Chapter 1
"Good morning, Miss. It's Wednesday, and it's exactly eight o'clock in the morning. You've been lazing in bed for ten minutes now. Shall I draw the curtains for you?"
The gentle, mechanical voice of the smart home assistant rang out from the small speaker on the bedside table.
Chu Muchao sat on the edge of the bed.
Sunlight streamed through the gaps in the three layers of heavy curtains, casting a soft glow on the pale yellow carpet.
Wednesday.
There was no frustration from working overtime for two consecutive days, nor the relief of being able to enjoy a day off after just one more day of perseverance.
It's being caught in the middle, resigned and numb.
I've only been interning at the company for about two weeks, but why do I smell like a student?
Chu Muchao raised his arm and sniffed the air.
She let out a heavy sigh: "I'm up. Could you open the curtains for me?"
"OK."
As the gentle mechanical sound faded, a "ding" rang out, and the three layers of curtains in the room automatically opened to both sides.
The small ventilation window on the far left of the floor-to-ceiling window also opened automatically. A wave of heat rushed in, instantly merging into the cool air filled with the scent of lemon and grass.
Well.
The sunlight was blinding, scorching and intense.
It's only 8 o'clock and it's already this hot... The weather today is awful!
"Miss, the water temperature is ready for you. You can wash up now."
Chu Muchao let out another frustrated and helpless sigh: "Okay."
Half an hour later.
Chu Muchao, carrying a black brocade shoulder bag, took the elevator down from the second floor.
The aunt stood at the elevator door and greeted Chu Muchao with a smile.
"Good morning, Miss. Today's breakfast includes apple, black rice and red bean soup, perilla drink, crab roe soup dumplings, medicinal black chicken soup and coconut milk pudding. It has already been served to the dining room, and Young Master Wen is having his meal there."
"I'm not eating anymore."
Chu Muchao shook his head, his fair and pretty face showing signs of fatigue and worry.
"I'm going to be late for work."
A male voice came from the restaurant next door, his cool tone carrying an air of authority: "You can't skip breakfast, Chaochao, come and have breakfast."
Chu Muchao paused, slowing his pace as he was about to leave.
With her chin slightly raised and her back to the restaurant, she called out, "Brother, I'm going to be late for work. I've already been late three times this month, and I'll get a scolding if I'm late again."
Footsteps sounded behind me, steady and agile.
"Da da, da da".
As the footsteps grew closer, Chu Muchao turned around helplessly. Just as he was about to speak, he bumped into a solid chest.
His full muscles stretched his light gray striped shirt to its limit.
She pursed her lips, took a step back, and complained in a soft voice, "You startled me, you were so close."
Chu Wen looked down at the furry head in front of him.
Her black hair, as lustrous as silk, was casually tied back in a ponytail. She looked rushed; her hair was still a little messy.
Chu Wen raised his hand, his fingertips stroking the black hair, his fingertips combing through the stray strands.
Then, he took a step back to create distance.
"Your hair is a mess, pay attention next time."
Chu Muchao touched his head and mumbled an "Oh".
Chu Wen glanced at him coldly, reached out and took the backpack from Chu Muchao's shoulder, and said in an unyielding tone, "You can't skip breakfast. Come in with me."
My stomach let out a timely "gurgle."
Chu Muchao pouted and walked into the restaurant with Chu Wen.
The aunt ladled out a bowl of chicken soup and placed it in front of Chu Muchao.
"Miss, this is something Young Master Wen specifically instructed the kitchen to make for you last night to nourish your body."
Chu Wen frowned slightly: "What do you mean I specifically told you? I just said it casually, there was no special purpose behind it."
Seeing the dark circles under her eyes, his relaxed brows furrowed again, and his tone unconsciously became harsh and stern.
Why do you have dark circles under your eyes?
Chu Muchao scooped a spoonful of soup and put it in his mouth; the delicious aroma of the chicken soup instantly filled the air.
