During the day, with people coming and going, their sudden appearance in the neighborhood would easily attract the attention of the residents. But at night, when everyone is asleep, people can use various teleportation cards to explore the neighborhood at night, making their movements much easier.
Old Mo took his "grandson" Ye Qi by taxi to the food court; Long Sen and Qu Wanyue were also there.
They arrived at 6:30 and met in the food court. They pretended not to know each other and sat down to eat.
Soon, Yu Hanjiang arrived. He pretended not to recognize everyone and quickly filled his stomach with a bowl of noodles. He then typed a message in the group chat: "I'll go alone first to investigate the neighborhood. The four of you wander around and wait for my instructions." He was still dressed in plain clothes, a sweater and a coat, just like any ordinary person on the street. No one would associate him with a policeman.
After having dinner, Yu Hanjiang went to a nearby real estate agency to look for available rooms, posing as a renter. He said, "I suffer from neurasthenia and often have insomnia at night. I can only fall asleep in absolute silence. What's the quietest neighborhood around here?"
" Antai Garden, huh?" The agent, a very enthusiastic young man, said with a smile, "The occupancy rate of this community is less than 50%. The buildings are very old, and the rent is cheap. Most of the residents are businesses in the neighborhood. Many of the breakfast shop owners have to get up at four in the morning to prepare breakfast, so most residents are already asleep by ten at night, so it's very quiet."
Yu Hanjiang understood immediately and nodded, asking, "Are there any apartments for rent in this neighborhood? Can I go take a look?"
How big of a house do you need? Do you want to live alone or share with others?
"A one-bedroom apartment, or a shared apartment, is fine. Let's go check out the place first, okay?"
The agent simply nodded, took a set of keys, and led Yu Hanjiang into Antai Residential Area.
The security guard at the entrance of the residential compound was dozing off in the security room, practically useless.
There are no surveillance cameras around this old residential area. The entire complex consists of 16 buildings, all of which are 7 stories high. Many of the balconies are empty, indicating that no one lives there. As the real estate agent said, the occupancy rate is indeed less than 50%.
Yu Hanjiang followed him into the courtyard. It was past dinner time, and a few elderly people were walking their dogs in the courtyard. However, compared to most residential areas, this community did seem too deserted.
The real estate agent took Yu Hanjiang to see several apartments, and Yu Hanjiang took the opportunity to familiarize himself with the building layout within the complex.
Each building has two units, with four apartments per floor. The one at the east end is a large 160-square-meter apartment with four bedrooms and two living rooms; the one in the middle is a 90-square-meter apartment with two bedrooms and one living room, the most economical and affordable; and the one at the west end is a 130-square-meter apartment with three bedrooms and two living rooms, suitable for middle-class families.
The old, dilapidated building has walls covered with graffiti by children, and many residents have signs on their doors advertising services such as "drain cleaning," "locksmith services," and "professional infertility treatment." There are no security cameras in any of the building's stairwells.
Yu Hanjiang went to see several apartments with the real estate agent. Although the facilities outside the community were old, the apartments inside were reasonably well-decorated.
The agent asked, "Handsome, which one do you think is better?"
Yu Hanjiang said calmly, "The rent is too expensive. Are there any cheaper basements?"
The real estate agent was dumbfounded: "The basement?"
Yu Hanjiang nodded: "I'm a little short on cash lately."
The agent gave him a sympathetic look and said, "Basements are available, and the rent is indeed the cheapest. Um... if you're sure you want to rent a basement, I can take you to see one?"
"This is troublesome."
The agent glanced at Yu Hanjiang again, finding it hard to reconcile the handsome, aloof man with the image of someone "so poor he lives in a basement." He muttered to himself, then led Yu Hanjiang downstairs to the basement door and opened the heavy iron gate.
"Although the basement is cheap to rent, it's small, only big enough for a bed, no toilet, no kitchen, and no shower… Hey buddy, if you're really in trouble, you can use it for a few months," the agent said kindly.
"Okay, let's see."
In front of me was a narrow passage, with many doors vaguely visible on both sides. Each door was tightly closed, and the door numbers were written on them, such as 101 and 102.
There were no lights overhead, it was pitch black. The agent fumbled for a button and pressed it, and the light came on, but there was only one light bulb in the whole corridor, making the light very dim.
Yu Hanjiang scanned his surroundings sharply as he asked, "Has anyone ever rented a basement?"
"Of course there are. Sigh, people struggling to make ends meet have limited income each month and can only afford to rent a basement." He paused, then coughed with a dry laugh. "I'm not talking about you. You look very cultured. You're probably just down on your luck right now. You'll be fine soon."
"Hmm." Yu Hanjiang responded casually, then asked, "Anyone renting several basements as storage rooms?"
"Yes!" The agent pointed to the opposite side of the window and said, "The basement of Unit 1 in that building across the street, number 13, is completely rented out. It's a few people who run a business at the farmers' market, selling beef and mutton. They use the basement as a warehouse. In winter, the basement doesn't have heating, and the temperature is often several degrees below zero, almost like a refrigerator. The beef and mutton won't spoil, and it saves electricity!"
"..." Just as expected.
Through his inspection of the community, Yu Hanjiang discovered that the most secluded place was the basement.
If an unlicensed clinic rents a residence to perform surgery, going up and down the stairs might lead to encounters with neighbors, arousing suspicion. However, there is a locked door in the basement. After opening the door and going down one floor, there is a closed corridor with 14 rooms on both sides. As long as this door is closed, there is no fear of being discovered by anyone.
The basement is cool, making it suitable as a storage room. Renting an entire building with 14 basement units under the guise of "warehouse" wouldn't arouse suspicion from real estate agencies or landlords. Running a beef and mutton business could also conveniently explain the strange smells associated with murders and body disposal.
Yu Hanjiang softened the sharpness in his eyes and calmly said, "Thank you. The basement is in terrible condition; I'll rent the place on the fourth floor again."
I'd like a four-bedroom, two-living-room apartment. How much deposit do I need? I'll be sharing it with a friend.
"Yes, it's definitely more comfortable to live in a big house." After finalizing the deal, the real estate agent immediately and happily took Yu Hanjiang to sign the contract.
As darkness fell, Yu Hanjiang, having finished his reconnaissance, called his teammates to enter Antai Garden.
The agent just told him that the entire basement of the building has been rented out, in Unit 1 of Building 13.
Based on his memory, Yu Hanjiang led his teammates to the ground floor of Building 13.
His [Master Key] still has uses left, and it can open the door to the basement.
After Yu Hanjiang opened the door, his teammates quietly entered the basement. Although Yu Hanjiang deduced that the mysterious organization had already left, everyone remained highly vigilant—what if those people were slow to react and hadn't retreated? Perhaps what awaited them in the basement was the dark muzzle of a gun!
Yu Hanjiang led the way, carrying the luminous pearl, followed by Ye Qi, Lao Mo, and Qu Wanyue in the middle, with Long Sen bringing up the rear.
However, just as the five people entered the dimly lit basement, the door behind them suddenly slammed shut with a "bang".
A notification flashed across everyone's screen simultaneously—
Welcome to the Antai Garden Underground Maze
[The maze has a 30-minute time limit. If you can't find the correct exit, each of you will lose a kidney! — Diamond A ]
Everyone: "......"
Is it okay to swear?!