Fiction: Group 3
An Anecdote, My Countless Blessings
Immaculate Heart of Mary College, Ko, Wai Hong - 13, Fiction: Group 3
was alone on a frosty morning. The bitter wind was so chilly that I had to close the windows. Standing
by them, I eventually discovered how life could be so tranquil and peaceful. Some people were walking
on the street, enjoying their daily lives, feeling happy to do what they had to do. They chatted, they
giggled, they waved goodbye to each other. They were simply happy. Could I be so happy? I wanted to
remember how happy I was when I was young, trying to create my own successful story, trying to be
somebody, trying to attain fame for myself and...but it was all over.
It was 1995. I worked as a financial planner in an international company called Phoenix in Dongguan.
We, fresh graduates of universities, were trained to be top salesmen, men who had ambitions to work hard
and to obtain money from the customers by all means. As a freshman in 1995, I was passionate and
enthusiastic. I loved my job, and no one could stand in the way of my success.
The business world is not for innocent people. It is a cruel world. No mercy, no love. Only if you can
grasp power and money, then you can survive in this business world. I knew this very well, and
remembered this by heart.
A black suit and a nicely ironed shirt were my uniform. We were all the same, in black suits, as no one
was allowed to dress in other colours from day one when you went to work there till the last day. The
colour, black, actually might not be a suitable colour for me, however, we were only salespersons so we had
no right to change any policy. Our shoes had to be polished too. If we did not dress well to go to work, we
might receive a good lecture from the managers.
Day and night, I worked at least 14 hours at the office, swiftly running from one room to another in
order to get my work done.
On my desk, files were always stacked at precarious angles on top of each other, and those were my
clients’ files. My client might spend all their time earning money, forgetting many other good things in their
lives, and they wanted to use their money to generate more money. Unfortunately, some of them were too
aggressive and greedy. They lost every penny in the end.
This was my third year there, working as a financial planner. My office was located at the town centre,
which was indeed the new part of the city. It was not difficult for me to find many old and short brick
houses or even huts in Dongguan. They did not only look ancient to me, but I could also know more about
the history of China here. The broken brick walls, the sand, the unpaved paths at rural side carried the scars
of the wars or other events which took place in Dongguan before. Anyway, when I had free time, I liked to
visit the countryside, as I could be completely removed from the stir of the busy town centre.
The management board of our company was formed by a group of wealthy businessmen. One of these
directors was also a Hong Kong man. His name was Boris. He was a close friend of mine. One day, he asked
me to go to his home for his birthday party. I had known him for two years but that was the first time for
me to go to his house.
His house, of course, was much bigger than mine, or I should say it was a huge one. There was a big
garden and a swimming pool. He got quite a number of servants, helping him keep his house clean. I would
say his house was spotless, as I could hardly find any dust there.
The floor was waxed and shiny. When we had finished dinner, he talked to me seriously.
"I want you to..." while he was talking, he kept pouring wine into my glass.
"I don't drink wine," I said.
"This is very good wine from Europe, and it is very expensive. You should try it, my dear friend. I don't
let others taste it, only you."
"That's really my honour then." I did not drink too much as I was pleased to hear what he said, so I drank
the first glass of wine.
"Actually, you can help me to." he kept pouring his precious wine into my glass.
"I can't drink anymore, and that's pretty enough for me," I said.
"I am sure you can. How can a salesperson not drink wine? You have to get used to it," he said.
Boris kept pouring wine into my glass. Actually, after drinking a glass of wine, I felt a bit dizzy, and I
could not talk too much anymore. Boris was looking at me to see if I would drink the second glass of wine.
"I wanted you to sign this contract. After signing this contract, you will be a boss of one of my factories in
Jiangmen, and you can enjoy bonus every year without working so hard."
I
