My resignation approval just went through. The next second, Simon tagged everyone in the company Slack channel. [@channel Grace is leaving. Tomorrow night, she’s treating the whole company to dinner. Pick any restaurant you want.] I froze, holding my phone. There were over a hundred people in the company, and no one had told me about this beforehand. The channel exploded instantly. Hundreds of replies flooded the screen. "That new Omakase place! $300 per person! Since we won't work together anymore, might as well rip her off!" "Seafood feast! Lobsters and King Crabs! Let's eat back her project bonus. Heard she got a lot last month!" "She's leaving anyway. This last cut must be deep!" Looking at the popping messages, my face was expressionless. My fingers slowly typed the address of the most expensive hotel in the city into the chat box, and hit send. Then I picked up my phone and called the travel agency: "Please book me a ticket to the Maldives for tomorrow morning. As soon as possible." Hanging up, the chat was already boiling over because of the location I sent. "Holy crap! Grace is going all out!" "She's usually so quiet. What's wrong with treating us to a good meal before leaving? It's only right." "Exactly! Her commission from those big projects is enough for ten meals!" "@Grace What time tomorrow? I'm skipping lunch!" I ignored the rolling messages, placed my phone face down on the desk, and started packing my cubicle. Chapter 1 For three years, I dedicated countless days and nights to this company. I believed the bright future Simon painted for me. "Grace, only you can carry this project..." "Grace, work a bit harder, it's for our future..." "Grace, you are the biggest hero by my side..." But after I submitted my promotion application, all I got was a light "need more time to settle." And the position I longed for was given to Hailey the next day—a girl whose basic spreadsheets were full of holes. That was when I realized my three years of hard work were just paving the way for his favorite girl. And now, they wanted to play me one last time. Forcing me to pay out of my own pocket to treat this couple and these colleagues who kick someone when they're down to a feast? In that case, I really hope every one of them remembers clearly... exactly what this meal tastes like. "Grace." A familiar, sticky voice sounded behind me. I knew who it was without looking back. "Not bad." Hailey crossed her arms, tilting her head to study me, a fake smile plastered on her face. "I thought you'd be in Simon's office begging him to withdraw your resignation right now." "Didn't expect you to hide it so deep. That revolving restaurant... Simon took me there last time. One meal cost thousands." I ignored her, packing my things one by one. Ignored, she didn't get angry. Instead, she reached out and pressed her hand lightly on the folder I was organizing. "Grace, don't rush packing. I have business with you." She smiled, pushing her laptop in front of me with her other hand. On the screen was a PowerPoint with messy data. "Simon needs to see this quarterly summary report tomorrow morning. Help me with it. It's a piece of cake for you." I glanced at the disastrous deck on the screen. "Miss Hailey, my resignation process is complete. What you said is not within my responsibilities." Hailey's smile faded a bit. "Grace, you can't say that. I know you're leaving and you're angry, but this report affects the whole department's evaluation. If Simon finds out, he'll think you didn't hand over your work properly, right?" "Whether the handover is clear or not is on the signed checklist." My tone was cold, eyes sweeping over the glaring errors in the PPT. "Besides, these basic issues have nothing to do with the handover status." My bluntness made Hailey's fake smile crack. "Grace! What do you mean?" "I may not be as experienced as you, but Simon is willing to give important work to me, not you..." She got more agitated as she spoke. "Can't stand it? Too bad. I'm the one sitting in the Project Manager seat now, and I'm the one who will be by Simon's side in the future! No matter how capable you are, you're just a stepping stone for me! You are not qualified to judge my work ability!" Colleagues around us looked over. I was too lazy to watch her performance and continued packing. "Time will prove your work ability. No need for my evaluation." "You!" She choked, eyes turning red instantly, about to say something more. "What are you arguing about?" Simon's impatient voice cut in. He frowned, his gaze landing first on the teary-eyed Hailey, tone instantly softening by half. "Hailey, what's wrong? Who bullied you?" "Simon!" Hailey immediately found her backbone, voice crying. "I just asked Grace to help me look at the report... She... she mocked my ability, said my work was trash... and said I took her place... I, I just want to do my job well, didn't want to disappoint you..." She was incoherent, wronged as if she suffered a great injustice. "Simon, am I really useless? Should I not have taken this position? I made it hard for you..." I have to say, she's a master