My boss, a wealthy businessman originally from the East Coast, hired me as the company’s “lucky charm.” My daily responsibilities consisted of eating, drinking, playing video games, and occasionally showing my face at major events to cut a ribbon or pull a raffle ticket. But the new CEO’s mistress—who was air-dropped into the company—thought I was useless trash and actually fired me. Heh. You clearly have no idea how destructive a lucky charm can be. Before leaving, I even watered the money tree to death. Without me around, this company is probably going to go bankrupt real soon~ 01 After the New Year holidays, I went to the CEO’s office as usual to collect my red envelope bonus. A woman I had never seen before pointed her finger at me and demanded, “Are you Chloe Vance? That useless piece of trash?” I immediately flared up. “And who the hell are you?” Mia Evans also flew into a rage. “You dare talk back to me? I’m the new executive assistant to the CEO! I’m telling you right now, you’re fired today!” “Hmph, by whose authority? Yours? You’re not qualified. Tell Richard to come out and talk to me!” Richard Sterling was the CEO of our company, though I usually just called him Richard. “Mr. Sterling is on a business trip and hasn’t returned yet. While he’s away, I am in full charge of company affairs. Considering you’ve ‘contributed’ to this company for three years, go to the finance department and collect this month’s salary.” Mia tried to dismiss me with a few light words. Picking up her water cup, she said arrogantly, “Get out.” I wasn’t going to humor her. Relying on her status as the CEO’s little mistress, she was throwing her weight around the office, making life difficult for colleagues who didn't suck up to her, and scolding people left and right. I had been on a business trip recently, followed immediately by my annual leave. I had just gotten back and hadn't met her face-to-face yet, but I’d heard plenty of complaints about her from my coworkers. In the past, because Richard treated me exceptionally well—even preparing three times the holiday gifts for me compared to other colleagues—she showed me some respect to my face. But behind my back, she bitterly cursed me out, calling me a homewrecker who stole the affection Richard was supposed to have for her. Hilarious. Who exactly was the homewrecker here? Talk about a thief crying “Stop thief!” Richard treated me well because I was the “lucky charm” personally appointed by the big boss (the founder), protecting the entire company’s financial fortune. And her? She barely graduated from some eighteenth-tier college abroad, lived off her parents for three years, and finally managed to latch onto Richard’s leg. Richard’s legal wife was living abroad with their kids, which gave Mia an opening. But to be honest, Richard was a pot-bellied, balding, greasy middle-aged man. I don't know how she could even bring herself to kiss him. “Kicking me out? Firing me without cause means you have to pay me a hefty severance package.” I wasn't short on money, but my main goal was to disgust Mia. After all, for a selfish, mean-spirited, and unreasonable person like her, giving an employee even a single extra cent of salary was equivalent to killing her. “Money? You still have the nerve to ask for money? Tell me, what exactly have you contributed to this company?” At the mention of money, Mia's face indeed changed. Did she really think she owned the company? “I’ve seen your file. In the three years you’ve been at the company, if you aren't shopping, eating, or drinking, you’re in the breakroom chatting and playing games. You haven't participated in a single project or done a single piece of actual work.” “I don't know what kind of potion you fed the big boss, but you do absolutely nothing and still get paid tens of thousands a month—after taxes! And he even occasionally buys you cars, houses, and gifts.” She looked me up and down disdainfully. “Who knows what filthy methods you used.” “That’s rich. People with dirty minds see dirt everywhere.” I understood instantly. She was jealous of me. She probably originally wanted to hook the big boss but failed, so she settled for Richard. Mia flew into a rage, screaming at the top of her lungs, “Get out! Get the hell out of here!” You tell me to get out, and I just get out? How much face would I lose? “I was hired by the big boss. If you want to fire me, have the big boss tell me himself.” I was certain that firing me was entirely her own wicked idea. After saying that, I pretended to accidentally knock over Mia’s water cup. Water spilled all over the documents on the desk; it would take her quite a while to clean up. “Oops, my bad, knocked it over. Assistant Evans, please clean it up yourself. I won't be keeping you company.” Mia’s face turned black. “You did that on purpose! I’m going to dock your pay!” I sneered, “Go ahead and dock it.” Every cent deducted from the lucky charm’s salary would be paid out from the entire company’s financial fortune. 