Infinite Nightmares

"Get some rest. I know about this jacket's side effects now. I'll take it off when I sleep from now on," Zhang Wenda said to Hu Maomao on the bed.

It no longer mattered if the Teacher Rabbit of the past had been an uncle's second personality. Regardless of the truth, they were gone.

As for one of the rules of Thought Wave Two, he now committed it to memory. It might save his life someday, so he couldn't afford to be careless.

The severely injured Hu Maomao seemed exhausted. After she finished speaking with Zhang Wenda, she sank back into a deep sleep on the hospital bed.

Saving Hu Maomao had taken a long time. By the time Zhang Wenda came out, the evening glow was already blanketing the Shanghai horizon.

Although they had a place to stay, they had arrived in a new place, and some basic preparations were still necessary.

Zhang Wenda took Song Jianguo to a place called the Android Supermarket to pick up some daily necessities.

The supermarket was well-stocked, but because everything was upside-down, Zhang Wenda and Song Jianguo had to walk on the ceiling, which made shopping incredibly inconvenient.

Most importantly, Zhang Wenda bought Song Jianguo a cell phone so they could contact each other in the future.

The rest of the evening passed with the sound of Zhang Wenda patiently teaching Song Jianguo how to use her new phone. The next morning, the first thing Zhang Wenda did was tackle an important problem: Song Jianguo's job.

According to one of the rules of Thought Wave Two, Song Jianguo had to have a job to avoid slipping from Thought Wave Two into some other place.

"No! You don't need to come with me! I can find one myself!" Song Jianguo thumped her chest, making a loud sound. 'If he comes with me, who knows if the pay will actually end up in my pocket.'

"Are you sure you can find a job?" Zhang Wenda was highly skeptical.

"Are you kidding me? It's just a job! What's the difference between this and you telling me to catch rats?" In any case, Song Jianguo absolutely did not want him to tag along. 'I already saw how shameless he was that time with the rats.'

Hearing this, Zhang Wenda didn't object. 'It might not be a bad thing for her to see how harsh the world can be. After all, no one else is going to indulge her the way I do.'

"Fine, go ahead. Just remember not to leave this district. The whole area is Bureau 507 territory, so safety shouldn't be an issue."

After watching Song Jianguo leave, Zhang Wenda immediately left the room and headed for headquarters.

He hadn't forgotten the Spectral Magic that 2826 had promised him before going into hiding—magic that could increase his strength.

'Whatever it is, as long as it can make me stronger, I can't pass it up.'

"Black Coal, Blacky, Blackball, look! This place is so weird." Song Jianguo and the Black Cats peered through the glass at the strange, upside-down world outside.

After a moment's hesitation, she finally summoned her courage and dashed outside. The Black Cats on her back merged into a large paraglider, and she began to glide swiftly among the inverted skyscrapers.

Song Jianguo had thought finding a job would be incredibly difficult, but it turned out there were 'Help Wanted' signs posted everywhere.

From these postings, Song Jianguo discovered something very important: it was standard to have two days off every week, and you didn't even have to negotiate for it.

It turned out you only had to work eight hours a day, not day and night without a break.

And most importantly, no matter the job, no boss had ever offered a salary as low as sixty cents!

'That bastard Zhang Wenda cheated me! Any other job would be less work and more pay than what he gave me!'

"Hmm... what should I do?" Song Jianguo stared at the job postings in front of the employment agency, overwhelmed by the choices.

More importantly, while she could recognize some of the words, she couldn't understand what they meant. For example, 'Education: Associate's Degree,' 'Education: Bachelor's Degree.' What was an associate's degree? What was a bachelor's degree?

Just then, a voice sounded in her mind. "What are you doing here? Where's Wenda?"

Song Jianguo looked around and immediately saw Hu Maomao, laden with bags of all sizes. The big, fluffy chinchilla looked a bit comical, holding things that were even bigger than she was.

"Maomao? You recovered so quickly?" Song Jianguo ran over in surprise and couldn't resist giving her soft fur a little squeeze.

"Treating common external injuries is a simple matter within Bureau 507," Hu Maomao said, then repeated her earlier question.

"I'm looking for a job. That machine-head said I have to get one here." After repeating what 2826 had said, Song Jianguo then asked Hu Maomao about what was confusing her.

When she learned how valuable an associate's degree was, Song Jianguo frowned. Forget an associate's degree, she didn't even have an elementary school diploma.

"Why do you need an associate's degree to sell coffee? Shouldn't anyone be able to sell things?"

Hu Maomao slowly explained, "There's no reason why. Those are just the rules in Thought Wave Two, and we have to follow them. You don't need an associate's degree to sell bubble tea, but unfortunately, selling bubble tea is forbidden in Shanghai."

"Then what do I do?" Song Jianguo frowned.

"Don't worry, it's a small thing. Wenda is new to Bureau 507, so he probably doesn't know, but all full-time employees are qualified to hire temporary workers. And being a temp is a real job."

Hu Maomao continued as they walked, "Just have him hire you as a temp and pay you a salary. There's no education requirement for temps."

"Him, pay me a salary? I'd be lucky if I didn't end up paying him! No, no way, absolutely not." Song Jianguo shook her head frantically.

Suddenly, she had an idea. Her eyes lit up, and she jumped right in front of Hu Maomao. "You're a full-time employee too, right? How about I work for you as a temp?"

"Me? I'm sorry, but I don't need one."

"It doesn't matter if you need one! Just hire me on paper, then pretend I don't exist. When my salary comes, how about we split it, fifty-fifty?"

"Did Zhang Wenda teach you that? You just got out of Thought Wave One and you've already learned how to be a ghost employee? That's explicitly forbidden by Bureau 507."

Although Hu Maomao refused firmly, Song Jianguo seemed certain she could wear her down and kept pestering her to hire her.

But even by the time they reached Hu Maomao's home on the 57th floor, she still hadn't agreed.

After taking a bite of a cool, sweet Snow-Mochi dessert, the wonderful texture made Song Jianguo suddenly feel that this place wasn't so bad after all.

"You live here all by yourself?" Song Jianguo asked, looking around the minimalist room, which was decorated primarily in apple green.

"Mhm, by myself." Hu Maomao also took out a spoon and had a bite of her dessert, her expression growing complicated as she gazed out the window.

"I couldn't find the right person, and besides, I'm used to being alone. And with the way I look... I doubt anyone would have me."

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