Chapter 2

The colleagues around us looked deeply worried.

Mia was the first to speak up. "Logan, our quarterly performance bonuses should be coming through soon, right? We can pool our money and lend it to you for now."

"No way, you guys have your own lives to live," I quickly refused. Most of my team members were fresh grads trying to build a life, many still stressing over next month's rent.

"Logan, your mom's health comes first. Don't be polite with us."

Before I could express my gratitude, Chloe's shrill voice rang out from the department entrance.

She did it on purpose, wanting the whole floor to hear.

"What are you all standing around for? Is all the work done? You think you're proud of delaying a project?"

"The company not holding you legally liable is already an act of mercy!"

Striding over in her heels, she slammed a brand-new copy of the "Project Management Guidelines" onto my desk.

"Take notes, Director Vance. Study the new rules carefully. From now on, every single project milestone must strictly follow this framework. As a penalty for your delay, the entire engineering team's quarterly performance bonuses are wiped out!"

"What?!"

"Wiped out?! On what grounds?!"

"We crushed our performance metrics!"

Chloe seemed thoroughly pleased with the reaction. She tilted her chin up.

"I hope you learn your lesson and deliver on time in the future..."

"Director Lee!" Mia interrupted, her voice cracking with tears. "How could you cancel everything? That's my rent for the next three months!"

"What about my car payment..."

"This isn't fair!"

Confronted with the furious crowd, Chloe didn't soften in the slightest. Instead, her lips curled into a sneer. "The company isn't running a charity! Missing a milestone means failure, and failure gets punished. That is the ultimate fairness!"

"If you want someone to blame, blame your manager for failing to deliver on time!"

With a single sentence, she directed everyone's rage straight at me.

I felt the complex weight of my team's stares on my back—helplessness, frustration, but mostly the cold despair of watching a fellow soldier fall.

Looking like someone who had just enjoyed a great show, Chloe turned and walked away.

She didn't just want to steal our hard-earned pay. She wanted to shatter our dignity and break our unity completely.

The office fell into a dead silence.

Mia's quiet sobs drifted through the air.

I looked at them—looked at those exhausted faces, worn out from endless late-night crunches, now left with nothing but numbness and despair.

That night, I returned to my cold, quiet apartment alone.

Payment reminder notifications from the hospital kept popping up on my phone.

A sharp, violent spasm hit my stomach.

With shaking hands, I dug out my antacids and swallowed them dry.

The bitter chalkiness caught in my throat, but it was nothing compared to the bitterness eating away at my heart.

I could walk away from the money.

But this disrespect, this trampled dignity, and the sacrifices we made—I was going to take it all back with my own hands!

Taking a deep breath, I pulled out my phone and scrolled through my contacts until I found a certain number.

The founder of a rival tech startup that had competed with us for years, constantly edged out by my projects.

A few months ago, she tried to poach me with a massive compensation package, but I declined.

Now, it was time to accept.