02 I was born with the astrological destiny of the God of Wealth. However, my constitution was weak. My body couldn't handle it, and I was often sick. A renowned master once said that with such a prosperous destiny, living in a peaceful and prosperous era, it was best for me to act as a "lucky charm" for others to disperse the wealth. Otherwise, I wouldn't live past 25. Even though I had money, I valued my life. I immediately connected with the big boss of this company and was hired with a high salary to be their lucky charm. Every day, I dutifully watered the company's money tree. Now that it was growing lush and green, it had ironically become proof of my "uselessness." I immediately called Richard, speaking calmly: “Richard, I heard you want to fire me?” Richard hemmed and hawed on the other end of the line, speaking vaguely. It seemed Mia had whispered plenty of sweet nothings into his ear. “The main issue is that the current economic situation isn't great. The company is under a lot of pressure. Or maybe we could just reduce your salary?” Hilarious. He must think I'm blind and foolish. The company had just signed several contracts worth over a hundred million dollars a few weeks ago and even held a massive celebration banquet. Even if the industry wasn't booming, our company was definitely highly profitable. Both Richard and Mia were from out of state. Even though the big boss had repeatedly instructed them to treat the lucky charm with the utmost respect, seeing me get paid so much for just doing easy, face-showing tasks definitely unbalanced them. They were probably insanely jealous. He didn't know that a lucky charm's salary couldn't be deducted. I bore the weight of the company's fortune, which naturally offset my own excessive fortune. But the big boss had lived overseas for years and had limited involvement in domestic affairs. I’d heard from colleagues earlier that Richard had recently sought out a master, seemingly looking for someone with a matching destiny. My guess was that they had colluded to kick me out and profit from it. After all, the big boss listened to me unconditionally and gave me whatever I asked for. “Heh, are you sure? You know who I am.” Richard sounded dismissive. “It's just being a lucky charm. That’s just superstitious nonsense. The company’s ability to operate steadily and land big contracts is all thanks to my sleepless nights building relationships with clients.” “Hahahahahaha…” I couldn't help but laugh out loud. He was so incredibly confident. If mere petty profits were enough to land massive contracts and fool clients, there wouldn't be so many bankrupt companies. A company's fortune depends on its foundation in the short term, but in the long term, it depends on destiny. If a company is destined to lack fortune, it will go under sooner or later. And me? Because of my innate God of Wealth destiny, I bring prosperity wherever I go. Even a pig bathed in my fortune would fly into the sky. Seeing I didn't believe him, Richard used his trump card. “It's just a lucky charm. Without you, there are plenty of others. I already had a master perform a ritual to find someone, and I've found a suitable candidate.” “As for the big boss, I'll give him an explanation. He's currently recuperating from an illness and can't manage things anyway, right?” So that's how it is. I was wondering why the big boss hadn't reined them in. It turned out they were taking advantage of his vulnerability. It looked like they were going to burn the bridge after crossing it. I stared intently at the company's money tree and shook my head secretly. For a company of this size, you could say it had strength, but it wouldn't have signed those massive contracts so easily. The only reason I was still guarding this place was out of years of loyalty; otherwise, it would have gone under long ago. Did they really think I was just a freeloader? “Fine. Once the severance pay is in my account, I'll leave.” I had been here for three years. Adding unpaid bonuses and other things, it amounted to over two million dollars. This was money I was supposed to take to disperse my fortune. “There's no money. The company's accounts are tight right now! Considering you're a veteran employee, I’ll make an exception and give you a thousand bucks for travel expenses. If you don't want it, you get nothing.” Richard's tone suddenly turned vicious, rejecting me outright. These two lunatics were competing to see who was the bigger idiot. “Do you think you’re dismissing a beggar?” I wasn't someone to be messed with. “If the money isn't in my account, I won't leave.” “If you don't leave, you can guard the company's door for free, then.” I narrowed my eyes. “Guess whether you'll even qualify for the new bidding conference?” Richard fell silent for a moment. “Chloe Vance, are you threatening me?” I said lightly, “I'm just stating a fact.” Turning around, I put on the jade pendant that suppressed my fortune. Without me, the company was about to face some serious bad luck. 03 In the spring month of March, the annual bidding conference was approaching. It determined the industry's direction for the entire year. In previous years, the big boss would just have me stroll through when I had nothing better to do. Because my fortune was too strong, I'd easily sweep the board and bring back a grand slam. But this year, I heard the attendees were changed to Richard and Mia, and they even brought a small team to make an appearance. They called it: “This is the company’s grand event at the beginning of the year. Naturally, we must do our absolute best. We