Was he practicing juggling?

"I want to stay next door to Jian Ran."

Lu Yanting spoke at an unhurried pace, as though saying something perfectly ordinary. But to everyone else, his words took on a different meaning, setting off an uproar, as though what they had heard was:

-Trying to seduce me, are you? I'll let you put on your little show and see who ends up humiliating himself!

-Man, I'll show you what it means to play with fire and get burned beyond recognition!

-A washed-up nobody with a rotten reputation like him should get out of showbiz!

The assistant director, the guests, the cameras, and even the crew were all brimming with inner drama, imagining an epic scene in which the troublemaker was about to be destroyed. More than a dozen gazes turned toward the end of the hallway.

They had expected that pathetic lapdog Jian Jianjian to stick out his tongue and agree, drooling all over himself. Instead, they heard an unbelievable answer.

"I refuse!" Jian Ran's pleasant but hurried voice broke the awkward silence. "It's way too inconvenient for two men to stay next door to each other!"

After delivering that firm declaration, he swiftly pulled open his dorm room door, zipped inside with his luggage, then slammed it shut and locked it in one motion.

Jian Ran leaned his lean back against the old wooden door, a sly curve lifting the corner of his mouth.

What a joke.

How could I possibly give you a chance to demand the price difference back?

Even if a ghost knocked in the middle of the night, I wouldn't open up!

Give it up!

Shen Jiafei, who was also a man and was staying right next door to Jian Ran: "..."

Damn it! He hasn't taken a liking to me, has he?!

He is pretty good-looking... Pah! No matter how good-looking he is, I can't let him latch on to me, or my agency will tear me apart!

Silence fell over the filming location in the hallway once again.

A chilly gust blew in from somewhere, sending the white curtains dancing wildly in the air.

The temperature abruptly dropped for no reason, making their surroundings seem eerie.

"Assistant director, why don't we go unpack first?"

Du Yunmeng shuddered violently. Unsure what she was afraid of, her gaze darted about. After he finished speaking, he ducked into his room too, thinking with lingering fear that if she hadn't been left with no choice, she wouldn't have come to this godforsaken place even if someone beat her to death.

The assistant director gave Iceberg Lu, who had remained silent all this time, a couple of awkward laughs. "Emperor Lu, why don't we stick with that room? The view really is fantastic. You can see the whole..."

Before he could finish, he watched helplessly as the iceberg walked up to Shen Jiafei and said in a level yet imposing tone, "I'm switching rooms with you."

"Huh? Oh! Sure." The minor celebrity wouldn't dare challenge an acclaimed best actor in the industry. Dragging his luggage around him, he whispered under Yang Ruoxi's glare, "Sister Yang, don't get angry yet. It might not be because of Jian Ran."

"Maybe Lu just thinks the number of Dorm One is unlucky?"

Yang Ruoxi didn't appreciate his effort and rolled her eyes. "Who cares?"

Before she had even finished speaking, she pushed open her dorm room door and went straight inside, leaving Shen Jiafei with the sight of her back, perfectly in keeping with her volatile persona.

Once Lu Yanting had moved in, the gathered crowd gradually dispersed.

The hallway, long neglected and steeped in age, grew even more shadowy. The overhead light suddenly flickered with a crackling buzz, and from some unknown room drifted a female jazz singer's lilting, sorrowful voice on a record.

But none of those in the rooms noticed, except... Jian Ran.

He was taking out the tools of his trade when he abruptly froze. A trace of uncertainty flashed through his amber eyes as he murmured, "Starting trouble tonight already?"

"Heh. What about my dignity?"

Jian Ran silently set down the restricted knife in his hand, rose, and headed out of his room. The instant he opened the door, the eerie singing cut off.

As though it feared something.

Jian Ran paused for a second, a languid curve lifting his lips. "At least you know what's good for you."

With that, he was about to turn back when he caught sight of a head emerging from next door out of the corner of his eye.

With stunning looks and sharply defined features, the man's dark, fathomless eyes swept toward him, inexplicably bringing a hint of chill.

Like a debt collector.

He still had business to do, after all, and couldn't offend a customer, so Jian Ran offered a polite yet awkward smile. "See you at dinner."

Then he shut his dorm room door with a bang.

Utterly merciless.

Without showing him the slightest consideration.

Lu Yanting raised a hand and touched the side of his straight, prominent nose, his expression somewhat dark.

Had anyone who knew him been there, they would certainly have recognized that the best actor was displeased and fled at once to avoid inviting trouble.

Without lingering any longer, Lu Yanting turned and returned to his room. The sheets and pillowcases had already been changed to a color suited to his obsession with cleanliness. He lay down without worry, recalling the sound he had just heard.

He was certain that sound quality could only come from a vintage record. Those were extremely expensive and generally only heard in collectors' homes.

Yet now it had appeared in an abandoned mountain lodge?

There was indeed something abnormal about it.

Lu Yanting considered this briefly, his cold gaze sweeping over every inch of the room before finally settling on the peeling plaster overhead, which looked ready to fall but hadn't. He frowned, his face full of distaste.

Trust that cheapskate Gu Feng to come up with a place like this!

Had he gone mad trying to cut costs?!

With such shoddy renovations, would any guests even stay here?!

Thinking of his childhood friend Gu Feng gave Lu Yanting a headache. He raised a hand to rub between his brows, only for his eyes to suddenly light up as he recalled a crucial point.

The singing had indeed drawn me outside.

Having been cursed, I'd encountered plenty of supernatural incidents like this.

Every time, it took utter chaos before things ended, but today, it had stopped outright because Jian Ran appeared...

Could he really have some ability?

Lu Yanting sank into thought.

Dinner's guiding principle and spirit was self-sufficiency: work with your own hands and have plenty to eat.

The first-floor dining room had a secondhand Brother brand refrigerator: compact, roomy, and smelly.

The moment Yang Ruoxi opened it, the stench drove her back. Covering her nose, she pulled a fussy face. "It reeks of mold. Is anything in here even edible?!"

The assistant director hurried to smooth things over. "Old refrigerators just smell like this. It's fine. Don't forget, our theme this episode is going green."

"Reusing secondhand goods is another way to protect the environment."

Jian Ran couldn't bother with all that. After all, "work" required stamina. How would he have any strength without a full meal?

He stood on tiptoe and craned his head to look into the refrigerator. "Not bad. The ingredients are fresh."

With that, he squeezed past Yang Ruoxi, reached his long arm inside, grabbed a random handful, then turned and tossed it onto the cutting board.

"I don't know how to make anything, you know?" Yang Ruoxi waved her hands, looking eager to keep her distance.

Jian Ran cast her a sidelong glance. "Can't cook? That's fine."

"Just don't eat."

"Why should I?!" Yang Ruoxi flared up.

Jian Ran had already reached the cutting board and was also in a hurry to answer. Hooking the cleaver with his index finger, he began wielding the kitchen utensil before everyone's dumbfounded eyes, spinning it too fast for them to count the rotations. He caught it in midair, then slammed it down onto the wooden cutting board, leaving it standing firmly upright.

"Why?" He lifted his eyelids and glanced at Yang Ruoxi, whose mouth hung open in shock. "Because here, I call the shots!"

"..."

Everyone there was stunned speechless, with only their noses still drawing breath.

Lu Yanting narrowed his eyes. "..."

Was he practicing juggling?