章 3: A normal day between Secretary and her Boss
The office of Yuanwei was a spacious room, but the atmosphere was often tense. It was where Pingguo spent most of her time, enduring the constant reprimands of her stern employer. Today's discussion was more than heated, revolving around a mistake made by the young woman. Pingguo had done her best to prevent it, but given the nature of the task and working alone, it was evident to anyone that an error could occur. Everyone, except her employer.
"One hundred and ten copies, tell me, what was so difficult to understand about that?"
"Nothing, sir. Just... if it were one hundred and ten copies of a single page, it would have been easier. But one hundred and ten copies of a forty-page manual is not the same. I asked if I could have assistance, but you refused."
"How long do you plan on being assisted? Since you started working here," vociferated the superior, "you always need assistance. How long do you think that will last?"
"Sir, I handle multiple tasks, but like anyone else, I sometimes need help."
Yuanwei, as often with her, lost his composure in front of Pingguo and threw the scattered papers over the still figure of the young woman. The young secretary remained silent, standing in the middle of the room, which was both her workplace and a place of torment.
The young man wondered about the necessity of such exchanges. Why did he subject himself to such torment with such a clumsy assistant? Many more qualified young women dreamed of taking her place, but she seemed to care little about his prestige. Pingguo, in return, wondered why she tolerated such a demanding boss. Acerbic exchanges were common, but for her, it was a kind of game, a way to challenge authority.
Yuanwei circled his desk and stood in front of the young woman, just a few millimeters away. Pingguo decided to lower her eyes; she couldn't look at him so closely. Perhaps that was her only limit.
"Do you know what you just did?"
"Yes, sir," the secretary replied.
"I'll tell you. You just ruined a six-month job that every employee here devoted heart and soul to, for which so many people left their families and children. Do you know how?"
"N-No, sir."
He's really close; his fragrance is too exotic, it makes me want to sneeze. Damn, move away!
"I asked you to make one hundred and ten copies, one hundred and ten copies for our one hundred and ten buyers of the product. But the catalog pages were either incomplete or some didn't have it. How can you be so careless in performing such simple tasks?"
Pingguo didn't react, so Yuanwei added another layer.
"You're not just negligent; you're distracted and clumsy! I ask you, when do you do what you're asked? Never! You just do your own thing, and not in the glorifying sense. Do you think that will get you anywhere? Misbehavior is just a sign of weakness. You want to show that you're out of time, that you can do whatever you want, but know that all this will only lead to rejection by everyone."
Yuanwei stopped when he heard her sniffle; perhaps he had gone too far this time. Finally. A word had penetrated this girl's shell; these tears were just her way to healing her unresolved adolescence fever. In reality, Pingguo was anything but a mature adult. Or even an adult, for that matter. His profound purpose was not to humiliate or hurt her, but rather to teach her the responsibilities that life demanded. She needed help, to which Yuanwei intended to respond willingly, even if it proved complicated with this calamity.
While he thought she was sniffling, Pingguo pushed him away. She raised her head with a grimace before simply sneezing fiercely.
"What..."
"Oh my God! Sorry, sir, really sorry. Wait," the young woman apologized immediately, taking a tissue, "I'll clean it up!"
The small spittle stain was barely visible, but Yuanwei reacted as if it were covered by it. The young woman rubbed the tissue against her boss's jacket, but he recoiled with fury.
"You're completely insane! Let go of me. You... don't put your dirty hands on me again, or I'll fire you on the spot!"
Pingguo gave up; she lowered her hand, pouting. He was really exaggerating, she thought. She watched him wipe himself as if a tuberculous person had sneezed on him, her expression acerbic.
"Well, you shouldn't have gotten so close to me," muttered Pingguo beside her, "serves you right!"
Yuanwei couldn't believe it; she hadn't even waited for him to move away to make this disparaging remark. Almost stunned by this audacity, the young man lost his words.
"I can't believe it... you really fear nothing! How dare you talk to me like that; I'm your boss, you owe me respect!"
"Ouch! No need to shout at me; I'm right here! I can even feel your breath," Pingguo retorted, haughty. "I know all that; you repeat the same refrain every day."
"Address me with 'vous' immediately!"