She squinted her eyes contentedly: "Working overtime at the company, it's so tiring, how can I concentrate on anything else? Hmm... the chicken soup looks so delicious, what herbs did they put in it?"
"I added more astragalus than usual." After answering subconsciously, Chu Wen paused in his hand as he scooped the soup, his expression unnatural and awkward. "I said I would arrange for you to be the manager of a less demanding branch office, and if you're willing now, that still applies."
Such a rigid way of changing the subject.
Chu Muchao glanced at her cold and serious older brother, her eyes crinkling, but didn't reply: "Thank you, brother. The chicken soup is delicious. I love it."
Chu Wen's lips moved slightly, and he lowered his eyes to hum in agreement, revealing no further thoughts.
The chicken soup in the white porcelain bowl was half empty. Chu Muchao put down the soup spoon and reached out to pick up a palm-sized crab roe soup dumpling.
The thin, translucent noodles are so delicate they seem to break at the slightest touch; the broth inside causes them to jiggle and sway.
Chu Muchao picked up his chopsticks and easily pierced the thin, translucent dough, releasing the crab roe and meat.
A small spoon was handed to me.
Chu Muchao heard that clear, cold voice say, "Use a small spoon, drink slowly, it's hot."
Chu Muchao squinted, smiling contentedly and brightly: "Brother is so good."
Chu Muchao scooped up a spoonful of soup full of crab roe and crab meat and put it in his mouth.
The delicious aroma of crab filled her mouth.
It tastes different from the takeout she ordered while working overtime last night. The food made by the chef at home is fresh and delicious!
After finishing the soup from the crab roe soup dumpling, Chu Muchao slowly said, "A higher position comes with greater responsibility. I can't shoulder the responsibility of the group. I just want to be a lazy bum."
Chu Wen chuckled: "Working overtime every day just makes you a couch potato?"
"Well……"
That's undeniable.
Chu Muchao thought for a moment and said, "I'm probably just busy lately. It'll be fine in a while."
Chu Wen: "Heh."
-
Today's breakfast was plentiful, and it was all her favorite food.
The downside is that it's a bit hot, which slows down her eating speed.
It was almost 8:40 when I finished breakfast.
Chu Muchao finished chewing slowly, glanced at the time, and unconsciously recalled the unpleasant and frustrating experience of being late yesterday.
"Sigh, we're going to be late again. It's all my brother's fault."
The unique intonation of Southerners, combined with the girl's soft and gentle voice, sounded to Chu Wen like a coquettish complaint.
"What kind of behavior is this, all flustered and in such a hurry?"
Chu Wen wiped his lips with a tissue, stood up, and put on his suit. The whole movement was elegant and sophisticated.
"Where's your assigned driver? Didn't she come to work on time?"
Chu Muchao looked at him with amusement: "Who's so kind as to get a meager internship salary of 3,500 yuan and have a driver to pick them up and drop them off? I always take the subway to work."
"..." Chu Wen frowned slightly. Just as she was about to leave again, he grabbed her slender arm. "Alright, let's not make a fuss today. I'll take you."
"I……"
Chu Muchao wanted to refuse, but Chu Wen shut him down with a single sentence.
"If you don't want to be late, get in the car with me."
Chu Muchao was dejected.
"Okay, then I'll ride in your car."
Chu Wen lowered his eyes, glancing at Chu Muchao out of the corner of his eye: "What?"
Chu Muchao looked up at Chu Wen with a smile in his eyes: "It's okay, let's go."
Chu Wen slowly withdrew his gaze and said, "If there's anything, tell your brother."
"Okay, okay." Chu Muchao agreed on the surface, but that wasn't what he really thought.
Yesterday I was late and my supervisor caught me on the spot. It was during the busiest time of day, and my supervisor, as if he had flipped a switch, kept nagging me for a long time in the busy corridor.
The key phrases used repeatedly were "Don't be late" and "It will have a bad impact."
How is this any different from being singled out and criticized by the teacher when you were in school?
