I Have a Five-star Seaside Hotel

Filled with curiosity and doubt, 

to test whether everyone could fall asleep quickly in the room, 

Chen Jianhai deliberately turned on all the room's lights and the sound system before comfortably lying down on the bed.

One second, two seconds, three seconds...

Chen Jianhai yawned.

Trash!

This nightmare room isn't working at all. It's been three seconds, and I'm still not asleep.

Just as he finished cursing, 

the next second, thunderous snoring erupted.

Chen Jianhai fell into a deep, dead sleep like a log...

Meanwhile, outside the room.

Several employees anxiously guarded the door, pressing their ears against it to listen for any sounds.

"How is it?"

"Any movement?" someone couldn't help but ask.

"I can't hear anything. Isn't the soundproofing of our hotel's doors too good?" the handsome butler frowned as he replied.

Everyone fell into silence.

A few days ago, the hotel staff had shared a resource titled *1408 Phantom*, which told the story of a foolish writer who entered a haunted room and ended up getting himself killed.

Now, with Chen Jianhai alone in the room, what if something really happened? 

"It's 2 a.m. now."

"Let's wait until 7 a.m. If no one answers the door by then, we'll break it down!" the handsome butler said calmly.

"Breaking it down might not work!?" The others hesitated. 

Everything in Lion Lake Castle was top-notch, and the room doors were made of heavy solid wood, making them difficult to break.

"If we can't break it down, we'll use an axe to chop it open!" the handsome butler declared calmly again.

This statement sent a chill through everyone's hearts.

The classic horror movie *The Shining* automatically played in their minds, complete with background music and surround sound.

"Hey, what if tomorrow morning we enter the room and find it empty, with the boss taken to another dimension, and we're left in this world?"

"Damn, have you been watching *Silent Hill* behind our backs?"

After a moment of silence, a trembling voice spoke up: "Do you think our hotel might actually be haunted?"

But before the speaker could finish, someone interrupted: "No way, don't scare yourself!"

"If the room really had a problem, would the boss have gone in alone?"

"He would've definitely dragged Lang along!"

That makes sense!

Hearing this, everyone nodded in agreement.

Now that Xiao Lang and Xu Bo were staying at Lion Lake Castle Hotel, if anything happened, they could handle it!

But even so, the group split into two teams. One team stayed in the hallway, while the other team rested in a nearby room, ready to rush in and rescue Chen Jianhai at the first sign of trouble.

Meanwhile, inside the room, 

Chen Jianhai lay on the bed, eyes closed, breathing rapidly, and drenched in sweat.

The surging nightmare was like an endless ocean, wave after wave crashing over him.

At first, he dreamed of streets filled with spider-like crawling female ghosts, all wearing white long-sleeved shirts and pants, high heels, and gaping mouths with saw-like teeth, chasing him relentlessly, crawling faster than anyone.

No matter how fast Chen Jianhai ran, he couldn't outrun them, and terrifying ghostly faces kept appearing beside his ears.

Frightened, Chen Jianhai cursed wildly in his dream: "In all my years, this is the first time I've seen short-haired female ghosts not wearing skirts!"

"Do you even deserve to be called female ghosts?!"

The chase lasted all night, and just as Chen Jianhai felt a bright light in the darkness, 

he ran toward it without hesitation.

As soon as he rushed through the door, all the female ghosts disappeared.

The scene suddenly changed to the original appearance of the Langai Hotel.

"This... this is my home?"

Chen Jianhai stared in shock at the golden toad statue on the counter, a familiar sight from his childhood.

He looked at the "No Vacancy" sign hanging at the entrance, 

at Sister Wang sweeping the lobby with a broom, 

and at his parents smiling at him from the hotel lobby. 

Outside the hotel, he could even hear Xiao Lang and Xu Bo calling him to go swimming at the beach.

It felt like life had returned to its most carefree and joyful days. 

Just as he was about to speak, the scene suddenly changed again.

His parents and Sister Wang disappeared, spiderwebs hung in the corners of the hotel, and everything turned into a state of ruin.

The hotel was empty, his parents gone, 

and he stood alone in the center of the lobby, facing the dilapidated, nearly bankrupt hotel.

"Mom! Dad!"

Chen Jianhai jolted awake from the nightmare.

Opening his eyes, sunlight streamed through the curtains, illuminating the room brightly.

Chen Jianhai lay in bed, stunned, his face covered in tears, and even his pillow was soaked.

