A Dish That Crumbled the Company

1
At the company dinner, everyone got to order a dish. When it was my turn, the new intern, Sienna, snatched the menu from my hand.
We have enough food. No more ordering.
I ignored her and turned to the waiter. I'd like an order of the sweet ricotta fritters.
Sienna slammed the menu onto my face, her eyes blazing with fury. "I said no more ordering. Who do you think you are?"
The hard edge of the menu left a stinging red line across my cheek. A fire ignited in my chest, mirroring the pain on my face. I snatched the menu and threw it right back at her. She shrieked.
"Do you have any idea who I am? My father is Brett Croft, the CEO of our biggest client! Even our own boss has to treat me with respect. How dare you lay a hand on me? Believe it or not, I can have your Sales Champion title revoked and get you blacklisted from the entire industry!"
I stared at her, my face a perfect meme of utter confusion.
My own uncle, Brett Croft, a confirmed bachelor for forty years... since when did he have a daughter this old?
Seeing my stunned silence, Sienna grew even more arrogant. "What, scared now? A gold digger like you who sleeps her way to the top... we're lucky the air isn't polluted just by you being here. And you think you have the right to order food?"
Sleeps her way to the top?
I worked my fingers to the bone, pulling all-nighters to perfect my proposals. I spent eight hours a day eating dust on construction sites, getting so tanned my own mother barely recognized me. And she had the audacity to say I got by on my looks?
I pushed my chair back and stood up to face her. "Watch your mouth, Sienna. I earn my results through hard work. My abilities are plain for everyone to see. You have no right to judge me. And this is a company dinner, not your private party. If I don't have the right to order, then you have even less. No wonder I smelled something foul when I walked in. It was the garbage spewing from your mouth!"
A ripple of stifled laughter went through the room. My colleagues had long been fed up with Sienna's arrogance. In the month she'd been an intern, she'd treated everyone like her personal servant.
When a new hire, Tina, refused to get her coffee, Sienna poured the entire scalding cup over Tina's head, leaving a blister on her scalp. Not only did she refuse to apologize, but she also threatened her. "You dare ask me for an apology? I'll have you fired!" In the end, the company had to cover Tina's medical bills.
I had wanted to intervene back then, but my colleagues held me back. I couldn't understand why they were all so afraid to speak up. Now I knew. They were all intimidated by her self-proclaimed title: "Brett Croft's daughter."
Sienna's face was crimson with rage. She pointed a trembling finger at me. "Nina! Don't get cocky. Without my dad's support, this company would go bankrupt. I'm telling you, I'm in charge at this dinner. If I say you can't order, you can't!" She spat, "Who the hell do you think you are? You order one more thing, and I'll make sure you're gone by tomorrow!"
The waiter looked at me, caught in the middle. "Ma'am, will you still be ordering?"
"Yes," I said without a moment's hesitation. I refused to back down. I had generated tens of millions in revenue for this company with a single project. I wasn't even allowed to order one dessert?
2
"What's all the commotion?"
The CEO, Mr. White, pushed the door open, his face a thundercloud. "This is a company dinner, not a wrestling match. What's going on?"
Sienna, seizing the opportunity, put on a pitiful expression and twisted the entire story. Before I could even get a word in, Mr. White's cold gaze landed on me.
"Nina, you've been with us for a year. Don't you know that frugality is a core company value? Sienna was just being considerate of the company's expenses. Will you starve if you miss one dish? And hitting someone is completely out of line. You will apologize to Sienna immediately and pay her ten thousand dollars for emotional distress. Then we'll consider this matter closed."
I almost laughed out loud. I looked him straight in the eye. "Mr. White, are you sure you want me to apologize and pay her?"
His expression darkened. Tina tugged at my sleeve, whispering, "Nina, don't be stubborn. Sienna is Brett Croft's daughter. You can't afford to cross her. Mr. White is counting on her to close the deal with Apex."
I couldn't help but scoff. "She says Brett Croft is her father, and you all just believe her? Did she bring her birth certificate to the interview?"
Tina pulled out her phone and showed me Sienna's social media profile. "It's true. Mr. Croft himself dropped her off on her first day."
I looked at the photo and my jaw nearly hit the floor. There was my handsome, well-dressed uncle, standing in front of a luxury car. And next to him, unbelievably, was Sienna.
