Chapter 1 — Invitation Card Without Me Part

The day a colleague gets promoted, the whole office receives invitations. Only I don't have it. I laughed it off, not taking it to heart, after all, our relationship was not close at all. Three days later, a strange phone number called: "Hello, is it Ms. Truong? The fifteen banquet tables you booked are still missing eight thousand in deposit." I was stunned: "Fifteen which tables? I've never booked a banquet." The other person read my name, ID number and place of work correctly, without a single mistake. My head pounded, I immediately understood who did this. The hotel manager personally went to the company to verify. My colleague's face turned white and he continuously gestured at me. I didn't bother looking at her, just said to the manager: "I don't know this person, please follow the procedure for reporting to the police." The whole floor was so silent that you could hear a pin drop. The day Phuong Duyet was promoted, the office was more bustling than usual. She wore a white shirt, stood in front of the tea room door, handing out invitation cards. Red cover, gold-plated letters. "Friday at six o'clock, at Van Lan Hotel, everyone must come." Her voice was not loud, but just loud enough for everyone to hear. Luu Man sat at the next table and received the card, smiling enthusiastically. "Head of Department Phuong, remember to take care of us in the future." Phuong Duyet pursed his lips and smiled. "What's the Department Head, everyone is still colleagues." His words were very polite, but his eyes were bright, unable to hide his pride. I sat at my desk, continuing to look at the report. The lower right corner of the computer screen shows three work messages. I opened it and answered in turn. Phuong Duyet passed behind me. The sound of high heels tapping on the tile floor suddenly stopped for a moment. I didn't raise my head. She also did not speak. The atmosphere at the desk paused for two seconds, then was interrupted by a sentence from Luu Man. "Miss Lam, don't you get it?" My hand that was typing on the keyboard stopped. "No." Liu Man looked at Phuong Duyet and lowered her voice. "Maybe she just missed it." Phuong Duyet seemed to have just heard it and turned to look at me. She still had a smile on her face, her voice was very gentle. "Sorry, Truong Lam. I thought you had to work overtime on Friday so I didn't reserve a seat for you." The office was silent for a moment. Some people bowed their heads to drink water. There are also people who stare at the screen, but their ears are up and listening. I looked at the computer, not answering her. Phuong Duyet added: "Don't think too much. The main thing is that the seats have already been arranged, adding more people is not convenient." At this point I raised my head. "It's okay." As soon as the two words were uttered, the smile on her face stiffened slightly. Perhaps she thought I would be embarrassed, or just follow her orders and say a few polite words. But I don't. The relationship between Phuong Duyet and I was not close at all. When she first joined the company, she was not familiar with many processes, I was the one who guided her in using the system. Then, during the competition for the department's position, she took the project data I worked on to report, but in the meeting did not mention my name. I didn't make a fuss then. When the leader asked, I just sent back all the original documents. That time, Phuong Duyet did not suffer any loss. It's just that after that time, the way she looked at me became a little more cautious. This time she was promoted, I didn't receive an invitation and wasn't surprised. Before leaving work, the department chat group was filled with congratulations. Phuong Duyet sent the location. Third floor of Van Lan Hotel, Cam Tu lobby. Someone asked if they could bring their family along. Phuong Duyet answered very quickly: "Of course. I have booked fifteen tables, everyone can come freely." Fifteen tables. Look at the text

