About an hour later, Xiu was also at her office. It was Friday and she had to get some work done. Because if she did any overtime over the weekend that feisty Latina back at home will murder her with her bare hands.

Okay, that might be an exaggeration but honestly, you wouldn’t wanna be on the receiving end of Nora’s lectures. The way she moves between Spanish, English, and Mandarin to scold is enough to make one dizzy. Also, Nora had a very special trait, she’d always speak Spanish when she’s angry. Somehow, for Xiu, she looked really cute.

“Ms. Bai, Manager Li is looking for you.” Xiu heard her colleague’s voice and nodded.

She collected the material needed for the discussion with Manager Li and trudged towards her office. Xiu curled her fingers to knock lightly before opening the door to enter. She paused for a moment to see Director Lin of their department also sitting inside Manager Li’s office but soon composed herself.

“Bai Xiu, take a seat.” Manager Li offered politely and Xiu sat down while passing the files to Manager Li.

While Manager Li got busy with skimming through the files, Director Lin looked at Xiu with a gentle gaze. He was a middle-aged man probably over his fifties but he was a very professional and kind superior.

“Bai Xiu, I’ve heard some rumors about you,” Director Lin started with a cough. Oh, did we mention he loved the gossips between the youngsters? He was like gossipmonger. Perhaps, it was his way of feeling young again.

“I wonder what caught Director Lin’s attention,” Xiu replied seemingly unfazed. She grew quite used to his gossipy habits. It didn’t bother her anymore. Especially since he was her direct way of staying up-to-date about the office.

“Our new interns have a new name for you,” Xiu lifted her brow but didn’t comment as he continued, “They are calling you ‘Pompous Demotivator’.” Xiu was frowning as she really felt nothing wrong with this name. “They are calling you demotivator because apparently after every conversation they have the urge to jump off the building.”

It felt like she got a promotion from Heartless Witch to Pompous Demotivator. How amusing!

“They should just do that then.” Xiu’s response made Director Lin choke on his words while Manager Li also lifted her eyes to look at Xiu’s stern and solemn look. “No offense, Sir. But if they use half of their brain in completing their assigned tasks, they wouldn’t have to listen to my nasty remarks.”

Both Director Lin and Manager Li pursed their lips at her reply. Indeed, if those young people had the time to come up with a nickname for her, they could have used that intelligence on their tasks instead. After all, Xiu was only demanding when it came to working. She hated tardiness and excuses.

“Bai Xiu, I really like you. From the moment you joined our department as an intern, I’ve valued your talent. But cut those new interns some slack. We are already under a lot of pressure.” Director Lin advised her in a patient manner.

“What do you mean, Sir?” Xiu asked.

“Aiya! It’s all because of our temperamental CEO. He fired four of his secretaries from his secretarial department. It’s a mess on the top floor with all the work pressure. That overbearing Prince comes once in a month and makes everything hard for us.” Director Lin really looked anxious as he rubbed his forehead.

“Mr. CEO must have a reason for his actions. I heard he’s very reasonable. Even though he’s the heir of the Qiu Conglomerate and Spark International Group is just a subsidiary under his command. He had never been unfair with his decisions.” Xiu decided to voice out since she had heard a lot of praises about the CEO. Although his demerits often would outweigh his merits, nonetheless, he was a capable leader.

“I know he’s not unreasonable but he should also consider our workload.” Sighing out, he continued, “Anyways, I was here for some other matter. Tomorrow, the Planning Department is going on a recreational trip. To create bonding between new interns and give relaxation to old employees, it was decided by our CEO.”

Xiu opened her mouth to say something when she heard Manager Li’s voice, “Don’t you dare try to find your way out of this again. You always have excuses for such activities. This time it won’t work.” Xiu shut her mouth conveniently as she saw Manager Li’s angry gaze. “I have checked through the KPI report. It’s very detailed as expected of you.”

“Thank you, Manager Li.” Xiu bowed her head show her respect and gratitude.

“You have also attached a list of actions with quality improvement suggestions and their expected outcomes. The transparency report is also remarkable.” Manager Li passed the files to Director Lin as she praised Xiu without holding back.

Director Lin also nodded his head, “It’s no wonder, we value you so much. And somehow I think you’re wasting your talent in the Planning Department.”

“I’m quite satisfied with where I am, Sir,” Xiu replied politely.

Xiu was about to leave the room when Manager Li’s voice halted her, “Bai Xiu, don’t overwork yourself.” Xiu smiled at her and left the room.

She came back to her cubicle and found a steaming hot coffee laying on her table waiting for her. A sticky note was attached to it, “It’s not brown-nosing. You genuinely look tired so I thought it’ll help.” Xiu rubbed her chin in a thoughtful manner and her lips curled up.

She savored the taste of the coffee and got back to work. In the evening, when she left the office right on time, she found Nora waiting for her outside while leaning against her car.

“Hey, baby Xiu’er!” Nora shouted loudly while waving excitedly. Xiu really wanted to be embarrassed but couldn’t bring herself to do so.

With equal enthusiasm, she shouted back, “Hi, Nora darling!”

“Oh my gosh! Did our Pompous Demotivator actually smile?”

“Forget it! I’m still feeling the chills.”

“But who is that gorgeous girl waiting for our Heartless Witch?”

All kinds of whispering were going on around her but Xiu decided to zone them out as she alighted in Nora’s car and they both steered their way on the busy road.