at gaslighting. Hearing her words, Simon frowned even tighter, patting Hailey's back soothingly. "Nonsense. You're doing great. This position is yours, no one has the right to gossip." Then he turned to me, face sinking, eyes full of blame. "Grace, what's wrong with you? Can't you behave even when you're leaving? Hailey asked humbly. Even if you don't teach her, you shouldn't hurt people with your words! Look how angry you made her! Apologize to her immediately!" His voice was clear in the quiet office area. Everyone looked over, eyes focused on me, waiting for my reaction. I looked at this couple. One acting and accusing falsely, one biased and unreasonable. In the past three years, similar scenes might have ended with my endurance. But not today. "Mr. Simon, I am not the one who needs to apologize." My attitude was resolute, looking straight into his eyes without backing down. Simon seemed surprised by my reaction. He looked at me for a long time, lowering his voice. "Grace, come to my office." Chapter 2 Simon closed the door, blocking the view from outside. He leaned against the desk, trying to soften his tone. "Alright, Grace. No one else is here. Stop throwing a tantrum." "About the dinner tomorrow, I just said it casually to give you an out. How could I really make you pay that much?" "I know, you're unhappy because Hailey took the position, so you said you're leaving in a fit of pique. How about this? I'll raise your salary by $500 a month?" "Stay and be Hailey's deputy with peace of mind. We'll be like before. I rely on you, trust you." "With your ability, you can definitely support the project steadily. This way the team is stable, and the company is assured." He grabbed my wrist, thumb rubbing the back of my hand, acting like "I'm doing this for you." Looking at his expression, I only felt nausea. I pulled my hand back sharply. "Mr. Simon, resignation is a decision I made after careful consideration, not a joke." Simon's smile froze, tone filled with disbelief. "So, you'd rather pay twenty or thirty thousand dollars out of your own pocket to treat the whole company to dinner than accept my offer?" He sneered. "Grace, who taught you math? Insisting on being a sucker?" My tone was waveless. "Mr. Simon, I've calculated clearly. Some investments are total losses and should be stopped in time." "Stop in time?" Muscles on Simon's face twitched. He slowly raised his hand to adjust his cuff. "Good. Very good." "Since you're so rich, why not do another good deed?" He leaned forward, lowering his voice. "This quarter, count the performance of your project under Hailey's name. You're leaving anyway, you won't get the commission. Might as well do a favor." I stopped what I was doing and looked at this familiar face. The last trace of hope in my heart was completely shattered. "The SkyCity project took me eight months to sign." "The contract process just finished last week, down payment arrived yesterday. According to company rules, this quarter's performance should be mine." Simon's smile faded. "Rules are dead, people are alive." "Hailey will take over all your clients. If her numbers are too ugly, how can she hold the fort? You're leaving anyway. Leave a good reputation, easier to meet in the industry later." "Mr. Simon." I looked up and interrupted him, facing his eyes. "I personally believe my reputation doesn't need to be exchanged in this way." My repeated refusals made him unable to maintain that hypocritical mask anymore. His voice was filled with uncontrollable anger. "Grace! Don't be ungrateful! I'm giving you an out! Who do you think you are without Apex? Who in the industry would want someone who fell out with their former employer?" "What I am, I will know after leaving Apex. No need for you to worry." "As for that dinner..." I curled my lips imperceptibly. "I sent the address. You guys set the time." He probably had never been contradicted by me like this. Face changing colors, he squeezed words out through his teeth after a long time. "Grace, you have guts! Then let's meet tomorrow night! I want to see how generous you can be!" When I walked out of the company gate, it was near dusk. My phone vibrated in my pocket. I took it out. It was a new message from Simon tagging everyone in the group again: [@channel Tomorrow night at 6 PM. Everyone be there on time. Bring family and friends to make it lively. The more people, the more sincerity. Whoever doesn't come is disrespecting her, and disrespecting me! @everyone] Below was another wave of "Received," "Thanks Boss," mixed with excited emojis. I swiped away the notification calmly without replying. I knew, the higher they jump now, the harder they will fall tomorrow. Chapter 3 At 6 AM the next day, I dragged my suitcase into the airport. Passed security, sat at the gate. On the screen lay a self-righteous message from Simon. "Grace, come back now. Apologize to Hailey properly, handle the performance transfer, and I can pretend yesterday didn't happen." Tone as bossy as ever. Laughable. My finger hovered over the screen for a moment, then swiped left, deleting the