Chapter 461: Chapter 461: Someone with Connections
Downstairs at Radiance.
Estelle Lockwood watched Claire Yeats go upstairs, then turned and left the building.
Behind her, a few employees rolled their eyes.
"I can’t believe Mrs. Sloan just left like that..."
"What else could she do? Even if she’s Mrs. Sloan, she can’t be completely unreasonable. Just because our new boss is her sister, she thinks she can just snatch it away on a whim?"
"She probably felt too humiliated to stay. Otherwise, being as shameless as she is, why would she leave?"
"This is Mrs. Sloan’s first time here, and we’re not familiar with her. Why do you have such a big problem with her?" a colleague asked.
The employee who had pocketed Claire’s cash gift stiffened, quickly fabricating an excuse.
"Well, even Old Mrs. Yeats doesn’t accept her. Why do you think that is? It must be because she’s no good. If someone like her became our boss, would we even survive? But Miss Yeats is different."
"True enough..."
Upstairs.
President Kerr was in the middle of a meeting when his phone suddenly rang, drawing the attention of the entire conference room.
President Kerr glanced down. He had set a custom ringtone for only one person, and sure enough, the message was from Nathaniel Sloan.
Seeing the text message, President Kerr let out a cold scoff. He thought, "What nerve. Mr. Sloan has spent seven years preparing this gift for his wife, and someone actually thinks they can snatch it away? How much have they had to drink to be daydreaming in broad daylight?"
The meeting was for an international collaboration. Now that the overseas portion had concluded, everyone left in the room was on their side.
These individuals had been handpicked by Nathaniel and were considered his trusted confidants. Having been personally promoted by him, they naturally knew who the true owner of Radiance was, as well as who the boss would be after today.
Seeing President Kerr’s dark expression, a woman in her thirties asked, "What’s wrong?"
President Kerr sneered. "A message from Mr. Sloan. It seems someone is trying to impersonate our new boss."
The woman’s name was Faye Foster. As President Kerr’s right-hand woman, she handled many of the entertainment company’s external affairs. She was decisive and never dragged her feet.
She knew Nathaniel’s original intention in founding Radiance. Since the company itself was a "gift," the most important element was the person receiving it.
It could be said that they had known for seven years that their future boss would be Nathaniel’s wife. Therefore, upon learning that the company was changing hands, no one had any objections. Instead, they were full of anticipation.
They were scheduled to meet the new boss in half an hour, but they hadn’t expected her to arrive early.
Faye turned to head downstairs. "I’ll go welcome the boss and bring her up. While I’m at it, I’ll see who has the audacity to pull such a stunt."
"The imposter is the new boss’s sister," President Kerr said, putting his phone away. "Mr. Sloan says there’s no need to panic. Let’s continue the meeting."
At President Kerr’s command, the attendees—who were all elites of the company—fully immersed themselves back into the discussion.
By the time the meeting finally wrapped up, twenty minutes had passed.
Faye prepared to stand. "President Kerr, we shouldn’t keep the boss waiting—"
KNOCK KNOCK.
A secretary’s sweet voice drifted in. "President Kerr, the front desk downstairs reported that someone was impersonating the new boss. Ms. Sawyer has already kicked her out."
Faye paused in her tracks, turning back to raise an eyebrow at President Kerr.
Hearing Ms. Sawyer’s name, President Kerr let out a cold laugh and turned his gaze toward a shareholder who was suddenly looking rather pale.
This shareholder, President Sawyer, was technically one of Mr. Sloan’s people, though he couldn’t be called entirely loyal. He only kept the secret that Nathaniel was the true owner of Radiance because he knew there was profit to be made by following him.
However, the man’s capabilities were genuinely impressive; otherwise, he wouldn’t hold such a core position at Radiance.
And this Ms. Sawyer from downstairs was his niece.
President Kerr figured this was the perfect opportunity to knock him down a peg.
President Kerr had someone open the conference room doors and feigned curiosity as he asked the secretary, "Someone was impersonating the boss? Who was it? Who has that kind of nerve?"
The secretary had long been kissing up to Ms. Sawyer. She knew the manager was President Sawyer’s niece and figured that once he retired, his position would likely fall to her.
"President Kerr, you have no idea. The imposter actually has quite an unusual background. She’s the wife of the man at the helm of Evernight International! To think she already has such a high status but still tries to steal her sister’s company. How shameless."
President Kerr’s expression grew icy, though he hid it well, maintaining his relaxed demeanor.
"Is that so? And how do you know Mrs. Sloan isn’t the company’s new boss?" President Kerr asked, feigning curiosity. "After all, with a status like hers, owning a new company doesn’t seem like it would be an issue."
The secretary answered as if it were a given, "Ms. Sawyer said she isn’t."
In an instant, everyone cast subtle glances at President Sawyer.
President Sawyer broke into a cold sweat, cursing his niece a hundred times over in his head.
President Kerr set down his teacup, his tone tranquil. "Oh? And how did Ms. Sawyer come by this information?"
The secretary chuckled and said, "Because our new boss has already arrived, of course! President Kerr, please don’t tease me. Isn’t our new boss Miss Claire Yeats? Miss Yeats and our current boss have been friends for a long time.
"Seven years ago was the day they met, which is why the boss is gifting her Radiance. You could even say Radiance was founded entirely for Miss Yeats. It’s so touching! How could Miss Lockwood just inexplicably snatch it away?"
President Kerr’s face suddenly darkened.
The secretary abruptly realized something was wrong, and her voice trailed off.
She wondered, "Did I... did I say something wrong?"
"So it turns out that as long as our employees kiss up to Ms. Sawyer, they don’t need to distinguish right from wrong, nor do they need to actually work. Tell me, President Sawyer, don’t you find that amusing?" President Kerr chuckled.
President Sawyer immediately turned his wrath on the secretary. "Making wild guesses and blindly parroting others without looking into the facts! You can find somewhere else to work. Radiance no longer needs you."
The secretary froze, panic instantly setting in. "President Sawyer, what are you saying? I..."
She thought, "But it’s the truth! Even if Mr. Sloan is incredibly powerful, is it a crime to speak the truth behind his back?"
President Sawyer was furious with the idiot. "Go process your resignation. If you’re not happy about it, you can sue."
The pale-faced secretary was escorted out.
President Kerr raised an eyebrow.
President Sawyer hastily pledged his loyalty. "I... I had no idea my niece was acting so recklessly. After today, I swear she’ll be gone from Radiance. You have my word!
"Mrs. Sloan... no, Chairman Lockwood finally managed to find the time to visit, and we failed to host her properly. It’s all my fault!"
President Kerr’s lips curled upward. "President Sawyer, you’d best do as you say."
Downstairs.
Originally, Estelle had planned to just head straight upstairs or simply prove her identity.
On second thought, however, the people at Radiance all seemed to believe Claire as if they had matched their stories beforehand. Yet, just an hour ago, Claire was still a complete outsider to them. On what grounds did they believe her?
Estelle figured that the person they actually believed was that Ms. Sawyer.
And how could a mere manager risk offending Nathaniel by speaking to her so disrespectfully?
It meant she had someone backing her up.
Whether out of stupidity or sheer indifference, Ms. Sawyer had exposed the fact that she had someone at Radiance covering for her.
In other words, this Ms. Sawyer was... well, a nepotism hire.