Sure enough, by noon, a notice criticizing someone was posted in the group chat.
[For employees taking leave with bizarre excuses, I won’t name names here. No teamwork, no organization, no discipline. For such troublemakers, we will remove them from the team. Daily question: have you contributed to the company? Does your current workload match the salary you receive?]
Even before the end of the workday, the supervisor had already crafted his self-glorifying message to flatter upper management.
By the afternoon, Chen Zan was dragged back to work.
No matter how he sat, he felt uncomfortable. A dull ache spread faintly throughout his entire body.
His throat was dry, and he couldn’t stop himself from coughing a few times.
A cup of warm water was placed in front of him.
“Caught a cold?”
Chen Zan was wearing more layers than usual, so the question came naturally.
He looked up and saw it was Li Sheng, the coworker who usually talked to him the most. Chen Zan replied, “Thanks.”
Li Sheng leaned against his desk. From that angle, it was obvious. Just at Chen Zan’s collar, around his neck, the red marks were especially noticeable.
As if discovering a new world, Li Sheng’s expression instantly filled with envy, jealousy, and curiosity as he said, “You’ve been having quite a wild time, Chen Zan.”
Chen Zan instinctively tightened his coat. Unable to endure Li Sheng’s prying gaze, he simply pulled up his hood.
Li Sheng’s workstation was right beside him. Keeping an eye out for the supervisor who might sneak over at any moment, he nudged Chen Zan and said with a grin, “No wonder you asked for leave.”
“But with Liu the Skinflint, tsk tsk… what a pity.”
Chen Zan, “…”
What’s there to pity? What does it have to do with you?
Li Sheng jabbed him with his elbow and said, “Doing something that interesting behind my back, letting women play with you, and I didn’t even know. That’s not very brotherly of you. I didn’t expect you to seem so honest usually, yet you’re actually this open-minded.”
Chen Zan replied calmly, “Don’t make it sound so suggestive.”
“By the way, are you seeing someone?”
Chen Zan lowered his gaze slightly. His lips moved before he said, “No.”
He figured fate hadn’t exactly been kind to him. Alone with no support, then his father showed up, leaving behind a massive debt before disappearing again without a trace. Now Chen Zan had to juggle several jobs just to repay it.
Dating? Was he supposed to drag some girl into his mess?
“Then what about this?” Li Sheng clearly wasn’t planning to let him off.
“The supervisor’s here.”
Li Sheng immediately slid back to his seat.
With reddened eyes, Chen Zan had just gotten off work at the big company, unable to hold back as he yawned five times in a row.
Just a moment ago, he had been a regular nine-to-five employee with full benefits.
In the next moment, he became one of the countless street vendors flowing through the crowded traffic.
The three golden hours after work were his time to set up his stall. Inside his cart were boxes of sausages, spicy instant noodles, and takoyaki.
His phone was set up on the side, streaming to attract online traffic.
Every bit he earned counted.
His street stall life officially began, harvesting pocket money from kids.
As soon as he set up, customers gradually started entering his camera frame.
“Hello, what would you like to buy?” He spoke normally to adults, but when talking to kids, his tone softened instinctively.
A child looked over the options, swallowing before saying, “The spicy noodles.”
Chen Zan quickly packed it into a bag with disposable chopsticks and handed it over, saying, “Alright, your noodles.”
Before long, his stall became crowded.
Most of the people buying his grilled sausages were adults.
Adults were just older kids, after all.
“I didn’t see you around the past few days. Thought you found a proper job and stopped setting up your stall.”
The smoky air of the barbecue stand drifted with the heat, making Chen Zan, whose business was booming, feel even hotter. Sweat covered his face.
Hearing that customer’s voice, Chen Zan suddenly felt a bit awkward… and uneasy.