After shouting the "inspirational" slogan, everyone went back to tapping on their keyboards.
I still had the same mindset: I was determined not to deceive anyone!
When Da Tou came by, I just pretended to chat with the person on the other end.
I talked about anything—astronomy, geography, elephants, ants, celebrity gossip, you name it.
"Xiao Pingzi, take this seriously. We're here to scam, not to chat! Damn it!"
Da Tou couldn't stand it anymore and knocked on my desk to remind me.
"Team Leader, I'm making them feel at ease so we can build rapport later!"
I calmly defended my meaningless chatter.
Da Tou was furious. "Don't make me use force!"
"Team Leader, I didn't do anything wrong! I'm just having a friendly chat!"
I acted innocent, speaking softly.
"You..."
Da Tou was about to explode when Dinosaur Sis tugged at my sleeve and shouted, "Xiao Pingzi, that old man from yesterday is looking for you again."
The flower icon in the bottom right corner kept flashing.
That old fool! After transferring eighty thousand yuan yesterday, I hadn't responded to him.
To my surprise, he was looking for me all morning, calling me "baby" and asking what was wrong, even wondering if it was because the money wasn't enough.
I was speechless!
I had hinted multiple times that I was a scammer and he should block me, but he thought I was throwing a tantrum and kept sending me nauseatingly sweet messages, begging for forgiveness.
Seeing the fish take the bait again, Da Tou's anger subsided halfway. "Open the chat and talk to him properly!"
I frowned but opened the chat window.
The old fool had sent dozens of messages asking what was wrong and why I wasn't responding.
Feeling helpless and not wanting to type lies, I sent him a meme saying "Go away."
[Baby, is the money not enough? I'll transfer another hundred thousand. Buy yourself some bags; shopping cures all!]
Seeing this, I was about to explode!
"Congratulations to Xiao Pingzi for landing another hundred thousand deal!"
Da Tou stood behind me, clapping loudly, attracting envious and jealous glances from others.
Only Scar Uncle looked at me differently.
I turned to look at Dinosaur Sis, wondering what magic she used to make an old man so crazy.
"Keep him on the hook; there might be more big deals," Dinosaur Sis said indifferently.
I stayed silent, just staring at the chat box.
The old man was still sending self-pitying messages, asking if I was happy.
But I was worried about his pension and how long it would last.
If he found out he was scammed, would he commit suicide?
Thinking about it, I felt a pang of guilt.
Although Dinosaur Sis cultivated this fish, the performance was counted under my name.
So, while Da Tou went to get me bread, I quickly blocked the old man.
"You..."
Dinosaur Sis was shocked, not understanding why I did it.
But she didn't make a fuss and continued managing her big fish.
Da Tou placed water and bread on my desk and eagerly went to report to Sister Yu.
"Sis, don't drink soft drinks anymore. Drink water; it's good for weight loss."
I handed a bottle of water to Dinosaur Sis. She had her bread, so I kept the rest to fill my stomach.
In this hellhole, good performance allowed you to choose your food as a reward.
Everything here came from China, including phones, TVs, computers, and air conditioners. Even the internet was from China Telecom.
Most people here, including many bosses, were Chinese. Fujian bosses, in particular, were numerous, often running "family businesses" that felt like a "one person gets rich, the whole village follows" model.
Dinosaur Sis was sensitive about "weight loss." "Can water help?"
"Yes, drink warm water, exercise more, avoid greasy food, and don't drink soft drinks or milk tea. I learned a bit about fitness in college."
"You're a college student; I didn't even graduate high school!"
Dinosaur Sis lowered her head, feeling inferior, staring at the bottled water.
"Sis, we're all just tapping keyboards here."
I forced a bitter smile, mocking myself.
"Ha! You're right! Here, we're equals! In fact, I'm even your mentor!"
Dinosaur Sis laughed, gulping down half the bottle.
I smiled, feeling incredibly bitter inside.
"Xiao Pingzi, take all the cookies and bread. I'll take the water. I'm starting my diet today!"
Dinosaur Sis wiped her mouth, pushing all the snacks to me and taking another bottle of water.
I was about to speak when I saw a familiar figure at the door.
"Ayu, won't you reconsider? The conditions are quite generous!"
Chen Weiqiang, wearing gold-rimmed glasses, walked in with Sister Yu.
"Assistant Chen, it's not that I don't want to. It's just that he's valuable to me..."
Sister Yu glanced flirtatiously at me.
"Hah, I see. You think my offer is too low."
Chen Weiqiang toyed with a pen on the desk, speaking coldly.
Seeing Chen Weiqiang's smug face, my blood pressure skyrocketed.
Dinosaur Sis sensed something was wrong and grabbed my hand nervously. "Xiao Pingzi, calm down."
"Chen! Wei! Qiang!"
I shook off her hand and charged at him like lightning.
"Ah!!"
Sister Yu was knocked to the ground, screaming in shock.
"I told you, if I see you, I'll hit you!"
I landed a left hook and then a right, shattering Chen Weiqiang's glasses, sending shards flying.
The broken glass even cut his face.
"You bastard, are you crazy?"
Chen Weiqiang spat blood, falling to the ground.
"Damn you, even in the next life, you'll be my loser!"
I raised my fist to hit him again, but two of his cronies hit me with electric batons from behind.
"Son of a bitch, ambush me, will you!"
Chen Weiqiang got up, grabbed a stool, and smashed it over me.
"Bang"
The stool leg broke instantly.
"Come on!"
Ignoring the pain, I grabbed the broken stool leg, yanking it and flipping him over.
"Bastard, you want to die!"
Four or five patrol cronies rushed over, ganging up on me.
"Come on, bastards! Kill me now, but I'll take you down with me! I'll die taking one of you with me, two if I can!"
Fearless, I swung the stool leg, getting up and punching the one who electrocuted me the hardest.
If I was destined to be trapped in this hellhole forever, I'd rather die now.