Headhunting (5000-Word Chapter)

Early in the morning, before the sky had even brightened, Ning Yifan was already up on time, changed into his athletic shoes and tracksuit, and headed out for his run.

The weather today wasn't great; it looked like it might rain. With no sunrise to enjoy, Ning Yifan returned early.

As the sky gradually brightened, the breakfast stalls in the industrial park were as bustling as ever. Workers finishing their night shifts and those preparing to start their day were all enjoying their breakfast.

Ning Yifan's breakfast today consisted of congee, steamed buns, and pickles. The appetizing pickles made him eat three bowls of congee and several steamed buns.

After breakfast, as he walked back to his factory, Ning Yifan pondered what to do today.

The production line improvements for the Phantom Projector were complete. The three-story equipment workshop had all its necessary equipment upgraded or manufactured.

Perhaps it was time to create a new product?

Now that he had money, Ning Yifan could do much more.

For Shenma Technology Company's first product, limited by production tools, lack of funds, and other conditions, Ning Yifan could only order equipment and parts online for manufacturing.

Although due to technical reasons, it still had a significant advantage over most projector products currently on the market, this was not the kind of black technology product Ning Yifan wanted to create.

The products he wanted to create were those that could bring about great change to humanity, make people's lives happier and more convenient, and transform society.

The initial accumulation was now complete. For the next product, Ning Yifan planned to produce all equipment and parts in his own factory, and the product must have the capability to crush similar products of this era.

While the Phantom Projector was good, companies producing projectors could make theirs even better, even with products costing hundreds of thousands or millions of yuan.

Ning Yifan returned, contemplating the future of his company.

Just then, his phone rang in his pocket.

Ning Yifan picked up his phone and saw an unfamiliar number. He frowned and answered.

A very polite voice came from the phone, "Hello, excuse me, is this Ning Yifan of Shenma Technology Company?"

"Yes, what is it?"

"I am from Hisense Electric Company..."

"I'm sorry, Shenma Technology Company does not need business cooperation, nor do we need financing, and we have no intention of selling the company. Goodbye!"

After hanging up, Ning Yifan sighed helplessly. He had received dozens, even hundreds, of such calls in the past few days, all from various electrical appliance manufacturing companies.

They asked if he had any intention of selling Shenma Technology Company, or if he wanted to buy company shares, seek financing, or even purchase the product technology patents for the Phantom Projector.

At first, Ning Yifan would listen to them finish before politely refusing.

As the calls increased, Ning Yifan lost the patience to explain. Each explanation only made him more agitated, and eventually, he just hung up like this.

Less than ten seconds after hanging up, the phone rang again.

Ning Yifan was speechless.

"It's only seven in the morning. These people are quite diligent."

"I don't know what I was thinking back then, leaving my personal phone number on the company information network. Maybe I should get a new SIM card?"

"Forget it, it's too much trouble. I'll just block all unknown numbers."

Ning Yifan reluctantly operated his phone, setting it to block calls.

While Ning Yifan was blocking calls, inside an electrical appliance company, a salesperson looked helplessly at the company's senior executives who had woken up early.

Even though they had anticipated this situation, making calls every day with only a sliver of hope, the numerous senior executives were also very disappointed and helpless.

"Now we can't even get through on the phone. Switching numbers won't help either; they've probably blocked all unknown numbers."

"The other party has absolutely no intention of selling Shenma Technology Company, and they refuse without hesitation every time."

"Another failure. The other party has no intention of selling the company."

"When we could still contact them a couple of days ago, even with an offer of fifty billion, they refused without any hesitation."

"Even with a price of fifty billion, they were unwilling to sell the production technology for the Phantom Projector."

"Even offering ten billion to acquire a 10% stake in Shenma Technology Company was not agreed to!"

"They're completely unresponsive. There's nothing we can do but wait and see if the headhunting company can poach any of Shenma Technology Company's technical engineers. Hopefully, we'll achieve something."

Jiang Xuwei was a top headhunter at Qiangren Headhunting Company. To reach the position of a top hunter in a world-renowned headhunting firm, Jiang Xuwei certainly had his skills.

Last night, the company received a major assignment for Jiang Xuwei to complete. If he successfully completed this deal and the client was satisfied, Jiang Xuwei's commission alone would be ten million yuan!

This was an unprecedentedly high amount for the company. If he succeeded, besides the money, he would also gain immense prestige within the industry, which truly tempted Jiang Xuwei.

So, after receiving the relevant information about the target company, Jiang Xuwei rushed out immediately, traveling overnight. His first stop was a small city in Xichuan Province, which was the registered address of Shenma Technology Company.

Although Shenma Technology Company had already moved from this location, as an excellent hunter, Jiang Xuwei would not miss any opportunity to gather information.

However, after two days of visiting and inquiring at the original address of Shenma Technology Company, Jiang Xuwei's gains were minimal, or rather, there were no leads at all.

