Chinese?” he quickly asked.
“As a matter of fact, it is.” Mr. McGregor answered, slightly impressed.
“What does it say?” Janice asked.
“Two words.” Mr. McGregor said as he handed the card back to her. “Hong Kong.”
“Did I win a vacation to Hong Kong?” she asked.
“Not quite.” Her boss answered. “You’re being transferred to our Asian headquarters over there. Your new job starts next week.”
“Is it a promotion?” Janice asked.
”It’s the same job you have right now, with the exact same salary.” Mr. McGregor answered. “It just happens to be in Hong Kong.”
“I don’t want to live in Hong Kong.” Janice answered.
“Too bad.” Mr. McGregor answered. “I suggest you head home and start packing. You will be leaving for China in four days.”
Janice was on the verge of tears but the alternative was to join Vance with the ranks of the unemployed. “Yes, Mr. McGregor.”
Darren watched as Janice left the office, visibly upset but with no choice. He paused for a moment and then stood up. “I guess it’s my turn.”
“It sure is, sport.” Mr. McGregor replied. “There are two boxes left. Would you like a moment to think about it?”
“That won’t be necessary.” Darren answered.
”Really?” Mr. McGregor replied.
“Yes.” Darren confirmed.
“Your choice?” the CEO asked.
Darren smiled. “I’ll take box number one.” He gestured over to the fellow who was holding box number one. “Pass it over.”
The man walked over and handed him the box. Darren never hesitated and opened it. He pulled out the envelope and opened it and then handed the card over to his boss. Mr. McGregor looked at the card and smiled when he read it. The card contained only a single word: Winner.
“I win.” Darren said with a cocky smile on his face.
“Well done!” Mr. McGregor said as he held out his hand.
“Thank you for this opportunity, Sir.” Darren said as he shook it.
“You figured it out, didn’t you?” McGregor inquired.
“I believe so.” Darren said as he sat back down. “The boxes are organized by value, aren’t they?”
“That is correct.” Mr. McGreggor acknowledged.
“So if someone had volunteered to go first, they were increasing their chances of losing since there was a pattern to where everything was.”
“Exactly.” his boss said, impressed to no end.
The promotion we all wanted was in the first box, because it’s the one thing we all wanted. The second chance was in box number two because a second crack at the job was more important than a two week vacation. The vacation was in box number three because it’s just a short trip and we get to come home afterwards, which is why a transfer to Hong Kong is ranked lower. I can only assume that both box five and six are both the same, that being dismissal of the unfortunate saps that happened to select them.”
“Brilliant.” Mr. McGregor said as he clapped. “As you can see, you are the right person for this job. Congratulations!”
“May I ask a question, Mr. McGregor?” Darren then asked.
“Sure, anything.” His boss replied.
“Who would have gotten the job if I picked box #6?” Darren asked. He was curious to who would have gotten the promotion if no one had selected the right box.
“If no one picked the right box.” Mr. McGregor started. “We would have picked five more people and tried again.”
“So what now?” Darren asked.
“Now we go out for lunch!” McGregor answered. “Do you like Sushi?”
“Love it.” Darren lied.
“Fantastic!” Mr. McGregor said as he put an arm around Darren’s shoulders. “We’re going to eat, drink and talk about your new position as the head of our new division!”
“I don’t mean to offend you.” Darren said, “But would you be upset if I hired Vance to be a part of my new division?”
“Of course not.” Mr. McGregor answered. “I hear the kid’s got a killer reference.”
Thank you for reading books on BookFrom.Net Share this book with friends