Chapter 36
The security guards immediately stepped forward, grabbed Jeffrey, who was still trying to struggle, and dragged him out.
While struggling, Jeffrey shouted, "Ophelia, you'll regret this! I have important resources in my hands. Without me, the project will definitely fail!"
His voice gradually faded away, and the meeting room returned to calm.
Ophelia took a deep breath and continued presenting the proposal, her tone completely steady, as if the interruption had never happened.
William watched her composed manner, the appreciation in his eyes growing stronger.
After the meeting ended, colleagues couldn't stop praising Ophelia, thinking she was not only professional but also had amazing composure.
Della came over: "Ophelia, you were so cool just now! You shut Jeffrey up with just a few words."
Ophelia smiled: "With people like that, you don't need to be too polite."
William walked over and handed her a bottle of water: "You did great just now."
"Thanks to you." Ophelia took the water and smiled at him. "If you hadn't helped me out in time, he might have kept making trouble."
"I just did what I should." William looked at her. "Want to have dinner together tonight? Consider it a celebration of the successful meeting."
Ophelia hesitated for a moment, thinking of how he'd always looked out for her, then nodded: "Okay."
This time, she didn't deliberately keep her distance. Deep down, she felt that maybe trying to accept his kindness wasn't such a bad thing.
Ophelia and William had just walked out of the Smith Group building when William's assistant Chase came running over, looking rather serious: "Mr. Brown, something's wrong at the resort."
William's expression immediately darkened: "What happened?"
"We just got word that someone mixed substandard materials into the resort's construction supplies. Some of the materials have already been delivered to the site." Chase said quickly.
Ophelia's face changed, too. Construction materials were crucial to the entire project's safety. If they used substandard materials, the consequences would be disastrous.
"We're going there now." William made the decision immediately, opened the car door, and said to Ophelia, "Get in, let's go check it out together."
Ophelia nodded and quickly got in the car, feeling both angry and anxious. To sabotage this project, Ainsley had actually done something that could endanger customers' lives.
The car sped toward the resort in the suburbs. The atmosphere in the car was tense. Ophelia clenched her fists tightly, silently vowing to make Ainsley pay this time.
William saw her worried expression and patted her shoulder, his tone steady: "Don't worry, it'll be fine."
His voice had a calming power. Ophelia turned to look at him, and seeing the composure on his face, the panic in her heart gradually settled.
After driving for over an hour, they finally arrived at the resort construction site.
The workers had already separated the materials mixed with substandard goods. Seeing William and Ophelia arrive, the construction foreman hurried over: "Mr. Brown, Ms. Blake, you're finally here. These materials are clearly problematic; we didn't dare use them."
Ophelia walked forward, picked up a piece of concrete, and with a light snap, it broke apart, full of impurities inside.
Her expression grew even darker: "Ainsley has really gone too far. If this had been used in construction, the consequences would be unthinkable."
William looked at the substandard materials, his eyes cold as ice: "Chase, contact the quality inspection department immediately and get a detailed inspection report. Also, find out where these materials came from and gather evidence of Ainsley's involvement."
"Yes, Mr. Brown." Chase quickly responded and took out his phone to make calls.
Ophelia looked at the construction site, feeling somewhat relieved. Fortunately, the workers were experienced and discovered the problem in time; there would have been big trouble.
"What do we do now? These materials can't be used. Getting new supplies will take time. Will it delay the schedule?"
Ophelia asked with some concern.
"Don't worry, I've already contacted a reliable supplier. They can deliver qualified materials first thing tomorrow morning. It won't delay the schedule."
Ophelia nodded, feeling much more at ease. She turned to look at William and found him staring at the construction site's blueprint, his brow slightly furrowed, as if thinking about something.
"What's wrong?" she asked softly.
"I'm thinking, if someone could tamper with the materials, they might try other things too."
William turned to look at her. "For the next while, I'll have Chase send more people over to strengthen security. You don't need to worry too much. Whatever happens, we'll communicate right away."
Night fell, and the construction site's lights came on, illuminating the two figures standing side by side.
Looking at William, Ophelia suddenly had a thought - maybe trying to trust him, trying to accept these feelings, wasn't such a bad thing.
She took a deep breath, pushed down these thoughts, and together with William checked other aspects of the construction site to make sure there were no other problems.
It wasn't until late at night that they left the construction site. On the drive back, Ophelia leaned against the seat back and gradually fell asleep.
William looked at her tired, sleeping face, his eyes gentle, and slowed down the car, trying to drive as smoothly as possible.
When they arrived at Ophelia's villa, William didn't wake her, just quietly watched her until she slowly woke up on her own.
Ophelia opened her eyes and saw the familiar surroundings outside, smiling a bit embarrassed: "Sorry, I fell asleep without meaning to."
"It's okay, you were too tired." William looked at her. "Go on up and get some good rest. I've arranged everything with the materials. Tomorrow I'll have Chase coordinate with you."
"Okay." Ophelia nodded, opened the car door, and got out. "Thank you for driving me back, and for helping solve the materials issue."
"It's what I should do." William looked at her.
William watched her figure disappear before driving away.
The next morning, as soon as Ophelia arrived at the Smith Group, she received a message from Chase. The qualified materials had been delivered to the construction site, the quality inspection report was out, clearly proving the previous materials were substandard, and they had found evidence of Ainsley purchasing the substandard materials.
Ophelia looked at the message and felt relieved. She picked up her phone and sent William a message: "Got the construction materials, thank you."
William quickly replied: "Leave the follow-up to me, you just focus on the project plan."
Ophelia put down her phone, filled with gratitude, and threw herself into work.
Staring at the resort's blueprint, Ophelia's finger traced the area where the hot spring zone connected with the back mountain.
During the site inspection, she had felt the flow in this area was a bit awkward. Just thinking about it on paper wasn't enough - she needed to be on site to supervise the adjustments to feel confident.
She picked up her phone and called Della, her tone decisive: "Pack my change of clothes and sketchbook. I'm going to stay at the resort for a few days to oversee the design where the hot spring area connects with the back mountain."