Ziwei can still remember the months she lived by herself in a tiny Taipei room that looked like a shoebox.
The 10-square-meter studio didn't have a window; it only had a small vent near the roof. Even after she put plastic bags down her shower drain, it always smelled like sewage. The paint on the walls was the strangest shade of orange.
"I felt so sad because there were no windows," the 32-year-old said. "I would stay out really late every night, and I would come home only to sleep."
But it was the only thing she could afford in 2019 after she broke up with her boyfriend and moved out. Even though she worked for the government, which was seen as a good job, her monthly pay was only NT$40,000 ($1,285; £1,011), which was a lot less than the national average.
People in Taiwan under 40 will be thinking about housing and low pay when they vote for president and parliament on Saturday. Ziwei is one of those people.
China's claims on Taiwan and how the island should react to Beijing's threats are big issues in this election, as they are every time. This time, though, people care more about the economy.
Commonwealth Magazine recently polled 15,000 Taiwanese and found that most of them thought their next president should focus on economic growth instead of national security and ties between the two sides of the Taiwan Strait. It was especially important for people ages 20 to 39 who answered.
People are angry that the Democratic Progressive Party (DPP), which has been in power for eight years, has not done enough to improve people's lives, especially the lives of younger Taiwanese.
Many people are afraid about things like rent and house prices going up, incomes staying the same, a high youth unemployment rate, and GDP growth that stays around 2% per year. A study given to the BBC by labor expert Lee Chien-hung from the Chinese Culture University found that more than a third of low-wage workers are younger than 30.
For example, the "beipiao" are young people from poorer parts of Taiwan who move to the capital to find better jobs while dealing with rising rents. The "yueguangzu" are people who live from paycheck to paycheck and have no savings, and the "xiegang" are young people who work multiple jobs to make a good living.
Ziwei's friend Kaili is a "beipiao" from the southern city of Chiayi who has decided to rent in Taipei for the rest of her life.
"I've given up hope" this 37-year-old documentary film worker said about her plans to buy her own house.
"I don't see a reason to buy." My pay is pretty low. I don't think I'll be able to put down a payment on a house for ten years or until now.
It's said that if you want to buy a house in Taipei, you have to fast for 15 years. That's what young Taiwanese political commentator and director of the online magazine New Bloom, Brian Hioe, said.
"There's this anger against the DPP for failing to address these longstanding economic issues that face Taiwan."
He said that this feeling is especially clear among Gen Z voters, who see the party as part of the elite and don't remember much about the Kuomintang (KMT) government that was in power before the DPP.
And while the DPP has won votes in the past by saying it would protect Taiwan from China, some young voters are getting tired of this approach. "They think that the cross-strait issue is something that political parties use to win elections," he said. "It comes before other issues."
People who are against the DPP want to use their anger against the party.
Another big party in Taiwan is the KMT. They say the DPP is corrupt and can't do its job, and they plan to change things. Since 2000, it has switched places with the DPP every eight years. It used to be in charge of the island and had a tight grip on it.
But among young voters, especially those who are fed up with the two main parties, the new Taiwan People's Party (TPP) run by Ko Wen-je has become popular. People like the former surgeon because he is practical and honest, but others don't like him because he has said things that are seen as racist and homophobic.
A TPP protest took place on a cold Wednesday night in Keelung, a port city. Most of the people there were young families and couples. Speakers told them to "smash the blue and green," which refers to the party colors of the KMT and the DPP. The crowd cheered and waved signs that said "Keep Promise," one of Mr. Ko's campaign themes.
Harrison Wu, an engineer who is 25 years old, was one of them. In the last election, he voted for the DPP, but his dreams for the party have been dashed.
"[President] Tsai Ing-wen has been too soft," he said, then started a long list of problems, from sky-high housing costs and low wages to party corruption crimes.
"For eight years, they ran the legislature and didn't get anything done." If they want us to vote for a DPP majority again, what's the point?"
The DPP knows that young people no longer trust them. The government has said it will build more affordable housing, raise the minimum wage, and put money into helping young people get better skills so they can get better jobs.
A lot of youth are also being asked to help. Its most recent campaign ad is aimed at the generation of the Sunflower Movement, who led anti-China protests ten years ago and made it possible for the DPP to remove the KMT from power in 2016.
It shows people moving backwards to a sad soundtrack and talks about the KMT. The ad is meant to tell young people that Taiwan's progress made under the DPP could be undone if they lose power.
There is a calm voiceover from a young man who says, "You feel a bit tired. You don't want to speak out because it's too bothersome." "But the very thing you didn't want is now returning."
"You used to stand up for what you believed in and think that having the vote was the most important thing... China can be our China, but only you can decide that."
A bubble popping
Taiwanese governments have talked about how to fix problems like low pay for decades, but "no matter which party is in power, it still hasn't been done," said Dr. Lee, an expert on labor.
"The government must dutifully face society's problems and stop its empty talk."
Lev Nachman, a political scientist at National Chengchi University, said that all three parties have made similar promises to help young voters in this election. He said that whoever wins must make fixing the economy their first goal. "It will be a bubble that will pop, if they do not."
However, that is already taking place in some ways. Taiwan is losing smart people as they leave for better opportunities elsewhere.
Migration data shows that, besides the years of the pandemic, the number of Taiwanese working abroad has steadily grown over the last ten years. Almost half of them are younger than 40.
The plan is for Ziwei to stay for now. She has a new boyfriend and a new place to live.
She now lives with her husband Wenjing, Kaili, and another friend in a much bigger apartment in New Taipei City. It's a good thing there are windows, no smell, and white walls that don't stand out.
Do the housemates think they can make it in Taiwan? They were all worried, but they all said yes.
"I believe things will get better for me. Yes, things are better now than when I was 20. I was much poorer then!" Kaili laughed and said that.
Ziwei and Wenjing said they were able to save up enough money for the down payment on a new apartment not long ago.
It's important to them to have their own space so they can start a family. They also worry about whether they can pay for their home and raise a child.
"If you don't have family to help you and have to depend on your own income, it can be very hard," said Wenjing, a vet.
They are set on making it work, though. "We're putting money away and spending less. "We care about the same things and are ready to work hard to reach our goal," Ziwei said.
In the end, I believe that things will get better for me. And that's because I'm with a great partner."
Joyce Lee did more reporting.