What’s the point of just walking away like this?
It’s useless!
Do I have money?
No!
Who can I borrow from?
No one would lend him a hundred thousand!
Zuo Si’s expression was heavy, chewing on the food at the table as if it were wax.
“Do you have something on your mind?” Ding Ruxiao looked at Zuo Si’s pale face, thinking he was dissatisfied with her cooking, and couldn’t help but feel a bit angry.
Zuo Si didn’t answer immediately; he was filtering through every person he knew in his mind.
He hoped to find someone who could lend him money.
But no matter how he thought about it, he couldn’t come up with anyone who could lend him a hundred thousand!
Suddenly, Zuo Si looked at Ding Ruxiao. Although they had only known each other for a day, apart from her, he really couldn’t think of anyone else.
Seeing that Ding Ruxiao’s living conditions seemed decent, she should be able to come up with a hundred thousand.
“I want to borrow money.”
“How much? I don’t have much…” Ding Ruxiao saw Zuo Si’s appearance and figured he must be in quite a bit of trouble, needing a lot of money.
She didn’t dare to agree outright, fearing she wouldn’t be able to provide it later.
But Zuo Si thought Ding Ruxiao didn’t want to lend him money.
However, Zuo Si didn’t blame her; instead, he felt a bit ashamed of his own recklessness.
They had only known each other for a day, and he was already asking to borrow a hundred thousand.
How ridiculous.
If Ding Ruxiao’s family was really wealthy, her brother wouldn’t be doing that spirit-seeking livestream.
And she wouldn’t be working as a nightclub hostess.
“I’m sorry…” Zuo Si sincerely apologized, stood up, and prepared to leave.
“Hey~ wait! Wait for me!” No matter how Ding Ruxiao called out, Zuo Si didn’t turn back and walked straight downstairs.
Zuo Si arrived at the nearest bus stop, checked his balance, and smiled wryly.
He only had five yuan left…
Sigh…
After waiting for a while, the bus finally arrived, and he planned to head back to the eastern suburbs first.
But just as one of his legs stepped onto the bus, he heard Ding Ruxiao calling out.
“Zuo Si! Zuo Si~! Wait!”
Zuo Si retracted his leg, apologized to the bus driver, and walked toward Ding Ruxiao. Seeing her panting, he asked in surprise, “What’s wrong?”
Ding Ruxiao tidied her messy hair and handed a black plastic bag to Zuo Si.
She said, “This is one hundred and ten thousand. I was going to… um… just take it and use it. This is all my savings; I hope it can help you.”
Zuo Si felt a warm current surge through his heart. He couldn’t quite understand why she was helping him so much when they had only known each other for a day.
Was it just because of that lie Captain Niu had said?
Zuo Si’s gratitude toward Ding Ruxiao was beyond words.
He could only remember it in his heart.
He didn’t refuse the money because he knew he would be able to pay it back soon.
He took out ten thousand from the plastic bag and handed it back to Ding Ruxiao.
He said, “A hundred thousand is enough. I’ll pay you back within a week!”
Zuo Si’s gaze was firm, leaving Ding Ruxiao a bit stunned.
After they said their goodbyes, Zuo Si called the owner of the haunted house. Upon learning that the owner was nearby, he immediately took a ride to Huaxing Happy World.
The haunted house was for sale right there.
Zuo Si had carefully looked over the amusement park’s information last night.
It had been built a long time ago, starting operations twenty years ago.
The operating model was completely different from today’s amusement parks.
The entertainment facilities there were all privately owned, basically one family per facility.
Most of the equipment was quite old; although it was well-maintained, some things were outdated and had a strong sense of age.
Most young people were unwilling to come here to play.
Zuo Si couldn’t care less about that now; he just wanted to own his haunted house first.
Moreover, if he opened a haunted house, the ghosts inside would be real, definitely different from other haunted houses.
Once he gained fame, making money wouldn’t be a problem.
After getting off the bus, Zuo Si looked at the dilapidated amusement park entrance and walked straight in.
Although there were security guards at the entrance, they didn’t stop him because it wasn’t a ticketed entry.
If he wanted to play any attraction, he could pay for it.
Today was Sunday, and there were still a lot of people in the amusement park, but not many were actually spending money to play; most were just walking around and looking.
Zuo Si asked around for the location of the haunted house, and many people told him it hadn’t been in operation for two or three years.
