Chapter 033: The Boss Arranged for Me to Stay in a Haunted House

Li Tianque wandered in a daze to the bus stop a kilometer away, dusk already settling in.

In the distance, the stingy setting sun cast murky red rays, slicing everything it touched into blurred, angular shadows strewn across the wet, dark ground.

Standing amidst the chill of the forest-like wind, Li Tianque glanced back at the towering building behind him, its form flickering in the mist. He saw his hand had returned to its normal state, and felt slightly reassured.

He pinched himself hard, still unable to believe such bizarre things had happened to him so suddenly.

Pain...

It seemed this was no dream; everything that had happened was real.

Just moments ago, guided by Lu Mou, Li Tianque had signed a contract with Shian Pest Control Company.

For the next ninety-nine years, he would be a full-fledged employee of Shian Pest Control, unable to resign or break the contract for any reason, though he could shorten the term by completing assignments.

The person responsible for signing him on was Kyle, manager of the HR department.

Throughout the process, Li Tianque never saw this person’s physical form—he could only hear the voice, which sounded like a foreigner speaking clumsy Chinese, accompanied by a constant crackling electric noise.

The onboarding procedure was simple: this unseen figure fetched a blank book from the shelf behind. The cover, spine, and all the pages were utterly empty.

Following Lu Mou’s instructions, Li Tianque took the book and held it tightly.

Soon, a rush of warmth surged through him, making his heart race and his face flush.

Then, content began to appear in the book; his name emerged on the cover, and beneath it, a line of unfamiliar script.

Judging by its placement, it must have been a translation of his name.

He opened the book and found its first page contained a photo of himself, perfectly reproducing his current appearance and expression—as if staring into a mirror, yet with a palpable texture pressed against the page.

He flipped to the second page and discovered his résumé, astonishingly detailed, covering every year of his life and all major events—even things he had forgotten, now crisply recorded.

Li Tianque was unnerved, and just as he prepared to turn another page, the book vanished.

Lu Mou had warned him not to read further, as it might bring dreadful consequences.

Afterward, Lu Mou handed him a key, telling him it was for his apartment, urging him to rest for the night and await tomorrow’s work assignment.

Thus, Li Tianque completed his onboarding, took the key, and, guided by Lu Mou, walked out of Shian Pest Control.

Now, he stood by a desolate roadside. He had wanted to call a Didi ride, but found there was no signal at all, so he trudged along the muddy, wet road, hoping to reach an area with reception.

Though he was safe for now, and the terrifying ghostly shadow hadn’t reappeared, Li Tianque still felt strange about the thing atop his head.

Especially when the wind picked up, he instinctively reached to press down the cap on his head.

Before leaving, Lu Mou had cautioned him: the beret on his head was custom-made. Unless he pressed a special button under the brim, no ordinary force could remove it.

He walked for an uncertain length of time, gradually feeling a trace of warmth as the thick fog behind him slowly dissipated.

He suddenly realized that fog usually appeared in the morning, yet now, with the sun about to set, it was still rising—an odd occurrence.

But at least he was away from it; after such a long day, strange happenings no longer seemed so unusual.

Although he had just woken up and wasn’t tired, he still wanted to find somewhere to rest—and he was genuinely curious about the apartment he would be living in.

The road widened, and the sounds of engines, horns, and pedestrians drifted in. Li Tianque took out his phone and saw the signal had returned. He quickly summoned a Didi ride, setting the address Lu Mou had given him.

Since he entered the destination in advance, the driver should head straight there, but once he boarded, the driver’s expression turned odd. The man touched his nose and asked:

“You’re heading to Tianluan Cloud Bay, aren’t you?”

“Yes, that’s right. Why?” Li Tianque frowned, sensing an ominous air from the driver’s face.

“Ah, nothing, nothing—the place is just... a bit out of the way, haha...” The driver laughed awkwardly, his expression clearly strange.

“Yeah, it really is out of the way. It’s actually inside Longtou Mountain. I wonder if there’s any bus service there.” Li Tianque muttered.

Hearing this, the driver was surprised:

“You’re not one of the villa residents?”

“Ah... not yet!” Li Tianque replied.

“So you’re visiting a friend?” the driver asked.

“No, not exactly. I guess I’ll start living there from today!”

“Damn, you didn’t get scammed by some shady agent, did you? Are you renting there?”

The driver knew Tianluan Cloud Bay was a villa district, and judging by Li Tianque’s attire, he certainly didn’t look like an owner. Most likely, he was renting.

In recent years, many hiking enthusiasts had formed groups to climb Longtou Mountain, often renting homestays in Tianluan Cloud Bay and nearby neighborhoods.

“No, actually, a friend lent me the place. Why, is there something wrong with the houses there?” Li Tianque asked.

The driver frowned, hesitated, then spoke in a low voice:

“You don’t know? There’s not just something wrong—there’s a big problem!

Listen, young man, don’t think I’m trying to scare you. What I’m about to say is true.

Tianluan Cloud Bay is actually pretty nice—quiet surroundings, fresh air.

Mostly, the local big shots buy houses there to entertain guests or meet lovers; there aren’t many permanent residents. Of course, lots of folks rent homestays online and come to play, so it looks lively at times.

But just last week, something happened! Guess what?”

“Haunted?” Li Tianque raised his eyebrows.

“Ah, so you know already!”

“You asked me to guess. I just said whatever came to mind. Go on!”

“There really was a haunting... Screams echoed through the night, even security guards got hurt. Afterwards, the police were called, and a special ops unit investigated.

Though things settled down later, the villa district has been completely closed off. Outsiders need to book in advance and enter with a resident. I heard zombies appeared in the mountains, with several houses nearly torn apart.”

If Li Tianque had heard all this before recent events, he would have laughed it off as nonsense, especially the absurd mention of zombies.

But after the ghostly shadow incident, his worldview had changed. Even if a zombie leapt out in front of him now, he wouldn’t be surprised.

With that thought, the ease he’d just begun to feel gave way to unease...

Could it be... his new home was a haunted house?

(End of chapter)