can't just let idle personnel like Chloe Vance show her face. We have to show respect to the organizers.” As for me, I swaggered out the front door right on time every day, drove my Rolls-Royce to a high-end custom beauty salon, threw my black card at the receptionist, and said, “Give me the most expensive treatments you have here. All of them.” Just as I was applying a facial mask worth thousands of dollars, Mia called. I marked it as a “spam call” and hung up, feeling refreshed. The phone rang again. I set it to 'Do Not Disturb' and continued my spa treatment. Only after I emerged beautifully from the salon did I have the leisure to check my phone. Oh my, over a hundred missed calls already? Such strong perseverance. If they had put this much patience and resilience into the company, working diligently, the company might have made it to the Global Fortune 500 without needing a lucky charm like me! Ring ring ring. This time, Richard called. He said furiously: “Chloe Vance! What are you doing during working hours?! Why aren't you answering your phone?!” I stretched lazily and yawned. “What? I didn't get enough sleep. Can't I catch up on it?” It sounded noisy on the other end, like the site of a bidding conference. Checking the date, that was indeed today. As if remembering something, Richard's attitude took a hard, unnatural 180-degree turn. He asked flatteringly, “Chloe, dear, have you slept enough then?” “No.” “Then come over to the bidding conference. I'll book a king-size room for you so you can sleep as much as you want.” How did he even have the nerve to say that? In previous years when I attended the bidding conference, I always stayed in the presidential suite of a five-star hotel because I'm a germaphobe and refuse to settle. I unleashed a barrage of sarcasm. “Not going. An idle person like me doesn't deserve to appear at a bidding conference.” “Ahem, that's not how you should put it. The company wants to train its employees too. This is a great opportunity for you to show what you can do! Opportunity knocks but once.” I lost interest in playing games with them and pierced right through the facade. “I'll have opportunities at other companies. Our company has always emphasized fair competition. It's better to properly demonstrate your own strength and not rely too heavily on the lucky charm.” A sudden silence fell over the phone. I took the opportunity to quickly skim through the work group chat. It turned out that on the first day of bidding, they hadn't won a single bid! Other companies had secured at least two or three, but our company came up completely empty-handed. No wonder they wanted to call in their reinforcements—me. Sorry, I don't accept moral kidnapping, and I'm not a reinforcement who saves people in emergencies. “Chloe, let's talk this over nicely. The big boss also gave instructions for you to rush to the site and participate in the bidding ASAP. Why don't you pack up quickly? I'll book you the earliest flight. Oh dear, only economy class is left. Just make do for now. After it's done, the company will have a dinner party.” Begging for help yet being so dismissive. My eyes were truly opened. Who cares about your fifty-dollar-per-head company dinner? It's laughable. My pet dog casually eats meals worth five figures. Didn't he say the big boss was recuperating from an illness? Now that the fire was burning their eyebrows, they knew to bring the big boss out. “I never fly economy. Besides, my besties are taking a helicopter to a private island and invited me to join them. I'm not going.” I hung up the phone directly. The next afternoon, just as I was scuba diving off the private island, Mia's direct messages exploded into my phone: “Chloe Vance! You really don't know how to appreciate a favor!” “Do you think the company can't function without you?! You're way too confident!” “Just a charlatan pretending to be ghosts and gods. Who do you think you are? Even without you, we still won the bid!” Oh my, my, look at that little mouth going off. I was actually quite curious. When I opened the work group chat with amusement, I found out they had indeed won a bid. But compared to my grand slams in previous years, it could only be described as a fingernail-sized bid. Only a brainless amateur like Mia would be ecstatic over it. Without major clients stepping in, I'm afraid this year will be tough. And she can still smile. I typed a message and sent it over: “I remember the deadlines for the final payments on those multi-hundred-million-dollar contracts from last year are approaching, right? Assistant Evans better hurry up and collect them, otherwise be careful they don't turn into bad debts~” In an instant, the group chat went dead silent. Everyone knew that if the final payments on those contracts weren't collected, the capital chain would break, and the company wouldn't be far from failing to pay salaries and going bankrupt. 