Chapter 2 — I Have A Boss Who Works Overtime

I could hear in my mother's voice both anticipation and a little bit of insecurity. I turned around and held her hand.

“I know mom, it's good that you're happy.”

As long as my mother can find her own happiness, I'm happier than anything. It's just that this "accessory" that comes with happiness... is really too stimulating. On Monday, after a while of building a strong mentality, I entered the company. All day I avoided the general manager's office area, afraid of bumping into him. Until the afternoon, when I went to the tea room to get water, when I returned, the elevator opened at the right time. Co Canh Tham's tall body appeared inside. He was the only one in the elevator. My scalp was numb, but I still stubbornly walked in. The small space makes the atmosphere stuffy and scary. The cool scent of agarwood from his body crept everywhere, entering my breath without leaving any gaps. He didn't glance or show any expression, as if the person who called me "sister" last night at the dinner table wasn't him at all. In my heart, I silently breathed a sigh of relief. It seems like he intends to separate public and private, pretending like nothing ever happened in the company. That's good. Nail. The elevator arrives at my floor. I felt like I was granted amnesty, I almost ran away. It's almost noon, people in the office start to gather in groups to discuss what to eat. The door to the general manager's office suddenly opened. Co Canh Tham walked out with long strides. The entire department immediately fell silent, everyone's eyes suddenly turned to him. He turned his eyes around, his gaze accurately stopping on me. Then, in front of dozens of listening ears, he used a low, magnetic voice to call out clearly:

“Sister, will you have lunch together this afternoon?”

The world was silent for a moment. All eyes, from him, with a "swoosh" sound, all turned towards me. There is surprise, stupor, confusion, and even a burning fire of eight trigrams. Among those countless eyes, there was one look that was the sharpest, carrying undisguised jealousy and hostility. My sworn enemy — Bach Vi. I felt like my career at work, right at that moment, officially went to hell.

02

In the midst of the headlights-like scrutiny of all my colleagues in the company, I almost clumsily followed Co Canh Tham into the specialized elevator reserved for the general director. Behind him, the work area looked as if a bomb had just been dropped, and the whispering noises could not be stopped even through the elevator door. I can imagine Bach Vi's face twisted with jealousy, it must be as green as a palette. The elevator slowly went up. I bowed my head, staring at the tip of my shoe, feeling like I was a prisoner about to be escorted to the execution ground.

“What is this tension?”

From the top of his head came his calm, waveless voice. I suddenly looked up, facing those deep eyes. Didn't he know how much damage the word "sister" just now caused?

"Boss, from now on at the company... just call me by my first name."

I mustered up all my courage and humbly prayed.

“Why?”

He raised his eyebrows slightly, as if sensing my request Completely redundant.

“Mom said we should cultivate more emotions.”

He used my mother as cannon fodder, blocking me speechless. That's right, nurturing emotions. But this is company, not home. There was no one in the general manager's private dining room, exquisite dishes were already on display. Co Canh Tham regained his bossy demeanor and gently wiped his hands with a napkin.

“Are you familiar with your new home?”

"It's okay, uncle and... aunt treat me very well."

I almost blurted out calling "my mother".

“That's good.”

His voice was light, but I always felt a smile in his eyes that he was trying to suppress. This person, is definitely enjoying my embarrassment.

“From now on, every lunchtime, you eat with me.”

I was drinking soup and almost spit it out.

"Mr. Gu, that's... not very good, is it?"

“This is an order.”

He put down the knife and fork, his eyes swept over, carrying an irresistible majesty.

“I just thought I could discuss the progress of the work with you.”

A truly legitimate and righteous reason. What else can I say? Can only resign to fate. In the afternoon, as soon as I returned to my seat, the internal phone rang. As Co Canh Tham's assistant, he told me to go to his office once. He assigned me a new project - the master plan for a cultural and tourist resort in the west of the city. This is a lucrative piece of cake that the whole industry is looking at. Whoever wins it will have a brilliant mark on their career resume. Read the full story on Van Ha Tuong page In my heart, before I could be happy, I saw the requirements he listed. The time is urgent, the budget is low, and the project also requires a completely groundbreaking idea. This is basically not a special "favor". This is… torture. What makes me even more headache is: Co Canh Tham announced that this project is led by me and Bach Vi is in charge of supporting. In the meeting room, Bach Vi's eyes were as sharp as a poisoned knife. She wished she could make holes in my body. The following days, I fell into a busy hell. On the outside, Bach Vi seemed to cooperate, but in reality, she was secretly hindering me everywhere. She always drags out the documents I need until she gets off work before sending them. The task I assigned her, on the surface she was obedient, but in reality she was unbelievably bad. I can only check and correct everything myself from start to finish. When everyone in the office finished their shift, the whole floor had only the lights on where I was left on. I rubbed my neck, which was sore and stiff, staring at the computer screen full of words, my eyelids as heavy as lead.

“Clack.”

A warm can of coffee was placed on my table. I turned my head in surprise, and it turned out that Co Canh Tham had been standing behind me for some time.