No, she was never singled out for criticism by her teachers when she was in school! That's ridiculous!
If Chu Wen heard this, he would definitely laugh at her.
She decided not to say anything more.
-
A black Rolls-Royce is a rare sight on the roads during the morning rush hour.
The vehicle was traveling at a steady speed.
Chu Muchao had only been sitting in the comfortably warm car for a few minutes when he began to feel drowsy.
I've only been at the company for less than two weeks, but why does Chaochao look so much more haggard?
Her already slender body appeared even thinner and more frail.
Chu Wen secretly observed Chu Muchao, and the more he looked, the more his brows furrowed.
It's his fault. The branch office is right downstairs, but he didn't go down to see how Chu Muchao was adapting.
Almost at the company.
Chu Wen gently woke Chu Muchao and asked, "Can you come back earlier tonight?"
"Ah..." Chu Muchao reacted slowly, like a computer that had been idle for a long time and was suddenly activated. He paused for a few seconds and slowly replied, "Uh, I don't know. I don't think I'll have to work overtime."
Chu Wen was clearly dissatisfied with this answer.
Not wanting her controlling nature to be exposed too quickly or too obviously, she gritted her teeth and swallowed back the words she was about to say.
Chu Wen took a deep breath, his voice regaining its calmness and sternness: "Tell your brother the truth, why don't you want to take the position I arranged for you?"
Chu Muchao looked at the serious and cold face so close to his, not missing the fleeting micro-expressions that crossed his mind.
It seemed like she was angry, but there was another emotion mixed in.
Not wanting Chu Wen to misunderstand, Chu Mu said gently, "Didn't I say I just want to be a lazy bum? Besides, the company has you, why do you insist on making me go to a management position to train myself?"
"Besides, I don't want to make a PPT." Chu Mu winked at him with a sly smile. "You know, Mom and Dad... Okay, I have to go to work now, goodbye brother."
As soon as the car came to a stop, Chu Muchao hurriedly got out.
The car window behind me slowly rolled down.
Those gloomy, deep black eyes stared at her back for a long time.
She didn't look away until she turned into the elevator lobby.
...
The branch office where Chu Muchao was interning was on the sixteenth floor of the headquarters building.
The elevator doors opened, and the glass doors, sensing someone entering, automatically opened to both sides.
Chu Muchao scanned his face and clocked in at the front desk.
Looking up slightly, you see their group headquarters logo – “MZ”, a huge blue letter that is very eye-catching and can be seen immediately upon entering the room.
Next to the huge logo is the logo of their branch company – Dream Unlimited Technology Co., Ltd.
Chu Mu turned left and entered the operations department's office.
A man in a plaid shirt walked towards her. When he saw Chu Muchao, he waved the mug in his hand at her.
"Intern, a cup of coffee, please."
Chu Muchao walked straight past her, his tone indifferent: "Thank you, but no need."
"What? Hey..."
The person behind him seemed to be speaking, but Chu Muchao didn't hear a word.
He walked straight to his workstation, put down his backpack, and took out a glass filled with pink liquid.
It was a perilla drink that the kitchen had made this morning, and she asked the housekeeper to pack a bottle for her to take to work.
Chu Muchao took a sip; the sweet and sour taste filled his mouth with the aroma of perilla.
This flavor is more suitable for hot summer days than coffee.
-
Five o'clock in the afternoon.
The crucial moment is approaching.
Chu Muchao was facing the computer, seemingly working diligently on a plan, but in reality, his eyes were fixed on the time in the lower right corner.
The past two days, the director called them to a meeting about twenty minutes before they were supposed to leave work.
I don't know exactly what I want to say, but I have to give a one-hour speech and then make everyone stay and work overtime until nine or ten o'clock.
Will there be a miracle today?
"Clap clap clap!"
Director Zhou clapped his hands as he walked into the operations department's office.
—Well, there was no miracle.
When all eyes were on him, Director Zhou slowly spoke.
