Confessing To An Annoying Boss

“Hey, be careful with Uncle Zhang’s health; he can’t handle being hit by you…”Before she could finish, the call was abruptly ended.

Qiao Ziman: “.” Her mother was fierce when she was angry, impossible to stop or persuade.

Forget it, let her be. It won’t cause any real harm. Once this happens, Mom will probably calm down for ten days to half a month. With that thought, Qiao Ziman suddenly felt uplifted, and even the stray dogs that usually barked at her seemed more tolerable.

Humming a little tune, she reached her front door. She took out her keys, and as the anti-theft iron gate creaked open, something came rushing toward her in the darkness, nearly causing Qiao Ziman to trip.

“Qiao Xiaohua! Are you trying to harm your mother?” Qiao Ziman picked up the object at her feet and scolded it, pointing a finger.

Qiao Xiaohua was a calico cat she had rescued from a trash bin when she first moved in. When it first arrived, it was small and skinny. In less than a year, it grew to about half a meter long, with increasingly messy fur on its head, looking like a little lion. Moreover, its temper was becoming more and more like hers.

Qiao Xiaohua meowed and defiantly swiped its paw at her. Qiao Ziman gestured back at it. “Do you admit defeat or not? If you don’t, no dried fish for you tonight.”

Qiao Xiaohua settled down, rubbing its head against her in an attempt to make amends.

Hey, you’re becoming quite the little devil, aren’t you?

Qiao Ziman put it down on the floor. “Go play by yourself,” she said, turning on the lights.

The moment the lights came on, Qiao Ziman saw the messy state of the room, felt a surge of frustration, and yelled, “Qiao Xiaohua!”

Qiao Xiaohua proudly lifted its chin and, with a flick of its tail, darted under the bed.

The apartment Qiao Ziman rented was less than thirty square meters, consisting of one room, one kitchen, and one bathroom. It was cluttered with living essentials, making it hard to find a place to step. The cat occasionally caused more mess, making the home look barely better than a dump.

She began to think about moving to a new place.

After washing the dishes that had been left overnight and tidying up the trash on the floor, Qiao Ziman took a cold shower to clear her mind. Then she sat on her wooden bed, set up a small table, and started bookkeeping. If she successfully completed the difficult design project she was working on this month, her commission could be at least five figures.

With the money she had saved over the past few months, she would be able to repay the amount she borrowed from her aunt for her father’s medical treatment.

Good things come to those who wait.

Qiao Ziman put down her pen and stretched lazily, feeling extremely comfortable. The phone on the desk vibrated and Qiao Ziman picked up the phone to look at it. There was a message from “Yin” on WeChat.

Yin? Qiao Ziman thought for a moment, and after a while, she finally matched the name to the woman at the restaurant who had asked, “Can I chat with you?”

Didn’t she already say thank you? Why is she sending a message again? Qiao Ziman puzzledly tapped on the little red dot. There was just a simple question mark.

Qiao Ziman: “…” She really couldn’t understand what the question mark meant. Was she asking for a clear explanation, or was she saying, “Why haven’t you come to flirt with me yet?”

After thinking it over, Qiao Ziman felt the former was more likely. So she carefully and earnestly typed: [Thank you for helping out.]

She clicked send, thinking that as adults, this woman would surely understand. At least, that’s what Qiao Ziman thought.

Within seconds, the phone started ringing with a voice call.

No way, could she really have taken it seriously? Qiao Ziman, unusually flustered, picked up the phone and breathed a sigh of relief when she saw the caller’s name on the screen. The caller was her mentor and close friend from work, Ji Yun.

Ji Yun had been calling frequently these past few days, concerned only about one thing—the tricky design Qiao Ziman was working on. Qiao Ziman said, “I know, I know, don’t rush me, I’m definitely on it.”

The gaming industry has been sluggish lately, and the most capable employees have been sent to branch offices to lead teams. Ji Yun was one of them. With her departure, the position of the head of the art department was left vacant. Ji Yun had already submitted a recommendation to the leadership; all that was left was for this design to be perfectly completed to give her the final push she needed to step up.

Ji Yun said, “I’m just worried something might go wrong. After all, Liu Dahai is still eyeing the position, and I’ve heard he’s been getting close to the head of the planning department lately. Be careful—they might try to mess with you, especially since I’m not around.”

Liu Dahai had joined the company as an intern at the same time as Qiao Ziman. As a formally trained graduate, Liu Dahai had looked down on Qiao Ziman, who had taken an unconventional path, from the start. The two had been engaged in both open and covert competition for years.

Qiao Ziman was rather unconcerned, “Do I look like someone who’s easy to mess with?”

“Not really, just giving you a heads up,” Ji Yun added, “There’s some inside information—our company is going through changes, and they’re bringing in a new manager with a very mysterious background.”

Ji Yun, still worried, cautioned her, “You need to keep your temper in check. When the new boss arrives, I’m not asking you to suck up to her, just don’t get on her bad side.”

“Otherwise, you’ll really be left all alone.”

“Heh, I’m not a troublemaker, why would I do that?” Qiao Ziman said as she opened her graphics tablet and began discussing the design direction with Ji Yun.

The two of them talked for over an hour before finalizing the draft. Qiao Ziman rubbed her wrist, saved the drawing, said “Good night” to Ji Yun, and hung up the call. When she switched back to the WeChat screen, she noticed that the woman named “Yin” had sent her another message ten minutes ago.

Qiao Ziman’s finger paused slightly, then after a moment, she tapped on the little red dot.

Yin: [Wanna meet?]

How can this person be so forward?

Qiao Ziman typed and deleted, deleted and typed, and finally managed to craft a flawless explanation, only for the other person to reply with a single sentence.

Yin: [Come to my place?]