Chapter 191 The Taste of Embarrassment
Leopold worked in the hotel industry, so it was normal for him to have some professional contacts with other hotels. Caroline didn't think much of it.
He put down the document bag, pulled her in front of him, and habitually wrapped his arm around her waist. Looking down at her with gentle eyes, he said, "Honey, the company's stock price has crashed because of the public opinion crisis, and the market value has shrunk too. Preston asked me to fix this."
"If I can recover the losses, we won't have to work for the rest of our lives. Didn't you want to travel? I'll get an RV and take you traveling. We can stay longer wherever you like, and when you want to see different scenery, we'll just hit the road. What do you think?"
Caroline had bought stocks before. Though she wasn't a professional investor, she knew a thing or two.
"How much did it shrink?" She asked.
Leopold said, "7.5 billion dollars."
Caroline's expression instantly turned serious. "How much?"
Leopold held her shoulders. "Actually, for a publicly traded company, that's not even that much. Some companies have lost over ten billion dollars overnight."
The amount was so huge that for ordinary people it was just a number, but Caroline was different. She had a real sense of what 7.5 billion dollars meant. The higher-ups had approved 450 million dollars for the Thornfield Town wind power project investment. 7.5 billion dollars could build at least 16 wind power projects.
Caroline couldn't even imagine how intense the workload and pressure Leopold would face next. Would he burn himself out?
To Caroline, this was no longer a task one person could handle. This was a huge mountain, a mountain big enough to crush Leopold.
"That's so much money. This is really too hard on you." Caroline didn't want to pressure Leopold, but the facts were right in front of her. She worried Leopold would be overloaded.
"I knew you'd feel bad for me." Leopold hugged her, his chin gently rubbing against the top of her head. "Honey, a tough road means you're going uphill. Looks like my luck is about to turn."
"If this is how you get lucky, I'd rather give you all my luck, at least your path could be a bit smoother."
"Don't be silly. If you give me your luck, what about you?" He stroked her back. "Everyone has their own fate, I have my own path to walk. Suffering a bit is nothing. I..."
"Stop," Caroline interrupted him. "Let others suffer. Why you? Why is it always you?"
Leopold saw the mood getting too heavy and tried to cheer her up. "Yeah, I don't get it either. Why exactly? Could it be because I'm too capable?"
Caroline laughed, lightly punching his chest with her small fist. "At a time like this, you still have the mood to joke around."
He held her hand against his heart. "Don't you believe in me? Or do you think I can't do it?"
Caroline shook her head.
Leopold said with a smile, "You don't believe in me."
"No, don't twist my words," Caroline looked away. "I'm really afraid you'll be too tired. The day before yesterday on the news, there was this IT guy who worked overtime continuously, and then in the middle of the night he just..."
Leopold laughed out loud. "You're afraid I'll die from overwork?"
"What are you saying?" Caroline got nervous. "That's unlucky."
Leopold patiently comforted her. "Honey, for a company to keep going, some people carry the flag, some bear the pressure, and others have to follow behind to hold the fort and provide support."
"If others can step up, why can't that person be me? Or are you saying Preston only has me left in the company who's useful? The company needs me, so I have to step up. This isn't just about my own interests—there are tens of thousands of employees under the Celestial Waters Hotel."
"Behind each of them is a family, and they all depend on this for their livelihood. If we don't solve this situation now, before long, chain hotels will start closing down, and then the people who lose their jobs will have a hard time. For us, daily life is just living, but for some people who earn their living through labor, it's about survival."
He smiled, his eyes full of tenderness. "Everything will be fine. There's no problem that can't be solved, just like how the day will break—with or without the sun, the day will still break."
What's meant to come would come, what's meant to go would go. As for how it went, that depended on people to solve it.
Caroline hugged him tight. Since she couldn't change what was coming, she had to fully support him.
She said with certainty, "I wish you success! You'll definitely make it!"
"I believe it too. I'll definitely make it."
Only when one was powerless would they say "let it be".
When you had confidence, you would say, "I will definitely succeed!"
The next day.
The stock price continued to fall, and Celestial Waters Hotel's PR crisis was imminent.
Preston called another board meeting. Everyone knew that today they'd definitely demand an explanation, and it wouldn't be like last time when they'd give Preston another chance to be vague.
Xavier was the first to arrive. When he saw Atlas, he became extremely flattering, helping Atlas from the door to his seat, asking after his health, serving tea and water. Erik, standing nearby, frowned at the sight.
Since the incident with the tampered USB drive content, Erik had become more cautious. For meetings big or small, he'd arrive early to check the related materials, and even personally review the meeting documents distributed to each board member before he could feel at ease.
Wilder and Sterling walked into the conference room one after the other. Seeing that the person in the main seat hadn't arrived yet, Wilder glanced at his watch and said sarcastically, "Insignificant people have no say. It's time, and he's not here—he doesn't take us seriously."
Sterling glanced at Erik, who was adjusting equipment in the corner, and cleared his throat to remind Wilder, "There are still five minutes. Don't rush."
Wilder glanced at Erik, looking him up and down, his voice not too loud but clear enough to hear.
"What's his status? Does he even have the guts to tattle?"
After speaking, he deliberately swaggered past Erik. "Mr. Rivera, you're so responsible."
Erik nodded neither humbly nor arrogantly. "Mr. Gonzaga."
Wilder looked at him sideways, the smile on his face full of contempt. "Mr. Preston Wipere really got a bargain hiring you. You take one salary and do the work of several people. As expected, college graduates from ordinary universities are cheap and good quality. Mr. Guise, wouldn't you say?"
Sterling smiled without saying anything, but his silence at this moment was agreement with Wilder's words, ruthlessly trampling on Erik's dignity.
Erik's face paled slightly, but he still maintained a polite attitude, extending his hand in a welcoming gesture. "Mr. Gonzaga, Mr. Guise, please take your seats."
"Whether I sit or not is none of your business." Wilder cursed. "Don't think that just because Mr. Preston Wipere has your back, you have many good days left."
The reason Wilder had such a grudge against Erik was that during his son Beck Gonzaga's time working at the company, Beck had done something that violated company rules. Erik reported it to Preston, and the final result was that Beck was fired.
The father was a board member, and the son got fired—it was a loss of face for Wilder.
So when the stock price crash happened, he seized the opportunity to make Preston taste what it's like to lose face too.