Chapter 1 — 3500 Currency And A Slap In The Face Of The Whole Company

3,500 Yuan (about 12 million VND) Monthly Salary, Followed by a "Slap in the Face" Scene that Shocked the Whole Company At the end of the month, the salary was distributed, looking at the number 3,500 Yuan on the salary slip, I thought there was a problem with my eyes. But right next to him, a new employee who has been working for less than a month is excitedly calling his girlfriend:

"Honey, I received 28,000 yuan (about 98 million)! Tonight I'll take you shopping for a bag!"

I quietly turned off the computer and opened the resignation letter file. The next morning, the general director stopped me right in front of the company's door, so urgently that his forehead was covered in sweat:

“For that 50 million yuan (about 175 billion) bid package, the customer specifically named you in charge of negotiating, what are you thinking?”

Before I could speak, my colleague standing next to me smiled faintly:

“An employee only deserves a salary of 3,500 yuan... and you dare to let her go and discuss business for 50 million yuan?”

Three o'clock in the morning. The sound of typing on the keyboard is the only heartbeat still echoing throughout the office floor. I pressed the Enter key, and the last line of code on the screen returned to silence. The emergency error that tormented the entire technical department for three days and three nights... was finally resolved by me alone. The sound of the server operating hums like a tired lullaby. I leaned back in the chair, feeling like my whole body was falling apart, every bone in my body. Dull stomach pain from drinking too much instant coffee. The cup of noodles on the table had long since cooled, emitting a cheap, greasy smell that made people sick. The whole department... The whole company. Only the white light above my head was still on. Everyone is off work. When they left, director Vuong Hai even stopped by me and pretended to care, patting me on the shoulder:

"Lam Mac, it's been hard for you. This system error is related to whether the product will be released in time or not, it all depends on you."

His voice was very gentle, but in his eyes was a pressure that did not allow refusal. At that time I just nodded, I didn't even have the strength to raise my head. Now that I think about it, the phrase "it's all up to you" is like a light curse, nailing me to death in this position. The desk next to him belongs to Truong Hao, a "crown prince" who has only joined the company for less than a month. His computer screen was still bright, on the desktop was a famous online money-burning game. On the back of the chair was a branded jacket, just looking at it, you could tell it wasn't cheap. I remember this afternoon when he got off work, he was still enthusiastically discussing which bar to go to tonight. Before leaving, he stopped by me, his tone full of boastfulness:

"Ms. Lam, I heard you get paid today, right? I don't know how much I'll get for my first month. I'm looking forward to it."

In every word, there is an undisguised feeling of superiority, as if I - an old buffalo with my head buried in a pile of code - are an antique that doesn't know how to enjoy life. I didn't bother to answer. Looking forward? Before, I used to look forward to getting paid every day. Until that little expectation was eroded by reality over and over again, just like the floor under my feet, scratched by the wheels of the chair. It's payday. I took a deep breath and opened the banking app on my phone. The finger hovers over the screen for a few seconds. A series of numbers appears. I stared at that number for half a minute. I thought I worked overtime for forty consecutive hours Eight hours should cause hallucinations. I logged out and logged in again. The result remains the same. My mind felt like it was wiped out in the blink of an eye, I couldn't think of anything. Only that number remained like a red-hot iron bar, fiercely printed directly on my retina. Last week, the head of the human resources department called me into the office. She pushed up her glasses and announced in a mechanical tone:

“Lam Mac, your recent performance evaluation is level D. The reason is lack of initiative in work and lack of team coordination spirit.”

At that time, I just felt ridiculous to the extreme. I alone shoulder all the maintenance for the core system. I brought three interns, including To Tinh. I handled system emergencies no less than ten times. As for the so-called "group coordination"... Is it necessary to constantly clean up the trash for a "genius" like Truong Hao - who even writes basic functions incorrectly? I wanted to explain. But the head of the human resources department just looked at me coldly:

“This is the company's decision.”

Now I understand. Turns out this is what they call “bad performance.” This is the final verdict on my three years of dedication. In this big city, that amount of money is not enough to pay the rent. That money is not salary. It's almsgiving. It's a naked humiliation. At that moment, a series of shrill phone rings tore through the silence of the office. It's Truong Hao's phone. He forgot to bring it. The screen lights up, showing the caller is "Baby". I didn't touch it, let it ring. A few seconds later, the call automatically turns into a video call request. Then a voice recording suddenly came out of the speakers. Truong Hao's proud voice echoed throughout the empty office:

"Honey, I received 28,000 yuan! I just received a text message from the bank! I'll buy the bag you like tonight! Don't regret the money, men make money to spend on their wives!"

My heart felt like it was being squeezed by an invisible hand and thrown straight into the ice cellar. The blood in my body began to cool from my fingertips. I suddenly remembered what Director Vuong once told me on my first day in the company. He said:

"Lam Mac, your technical background is very strong and you are also a hard-working person. Try your best, the company will not mistreat you."

I believed. That's why I work overtime day and night. That's why I consider the company's project as my child. I once helped the company win a government project worth tens of millions of yuan. The technical plan I wrote all night long made customers praise me endlessly. Of the interns I led, two have now become the technical pillars of another department. The technical problems I've solved... If I printed them all out, it would probably be enough to fill a filing cabinet. I used to think that those efforts would be rewarded with respect and worthy treatment. But in the end... In their eyes, I was just a tool worth 3,500 yuan, which could be thrown away at any time. As for a useless person who entered through connections, with just a few words, he could receive eight times my salary. What am I anyway?