First Day, First Demand: $1,000 Dinner for the Whole Office

On my first day at the new job, my supervisor, Baron, hinted that new hires usually treated everyone.

So I ordered a coffee for each person in the department.

To my surprise, Barons face instantly darkened. He tossed his coffee into the trash.

The company pays you a good salary, and all you offer is a fifteen-dollar coffee? Ill give you a chance to make it up: treat the entire company to dinner!

He finished speaking, then flung a restaurant flyer onto my desk.

I glanced at the pricesit was a Michelin-starred restaurant, 0-0000 per person.

I smiled, didnt refuse, and immediately set up my phone, opening the camera to record a video.

At that moment, I heard colleagues whispering.

Is she serious? Filming a video just to eat dinner?!

They probably just thought I was some wannabe influencer, trying to pretend Im high-class.

But they had no idea I was a blogger with a million followers, specializing in career reviews.

My phone hadnt been set up for long when Brenda, a colleague, suddenly knocked it out of my hand.

Hey! New girl, what are you filming?

Could it be

Had she found out?

My breath hitched, and I quickly snatched my phone.

I was about to explain:

Brenda, that

She impatiently tossed her hair, her tone slightly smug.

Who knows who youd send that to, you idiot Im so good-looking, itd be a huge problem if some clueless creep saw me!

I immediately relaxed, putting my phone back up.

Brenda, Im just filming a VLOG to document my life!

I promise I wont get anyones face in it!

She seemed even more upset that I wasnt filming her.

She stretched out her arm, ready to snatch my phone.

Let me see it, then Ill know if you filmed me or not!

But the next second, Baron cut her off.

Alright, enough with the bickering at the dinner table! Can we eat in peace?

Shes treating today, so just let it go!

I was instantly speechless, feeling utterly sick to my stomach.

Before I could argue, I heard other colleagues comforting Brenda.

Dont bother with her, girl. Shes just some small-town idiot!

Mark, another colleague, changed the subject, turning his gaze to me.

But Jade, youre really selling this fake socialite act!

Where did you get your knock-offs? Theyre surprisingly well-made!

Another colleague immediately chimed in.

Designer replicas with such good craftsmanship? Could she even afford them? Probably rented fakes!

Hahahaha!

Suddenly, the private room filled with laughter.

Everyone was staring at me, grinning, as if I were a clown performing to relieve their work stress.

But its true, if you dont have the budget, dont bother renting luxury items to show off

Renting these cheap pieces of trash, arent you embarrassed?!

I looked down at my brand new bag, which had a few scratches.

Just because I hadnt babied it, they called it trash?

I pursed my lips and retorted:

I earned this myself, with my own hard work, and paid for it in full.

The moment I finished speaking, the guys at the table exchanged knowing glances and smirked.

Oh~ Your own hard work, huh~ Well, you certainly have talent then!

Their scrutinizing glances made me deeply uncomfortable.

They might as well have just called me a prostitute.

It was bad enough that the men twisted my words.

Even the women had to adopt a condescending attitude to judge me.

Girls these days are just so vain!

To get their hands on these material things, theyre willing to sell their own bodies!

Looking at Brenda, who was meticulously groomed, I couldnt help but frown.

As a fellow woman, she should understand me better.

Instead of defending me, she chose to use the very insults that had probably been thrown at her, to stab me.

I secretly clenched my fists, wanting to lash out right then and there.

But seeing the continuous recording on my phone, I swallowed my anger and slowly lowered my raised hand.

Then I leaned closer to my phone, ensuring my feigned distress would be perfectly captured.

Brenda, Mark, Im just a new hire

Why are you all speculating about me with such malice?

I thought my reminder would make them rein it in.

But they showed no shame at all.

They even tried to pin the blame on me.

Brenda poured me a drink, feigning generosity:

Oh, you silly girl!

We were just kidding, and you took it so seriously!

If you cant take a joke, youll have a tough time getting by in this company!

She put an arm around my shoulder. Before I could shrug her off, I heard her ask:

By the way, Jade, where did you work before this?

Why havent I heard your name in the industry?

Meeting their curious stares, I calmly took a sip of water.

Apex Corporation.

Before becoming a blogger, I did work in a related field.

At Apex, the industry leader.

So I wasnt intimidated in the slightest.

Hearing my answer, Brendas smile froze for a second.

But she quickly recovered.

No wonder youve got such a temper, girl!

So you came from a big company!

She deliberately emphasized the word big, drawing everyones attention back to me.

Looks like HR is pretty impressive, managing to recruit someone from Apex for our little company~

Someone couldn't help but scoff.

Pfft, so what if she came from Apex Corporation? She still got let go!

Otherwise, with Apexs great benefits, who would ever want to leave?

Their words, one after another, were all meant to maliciously speculate about me.

It was as if the worse off I, the new hire, was, the happier theyd be.

Even though I despised them internally, for the sake of the camera, I patiently explained.

Apex is known for being incredibly selective in hiring, but once youre in, youre usually set. They rarely let people go.

Mark scoffed:

Then she must have pissed off her coworkers.

I bet youre just too much of an idiot to fit in with the other cliques, and they forced you out.

They could slander me all they wanted, but I didnt want to drag innocent people into this.

My voice couldnt help but rise a few octaves:

Apex has an excellent work environment; theres absolutely no clique bullying like youre describing!

I left simply because the career path didnt align with my future ambitions!

