New Delhi:
A man made a shocking discovery while cleaning his house. The person, who lived in the Jiangsu province in eastern China, discovered that his ex-landlord had been secretly living in the basement of the house for the past seven years, reported the South China Morning Post.
The hidden door was behind the stairs that led to a fully functional basement. The room was equipped with decent lighting, a ventilation system and even a small bar, the report added.
Upon inspection, the homeowner identified as Li also noticed obvious signs of recent habitation, which left him feeling “creeped out”.
Li immediately contacted the previous owner, a woman surnamed Zhang, and accused her of deliberately hiding the information about the house during the sale. In response, Zhang claimed the basement wasn’t part of the listed property or the sale agreement.
She said, “I sold you the house, but I never said the basement was included. If the basement belongs to you, where am I supposed to relax in my free time?”
It is unclear how the woman entered and exited the basement without Li noticing. Speculation on social media ranged from some people claiming that she might have used a door that connected the basement to the parking garage, while others said she had an extra key.
The situation was compared to the storyline of the Oscar-winning film Parasite, in which a man spends years living secretly in a basement.
Li decided to go to court with the matter and won the case against his ex-landlord. The court confirmed his legitimate ownership of the basement and ordered Zhang to pay financial compensation to Li.