Chapter 30
The Thomas Group, Finance Department.
"Mr. Thomas, don't worry. Ms. Thomas won't be bullied in our department."
Pasty Mink, the Finance Director, was in her early forties with fair skin and gold-rimmed glasses.
She looked sharp and calculating.
At this moment, she was all smiles, respectful yet flattering: "Ms. Thomas is so smart, she'll definitely pick things up quickly."
As Evelyn was praised, Timothy's smile grew wider too.
Though he kept it subtle - only those close to him could tell.
"Don't give her any special treatment. She's here to learn, understand?"
He said politely, then turned and left.
After Timothy left, Pasty's smile vanished instantly: "Go clean the office."
Evelyn froze, turning to look at her: "What did you say?"
"What, hard of hearing? Someone in your condition shouldn't be in finance or working at all. Better yet, go back home and be your little princess."
Pasty had completely dropped the respect and flattery she'd shown Timothy, now full of sarcasm and hostility.
Evelyn had naturally visited the Thomas Group many times before.
But in the past, she'd only come to see Timothy and Matthew, with little contact with other company employees.
Yet Evelyn had always been treated with respect. Even as a subordinate, Pasty shouldn't have this attitude, right?
She narrowed her eyes with a half-smile: "If I don't do well, I can indeed go home and be a rich young lady. But if you don't do well..."
Evelyn paused slightly, watching Pasty's face change color, then laughed.
"I'm afraid you'd have to leave the company. And then, who knows if you could even find another job in Emerald City."
"Besides relying on your family background, what else can you do?"
Meeting Pasty's angry eyes, Evelyn shrugged, completely unfazed.
"Jealous of my background? Too bad you're not that lucky."
"Someone like you could never catch Mr. Thomas's eye!" Pasty's chest heaved with anger. "He would never like you."
Matthew's person?
When Preston had his accident, and no one followed Evelyn's orders, she realized that while the Thomas family seemed to respect her, they actually trusted Matthew more.
This situation was probably even more obvious at the company.
Who told her to say early on that she wouldn't take over the company, and to beg Preston to give the inheritance rights to Matthew?
She was reaping what she'd sown.
But... she had to give it to Matthew to have it.
Now she wasn't giving it anymore.
Evelyn let out a cold laugh, her pretty face turning icy.
"You have a sharp-looking face, but you're incredibly stupid."
"Even if you don't like me, you could've dealt with me behind my back. Doing it openly - do you think I won't tell on you?"
A flash of guilt and panic crossed Pasty's eyes.
According to Matthew, Evelyn was foolish and stubborn.
Evelyn was devoted to him and would never say or do anything to hurt him.
Even if bullied, Evelyn wouldn't complain, but would endure it.
Why did Evelyn seem different from what Matthew had described?
Evelyn caught every expression on her face. She walked to the desk, pulled out a chair, and sat down, her voice soft but chilling.
"Give me this quarter's financial reports. You have five minutes."
Pasty had been at the Thomas Group for years, spending over a decade climbing to this position, yet now she was intimidated by the presence of Evelyn, who was just starting.
Her expression changed several times before she put on a businesslike attitude.
"A new employee wants to see financial reports? That would make all the company rules meaningless."
"You just called me a Thomas family young lady. If I don't use my privilege a bit, wouldn't I be letting down your jealousy?" Evelyn's fingers tapped lightly on the desk. "Four minutes left. You don't want me to ask my dad directly, do you?"
After a few seconds of standoff, Pasty backed down.
She printed out a report from the computer and threw it on the desk: "Look at it yourself. I have things to do, no time to explain it to you."
Having achieved her goal, Evelyn didn't bother with her and picked up the report to study it.
The Thomas Group's reports looked fine on the surface, but since Matthew had such control over people's hearts, how could these reports be problem-free?
Remembering that the Thomas Group and the White Group had a contract to sign, she simply went to the Marketing Department to get the contract and headed to the White Group branch office.
But...
When Chase saw her, he showed neither his previous polite respect nor yesterday's cold hostility.
It was more like a mouse seeing a cat.
She watched his hurried departure, a bit confused. What was going on?
But thinking about what she needed to discuss with Benjamin, she put this aside for now and pushed open the office door.
"Get out!"
"..."
Did Benjamin just yell at her?
Evelyn shrank back. When Benjamin got fierce, she was scared, too.
Getting no response, he looked up to see Evelyn standing at the door, uncertain whether to enter: "What are you doing here?"
The bandage on her forehead wound hadn't been removed yet. Why was she running around everywhere?
Meeting his gloomy expression, Evelyn forced down the urge to turn and flee, walked in with the contract, and put on a flattering smile.
"I started working at the Thomas Group, so I wanted to talk to you about the contract."
He raised an eyebrow but said nothing.
Evelyn steeled herself and walked in, handing over the contract: "Emerald City is a coastal city with a thriving tourism industry. But for various reasons, there's no all-in-one resort with lodging, dining, and entertainment. I heard the White Group is interested in building one, and the Thomas Group wants in too."
Benjamin glanced at the contract in her hand but made no move to take it, just staring at her.
What did that mean?
Under his gaze, she felt guilty and couldn't help adding: "The Thomas Group is fully qualified in all aspects. This isn't really pulling strings, is it?"
She knew to come to him when she needed something. She wasn't stupid.
His expression softened somewhat, but his tone remained cold.
"Will you be personally handling this project?"
The Finance Department taking on Marketing Department work was already overstepping. Going further into project management - wasn't that abusing her privilege a bit too much?
She thought for a moment and immediately shook her head: "No, we'll assign professionals to work with the White Group. We definitely won't let any problems occur with the project."
What she thought was a meticulous work attitude only made Benjamin's coldness intensify.
Was he unhappy?
Evelyn couldn't quite figure out his mood, but she could feel his displeasure.
"About my car accident - how's your investigation going?"
Better to talk about something else first and ease the atmosphere.
"Waiting for Matthew to slip up."
"So you don't have evidence?" She followed up on this, sneaking a glance at him, probing indirectly: "In this situation, if you're pointing the finger directly at him, is there another reason?"
She thought she was hiding her emotions well, but Benjamin, who'd seen all kinds of people at the negotiating table, could easily see through her little thoughts.
He actually laughed in anger: "Of course, there's another reason. My fiancée keeps circling him all day. Is there a problem with me taking it out on him?"
"So he's innocent?"
"Say one more word defending him, and I'll sell you out."