"I'll take a few minutes of your time. Now, please come with me to conference room number three for a brief meeting."
It is now 5:09.
It's exactly the same tactic they used the other day to make people stay and work overtime.
Just then, I received a message from Chu Wen: "Leave work on time?"
Chu Muchao silently closed his eyes, tears welling in his eyes.
Sorry, brother, it's another day of working overtime.
The person next to Chu Muchao patted him on the shoulder and urged, "Let's go, Chu, we have to go to a meeting."
"Oh, okay." Chu Muchao locked the screen, picked up his laptop, and followed.
The operations staff entered conference room number three one after another.
Soon, the smallest conference room was packed with more than thirty people from the entire department.
After everyone had found their seats, Director Zhou got up and walked to the blank whiteboard.
"It will take a few minutes of your time for a short meeting. If you all cooperate, we can finish quickly."
The thirty-odd people at the conference table all wore expressions of numbness and distrust.
Director Zhou began speaking on his own: "It's almost the end of the month. Everyone, please prepare yourselves. On the first of next month, please write your monthly summary in the form of a PPT and send it to my email. The requirements are that the page is aesthetically pleasing, has your own ideas and design, includes data and text explaining the work content of the month, as well as the problems encountered at work and the problems that require teamwork to solve. If you are capable, please also write down your solutions to the problems and share them with everyone later."
Chu Muchao paused, his fingers, which were playing with the pen, momentarily lost focus.
Do even salted fish need to make PPTs? I thought operations specialists only needed to report data results, and making PPTs was the task of team leaders and above.
And since it's in monthly form, is that a correct interpretation?
Since there are monthly summaries, there will also be quarterly summary PPTs, semi-annual summary PPTs, and annual summary PPTs, right? Expanding on that, there will also be case study sharing PPTs, learning sharing PPTs…
No!
Although not wanting to make PPTs was just an excuse she made up, she really didn't like making PPTs!
"What's wrong, Xiao Chu? Do you have any objections?" Director Zhou looked at Chu Muchao.
Before Chu Muchao could remove his mask of pain, he suddenly received the gazes of those around him and remained silent for two seconds before saying, "No, nothing."
"That's good. Everyone, remember to submit your PPTs on time."
Director Zhou leaned over the conference table, using his other hand to scroll through the laptop's touchpad, opening a PowerPoint presentation full of numbers and graphics, and projecting it onto the screen behind him.
"In addition, I saw the data for this event provided by the marketing department, and the data has declined. If this continues, not only will your individual KPIs not be met, but our entire department's KPIs will not be met either."
Director Zhou sighed: "The marketing manager came to ask me today what's going on, why the decline was so severe and why the expected results weren't achieved. They need to make emergency adjustments. So, everyone, please work overtime today to cooperate with the marketing department in making adjustments. When the time comes, those who need to make graphics will make graphics, and those who need to revise the plans will revise the plans."
Regarding the data from this event, their Operations Team B had already held a meeting to discuss countermeasures before today's meeting.
Chu Muchao put down his pen, about to speak, when Shen Jia beside him slammed down her pen, stood up, and said in a loud voice.
"Director Zhou, regarding the issues with this event, we received the data on Monday and held a meeting with team members to discuss countermeasures. Plan B was sent to relevant project colleagues and leaders via email last night while we were working overtime. The marketing department only needs to modify the plan we provided; there's no need for our entire department to work overtime with us."
Chu Muchao silently applauded Shen Jia.
The issue of declining data was actually discovered last week, and a meeting was held this Monday to discuss countermeasures. The team leader and operations manager have held numerous meetings, both large and small, with both teams (A and B), and have even worked overtime for two consecutive days.
There's really no need to work overtime today.
even……
She believes that these tasks do not need to be handled by working overtime.
They worked overtime until after 10 p.m. yesterday and sent out the email. Apart from their own team members checking it promptly, no one else opened the email, let alone today, which is a whole day later, and they still haven't adjusted the event according to the revised plan.