Despite spending money on the investigation, Jiang Xuwei could not get any information about the founding team of Shenma Technology Company from the neighbors. Many neighbors didn't even know that a company had been located there before!

Regarding the previous tenant of that rental room, the neighbors could only recall a very handsome young man who received a lot of packages for a while. There were no other abnormalities.

Through his own observations, Jiang Xuwei found no signs that these people were lying. Moreover, to ensure the authenticity of the information, Jiang Xuwei had asked several different people, ruling out the possibility of them lying.

There was no news about the founding technical team's information. Even after Jiang Xuwei sought information from local SF Express delivery personnel, he still had no success.

The only one handling incoming and outgoing packages was that handsome young man. There was no sign of anyone else helping to deliver goods to the rooms.

It seemed like this mission would be difficult.

However, for ten million, Jiang Xuwei didn't give up.

Since there was no news at the original address of Shenma Technology Company, he had no choice but to go to the current factory location of Shenma Technology Company.

Through the Phantom Projector delivery information posted online by many people, Jiang Xuwei quickly located the current location of Shenma Technology Company.

Dujiangyan City Industrial Park.

After wandering around the industrial park for half a day, Jiang Xuwei asked the surrounding taxi drivers and veteran employees working in the industrial park, but he couldn't find the specific location of Shenma Technology Company!

Finally, with money paving the way, Jiang Xuwei spent ten thousand yuan to get the specific location of Shenma Technology Company from an SF Express deliveryman!

It was a factory building that didn't even have the company name displayed at the entrance!

It looked as if no one lived inside. For half a day, no one entered or exited. There were no security guards at the door, and the main gate was tightly shut.

If it weren't for seeing a deliveryman pull a truckload of Phantom Projectors out from inside, Jiang Xuwei would have thought it was a bankrupt factory!

Since the target was found, he would quietly wait for the prey to appear.

However, he waited and waited. Jiang Xuwei staked out next to Shenma Technology Company for a full two days without seeing any of the company's employees enter or exit!

The only person was a handsome young man, who should be the owner of this factory registered on the enterprise information network. His name was Ning Yifan. He had just graduated from university a year ago. Every morning, before dawn, he would leave the company and occasionally go out to buy groceries and cook, or order takeout. Based on Jiang Xuwei's observation, the portions of his meals were only enough for one or two people.

Jiang Xuwei naturally wouldn't approach the company's boss. The boss wasn't his mission target, as it was impossible to poach the company chairman.

However, Jiang Xuwei waited outside the company for two days without seeing any of the target individuals appear, not even a cleaner!

What kind of company is this? Does it have no employees?

Don't the employees ever get off work?

The entire company only had this one entrance and exit!

With no mission target appearing, Jiang Xuwei was about to curse, how could he use his silver tongue in such a situation? There wasn't even anyone who truly understood the internal situation of Shenma Technology Company!

The more he observed, the more confused Jiang Xuwei became. He imagined a white-haired technician in his sixties or seventies, or at least a middle-aged engineer in his forties or fifties, but he didn't see anyone. How did they manage it?

After observing for two days without finding the mission target, Jiang Xuwei became agitated and finally decided to go into the factory to take a look.

Money paved the way again. After spending a full twenty thousand yuan, Jiang Xuwei contacted the SF Express deliveryman who handled the company's express deliveries daily and prepared to ride in the SF Express delivery truck into the Shenma Technology Company factory.

Inside a large truck, Jiang Xuwei, dressed in an SF Express uniform, listened to the deliveryman, who had been paid, talk about Shenma Technology Company.

"This factory is really strange. Except for that handsome young man who came to pick up packages at the beginning, later on, we just drove directly into the factory's warehouse area to pick up the packages.

No one handed over anything to us during that time, and the delivery fees were directly transferred to the company owner via WeChat.

I've been picking up goods from this company for a month or two, and I haven't seen any other employees inside.

Do you think this factory might be like those in novels, where they keep dozens of zombie employees who don't need to eat, drink, or use the restroom, to manufacture Phantom Projectors for the company?"

Jiang Xuwei sat in the delivery truck as the deliveryman, having received his money, chattered on about Shenma Technology Company, even offering his own speculation.

He's read too many novels! Jiang Xuwei thought, but he didn't show it on his face.

"That really is a very strange factory. Maybe they aren't zombies, but products grown from the ground, hahaha!"

The deliveryman said worriedly, "Don't do anything outrageous, or I might lose my job!"

"Don't worry, it's just a delivery job. If you lose your job, I guarantee I'll find you a better one!" Jiang Xuwei comforted him.

"Have you heard of headhunting firms? I specialize in this kind of work. I'm not afraid to tell you, I'm on a mission this time to poach a technician from Shenma Technology Company. If this succeeds, I'll give you another twenty thousand yuan as a thank-you fee!"

"Then you do what you think is best," the deliveryman said, dazed by the onslaught of money. He even hoped Jiang Xuwei would succeed in his mission. As for any losses Shenma Technology Company might incur, that had nothing to do with him!

