Chapter 9

He had been working at this company for more than four years, and he had been in a slump for almost two years. There was now less than three months left until his five-year contract expired.

If it weren't for the terminal illness he was diagnosed with, he would still be enduring the hardship at this company, waiting for his contract to reach the five-year mark, just to get a monthly salary of three to four thousand yuan.

Two years ago, as the deputy manager of the planning department, his salary was seven to eight thousand yuan, and he was on the verge of becoming a full-time employee with a monthly income of over ten thousand yuan. However, after being quickly marginalized, his salary kept decreasing, and with full attendance, performance bonuses, and partial rewards, he only earned three to four thousand yuan a month, which was less than half of what he used to make.

Even after that, Chen Feng completely gave up, and the new CEO lost interest in suppressing him. Otherwise, his salary might have continued to decrease.

The full attendance bonus was nine hundred yuan. Although Chen Feng had been slacking off at the company, not striving for progress, his attendance rate was still very good, and he rarely arrived late.

But today, he had already been absent for two days, so he would definitely not get the full attendance bonus this month.

Before the divorce, he might have been very upset, but now it didn't matter to him at all.

Originally, Chen Feng had no intention of going to the company on this new day.

However, that morning, while he was leisurely eating mutton noodles at home, he received a call from Manager Yan Jun.

"Chen Feng, do you still want to work here? You only took one day off, but it's been several days now."

Yan Jun was just his apprentice two years ago. He rose to power quickly by betraying his master and flattering his superiors. First, he replaced Chen Feng as the deputy manager of the planning department, and then, within a year, he ousted the original manager and took his place.

From his personal experience, Yan Jun was a true elite in the workplace, the kind who smiles to your face but stabs you in the back.

After he rose to power two years ago, although he made life difficult for Chen Feng, he eventually lost interest when he saw that Chen Feng had completely given up and no longer posed a threat. At most, he would criticize Chen Feng during department meetings without naming him.

Therefore, although Chen Feng had a lot of grievances against him and had thought about beating him up after work several times, he also had to admire Yan Jun's workplace tactics.

This time, Chen Feng had taken one day off, but he hadn't come to work for three days.

As the department manager, Yan Jun naturally had to call and inquire, though his tone was not very friendly.

Chen Feng, now a dying man, had become more open-minded. After Yan Jun finished speaking, he calmly replied, "I don't want to work here anymore."

"… If you don't want to work, fine. Just resign. Pay the ten-thousand-yuan breach of contract fee, and you're free to go."

"Alright, Yan Jun. Why are you so detestable? Don't you have any conscience? Who mentored you when you first joined the company? Who helped you rent a place and pay the rent?"

"… Chen Feng, is it meaningful to bring this up now? You're the one who's not coming to work, not me forcing you."

"If you still have any feelings for the old days, just approve my three-day leave."

"Clearly, I only approved one day. How did it become three? Fine, fine. Come if you want. Anyway, you've been absent for three days, so you won't get the full attendance bonus this month. Your performance and bonus will also be halved. If you're absent for four consecutive days, you won't get any performance or bonus this month. Don't say I didn't warn you."

Chen Feng was not pleased and coldly replied, "It's already the 17th. I've worked half the month before taking leave. Even if I don't come to work for the next half, it's not fair to deduct all my performance and bonus. Yan Jun, you need to have a conscience. It's been two years, and you're still targeting me. Do you find it meaningful?"

"Do I need to target a washed-up old fish like you? Anyway, this is the company's rule. I've already notified you. If you don't come to work, your performance and bonus will be deducted this month. That's it."

With that, Yan Jun hung up the phone.

Although Chen Feng didn't care about the salary, Yan Jun's behavior was too much.

He was almost dead and didn't want to argue, but Yan Jun's persistent bullying was unbearable. He decided not to be magnanimous anymore.

Before he died, he wanted to settle scores and repay kindness, leaving no regrets.

Chen Feng made up his mind and continued eating his mutton noodles leisurely. After finishing and burping, he tidied up, got in his car, and drove to the company.

Dianchuang Cultural Planning Company was located in a high-end business building in the center of Xiuzhou City. It mainly handled event planning, corporate culture construction, artistic activities, brand planning, exhibitions, and product launches for various companies.

It was one of the largest companies in its industry in Xiuzhou, with over twenty years of history and more than two hundred employees. The company leased an entire floor of the building, with an annual rent of nearly ten million yuan, making it a wealthy and powerful company.

