Standing tall (2)
When Chi Qing entered, she deliberately left the door wide open so everyone could hear their conversation.
"No, that's not..." Zhang Qin struggled to react and stammered a little. Mainly, Chi Qing had been perfectly polite when she came in and hadn't shouted or made a scene, leaving her unsure how to respond.
"No? You didn't praise me, or my documents weren't that bad?" Chi Qing's voice grew louder, her presence imposing, but she kept the smile on her face.
"Chi Qing, if you have any objections to the company's decision, take them up with the company. What are you making a scene here for?" Manager Wang from the administration department, who was sitting nearby, was a little surprised by Chi Qing's words. He vaguely sensed there might be more to the matter, but still maintained his managerial air as he reprimanded her.
"Making a scene? Manager Wang, please don't slap labels on me. I knocked politely before coming in, and I've been expressing my gratitude this whole time. How exactly have I made a scene?" Chi Qing said loudly with a smile. "You're right. I was just about to appeal. I do not accept the notice your department just issued. If the company wants to penalize me, then please produce the evidence. Which specific typos? Which specific contracts were a mess? Without evidence, I will consider this malicious withholding of employee wages by the company and reserve the right to pursue legal action."
Without waiting for either of them to answer, Chi Qing slammed the audit department's door shut with a bang so loud it could be heard on the first floor.
"Chi Qing, you..." Manager Wang sprang to his feet and was about to explode when Chi Qing opened the door again. "Sorry. Closing the door behind you is a virtue, but I tend to close doors a little loudly. I'd better leave it open for you." With that, she turned and strode away.
Outside the door, the onlookers bustling about and pretending to pass the audit department for all sorts of reasons cast seemingly casual glances inside, leaving the two squirming in their seats. Fuck, you might as well have left the door shut.
Chi Qing calmly walked through the clusters of onlookers and headed downstairs, not forgetting to smile and greet people she knew. She ran into Liu Ping and Li Yan, who had heard the door slam and come up to find her. Meeting their worried gazes, Chi Qing smiled and made an "OK" sign.
Back at her desk, she opened the WeChat group. Beneath the disciplinary notice, President Cao had already replied in true corporate-slave fashion: "Received. Will make every effort to rectify the issues."
Chi Qing scoffed and replied below: "Received, but not accepted. Please provide detailed evidence supporting the above penalties before the end of the workday today. Otherwise, I will take legal measures to safeguard an employee's legitimate rights."
She pulled up her previous chat history with Zhang Qin and took screenshots of every message in which Zhang Qin had praised her care and diligence, especially the praise from just last week. She fired them all into the group, one after another, and tagged the company's general manager, the administration department's general manager, and the head of the audit department.
"Ding-dong, ding-dong, ding-dong." As Chi Qing sent her barrage of replies, phones all across the company began chiming over one another.
"Holy shit, Chi Qing's badass. She's burning bridges now," said onlooker A.
"Awesome. Taking them head-on. I've had enough of the administration department for ages," said B, who had been privately nursing grievances.
"Chi Qing's usually all smiles and laughs, with such a good temper. I never thought she'd be this tough," said C, who was on friendly terms with Chi Qing.
"Sister Zhang really went too far here. She was clearly praising Chi Qing for being thorough," said D, who knew a little of the inside story.
"What happened? Why are they tearing into each other?" asked a bewildered E, who had been busy all morning and knew nothing yet.
Liu Ping and Li Yan were also stunned when they looked at their phones.
"Ring, ring." Chi Qing's phone rang, and she picked up. "Chi Qing, what did you post in the group? Retract it right now!" President Cao's furious voice came over the phone.