The next day at work.
As soon as Dong Xuebin entered the office, he sensed something off in everyone's looks. A few people close to Yan Lei were clearly enjoying his misfortune. The entire branch bureau now knew that Director Dong, who had made enormous contributions, had unexpectedly been left off the list for the Jiangzhe Province study tour. Meanwhile, Yan Lei, who was openly at odds with him and had no achievements to speak of, had been included instead. Everyone understood that Director Zhen was severely reprimanding Director Dong. Some gloated, some watched the show, and some felt indignant on his behalf. In any case, this sensitive matter had sparked plenty of discussion and caused a small stir.
Dong Xuebin had completely lost face. Fuming, he shoved open the door and entered the General Office.
"Director Dong!" The newly arrived Wang Xin sprang to her feet, her eyes misting over. "It's all my fault. I... I..."
Dong Xuebin suppressed his anger and tried to soften his expression. "It has nothing to do with you. Just do your job well."
"Director Dong, I'm sorry. I promise I won't cause you trouble again." Wang Xin was overwhelmed with guilt. If Director Dong had not stood up for her, he would definitely have gotten one of the travel slots, and Director Zhen would not have reprimanded him either. She had not slept well all night, and the more she thought about it, the more she felt it was all her fault.
Tan Limei said indignantly, "The higher-ups are being completely unreasonable. Yan Lei was obviously the one deliberately picking a fight, so why did he get to go on the trip instead?"
Chang Juan said bitterly, "That's far too biased! How much has Director Dong contributed to the branch bureau? How many