Chapter177 Miranda, This Isn't Over!
"Then you should ask your grandfather and your cousin why they chose me." Miranda cut her off directly, her tone still calm.
"Since you think the service here is so lacking that customers have to change shoes themselves..."
"I'd be happy to file a complaint for you."
The sales associate who had just walked over with an armful of clothes nearly dropped everything when she heard the word "complaint."
The store had extremely high service standards. One customer complaint meant losing your entire bonus, possibly even getting fired.
"No, no, no! Miss Celeste, I'm so sorry! That was our mistake!"
The associate didn't dare waste another second. She didn't even put down the clothes in her arms. She dropped to her knees right beside Isabella's feet.
"Isabella, let me help you! I'm so sorry, I was too busy earlier and neglected you. Please don't be upset!"
She apologized profusely while deftly unbuckling the shoes on Isabella's feet, her attitude humble to the point of groveling.
This sudden reversal left Celeste stunned.
She had wanted to humiliate Miranda, to make her unable to hold her head up in front of Isabella, to show her how low her status really was in this family.
But what happened?
Miranda didn't lift a finger. With just a few casual words, she had redirected all the blame onto the sales associate and kept her own hands clean.
Watching the associate kneeling on the floor, Celeste's face flushed with frustration.
"You... you..."
Celeste pointed at Miranda, too furious to form words.
Since it was clear today's outing was purely designed to humiliate her, Miranda saw no reason to stay.
She ignored the fuming Celeste and glanced at her watch.
"I have an important meeting at my company. I won't be joining you any longer."
With that, she turned and walked toward the store exit.
"Miranda! Stop right there! Who said you could leave!" Celeste stomped her foot in rage, shouting at her retreating back.
Isabella's smile faltered slightly, a dark glint flashing through her eyes.
She hadn't expected this seemingly harmless Miranda to be so difficult to handle.
That little maneuver had protected her own dignity, left no ammunition for anyone to use against her, and embarrassed Celeste all at once.
Clearly, she had underestimated this woman.
Celeste threw herself onto the sofa, her chest heaving with anger. "How dare she do that to me!"
Isabella composed herself and walked over, gently patting Celeste's shoulder, her voice soft.
"Come on, Celeste. Don't be upset. It's not worth ruining your health over."
She sighed and shook her head with feigned helplessness. "I didn't expect Clifton's wife to have such a temper. She even ignores Mr. Prescott's instructions, just leaving whenever she wants. So disrespectful."
These words sounded like comfort but were actually pouring oil on the fire.
Celeste grew even more furious.
"Exactly! Who does she think she is? Just because she's my cousin's wife now? I bet she doesn't even respect Grandpa!"
Celeste gritted her teeth, a vicious gleam in her eyes.
"No, I can't let this go!"
She yanked out her phone and snapped a photo of Miranda's retreating back.
As she looked at the picture, her thoughts turned dark and vengeful.
Miranda, this isn't over!
After leaving the mall, Miranda took a cab straight to her company.
She headed directly to the conference room. On the way there, she had notified all the senior management to assemble.
Her gaze swept over everyone present as she began.
"Moving forward, the company will transition fully from R&D to market commercialization." She turned on the projector, her voice steady and strong. "Scaling up is essential, but..."
The atmosphere in the room turned serious instantly. The excitement employees had felt since yesterday's win was replaced by a sense of urgency.
Miranda listed several core issues directly on the whiteboard.
The meeting lasted a full three hours.
No emotional pep talks. Just concrete task assignments and hard deadlines.
It was nearly noon when Miranda finally capped the marker and took a sip of her long-cold coffee.
"Meeting adjourned."
Everyone exhaled in relief, though the thought of the work ahead made their hearts race.
After lunch, Miranda locked herself in her office to tackle the mountain of paperwork.
She worked straight through until evening.
...
Prescott Estate.
The black Maybach had barely stopped when Celeste's bratty voice rang out.
"I'm exhausted! That sales associate was so clumsy."
Celeste carried seven or eight shopping bags of various sizes. The servants behind her were loaded down with even more, nearly blocking the entrance.
Isabella followed behind, carrying only a small, elegant handbag, her steps graceful.
In the living room.
The moment Celeste spotted her cousin, her eyes lit up. She dropped her bags on the floor and hurried over in her heels.
"Clifton!"
She plopped down on the sofa next to him and immediately started complaining. "You really need to deal with your wife today. She was completely out of line!"
Clifton's eyes stayed on his newspaper. His voice was flat. "What happened?"
"You have no idea! We were shopping, having a great time, and she suddenly threw a fit and left me and Isabella stranded at the mall! She just took off by herself!"
As she spoke, she pulled out her phone, found the sneaky photo she'd taken, and shoved it under Clifton's nose.
"Look! I took this. Isabella and I were still trying on clothes, and she just disappeared without a word. She left us there. So embarrassing!"
In the photo, Miranda's back was clearly visible.
Isabella walked over and sat down beside Celeste. She glanced at Clifton's expression, then spoke up softly to smooth things over.
"Celeste, don't say that. Miranda probably had something urgent come up."
She paused, then added as if in passing, "Although... leaving us like that was a bit inconsiderate, especially since Mr. Prescott specifically asked us to go together. But I'm sure Miranda didn't mean anything by it. Clifton, don't blame her."
These words managed to paint Miranda as "disrespectful to elders" and "lacking manners" while making Isabella look magnanimous and considerate.
Clifton set down his newspaper.
He looked up, his gaze passing indifferently over the phone screen Celeste held in the air.
His eyes lingered on that slender back for a second, then looked away.
Celeste had expected Clifton to get angry, or at least frown in disapproval.
But his voice remained utterly flat.
"If you already know she had something urgent, why would I blame her?"
"..."
Both Celeste and Isabella froze.
It was like punching a cloud. All that built-up energy, completely wasted. The frustration was suffocating.
Celeste gaped at Clifton in disbelief.