All Chapters of Helped Them Get Jobs, Then Got Betrayed: Chapter 1 - Chapter 10

The following day, Emily posted a screenshot of a chat in the group. She told everyone she had added the recruiter’s contact. The guy claimed to be an HR manager at a major electronics factory who specialised in hiring summer workers.[Mr. Wright says they provide room and board, with a starting salary of 7,000 dollars a month. Do well and there are bonuses on top of that.]The chat immediately turned into Emily’s appreciation club.[Emily, you’re awesome!][Stick with Emily and you’ll never go hungry!]However, something about it did not sit right with me.[What’s the name of the factory? Which district is it in?]Emily replied: [He said someone will pick us up and bring us over there. We don’t need to find the place ourselves.]I asked again: [Do you have to pay for anything?][Pay for what? He said there are no fees.] Her tone started to get impatient. [Can you stop being paranoid all the time? You’ve been reading too many scam-prevention posts, haven’t you?]My deskma

Emily replied instantly: [Do you know the difference between 3,000 dollars and 7,000 dollars? Well, we do.]Kevin jumped in to stir things up: [Jasper is getting defensive. Haha!]Gideon added: [Come on, give him a break. He's just trying to help his uncle recruit some workers. Cut him some slack.]Asher wrapped things up with a final message: [All right, guys. Everyone is entitled to their own choice. Jasper, don’t take it personally. We’re just looking at the facts.]What did he mean by that? I helped them to find jobs without taking a single cent, and in the end, they all called me a scammer taking kickbacks.I put my phone face-down on the table. I could not bring myself to take another bite of my bread.The older man sitting across from me noticed the look on my face and asked, “Hey, kid. What’s wrong?”“Nothing.” I picked up my tray and rose to my feet. “I’m done eating. I’m heading out.”I left the cafeteria and stood by the road outside the factory, letting the wind hit

My classmates stampeded onto the bus. A few of them deliberately slowed down as they passed me. Julian walked right past me with his head down, pretending he did not see me. Kevin, on the other hand, glanced at me and even smiled. There was a hint of sympathy, a trace of smugness, and something else I could not quite put my finger on.It was probably his way of saying, 'Look at how pathetic you are.'Gideon was the last one to board. Before stepping onto the bus, he turned back and looked at me. His voice was not loud, but it was clear enough for me to hear. “Jasper, be careful. You might want to make sure that factory isn’t a scam.”Then, he laughed.His smile exploded in my head, sharp as a needle driven into my temple. Part of me actually hoped he would get scammed. It was not because I was cruel, but I just wanted to see if he would still be laughing when that happened.The white bus pulled away first. As it passed our bus, someone inside flashed a peace sign through the win

There were 38 of them. Not a single one had said a word.I pondered for a moment. Perhaps their factory had stricter rules and did not allow phones during work hours.Uncle Quentin’s factory did not allow phones on the production floor either, but everyone could check them during lunch breaks. Perhaps their rules were just even stricter. I did not think much more about it.On the seventh night, my mother suddenly called me. The moment I answered, my mother’s voice sounded panicked and anxious.“Jasp, are you okay?”“What could happen to me? I’m perfectly fine here at the factory.” I could hear the relief in her voice, but then it tightened again. “I need to tell you something. Don’t panic.”“What happened?”“Some of the parents of the kids from your class who went to work can’t get in touch with their kids anymore. Julian’s mom called me three times today. She said she hasn’t heard from him since the night they left. At first, she thought maybe the signal was bad, but she can'

That night, I saw the local news on my phone.The headline read: [Police Successfully Rescue 38 Victims Trapped in Pyramid Scheme Compound. One Suffers Double Leg Fractures After Jumping From Building While Escaping. Multiple Others Injured.]Someone in the comments asked: [How did these kids get tricked into going there?]A reply appeared underneath: [How else? Fake high-paying job offers. Fresh graduates are the easiest targets for this kind of scam.]I turned my phone face down on the table.Yes, it was a high-paying job offer. It completely fooled 38 people, including the girl who had stood in front of that bus wearing brand-new sneakers, smiling as she whistled at me.The day they left, she bragged about the 7,000-dollar salary. She said 3,000 dollars was only enough to buy a pair of decent shoes. She also accused me of taking kickbacks from my uncle and said I was exploiting my own classmates for money.I remembered every single word, and I had no intention of forgetting.