The delivery truck slowly approached Shenma Technology Company, and the gate access system automatically opened.

As they were about to enter Shenma Technology Company, the deliveryman gave a final reminder: "Loading the packages takes about ten minutes. Do whatever you need to do quickly. And, one last time, don't do anything outrageous. It's fine if you're looking for an engineer, but don't do anything illegal. If you commit any illegal acts, I won't cover for you. I still want to go home to my wife and kids."

Jiang Xuwei checked the hidden recording equipment on his body while waving his hand, "Don't worry, I'm just looking. As long as I can get the contact information of a technical engineer, I won't go inside."

"That's good."

The deliveryman skillfully drove the truck into the factory's first-floor warehouse area, where neatly stacked Phantom Projector products were packed.

As the SF Express truck parked in the designated spot, the sound of mechanical operation came from above the factory.

Through a track on the roof, a hook grabbed a stack of one hundred completed Phantom Projectors and began loading them onto the truck. The deliveryman only needed to watch from the side during the entire process.

Jiang Xuwei, who had gotten out of the truck, also witnessed all of this.

It was operating automatically. Just as the deliveryman said, there wasn't a single person in the entire factory area on this floor!

No target was found on the first floor, so he had to check the upper floors.

However, this floor should be the warehouse, used for storing products and raw materials. With a glance, Jiang Xuwei saw an elevator in the middle, but upon closer inspection, he saw no buttons.

He only had ten minutes. After nodding to the SF Express deliveryman, Jiang Xuwei clutched his stomach and walked towards the depths of the factory. Soon, amidst the piled-up goods, he saw the stairs leading to the second floor.

Fortunately, heaven hadn't closed all paths; it wasn't just the elevator that provided access between floors!

After looking around to make sure no one was there, Jiang Xuwei quickly went up. The factory floor height was eight meters, equivalent to two to three floors of a regular residential building. The stairs turned three corners, and the second floor was in sight.

However, Jiang Xuwei's expression turned grim. A large iron gate blocked the path ahead.

Jiang Xuwei gently pushed the door with his hand, but the iron gate didn't budge.

Was this trip going to be for nothing?

Looking at the gap above the iron gate, Jiang Xuwei took out his phone, opened the video recorder, and held it up to film inside.

However, just then, the iron gate slowly opened, and the situation inside came into Jiang Xuwei's view.

Dozens of production lines, with dozens of swift and agile robotic arms beside each one. The entire factory production line area was still devoid of any human presence, yet products were being manufactured non-stop!

No workers!

No wonder he hadn't seen any workers entering or leaving after staking out the place for days!

Perhaps the only person in the entire factory area was the very handsome company boss!

How was all of this achieved?

How could the mission be completed?

His mind raced through a thousand thoughts, but Jiang Xuwei didn't have much time to ponder countermeasures carefully.

As the gate opened, a voice reached Jiang Xuwei's ears.

"Warning, unauthorized entry into the factory premises is strictly prohibited. Please leave immediately, or the company will report you to the police. The factory area is equipped with numerous surveillance devices, and your every move is being monitored. Please leave immediately, please leave immediately!"

A vehicle with four wheels and two robotic arms mounted on its platform slowly drove up to Jiang Xuwei, blocking his path.

Is this a modified Wuling Hongguang Mini EV?

Jiang Xuwei found the lower part of the vehicle very familiar!

Jiang Xuwei clutched his stomach and said, "I'm so sorry, I'm so sorry. I was just looking for the restroom. I'm not feeling well. Could you please tell me where the restroom is?"

"Warning, unauthorized entry into the factory premises is strictly prohibited. Please leave immediately, or the company will report you to the police. The factory area is equipped with numerous surveillance devices, and your every move is being monitored. Please leave immediately, please leave immediately!"

The vehicle's loudspeaker continued to play the same message on repeat, making no response to Jiang Xuwei's words.

Glancing around, Jiang Xuwei discreetly observed his surroundings and indeed saw several cameras. There were also several cameras on the roof of the modified vehicle.

Shaking his head, Jiang Xuwei didn't say anything further. Clutching his stomach, he quickly went downstairs, "Restroom, restroom, where on earth is the restroom?!"

Back on the first floor, Jiang Xuwei wandered around the warehouse area again for a few laps, but found no restroom and no signs of anyone else.

So it really is a fully automated factory!

Although he was a bit disappointed not to have found the mission target, he should still be able to earn some income from this reconnaissance mission inside Shenma Technology Company.

Shenma Technology Company, which had gained fame online, had only been established for a few months and was already a fully automated high-tech company. Its level of automation was higher than many international giants!

And the factory only had the boss!

After loading the express delivery, Jiang Xuwei left the Shenma Technology Company factory in his delivery vehicle. He got off halfway back to SF Express Company and hastily left the city.

Although he hadn't managed to poach any technicians, Jiang Xuwei had the video footage shot by his stealth equipment, along with some photos from his phone. He believed that companies interested in Shenma Technology Company would pay for this information.