This issue has now become more than just a problem within their department; it's a problem with the specific operation and execution of the project.
Upon hearing this, Director Zhou frowned and said irritably, "Is this your work attitude? Shen Jia! Sit down! Everyone is working overtime, how can you leave early?"
Director Zhou placed his hands on the conference table and said earnestly, "This concerns everyone's KPIs, and I hope everyone can unite and get through this difficult time together!"
Shen Jia didn't sit down. She took off her glasses and pointed to the dark circles under her eyes: "Director, look how long we've been working overtime because of this event! From planning to execution, our team hasn't had a single day without working overtime! Even the interns are now working overtime with us. Do you want us to die on the job before you feel comfortable?"
Director Zhou snapped, "Shen Jia, how dare you talk to your superiors like that? Let's stick to the facts, can't we? Don't let your emotions get the better of you?"
Shen Jia's eyes immediately welled up with tears of grievance: "How did it become me being emotional? You asked us to work overtime, so we worked overtime. In the first few weeks, we didn't have much to do when we worked overtime at night, but in the last few weeks, we had to be on call at any time. We had to deal with any information or needs immediately, and we couldn't rest even when we got home at midnight!"
Shen Jia is a straightforward person with little guile.
Chu Muchao felt very comfortable spending time with him.
However... I feel like she and the director were arguing about something different? It seems like she's at a disadvantage.
【bite--】
Poor working lady, are you still annoyed by your boss's unreasonable demands? Are you still angry about being forced to work overtime because of someone else's negligence? Now, simply sign up for "The Messenger of Love, Peace, and Justice - Working Edition" to receive exclusive working edition magic to protect your rights!
?
Chu Muchao's fingers, which were twirling the pen, paused.
She thought she heard a gentle yet lively, magnetic yet sharp mechanical voice speaking in her head.
Has she finally gone crazy from working overtime?
"Alright! It's settled then! Whenever the marketing department needs anything, you all need to cooperate promptly! We're all working together for this event, so don't be selfish! Help each other out! Understand? We're a team! A big family! Not just individuals!"
Director Zhou said, "You are all employees of the company, you need to be more proactive! Everyone is working overtime to handle the work, how can you leave on time?!"
...No, is that right?
【No! Of course it's wrong!】
So now, all you need to do is sign up for our "Messenger of Love, Peace, and Justice - Working Version," and the problem of unreasonable overtime will be perfectly solved. Working ladies, would you like to give it a try?
Chu Muchao: I don't sign contracts casually, so I'll politely decline.
[This isn't a contract! It's a magical pact!]
Chu Muchao: It doesn't align with the core values of modern society, so I politely declined.
No, our part-time magic system resolutely studies and implements the spirit of ○, never forgetting our original aspiration and keeping our mission firmly in mind!
Chu Muchao: "Magic" and "system" don't quite fit together.
[...]
【Dear working lady, now repeat this incantation with me, and you will get the result you desire. If you are satisfied with the trial results, we can then discuss the specific details of signing a contract.】
"Would you like to give it a try, working lady?"
Chu Muchao: ...
Chu Muchao was holding a pen at this moment, her eyebrows slightly furrowed, as if she was enduring something.
Director Zhou noticed her and said unhappily, "Chu Muchao, do you have any opinions on this? Or do you have something to do tonight and can't work overtime? You young people nowadays really can't endure any hardship! When I first entered the workforce, I worked overtime every day, without a single day off all year round! I've never taken a single day off for personal reasons in all these decades!"
Chu Muchao: How do you pronounce the incantation? Let me try it out.
Okay, thank you for trying, Miss Working Woman.
Now, please repeat after me the incantation for the trial version of "The Messenger of Love, Peace, and Justice - Part-Time Job Version"—
[The Messenger of Love, Peace, and Justice - Part-Time Job Version: Ah, I want to try out the power of magic.]
?
It's quite simple and unpretentious.
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