He couldn’t help but be surprised that it had been vacant for so long…
It seemed this haunted house indeed had issues.
He began to ask some older people if anything had happened in the haunted house before.
Why did it stop operating?
After asking a few people, none had heard of any incidents at the haunted house.
That was a bit strange.
If nothing had happened, why wasn’t it operating? Was the owner just lazy?
Was he wealthy and capricious?
That didn’t make sense either.
Such a cheap haunted house had been listed online for so long without selling; wasn’t that suspicious?
With a nervous heart, Zuo Si finally met the owner of the haunted house.
He was a middle-aged man with a sharp face, looking like a shady businessman.
Upon meeting, he acted like a thief, glancing around nervously and leading Zuo Si to a corner.
“Hello, young brother, my name is Qin Hui. May I ask your name?”
….??? Qin Hui? Didn’t his family learn history? Why such a name?
Zuo Si found it amusing but kept a straight face.
“Just call me Zuo Si.”
“Ah, so it’s Brother Zuo. You want to buy my haunted house?” Qin Hui pointed to a building not far away, which looked quite large.
Selling it for a hundred thousand was really too cheap.
“Yes, I want to buy it.”
“Good! Good!” Qin Hui glanced around again, pulled out a contract from his pocket, and said, “Sign this, and the haunted house will be yours.”
“Ah? I haven’t paid yet.” Zuo Si was a bit speechless. This Qin Hui looked like a shady businessman, yet he wanted him to sign the contract without receiving payment first.
Could it be that he wasn’t the real owner of the haunted house?
Was he trying to scam him?
Zuo Si couldn’t help but doubt Qin Hui.
“The phone number of the haunted house owner is verified on the website; it shouldn’t be wrong.”
“Could this Qin Hui have stolen the haunted house owner’s phone?”
Zuo Si scrutinized the somewhat sleazy middle-aged man. If he couldn’t figure out his identity, he wouldn’t pay.
There are too many scammers these days; one must be cautious.
“How about it, young brother?” Qin Hui looked a bit anxious. The more he acted like this, the more Zuo Si doubted him.
“If you think it’s too expensive, the price is negotiable.” Qin Hui said tentatively.
“Sorry, Brother Qin, may I ask why you want to sell this haunted house?”
“Something happened at home; I really don’t have time to manage it.” Qin Hui replied without hesitation, as if he had rehearsed the lines. He glanced around again and said to Zuo Si, “You can rest assured about the paperwork; we’re going through legitimate channels, and there won’t be any issues. If you’re still worried, I can put the haunted house in your name first, and then you can pay me.”
Zuo Si raised an eyebrow. Was there such a good deal? And he happened to encounter it?
Although the situation felt suspicious, Zuo Si couldn’t afford to waste time, nor could he buy another haunted house. No matter what tricks were involved, he had to buy it first.
“Okay, let’s go handle the paperwork!”
Zuo Si agreed and walked out with Qin Hui.
But just halfway through, he saw an old security guard running toward him, shouting as he came.
“Wait, wait for me! Cough, cough, cough!”
The security guard looked to be over sixty years old. After running a few steps, he was already panting heavily, but he still persisted, as if he had something urgent to say.
“Is he calling us?”
Zuo Si stopped in his tracks, planning to wait for the old security guard to see what he wanted.
“No, no! Let’s go quickly; this security guard is crazy!”
Qin Hui reached out to pull Zuo Si away.
Zuo Si stepped aside. He really disliked strangers touching him.
In an amusement park, even if it was too poor to hire proper security, it wouldn’t hire a madman as a guard, right?
“Since Qin Hui doesn’t want me to talk to this old security guard, I’ll just have to see what he has to say.”
Seeing Zuo Si refuse to leave with him, Qin Hui sighed helplessly, his gaze toward the old security guard filled with resentment.
Huff… Huff…
The old security guard stood in front of Zuo Si, patting his chest to catch his breath. After a while, he finally said, “Young man, are you planning to buy his haunted house?”
“Yes, old man, what’s the matter?”
“You can’t buy it, you can’t buy it.” The old security guard waved his hands, shaking his head repeatedly.
“Why?” Zuo Si was a bit surprised.
Before the old security guard could speak, Qin Hui interrupted angrily, “Liu Hong! What does my selling my haunted house have to do with you? Get lost!”
