Chapter 156: Formal Ritual |
"Is there a problem?" Shi Rang asked, looking confusedly at the exaggerated reactions of the others.
He had even specifically used his Sensing earlier; all of this food was completely normal.
Normally, being stared at by so many people with looks of either astonishment or concern would ruin anyone's mood to do anything else. In reality, however, Shi Rang simply finished eating that pie right under the crowd's watchful gaze.
First of all, he was incredibly hungry. Eating was the most important thing in the world, and it would be terrible if he wasted away the muscles he had worked so hard to build.
Secondly, he had already experienced many grand spectacles. After meeting with the Mini-Humans for so long, he had developed an immunity to collective stares and wouldn't be scared out of his wits like he used to be.
"Aren't these pastries to welcome the new employees?" Shi Rang asked as he pulled out a paper towel and wiped his hands.
They had called away the cafeteria chef, leaving everyone without a decent breakfast to eat. Wasn't that just to make everyone save their appetites for the welcome party's pastries?
However, upon closer inspection, there was no way such a meager amount of purely decorative little cakes could feed so many people.
Qi Ta hurriedly took wide strides forward and pulled him to the side, stumbling over his words. "You, you, you...
"Just one pie? The ones next to it all have eight, but this plate is missing one! Do you have any idea how cursed this looks? And it had to be this plate! The bakery's first batch only had this many. I drove for an hour to pick them up. Where am I supposed to find a replacement?"
The woman spoke in a dizzy panic, her hands moving non-stop.
She rotated the platter, glancing back and forth at the neatly arranged long table. She was sweating profusely from anxiety, yet she simply couldn't find a way to shift this decorative plate to a position where the missing piece wouldn't be easily noticed.
Shi Rang disliked interpersonal interactions and unspoken social rules, but he could read the room. He knew he had caused trouble.
He was just about to step forward and help—at the very least, he couldn't just stand there doing nothing—but Qi Ta firmly held him back. "Where do you think you're going? Is this your first time working in a large company?"
"So what if it's a large company?"
"Good lord, did you crawl out of the jungle? How could they put on such a grand display for new employees? It just so happens that a new executive is arriving today. The welcome ceremony is for him! We only get our turn to grab what's left after he eats and leaves. Could you not just wait a few minutes? They don't even care about these pastries; it's all just for a nice photo!"
The other employees nearby began to whisper among themselves. Their hushed voices carried tones of either sympathy or schadenfreude.
"Making such a scene on his very first day... he's probably going to get called to HR."
"Poor Vya. I heard Manager Aurore suddenly decided to change the format at six this morning to set up a pastry table, and he absolutely insisted on picking some 'lucky' number. Without booking in advance, managing to get this many varieties was already difficult enough. And now it's been ruined. She's in deep trouble."
"How did this guy even get hired? Did he rely entirely on connections?"
"Then he'll probably be told to pack his bags. Pulling strings without having half a brain... it's one thing to act arrogant in a small town, but bringing that temper here is a mistake."
A voice suddenly cut through the commotion. "Why is it so noisy in here?"
Someone muttered, "Director Aurore is here," and everyone fell completely silent, just as they had when they saw Shi Rang do the unthinkable earlier.
A middle-aged man dressed in a sharp suit appeared at the doorway. He suspiciously surveyed the weird expressions on the employees' faces, as well as Qi Ta and Shi Rang, who looked entirely out of place standing deep in the room. The middle-aged man walked across the room to the long table and nodded at the large cake box. "See, I told you. There's nothing money can't buy. Stop crowding around the door. Spread out. Don't make it look like a deliberate setup; act natural."
Vya stood to the side, nervously wringing her hands as she did her absolute best to use her body to block the glaringly obvious pie platter that was missing a piece.
However, when Director Aurore turned back to the long table, he noticed it anyway.
"Didn't I tell you to make sure everything is in pairs? I already approved the funds for you, so how can you still fail to handle things properly?"
Vya opened her mouth to speak, glanced at the main culprit standing nearby, and ultimately lowered her head to accept the scolding.
Arguing with a superior never brought any benefits.
A single rank difference in authority was enough to crush a person.
Besides, the truth didn't matter at all. Even if she explained herself, she would likely just be accused of shifting the blame.
Yet, the occasion this time was far too serious. The breakroom was packed with employees, and the collective stare of the crowd placed her under immense pressure. Before she knew it, her eyes had turned red.
Director Aurore, however, showed no intention of stopping. "Is it really that hard to buy a few things, or are you just lacking in competence?
What time did I notify you? For such a trivial matter—"
"It wasn't that she bought too little. I ate it."
This sudden voice was clearly beyond Director Aurore's expectations. The manager widened his eyes and looked toward the source of the sound, spotting Shi Rang and a pale-faced Qi Ta.
