Angela's anger grew with every word she uttered. She showed no shame about almost being harassed.Nora, on the other hand, seemed at a loss. "Don't you feel embarrassed? You...""Why should I be embarrassed? I'm the victim here. Is there something wrong with that?" Angela shot back. "Ms. Rutherford, shouldn't you be reflecting on your own actions?"Just as Angela finished speaking, a low voice from the corner sounded. "Exactly."The whispers around them began to grow louder."She once took me to a business meeting where I was forced to nearly drink myself to death.""Nora always takes the pretty employees to entertain men. I don't know what she's thinking.""She secured half of her deals by using female employees. She's not as clever as she thinks."The murmurs were coming from all directions now. Nora was suddenly the target of everyone's criticism.No one had expected this, not even Clara, who had been observing quietly. She was surprised by Angela's boldness, which seemed t
Nora's frustration reached its peak, and for the first time, she dared to challenge Callum's orders. As she began to speak, Callum's piercing gaze locked onto her. It was so cold and unforgiving that it silenced her in an instant.As soon as Callum left, Angela quickly followed him."Mr. Snowden," she called out.Callum turned back, his expression now as gentle as always. It reminded her of that moment on the podium, when his gaze had been just as warm and encouraging."Yes?" he asked with a smile. His gaze was akin to an older brother's as he watched his younger sister grow up."Mr. Snowden, I'm new here. I don't have the experience, and I'm not sure if I'm ready for this—" she faltered."You're more than capable," Callum interrupted. "Someone told me you're exceptional and that I should look after you. Your ability to win that award proves you're meant for more than just being an ordinary designer."With that, he turned and left, leaving Angela in a daze.She couldn't help bu
The pressure on Angela's shoulder vanished instantly. Dexter's face turned as dark as a storm cloud. After a long pause, he turned and walked out of the room. Only then did Angela breathe a sigh of relief.As soon as Dexter left the house, Erica got out of the car and respectfully handed him the phone."Mr. Bamford, Callum's calling."Dexter's face grew even darker at that. He took the phone without saying a word.Neither of them spoke, and the atmosphere grew increasingly tense.Finally, Callum broke the silence. "Mr. Bamford, our past issues don't need to involve an innocent woman."His voice wasn't loud but carried an inexplicable lazy tone that was somehow infuriating.Dexter let out a cold laugh. Angela was anything but innocent. "She's my wife.""I know," Callum replied calmly. "I'm not interested in her. I admire her talent. I can't stand to see it go to waste. If you truly care about her, you wouldn't be so petty and make a fool of yourself."Callum was known for his m
"If I leave, who else will stick around to help you?" Clara shot Angela a glare. "Stop talking and hurry up!"By the time they arrived at Division One, nearly half of the 50 employees were packing up their desks. Some others were just standing by, observing the situation.The ones who stayed put were mostly junior employees that Division Two hadn't bothered recruiting.As soon as Angela and Clara entered, Nora's eyes narrowed sharply."Well, isn't this our lucky Ms. Graham?" she sneered. "I was planning to work hard here in Division One, bring in more projects, and help everyone make money. Thanks to you, Ms. Graham, we'll all just have to survive on scraps now."Her words made it sound like they couldn't land projects because of Angela."Nora, stop talking nonsense. That incident was entirely your fault. Mr. Snowden was already generous enough to let you stay. You're being completely unreasonable!" Clara snapped.Angela was taken aback but felt a warm sense of gratitude. After
Clara was quick, and within minutes, she used shorthand software to record the names of over 20 people."Stephanie Jones, Kenny Hall, Irene Glover… Many of you graduated from prestigious art schools with advanced degrees and likely have experience in numerous competitions. "In addition to preparing for the contest, I'll need you to help boost morale and ease everyone's nerves," Angela said, assigning tasks based on the list Clara had provided and the team's résumés.Her pace was brisk, and in mere minutes, she had outlined what each person would be working on over the next two weeks.Nora was dumbfounded.This was way too fast. They hadn't even fully packed up to leave yet."Alright, get moving now! We're short on hands, so each of you is a vital asset. Let's make the most of our time. If we finish by 11:30 am, we can all go grab lunch," Angela announced, glancing at her watch and issuing another directive.The company cafeteria served excellent food that was better than most r
"Ms. Graham, we know we were wrong. We shouldn't have been swayed by others. From now on, we'll follow you honestly and won't stray again." George spoke up, willing to swallow his pride for the group."Everyone needs to submit a written reflection by the end of the day. That's all. You're dismissed," Angela replied coolly, then went back to her tasks.The others were left looking at each other in confusion.Callum happened to be in the executive office today.Angela paused outside the office to gather her thoughts. Just as she was about to knock, the door opened, and a familiar face appeared. It was Finn.Angela wondered why he was here."Angela, come in," Finn greeted her with a gentle smile. "Are you looking for my brother?"Angela was taken aback. She had thought Finn was an orphan.Noticing her confusion, Finn explained with a chuckle, "Callum sponsored me and raised me from a young age."With that, the realization dawned on Angela. Now she understood why Callum had mentio
