Chapter 2

Chapter 2

The smell of coffee in the breakroom was so thick it felt like it was overflowing. I stirred it with a spoon and took a sip, but the liquid felt acidic as it hit my stomach.

My colleague stared at me, eyes wide with indignation.

“On what grounds? How can he just parachute in and steal your position? Is he really going to flaunt his connections so openly?”

“Brother Zhe, aren’t you angry?”

“That position clearly belonged to you. You worked so hard for it; you were even hospitalized after that last stint of overtime.”

His gaze fell on the dark circles under my eyes. “Brother Zhe, I’m telling you, you don’t need to push yourself so hard. Drink less coffee.”

The heat of the coffee seeped through the ceramic mug into my hands. I thanked him softly. “General Manager Jiang must have her own considerations.”

My colleague’s eyes widened. He was just about to lower his voice to vent further when my phone rang abruptly.

Jiang Yu’s voice was incredibly clear in the cramped breakroom, carrying a hint of suppressed fury. “Jiang Zhe, come to my office.”

My hand shook, and a few drops of coffee splashed onto my white shirt. The heat through the fabric stung my skin.

I answered quietly, “Okay.”

The moment the door to Jiang Yu’s office opened, I saw Tang Chu sitting on the sofa with his head slightly bowed.

He was clutching a piece of paper in his hand.

As for Jiang Yu, she sat there with a cold face, barely containing her anger.

People used to say that even though Jiang Yu and I came from the same womb, the only thing we shared was the shape of our eyes.

The outer corners tilted upward, giving off a natural, icy air of detachment when we weren’t smiling.

Unfortunately, neither of us liked to smile.

And Jiang Yu had never once smiled at me.

“Even though Xiao Chu was a ‘parachute’ hire, he has the talent to back it up.”

“Jiang Zhe.”

Jiang Yu’s brow furrowed as she said my name.

“If you have grievances, say them to my face. Talking behind people’s backs and rallying your colleagues to isolate Xiao Chu… Jiang Zhe, is your malice engraved in your very bones?”

It had only been half a day.

I glanced sideways at Tang Chu. He happened to look up at that moment, and our eyes met.

His twenty-something-year-old face was clouded with a touch of grievance. His eyes were slightly red, the tears within them reflecting glints of light.

He immediately looked back down.

The actors for this farce were all in place, simply waiting for me to play my part. But I truly had no interest in performing with them.

“People have their own mouths; what they say is none of my business.”

“Besides-”

“No one is a fool.”

The sound of a sob coincided with the sound of an object hitting the floor. The expensive fountain pen that had been sitting on the desk was now shattered into pieces.

Black ink spread across the floor near my feet.

“Jiang Zhe! You…”

I dropped a light piece of paper onto her desk.

Jiang Yu’s words were cut short. Once she saw the text on the paper, her anger flared up again with renewed force. “Jiang Zhe!”

“Are you a child?”

“Are you doing this just to be spiteful?”

She crumpled the brand-new resignation letter into a ball and threw it back at my feet like a piece of trash.

It wasn’t out of spite.

I had known for a long time.

I didn’t have the right to be spiteful.

Only children who are coddled have that right.

I was not one of them.

“I’ll go to HR myself.”

The moment I closed the door, I shut her roar inside the room with her.

I had only walked a few steps when Tang Chu caught up to me.

“Ah Zhe.” His voice still carried a nasal quality from crying as he reached out cautiously to take my hand.

“Ah Zhe, please don’t be angry. I don’t want the position. I’ll go talk to Sister Yu. Don’t do this out of spite.”

“If I had known, I wouldn’t have come back. Ah Zhe, don’t let my presence ruin the harmony between you and Sister Yu.”

The hallway was empty.

I stopped and looked at him.

Tang Chu’s eyes possessed a natural innocence and craftiness. Combined with the slight redness at the corners of his eyes and the tip of his nose, he could easily win anyone’s favor.

It was exactly like how he looked ten years ago, shortly after he first arrived at my house.

“Tang Chu.”

I took a step toward him and grabbed his collar. “This trick… it really never gets old, does it?”

Tang Chu’s face turned deathly pale instantly.

The elevator chimed as it arrived.

I let go of him and turned to step inside. He seemed unable to snap out of it, remaining frozen where he stood.

I looked at him and smiled. “You know perfectly well that there has never been any ‘sibling harmony’ between her and me.”

“In fact, you’re much more like her brother than I am.”