Nan Yue felt that the "person" seen by the scavengers whose identities had become confused by their missions probably wasn't Jiang Su.
Instead, it was that man.
That man had worked diligently at the company for many years without ever being promoted, and in the end, unable to bear it yet unwilling to resign, he had committed suicide.
Therefore, whenever someone appeared whose identity was confused and who was working desperately for a promotion, they would see that man who had died long ago.
However, there was too little information about that man; while the clues regarding Jiang Su were mostly gathered, they still didn't even know his name.
Nan Yue thought back to the legend Song Ping had mentioned.
The legend said that at three in the morning, one would see that unlucky fellow from thirty years ago repeating his jump over and over again.
As long as she staked out that spot, she could find out who he was and what exactly he represented.
Nan Yue considered the mission objective, which was to find the true meaning of work, so that meaning must at least be related to these two deceased individuals.
She already knew Jiang Su's perspective on work: work was for a better life, and one shouldn't put the cart before the horse.
But she still didn't understand what that man represented, so she didn't dare to act blindly.
When Nan Yue returned to the office, Linda looked at her with disbelief.
She had actually come back alive?
And she didn't look injured at all.
Nan Yue flashed a smile at Linda and checked a message sent to her by her newly added contact, Zhu Xi.
"Sister Linda, Secretary Zhu wants you to go see him."
Fear washed over Linda's face; she had always been protected by Zhu Xi because she constantly sent him female employees from her department.
She knew exactly what had happened to those women who never returned, but she never expected it to happen to herself.
When Nan Yue returned unscathed, Linda knew things were bad, though she didn't know what kind of deal this woman had made with Zhu Xi.
Linda's body trembled uncontrollably, but she didn't dare refuse.
Having worked at this company for over ten years, she knew all too well that she only had one path to take.
"You... you're setting me up!"
Linda's eyes were bloodshot; the predator had now become the prey.
"No, you tried to harm me first."
Nan Yue looked at her calmly. "You were the one who harmed Jiang Su first."
Linda shuddered at the mention of that name; she didn't know why she felt such intense terror.
Jiang Su.
That woman who had died long ago.
Linda left in a daze, and in all likelihood, she wouldn't be coming back.
Zhu Xi had been left half-crippled by Nan Yue and was currently in a foul mood.
Sure enough, an hour later, Sister Lian called Nan Yue into her office.
"I underestimated you. None of the ones I picked before were useful, but you are quite the surprise."
Sister Lian tossed a new badge onto the desk. "From now on, you are my primary secretary at rank V4."
...
Zhu Xi Ning hadn't expected that after just one afternoon apart, Nan Yue would be promoted two levels to a position height that almost no one could reach.
Zhu Xi Ning was extremely cautious when she went to find Nan Yue, fearing she might say something that violated the rules.
"Not bad, Nan Yue. You're moving fast."
Nan Yue, however, couldn't bring herself to smile; the higher she climbed, the further she felt from completing the mission and leaving.
"Two things."
Zhu Xi Ning turned serious. "First, Qi Qiao is dead."
Nan Yue's eyes widened. Ever since Qi Qiao had provided clues about what she saw at night, Lan Jing Shui had been protecting her.
It wasn't exactly a partnership, but her rank had smoothly reached V7, sparing her from the abuse suffered by those at the bottom.
More importantly, if Lan Jing Shui didn't want her to die, she wouldn't have easily violated a rule and perished.
It could only be said that Qi Qiao must have triggered some hidden rule.
Before Nan Yue could process this, Zhu Xi Ning delivered another bombshell.
"Wen Xiang Yuan... has resigned."
Nan Yue froze for a moment. "Resigned?"
"Yeah, Liu Ming probably did it."
"But she left a resignation letter and sent it to me."
Zhu Xi Ning's expression was complex. "She told me to give it to you, since most people can't get in touch with you now."
She sighed. "Such a beautiful girl, what a shame."
Nan Yue couldn't quite describe how she felt; she didn't think Wen Xiang Yuan would die so easily, yet she was gone.
People always felt more pity for beautiful things, but unfortunately, the mission did not.
Whether beautiful or ugly, everyone was equal in the face of death.
Furthermore... Wen Xiang Yuan had left clues for her before death arrived.
Nan Yue's heart was a whirlpool of emotions; she had cooperated with other scavengers before, but this was the first time someone had been so transparent.
Wen Xiang Yuan was so pure she didn't seem like a scavenger at all; she shouldn't have died like this.
Nan Yue's chest felt tight as she reached out to take the neatly folded paper.
There were only a few sentences inside. One was to tell Nan Yue that she had already copied the surveillance footage and saved it on her computer.
The other was that Wen Xiang Yuan felt Qi Qiao had been acting strange lately, often working overtime voluntarily until one or two in the morning before going home.
At that time, Wen Xiang Yuan didn't know Qi Qiao was dead, but the clues she provided could be said to have cleared the fog for Nan Yue.
Nan Yue tucked the note away and looked at Zhu Xi Ning. "Tonight, I need to see exactly who that man jumping off the building is."
Zhu Xi Ning knew this proved the mission was becoming increasingly dangerous, otherwise Nan Yue wouldn't take such a risk without being certain.
"But..."
"You don't need to go."
Nan Yue looked at Zhu Xi Ning. "Your ability won't be able to help, and this operation will be very dangerous."
Zhu Xi Ning lowered her eyes. "This morning, my awakened ability was triggered."
Nan Yue looked over; Zhu Xi Ning's control over her awakened ability wasn't very strong yet, so its activation was mostly up to chance.
"What did you see?"
Zhu Xi Ning's lips trembled. "I saw... the company was covered in blood-red... and the color was darkest on the first floor."
That meant the first floor was the most dangerous and held the most clues.
"No, was it the first floor or the basement?"
Zhu Xi Ning hadn't been to the basement, so she thought for a moment before saying excitedly, "Right! It should be the basement."
"You've been to the warehouse, did you see anything?"
Nan Yue's gaze darkened. "I've been there, but someone was always following me. There must be something I missed."
"Also... Bi Danyuan and the others were transferred after they went to clean the warehouse."
"Even though that was because Tan Jiaojiao was brainless, I always felt Bi Danyuan must have discovered something too, otherwise she wouldn't have been dragged down with her."
Zhu Xi Ning hesitated; without a reason, they couldn't go to the warehouse since it belonged to Logistics, and Wen Xiang Yuan was already dead.
"Let's check the surveillance first."
Using the excuse of organizing resigned personnel information to ensure no confidential documents were taken, Zhu Xi Ning got hold of Wen Xiang Yuan's computer and found the surveillance footage according to the instructions on the note.
In the recording, the two of them indeed left the company together, with Tan Jiaojiao complaining the whole way.
Half an hour later, Zhu Xi Ning's eyes lit up as Bi Danyuan and Tan Jiaojiao returned, accompanied by an unfamiliar woman.
However, the way the three of them walked was very strange, like blind people being led along, their movements unspeakably stiff and eerie.
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