บท 1: We Need Money
Bernice Wang grabbed the whiskey bottle from the grasp of her old man.
"Dad, stop drinking already!"
"No! Give it back!" her father wailed and reached out from his rattan chair to get the alcohol from her.
She easily dodged him as she was standing.
"Don't! Everyone has foresaken me! The company I built from nothing had returned to nothing! Don't take everything away from me! Give that back!" He was wailing and getting angry at the same time. His emotions are really unstable.
"No! That's it! I'm calling Uncle Ethan to come over!" She tapped on her phone and dialled a number.
She needed to find a new job soon, as she was previously working for their company. However, she could not leave her father alone. That is why she decided to call out her uncle who was living in the province.
It was between planting and harvest season, he could watch over his brother while she tries to apply for a new job.
She browsed through hardcopy and online advertisements.
Her credentials can get her some jobs, but the pay can barely sustain them. They still needed to compensate hundreds of their previous employees. At the rate they were going, even their house is at stake.
It was not that her credentials are bad. It was just not the time of the year when companies are out looking to hire new employees.
Vacancies are usually from those who just lost employees for a reason or another.
The following morning, there was someone knocking on their front door.
Bernice Wang turned the stove off and wiped her oily hands on her apron as she walked to answer the door.
"Uncle Ethan!" her face showed how delighted she was to see him. She forgot how messy she looked as she gave him a hug.
The last time she saw him was when she had her coming-of-age party. He went all the way from the province, dressed up nicely for the occasion, and greeted her a happy birthday. Before he left that night, he promised to help whenever they might need him.
Ethan Wang never knew that this day would come. His little brother had made it big in the city. He thought never would this brother need his help.
"Bernice!" he hugged back briefly, then his face turned solemn as he looked at his niece.
She looked like a housewife. She had her hair in a messy bun, her sleeves were rolled up her elbows and the apron on her had a lot of stains. However, she maintains her gorgeous smile, a dimple on her cheek.
"Where's your father?" his tone turned serious.
"Uh, well..." she started to move back into the house and let her uncle in.
Ethan Wang dragged his luggage into the house and shut the door. He put down his luggage in the living room and repeated his question. "Where is he?"
Bernice pursed her lips, took a deep breath, then replied, "He's on the balcony...his room door is open.
He nodded and went upstairs without saying anything.
Bernice Wang continued to work in the kitchen so they could have breakfast.
She saw a job online last night and the pay is huge. She will go for it today.
After about half an hour, her uncle came back downstairs.
She heaved a sigh of relief as she did not need to call him to eat.
Her father is still a work-in-progress at this point so she did not expect him to come down and join them for breakfast anyway.
"Uncle! Let's eat." she enthusiastically poured coffee into his cup.
Ethan Wang smiled at her, but his mind seemed to be somewhere else. He sat on the chair before the dining table absent-mindedly and began eating.
Bernice Wang knew that her uncle was thinking deeply, so she also ate quietly.
When she had finished her meal, she declared, "Uncle, I'm sorry...I...I need to go and apply for a job today. Don't worry about the dishes. You can leave them in the sink after eating. I'll be back soon and wash them."
Since their company collapsed, Bernice Wang could not even afford to pay their servants. She did all household chores herself. Good thing was her late mother taught her back when she started high school.
It came in handy when no one else will take care of the family.
"Silly child. You cooked for me. It's not a big deal if I wash the dishes." Ethan Wang smiled again.
'But Uncle..."
"Hey, aren't you going to be late? Off you go!"
"Oh! Right..." she hurried into her room.
Ethan Wang chuckled, then his face turned sad. He could only try to snap some sense into his brother's troublesome mind. At this rate, his niece might not be able to marry.
.
Bernice Wang arrived in Li Telecommunications looking sharp in her matching coat and pencil skirt.
"I'm here to see the head of Human Resources." she told the receptionist.
"Oh..." he looked at the folder she was holding. "Are you perhaps here to apply for the assistant position?"
"Yes, I am." she smartly replied with a smile.
The male receptionist leaned over to whisper, "Lady, everyone whose position requires them to be visible to the CEO all need to be male. Even if I direct you to the HR department, you might even be blacklisted by other companies by tomorrow."
"What?!"
He immediately gestured with his finger over his lips.
She held back her emotions and smiled. "Sorry, I went into the wrong building!" she declared amidst the bunch of all male employees in the lobby.
She bowed and strode her way out the door.
She hurriedly hailed a cab and went back home.
This cannot be. The job was perfect, but they only hire men?! What stroke of luck!
However, as she contemplated inside the cab, she had a sly smile.
Ethan Wang was surprised to see her back so soon. "How did your interview go?"
She barely answered him as she dashed into her bedroom. "Uh...later, Uncle!"
To his confusion, she dashed out of her bedroom and into her parents'.
Ethan Wang just served coffee to his brother in the lanai, so she would not be disturbing him even if she goes into his bedroom.
However, what is she doing there?
He shrugged off his shoulders and went back into the kitchen to check for ingredients in the pantry.
When he heard hurried footsteps while chopping, he put down the knife and went out of the kitchen to ask her if she was having lunch at home.
To his surprise, he saw a man.
"Who....what? Why?" In the middle of his questioning, he realized that he was looking at his niece, dressed as a man.
"We need money." was all she answered before heading out the door.
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