Chapter 277

Chapter 277

"What did he say?" I asked, my voice calm.

"What else could he say? Nothing good, that's for sure!" Emily rolled her eyes and mimicked Terry's sarcastic tone, "'Is this how Star Tech does things? Keeping a divorced woman who's been out of work for six years, with no qualifications and no skills, just a housewife, while firing a double-degree PhD holder, a real elite with actual talent?'"

"'You're playing favorites! You're blind! You'd rather please a waste of space than keep quality talent!'"

After Emily finished, she was fuming herself: "He's the waste of space, his whole family is! When William heard the commotion, he had security throw him out, and warned him that if he came back to cause trouble, he'd call the police!"

As I listened, I felt nothing inside, even found it a bit ridiculous.

Terry, that clown, what else could he do besides attack me with the most vicious words?

"William told me not to take it to heart," Emily added. "I can see you haven't either. Most people in the company have their eyes wide open."

"Everyone saw how much you did for the project. If anyone really thought Sarah was better than you, they would've spoken up for her at yesterday's meeting."

That was true.

When William announced Sarah's firing yesterday, apart from shock, no one publicly objected or questioned it.

Maybe some people thought it was wrong, but at least on the surface, everyone chose to stay silent.

This showed that most people recognized my work.

William later held a small meeting to explain to several key team members the specific reasons for firing Sarah.

Being late, going MIA, not following instructions, spreading rumors in the team, trying to disrupt the project's normal progress, and so on.

The reasons were solid and well-documented.

But the online discussion was starting to take a wrong turn.

Someone had leaked the news about Star Tech firing a returnee with top credentials, and added fuel to the fire, portraying Sarah as a tragic elite squeezed out by someone with connections, and painting me as a vicious woman who slept her way to the top.

Though no names were mentioned, people in the industry could tell who they were talking about.

Emily scrolled through her phone, cursing: "This is definitely Sarah's side buying trolls to stir things up."

"Didn't expect her to have such influence, so many bootlickers. How does George put up with it?"

I paused, then realized Emily was mocking Sarah for cheating on George.

Referring to male friends like Terry who were overly attentive to her.

"Their business is none of mine, and I can't control it anyway," I said, keeping my head down and continuing with my paperwork, my tone flat. "Just ignore that online stuff, don't take it seriously. Didn't William say he'd handle it?"

"William said he'd hire some trolls to counter it and push the topic down," Emily tossed her phone aside and sighed, handing me a freshly brewed coffee. "I'm just pissed off. Some people are covered in shit themselves, but they still have to throw shit at others, thinking that'll make them clean."

"Grace, don't look at that depressing stuff , just focus on your work. Being busy is good - when you're busy, you don't have time to think about that crap."

"Okay." I took the coffee and thanked her.

The warm liquid slid down my throat, bringing some warmth and clarity.

Emily was right.

Instead of wasting energy on verbal battles and PR wars with Sarah, I should focus on what I'm doing.

Project progress, core technology breakthroughs - these were real things that no one could take away or smear.

I thought George was really going to wash his hands of Sarah this time.

After all, he'd even allowed her firing - he'd care even less about some harmless online drama.

But I still underestimated how complicated things were, or rather, underestimated George's unpredictable mindset.

Around noon, my phone on the desk lit up with a new message notification.

Thinking it was work-related from William or Emily, I casually picked it up and opened it.

It was George.

Just one simple sentence, not even a greeting:

「What was the reason for firing Sarah?」

I didn't text George back.

Words were too pale, too easy to misinterpret.

I needed to hear his voice, to judge his real intentions from his tone.

I called him directly.

The dial tone came through, once, twice...

Just when I thought he'd ignore or reject the call like he did with Sarah, the call connected.

"What is it?"

George's voice came through, low and steady, emotionless.

The background was quiet - probably his office or some private space.

I didn't speak, just quickly and silently opened my phone's recording function with my other hand.

The red dot started blinking.

"George," I began, my voice calm, "what did Sarah tell you?"

I didn't ask why he was asking for reasons, but directly asked what story Sarah had told him.

I wanted to know how Sarah had portrayed me, portrayed us, to him.

Two seconds of silence on the other end.

Then George's voice came again, still emotionless, as if stating something unrelated to him:

"She didn't say much."

He paused, then added: "When she came to the company to make a scene, I was in a meeting and didn't see her. Later, she called, said she felt wronged, said Star Tech fired her without asking questions. She also said..."

He stopped, as if recalling or choosing his words.

"Said what?" I pressed, my heart tightening slightly.

"She said," George's voice seemed to carry a hint of mockery, "you might be trying to trick me into investing, using her firing as a way to prove your absolute control over the project, or to force me to make other choices."

Trick him into investing?

Holding the phone, I almost laughed in anger.

Sarah's skill at turning things around was truly remarkable.

"George," I took a deep breath, trying to keep my voice calm, but the sarcasm was already showing through, "do I need to trick you into investing?"

As I asked this, I actually wasn't sure.

That five hundred million dollars was crucial to us.

But right now, in front of George, I couldn't show weakness.

"Sarah may have ability," I didn't wait for his answer and continued, my tone becoming sharp and direct, "but her motives are definitely not pure."

"You know better than I do why she joined the project. You should also know how deep her hostility and grudge against me run."

"From her first day at Star Tech - being late, going MIA, trying to win people over in meetings, spreading rumors, even getting her friend Terry to make a scene downstairs at the company - do you know about all this?"

I paused, my voice colder: "And these past few days, all that negative online discussion about Star Tech, about me, calling me a waste of space who got where I am through connections, making her out to be a squeezed-out elite Mr. Smith, have you heard about this?"

The other end fell into an even longer silence.

So long I almost thought the signal had dropped, or George had hung up.

If not for the extremely faint sound of his breathing.

Just as my patience was running out, George's voice finally came again:

"Okay, I understand."

"I won't get involved in this anymore."

The call ended.

I held my phone, looking at the call ended notification on the screen and the still-blinking red recording dot, somewhat dazed.

That's it?

He didn't ask for any explanation, didn't question anything, didn't even defend Sarah once, just accepted my accusations like that?

And promised not to get involved anymore?

This was completely unlike George's usual style.

Especially when it came to Sarah.

But anyway, his attitude at least meant that the Sarah situation was temporarily over.

Star Tech could have some peace and quiet for a while.

William should be able to handle the online discussion better too.

I let out a long breath, and my nerves, which had been tense all morning, finally relaxed a bit.

I was about to put down my phone when the screen lit up again.

I looked at the name flashing on the screen, and my just-relaxed mood immediately tensed up again.

Why would Grandma be calling at this time?