04 Ten seconds later, a group notification popped up: You have been removed from the group chat by the administrator. Mia angrily unleashed a barrage of texts on my WeChat: “Chloe Vance, you really are vicious. Knowing we won a bid, you got jealous and actually cursed our projects.” “You're full of malice. Our clients are major corporations with excellent industry reputations. Why would they default on final payments?” “Starting tomorrow, you don't need to come to the company anymore! Our company doesn't need someone with such crooked intentions.” I wanted to curse back, but Mia was fast at deleting people. When I hit send, it had already turned into a red exclamation mark. It didn't matter; it saved me from waking up early. I went back to the company once to grab my things. Passing by the reception desk, I glanced at the money tree. Without the blessing of my fortune, its leaves were already showing signs of turning yellow. “Tree, oh tree, it's not that I don't care about you. It's just that the weather is getting cold, and the company is about to go bankrupt.” Mia had long since cleared out my desk and thrown my things into a corner. My empty seat was immediately given to a newly recruited employee. That new employee's clear and foolish eyes conveyed one message: “This company is so grand!” She didn't know that this company, which still had some prestige in the industry from the outside, was already rotting from the inside out and couldn't be saved. Child, you better start preparing your resume and applying for your next job soon. I gathered the discarded lucky ornaments from the corner and packed them into a box. Back then, I had genuinely wanted to help the company achieve good results. This was something I had spent a lot of money to have consecrated by a master, precisely so it could protect the company's continuous fortune even when I was on business trips. Richard hypocritically came over to offer fake condolences: “Chloe, it's not that the company doesn't want to keep you. It's just that the company's finances are tight, and we can only optimize the workforce. You won't blame us, right?” I couldn't be bothered to deal with him. “Wait for arbitration.” Finding no satisfaction, Richard's face instantly darkened. Mia rushed out of her office, looking like she was enjoying a good show. With her arms crossed, she mocked me heavily: “Arbitration? A toad dreaming of swan meat. Keep dreaming. Our company's legal department isn't full of freeloaders like you.” “Back then, I politely asked you to leave, and you refused. Now look at you. No monthly salary, no thousand-dollar severance pay. They say it's easy to go from rags to riches, but hard to go from riches to rags. What are you going to do in the future?” Mia hinted pointedly. It was truly crocodile tears. I rolled my eyes at her. “Legal illiterate. Just wait and see.” “Chloe Vance, you're really refusing a toast only to be forced to drink a forfeit. Let me tell you, once you step out of the company doors, your future in the design industry is completely ruined. No HR will dare hire you.” “Who do you think you are? You say 'blacklisted' and I'm blacklisted? You're just a half-baked amateur who couldn't even figure out your own graduation project, howling like a ghost here. Do you think you're the Queen of England?!” I had asked someone to look into Mia. Her graduation project was utter garbage. Plagiarism aside, she hadn't even grasped basic industry terminology. “Those who know, know you climbed up as a mistress. Those who don't might think you're just ugly but play dirty.” I looked at Richard with disgust. “He really must be starving to eat anything.” Richard tugged at his tie, instinctively retorting: “Chloe Vance, you can't spew vicious words just because you were optimized out. Assistant Evans and I are completely innocent. Besides, I was very handsome when I was young and had many fangirls. You can't resort to personal attacks. Who doesn't get old?” Mia added: “Exactly, you can't just open your mouth and spread rumors. I'll sue you for defamation.” “Whether it's true or false, people know clearly in their hearts. Also, Richard, your wife is about to come back from abroad, and you still don't know, do you?” Richard's pupils quaked. “She's coming back? Why don't I know?” I turned back to Mia. “Wouldn't it be better to just rely on yourself to earn a living? Why rely on a man who built his fortune by living off a woman? If his heart isn't with her, wouldn't she know? She's definitely going to divorce you sooner or later. Mia, what do you rely on to sit in the executive assistant position? Seduction? Where is your strength, your talent?” Hearing this made Richard unhappy. “If you don't want to help, then don't help. You don't have to be so heartless.” “I'm just stating facts. Facts are never pleasant to hear.” Mia gritted her teeth. “Richard, we won't beg her. We'll fight for it ourselves.” Richard's eyes looked like they were going to pop out. “How are we going to fight for it? The big boss said he wants us to pay ten million dollars in compensation. How can we afford that?” “Could you really not put in a few good words for us with the big boss? Even just talking to the clients to get them to release the payments would be good.” I knew those few clients. They looked like established brands, but if you actually studied their financial reports, you'd know there was infighting, and their good days were numbered. Last time I calculated, I kindly warned them, but they were narrow-minded and couldn't tolerate people, kicking me right out of the company. Otherwise, if I were still there, I could still have sustained them enough to pay the final