Although the appearance of ordinary Clam Worms was not flattering, they were actually equivalent to mealworms in the water. They were harmless and could be used as food for several kinds of fish. Their protein content was not low, and people in the south even cooked them. However, some Clam Worms were slightly toxic, and some people might have allergic reactions after direct contact.
However, ordinary Clam Worms were not aggressive, so it was impossible for them to cause the disappearance of the fish.
Zhang Zian's heart skipped a beat, and he quickly said, "Let me take another look at that photo."
The other people at the scene were originally guessing the reason for the fish's disappearance, but they suddenly saw his expression change and became serious. They could not help but look at each other. Even Welder Zhao, who had been bragging about how he saved money by raising fish, was a little uneasy.
Electrician Wu showed the photo to Zhang Zian again. His phone model was older, so the photo was not very clear.
"How is it, Store Manager Zhang? Is this worm a Clam Worm?" he asked anxiously, worried for his co-worker.
Zhang Zian looked at it a few times. "It is indeed a Clam Worm. There's no mistake, but …"
"But what?"
"Is this the only photo?" Zhang Zian asked. "I'm worried that other than the Clam Worm, there are other things hidden in the reef."
Electrician Wu became even more nervous. He suddenly remembered. "Right, I also recorded a video. I wanted to take it back to my wife and persuade her to let me change to a bigger fish tank, but this video is not of the Clam Worm. It's just the fish tank as a whole. Is that okay?"
"Okay, it's better than nothing," Zhang Zian said.
"Let me look for it."
Electrician Wu swiped a few times on his phone, found the video he had recorded before, and clicked play.
The quality of the video was not very good. Not to mention the clarity, it was also very shaky. It made Zhang Zian want to persuade Electrician Wu to do an early screening for Parkinson's disease …
Welder Zhao's self-made fish tank was very large, with a length of 1.5 meters. The width was not carefully measured, but it was definitely not narrow. There were a few black reef rocks in it, piled up in the center of the fish tank. At the bottom of the fish tank was a layer of rough sand. A few common small fish were cruising between the overgrown seaweed, pecking at a few algae leaves from time to time.
Overall, the fish tank was arranged quite well, but due to the pursuit of extreme cost saving, there were no eggs. There was also a little excess of nutrients in the water, so the water was slightly muddy. Fortunately, there weren't many fish, so the water quality wouldn't deteriorate so quickly.
These reefs were all chiseled from the sea, and their insides were filled with holes of various sizes. The small holes could only fit a grain of rice, while the large holes ran all the way to the inside of the reefs. They were twisted and turned, and no one knew how long they were.
The more pores the reef had, the better. It could reduce its weight and also provide a breeding ground for nitrifying bacteria to multiply. Welder Zhao must have considered that when he was mining the reef.
"Pause! What is that? "
Zhang Zian suddenly noticed that in the corner of the video, there was something moving between the rocks. It was very fast, but the movement was very small. It was as if something had poked its head out to observe the outside, and then quickly retreated, leaving only the stirred sand at the bottom slowly rotating.
He could notice it because he knew that the problem must be with the reef, so he kept staring at it.
"What?"
Electrician Wu's eyesight was blurry and he didn't wear his glasses, so he didn't notice this detail.
He rewound the video and replayed it. Everyone stared at the position that Zhang Zian had pointed out without blinking.
This time, they noticed it, but the video was not clear, and the movement of the thing was too fast. They still couldn't tell what it was, but they were sure that it was not the slow-moving Clam Silkworm.
"What's going on? Zhao, what did you raise in the fish tank? "Electrician Wu was horrified and asked Welder Zhao.
Welder Zhao was stubborn. "I didn't raise it. I just raised fish … Look at you guys making a fuss. Isn't it just a grown Clam Silkworm? I heard that Clam Silkworms can grow to about a meter long, so that should be it. Right, boss, do you have any frogs here? "
"Frogs?" Wang Qian asked impatiently. "Are frogs considered aquatic creatures? They're amphibians, right? We don't sell them here. "
"He asked about the colorful frog. It's a kind of fish, not a real frog," Zhang Zian corrected.
"Yes, that's right. The colorful frog. I heard that that kind of fish eats Clam Silkworms. As long as you keep a few of them, I guarantee that the whole tank will be clean," Welder Zhao said.
Zhang Zian shook his head. "Whether or not the colorful frog eats Clam Silkworms is another matter, but the thing we saw is definitely not a Clam Silkworm. I'm afraid that even the colorful frog will become its food."
"What is that thing?" Electrician Wu asked.
Zhang Zian said uncertainly, "I think … it might be a Bobbit Worm."
"Bobbit? Is it Bolt's brother? "Wang Qian was stunned again.
Jiang Feifei interrupted, "I think I've heard of it before. It's a very ferocious worm. Can it grow very long?"
"Yes, that worm is very ferocious. It comes and goes like the wind. If there's enough space, it can even grow to three meters long. Not to mention fish, they can also attack people." Zhang Zian estimated based on the glimpse in the video. "The one in the fish tank doesn't look small. I'm guessing it's about half a meter long."
"What? It can attack people? "Welder Zhao, who had been forcing himself to smile, finally couldn't stand it anymore and asked in shock.
"That's right. So … apart from you, is there anyone else in your family who knows how to play with this fish tank?" Zhang Zian said seriously.
"This …" Welder Zhao thought about it. "My daughter-in-law thinks those Clam Silkworms are disgusting, so she never touches them. My son sometimes helps me tinker with them."
"Are there any children who touch the water in the tank?" Zhang Zian asked.
"My grandson and his friends seem to have played a daring game before. It was a competition to see who dared to touch the Clam Silkworm …" Welder Zhao swallowed his saliva and defended himself. "I taught them not to play like that."
"Then they stopped playing?" Electrician Wu's heart tightened when he heard that, because his grandson was also one of Welder Zhao's grandson's playmates.
Both families lived in the factory's staff compound, and they lived very close to each other. Every day after school, the boys in the compound who were of similar age would gather together and play games on their phones. Adults didn't like children to play games for too long, so when they didn't have games to play, they would find other ways to have fun.
Electrician Wu knew that his grandson would play with Welder Zhao's grandson, but he didn't expect them to play so much.
He knew that his grandson was very well-behaved and hated worms, so he wouldn't take the initiative to touch the strange worms. But little boys at that age were especially afraid of being looked down upon by their peers. Once they were ridiculed, they would often do things that they wouldn't normally do …
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