The board room again..

Singto was dressed in a pinstriped suit. A three piece ensemble consisting a crisp, grey coat and waist coat,  a white shirt and dark  grey tie. His hair gelled neatly. Not a strand out of place.

He sat at the polished rosewood round table in the boardroom, his elbows on the table top,fingertips laced together..leg on leg, slightly leaning back on his chair. As he glanced at every member around the table, no one would say he had cried his eyes out last night..

The intimidating aura of confidence emanating from him had many lowering their curious gazes to the floor as he looked them in the eye. Anyone seeing him now,like this ,would find it hard to believe that he was just 18 yrs old. He looked so mature.

Nat sat at the end of the table, having a satisfied smirk on his face. Not in the least intimidated by Singto's look or confidence..he was sure that when the boy heard the details of the task his entire demeanor would change..

The eldest member of the board stood up and cleared his throat, "Good evening everybody,  we are gathered here today for the most important task of evaluating the calibre and capabilities of one of our nominated future CEO's.. On behalf of the board I request Madam CEO to grant me permission to present the details of the task chosen and decided upon by all of us."he said bowing low..

Kanya nodded her head," Yes sir, you may proceed." She also signaled her secretary to take detailed notes of wat was being said.

"Task assigned to Singto Prachaya Ruangroj. Discussed and agreed upon by the members of the board unanimously.
Project flourspar ,
Location: khatgal, khövsgöl province, Mongolia.
Duration: 30 days.
Target: Appease the locals into agreeing to let us mine flourspar in the area.
Personnel allotted: 1 chief engineer,1 personal assistant, a chauffer, a cook, a handyman, a translator.
Resources allowed: cash of 50,000 dollars, phone,clothes, personal laptop and personal belongings,a car, a guest house to stay while there.
Note: * The candidate will not be allowed any kind of credit or debit cards in their possession.  Online transactions are also banned. In case of emergency u may contact the board for permission.
* Once candidate reaches the location, returning back will be acknowledged as failure to succeed.
*if any of ur personnel return no replacement will be sent..
*failure to complete the task leads to relinquishing ur rights to the company leadership..

He then passed on the official announcement to Kanya to read over again...

She had her doubts, but she checked it and passed it on to Singto. The final decision was his after all...

He looked it over, read and took a pen and signed it without blinking..

He heard a sharp intake of breath go around the gathering in the room. Had no one expected him to accept? A smirk formed its way to his lips as he saw the bewildered look on Nat's face...Strike one to me P'Nat..he thought to himself as he passed the agreement to Kanya with reassuring nod, she signed next as the primary witness..then the sheet went back to the senior most board member, who signed last and completed the official seal.

The completed agreement looked something like this.....👇🏻

The accounts dept.head was asked to handover the cash to Singto. Who received it,counted and signed the voucher in acknowledgement of receiving it. The personnel assigned to him were then introduced,

Engineer: P'Yong
P.A: P'Jane
Handyman: P'Cherry
Translator: P'Wave (Kanya had pushed her influence. )
Cook: Dae

Singto shook hands pleasantly with all of them and asked for their guidance and support politely..He also thanked them for coming with him in this strenuous journey..

He got the necessary research and data files of the project from the concerned project manager. His flight tickets and address of residence with the contact of his chauffer, who was a local of that area, was also given along with the file..

He then left the company with his Mom and P'Wave,to prepare for his journey... His flight was scheduled for tomorrow evening, he had to read all the documents and pack..

Singto's pov :

As I read the documents I came to realize that khatgal was indeed a small village of hardly 3000 people, but yet it had its own airstrip, which means it was quite prominent, and had visitors.

The task was quite simple, but the conditions in which I had to carry it out were quite challenging.. I  had signed without a thought to it as I was used to a frugal life. I didn't need much to live on and wat they gave me was more than enough. I guess the people who had led a luxurious life thought I would not be able to handle that aspect..They had foolishly placed the challenge in the riches than the task, making it easier for me..

The climate in Mongolia was extreme. It was a cold desert. But the place where we had to go had a lake nearby. It was also rich in this particular mineral - flourspar, which had a variety of uses from bio markers to a by product of highly radioactive uranium, which Russia was importing from other Mongolian providers.

Also another fact had been highlighted in the reports given. The town where we were going was a tourist spot and had no previous mining establishments. The presence of flourspar had been discovered recently, by a student from that place, who had interned in our company. He had spoken to some workers during his internship, about his discovery, which had led to the project being launched. So the land was still virgin to mining activities, which was why the people were protesting against it..