installments. “Now they are already bankrupt, and there is nothing I can do.” “Fine, we'll figure out a way ourselves. We won't beg you. I don't believe that without you, we can't accomplish anything!” Beep beep beep. The phone hung up. I shook my head and continued doing my own things. But feeling a bit guilty towards the big boss, I still sent him a lush, thriving money tree. He expressed his deep apologies. He had been sick recently and hadn't had time to manage the company, which led to me being wronged. “You don't need to take the company's bankruptcy to heart. It was my poor judgment of character. I didn't protect you well. I have many other companies under my name. If you ever find it interesting, you're welcome to come play.” “Okay, but now we're competitors.” The big boss smiled amiably. “The younger generation is truly formidable.” 07 The next time I saw Richard and Mia was several years later at an overseas bidding conference. They had begged everyone they could to scrape enough money together to open a tiny studio and hired a few freshly graduated, inexperienced designers. At this moment, they were full of ambition, hoping someone with a discerning eye would be willing to collaborate with them. When they saw me at the venue, Richard was clearly stunned. Mia, however, refused to be outdone: “Chloe Vance, what are you doing here?! You can't get into a bidding conference of this caliber. Leave quickly, before someone else comes to kick you out. If word gets out, I'd be ashamed to say you were my former colleague.” The conditions for this bidding conference were very strict. You could almost say that if you weren't a leader in the industry, you couldn't get in. Richard and Mia obviously used connections to sneak their way in. I ignored her and walked straight inside. Mia frowned tightly and simply blocked my path: “You are not allowed to go in. You going in will only ruin our business.” Her eyes, however, darted unnaturally to the side. Only then did I notice that she had a timid-looking young girl next to her. The girl had faint runic markings on her. It looked like they had invited a master to help boost their luck. I smiled and greeted the little girl. “Oh, a colleague.” The little girl was their newly hired lucky charm. Back then, Richard and Mia had claimed that lucky charms were just superstitious nonsense. Now, they seemed quite obsessed with this sort of thing. Mia bit her lower lip, standing defensively in front of the little girl as if facing a formidable enemy. “This is my distant cousin. She specifically came to help us kick-start our business. The master said her zodiac sign is a perfect match with mine and Richard's. She can greatly boost our fortune.” Richard also reached out to stop me. “No matter what, you cannot go in today.” I found it amusing. “What if I insist on going in?” Seeing I was alone, Richard grew bold from his malicious intent. “Then I have no choice but to offend you.” He stepped forward and forcefully grabbed my wrist. The disparity in strength between a man and a woman meant I was instantly immobilized. I said coldly, “Let go, or I'm calling for help.” “I'll let go when you leave.” A staff member who recognized me saw this and hurried over, shouting, “What are you doing? Why are you being so rude to the organizer?” “Organizer?” Richard's grip loosened, and I immediately broke free. The two of them stared dumbfounded at the staff member, then looked at me rubbing my wrist. He pointed. “She's with the organizers? Buddy, you wouldn't be lying to us, would you?” The staff member frowned. “How do you not even know President Vance?! Have you been working in the deep mountains and ancient forests? The design industry requires keeping up with the times. President Vance is a superstar in our design industry.” “She is the famous Designer K. You haven't heard of her, right? She's won several major design awards and was specially invited by the organizers as a guest this time. More than half of the sponsorship for this bidding conference is provided by President Vance's company.” I was young and willing to learn. In my free time, I read, studied, and traveled around the world to visit places, improving my aesthetic capabilities. After submitting to several world-class competitions, I became completely famous. To avoid unnecessary trouble in my life, I used the pseudonym “K”. It's safe to say there wasn't a single person in the design industry who didn't know the resounding name of “K”. But Richard and Mia would get angry whenever they saw my name in their daily lives, deliberately avoiding any occasion where they might encounter me. Fundamentally, they didn't believe I was capable of producing excellent designs, so why would they actively collect information related to me? So it was perfectly normal that they didn't know I was K. The staff member made a "please" gesture. “President Vance, please come this way. The organizers are already waiting for your speech.” I nodded and walked in confidently and calmly. Mia was still in shock, muttering to herself: “How is it possible? How could it be her? She was, at best, a slightly lucky vase. How could she be K?” I looked back into her eyes. “Just because you can't do it doesn't mean others can't.”
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