Yes, that's right. I've came face to face with real triad members. Gangsters, triad members. Whatever you call them. Not only that, we "negotiated" with them.
It was like any other shitty day. SH and I were in the office when we heard a knock on the door. Thinking it was delivery guys or customers, we opened the door. One of the 2 guys start talking and says he wants to meet the new neighbours, and wants to be friends. Bla bla bla..... and a few minutes later, turns out they're here asking for protection money. We told them that the boss wasn't in and they should be back on Monday to speak to the boss. THE FOOL was away on a business trip.
They insisted that there was no harm in us being friends, we'd have nothing to lose. They said we should give them "face" and they can't go back empty handed. They decided to lower the fee from RM 300 to RM 100 per person. We told him saying we couldn't even afford that because we only get a RM 300 monthly allowance. SH asked if both of us could discuss amongst ourselves on the fee we could afford. He was probably getting impatient and in the end...I showed him I only had RM 50 in my wallet. That was all I could afford.
To be totally honest, we didn't want extra trouble. We were afraid of the things they could do if we didn't pay them. Especially to our cars parked outside. We wouldn't give a fuck if they destroyed the office, but our cars.....we were worried. Yes, we were CONCERNED about our safety but WORRIED about our cars! Is there something wrong with us? More concerned about our cars than our safety?
We weren't physically threatened because they didn't have any weapons with them. So there was no reason to be afraid. All that happened was the guy kept touching me on the shoulder while talking to me. Physical provokation? SH later told me that one of them had a tattoo going from his arm all the way to his chest.
We did a survey around after they left and found out this is not the first time it happened. We called THE FOOL when we got back to the office and called for a meeting on Monday. I told him it was a serious matter that needs to be discussed.
So come Monday, we'll see what sort of bullshit (solutions) he offers. SH and I have already discussed what to be brought up on Monday's meeting. We will say we no longer have peace of mind working there, just in simpler to understand English, because THE FOOL's English is crap as well. We'll just tell him we don't feel safe there anymore, those people can come back anytime. All facts and none of the bullshit. Hopefully, we can break the contract and leave that shit-hole as soon as possible. Also would like to get back our RM 80 that we paid. Maybe we have to add in some extra for "mental anguish" or something like that.
Spoke to Ronald today and he told us he'd speak to SHRDC about the matter. His advice is that the center shouldn't be able to hold us back when it concerns our safety. We have to keep them posted on the next course of action.
Now, the issue is, how are we going to break it gently to THE FOOL?
I can safely say nothing can compare to the experience I've had from this Industrial Attachment. From what could possibly be one of the worst bosses one can ever have to triad encounters, its something that could be good Hollywood material. A script-turned-tv series could be profitable. Wouldn't you think so?
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