Sienna had even added a caption: Thanks, Dad, for taking time out of your busy schedule to drop me off for my internship. I won't let you down.
I immediately tried to call my uncle, but the line went straight to a robotic "the user's phone is switched off" message.
Seeing my refusal to apologize, Sienna shot me a malevolent glare. "You'll regret this, Nina. I'll make you pay."
The next day, I found out what she meant by "pay."
At the awards ceremony, the Sales Champion title and the five-hundred-thousand-dollar bonus that should have been mine were awarded to Sienna. They hadn't even had time to change my name on the award speech slide in the presentation.
This was blatant robbery. A fire surged in my chest. I immediately stood up and demanded an explanation.
"What is the criterion for the Sales Champion award? My project sales this month exceeded one billion, generating over ten million in revenue for the company. I'm five million ahead of the runner-up. Sienna hasn't closed a single deal. I would like to ask the management, on what grounds are you giving my award to her?"
The conference hall fell silent. The heads of finance and sales exchanged nervous glances, neither daring to speak.
Sienna looked at me with an arrogant smirk. "Obviously, it's because your projects were secured through... dishonorable means. The company cannot condone such vile behavior. For now, we've only revoked your title. If you continue to damage the company's reputation with your sordid tactics, you'll be fired."
I was shaking with anger. My eyes swept across the faces of the management on the stage. The same people who used to praise my skills and call me a rising star were now avoiding my gaze, staring at their shoes like cowards.
I turned to the highest authority, Mr. White. "Mr. White, is this your decision as well?"
Being called out in public clearly irritated him. He frowned. "Nina, the company has its reasons. Don't disrupt the awards ceremony over such a small matter. You need to see the bigger picture."
"The bigger picture?" My eyes reddened, my voice trembling. "Is the bigger picture that I work year-round, working overtime late into the night, breaking my back to land projects, only to have them handed over to someone else?" That you'll erase all my hard work based on a baseless rumor and do nothing? Where is the fairness in that? Where is the justice? Don't you feel any guilt treating a dedicated employee this way?"
Mr. White was speechless. Sienna, however, showed no shame. She lifted her chin, a sneer on her face. "Fairness? Don't be so naive, Nina. In this world, fairness belongs to those with power. You want justice? Go find a rich daddy to get it for you. Too bad you don't have one." She made no effort to hide her contempt. "But I do. My identity as the daughter of Brett Croft, CEO of the Apex Group, is enough to crush you for the rest of your life."
I stared at her, wondering where she got her confidence. I even started to question if my uncle had secretly fathered an illegitimate child.
Suddenly, I spoke. "I heard Mr. Croft has a niece whom he adores as if she were his own. I wonder, Miss Sales Champion, have you ever met her?"
Sienna's expression froze for a second, then she shot me a dismissive glance. "That's my cousin. Of course, I've met her. But she's always been abroad and rarely comes back. Even I hardly see her. A low-life commoner like you could never even dream of meeting her."
I snorted. "Is that so? You're not a low-life, yet you're stealing someone else's award and bonus? Could it be that you're a fake?"
"You!" Sienna's face turned ashen. She glared at me. "Nina, don't push it! Your title was revoked because you're unworthy. I, on the other hand, earned it through my own merit!"
"Merit?" I took a step forward, my eyes boring into hers. "You mean the merit of slacking off and playing games all day at work, taking two-hour lunch breaks, and leaving at five on the dot? Or the merit of staring at a computer all day and only managing to type the word 'proposal' into a PowerPoint slide?"
My words were slow and deliberate, each one a sharp jab at her pride. Her mouth hung open, but no words came out. She looked to Mr. White for help.
His face flashed with disappointment before he turned to me, his voice stern. "Nina! Watch your tone! This is a company, not a marketplace. You will not make a scene!"
3
"Don't think that just because you've landed a few projects you can do whatever you want. It's survival of the fittest. You need to accept that you've been replaced by someone better. Stop being unreasonable!"
All eyes were on me, waiting to see me make a fool of myself, to watch me burn my bridges with the company over a five-hundred-thousand-dollar bonus.
Five hundred thousand? I wouldn't bat an eye at five million. What I wanted was fairness.
I wasn't angry. I didn't argue. I just smiled, a bitter, ironic smile. "Alright. I accept. The Sales Champion title should, indeed, go to someone more deserving."
As soon as I got back to my desk, HR sent out two announcements.
