The excitement in the room didn't erase the worry beneath it.
"Our usual monthly sales barely reach five million dollars. If it exceeds 10 million, there will be an extra bonus before."
"What's there to worry about? Ms. Lynn just got transferred to the sales division. She'll have to work twice as hard to prove her loyalty if she wants to return to the technical division."
Tristan had clearly thought the same. As soon as the meeting ended, he came straight to me.
"Jenna, you saw how determined the chairman is. I've been acting for your own good. I want you to get along with your teammates. As long as you show commitment and put the company first, you'll absolutely receive your share of the next reward."
I let out a quiet, cold laugh. "Mr. Hayes, I'm part of the sales division now. Of course, I'll work with my colleagues. As for the system, it's just a tool. I look forward to seeing this round's sales results."
"You ungrateful brat. You think the system can't run without you? Everything belongs to the company. Hand over the permission and get out!" With that, Tristan stormed off to HR. Moments later, I received an official reassignment notice.
"Jenna Lynn has been reassigned to junior sales assistant. Base pay reduced to 1,500 dollars, with commissions paid only when she closes a deal. She's further required to repay the company 100,000 dollars. Until the full amount is recovered, she will receive only 500 dollars a month for basic living expenses."
I took a screenshot in silence. Even the legal minimum wage was higher than what they intended to pay me.
I packed my belongings and prepared to leave when HR stopped me again. "Ms. Lynn, this laptop belongs to the technical division. According to policy, you can't take it with you."
I looked at the young staffer they had sent. They had deliberately chosen her, knowing I wouldn't make trouble for someone who had nothing to do with this.
"Let's go. Take me to the sales division."
…
The moment I arrived, Wesley was already waiting.
"Well, look who's here. Ms. Lynn has graced us with her presence." He raised his voice and continued, "Everyone, stop what you're doing and welcome our new member. Mr. Hayes said we should teach Ms. Lynn what team spirit really means."
"Yes, sir!"
The synchronized shout rattled my ears.
"Ms. Lynn, you can just call me 'Mr. Pierce'. You'll be training here for a while."
Wesley led me to my new desk. Dust coated the surface, and a large trash can sat beside it, giving off an unpleasant smell.
I filled a bucket with water and quietly wiped the desk clean. Wesley, disappointed that I showed no reaction, produced a new demand. "Every morning, you will clean everyone's desks and wash the team's cups. It builds camaraderie."
For the next two days, they used pre-Christmas sale preparations as an excuse to send me on errands, from hauling deliveries downstairs to buying coffee according to their list. They called it maintaining logistics.
While picking up coffee, I ran into Finn Mercer, one of the engineers who used to work under me.
"Finn, what are you doing down here?"
"Jenna, ever since you left and the new supervisor took over, the technical division has become Mr. Hayes' personal echo chamber. Push efficiency is terrible. He holds the system permissions but has no idea what he's doing.
"The system throws errors every day. I suggested integrating an optimization interface, and he claimed I was provoking him. Now, all he gives me is grunt work."
Finn's eyes shone with tears. He had been following me since he graduated and had never dealt with this kind of abuse.
"Jenna, that system was your work. If they keep messing with it, everything will collapse sooner or later."
I patted his shoulder and lifted the bag of coffee in my hand.
"It's fine, Finn. Do whatever he tells you. The less you touch, the safer you'll be. Nothing that happens will be blamed on you. As for me, my job now is buying coffee and waiting to enjoy the show."
…
On the third morning, I had barely sat down when I heard a coworker mutter loud enough for the whole room to hear.
"Some people should stop lazing around and actually run their accounts. If they can't close a single deal, they'll be left to starve."
