Dawn of Life

Lin Yue pulled Xiao Yu, who was walking behind her, to the front: "You didn't go home last night, and our son said he missed you, so I brought him here."

Afterwards, Lin Yue wanted to create some more opportunities for them to spend time together, hoping that Gao Ming would also waver in his decision to divorce, just like she had, because of their child. So she tentatively told Gao Ming that Xiao Yu wanted to eat at Pizza Hut and hoped that his parents would go with him.

Unexpectedly, he flatly rejected her, even making up an excuse that he needed to go buy supplies that afternoon. Lin Yue knew, of course, that he had been buying supplies online for years, and this was clearly a way of getting rid of them.

Gao Ming's cold and resolute attitude extinguished Lin Yue's last glimmer of hope. She felt the pain in her heart, but had to pretend to understand and said, "What a coincidence. Why don't you play with your son for a while?"

Then he turned to Xiaoyu and said, "Didn't you say you wanted Dad to play basketball with you? Now take Dad to play together."

Upon hearing this, Xiaoyu happily pulled Gaoming out of the store.

Lin Yue then sat down at Gao Ming's computer and began searching. QQ and WeChat were both offline. Lin Yue tried opening several folders but found nothing unusual. There was a point-of-sale (POS) software on the desktop, but it required a password to log in—clearly, this was intentional on Gao Ming's part. Perhaps he had shut it down when she entered the room. He probably didn't want her to see some of the accounts, because with the software closed during business hours, customers couldn't make purchases.

Lin Yue didn't leave her spot; she was waiting for an opportunity. Soon, the notification sound of a food delivery order rang out. She called out to the person outside, "You have an order? What's your POS software password? I'll help you process it."

Gao Ming strode over: "No need, I can do it myself." He then opened the software and entered the password. Lin Yue stood beside him, watching intently. The password was a bit long, but she could try it later, she thought.

Gao Ming quickly finished processing the order and pressed a key on the keyboard to lock the computer. This obvious action showed he wasn't even willing to pretend anymore.

Lin Yue finally turned her gaze to the stock clerk in the corner of the store and went over to chat with her. The young woman told her that she hadn't been there long, and that another stock clerk, Xiao Ma, had recently gone home for a while due to family matters. Xiao Ma was a reliable person and had been working there for almost two years, making him the longest-serving person Lin Yue had ever seen at the store.

Lin Yue took out the earrings she had prepared in advance from her bag and gave them to the little girl, then added her on WeChat. Seeing the girl's happy thanks, she thought to herself that the girl was a simple person who couldn't control her emotions at all.

After completing these tasks, she took Xiaoyu home. Lin Yue thought that this trip to the store had laid their feelings bare. She knew that Gao Ming had always been a calculating person, and he must have made thorough preparations before bringing up the divorce. Moreover, once he brought it up, there was no turning back.

Over the next few days, Lin Yue searched for Gao Ming on various social media apps, but as expected, she found nothing.

She then turned her attention to Xiao Ma and another sales clerk in the store, but found nothing. Xiao Ma's social media accounts were very simple, and the other girl seemed to have just started working at the store; her Douyin and WeChat Moments posts were mostly about her former friends and life.

Lin Yue could only investigate Gao Ming at night, because there was no time during the day.

Shortly after the last meeting, Qin Lan resigned. Shengxing publicly stated that Qin Lan had not created value for the company during her eight years of service, and based on the competency model, she was deemed completely unfit for the role of HRD, hence her dismissal.

For a moment, even the company's senior executives and veterans began to panic. The usually mild-mannered Shengxing suddenly became ruthless and decisive, clearly making an example of someone. Of course, another version was also circulating in the company: Shengxing completely lacked human resources expertise, and after the restructuring, Qin Lan felt there was no room for him to maneuver and didn't want to continue working there.

Qin Lan is 43 years old this year. After graduating from university, she joined a leading internet company through campus recruitment, starting as a management trainee and becoming a department manager at the age of 35. However, in large companies, every position is limited, making further promotion difficult. So, she joined Dasheng Company through a headhunter. She has always been very ambitious in her career and, to avoid affecting her work, has not had children until now. She never expected it to end this way.

