Chapter 142
We brought Robert back home.
He'd been in the hospital for less than a month, yet the entire villa felt so much emptier without him there.
As soon as the car stopped, the butler quickly brought over the prepared wheelchair. He and William helped Robert into it and wheeled him into the room.
Robert looked around curiously at the big house, but there was no relaxed smile on his face. He turned his head with difficulty, as though searching for something.
William bent down and said with a smile, "Dad, now that you're home, just rest and focus on getting better. We'll come see you every day."
Robert turned to look at Oscar and me. "You're not living here?"
William quickly replied, "They live right next door, very close by. They can come over after work. They're both here, so you won't be alone."
Robert nodded and pointed upstairs with his one hand that could still move. "I want them to stay with me."
Grace stepped forward with a big smile on her face. "You're afraid of being lonely. I was the one taking care of you at the hospital. I'm worried you won't adjust to being back, so I'll move in temporarily and stay with you for a while."
Grace and William's intentions were obvious—they were afraid Oscar and I would get too close to Robert, so they wanted to make sure we never had a chance to be alone with him.
But the will had already taken effect. Unless Robert regained full lucidity and made a new one, all their scheming was completely pointless.
Oscar didn't bother competing with them over it. After making the necessary arrangements, he quickly left with me. We each went to work at our companies. They had time to waste scheming over that pitiful inheritance, but we didn't.
As Christmas approached, both the SoftGlow Biotech Research Institute and the SoftGlow Biotech Cosmetic Surgery Hospital opened for business. At the same time, SoftGlow Biotech's products were launched online through an app developed by the company. The spokesperson was the late Jeremy.
In the promotional video, Jeremy wore flawless makeup and a bright, clean smile, delivering the ad lines smoothly and naturally. Every expression of his was displayed on big screens across various cities.
In fact, when the company was looking for a spokesperson, the marketing department had approached Jeremy. Despite his agent's objections, he accepted this job even though he never did makeup or cosmetics endorsements. But he only managed to shoot one set of photos and videos before everything that followed happened.
Because of Jeremy, SoftGlow Biotech appeared in all the headlines.
#Jeremy's Last Endorsement
#Jeremy Endorsement
#Jeremy Fans Boosting Sales
#SoftGlow Biotech
[I'm literally crying. I can't believe that two months after Jeremy's passing, we can still see new content of him.]
[Does anyone else remember? He was such a positive person and always so restrained in both public and private—how could he possibly have fallen from a building while drunk?]
[I thought the whole world had forgotten him. A while ago, you couldn't even type his name. I'm going to cry. Jeremy, rest in peace. Your fans are still here.]
[Let's boost the sales. If the whole world wants us to forget, we'll show the whole world that wherever he is, his fans will always support him.]
[I bought this product before. The price is a bit high, but the results are really good. I trust Jeremy's character. The products he endorses are always high quality. I'm stocking up. For Jeremy, go SoftGlow Biotech.]
[Let's show these capitalists what a real A-lister is—even in his absence, he's still loved.]
We took the high-end international route with a professional R&D team. Our products were definitely as good as any famous brand. Within thirty minutes of going online, everything was sold out.
Benjamin's call came quickly. "Jeremy is already dead, and your company is still using his image for marketing—isn't that inappropriate? He was our company's artist. How come we didn't receive any advance notice?"
My voice carried a smile. "Mr. White, the contract was signed while Jeremy was alive. Our company has already transferred the payment to your company's account according to the contract. Of course we can release this ad."
Benjamin's voice had a hint of amusement. "I suggest you take it down. It's unlucky. Our company will pay the penalty fee."
"I don't think we can take it down now. Because of Jeremy's endorsement, all our inventory is gone. Christmas is coming, and the factory still has to rush production. I should actually thank you—your company's top artist has a very strong influence."
Benjamin paused, his emotions seeming stable. "But if you do this, our company will be caught up in public opinion again."
I laughed lightly. "Then I'm afraid your company's PR team will have to work hard. There's nothing I can do to help with that."
Seeming to realize this wouldn't convince me, Benjamin's voice grew colder. "Ms. Wilson, although we've never managed to work together, in business, having more friends means more options. You understand what I'm trying to say, right?"
I raised an eyebrow slightly, casually admiring my perfectly manicured nails. "Mr. White and I are certainly friends. Although we haven't worked together directly, haven't you already reached a preliminary agreement with Mr. Johnson? I heard Mr. Johnson mention it just yesterday. If you don't think that counts as friendship, then I have nothing to say."
Benjamin quickly changed his tone. "You're misunderstanding me again. The main thing is Jeremy has too many obsessive fans who keep posting negative topics. Never mind, this is really an internal matter for my company. We've handled it before, and we can handle it now. Congratulations on your grand opening."
I smiled in response. "Thank you, Mr. White. Although you couldn't be here in person, I received the opening gift you sent. Let's have coffee together when you're free. I have other things to handle, so let's leave it at that."
After hanging up, my smile gradually faded. He was still trying to use extreme measures to suppress public opinion. This time, I'm afraid he's going to be disappointed.
I pulled open my desk drawer. A small USB drive lay quietly inside. The drive contained all the footage from the club after I left.
Recovering those videos had taken a great deal of effort after I gained access to their surveillance system. Clubs generally don't install cameras indoors, but some people have special habits—like Benjamin. In the room where he conducted his dirty deals, he had secretly recorded various videos to use later as leverage and blackmail.
Of course, I wouldn't be stupid enough to hand these over to the police. Sometimes, loud enough public opinion is what pushes the law to be fair and just. Once the truth can no longer be covered up, Benjamin and those bad people will get the punishment they deserve.
That day won't be too far off.
While things were going great for me, Gregory's side wasn't going so well.
At least on Christmas Eve, he didn't come home.