"Did the higher-ups approve of you using the Charity Foundation's funds for this kind of extravagant display? Do you think whatever executive you're welcoming tacitly approved of this too?"
"What kind of nonsense are you spouting? And where did you even sneak in from? Security!"
"Director," Qi Ta spoke up, biting the bullet. "He's a new employee who just started today. His name is Shi Rang."
Qi Ta prayed with all his might that this new employee with a rather abnormal brain would lower his head and admit his mistake. He had seen plenty of videos online about 'cleaning up the workplace,' but fiction was merely fiction. If Shi Rang actually brought out that 'righteous' attitude in real life, not only would Shi Rang lose his job, but Qi Ta—who was responsible for guiding the newcomers—would also be in deep trouble.
No one else wanted to get involved like he did. All the colleagues watched the storm unfold with cold eyes, similarly feeling that Shi Rang was just asking for trouble.
How could someone completely disregard the operating rules of society?
A person like that was either a madman, a fool, or simply too naive, still holding onto what they were taught in school. They simply didn't belong in a setting like this.
But the incident had already occurred, so the outcome was merely the difference between the person involved receiving a mild punishment or a severe one, paying their tuition fees to society all at once.
"Hah, a new employee?"
The security guard had already walked in from the door and took wide strides toward Shi Rang. Meanwhile, after saying his piece, the latter had kept his head down, tapping away on his mobile phone.
Director Aurore waved his hand in annoyance, signaling the security guard to take this mentally unstable guy to HR. Whether they fired him or dealt with him some other way afterward, the result would be the same.
Just as the security guard grabbed Shi Rang's arm to drag him out, he finally looked up from his mobile phone. He stared intently at Director Aurore with a burning gaze—a look that carried a terrifying apathy, as if he weren't looking at a human being, but a shooting target.
Yielding to the guard's pull, Shi Rang took two, then three steps outward, passing through the crowd that had parted to make a path for him.
Right then, Manager Aurore's phone rang.
The director glanced at the caller ID and immediately showed a hint of panic. Not even bothering to step away, he tossed a sentence at the tearful Vya. "Just figure out a way to fix it, no matter what." He then turned and answered the call. "General Manager, has the new supervisor arrived? I'll immediately—"
On the other end of the line, the Ninth District manager—who was also the administrator of the headquarters Operations Zone—sounded very confused. "I just received a call from his secretary. She said he arrived late last night and stayed directly in the Operations Zone. Right now, she says he's already in the breakroom."
"Huh?"
Aurore blankly scanned the sea of faces, trying to distinguish whose aura rightfully belonged to a new supervisor.
Aside from his itinerary and the fact that he was from the Second District, this newly parachuted leader had provided almost no information to the Charity Foundation. The Ninth District also had quite a few people of Asian descent, just with slight differences in facial features. Aurore swept his gaze over all the present employees, finally locking onto a face typical of the Second District—there was one, and only one, and he was currently staring right at him with cold eyes.
Aurore suddenly had a bad feeling about this.
"Oh, right, I just received his file. The new supervisor is quite young. His surname is Shi, and his full name is Shi Rang."
Aurore's face instantly drained of color.
Shi Rang, who was about to be dragged out the door, suddenly jerked his arm and broke free from the security guard's grasp. The guard thought he was resisting and was just about to physically subdue him when he heard Aurore's terrified scream to stop. "Wait! Hold on a second!"
The director trotted all the way over to the door, frantically trying to salvage the situation.
"Mr. Shi—I mean, Supervisor Shi, you...
"
The crowd instantly erupted in an uproar.
"Supervisor?"
"The new procurement supervisor? He's so young?"
"Did... did he hear what I said earlier?"
Shi Rang sighed.
When a superior had a sudden, whimsical brainstorm, the subordinates had to rack their brains to satisfy it. Yet, in the end, all the glory and benefits went to the 'mastermind,' while any mistakes became the sole responsibility of the Enforcer. Vya, who had woken up early and rushed around for this table of pastries, was now crying; at best, she would have only received a 'not bad' and a nod. Meanwhile, Aurore, who had created all these difficulties, could thoughtlessly boss people around.
As a result, the lowly employees of the entire headquarters couldn't even eat a proper breakfast. Many had to just accept their bad luck, all for the sake of this 'welcome party.'
Why was the world like this?
Shi Rang truly despised this kind of bureaucratic and formalistic style. Not long ago, he had used violent means to tear apart a horrifying murder that had hidden behind this very same culture. How much time had passed since then, yet here he was, running into it again.
Sure enough, in a massive organization, this sort of thing was completely unavoidable.
He opened his mouth and said, "Aurore."
Aurore still thought he might hear something along the lines of "just joking with you," and looked up with a heart full of hope.
"You're fired."