Chapter15: The Haunted Alley, Sudden Hate Wave & Explosive Fake News
Meanwhile, Tang Yu and Hu Tao had already followed the navigation to Wangsheng Alley.
It was a narrow alley tucked deep inside a side street. On both sides stood old, long-abandoned houses. These ancient buildings had been empty for years—thick layers of moss now covered the walls.
The sun blazed high overhead, yet the alley remained shrouded in unnatural gloom, as if some invisible force blocked the light from reaching the ground.
The moment they stepped into the alley, Tang Yu felt a piercing chill sink straight into his bones. He couldn't help shrinking his neck.
"Are you scared?" Hu Tao's voice came from behind him.
Hearing her, Tang Yu immediately straightened up. As a man, even if he was afraid, he couldn't admit it.
He stepped in front of Hu Tao, patted his chest proudly, and said: "Follow your big bro—I've got this."
Hu Tao bit her lip to stifle a laugh and followed behind him.
Right then— "Ahhh!"
Tang Yu suddenly let out a startled scream.
At that exact moment, a dark cloud conveniently drifted over the sun. The alley plunged into even deeper darkness.
In the instant Tang Yu yelled, Hu Tao flashed in front of him like lightning, shielding him behind her.
She stared ahead with full vigilance: "You two—get out of here! Leave quickly! This place isn't clean!"
In the far corner of the alley, a filthy old beggar was muttering frantically to himself like a madman.
Tang Yu poked his head out from behind Hu Tao and carefully studied the beggar.
Though dressed in rags with long, matted hair covering his face, the man was clearly human.
If it was just a person, there was nothing to be afraid of.
"Who are you?" Tang Yu asked.
He felt a little embarrassed now about his earlier scream.
The beggar shook his head wildly and didn't answer. Suddenly, he stood up and started shooing them away.
"Leave! Get out!"
As he approached while shouting, Hu Tao's expression turned serious. She dropped into a combat-ready stance: "Don't come any closer."
Her voice carried a chilling edge.
The beggar froze for a second, then turned and bolted.
"You won't leave? Fine—I'm out! If you die, don't come haunting me!"
Watching the mad beggar flee, Tang Yu fell into deep thought.
Why would a crazy beggar be living in an abandoned alley?
Combined with what the breakfast stall lady had said earlier, goosebumps rose all over Tang Yu's body.
A single thought flashed through his mind: This alley… might actually be haunted!
"Let's go," Hu Tao said, snapping him back to reality.
"Oh!" Tang Yu jumped slightly, then sheepishly followed behind her.
Right now he felt like a total coward. He didn't dare walk alone.
Soon, they reached the door of a rundown shop.
The door was old solid wood—simple and antique-looking, with no lock. Because it had been vacant so long, a thick layer of dust covered everything.
Tang Yu checked his phone again and nodded to Hu Tao: "This is the one."
Hu Tao stepped forward and gently pushed the door open.
Creaaaak—
The ancient door groaned, and a shower of dust rained down.
Tang Yu quickly yanked Hu Tao behind him, taking a face full of dust himself.
"Achoo!" Tang Yu sneezed violently and couldn't help cursing: "Damn it—no wonder the rent is so cheap. No wonder the landlord only does online deals. Even dogs wouldn't come here."
When he finished, he noticed Hu Tao staring at him. Tang Yu: "..."
The two stepped inside to inspect.
They quickly realized the place was much larger than expected.
There was a front courtyard, then a main hall, and behind that a back hall. The entire building was three stories tall.
In short— if converted into a funeral parlor, it would be perfect. Plenty of space to store funeral supplies.
"What do you think?" After looking around, Hu Tao and Tang Yu stood in the courtyard. Hu Tao asked him.
Tang Yu thought for a moment and answered honestly: "Besides being a bit remote, everything else is fine."
"Then this is the one," Hu Tao said with a smile.
"...Alright," Tang Yu hesitated but eventually agreed.
While checking earlier, though the house felt a bit eerie, nothing supernatural had happened. No ghosts.
"It's just old. Once we rent it, we'll need to renovate properly."
"I'll find a renovation team as soon as we get back. Tell me what style you like."
Since he'd already agreed, Tang Yu started planning seriously for Hu Tao.
Hu Tao nodded. "Okay. But we'll need to come back here tonight."
"Why?" Tang Yu was confused.
After choosing it, pay the rent online, hand it to the renovation team— why come back at night? Especially since the unrenovated house looked pretty creepy!
Hu Tao gave a mysterious smile and glanced toward the back hall: "You'll find out tonight."
After that, the two left Wangsheng Alley. Only when sunlight hit Tang Yu again did he feel warmth return to his body.
By the time they got home, it was already 2:30 PM.
To make money, they immediately started streaming.
{Wife, you're live! Where's that scumbag Tang Yu?} {Wife, run away—don't stay with Tang Yu. He's trash.} {If you dare touch my wife, I'll kill you.} {Damn it—good-looking guy turns out to be a total scumbag.} {.....}
The moment they went live, the chat was completely flooded with curses aimed at Tang Yu.
Tang Yu was utterly confused!
What the hell happened in just one afternoon? What did he do wrong?
Hu Tao was equally baffled. Seeing everyone flaming Tang Yu, her face immediately darkened. "What nonsense are you all spouting? What happened?"
Seeing Hu Tao defend Tang Yu only made the viewers angrier.
{Wife, stop protecting him—he's human garbage.} {Wife, just search these keywords online: "scumbag streamer," "forced abortion," etc. Then you'll understand why we're cursing him.} {So innocent! Hu Tao, don't let his handsome face fool you.} {.....}
Tang Yu had already grabbed his phone and started searching the keywords.
The top result was a glaring news article.
{Family, who understands? I got scammed and ruined by a scumbag streamer.}
Out of curiosity, Tang Yu clicked it.
As he read, his blood pressure shot through the roof.
The content of the article was absolutely explosive!
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