chat. After a ten-hour flight, the plane landed at Malé International Airport. Tropical air hit my face, carrying the salty humidity of the sea breeze and the warmth of the sun. I turned on my phone, switching to the local SIM card I bought in advance. The moment I connected to the network, WeChat messages flooded in like a tide. On the work group icon, the red unread number jumped constantly. "Go go go! I'm on my way. Must eat my worth back tonight!" "Traffic jam! Dying of anxiety, afraid of being late. I want to order the most expensive dish!" "Who arrived first? Send a pic of the wine list? Heard there's wine worth 80k a bottle?" "Screenshotted! Must eat Grace into bankruptcy today!" Hailey affectedly posted a selfie in the group, background was a vanity. "Dressed up a bit. Can't embarrass Simon~" Simon replied with a head-pat emoji: "Hailey looks good no matter how she dresses." Below was a stream of "Simon is lucky," "Perfect match." I scrolled down with an amused expression. "Arrived! Holy crap, this place is grand!" "Where's Grace? Anyone seen Grace?" "Not here yet? Protagonist always arrives last!" "Exactly. Maybe withdrawing cash. Twenty or thirty thousand, cash needs a sack, right?" Simon sent a voice message. Clicking it open, his mocking voice played. "What's the rush? Grace said she's treating, she'll definitely come. Everyone order first. Order whatever you want. No need to save money for her today." "Boss is mighty!" "Then I won't be polite! Waiter, ten portions of this top-grade Wagyu!" "Lobster! I want the biggest one!" "Red wine, this one, 88k. Open two bottles first!" The group was flooded with photos of various dishes. Huge King Crabs, exquisitely plated sashimi platters, oily roasted suckling pigs... Hailey didn't seem satisfied yet, posting a photo with Simon on her Moments. Holding red wine glasses, behind them was the brilliant city night view. "Eating good food with Simon again, super happy~" I looked at my watch. 4 PM Maldives time, exactly 7 PM back home. The latest message in the group stopped at Simon's question to me. [@Grace Where are you? The whole company is waiting for you.] The corner of my mouth curled up. Still didn't reply. After all, the show had just begun. Chapter 4 I dragged my luggage to the reserved ocean-view villa. Phone vibrated a few more times in my pocket. I turned a deaf ear. Changed into a light beach dress, applied sunscreen, and waited another hour before leisurely taking out my phone, sitting on the terrace facing the sea. At this time, the style of the group chat began to change subtly. Fewer food photos, replaced by slightly anxious inquiries. "What time is it? Is Grace coming or not?" "Phone still unreachable, turned off." "She wouldn't really stand us up, would she?" "Don't scare me! How much is this table of food plus drinks?" "I just secretly asked the waiter. Current bill is... almost 200k." Messages in the group started scrolling fast, full of exclamation marks. "Waiter came to ask who's paying again, look in his eyes was wrong..." "Should we... split the bill? Pay the current bill first?" "Split? Over 200k! How much is my monthly salary?" "Simon said we could eat freely. The money should be paid by Simon..." Gradually evolved into fierce infighting and mutual accusations. The spearhead also started to turn towards Simon. I picked up the iced coconut water the waiter just brought and took a big gulp. Picked up the phone, took a photo of the seaside scenery in front of me, and sent it to the group casually. Then I held the voice message button and said slowly: "Dear colleagues, I'm really sorry. I probably can't make it to this big meal." "Simon personally said 'Pick any restaurant'. I picked it, sent the address. As for who pays..." I paused deliberately for a second. "Whoever ordered, pays." "Wish everyone a pleasant meal." The second the voice message was sent successfully, the whole group seemed to be muted. A few seconds later, hundreds of messages exploded on the screen. "This looks like Maldives? Grace, you are in Maldives?" "Grace, what do you mean? You played us like monkeys?" "Grace, you are shameless! You pitted us!" Immediately after, Simon's voice message rushed in. Background noise was chaotic. Seemed to hear Hailey's low sobbing and others' chatter. Monstrous anger made his voice tremble. "Grace! You come back right now and explain clearly! Pay the bill! You think you can run? I tell you, if you don't pay today, I will make you pay the price!" I finished the last sip of coconut water. No more lingering. Fingertip tapped lightly, exited the group. Smoothly blocked Simon, Hailey, and a few colleagues who jumped the highest. After doing all this, I put my phone on silent, facing the magnificent sea, took a deep breath of free air. Those petty calculations were completely isolated thousands of miles away by me. A week in the Maldives was enough to wash away all fatigue and bad luck. But based on my understanding of Simon, the current ease is just the calm before the storm. The real battle might have just begun.
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