Chapter 4

I paused, watching his face grow even darker. "Mr. Flores, which standard are we supposed to follow? As long as it's clear, I'm willing to lead by example."

"You!" Jaxson slammed his hand on the table, shot to his feet, and jabbed a finger at me. "Do you have any sense of team honor left? Are you trying to negotiate with me?"

"No," I said, shaking my head, each word ringing out. "I care about the Labor Law and our factory rules. Rule number one: strict adherence to labor discipline.

"If being late means heavy penalties, then overtime should be compensated. This isn't negotiating; it's about sticking to the rules. Isn't following the rules your favorite thing?"

"You... you..." Jaxson sputtered.

He was literally shaking with rage, his finger trembling as he pointed at me, but not a single word came out.

Every word I said was unassailable, completely backed by the law.

The very 'rules' he'd used to keep me down had now become my weapon to strike back.

The whole conference room was so quiet you could hear a pin drop.

Everyone was floored by how I went head-to-head with him.

Ethan, under the table, shot me a sneaky thumbs-up.

The meeting broke up in a mess, no surprise there.

All eyes were on me. Some called me crazy, some said I was an idiot, but there were folks who secretly respected how bold I was.

I didn't care.

That night, the core drive shaft on the production line started to develop severe periodic vibrations.

This was a warning sign of a serious malfunction. If the drive shaft broke, the entire production line could be ruined.

Roger, always eager to prove himself, brought along a few of his newly recruited loyalists and vowed to handle the repairs himself.

At eleven that night, I got a call from Ethan. His voice was trembling, almost on the verge of tears.

He said, "Bailey, it's bad! Roger and his guys... not only did they fail to find the problem, they accidentally deleted the A-7 motion compensation program!"

I stood on the balcony, clutching my phone as the night wind played with my hair.

I just murmured a quiet "mm."

"Bailey, you have to come! If you don't, the production line is really done for!" Ethan was practically begging.

"It's after hours," I replied, my voice colder than ice.

There was a long silence on the other end, then a heavy sigh.

The next morning, I'd barely stepped into my office when the door was kicked open with a bang.

Jaxson stormed in like an enraged bull, his eyes blazing and veins popping.

"Bailey!" he roared.

He got right in my face and slammed both hands down on my desk so hard my water cup nearly bounced off.

"What kind of attitude is this? The production line blew up last night, and you didn't bother to show! Are you taking revenge on me? Is that it?"

He was yelling so hard, spittle nearly hit my face.

I leaned back in my chair, watching him completely lose his cool, and suddenly laughed.

It was a genuine laugh, with a trace of sarcasm and pity.

I met his gaze, completely calm.

"Mr. Flores, just one question. Do I still get my year-end bonus?"

He was stunned, totally lost, and not catching on to what I was getting at.

I kept that smile on my face, making sure every word hit home.

I said, "So, I don't, do I?

"Then why would I bother working overtime?"

Jaxson's face went from a furious purple to deathly pale, then darkened into an ugly, mottled red.

He looked like a duck being strangled, mouth open, but not a single sound coming out.

The little cactus on my desk was so green that it almost hurt to look at.

He glared at me, his chest heaving like he was about to have a heart attack.

Finally, he spat out through clenched teeth, "Fine! Bailey, you've got guts!"

With that, he stormed out, slamming the door so hard the ceiling dust rained down.

I watched his sorry back as he left, the smile on my lips growing even colder.

A guy that pissed and embarrassed? He was definitely going to do something even dumber next.

Sure enough, the very next day, he dumped an impossible mission on me.

He wanted me to whip up a full-blown "Production Line Optimization Report", covering every machine, every process, all in just one day.

He dressed it up as letting the core tech guy step up and shine.

But really, he was just trying to force me into working overtime, or set me up so he could slap a "slacker" label on me.

I took the task without a word.

And at five sharp, I clocked out and walked out the door.

The next morning, I placed a two-page report squarely on Jaxson's desk.

The title? "Analysis of the Root Causes Behind the Production Line's Sluggish Efficiency."

The whole thing was barebones, straight to the point.

Core Issue: Chronic lack of maintenance has caused the key equipment to deteriorate.

Direct Cause: Repeated mishandling by unqualified staff lately has messed up the stability of the core system.

Recommendation: Immediately stop letting unqualified people anywhere near the core equipment, and make sure every operator gets re-certified before touching anything important.

Every single line hit like a smack right across the face and aimed straight at Jaxson and his golden boy Roger.