Going through all this, I formed a base plan in my head for the approach. But first I would have to talk to the boy who had interned at the company and the locals to understand their point of view. The company had already purchased the land to be mined. The locals had got the construction, for the mine, to be suspended by a court order, saying that the wildlife and nature in the area would be affected...

So many factors and I needed to organize my facts...I closed my eyes and took a deep breath, calming down..I then opened a fresh spreadsheet in my laptop and neatly categorized the details..by the time I had finished my ground work it was 10 p.m and I still had to pack..

I looked at my phone, thinking of P'Kit, it would be past midnight in Bangkok now..still I  typed in a text...

P' are you awake?

Pronto came a buzz, that I almost dropped my phone..a call through Skype..

"Hi P', how was ur day,?"

"My day was boring without u baby..but everytime I read ur message I smiled wide..."

"Aww P'Kit, stop..u're being too cheesy.."

"Am I really?ha ha..ok tell me wat  happened at the board meet.." he became serious again watching my face intently..

I cowered under the gaze..but smiled.."they're sending me to Mongolia P'" I said and launched into the details of the task assigned..I watched as his expression went from mildly worried to shock as I explained the set up of the place ,the issue we were facing and my resources allotted..

"Don't go Tuan.."he pleaded looking into my eyes..he knew I would go either way,yet he made the request..

"P' ...you know how it is..I can't back off now.."I said pleading with my puppy eyes..

"I know Tuan..I shouldn't have said that...but I can't help but worry for u thinking of  their conditions..wat if there really was an emergency?wat would u do?" He asked looking at me worried..at that minute he was the most precious thing in the world to me....

I smiled back at him.."I ll be fine P'Kit..stop worrying..and P'Wave is coming with me so I am not alone.."

"Ok...promise to call me every night.."he pouted cutely...

"I promise P'" I said with a huge grin...

After that he launched on a list of things to do and not to do,wat to take and etc..I listened diligently and promised I ll do all that he said..

"Tuan...u look hot with ur buttons open,exposing ur tan chest..I miss ur heartbeat, which I used to sleep to.."

"Me too P'...sorry I was working intently I didn't think of buttoning up fully..."

"Don't apologize..I am thoroughly enjoying the view.." he smirked...

" P'Kit...get ur mind out of the gutter..."I laughed..

"It's not the gutter if I am with u.."he winked..

"P' I don't know wat the signal and internet connections out there may be like..so I ll try to connect to u somehow if there s no coverage..don't worry ok?" I said getting serious again..

"I ll try baby..though it's hard not to worry cause it's u..I ll try.. " he sighed..

We spoke for some more time and then said goodnight ending the call.

Mongolia was a rough, dry, nomadic province. But the people were told to be a very intelligent race...I had to pack thermals, which Mae had said we would get tomorrow..I wondered if we would have time for shopping. I lay down and fell asleep as soon as my head touched the pillow..

Departure:

Singto sat at the waiting lounge of the airport with his team. They were all leaving together. He had his luggage with him, which was just one suitcase. P'Cherry was being teased by P'Yong for the two huge fluorescent colored suitcases he had come dragging behind him...

He could see P'Yong was a practical person, while P'Cherry was a funny and humorous type, yet very talented as a handyman.. His P.A P'Jane was a wonderfully efficient guy. His work spoke more than he did..and Dae who would be his cook was his age, working part time during his holidays for some extra cash..he still hadn't tasted his food,but P'Yong and P'Cherry were raving about the taste...so on the whole they had given him the best team...

He was satisfied for now. He ll deal with the rest as it comes..

He smiled to himself as he fingered the second letter in his shirt pocket..Arthit had written a poem today..it was heart touching and had made him cry again..

He missed him more with these letters but he was happy to have them...if he could, he would run back to him or would demand his presence..but cruel fate has given them both tasks to do..keeping them apart once again...

I ll be back soon P'...he had texted back to the elder...sending him a picture..

A huge sigh escaped his lips as he heard the announcement for their flight and stood...Mongolia here I come!!!

Danny's lair:

"Any news on the kid, from China?" Danny asked sipping his drink..

"Yes sir, he's going to Mongolia. The company set him a task of getting approval for their flourspar mine in khatgal..he s to complete the task in 30 days. "

"Details??" and the man launched into a narrative of all the task details.

"So our man is going with him...good..keep me updated daily on his activities and progress..I want all details.."

"Yes sir.."

********************************

So wat do u think...? Easy task?or hard?

Who do you think s Danny's spy in Singto's little group?

Leave ur lovely comments..I am always happy to read them..

❤...