The Torch on the Workstation

The lunch break bell rang like a pardon, and Liu Qiang immediately put down his keyboard. He rubbed his tired eyes and got up to go to the cafeteria. Just then, the department manager, Lao Wang, walked to his workstation, a mysterious smile plastered on his face.

"Xiao Liu, there's a glorious task that only you can handle!" Lao Wang patted Liu Qiang's shoulder, the force nearly knocking him off balance.

"Manager Wang, what task is it?" Liu Qiang was puzzled. There hadn't been any major projects at the company recently, so what glorious task could possibly fall to him, a junior employee who had just been officially hired?

Lao Wang cleared his throat and lowered his voice, "You know about the recent Asian Winter Games news? The torch has been successfully collected. Do you know what that means? It means that we must move with the times and integrate the spirit of the torch into our daily work!"

Liu Qiang was completely baffled. The spirit of the torch? Integrated into work? What kind of twisted logic was that?

"So," Lao Wang continued, "the company has decided that you will be responsible for our department's 'torch relay'."

Liu Qiang was utterly dumbfounded. He thought he had misheard, "Torch relay? We're not a stadium, what torch are we relaying?"

Lao Wang smiled mysteriously and pulled a thermos from under the desk. "This is our department's torch! Inside is freshly boiled water, representing our passion for work, representing our burning fighting spirit!"

Liu Qiang looked at the ordinary thermos, completely speechless.

"Starting today, the first thing you do every day is 'ignite' the 'torch' and then pass it on to every workstation in the department, so everyone can feel the enthusiasm of the torch, understand the meaning of work! Do you understand?" Lao Wang said earnestly.

What could Liu Qiang say? He could only bite the bullet and agree.

The next day, Liu Qiang took the thermos, filled it with hot water from the tea room, and began his "torch relay." He carefully placed the thermos on each colleague's desk. Everyone looked at each other, their eyes full of doubt and confusion.

"This is our department's torch, everyone, please feel it," Liu Qiang forced a stiff smile. He could feel the helplessness and mockery in his colleagues' eyes.

"Liu Qiang, the water is a bit cold," said Xiao Li, a colleague, touching the thermos.

"Oh, really? I'll go add some more," Liu Qiang quickly picked up the thermos and ran to the tea room to refill it with boiling hot water.

All morning, Liu Qiang kept refilling the water, delivering water, passing the "torch," and also had to deal with all sorts of questions from his colleagues, such as whether the "torch" was too hot, whether ice should be added, and so on. He felt like he was not at work but working as a nanny in a kindergarten.

By the afternoon, Liu Qiang had completely broken down. He decided to stop the meaningless "relay" and instead placed the "torch" on his own desk, letting it "burn" freely.

As it neared the end of the workday, Lao Wang walked over to Liu Qiang, a faint smile on his face. "Xiao Liu, your work efficiency has improved a lot recently. It seems that the 'spirit of the torch' really works!"

Liu Qiang looked at Lao Wang, his eyes filled with complex emotions. He didn't even want to argue, he just wanted to get off work as soon as possible.

"By the way, Xiao Liu, starting tomorrow, the 'torch' is upgraded!" Lao Wang said mysteriously, "The company considered that plain boiled water was too bland. Starting tomorrow, the 'torch' will be filled with coffee!"

Liu Qiang was completely despaired. He felt trapped in an absurd theater, where a farce called "torch relay" was being played out every day.

The bell for the end of the workday rang, and Liu Qiang picked up his bag, ready to leave.

Just as he was walking towards the door, he suddenly thought of something, and turned around abruptly, shouting at the office, "Manager Wang, I'll buy the coffee for tomorrow! And I want it with milk and sugar!"

Lao Wang was stunned. He didn't expect Liu Qiang to suddenly come up with that.

Liu Qiang laughed, a happy yet helpless laugh. He knew that this powerless resistance was just a trivial interlude in this absurd theater.

He walked out of the office, looking up at the sky, which was gloomy, as if foreshadowing an even more absurd day tomorrow. But a glimmer of hope rose in his heart. Perhaps tomorrow, the coffee will taste a bit better.

Because he realized that the "torch" didn't really "ignite" anyone, except himself, and the faint fire of resistance in his heart.