Chapter 172 Two-Faced
Seeing Leopold's attitude softening and clearly having complaints about Preston's actions, Victor knew that as long as he could grab hold of his weakness, he could use him to achieve his goals.
"Leopold, listen to me. There's no overnight grudge between father and son. Tomorrow, just apologize to your dad. Once he calms down, we directors will put in a few good words for you, and you'll be back at the company. What's yours will still be yours; what you should manage, you'll still manage. As for the rest, you're all family—don't worry about it too much."
Victor's seemingly conciliatory words were actually adding fuel to the fire. He wanted to stir up Leopold's rebellious psychology. Once resentment took root, it's not easy to get rid of.
If Leopold wanted to move up, they were his only option.
So in the end, it was still a psychological game.
Leopold lowered his eyes, playing with his teacup thoughtfully. After a moment, he said,
"I didn't do anything wrong, so why should I apologize? He listens to those people's nonsense all day long and never thinks about how much I've contributed to the company. Without me, several of those projects would have failed long ago. Now look—not only does he want to take away my hotel, but he's also handing over the projects I worked so hard on to someone else." He laughed contemptuously. "No wonder everyone says he's getting old. I think so too—he's pretty confused."
Victor seemed very satisfied with his honest thoughts. Human nature gets darker the more you dig.
"Leopold, so what do you want to do?"
Leopold lit a cigarette, lifted his eyelids, slowly exhaled smoke, and looked coldly at Victor, saying, "What's mine, give it back to me. That's all."
Victor's face remained calm. Based on his judgment, Leopold definitely had issues with Preston now, feeling he'd been treated unfairly. But the father-son bond made Leopold hesitant, not daring to covet too much of what didn't belong to him.
For now, Leopold just wanted to get back what belonged to him—consistent with his attitude all along.
They could try giving him benefits first. Once someone's appetite opens up, greed knows no bounds.
Victor said, "Since you don't want to apologize, I'll have to step in and plead for you."
"No need. My dad will come looking for me." Leopold replied with certainty.
Victor's expression relaxed slightly, a hint of mockery at the corner of his mouth. "You sure about that?"
Leopold frowned, doubt creeping in. "What do you know?"
Noticing his anxious look, Victor felt even more certain that Leopold would become a pawn in his hand.
"Yesterday, Mr. Preston Wipere sent people to several other hotels you managed."
Leopold asked suspiciously, "What do you mean?"
Victor said, "Internal audit. They're probably checking your accounts."
"Checking on me?" Leopold couldn't believe it. "Why?"
Victor said, "Isn't it simple? The best way to get rid of someone is to find their mistakes."
Leopold was stunned for a few seconds, looking like he couldn't understand. He instinctively reached for his teacup, bringing it to his lips only to find it empty. The next second, Victor poured him fresh tea, gripping his shoulder and saying, "Don't worry, I've got you. I've already sent people to follow them, to prevent them from tampering with anything."
Leopold slowly raised his head, paused, and said, "Thank you, Mr. Diaz."
"No need to be polite with me. I just appreciate that you're talented. The company needs people like you." Victor patted his shoulder comfortingly. "Not only is your dad getting old, but I'm also getting old too. Before I retire, I hope to support someone who can develop and grow the company."
Leopold said guiltily, "Mr. Diaz, I've been misunderstanding you all along."
Victor waved dismissively, smiling, "It's fine. Misunderstandings are good once they're cleared up. Why isn't Kenna back yet?"
Leopold was obviously distracted now, his mind on how to deal with Preston. "Let me go check."
Victor said, "No need. She should be back soon."
As soon as he finished speaking, the private room door was pushed open from outside. Kenna came in smiling, saying, "Gastronomy Royale's business is really good. The front desk manager just told me all the private rooms are fully booked, so the kitchen's a bit slow. He kept apologizing and even added a complimentary dish for us."
The servers came right after to bring the food, and soon everything they'd ordered was on the table.
Kenna got up to pour wine for Leopold, who said, "Let's skip the alcohol today. I drove here."
"Mr. Wipere, I've already arranged for a designated driver. You and Mr. Diaz should have a drink." Kenna smiled charmingly, her eyes sparkling with an alluring light that any man could read.
Leopold politely declined. Though speaking to Kenna, he looked at Victor. "Let's drink another time. Today's really not convenient—I need to pick up my wife from work."
Victor smiled and said, "Forget it then. The man needs to pick up his wife, don't make it hard for him. Besides, Mr. Wipere said you'll drink next time."
Kenna's voice was soft and sweet. "Alright then, but next time, Mr. Wipere can't back out."
Though Kenna sat two seats away at the table, the curve of the round table still gave a view of her beautiful legs.
Her outfit today seemed business-like but was actually full of subtle tricks.
The white short-sleeved top was modest in front, but the back exposed a large area of smooth skin. The skirt went past her knees, but when she sat down, the hem rode up, her legs impossible to look away from.
In many situations, women like Kenna were needed for business entertainment and socializing. But in Leopold's rules, he told Lily from day one that any business partners who required her to discuss matters at drinking parties were not to be entertained, and he didn't allow her to participate in such gatherings. Hotels managed by Leopold didn't allow female employees to participate in drinking entertainment—this was an unwritten rule.
That's why many female employees were willing to work at hotels Leopold managed—no worries at all.
Before the meal ended, Kenna proactively took out her phone to add Leopold on WhatsApp. To avoid making Victor suspicious, he added her.
When Caroline came out of her office, Leopold's car had already been waiting at the entrance for over forty minutes.
She opened the car door and got in. Leopold handed her a cold drink. Caroline took it, drank a sip first, then leaned over and kissed Leopold on the cheek.
Leopold smiled. "A cold drink for a kiss—I got the better deal."
Caroline caught what seemed like a smell of alcohol on him. "Did you drink?"
Leopold quickly denied it. "No, I attended a lunch meeting. They were drinking."
Caroline narrowed her eyes. "Were there any women there?"
Leopold started the car. "Of course there were. Who'd go if there weren't?"
Caroline poked his shoulder with her finger. "Tell me, what was the woman like?"
Leopold smiled. "What do you think?"
"How would I know?"
Leopold said, "Let me put it this way—she's totally two-faced."