However, despite being a company employee, Chen Feng, although he had been slacking off for the past two years, noticed that the company's performance had been declining. There were rumors that the top management was very dissatisfied with the current leadership.

There was a possibility that the leadership would be replaced or the company would be sold.

When Chen Feng arrived at the company, it was almost ten o'clock in the morning, so he didn't bother to clock in.

At the reception, two pretty girls in professional attire with beautiful bow ties greeted him. One of them, named Huang Li, asked with concern, "Brother Feng, why haven't you been to work the past two days?"

"Family matters," Chen Feng smiled and nodded, not elaborating, and walked inside.

After Chen Feng entered, the other receptionist whispered, "Lili, you seem a bit too concerned about him, don't you?"

Huang Li lightly hit her and pouted, "What are you talking about? Brother Feng helped me a lot in the past."

"Tsk, it was just a coincidence that he scared off a few thugs. How many times have you mentioned it? Do you want to repay him with your body? He's already married, you know."

"Don't be ridiculous, I don't," Huang Li blushed and defended herself.

Chen Feng soon arrived at the planning department's office area and saw Yan Jun giving orders to his subordinates. When Chen Feng entered, Yan Jun glanced at him and ignored him completely.

Chen Feng smiled and walked over, pulling a chair and sitting down amidst the surprised looks of his colleagues.

The planning department was the core department of the company, with a total of 25 people. However, not all of them were always in the office, as many had to go to client companies for on-site supervision and coordination.

So, there were often only a few people left in the office, and that was the case today.

"Alright, everyone, get to work."

After assigning tasks to his subordinates, they quickly returned to their cubicles.

Only then did Yan Jun look at Chen Feng with a cold face and say, "Chen Feng, you finally decided to come back? Too late! You won't get the full attendance bonus this month, and your performance and bonus will be halved."

Chen Feng stood up from his chair, his eyes suddenly fierce, and shouted, "Yan Jun, you really are a heartless bastard. I treated you well when I was your mentor. You stabbed me in the back and stepped on me to rise to power, and I didn't hold it against you. I tolerated you before, but that doesn't mean I was afraid of you or that I would tolerate you forever. Being absent is a minor issue, and I accept the deduction of my full attendance bonus, but deducting all my performance and bonus is too much, don't you think?"

Yan Jun didn't expect Chen Feng to suddenly burst out and confront him so loudly in front of his colleagues, which was equivalent to tearing off the mask and exposing the conflict.

The events from the past were not something he could openly discuss, as it would damage his reputation and affect the company leadership's perception of him.

After Chen Feng finished his tirade, Yan Jun was stunned for a moment before reacting, and he became furious, shouting, "Chen Feng, who do you think you are? Do you still think you're the deputy manager of the planning department from two years ago? You just entered the company a year earlier than me and mentored me for a few months, and you think you're my benefactor? Don't flatter yourself."

"Even if I'm not your benefactor, I am your mentor. You flattered and praised me to my face, but then you reported a minor mistake I made to the newly appointed CEO, Cao, to step on me and rise to power. Isn't that true? You did something ungrateful, and I can't say it?"

In the past, Chen Feng didn't want to expose Yan Jun's despicable actions because he wanted to endure the five-year contract. Otherwise, Yan Jun would have made his life even more difficult.

But now that Chen Feng was dying and Yan Jun was being so overbearing, he had nothing to lose. He decided to confront him directly.

Yan Jun was in the wrong, and if the whole company found out about the conflict, it would be embarrassing for him as the department manager.

His face turned pale, and he clenched his teeth, stepping closer to Chen Feng and threatening in a low voice, "Are you trying to be tough with me? I have ways to ruin you. Do you believe me?"

Chen Feng smiled at him and then suddenly slapped him.

Slap!!

The sound was loud, and the force was strong. Caught off guard, Yan Jun was knocked to the ground by the slap.

While Yan Jun was still dazed, Chen Feng picked up a keyboard from a nearby desk, pulled it out, and forcefully smashed it on Yan Jun's head.

With one hit, Yan Jun was knocked flat on the ground.

As Yan Jun started to groan, Chen Feng hit him again in the face, scattering the keyboard keys and causing blood to gush from his nose.

Just as Chen Feng was about to hit him a few more times, his colleagues in the department finally reacted and rushed to hold him back.