.
At that moment, Lian Xia felt that she was the most unfortunate one. She was carrying a large backpack in the suffocating heat, and she looked like was fleeing from the countryside.
Besides, she had already been queuing for a long time. She should not let this opportunity slip.
She followed the old man to the fourth floor. After a few moments, they arrived at unit 404.
Although the building was old, it was located in the city which meant that it was in a convenient location. It was close to the supermarket and subway. She would not have any trouble commuting to work. When she stepped into the house to have a look, she felt even more satisfied.
The house was about 20 square meters, with a separate kitchen. It was also plainly decorated. It might have been occupied by women before.
Suddenly, the breeze lifted the curtains, and the sun shone through the window.
Not only was it a surprisingly normal place, but it was also a little warm.
The only problem was that there was something wrong with the bed in the inner room. It had a huge hole in the middle, and it seemed that it could not be used.
"Hold on, what happened here?"
The old man turned around. "The previous lady who had asked to have a look at this place caused this. God, I specifically told her..."
The old man began to rant. He had warned the previous lady about the superstition regarding this room, but she refused to believe him and started jumping on the bed instead. When the board of the bed broke, she fell backward and injured herself.
Lian Xia was speechless.
Frankly speaking, she found it extremely silly.
In her opinion, the bed was probably moist since no one had been using it for a long time. With the weight of the previous lady, how could she blame it on the ghosts and spirits?
It was already the 21st century, and it seemed that some people still believed in this nonsense!
She cleared her throat. "The bed can't be used anymore, so I'd like to propose 400 yuan instead."
Only a real hero like her would dare to rent a haunted house and take the opportunity to bargain.
The old man was shocked by this. "How dare she lower the price?"
"This little girl is smart. She's not even afraid of ghosts! I don't know if it'll work out for her," he thought to himself.
"450 yuan! How about that?"
"Deal!"
After they went downstairs, the old man waved his hand at the long queue, indicating that the house was sold.
In an instant, the street was filled with the sounds of disappointment, and for some, it was a relief.
.......
.......
It was Lian Xia's birthday, so she went to the night market to buy some ingredients. The vegetable vendor noticed that Lian Xia was dressed simply and gave her some unknown mushrooms.
The goods sold in the night market were not that attractive, so she just bought a small cake along the way.
As she walked a few steps along the street, a young boy poked his head out of an alleyway and shouted enthusiastically.
"Are you having fun shopping, lady?"
Lian Xia clicked her tongue in annoyance, but she was attracted by the fragrance coming from the door.
It was an antique dreamcatcher glimmering under the light with its sparkling beads. It had furry feathers dangling underneath.
It evoked a sense of unusual beauty. It was not exactly beautiful, but it was not awful either.
However, when the wind blew, it should be fascinating!
"How much is this?"
The boy scratched his head and pointed at the red banner on the door.
Each of them was worth 10 yuan.
This price was very suitable given that she was low on cash at that moment.
"You really have good taste. This thing is packed with incense. It'll bring good luck," the boy added.
In order to prevent her from going back on her word, he took off the dreamcatcher and gave it to her. It was cheap, but it smelled good.
The boy pulled out another dreamcatcher and stuffed it into the bag. "It's made of pure copper. You can have this incense burner if you give me two more yuan. What do you say?"
The two of them discussed the price, and she finally ended up with a handful of incense sticks.
Just as she was about to leave, the boy suddenly pointed mysteriously behind her. "You're not staying there, are you?"
Not far away, the lights in the apartment were dim and sparse. Lian Xia froze as she thought, "What is he implying?"
"Don't be afraid. I'll teach you something. You should..."
