The sound of crows flapping their wings outside the window persisted for a while before fading away.

The manager, as usual, made his rounds and then left.

Watching the manager’s retreating figure, He Gu breathed a sigh of relief.

Indeed, the cawing of the crows outside was a harbinger of the manager’s inspection routine.

Every time the cawing came from outside the window, it not only signaled the manager’s impending visit but also predicted when he would come next.

For instance, tonight, when the manager first came to inspect, the crows cawed six times, indicating that he would return in six hours.

Sure enough, exactly six hours later, the crows cawed again, followed by the manager’s appearance.

The second time, the crows cawed twice.

Two hours later, the manager came to inspect once more.

This last time, the crows didn’t caw; instead, they flapped their wings frantically, signaling that this was the final inspection for the night!

…

As He Gu had anticipated, the manager did not return after that.

Soon, it was six o’clock.

Another peaceful night had passed.

After filling out the duty report, He Gu clocked out as usual, went to Cafeteria No. 4 for breakfast following his routine, and then returned to his dorm to sleep.

Just like the previous days, He Gu didn’t sleep well.

After a series of bizarre dreams, he woke up drenched in sweat to the sound of his alarm.

After stretching his body upon getting out of bed, He Gu began his usual morning routine.

However, when his left hand touched the water, a sudden sting came from the back of his hand.

He Gu then noticed that the scratch from the cat on the back of his hand was slightly swollen; the wound, which had already scabbed over yesterday, was now oozing a bit of sticky blood.

“Could it be that the wound is infected?”

Thinking of the decaying state of those “zombie cats,” He Gu shuddered.

To avoid getting the wound wet, He Gu quickly wiped his face and finished washing up.

But as he washed his face, he felt a faint itch on his forehead.

A sense of unease growing within him, He Gu put on his glasses and stood in front of the mirror.

At that moment, He Gu noticed that the blue mark on his forehead had undergone some new changes.

Yesterday, it was just a blurry blue spread, vaguely forming the outline of a flower.

Now, the blurry outline had become clearer, and the shape of five “petals” was discernible!

One of the petals had turned the same blue as his work uniform, while the remaining four were still faint marks.

Looking at the pattern on his forehead, He Gu’s heart raced with panic.

He Gu had been a supervisor for several days now, and wearing glasses around the factory, he had seen all sorts of things.

The green uniforms were one thing, but most of those in blue uniforms had a blue mark on their foreheads, varying only in size.

But He Gu had never seen anyone with a “flower” tattoo-like mark on their forehead like his!

There was no need to think twice; this was definitely not a good sign!

Perhaps when all five “petals” turned blue, disaster would strike!

Staring at the petals on his forehead, He Gu’s already tense nerves tightened even further.

“No, I can’t keep dragging this out; I must leave as soon as possible!”

He Gu felt as if a weight was pressing on his chest, his whole being shrouded in unease.

Leaving the dormitory, He Gu ran into 111.

111 glanced at He Gu’s forehead as if by accident, then at the wound on his hand, and suddenly said, “That injury of yours… you’d better eat some medicinal bark with your meal, or it might get worse.”

Hearing this, He Gu frowned slightly.

He Gu had a deep-seated aversion to medicinal bark and would only resort to it as a last resort.

Moreover, it was very likely that the cat attack was a setup by 111, and now he was suggesting He Gu eat medicinal bark… It didn’t seem like a good thing at all.

With that in mind, He Gu nonchalantly shook his head and said, “It’s just a scratch, no big deal.”

“If it gets worse, I’ll just go to the residential area and buy some antiseptic solution to disinfect it myself.”

111 shook his head and replied, “In the entire factory area, except for that small clinic, there’s nowhere to buy medicine, and that clinic has been closed for several days now.”

Hearing 111’s words, He Gu’s heart sank.

Thinking it over, it made sense; He Gu had tried to buy knives before and chalk yesterday, visiting almost every shop in the residential area without seeing any medical supplies, not even alcohol.

As He Gu pondered this, 111 added, “By the way, you could have had a meal at the supervisor’s cafeteria today, but with that injury on your hand… you can’t go now.”

Hearing this, He Gu asked suspiciously, “Why? What does having an injury have to do with eating?”

111 gave a strange smile, waved his hand, and said, “Good luck, schoolmate.”

With that, 111 headed down to the basement level.

He Gu frowned deeply and glanced below before quickly turning and leaving.

This 111 was becoming more and more suspicious; it was very possible that he had been plotting against He Gu from their very first encounter!

When he said He Gu shouldn’t go to the supervisor’s cafeteria, maybe that was precisely where He Gu could find something helpful!

Just like the rule that said to immediately distance oneself from a black cat!

With that thought, He Gu took out the supervisor’s manual and followed the map towards the supervisor’s cafeteria.

The supervisor’s cafeteria wasn’t far from Cafeteria No. 4, less than five hundred meters apart.

Before long, He Gu arrived in front of a two-story building.

The first floor had no entrance, but there was a staircase on the outside leading to the second floor.

From the ground, one could see that the second floor had a glass door open, with the words “Supervisor’s Cafeteria” written above it, along with a blue mark, indicating that only those with a blue level rank or above could enter.

He Gu looked around from the bottom of the stairs; people were coming and going, all wearing blue uniforms.

He Gu also noticed that some people passing by would glance down at his left hand.

He Gu cautiously tucked his left hand into his pocket and put away his work badge before climbing the stairs.

However, when He Gu reached the glass door on the second floor, he found an A4 paper stuck to it:

【Rule Seven】

1. Masks must be worn inside the supervisor’s cafeteria, and one’s identity must not be revealed in any form;

2. Those with external injuries are prohibited from entering;

…

Hidden information: Blood can make a delicious meal, but it can also ruin an entire table of dishes.