Yesterday's "BACK" ability was, as usual, used for practice and adaptation.
Wednesday Morning.
As soon as he woke up, Johny Lee received a call from Maggi, inviting him over for breakfast.
Apparently, a significant client was visiting Maggi's company today.
She was dressed to kill in a pure white professional suit.
Paired with her fair skin and voluptuous figure, she looked incredibly charming.
Whether it was Tammy or Jane from his office, compared to Maggi, they were miles apart.
Even the campus queen at Johny's university couldn't hold a candle to her elegance.
"Maggi," Johny blurted out involuntarily while chewing his toast, "You look really beautiful today."
As soon as the words left his mouth, he regretted it.
Bah, bah, bah! Why did I say that? It sounded so cheesy!
Maggi's face flushed slightly.
She glared at him playfully and raised her hand as if to slap his arm.
"Smooth talker! Looking for a beating, aren't you?"
Johny coughed awkwardly and fell silent, quickly shoveling millet porridge into his mouth to hide his embarrassment.
"Slow down, slow down.
It's not like someone's fighting you for it." Maggi rolled her big eyes at him.
She pulled out a napkin and gently dabbed a speck of porridge from the corner of his mouth.
Her voice softened.
"Yesterday was your first day at work, right? How do you feel? Big Sister is telling you, you can't just say whatever pops into your head in government offices.
It's a place that runs on unwritten rules.
If you accidentally offend a leader, your days will be difficult. You can't be like you were in school anymore. When you should speak less, zip it. When you should flatter the leader, pour it on thick, Understand?"
Johny nodded seriously. "I understand."
After breakfast, Johny said goodbye to Maggi and headed downstairs to work.
At the building entrance, he ran into Aunt Sue and her son.
It seemed she was taking Tony out somewhere; she was in the middle of hailing a taxi.
Seeing Johny approach, Aunt Sue's eyelids twitched.
She quickly adjusted her expression, plastering on a polite smile. "Oh, it's Johny. Going to work? Is it tiring lately?"
Ever since Johny passed the civil service exam, Aunt Sue's attitude toward him had shifted.
The arrogance was gone, replaced by a cautious respect.
Johny smiled. "It's okay.
The unit is busy in the morning but quite free in the afternoon."
Tony looked at him with a sullen face, refused to make eye contact, and bent down to get into the taxi first.
Aunt Sue pulled open the car door.
"Tony said he wants to check out the antique market, so we're heading there now."
"Okay. Have fun."
See? Johny thought.
Everything is different once you have a government badge.
That's why they say you have to be an official!
With a leisurely mood, Johny took the bus to the West City Branch Bureau.
He smiled and nodded hello to the old guard at the gatehouse.
He walked into the grey building alongside a few staff members from other departments. He turned into the General Office, put down his bag, and immediately picked up a broom to sweep the floor.
Before, sweeping the office was Paul's job; he did it to show off his diligence to the leader.
But ever since Deputy Director Zane was hospitalized last week, Paul had stopped sweeping.
Why? Because if the leader wasn't watching, there was no point in performing!
"Oh, Johny, you're here so early?" Jack walked in carrying his designer bag.
Johny smiled.
"Yeah, traffic was light today, so I got here a bit early."
Behind him, Paul and Jane entered, chatting idly about weekend plans.
Tammy was the fifth to arrive, Samson was the sixth, and Old Quinn was the last, arriving precisely on the dot.
The workload on Wednesday was significantly lighter than on Monday and Tuesday.
Seeing that Tammy didn't need any help, Johny grabbed a mop, rinsed it in the bathroom down the hall, and started cleaning the area outside the office door. Someone had apparently spat phlegm and left a pile of melon seed shells there. It was disgusting.
While he was busy scrubbing, the rhythmic clack-clack of leather shoes echoed from the end of the corridor.
Looking up, Johny saw a middle-aged man in his fifties slowly walking toward him.
His gait was uneven; his left leg's stride was noticeably stiffer than his right, likely the result of a past stroke.
Johny understood immediately.
This must be Deputy Director Zane, the head of the General Officehis direct superior!
Johny was determined to leave the best impression.
He pretended not to see the leader at first, mopping the floor with exaggerated diligence, looking very hardworking and capable.
"You are?" Zane stopped and asked suspiciously.
Johny pretended to be startled.
He paused, wiped the sweat from his forehead, and straightened up. "Ah... You must be Deputy Director Zane? Hello, hello! I'm new to the office. My name is Johny Lee. It's an honor to meet you."
Zane said "Oh" flatly.
He didn't ask anything else.
He just gently pushed open the office door and walked past Johny.
"Deputy Director Zane, I....." Johny trailed off.He was waiting for the leader to ask a few more questions or maybe praise his diligence but the man just ignored him. Johny stood there, stunned.
What's wrong with this leader? Is he just cold?
But just as he concluded that Zane was the indifferent type, he heard Zane's voice from inside the office.
It was warm and amiable.
"Everyone has worked hard, haha.
During the time I was hospitalized, the office didn't fall apart without me, did it?"
Tammy's cheeky voice rang out. "Director Zane, aren't you confident in us?"
Jane's charming giggle followed.
"That's right, Director Zane. When have we ever embarrassed you?"
Paul's voice was eager. "I'll go make you some fresh tea!"
"Director Zane, are you feeling better?" Jack asked with concern.
Standing in the hallway with his mop, Johny was dumbfounded.
Director Zane? Director Zane?
Everyone called him "Director.
" No one used the word "Deputy."
Johny smacked himself hard on the forehead.
Shoot! Only now did he understand why Zane had been so cold to him.
Johny, the foolish rookie, had called him Deputy Director Zane.
Although it was technically his correct title, in the world of Chinese bureaucracy, addressing a Deputy as "Deputy" to his face was a massive faux pas. Omitting the 'Deputy' showed respect and fed the leader's ego.
It was an unwritten rule.
Actually, Johny knew this; Grandpa Hu had warned him about it back in the hospital. But in the nervousness of the moment, his brain had short-circuited.
He had unknowingly offended his direct superior on his second day of work!
Panic surged through him.
"BACK!"
...
Flash!
The scene flew backward.
The pile of melon seed shells that had been swept clean reappeared at his feet. The floor was dirty again.
Clack, clack, clack....
The sound of uneven leather shoes approached from the end of the hall.
"You are?" Deputy Director Zane's slightly weak, weathered face appeared before Johny.
"Ah! You are Director Zane, right?" Johny said energetically, bowing slightly.
"I'm new to the office, my name is Johny Lee. Hello, Director Zane!"
Zane's expression softened instantly. He smiled and nodded.
"Young man, you have quite a bit of energy, don't you? Mopping the hall? You came yesterday? Are you familiar with the work yet?"
Johny beamed, overwhelmed by the positive attention.
"Thank you for your concern, Leader. I'm getting the hang of it."
Zane reached out and patted his shoulder. "Hmm. Good attitude. Work hard."
The attitude before and after was like two completely different people!
Indeed, it was that single word "Deputy" that had caused the disaster. Johny wiped the cold sweat from his forehead, his heart still racing.
That was so close!!
Authors Note:-
Thats chapter 18.
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