The noise drew Angela's attention, and she looked around in confusion before noticing the source of the sound was coming from the third floor.Standing up, she saw a thug on the third-floor corridor holding a woman dressed in black hostage. The man waved a dagger wildly, forcing the crowd to retreat in fear.Angela thought the woman being held hostage looked somewhat familiar."What's wrong?" Callum glanced at the commotion and commented casually, "The food's getting cold."Angela turned her gaze back to the table and saw that Finn had filled her plate with her favourite chicken skewers.Suddenly, louder screams erupted from the third floor, as if someone was trying to put an end to the chaos. Angela suppressed her unease, but the rest of her meal felt tasteless.After the meal, Callum left, and Finn suggested they go to the mall. It had been a while since they'd gone out, and with the weekend coming up, they could take it easy the next day.Angela agreed. She needed to buy some
With the maids and outsiders around, Fiona didn't want to air any personal issues."Are you okay?" Angela asked stiffly."I'm fine." Dexter averted his gaze, his expression cold with a palpable air of rejection.If he was fine, that was all that mattered. Angela stood quietly, lost in her thoughts. She planned to leave once Fiona was gone.Her mind drifted to the upcoming design competition. She intended to carve out time tomorrow for a livestream to create a new painting. Her growing fan base held potential, and she was considering expanding into product promotions to boost her career.Right now, every bit of progress counted if she wanted to reclaim what was rightfully hers.In the past, she would have been frantic with worry over Dexter. However, things were different now, and so was she."What are you standing there for? Didn't you hear me calling you?" Fiona scolded as she shot Angela a glare.Startled, Angela turned and saw Fiona holding a bag. She was still on a video ca
Angela gave a nod. "Grandpa, I won't meddle unnecessarily."She had no habit of meddling in matters that didn't concern her, but she would step in when it came to the people she cared about.She stayed at Bamford Manor for two days, taking turns with Dexter to look after Joseph. On the third day, she finally got in touch with Mia.Mia sounded weak over the phone, as if she had also caught the flu. Her frail voice made Angela's heart ache.After discussing it with Dexter, Angela made up her mind to visit Mia in person.It had only been a short while since they had last met, but Mia's belly had grown considerably. Moving around had become a challenge for her."What happened to you? How did you end up like this?" Angela was startled the moment she walked in and saw Mia curled up on the couch, looking pale.As far as Angela could remember, Mia had always been a fashionable and strikingly beautiful woman. It was clear how gorgeous she was just from how obsessed Zayn had always been w
"What the…" Zack was stunned for a moment. "Dexter, can you teleport? This morning, you said you were still in a meeting."Dexter raised an arrogant eyebrow. "What's so difficult about teleporting?" He walked straight to the couch Angela was on and waved a hand in front of her. "Are you alright? You look pale."Angela still looked weak and lifeless as she sat there. Suddenly, something crossed her mind, and she got up abruptly, only to nearly collapse due to weakness in her legs.Luckily, she managed to grab the couch's backrest just in time."What's wrong? Why are you so worked up?" Dexter frowned."This flu is spreading fast. There's a high chance people in our company are already infected, but we desperately need manpower right now. I need to find a solution…""Just sit for now." Exasperated, Dexter pushed her back onto the couch. "I'll have someone find out."He sounded completely natural, as if there was no distance between them.Angela, however, felt uneasy about this. "N
Fortunately, as the first batch of deceived customers received their compensation from Celestia Jewels, public interest surged, and the company's credibility slowly began to recover.For the past two days, Angela and Maverick had been working in perfect coordination—Maverick focused on handling the crisis, while Angela worked tirelessly to recruit new talent.The company lacked professionals in many areas, especially management. Although the two of them were doing their best to keep everything afloat, there was simply no way they could handle every little thing on their own.Angela decided to bring Clara over, hoping she could temporarily transfer some staff from the headquarters to Celestia Jewels until new employees were hired.Although Clara agreed, most employees were reluctant to go when they heard that the assignment required a long-term stay in Yedren. Even the promise of double the pay and better benefits couldn't tempt them away from home.When Angela didn't get a reply f
