Hearing Brother Chen say that, I was reminded of that kid Wang Kai.
Last time, I was entangled by a wood spirit, reduced to a skin-and-bones monkey, my whole body covered in bark.
I nearly lost my life.
It was Old Mo and I who dealt with the tree spirit together.
Now that some time has passed, I don't know how that guy is doing.
I nodded to Brother Chen:
"Okay, Brother Chen, you eat first.
I'll give him a call and ask about the situation!"
Brother Chen was not polite, he nodded and started picking up food.
I found Wang Kai's phone number and quickly dialed it.
After a few rings, Wang Kai's voice came on the line:
"Hey, Brother Qin.
What made you think of calling me?"
He must still be on the line, as it was noisy around him.
But as he spoke, his attitude was extremely friendly, even respectful.
He was a completely different person from the Wang Kai who used to boss me around at work.
I didn't beat around the bush with him and got straight to the point:
"Wang Kai, I need to ask you something.
About Kang Kang Factory..."
"Kang, Kang Kang Factory?"
Wang Kai's voice clearly trembled, a little nervous.
"Yeah!
I heard you used to work there.
I wanted to ask if that factory is really weird?"
I pressed on.
Wang Kai took a breath on the other end of the phone, his tone becoming more serious:
"Brother Qin, why are you asking about this?"
I didn't hide anything from him, eating as I replied:
"Someone died at that factory recently, and the rumors are unsettling.
So I plan to go take a look and get the lay of the land..."
Wang Kai knew my current profession. Hearing my words, he lowered his voice and said:
"Brother Qin, wait a moment. I'll find a quieter place to tell you."
With that, he shouted a couple of times on the line.
After a while, he probably went into a restroom or a corridor.
Then, in a serious tone on the phone:
"Brother Qin, that factory, the factory is truly eerie.
In the three years I worked there, six people died.
One of them was my childhood friend from the same village.
When we finished work in the evening, he told me that after getting paid at the end of the month, he was going to take the money home to help his dad build a house for a few days.
But that night, he committed suicide by jumping off a building within the factory grounds.
Never mind that his parents didn't believe it, I didn't either.
Isn't that unsettling?
It's precisely because that factory is eerie that I transferred to my current job..."
Wang Kai sounded particularly serious and sincere on the phone.
He told me all the strange things he encountered during his years working at Kang Kang Factory.
Hearing all this, it turned out that the factory did have major problems.
Since its establishment eight years ago, two deaths a year had almost become the norm.
Sometimes, three people died in a year.
It was either suicide by jumping, sudden inexplicable death, or some bizarre accident...
In other words, since the factory opened, over ten people have died.
But very few were reported; most were suppressed.
Moreover, according to Wang Kai, the factory was filled with an eerie atmosphere and some strange rules.
For example, during working hours, one absolutely could not use mp3 players or Bluetooth headphones.
Factory workers, even during their rest periods, could not wear yellow clothes or pants.
Female workers were forbidden from wearing red hair ties.
Upon discovery, they would be immediately fired.
The explanation given was to respect the corporate culture and the factory's regulations.
However, despite such strict rules, fellow workers often saw women in yellow dresses walking around the factory grounds at night.
Also, there was a large logistics warehouse in the factory.
Although the factory was short on logistics warehouse space, it was always locked.
It was never used, nor was anyone allowed near it.
It was guarded by security guards day and night.
Even more bizarrely, many workers passing by that logistics warehouse would inexplicably hear a woman singing inside...
The factory's various rules and phenomena, coupled with the bizarre suicide of Wang Kai's friend, led Wang Kai to quit and eventually come to work at his current factory.
As a globally renowned large factory, Kang Kang Factory had a vast site, and its wages and benefits were slightly higher than those of surrounding factories.
This led many people struggling to make a living to continue working there, even if they knew about the factory's eerie nature.
Coupled with the constant influx of interns forcibly sent to the factory each year, this explained why Kang Kang Factory, despite continuous incidents, maintained a considerable number of employees due to its background and public relations capabilities.
After receiving this information, Mo Ting and I became even more certain of our suspicions.
Kang Kang Factory must have indeed encountered something malevolent.
As for why the factory management set out those strange rules, kept the much-needed warehouse locked without use, and even had guards posted, it was either because the management knew about the malevolent presence and made these rules and restrictions, or it was truly some corporate culture. It was difficult to determine at this point.
We would only know after sneaking in tonight.
We had been talking for quite some time, and Wang Kai had told us everything he knew.
I thanked him.
Wang Kai was cheerful on the phone.
He said that if I hadn't saved him last time, he might have lost his life, and so on.
He also asked that if there was indeed something malevolent in that factory, I should definitely eliminate it for him.
So that he could pay respects to his friend's departed soul...
I replied with an "mm" and said I would give him a message tomorrow.
After a few more words, I hung up the phone.
Since I had the speakerphone on, the volume was just right for the three of us at the table to hear.
I didn't need to explain much; everyone had a general understanding of the situation at Kang Kang Factory.
When Brother Chen saw me hang up, he immediately said:
"Two deaths a year.
This Kang Kang Factory is indeed quite eerie.
In my opinion, this matter is almost certainly true."
"Eerie things are all caused by those demons and monsters.
Old Qin, tonight, we shall join forces.
We'll slay the demons and monsters in that factory."
Mo Ting always got excited when encountering such matters.
Brother Chen next to him also looked eager.
He put down his chopsticks and said to me:
"Little Qin, I won't go to work tonight.
Let's go together to investigate.
Although I'm not a direct disciple of Master Gu, I've learned a few tricks.
When the time comes, I can help you out..."