I just feel like she's showing off too much. Our room, plus the group next to us, might not have been filled with eight tables. Luu Man leaned closer and said in a low voice: "She really played big this time." I closed the chart. "How she wants to spend the money is her business." Liu Man pouted. "Are you really not angry?" I saved the document. "No need." That night, I still went home as usual. On the way, I bought some green vegetables and tofu. After eating, I checked this week's project budget. At eleven o'clock, the phone lit up. It's a photo in the company chat group. Phuong Duyet arranged the invitations in a circle, placing her employee card in the middle. The caption reads: New beginning, thank you everyone for always accompanying. I took a look and then exited. The next day, everyone in the office was still talking about her promotion party. Who sits at the main table? Who prepares the envelope? Who will hitchhike in whose car? When passing my table, Phuong Duyet deliberately stopped. "Truong Lam, if you get off work early on Friday, you can come sit for a while." Her tone was like she was granting a favor. Luu Man frowned. I gave the printed contract to the administrative staff. "No need." Phuong Duyet's smile faded. "Don't misunderstand. It's not that I don't want to invite you, there's really no room." I looked at her. "I said no need." The smile on her face completely disappeared. Someone in the next group coughed softly. Phuong Duyet placed the coffee cup firmly on the table. "Okay, it's up to you." After she left, Luu Man scolded in a low voice: "What kind of person is that?" I didn't answer. There are people who like to openly play petty tricks, thinking that others don't get angry because they are afraid of them. Actually it's not. They just haven't reached the limit yet. Friday morning, Phuong Duyet asked for half a day off. She walked around the office, making sure everyone knew where to go tonight. Before leaving, she deliberately placed a stack of candy on the common table. No part of me. I walked by and poured a glass of water. Seeing me, Phuong Duyet smiled and said: "Truong Lam, don't take the wrong one, the quantity is just enough." I stopped walking. Luu Man's face immediately changed. I looked at the candy box wrapped in colored paper. "Don't worry." I brought the water back to my seat. "I don't like eating other people's leftovers." A very soft laugh rang out in the office. Phuong Duyet's face turned pale. She picked up her bag, turned around and left. That night, I did not go to Van Lan hotel. I stayed at home to fix the plan and went to bed at half past ten. Saturday morning, I went to the supermarket to buy things. The phone in my pocket vibrated three times. Some strange. I picked up the phone. The other person's voice was very polite. "Hello, is it Ms. Truong?" "It's me." "This is the banquet department of Van Lan Hotel. The remaining money and the difference in deposits for the fifteen banquet tables you booked have not yet been paid. We would like to confirm the time when you will pay."I stopped in front of the shelf. The milk carton in my hand made a light sound when I squeezed it. "Fifteen tables?" The other person paused. "Aren't you Ms. Truong Lam?" "It's me." "That's not wrong. The person who registered the order is you. The ID number, workplace and contact phone number are all in the system."My fingers slowly relaxed. The lights on the shelves were blindingly white. I heard my voice go cold. "I've never booked any parties." The other end of the line was silent for two seconds. "Miss Truong, can you check the information now?" I didn't say anything. The other person read the first six numbers of my ID, then read the name of where I work. Not a single word wrong. Finally, she said: "The party has been consumed. The person who signed the invoice at the scene said that the remaining amounts will be paid by you." I looked at the green vegetables in the cart.

Phuong Duyet's face appeared in his mind before leaving the office. She said the amount was just right. She said there really wasn't any room left. She said she had booked fifteen tables. I pushed the cart aside. "Send me a photo of the party order." The other person asked: "What do you mean the menu and receipt?" "All." The other end of the line quickly agreed. Three minutes later, the message was sent. I opened the first photo. In the contact person box of the order, write the name Truong Lam. ID number, workplace, department, all are my information. In the signature box, the two words Truong Lam were also written. But that's not my handwriting. I stared at those two words for a long time. Then click save. The second photo is the confirmation slip at the party scene. Fifteen tables. Each table costs 2,800 yuan. Alcohol is charged separately. Paid 2,000 yuan deposit. The remaining amount is 46,000 yuan. Person responsible for payment: Truong Lam. I placed the phone face down on the stroller handle. This time, Phuong Duyet has reached my limit. Monday morning, when I arrived at the company, Phuong Duyet was sitting at the desk. She changed into a bright dress, and on the table were several gift bags from Van Lan Hotel. Seeing me, Luu Man immediately stopped by. "Sister Lam, did you know? That night Phuong Duyet had a great party." I put down my bag. "Is that so?" "She also said she wanted to call you, but you refused to come." Liu Man lowered her voice. "Some people even asked if you and her had quarreled." I opened the computer. "What else did she say?" Liu Man looked at Phuong Duyet. "She said you have a strange personality and don't get along." Dong.” I nodded. Say nothing. Laughter rang out from Phuong Duyet's side. "Oh, everyone, don't be polite. Let's each take a gift." Someone asked her how much money she spent. Phuong Duyet smiled and waved her hand. "Not much, fun is the most important thing." When she said that, she looked at me. His eyes passed by very quickly. It was like confirming whether I knew about it or not. I also took a look at her. She immediately looked away. At ten o'clock in the morning, I received an email from Van Lan hotel. Inside is a full scan of the party order. Party booking time was four twenty p.m. last Wednesday. At that time I was reporting in the meeting room. The attendance record has my signature. The phone number stored in the hotel system is not mine. But the contact person is me. Full identification number. Full workplace. In the notes there is also a sentence: "Internal company promotion celebration party, all expenses paid by Ms. Truong Lam." I transferred the email to my personal mailbox, and backed it up to the cloud drive. After that, I called Van Lan hotel again. This time, the person who answered the phone was the banquet manager, surnamed Manh. Manager Manh's voice was more serious than last time. "Miss Truong, now we also discovered that there is something unusual about the order so we want to meet in person to verify." "Okay." "Is it convenient for you to come to the hotel?" I looked at Phuong Duyet not far away. She was stuffing a gift box into the new intern's hands. I said: "It's not convenient." Manager Manh paused. "So how do you want to handle it?" "You can come to my company." "Come to the company?" "On the order, it says my workplace. If the other party has used information here, then come here to verify." Manager Manh was silent for a few seconds. "Miss Truong, are you sure?" "Sure." Before hanging up, he reminded me: "If we confirm that there is an impersonator, we will request a police report. close.”“I know.”I put the phone down. At that moment, Phuong Duyet arrived. She held a box of cakes and placed them on the corner of my table. "Truong Lam, this is for you."