Pingguo stared at him, this spoiled child. She crossed her arms and faced his gaze, then suddenly bowed but with a certain grace that expressed her real feelings.
"Of course! I'm sorry, sir. To apologize, would you like a cup of coffee?"
Before Yuanwei could express his displeasure, Pingguo turned on her heels with a simple "okay, I'll be back!" and left, slamming the door behind her. Yuanwei remained stoic, shocked. Devoid of any other reaction, Yuanwei chuckled bitterly. When Pingguo returned, her boss was busy trying to win back lost clients. He talked on the phone, with fragmented sentences that only they could understand. Businessmen. The young man had removed his tie and jacket, and kept pacing back and forth in the room.
Pingguo stood in her usual place, on a small desk in the corner of the room. According to her superior, she wasn't entitled to a desk, supposedly it wouldn't serve her any purpose since she never did anything right. So be it. While her boss spoke on the phone, the young woman's gaze imperceptibly drifted towards Yuanwei. She couldn't help but notice the perfection of his features, his assured demeanor, and even the way the office light emphasized every contour of his face. He was like a living work of art, attractive and charismatic. However, Pingguo, aware of the need to regain composure, quickly averted her gaze and immersed herself in her computer. She pushed any inappropriate thoughts out of her mind, forcing herself to return to reality. Daydreaming about him was daydreaming about her sworn enemy. Pingguo then engaged in one of her favorite activities, online shopping. She could spend hours on these sales sites buying clothes, beauty products, and shoes. Her small apartment couldn't take it anymore; it was about to explode under the impulse of all these items.
The young woman's hobby was to find secret codes; combinations of numbers created by shops to earn free vouchers. She preferred those of her company because she won most of them, as some of them were related to important dates of her boss. His birthday, the age at which he took over the company, his age or that of his mother, and more. She had carefully noted all these dates to be able to win more vouchers. Today, she won one thanks to her boss's dog's adoption date.
"I can't believe it," Pingguo grimaced, looking at her boss. "He prefers to take the adoption date of a stupid dog while I'm here, what an idiot!"
She saw Yuanwei's gaze turn to her; the young woman immediately bristled. Once her boss's head turned, Pingguo made faces behind his back and cursed him. Then, the young woman took care of her newly won voucher. It was a voucher valid for twenty-four hours; she could only enjoy it today until the end of the day. And precisely, new products were offered in the store, limited editions that she could get without spending a dime.
"But the Beauty Skin products, by the end of the day... they'll be sold out. I want the new lipstick and blush, what should I do?"
The secretary twiddled her thumbs in her chair; if she decided to leave now without any apparent reason, her boss could ask her never to come back. And goodbye to the free Beauty Skin vouchers.
"No, no, no! Never," she thought, shaking her head, "I can't lose the precious vouchers; I need something, quickly!"
She was biting her nails, thinking of an excuse to leave the office when suddenly, Yuanwei's personal phone rang. A flash crossed her mind, hoping it was for a mission in town. Yuanwei answered the call and, after hanging up, gestured for the young woman to approach.
"Yes, sir?"
Yuanwei grimaced; Pingguo's tone was really affected, she was hiding something bad, inevitably. But, at the moment, Yuanwei didn't have time to build up an instigation on her strange behavior and brushed it off.
"My mother needs a courier; her driver is sick, so she needs someone to do the shopping. Take my car and go to town for me, bring them back here, and I'll drop them off myself. Understand?"
"Moreover," muttered Pingguo, "it's directly to the shopping center, great!"
"What?"
"Nothing, nothing at all! Um, of course, I can do it. Give me the keys; I'll go right away. You'll see; it'll be done in less time than the combustion of an incense stick."
"What are you talking about..."
Pingguo's phone vibrated in her pocket, notifying her of the imminent depletion of Beauty Skin product stocks. She didn't give her boss time to give more instructions or threats. She quickly took the keys and rushed out, leaving Yuanwei dumbfounded.
"An real spycho," he sighed before resuming his call with his client.
クリエイターの想い 
Gemini_OMEGA
Gemini_OMEGA Hey You! I hope you like this new chapter, and that you will come back for the next ones, don't forget that your support nourishes my writing!! (^///^)
ヾ(￣▽￣) Bye~Bye~
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