Liu Hong didn’t get angry at Qin Hui’s insults; instead, he looked at him apologetically.
“Brother Qin, selling this haunted house is just creating trouble for yourself, isn’t it? Just do me a favor and wait a few years. Once I save enough money, I can buy it from you, right?”
“F*ck you, don’t you see how many years you have left to live? Hurry up and get lost, you old fool!”
Qin Hui’s attitude was extremely rude, making Zuo Si frown. This guy’s character was really questionable; the old security guard had been calm and polite throughout.
Yet Qin Hui was spouting off insults.
“Old man, can you tell me why I can’t buy this haunted house?”
“Sigh!” Liu Hong looked at Zuo Si and sighed, pondering for a moment before saying, “If you buy it, you will die!”
Qin Hui, upon hearing this, gritted his teeth in anger and shouted, “You’re talking nonsense! I’ve been living well for two years since I bought it! Get lost!”
Zuo Si couldn’t help but nod, thinking, “Qin Hui is indeed living well. Why does Liu Hong say I’ll die if I buy it?”
“Isn’t it because you haven’t operated it?”
Liu Hong’s words immediately reminded Zuo Si.
This haunted house had indeed been closed for two or three years.
“As long as this haunted house is operational, the owner will die mysteriously. Their deaths seem unrelated to the haunted house, but they are definitely not coincidences.” Liu Hong looked at Zuo Si earnestly, “Young man, listen to this old man; don’t be fooled!”
Qin Hui was so furious he didn’t know what to say, his chest heaving violently. If it weren’t illegal to hit someone, and if Liu Hong weren’t an old man, he would have slapped him long ago.
“Okay, I understand. Thank you, old man~”
Zuo Si smiled slightly, expressing his gratitude to Liu Hong.
Liu Hong sighed in relief and tried to stop another.
Qin Hui, on the other hand, walked out alone, looking a bit dejected.
Zuo Si immediately called out, “Hey~ Brother, wait for me.”
Qin Hui turned back, looking at him with annoyance, “What are you waiting for?”
Zuo Si shrugged, “Aren’t we buying your haunted house?”
Qin Hui and Liu Hong both looked at him in disbelief, asking, “You still want to buy it?”
“Of course! Why wouldn’t I buy it?!”
Zuo Si strode forward, signaling Qin Hui to follow him to handle the paperwork.
Qin Hui looked overjoyed; after two years, he finally met someone who didn’t believe in superstitions!
Liu Hong could only shake his head helplessly, lamenting the young man’s fate.
In the afternoon, Zuo Si and Qin Hui completed the paperwork.
After some haggling, Zuo Si bought it for only eighty thousand.
When they parted, Qin Hui’s expression was mixed, wanting to say something to Zuo Si but unsure what to say.
There was guilt, relief, and a hint of fortune.
“Little brother, I have a few words to pass on to you.”
“Go ahead, brother.”
“What Liu Hong said, although a bit far-fetched, you can’t dismiss it. Be careful in the future.”
“Yeah, I understand. Thank you for the reminder, brother…”
Zuo Si said, preparing to leave. He had many things to be cautious about in the future, so he didn’t take Qin Hui’s words too seriously.
“Hey, hey, hey~ I haven’t finished yet.”
“What is it, brother? Is there anything else?”
“Hmm… Aren’t you curious about how the previous haunted house owners died? How many people died?”
“I’m a bit curious, but their deaths have nothing to do with me, right?”
“…It’s up to you. However, if you can avoid operating it, you should, because while money is important, life is even more important.”
After saying this, Qin Hui turned and left, believing he had done his duty.
Years ago, Qin Hui had only been reminded by Liu Hong after buying this haunted house.
Although Qin Hui was greedy, he was inherently timid. After investigating the unfortunate fates of the previous haunted house owners, he didn’t dare to open for business again.
The large haunted house had thus been abandoned for two years, with its price dropping repeatedly.
Every time someone came to check the haunted house, Liu Hong would come out to stop them, saying the same thing, advising them not to buy.
So the haunted house had never been sold.
Qin Hui hated Liu Hong to the core; if Liu Hong had warned him earlier, he wouldn’t have bought the haunted house.
But after he bought it, Liu Hong did everything he could to obstruct him.
But now it was finally sold, which was a relief for him.