petty

Xu Wenqi returned back to the villa and was greeted by Butler Wang.

"Ah, miss you're back? You went out so early!"

She nodded tiredly and replied, "Yes, my family called for breakfast together."

Butler Wang raised his head in understanding before rubbing his nose to say, as if inadvertently, "Ah, of course, go ahead. It's just-"

He sighed dramatically.

"Oh nothing, you go ahead."

Written all over Xu Wenqi's face was a series of large question marks. Butler Wang looked so forlorn that she thought something big happened.

"What happened?" she asked curiously.

Secretly watching her reaction, he closed his eyes and clutched his chest.

"Aiya, nothing, nothing happened. Forget I said anything."

Xu Wenqi's dainty eyebrows furrowed even more.

"No, tell me. What's going on?"

"It's just…" he looked at the ground sadly. "You left without any notice and the master thought you ran away."

Xu Wenqi was immediately burdened by this giant rock that fell from the sky. Her hands shook as she asked nervously, "Was he angry?"

The fear of offending Shen Yue very much raised the alarm bells in her heart.

Butler Wang didn't meet Xu Wenqi's eyes as he recalled that his master had shattered an entire cup with his bare hand.

"Erm…"

Butler Wang's hesitant response made Xu Wenqi believe that Shen Yue most definitely was angry at her.

"Master didn't even eat any breakfast and left right away to the company. Plus, he doesn't usually eat lunch either and he always works overtime so now…" he trailed off and looked at Xu Wenqi pointedly. "Ah, forget it, I'm too old to nag him."

He pretended to turn away on his heels. Xu Wenqi was really worried now and she quickly caught his arm.

"Ah? Then what should I do?"

The wrinkled old man expression on her face and clear concern in her eyes made Butler Wang chuckle in his heart. Looking at her expression, it really seemed as if the two have been married for a long time.

He put on a serious face and opened her eyes a little, "Maybe if you bring him breakfast and explain yourself along the way, he wouldn't be too angry."

Xu Wenqi's eyes went round.

"Bring it to the company?" she unconsciously frowned. "That- that wouldn't be a good idea...I'll disturb him. Wouldn't he be even angrier?"

"Would you rather you meet him now or meet him later when he's been angry the whole day?"

The logic choked her.

"The whole day?? What kind of person would be angry the whole day?"

Butler Wang looked into the distance and replied with a wise expression, "A petty man, miss."

___

At the same time, frigid air was blowing somewhere on the top floor of a high-rise building. Vice President Gu couldn't help but shiver from the cold. But it wasn't the incoming cold draft that made him want to cry. It was the dense black clouds hanging in the office and the bright red circled date on his desk calendar that did. On normal days, Vice President Gu and the other executives rarely met with the president. Unfortunately, today was the upper-management bi-monthly meeting. All the managers dreaded attending the meeting because the president was simply too poisonous. Not to mention, they heard the president's temper was worse than usual.

'How much worse can his temper get?! It's already terrible enough!' cursed Vice President Gu.

He really wanted to strangle whoever offended the president today. After cursing the offender in six generations of ancestors, Vice President Gu's bitterness only slightly alleviated. But his angry face soon melted into a defeated expression as he tenderly kissed the photo frame of his sweet wife and cute daughter on his desk. It was going to be the last moment he would see them before he was going to meet the King of Hell in the meeting room. Grabbing his report materials, Vice President Gu walked out of his office and met with the other executives waiting for him outside the meeting room. His eyes looked at each and every single one of them solemnly. They firmly met his gaze in comradery.

Director Jun placed his hand on Vice President Gu's shoulders and said gravely, "Good luck, sir. We're counting on you to lead us."

Vice President Gu nodded somberly and pushed the glass door open. They were about to experience war or in more accurate terms, an utterly humiliating defeat.

Seeing the piercing gaze hit his face just one step into the room made Vice President Gu's knees weak. The enemy didn't strike yet but Vice President Gu already lost. The president was ten minutes early, which meant in the president's eyes, they were all ten minutes late!

With wobbly legs, Vice President Gu walked up to the piece of ice emitting rays of coldness. The man sat rigidly at the head of the long wooden table at the center of the room with his long shapely legs crossed neatly. His graceful hands were folded together and the bright fluorescent lights were cast onto his sharp face.

Vice President Gu bowed and greeted, "President."

The rest of the executives followed suit and held their breath waiting anxiously for Shen Yue's response. Secretary Chen standing quietly next to Shen Yue sighed in his heart. There was no hope for any of them. Shen Yue slowly unclasped his two hands together and used two slender fingers to tap the table faintly. The only sound that could be heard in the tense riddled room was the soft taps and the loud beating drums coming from the Vice President's chest. But if the president didn't say anything, how could the vice president speak first?

Shen Yue narrowed his eyes and spoke aloud languidly, "Secretary Chen, remind me of the company rules again."

Secretary Chen replied evenly, "One very important rule is to always be punctual when coming to work, at work, and leaving work, sir."

Shen Yue let out a small noise of acknowledgment, "Mmm. So did they break the company rules?"

Secretary Chen pushed up his thin golden rimmed glasses.

"Yes, sir, they did."

Vice President Gu wept inside and felt extremely wronged.

'We came here early! If it wasn't for the president to show up earlier than us, how could we be called late?!'

Of course, he dare not say these words out loud and thus, could only lower his head.

Shen Yue's eyes fell on Vice President Gu.

"So do you think I'm unreasonable for saying this?"

Vice President Gu felt a cold sweat on his back. Could the president read his thoughts?

"If a client waited for you for so long, are you going to get angry at them and say, 'I'm not late, it was you who was early?' If that's the case, get out of the company now. I don't need any money-losing employees. Time is money and that is a fact, not a flimsy thought that you remember at will," Shen Yue said coolly.

The atmosphere was too thick with gunpowder for anyone to speak properly.