Employee Nina has been found to be misusing company funds for lavish personal expenses, a serious violation of company policy. Therefore, Nina is hereby stripped of her position as Sales Manager and suspended pending investigation.
Intern Sienna has demonstrated great courage in protecting the company's interests and has shown outstanding performance during her internship, generating significant revenue. She is hereby promoted to a full-time position, assuming the role of Sales Manager and taking over all of Nina's ongoing projects.
Immediately after, Mr. White tagged me in the company group chat.
Nina, your extravagance and disregard for company policy are unacceptable. Your bonus for this month is docked. You are to write a ten-thousand-word self-criticism and post it in this group for all other employees to learn from.
This was beyond humiliating. They stripped me of my title, docked my pay, made an example of me, and sacrificed me on the altar of their own authority.
The group chat fell silent. The entire office was plunged into a dead quiet. All eyes were on me, some filled with pity, some with regret, some with indignation, and some with undisguised glee. The message just sat there, everyone waiting for me to post my humiliating apology.
Mr. White tagged me again: Didn't you see this?
I still didn't reply. He started tagging me repeatedly, like a madman.
Tina sent me a private message: Nina, don't be stubborn. Just give in. Your job is what's important.
I smiled at her, and the smile brought tears to my eyes. My stiff fingers tapped on my phone, my hands trembling as I replied: Message received, sir. I will remember this lesson and will never again be so extravagant as to order a forty-dollar dish. At the next company dinner, I will only drink water.
My seemingly apologetic message was like a drop of water in a sizzling pan of oil. On the surface, it was calm, but underneath, it was a clear declaration of an employee's utter disappointment in their company.
I logged out of all my company accounts and began my "suspension" in earnest.
Mr. White, citing that I was no longer in a managerial role, moved me to a desk right next to the restrooms. I was forced to endure the pitying and contemptuous glances of my colleagues as they came and went.
Sienna sat smugly at my old desk, ordering the department around. But my seat wasn't so easy to fill. I had personally handled every single one of my projects, from design to execution. I knew every detail. Sienna knew nothing. Within a few days, a dozen clients had complained, demanding that I be put back on their projects or they would cancel their contracts. The company was facing massive penalty fees.
Mr. White finally couldn't take it anymore. He condescended to come to my new desk. "Nina, you were handling these projects. There are some technical issues now. Go and coordinate with the clients. We need to make sure they are satisfied."
I looked up, my expression blank. "Mr. White, I think you have the wrong person. I'm suspended."
He paused, his tone stiff. "You still have to work while you're suspended. It's company policy. You're responsible for your projects from start to finish."
I shrugged. "But I've already logged out of all my accounts. I can't access anything."
His face froze, his eyes filled with rage. "Suspension isn't termination! Why did you log out? Reapply for access immediately."
I looked at him calmly. "You were the one who said I was no longer in a position of authority. I was just following your orders."
Mr. White was losing face, but he gritted his teeth and tried again. "Alright. You're reinstated. Now get in touch with the clients and stop them from canceling."
I smiled. "Mr. White, shouldn't you be asking your 'more deserving' Sales Champion to handle this? A gold digger like me who gets by on her looks doesn't have that kind of ability."
His face turned a deep shade of purple as he struggled to control his anger. "Nina, that was just a joke between colleagues. Are you really taking it seriously?"
My smile remained, but it was laced with ice. "Was it also a joke when my title was revoked and I lost a five-hundred-thousand-dollar bonus? Was it a joke when a forty-dollar dish was deemed an act of 'lavish personal expense'?"
Each word was a slap in the face. His face went from red to white to a sickly shade of purple. He was silent. I knew he was wrestling with himself. Admitting he was wrong was not something a big boss like him did.
Just then, Sienna ran over, her face beaming. "Mr. White, Apex has agreed to invest!"
A triumphant smile spread across Mr. White's face. "Excellent! Sienna, you're the company's lucky star! With Apex backing us, those clients will be begging to work with us."
He turned and shot me a venomous glare. "Nina, you're fired. Go and pack your things now."
I nodded calmly. "Fine. I demand compensation as stipulated by my contract."
He roared, his face contorted with rage. "Compensation? You've caused the company huge losses! You'll be lucky if we don't sue you!"
Sienna looked at me with pure malice. "Nina, I'll have you blacklisted from the entire industry."
I just smiled faintly. "I'll be waiting."

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