"That was a real nightmare..."

As he was still dazed, the sound of the door unlocking suddenly came, and a group of people rushed into the room.

"Boss, are you okay?!"

"Boss, we're here!"

"Brother Hai, your dad's here!"

Xiao Lang held an axe high above his head, looking like he was about to split Mount Hua to save his mother, scaring Chen Jianhai so much that he jumped out of bed.

"What the hell?! Put the knife down!"

"Knife?"

Xiao Lang looked at the weapon in his hand, then at Chen Jianhai's tear-streaked face, and asked in confusion, "This is an axe!"

Chen Jianhai snapped, "Whatever it is, put it down!"

Thankfully, he had slept in his clothes last night, or else he would've been utterly embarrassed this morning.

Seeing Xiao Lang put down the axe, Chen Jianhai quickly wiped his face and asked irritably: 

"What are you all doing here?"

The handsome butler replied sheepishly, "We knocked on the door for a long time, but there was no response. We got worried and rushed in."

As he spoke, the butler glanced warily at the blaring sound system and the bright bedroom lights. 

Wow...

No wonder they couldn't hear anything when they banged on the door.

With such heavy bass and rock music playing, even standing here made their hearts and temples throb. 

For the boss to fall asleep in such an environment, he must have nerves of steel!

Chen Jianhai gave everyone a helpless look, rubbed his face, and checked the time on his phone.

It was 7:13 a.m. 

"How are the two guests in the lobby?" Chen Jianhai asked.

The handsome butler replied, "The two guests in the lobby have woken up and are having breakfast now."

"We've refunded their room fee and compensated them with lion plush toys and some small gifts." 

"Good!" Chen Jianhai nodded. "Also, ask them what time their flight or train is and arrange for someone to take them to the station for free."

"Got it, boss." The butler paused. "Boss, are you okay?"

"I'm fine, just didn't sleep well. I'm a bit tired."

Chen Jianhai got out of bed. Perhaps because he had been running from female ghosts all night, his legs felt weak, and he was dehydrated from crying and very thirsty.

When he arrived at the restaurant, he found that Cheng Yan and Han Panpan had already finished breakfast, checked out, and left their luggage at the front desk before heading straight to the Magic Century Theme Park to play.

"These two girls are something... after half a night of nightmares, they still have the energy to go out and have fun."

Chen Jianhai was both amused and exasperated. He then called Lin Suyang over and explained his idea. Lin Suyang's expression shifted from shock to hesitation, and then his eyes lit up:

"Brilliant!"

"Boss, your idea is absolutely brilliant!!"

In this age of information overload, it's incredibly difficult to capture people's attention without something eye-catching.

This is especially true for hotels, particularly new ones.

Some hotels may not be outstanding on their own, but once they're given a specific story or background, they can immediately stand out.

If that story and background are artistically enhanced, the promotional impact and effect will be even greater!

"So, boss, after learning about the two guests' nightmares last night, you immediately thought of this and spent the night in the room yourself."

"Then this morning, you turned on the sound system and lights and woke up crying in bed. All to enhance the authenticity of the story, making us all believe there's something wrong with the room, and to build hype for the 'Nightmare Room' promotion, right?!"

Chen Jianhai was stunned.

He hadn't gone through such a detailed thought process. How had the other person come up with so much on their own?

But regardless, being admired was better than being doubted.

Chen Jianhai had no choice but to nod and say, "Focus on the promotional work. Don't hesitate to spend the necessary funds."

Lin Suyang nodded fervently, his eyes sparkling with excitement as if he were already envisioning something grand.

"Boss, wait for good news."

With that, Lin Suyang downed his glass of milk, wiped the milk mustache from his lips, and strode off with determination.

...

By around 8 p.m., Cheng Yan and Han Panpan finally returned from the Magic Century Theme Park.

At first, they thought the hotel might ask them to write positive reviews online in exchange for waiving the room fee, and to avoid mentioning the nightmares they had experienced the previous night.

But to their surprise, from start to finish, no one at the hotel brought up the topic. The staff remained warm and polite, even preparing thoughtful gifts for them, which deeply moved the two girls.

Cheng Yan and Han Panpan even explicitly stated that they would not only leave positive reviews online but also refrain from mentioning the room issue.

But the moment this idea was proposed, Chen Jianhai immediately shut it down, sincerely urging them to be honest and share their true feelings about the hotel.

After all, employee service was one thing, but the room experience was another. The two shouldn't be conflated.