From the moment Shengxing began to forcefully intervene in the team's work, Qin Lan had a premonition that her departure was not far off. It wasn't that she hadn't tried to fight for herself, but she soon realized that Shengxing's focus wasn't on the matter itself; he was wary of Qin Lan's long-standing relationship with Liu Zheng, and Qin Lan was not someone he could easily control or trust.

On an ordinary afternoon, Sheng Xing met with Qin Lan. He began by politely thanking her for her contributions over the years, and then began listing the company's existing problems, pointing out the responsibilities Qin Lan, as the head of human resources, should bear. Qin Lan listened quietly, knowing that Sheng Xing was finding excuses for his decisions and trying to shift the blame onto her.

How could she not understand Shengxing's ulterior motives? He simply wanted to find a scapegoat to pave the way for his upcoming personnel adjustments. But she didn't want to remain silent. Shengxing would definitely claim that all the problems were her responsibility, and if she didn't refute him, he would become even more unscrupulous. So, Qin Lan recounted in detail the problems caused by the two bosses' differing business philosophies and their struggle for management power, which led to internal strife within the team.

This reasoned and well-founded statement made Sheng Xing's face extremely ugly, and he lost face. Having no other choice, he had to change the subject to the team members' dissatisfaction with Qin Lan, feigning difficulty as he said, "I originally intended to protect you, but there are too many complaints, and I can't do anything about it."

Qin Lan said calmly but firmly, "President Sheng, I understand your decision. But I want you to know the effort I've put into the company's development over the past few years. I hope your future decisions will take the company's interests into full consideration, and I wish the company even greater success. Also, at my age and level, I expect more than just a job; I want a platform to support my career development. The company can no longer meet that need."

Since leaving is an unchangeable fact, one should protect one's reputation and leave gracefully.

Sheng Xing paused for a few seconds, then sighed and said, "The main problem is the sluggish market. Entrepreneurs have it tough too, so this is better for everyone."

Qin Lan stood up, turned, and left the office. At that moment, she thought to herself, "I will come back someday."

On the day Qin Lan left, she had a long talk with Lin Yue alone. She had always felt that Lin Yue was a very perceptive girl, with a strong sense of purpose and emotional stability, especially that ruthlessness that was very similar to her own back then. But now she had mixed feelings about Lin Yue. After she left, Lin Yue had more opportunities to gain experience at Dasheng, which was a good thing, but she was also worried that Lin Yue might become a dagger to Shengxing in the future, which might disrupt her future plans, and even one day might hurt Lin Yue herself.

After careful consideration, Qin Lan reminded Lin Yue, "Considering the costs, President Sheng might disband the entire HRBP team. If that day ever comes and you encounter any difficulties, feel free to contact me. I've always respected you."

Lin Yue had never seen Qin Lan look so forlorn. Naturally, she was moved, and couldn't help but recall the year after her marriage to Gao Ming eight years ago, when she couldn't bear the pressure from her family to have a child. She became pregnant with her son at the peak of her career. When she returned to the company after maternity leave, she was effectively sidelined.

While her son was still breastfeeding, Lin Yue had no choice but to start sending out resumes online to find a job. Interviewers were reluctant to hire her once they heard her son was so young. Then she met Qin Lan. At that time, Qin Lan had also recently arrived at Dasheng and, impressed by Lin Yue's integrity and resilience, made an exception and hired her. Therefore, for Lin Yue, Qin Lan was not only her boss, but also someone she held a special place in her heart.

Lin Yue has been working at Dasheng for seven years, and her family is currently facing a major crisis. Right now, she has to keep her job no matter what.

After Qin Lan left, the HRD position became vacant. All the department managers in the Human Resources Department reported to Shengxing, and it was highly likely that one of the remaining department managers would be chosen to fill the HRD position. At this point, undercurrents began to stir within the department.

During the day, Lin Yue had to be on her guard, only having time to investigate Gao Ming at night. Rationally, she wanted to find evidence that would help her get a divorce, but emotionally, she was afraid of finding something she couldn't accept. It wasn't about feelings, but about the pride and beliefs of a middle-aged woman. This constant inner turmoil and internal conflict caused her to sleep poorly, suffer from stomach aches, and her nausea worsened. One weekend, she left her son at a neighbor's house and went to the hospital.

She planned to get her stomach checked out and also get some sleeping pills.