Chapter 17 Threaten Me?
Myrdal's POV
My refusal was like lighting a powder keg, instantly bringing tears to Taisia's eyes.
Her voice came out in a sobbing shriek. "Myrdal! You don't love me anymore, do you? What did you promise me back then? You said you'd give me everything, that you'd always treat me well!"
She got more and more worked up as she cried, pounding her fists against my chest. "You won't help me, is that it? Fine! Then let's call off the engagement! Let's see how you manage without me!"
I looked at her, feeling nothing but absurdity.
Call off the engagement?
Did she really think that could still threaten me?
Her wailing got louder and louder, shrill like nails scraping across glass. My temples throbbed, and irritation instantly surged through me.
I just wanted her to shut up immediately.
"Taisia, that's enough!"
I grabbed the documents from my desk and slammed them to the floor. Papers scattered everywhere.
Taisia's crying stopped instantly.
I pointed at her, my voice trembling with anger. "This is all your fault! If you hadn't suddenly shown up back then, I never would have broken up with Selena! If Selena were still with the Kateson family, how could the company have ended up like this?"
"The biggest regret of my life is giving up Selena for you! You woman who does nothing but cause trouble!"
Taisia's eyes went wide, her face full of disbelief.
She probably never imagined I would treat her this way, say such things to her.
In her eyes, she'd always been the princess I held in the palm of my hand.
After a few seconds of shock, Taisia let out a hysterical scream. "Myrdal! You ungrateful liar! How dare you treat me like this!"
Watching her lose it, I leaned back in my chair, rubbing my temples with a headache. "Are you done yet?"
"I'm the one making a scene? Myrdal, you're so heartless. I'm going to the media! I'm going to tell everyone what kind of person you are! I'm calling off the engagement!"
But seeing her push toward the door to leave, my nerves suddenly tightened. I stood up abruptly.
No, I couldn't let her go!
The second before Taisia opened the door, I pressed against it, trapping her between my chest and the door.
I reached out and gently wiped away the tears at the corners of her eyes.
"I'll handle it, darling."
Taisia looked up at me.
I released the door and instead grabbed her wrist, my grip controlled but firm.
"I was wrong just now." I looked straight into her eyes, not avoiding them. "Too much pressure. I said things I shouldn't have."
I pulled her into my arms with practiced ease, my hand finding her back and patting in steady, soothing rhythms.
"The company's problems, I'll solve them."
"The engagement won't change."
"You don't need to bear any risk for me."
The company was already at the edge of a cliff, stock price teetering.
If the media caught wind of her emotional breakdown or the engagement falling apart, that wouldn't be a crisis—it would be a death sentence.
I needed her.
More precisely, I needed her family behind her, needed this marriage alliance to continue creating the illusion of "stability."
I had to stabilize the investors, stabilize the market, stabilize this game that hadn't completely fallen apart yet.
Her crying gradually stopped, and the tension in her body slowly relaxed. I knew my comfort had worked.
I kissed her forehead. "That Hermès bag you had your eye on before, I've already had someone contact the boutique."
"It'll be delivered to your place tomorrow."
Sure enough, her attitude softened.
When she left, there was even a hint of anticipation in her eyes.
I stood there, watching her figure disappear at the end of the hallway before slowly closing the office door.
The moment the door closed, the warmth on my face completely faded.
A soft knock came at the office door. My secretary walked in and placed a document on the desk in front of me.
Her expression was as calm as always, as if she were reporting not the company's crisis, but just routine work updates.
I was leaning back in my chair in a daze, without even the energy to lift my hand to flip through the documents.
"Go ahead." I didn't even look up.
"Sir, regarding the North Star project you decided to take over, there's been a new development. You said at the time that you wanted to use this project to prove your abilities and also to reassure Miss Taisia."
The North Star project... I paused, then remembered this was the new energy cooperation project Selena had negotiated for the company before leaving the Kateson family.
The partner was an old European company known for being rigorous and demanding. I remembered the contract terms were as complex as a legal dictionary.
I vaguely recalled that Selena had spent a whole month finalizing all the details. Every clause, every number had gone through precise calculations, all to ensure maximum benefits for Cater Group.
This project was like a precision instrument—any part going wrong would cause the entire machine to collapse.
But I hadn't considered any of that at the time. I just thought this was something Selena left behind, and if I could do better, even squeeze out a bit more profit, I could hold my head high in front of Taisia and the Katesons.
"You felt the previous profit distribution was unfair to Cater Group, so you privately met with their project manager to renegotiate, hoping to increase our profit by five percentage points."
Hearing this, I sat up straight immediately, a strong sense of foreboding rising in my heart.
I picked up the water glass on my desk and took a sip with my head down.
The glass was ice cold, but my fingertips were burning. I had to tighten my grip to keep myself looking composed. "Now they've turned on us on the spot. They believe your actions insulted their professionalism and violated the spirit of the contract. They immediately activated the breach of contract clause, not only unilaterally terminating the cooperation but also demanding that Cater Group compensate them for all their upfront R&D investment and... expected profit losses."
"How much?" My heart was racing, almost bursting out of my chest.
"Around nine figures total."
The water glass in my hand paused.
The blood in my entire body seemed to freeze instantly. An icy feeling shot from the soles of my feet straight to the top of my head, making even breathing difficult.
Nine figures.
For Cater Group right now, this amount of money would push the company toward death.