In the confined space, two men stood.
Jiang Ran was the one who finally broke the silence.
"I'm Jiang Ran," he said. "I just moved in here today too."
Qin Fei glanced at Jiang Ran, apparently surprised they were both new residents.
He nodded. "Qin Fei."
Then silence fell between them again.
When the elevator reached the third floor, Jiang Ran stepped out. To his surprise, Qin Fei followed.
Jiang Ran slowed his pace curiously, watching as Qin Fei dragged his luggage to Room 302's door.
"So the old man is in 301, Qin Fei's in 302, I'm in 304... that must mean the beautiful woman I met earlier is in 303?"
The moment his door closed, Room 301's door cracked open slightly.
Meanwhile, Qin Fei unlocked Room 302's door with his key.
Stepping inside, his jaw dropped.
The apartment's luxurious interior completely exceeded his expectations.
Just as promised - fully furnished, ready for immediate occupancy.
After closing the door and leaving his luggage in the living room, Qin Fei began exploring 302.
A quick tour left him speechless - the place was perfect.
Living here would be pure bliss.
But enjoyment aside, his mind kept returning to that strange agreement.
Qin Fei, age 20, attended a mediocre university but was technically a college student.
An avid gamer since childhood, he'd poured countless hours and money into games.
Small purchases at first - just allowance and New Year's money.
But as he grew older, the spending escalated.
Several years ago, he discovered a private game server.
Addicted instantly, his spending spiraled out of control.
Not only did he exhaust his own funds, he stole tens of thousands his parents had painstakingly saved.
Worse, he took out numerous online loans.
Now his parents hunted him down.
Debt collectors hounded him daily.
His phone rang nonstop with calls.
Only then did he realize the magnitude of his mistakes.
But realization alone solved nothing - he needed solutions!
Yet what could he possibly do?
Even ignoring his parents' money, the online loans demanded repayment.
Where could a broke student find over 500,000 yuan?
Borrowing was impossible - everyone knew about his troubles.
Debt collectors even called his professors.
Just when all seemed hopeless...
A miracle appeared.
A mysterious middle-aged man approached him.
Promised 10,000 yuan per day just for staying at Alice Apartment.
Frankly, Qin Fei didn't believe it at first.
Since when did such opportunities exist?
Googling Alice Apartment only deepened his skepticism.
Until the man showed his bank balance - that staggering number forced belief.
Desperate, Qin Fei agreed.
Signed a confidentiality agreement.
10,000 yuan per day of residence.
Now here he stood.
Checking his phone (he'd removed the original SIM card due to harassment, using a new one registered under someone else's ID), he messaged the middle-aged man:
[Hey, about that 10k per day - I'm here now. Arrived this afternoon. Does today count?]
Qin Fei had decided:
Payment was promised daily, in cash.
If he stayed a day or two without payment, he'd leave immediately.
The reply came seconds later:
[Of course today counts. Once midnight passes, 10,000 yuan will deposit into your new account.]
Qin Fei's eyes lit up. He pocketed his phone, calculating:
"10k daily means 300k monthly, 600k in two months, 900k in three... 3.65 million yearly!"
"Not only could I clear my debts, I'd become a millionaire!!!"
His imagination soared - until reality intruded.
If this deal was real...
10,000 yuan just for staying?
Why would such an opportunity exist?
What's the catch?
He'd asked the middle-aged man, who revealed nothing beyond the daily payment.
"Could this be... a haunted house?"
Qin Fei considered the possibility.
Some properties became unsellable after violent crimes occurred.
Hence "haunted house testers" existed.
But he wasn't one.
Besides, testers earned maybe 1,000 daily - not 10,000.
Suspicious, Qin Fei thoroughly inspected the apartment.
Thirty minutes later, he remained puzzled:
"Completely normal. No signs of haunting. Nothing feels off or creepy."
He searched online for "Alice Apartment hauntings" - zero results.
"Whatever. I'll stay for now," he muttered.
Qin Fei's inspection skills proved lacking - or rather, the organizers' camera installation skills excelled.
Room 302 contained hidden cameras everywhere - absolutely no blind spots, even the bathroom.
Not just 302. The old man's 301, Jiang Ran's 304 - all secretly monitored.
The entire Alice Apartment was under surveillance.
No resident could hide.
Meanwhile, in the live stream room:
Middle-aged Uncle: [Qin Fei's smarter than expected - gaming didn't rot his brain completely. Actually questioning why he's getting paid, suspecting hauntings. Last round had a similar gaming addict who never questioned the deal - just booted up his laptop immediately.]
Domineering Female CEO: [Oh right, that gaming addict! Dude slept three hours daily, gamed the rest.]
I am the Hero: [Pity. With that dedication applied elsewhere, he could've achieved anything.]