Double standards 02 (Taiwan)

My secretarial training had taught me to pick up the telephone within a couple of rings, and to screen calls.

One day, a woman rang up for my boss.  I went through the usual routine:

Me:  (In English)  Hello, Dr Page’s office, can I help you?

Woman:  (In a haughty voice, in English) Is he there?

Me:  (In English)  May I know who’s calling, please?

Woman:  (In English) Rose Chang.

I’d never heard of a Rose Chang among my boss’s professional or personal contacts.

Me:  May I know from which company, please?

Woman:  (A slight pause — she seemed taken aback that she had to provide all these details.)  XYZ Company.

I’d never heard of an XYZ Company either among my boss’s professional or personal contacts.  It was a Chinese name.

Me:  (In English) Sorry, can you repeat that, please?

Woman:  (In English)  XYZ Company.

Me:  (In English)  Sorry, how do you spell that, please?

Woman:  (Brusquely, in Mandarin) 把我接过去，好不好！(Put me through, will you!)

I was only 21 and had never been trained to be assertive, so I just put her through, then sat there at my desk, shaking with indignation at her atrocious treatment of me.  

After the call, my boss came round and said, “Do you know who that was?  The president’s daughter-in-law!”  I said, “I don’t care if she’s the president herself.  She shouldn’t have been so rude.”  My boss said, “Yes, she did wonder about you and asked me where you’re from.  When I told her you’re from Singapore, she said, ‘Oh, I see.  No wonder her English is so good.’”  I said, “Is she saying she would’ve been more polite to me if she’d known I am not from Taiwan?  That’s an equally appalling attitude!”

(Taiwan, 1976)