Chapter 203
"What exactly happened?"
Arthur's cold gaze swept across everyone in the room.
Caroline glanced around at the group of people who didn't dare speak up, then took the initiative to explain the situation simply, neither exaggerating nor badmouthing anyone.
"The employees involved insulted their supervisor. Each will have their salary docked for one month."
After listening, Arthur frowned and issued a punishment even harsher than what Caroline had suggested.
Several faces went pale.
"Ms. White..."
Heidi pressed her lips together. "Mr. Windsor, shouldn't we hear both sides of the story? This kind of thing should consider the employees' perspectives too. Isn't docking a full month's salary a bit excessive?"
"Are you suggesting that I, as their supervisor, would frame several ordinary employees I don't even know?" Caroline shot back.
"I was only going to dock them five hundred dollars, and you thought that was too much. Now with Mr. Windsor, it's definitely more than five hundred. Ms. White, even if you want to protect your employees, you should at least be reasonable about it."
Caroline looked at Heidi mockingly, her words leaving Heidi unable to argue back.
"Mr. Windsor, we didn't mean it. Could you please not punish us?"
"Yeah, Mr. Windsor, we were just chatting. We didn't know it would be this serious."
Seeing that appealing to Heidi was useless, the group turned to plead for themselves.
"Just casual chatting?"
Arthur didn't speak, but Caroline was already looking at the group. "There are security cameras in the break room. Do you need me to have Mr. Windsor pull up the footage?"
Their faces went deathly pale, not daring to say another word.
"Each docked one month's salary."
Arthur spoke again. The office fell dead silent with no one daring to object. His gaze fell on Caroline, his expression carrying a hint of helplessness. "And you, since you're new to the company and don't understand company policies, I'll let it slide this time. But if there's a next time, you'll be docked too."
Caroline nodded with a sweet smile. "Thank you, Mr. Windsor."
Leaving the office and ignoring the murderous glares from those employees, Caroline was in a good mood.
Until Edith came over with a stack of materials.
"Mr. Windsor said that since Ms. Q just joined the company, she needs to quickly adapt to company procedures. These materials and contracts must be reviewed within one day. The day after tomorrow, Mr. Windsor will have an important project for you to complete independently."
Edith emphasized the words "complete independently."
The thick stack of materials landed on the desk with a dull thud.
Caroline didn't respond to her but picked up the internal line instead. "Susan, are you not at your station?"
"Ms. Q, I just went to the restroom, and I'm back now. Any instructions?"
"Come in."
As soon as she hung up, Edith was already looking disapproving.
"Ms. Q, this is your work. You can't slack off and hand it over to your secretary."
"The Windsor Group values individual capability above all else. As a parachuted-in vice president, so many people are watching you. If you don't perform well, you'll be embarrassing Mr. Windsor!"
She made it sound serious. Caroline crossed her arms and, seeing secretary Susan enter, pointed at her.
"I believe Mr. Windsor's special assistant should coordinate work through my secretary, right?"
Caroline dropped the three-point smile from her face, her eyes turning sharp. "Who gave you the authority to bypass my secretary, not knock, and barge in here to boss me around?"
When Edith came in, she hadn't thought about any of this. Being scolded in front of the young secretary made her expression ugly. "Ms. Q, what do you mean? I'm just arranging work for you according to Mr. Windsor's requirements."
"Then follow the proper procedure."
"Susan, have Ms. Cox go out with you, handle the work handover properly, keep records, then bring it back in to me."
"Next time, I don't want anyone barging in without knocking. My office contains many confidential documents. If any are lost or leaked, I'll hold you responsible."
Caroline sat in her office chair, leaning back slightly, her expression ice-cold, giving Edith no opportunity.
Edith opened her mouth to lash out, but Susan had already gestured for her to leave.
"Ms. Cox, let's go outside."
Edith glared deeply at Caroline and turned to leave in her high heels, but Caroline called out to stop her.
"Don't forget to take your things."
These materials—who knew where Edith had dug them up—were covered in years of accumulated dust that made Caroline choke when they were thrown down.
She wasn't the same company bottom-feeder, the little receptionist who could be bullied at will anymore.
If Edith wanted to use those same tactics against her, it wasn't going to happen.
Edith reluctantly carried the files away.
Half an hour later, Susan came back in, and that thick stack of files had been converted into digital documents.
"Ms. Cox must have remembered incorrectly. These materials and documents all have backups on the company's internal network. Some of them are even annual work summaries from various departments. I've organized them by importance level. Ms. Q, please review."
Caroline glanced over—not only was the quantity reduced by more than half, but important documents made up only about ten percent.
Edith was obviously coming after her, clearly wanting to give her a harsh warning.
Caroline nodded. "I understand. Go ahead with your work."
Susan hesitated for a moment. "Ms. Q, there's something else I'm not sure if I should mention."
"Go ahead."
Susan's work was fairly reliable, and Caroline had a good impression of her, willing to give her this chance.
"Recently, there's been some unfavorable talk about you within the company. Perhaps you could apply to Mr. Windsor to address these internal comments and prevent employees from gossiping about your private life."
The company had internal networks and forums that were mostly free, but some posts would be blocked or handled depending on the position and wishes of the person involved.
Caroline's situation had been fermenting online for three days. Every time Susan looked at the company's internal network and forums, she felt anxious, unsure if Caroline knew about it.
"What?"
Caroline didn't know.
She had just joined The Windsor Group and knew nothing about the forum situation.
Susan opened the forum interface, where the hottest posts were all related to her.
They claimed she was having affairs with young men in the entertainment industry, had an unclear relationship with Arthur, was very intimate with her senior colleague, and even had entanglements with an executive from Vanguard Enterprises Group.
There wasn't a single photo, but various scenarios were described vividly. Those scandals practically painted her as a shameless woman who seduced multiple men, sparking heated discussions.
Caroline's face darkened.
Those comments in the break room today clearly didn't come out of nowhere.
Without her knowledge, company employees had probably been gossiping about her for who knows how long.
"Can we find out who posted them?"
The poster was an anonymous user, and the posting time was three days ago—right when the rumors about her and Blake had just been exposed by paparazzi and marketing accounts.
To post so much detail, the person must be very familiar with her situation.
Caroline already had someone in mind.
"Only Mr. Windsor has that authority," Susan answered.
"I understand."
Caroline nodded. Once she finished her current work, she would go find Arthur and have a proper discussion about this matter.