Only the most objective evaluations could help the hotel improve and provide other guests with a more accurate understanding.

Chen Jianhai's words made Han Panpan and Cheng Yan even more embarrassed. The two boarded the hotel's car, reluctantly bid farewell to everyone, and headed back to their school.

...

Chen Jianhai didn't have to wait long. The next day, Han Panpan's photo-and-video-filled review was posted in the comments section of the booking app.

The review was incredibly objective and honest.

From the confusion after getting off the subway to the pleasant surprise of the rose-covered path, from Emerald Lake to the castle and the room, everything was described in great detail. The accompanying photos were unedited and unfiltered, completely authentic.

Especially in the section about employee service, the language was sincere, and a five-star rating was given.

However, when it came to the room, Han Panpan emphasized how she and her companion had nightmares, shared the same dream, and were forced to sleep in the lobby.

As soon as this comment was posted, it was as if an invisible hand pushed it up, catapulting the phrase "haunted nightmare room" to the top of Zaomen City's local search rankings and the related searches list of the Magic Century Theme Park.

Almost immediately after this trending term appeared, numerous posts about Lion Lake Castle Hotel began popping up on major paranormal forums online.

In no time, countless discussions about Lion Lake Castle's "haunted nightmare room" flooded the internet.

Some dismissed it as nonsense, believing the two girls were hallucinating or seeking attention.

Others thought it was a fabricated story by the hotel, while some deeply believed it and analyzed it from a feng shui perspective.

Among these, a post titled "An Insider's Account of What Happened at Lion Lake Castle That Day" quickly rose to the top, thanks to numerous comments.

Although the post narrated the events from a third-person perspective, the description was incredibly realistic. While the beginning was calm, with a smooth and engaging tone, the further one read, the more chilling and spine-tingling it became.

Though the word "ghost" was never mentioned, the entire post was filled with eerie and mysterious undertones.

Combined with the medieval castle aesthetic of Lion Lake Castle Hotel and the fact that it was built on previously barren land, the online rumors grew more and more sensational.

In no time, Room 1703 in the Fairy-Themed Tower of Lion Lake Castle Hotel became a hot topic on major paranormal websites and forums.

Meanwhile, as Lion Lake Castle Hotel continued its online promotions, Magic Century Theme Park was also making final preparations for its official opening.

According to the original plan, Magic Century Theme Park would officially open on Friday, so with three days left, the park was securing a trending topic every day, maximizing promotion and preparing for a grand opening ceremony.

During this time, Colorful Holiday Resort Hotel was also working hard to address its formaldehyde issue.

As the saying goes, the best way to absorb formaldehyde is people themselves.

No matter how strong the smell, just breathe it in, and it's gone.

After days of pre-opening with guests helping absorb the odor, combined with charcoal packs, air purifiers, and other physical methods,

although Colorful Holiday Resort Hotel's rooms couldn't completely eliminate the smell, they were at least livable, no longer causing guests to cough or feel uncomfortable upon entering.

Just as everything seemed to be improving,

Lion Lake Castle Hotel's "haunted nightmare room" unexpectedly stole the spotlight, drawing significant attention.

Especially since Han Panpan and Cheng Yan's review photos showcased the hotel's stunning scenery, sparking intense curiosity among many. On the "must-visit review ranking", Lion Lake Castle Hotel was now neck-and-neck with Colorful Holiday Resort Hotel, each holding its own.

The "haunted nightmare room" and "Magic Park opening" were now evenly matched, locked in a tight competition.

"Great!"

"This is written so well!"

"Who wrote this?!!"

Chen Jianhai squatted in the bathroom, sending Lin Suyang a soul-searching question.

He was currently reading the post titled "An Insider's Account of What Happened at Lion Lake Castle That Day" on his phone.

Soon, Lin Suyang's reply came through:

"Boss, this was written by our marketing copywriter."

"He also wrote your speech for the Young Entrepreneurs' event. Not bad, right?"

Chen Jianhai's mouth twitched.

Not bad?

It was written way too well!

Originally, he had just wanted to kill time while taking a dump, but the more he read, the more creeped out he became. By the end, he even felt a cold breeze blowing on his back.

If he hadn't been sitting on the toilet, conveniently in place, he might have really been scared out of his wits!

After all, the protagonist in the post was him!!!

The earlier parts were fine, but the section about "the hotel boss personally staying in the room" was written so realistically...

Damn, even though it was true,

wasn't it too scary?!