Chapter 541 Chapter 541: Come Quickly
The receptionist shook her head and replied, “No, he left a while ago.”
“What about Gretchen?” Estelle asked.
“She’s in the meeting room.”
“Understood,” Estelle said with a nod. “Provide her with some food. I’ll join her after dealing with the client.”
Eva quickly snarled, “That woman is so despicable. Miss Hudson, you should send her away instead of serving her food. Don’t be too kind to her.”
“Am I being kind to her?” Estelle responded with a stern tone as she got up. “She’s responsible for the deaths of Cristofer's parents and my father. I don’t have the right, nor do I intend to forgive her on their behalf.”
As Estelle approached the door of the VIP reception room, she heard Mrs. Jones loudly expressing her dissatisfaction.
“I chose to work with the Hudson Group because of its good reputation. But now you’ve taken the payment and refused to deliver the goods. You’re a scam!”
Judging from Mrs. Jones’s voice, Eva could tell that she was around fifty years old and appeared to be a challenging person to deal with. Worried, Eva tried to text Cristofer, ‘Estelle’s in trouble! Please come quickly!’ But before she could send the message, Estelle took her phone away.
“I’ll hold onto this for now and return it to you after work,” Estelle said.
Anxious, Eva remarked, “Miss Hudson, she seems like a difficult person to handle.”
“I’ll handle it, even if it’s challenging. I can’t always rely on Cristofer to solve the problems I face, can I?” Estelle replied firmly. She took a deep breath, pushed the door open, and entered the reception room.
“Hello...” Before Estelle could even greet Mrs. Jones, a vase was hurled toward her face. Fortunately, she swiftly dodged, and the vase smashed into the glass door, shattering into pieces.
“Oh my goodness!” Eva, who had narrowly avoided being hit by the vase, was frightened and gently patted her chest.
In the room, Mrs. Jones, a middle-aged woman with heavy makeup, stood there staring at Estelle. Her excessive perfume was overpowering and somewhat unpleasant.
“Are you Estelle?” Mrs. Jones asked.
“Yes, it’s nice to meet you too, Mrs. Jones,” Estelle responded politely.
Mrs. Jones, with a heavy dose of sarcasm in her voice, remarked, “Getting an opportunity to meet you is really a rare event. If you can’t manage the company well, you should just shut it down and enjoy your life as the Hans family’s hostess. You’re simply a woman who relies on a man to get what you have, pretending to be an independent, hardworking woman. I despise people like you the most!”
Estelle maintained a composed smile and gently said, “Mrs. Jones, please have a seat.”
“No! I’m here for a solution. Either deliver the goods to me or pay me the liquidated damages. According to our contract, you should pay me ten times the value of the goods as liquidated damages, along with the penalty for the late delivery. I’ve calculated it for you, and it’s this much,” Mrs. Jones explained, extending five fingers.
“Mrs. Jones, it’s our fault that we’ve delayed the delivery of the goods. I’ll instruct the factory to expedite production starting today and ensure delivery within three days. I’ll also compensate you with a sum of money. Is that acceptable?” Estelle proposed.
Mrs. Jones sneered and responded, “Mrs. Hans, you’ve delayed the delivery for four years! The bracelets I ordered were in demand at that time and meant for gifting. But now they are out of fashion. How can I give outdated jewelry to others? Even if you manage to deliver them, I don’t need them anymore. Regarding compensation, do you think I’m short on money?”
“No, you seem quite well-off,” Estelle acknowledged.
Satisfied with Estelle’s response, Mrs. Jones smiled smugly. “So, I won’t accept your proposal.”
“So you’re insisting on us paying the liquidated damages and penalties?” Estelle asked.
“Mrs. Hans, you’re quite amusing. I just mentioned that I’m not in need of money,” Mrs. Jones retorted.
Estelle remained composed and asked, “So, what is it that you’re seeking?”
Mrs. Jones replied, “Due to your delayed delivery, I couldn’t fulfill my promises to friends. You need to compensate me for the damage to my reputation and the mental distress you’ve caused me. Furthermore, you must issue a public apology on the front pages of newspapers.”
Eva, unable to contain herself any longer, interjected, “Mrs. Jones, this is going too far. We’ve already apologized and offered compensation. Why are you demanding a public apology in the newspapers?”
Mrs. Jones, displeased with Eva’s comments, retorted, “Who are you to speak to me like that? Mrs. Hans, is this how your employees often treat your customers? I understand that you’re married to Mr. Hans now and have wealth and power. I simply made a reasonable request. Why is your employee so disrespectful?”
Seeing Mrs. Jones like this, Eva wanted to say something but restrained herself when she saw Estelle signal to her not to say anything more. Looking at Mrs. Jones, Estelle was a little confused. She felt that Mrs. Jones didn’t come to ask for goods or money at all but to take revenge on her.
‘When Mrs. Jones talked to me, her words were full of sarcasm. And she mentioned the relationship between Cristofer and me from time to time as if she was dissatisfied with it. I have never seen Mrs. Jones before, and there is no reason that she holds a grudge against me. Could it be that Cristofer dumped her daughter before, so she came here to vent her anger on me?’
While she was living abroad for four years, she felt really sad because Mr. Mysterious had died, and she didn’t keep up with the news at home. She only knew that Cristofer had been in a relationship with Miss Wilson before.
‘Did Cristofer date another woman before Miss Wilson?’ Estelle wondered. She looked at Eva and tried to ask her silently with her eyes why Mrs. Jones was acting unfriendly. Eva shook her head and shrugged to show she didn’t know either.
Beep! Beep! Beep! Suddenly, Estelle’s phone beeped, and she got a message.
‘Mr. Jones was recently caught having an affair. The woman he was seeing was your age and studied jewelry design, too.’
After reading the message, Estelle was shocked.
Eva asked, “Did Mr. Hans send you that message?”
Estelle nodded with a helpless look. Just as she was about to put away her phone, more messages from Cristofer came.
‘Do you remember what I told you before? If you want to make the customers satisfied, you must know them well, especially what they want. Mrs. Jones was venting her anger with her husband’s mistress to you. Think about what to do to dissolve her anger.’