Back then, the job market was getting tougher.

I watched job seekers my age on social media, barely managing to find a job they were somewhat satisfied with.

But after joining, theyd discover the conditions were completely different from what they were initially told, having been scammed by unscrupulous companies.

Thats why I wanted to start a social media account, to help others navigate and avoid potential traps.

They all wore "I told you so" expressions.

Brenda even muttered:

Pfft, nine out of ten people who get fired say that exact same thing.

You!

I was shaking with anger, about to stop recording and go head-to-head with her

But then Baron, who had been silent for a while, stepped in as a peacemaker.

The commotion finally died down.

With Barons intervention, they suddenly lost interest and started talking about their families.

Paul, the team leader, started the conversation:

My son, Tim, only got into Mississippi University this year because he wasnt feeling well during exams!

Mississippi University is an excellent school, and anyone listening knew she was bragging about her child.

Everyone was praising her son, but Brenda remained silent.

I turned to look at her, raising an eyebrow.

By the way, Brenda, your daughter is also starting college this year, right?

How did her exams go?

Yesterday, during introductions, I heard them mention that Paul and Brendas kids were the same age.

Seeing Brendas face instantly darken, I knew I had guessed correctly.

As soon as I mentioned Brenda, a colleague couldn't help but speak up for her.

Brenda went to Mississippi, so her daughters bound to be brilliant!

She grew more excited as she spoke, completely missing Brendas thunderous expression.

Whats so great about local schools? Im preparing her applications to study abroad!

Everyone exchanged glances.

They probably understood what she meant but chose not to call her out.

They just gave awkward smiles:

Y-yes, youre right!

Brenda is so wealthy, she must have paved the way for her daughter long ago!

Although Im professionally trained, at that moment, I couldnt help but laugh.

A bunch of bullies, only brave when theyre picking on someone weaker!

I began to wonder, when my video goes online,

would they still be as arrogant and condescending as they are now?

In a blink, Mark pointed the finger at me.

Jade, youre laughing so happily, your academic background must be very impressive, right?

What school did you graduate from?

Everyone looked at me with mocking smiles.

Come on, tell us, its not embarrassing to come from a regular school!

Maybe shes from a community college, hahahahaha!

You know, with how diligently she runs errands, she might not have even gone to college!

Im from a vocational school.

Their laughter grew even louder.

Hahahaha, I knew it!

Thought she was so impressive, turns out shes just some vocational school graduate!

And *she* got into Apex? Must have pulled some strings!

Of course! Look at her, she doesnt seem like someone who works hard

She was probably having an affair with a boss, got caught by his wife, and Apex fired her to cover it up!

I hadnt said a word, and they had already concocted a complete storyline.

After their uproarious laughter died down, they had the nerve to act like moral paragons, lecturing me.

Jade, try to be a decent person!

Hahahaha Mark, youre too funny, trying to reform a prostitute!

****

I thought if I didnt respond, they would get bored and change the subject.

But I didnt expect them to get worse after drinking.

Mark, heavily intoxicated, wrapped his arm around me, his hand not-so-innocently wandering down to my waist.

Jade, how much for one night?

How about I give you three hundred?

I pushed him hard, but there was a significant disparity in strength between men and women. The harder I struggled, the tighter he held me.

I could only yell:

Mark, youre drunk!

Brenda, Paul, help me!

They all covered their mouths, laughing at me, but no one came to my rescue.

Oh, little sister, youre pretty smart, playing hard to get!

Someone even whistled at Mark.

Mark, make sure you wrap it up!

Wouldnt want to catch anything later

Hahahahaha!

Their laughter grew louder.

Mark seemed encouraged by their laughter, becoming even bolder, and started kissing my ear.

His warm tongue, reeking of alcohol, wriggled like a worm on my earlobe.

It made me feel nauseous, wanting to vomit!

I bit hard into his arm, and after breaking free, I quickly ran towards the private room door, shouting as I ran:

Help, help me!

But I hadnt gotten far when Mark yanked me back.

He slapped my face, twisting my head to the side.

You little bitch, you actually tried to run?

What, my money isnt enough for you?

Im already doing you a favor by not caring youre used-up trash!

The HR manager is my cousin, so if you annoy me, hehe, you know what will happen!

I advise you to behave and not think about running away!

He leaned in, trying to kiss me again.

Looking at the laughing faces of my colleagues around me, I struggled, tears of humiliation streaming down my face.

If you touch me, Ill make sure you regret it!

But he just laughed more smugly.

Oh? How will you make me regret it?

Will I die in your arms?

But before he could get closer, Baron punched him, knocking him sober.

Mark, thats enough.

Baron took off his jacket and draped it over me.

It was the first time I felt a flicker of human kindness in this team.

I was disoriented and shaken, still reeling, only able to stammer:

Thank you.

Alright, its getting late. Everyone should head home.

As if struck by a pang of conscience, Baron, who initially made me treat everyone to dinner, actually paid the bill for me.

They had managed to turn a 0-0000-per-person restaurant into a $3000-per-person tab!

With the 15% service charge, the entire meal came out to a shocking seventy thousand dollars.

I felt a bit uncomfortable about it.

So I snapped a picture of the bill.

Just as I was about to post it in the company SnapChat group and ask them to pay, Baron stopped me.

Actually, asking you to treat was just a pretense today.

I knew you were a bit introverted, so I wanted to use this to help you get closer to the other colleagues.