Chapter 1

After seeing the sales rankings for November come out, I let out a quiet sigh of relief.

With that, I'd officially been the top salesperson for three consecutive years. By both tenure and performance, I'd already met the criteria in the employee incentive policy to claim the reward, which was a thousand-square-foot apartment.

Taking a deep breath, I quickly pulled out the performance confirmation reports and monthly sales rankings I'd meticulously organized earlier. With the November sales ranking sheet in hand as well, I walked briskly into the office of my direct superior, the branch manager, Saul Hurst.

The moment I stepped inside, my heart started pounding with excitement. I carefully placed the documents on his desk and said, "Mr. Hurst, I'm here to apply for the apartment reward. Here are all my performance reports and sales rankings for the past three years. Please review them."

I made sure to speak in a calm, steady voice, doing my best to keep my composure.

However, Mr. Hurst was busy flipping through a document, his eyes narrowed. Almost four minutes passed before he finally looked up at me.

After a nod, he lowered his head and continued flipping through even more documents, letting out the occasional sigh.

I stood there awkwardly, looking like a statue as I blocked the sunlight that streamed in from the window behind me.

Seeing him so engrossed in work, I clenched my sweaty palms and spoke up again.

"Mr. Hurst, I'm here to apply for the apartment reward. I've brought the necessary documents to support my claim."

My calm voice sank into the heavy atmosphere like a stone thrown into a lake. The intense silence swallowed it whole.

Mr. Hurst rubbed his forehead. Keeping his eyes fixed on the document in front of him, he finally snapped impatiently, "Who are you?"

"Jonah Carter, one of the salespeople, Mr. Hurst," I dutifully replied.

At that, Mr. Hurst finally set the document down. After putting on the gold-rimmed glasses he'd tossed onto the desk, he squinted and sized me up from head to toe.

"Jonah Carter, the top salesperson who has dominated the company's sales rankings for several years."

Frowning, he went through the documents I'd brought to him. With every page he flipped, his brow furrowed even more.

Finally, he put the documents to the side and picked up the coffee mug beside him. His gaze became cold and distant, unlike his usual approachable demeanor.

"This policy has been abolished," he declared.

Eyeing me mockingly, he sipped his coffee and smacked his lips before asking, "Didn't you hear me? In the latest employee handbook update, this reward policy has already been removed."

My ears were ringing. I gripped the edge of my pants tightly.

Biting my lip, I opened the employee handbook on my phone and calmly countered, "But the information on the internal network hasn't been updated to reflect this, nor is there any proof that the policy has been voided. I'm simply claiming the benefits I'm entitled to based on what's listed in the system."

Mr. Hurst didn't take me seriously at all. He set down the coffee mug and nonchalantly dismissed me.

"The company made the change last month. The internal system just hasn't been updated yet."

With that, he deftly shifted the responsibility for updating employee policies onto the company, absolving himself of all liability.

He even gave me a pitying look before reaching into the drawer. He pulled out a bonus slip and wrote out a 500-dollar bonus for me before addressing me with the tone of someone wiser and more experienced.