Apocalyptic Hoarding Diary

Chapter 492 Rental Contract

She straightened up and wiped the water off her hands on her pants.

The pants were dry; when the water was rubbed on them, it only changed that small patch of fabric from light gray to dark gray, leaving a blurry watermark.

She hadn't taken a hot shower in a long time; even cold water was a luxury while traveling.

She could only wipe herself with a damp towel in the tent during her rest time each day. Her body was covered with layers upon layers of sand, so thick that she didn't even want to think about it.

Lan Yue's voice came from next door, "Xiao Yan—how's it going on your end—?"

"It's alright," Xu Xiaoyan raised her voice. "How about you?"

"The mattress is a bit dirty, but it's sleptable," Lan Yue's voice came from nearby, closer than before, as if she had walked from one end of the room to the other, near the window.

"It's that toilet... never mind, I won't say it. Saying it will only make you feel disgusted."

Xu Xiaoyan's lips twitched. She knew what Lan Yue wanted to say. That toilet, which hadn't been properly cleaned in who knows how long, was the most authentic part of this room.

Xu Xiaoyan turned around and walked back to her room, picked up her backpack from the floor, and put it on the bed.

The bottom of the backpack had accumulated too much dust, leaving a dusty mark on the light yellow foam surface when it was placed on the mattress.

Before she could even start tidying up, she heard someone knocking on the door.

Xu Xiaoyan put the things she was taking out back on the bed, turned around and walked to the door. She reached out, grasped the doorknob, turned it, and opened the door.

There stood a woman at the door, around forty years old, with a round face, short hair, and natural black hair with a few silver strands at her temples.

She was wearing a dark blue uniform jacket with a white badge embroidered on the chest.

The badge features a simple line drawing of a dam, with a wavy line below it and the words "Qing City Resettlement Office" embroidered in black thread below that.

She was holding a black folder in her hand and greeted me with "Hello".

The voice wasn't loud, but it was very clear, with a local accent: "I'm the building manager, my surname is Meng, you can call me Sister Meng. I'm here to sign a lease agreement with you."

Xu Xiaoyan stepped aside, her body leaning towards the door frame, creating about half a meter of space in the doorway—a gesture that signaled that she could come in.

Sister Meng waved her hand, "No need, we'll just talk at the door."

She didn't step over the threshold, opened the folder, flipped to a page, and handed that page to Xu Xiaoyan.

With fingers pinching the edge of the folder and wrist steadily supporting the bottom, the page is kept at a just-right height and angle for reading.

"Take a look, and sign here if there are no problems." Sister Meng's finger reached over the top of the folder and tapped the bottom of the page.

There was a horizontal line in that position, and above the line were printed a few small words: Signature of Party B.

Xu Xiaoyan looked down and examined the contract closely. The contract was very short, only one page long.

It's different from the rental information that the staff member handed out downstairs before.

This document is more concise, with almost no legal jargon; it simply uses the most straightforward language to clearly explain a few things.

The paper is white, ordinary A4 printing paper, with a red circular stamp in the lower right corner.

However, a small patch of ink smudged along the edge of the stamp, as if the hand trembled slightly when stamping.

First line: The leased property is Room 18 on the 18th floor of Building 612, Dongqu District, Qing City, with an area of ​​20 square meters.

The second line states: The lease term is one month per contract, and it can be renewed upon expiration. You must give seven days' notice before renewing the lease.

The third line states: The rent is 12 yuan per month, the first month is free, and from the second month onwards, the rent must be paid before the 5th of each month.

Fourth line: Tenants shall take good care of the house and facilities, and shall not alter the structure of the house without authorization or sublet it.

Fifth line: If there is any damage, compensation will be made at the original price.

These five points cover everything a contract should have.

There's no fluff, no ambiguous statements, and no legal provisions that leave you confused even after reading them three times.

Its purpose is clearly not to avoid risks for any one party, but simply to ensure the sustainable use of the room.

After reading the contract, Xu Xiaoyan looked up, took the pen handed to her by Sister Meng, and signed her name in the "Party B" section.

After taking the contract back, Sister Meng pulled out a pale yellow piece of paper from the folder.

She placed the paper flat on the folder cover, looked at some messages on her phone, picked up a pen, and began to write something.

After she finished writing, she looked at it again to make sure there were no mistakes, then peeled the paper off the folder and handed it to Xu Xiaoyan.

"This is the payment guide," she said, pointing to a few lines of text on the top half of the paper.

"It says how to check your account balance, how to pay bills, and how to report repairs. Your account information is on the back of this paper." She turned the paper over so the back was facing up.

There were no printed words on the back of the paper, only a small rectangular area, which was a small piece of paper that had been pasted on.

The small note had a string of numbers and a name printed on it: 05790806123558 - Xu Xiaoyan.

"Electronic currency is being expedited for entry." Sister Meng flipped the paper back to the front and tapped the upper half of the paper twice with her finger:

"You should be able to check it tomorrow; you can go to the trading center to check."

Xu Xiaoyan nodded, folded the paper, and stuffed it into her coat pocket.

Sister Meng quickly turned and left.

Xu Xiaoyan took a step back and closed the door. The lock made a short "click" sound as the bolt sprang into the keyhole on the door frame.

Soon, Blue Moon peeked out from the door next door:

"I'm going downstairs to see if there's a place to exchange things. I don't have a toothbrush, towel, or anything like that. Do you want to come?"

Xu Xiaoyan thought for a moment and then shook her head.

"Okay, I'll go by myself then," she said, and ran towards the elevator.

Xu Xiaoyan went into the bathroom, put her hand under the shower head, and turned on the faucet.

At first, the water was just a small ripple, but after a while, it slowly grew larger.

The blocked holes seemed to loosen a bit under the continuous impact of the water, and water started flowing from a few more holes. Although it was still uneven, at least the entire ring of nozzles was working.

She kept her hand under the running water, feeling the temperature change; soon, the water became hot.

Xu Xiaoyan washed herself from head to toe, and the bathroom was filled with white steam.

When she came out of the bathroom, she found Lan Yue knocking on the door, her face beaming with barely concealed excitement.