Chapter 3

Under the collective effort, the company briefly became an industry leader, with stock prices steadily climbing.

I truly believed that such a boss wouldn't bend the rules for personal gain.

But I was still too naive.

I reported to the boss everything Karen said at that morning meeting, my own business attendance records, as well as evidence of Chad taking kickbacks, using company funds for personal expenses, and bribing leadership.

However, the next day, Karen came to my workstation arm-in-arm with Chad. She threw the materials I had reported onto my desk.

She smiled arrogantly.

"How about that, Sarah? You're so clever, why don't you keep reporting? See if anyone's willing to give you the time of day!"

Chad also gave me a cold glance. This man who once appeared humble and cautious in front of me now had an inexplicable sense of superiority in his eyes.

It seems Karen's connections were indeed strong. Under these circumstances, it would be very difficult for me to clear my name.

I didn't engage with Karen's topic. Instead, I took out the audit and supervision system she had created and threw it at her.

"I advise you to understand the company's situation before doing your analysis. Where did you copy this from? You want to expand the audit and supervision team? Do you know how much of a burden this will be on the company!""I, I—"

Karen didn't notice my panic. Instead, she criticized her work issue, leaving her momentarily stunned.

Amidst the whispers of surrounding colleagues, Karen walked away, disgruntled.

I slowly exhaled a deep breath, knowing this matter was far from over.

Sitting on the toilet, I overheard several hushed conversations, one of which was Karen's soft voice.

"Remember that project a while back when Mr. Frost visited the construction site and accidentally got hit in the back by a brick? Do you think we could pin this on Sarah, saying she failed to properly oversee things?"

"That was a site issue, and it's already been reported company-wide. Plus, Mr. Frost doesn't want to make a big deal out of it. How about we lay off more employees and talk to them individually, telling them they're casualties of Sarah's incompetence?"

"That piece of land we missed out on last time, the one Cort snagged—I heard they made a killing on it. Someone mentioned the budget estimate wasn't enough. Could we possibly..."

I almost laughed out loud as I listened to Karen's vague responses like "Mmm, is that so? We'll see."

She clearly didn't understand a word of what these people were saying.As I entered the company, barely understanding the business, I had no way to quickly grasp the industry's inner workings.

Karen's next words sent chills from my feet to the top of my head.

"Instead of dwelling on past issues, let's create some new problems for Sarah to shoulder. Ideally, something that could land her in jail. If possible, we could tamper with her documents, investigate if she's taken any bribes, or maybe talk to accounting about cooking up some false records for her..."

"Don't worry, I'll handle all of this! My uncle said it's just an auditor position. Once she's gone, we can easily hire a fresh college graduate to replace her."

How could she be so ruthless! And the boss so cold-hearted!

Back when the real estate bubble burst, the company lost many employees. Our once-thriving corporation of a thousand was reduced to barely a hundred people struggling to keep it afloat.

I used to sleep only four or five hours a night, working overtime until dawn every day.

Apparently, in the boss's eyes, all of that amounted to "just an auditor position".

With a company like this, what's left for me to feel attached to?

I had no choice but to start making other preparations - to resign.

It's frustrating. After working here for so long, I'm now being forced to leave. But I really can't stand this treatment. After all, everyone's health matters equally, right?

Of course, I won't let them off easy either.Before I leave, I'll give them a parting gift they won't forget!

After that day, people kept lurking around my workstation.

I knew what they were up to, so I became even more cautious.

I encrypted my computer, kept all my keys on me at all times, and guarded every document - even the backs - against prying eyes.

After several days of their efforts, they hadn't managed to dig up a single mistake on me.