"I'm Maverick Newton, the person in charge of Celestia Jewels," he said, handing over his business card.Naomi frowned, accepting the business card with skepticism. But after a glance, she realized he was legitimate. Then, she took out the gold bracelet she had bought, along with the official testing report, and threw them in front of Maverick. "See for yourself."Maverick examined them seriously and confirmed that they were truly fake.At that moment, Angela spoke up. "Ms. Naomi, I want to express my heartfelt apologies. On behalf of our company, I extend a formal apology to you. We'd like to provide you with compensation. Please take a moment to review it."After that, she retrieved three plain gold bangles of equal weight from her bag and offered them with both hands."And you... Who are you to represent Celestia Jewels?" Naomi asked, staring at Angela in disbelief."She's Ms. Angela Graham, the CEO of Graham Group," Maverick remarked gently. Naomi was dumbfounded, and she
Everyone was well aware that Celestia Jewels was merely hanging by a thread. All it would take was one final blow, and it would collapse.Maverick's gaze was icy. "As long as I'm here, the company will never fall."The news of Maverick becoming Celestia Jewels' new general manager sent shockwaves throughout the company. No one knew the reason behind it. He was just a low-level accountant, yet he had suddenly risen to become the company's leader. All they knew was that Maverick was resolute. As soon as he took charge, he dismissed many of the top executives in Celestia Jewels. Fear spread like wildfire. For a time, everyone became cautious, no longer daring to act recklessly.Just two days later, Angela unexpectedly arrived at the company, leaving employees stunned, especially those who had begun to question Maverick's leadership. Together, Angela and Maverick took clear actions to show their commitment to a fresh start, assuring everyone that Celestia Jewels was leaving its co
Maverick felt complicated. After a moment of silence, he let out a bitter laugh. "I was forced to resign by Bryan and his lackeys. Can I really go back?"The thought alone filled him with anger. He had dedicated years of hard work to the company, yet he had been sidelined and suppressed, reduced to a mere outcast. In the end, Bryan had even demoted him to the finance department, where he had been left to be humiliated. "Have faith. I believe in you," Angela replied coldly. The next morning, Maverick returned to Celestia Jewels. The moment he stepped into the meeting room, the deputy general manager, Taylor Monroe, let out a cold sneer. He was Bryan's right-hand man and Maverick's former rival."Maverick, your resignation has already been approved. Didn't HR inform you? You don't need to come back anymore. You already took your belongings when you left. So why are you here?" Taylor stood up from the main seat, smirking at Maverick.The two had once been evenly matched rivals,
Freya tactfully hid behind Angela and Zack, trying to minimize her presence as much as possible.Angela glanced at him, feeling that his thin face exuded a sense of righteousness. She couldn't help but develop a favorable impression of him. "Are you Maverick Newton?"Maverick frowned, staring intently at Angela, whose expression was layered with complexity. He said firmly, "Who are you then? No matter who you are, leave my house now.""He doesn't even recognize the CEO. What good can he be?" Zack thought, casting a doubtful glance at Maverick before shifting his gaze to Freya. Freya felt even more awkward and murmured, "Mr. Newton, this is Ms. Angela Graham, the CEO of Graham Group. You must have seen her picture online, right?" Maverick was nonchalant. "So what? I've already submitted my resignation. I'm no longer a part of Graham Group, and I have nothing to do with it. Stop bothering me." He seemed quite irritated."Mr. Newton, Bryan has already been dealt with by Ms. G
Freya hurried after Angela, her voice shaky as she called out, "Ms. Graham, Ms. Graham... I've transferred the money back to you. Please, take it. I was wrong." Her face went pale. She regretted her actions and wished she could turn back time."You were a talented designer recruited by HR with a substantial salary. How is it that you've lost sight of your original goals and allowed yourself to become a puppet for that fool, Bryan?" Angela sneered.Freya's eyes turned red. "Ms. Graham, we have our own struggles as well. Bryan is merciless, far from human. He always targets vulnerable women like us. Anyone who dares to defy him will be..."Halfway through her words, Freya broke down in tears. Angela sighed and grabbed a tissue from her bag for Freya to dry her face. Her expression softened. "Don't cry. I'm not mad at you."In the workplace, women indeed endured greater pressure than men, and this was something Angela had long been accustomed to seeing. While Freya and the othe
The spacious private room buzzed with palpable tension. Joel appeared to relish the unfolding drama as he casually sipped his coffee, sporting a subtle smile. Bryan stood frozen, his gaze locked on Angela in disbelief. The more he stared, the deeper his fear grew. She resembled their legendary new CEO, Angela, but it didn't make sense. Angela had only recently taken control of the company, and there were so many pressing matters demanding her attention. It was hard to believe she could possibly be here.Bryan's forehead glistened with sweat, and he suddenly turned to glare at Freya. Sensing the tension, Freya quickly interjected, "Angie, what's going on? Are you out of your mind? Why are you talking nonsense?" "My sister is not the one losing her mind. You're the crazy one. You're shameless and lack integrity. This company belongs to the Graham family, yet you think you're in control? I suggest you take a moment to reflect on your disgraceful behavior!" Zack quickly repri