Chapter 97

After speaking, I stopped looking at Lyra and turned to face everyone. "I know what you're all worried about."

My gaze swept across every anxious face. "I'm making you all a promise. First, your wages will be deposited in full into your accounts by six o'clock this afternoon. If the company account doesn't have the funds, I'll cover it personally."

The crowd stirred, but quieted considerably.

"Second, the company won't go bankrupt. Not only will we not go bankrupt, but we're launching a brand new project. Once this project succeeds, everyone present will see their salary doubled. Core project members will receive additional equity incentives."

As my words fell, the entire office area went silent as death.

Then erupted in thunderous applause and cheers.

The people's hearts were settled.

I turned and went back to my office, closing the door and shutting out all the noise outside.

Back pressed against the cold door, I finally felt my legs going weak.

That speech had drained nearly all my energy.

The promises I'd made sounded good, but whether I could deliver—all that pressure rested on my shoulders alone.

Beauchamp.

That name flashed through my mind.

Someone like Lyra, without backing, would never dare cause such a commotion.

Besides him, I couldn't think of anyone else.

I pulled out my phone and dialed a number. "Frederick?"

"My sister-in-law finally remembers me?"

Ignoring his teasing, I cut straight to the point. "I need you to investigate someone. Lyra from marketing. I want to know who she's been in contact with recently—all communication records and financial transactions."

"No need to investigate." Frederick's voice lost its playful tone. "Before you called, I already had someone compile everything. Your company's in such trouble—you think Sebastian could just sit still?"

Warmth spread through my chest.

"The material's a bit sensitive. Not convenient to send online. Should I bring it to you?"

I thought about it—I still had dinner with Sebastian tonight.

"Just come to my place. Oh, and my friend Ariana will be there too." I added that last part deliberately to avoid any misunderstanding.

"Alright."

That evening, Ariana arrived first.

She gave me a huge hug the moment she walked in. "Sophie! You scared me to death! Fainting from heatstroke is such a big deal—why didn't you tell me sooner?"

I patted her back. "I'm fine now."

Just as I finished speaking, the doorbell rang again.

I went to answer it. Outside stood a young man in a floral shirt with ash-blonde hair.

One hand in his pocket, the other holding a document bag, he was making silly faces at me.

It was Frederick.

Behind him, Ariana poked her head out, frowning. "Sophie, who's this? He looks like trouble."

Frederick's smile froze on his face. He looked Ariana up and down and curled his lip. "Watch your mouth. Whether a man's handsome or not isn't for some woman of a certain age to judge."

"Who are you calling a certain age?" Ariana instantly bristled.

Just as they were about to start fighting, I quickly pulled Frederick inside and closed the door. "Both of you, enough."

Just then, footsteps sounded on the stairs.

I looked up to see Sebastian fresh from the shower, wearing a dark gray silk robe, his hair still dripping.

He was drying his hair with one hand, revealing his collarbone and the hints of his chest muscles—particularly enticing under the lights.

He clearly hadn't expected so many people downstairs.

When his gaze fell on Frederick and Ariana, his already expressionless face turned several degrees colder.

The air seemed to freeze.

At the dinner table, the atmosphere was bizarre.

Ariana and Frederick sat across from me, one glaring daggers, the other silently mocking with the corner of his mouth.

And Sebastian beside me hadn't said a word since sitting down, radiating a "stay away" coldness.

I felt like a kindergarten teacher with three sulking children.

I silently speared a piece of bamboo shoot—Sebastian's favorite—and placed it in his bowl.

Sebastian's eating movements paused. He glanced at me sideways, and the ice in his eyes seemed to thaw slightly.

The low pressure around him also eased somewhat.

I cleared my throat, deciding to ignore Ariana and Frederick's squabbling and get down to business first.

"Frederick, where are the materials?"

Frederick immediately dropped his carefree attitude and pushed the document bag over.

"It's all here. Lyra's call records, bank statements, and chat logs with an intermediary. All evidence points to one person."

"Who?" I asked.

Frederick glanced at the expressionless Sebastian, then at me, seeming to hesitate.

"Speak." My tone brooked no refusal.

Frederick took a deep breath and finally said the name. "Beauchamp."

When that name left Frederick's mouth, the air in the dining room seemed to freeze into ice.

Ariana's eyes went wide instantly, her knife and fork clattering onto the table.

The pressure around Sebastian, which had just eased slightly, plummeted again.

I simply picked up my water glass and took a sip.

Of course, it was him.

But not just him.

Given Beauchamp's arrogant personality, he'd only want to crush me fair and square in business, proving he could succeed without me.

Underhanded tactics like inciting employees to riot—he wasn't above using them, but they wouldn't be his first choice.

Especially right after we'd just met, when he was still playing the devoted lover.

He wouldn't be stupid enough to leave such obvious evidence so quickly.

So the person who'd instructed Lyra to do all this could only be someone else.

Monica.

My dear "sister" and her methods—I'd learned plenty about them in my previous life.

I laughed coldly inside, though my expression remained neutral.

A woman who could only hide behind men and play dirty, and a reborn soul drunk on his own cleverness—they thought breaking a small subsidiary's capital chain would destroy me?

They didn't know I'd already used my remaining funds to plug the financial gap.

The so-called bankruptcy crisis had been a joke from the start.

As I pondered, Sebastian beside me suddenly moved.

Sebastian picked up the serving utensils and placed another piece of steak on my plate, his movements smooth but his voice several degrees colder than before. "Eat."

I froze and turned to look at him.

He wasn't looking at me, just staring at the food in his bowl, his jawline tense—clearly in a "very displeased" mood.

I finally realized he probably thought that hearing Beauchamp's name had made me sad again.

I wanted to laugh a little, but also felt inexplicably touched.

"By the way," I said, not wanting him to continue misunderstanding, immediately changing the subject and looking at Frederick, "that fire in my office—how's the investigation going?"

Frederick glanced at Sebastian's expression and immediately understood, pulling another file from the document bag.