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... For almost a year now, Zonghua has gotten up early, headed to the office, and returned home late at night. Apparently, she's repeating the same routine that millions of people in China follow every day.

But her day has a peculiarity: no one pays her to do it, and no one demands results. What to do -- and, above all, what to say -- while looking for a job has become a headache for more and more Chinese, who don't want to provide explanations or expose themselves to uncomfortable questions from those around them. But in the country's large cities, spaces that offer the solution have begun to spring up: companies that allow people to pretend to work.

For a daily fee of between 30 and 50 yuan ($4-$7), these companies offer desks, Wi-Fi, coffee, lunch, and an atmosphere that mimics any work environment. According to a report in Beijing Youth Daily, although there are no contracts or bosses, some firms simulate them: fictitious tasks are assigned and supervisory rounds are even organized. For a fee, the theatricality can reach unimaginable levels, from pretending to be a manager with his own office to staging episodes of rebellion against a superior. ...