Chapter 420 Colleagues Deceiving Each Other
Chapter 420 Colleagues Deceiving Each Other
Driven by sheer determination, Jacob decided to have Ashley's perfume re-evaluated. The results came back, and sure enough, there was a problem!
Meanwhile, the perfumer was still MIA. Not only was he missing, but it turned out he was a total fraud, pretending to be a top-tier perfumer. The real international top-tier perfumer was named William, while this imposter went by Wilhelm, a name with just a slight pronunciation difference.
These kinds of low-level scams were pretty common locally and had been exposed many times before. But using this kind of impersonation for an international perfumer was a first.
The scam was simple and could be easily uncovered with a bit of scrutiny. But Virgil was confident, having relied on connections and spent a considerable amount of money to secure this perfumer. Seeing a blonde, blue-eyed foreigner only reinforced his belief.
A quick online search revealed numerous awards and accolades attributed to this perfumer, but without corresponding photos, Virgil didn't suspect anything and went ahead with the hire.
Wilhelm only had basic perfuming skills, which typically wouldn't be harmful. However, for some reason, he added prohibited substances this time, causing a major issue.
Recently, the perfume division of the Redwood Group had its license revoked for inspection and regulation by the relevant authorities. This was no longer just an internal company matter. With the situation escalating, even if Jacob wanted to protect Virgil, it wouldn't be easy.
"Ruby, you gotta think of something. Virgil can't go to jail!" Jacob was desperate. He initially thought the issue could be contained within the company, with some market compensation and appeasement. But the situation had spiraled out of control.
"If he can't go to jail, then why don't you go, Dad? Someone has to take the fall," Ruby said calmly, looking at the pile of documents in front of her.
She was well aware of the recent events but chose not to get involved. She knew about Jacob's outburst and how he had hit Ava, and now he was pleading for help.
"Ruby, what are you saying? I can't go to jail!" Jacob was shocked.
"You don't want to, and Virgil can't either. So, should I take the blame?" She looked up, half-jokingly.
Jacob hesitated for two seconds.
Though he didn't speak, his hesitation revealed his attitude. When it came to Virgil or himself, he outright refused. But when it was her, he hesitated, considering it a viable option.
Ruby knew the outcome but still smiled self-deprecatingly. What was there to expect?
"Dad, the media can be handled with a public apology, compensation, and a clear stance from the company. But the real trouble is with the court. If not handled properly, it won't just be the perfume division; the entire Redwood Group could be at risk."
Ruby's analysis was always calm and logical. Jacob said, "I know, but what can we do?"
"There is a way," Ruby smiled and said, "It doesn't necessarily have to be one of us taking the fall."
"What do you mean?" Jacob asked.
"The perfumer is missing, right? Since he's missing, there's no way to verify. Maybe he was following someone's orders to sabotage our company. If we dig into this, we might find that we're the victims."
Jacob's eyes lit up as he understood, "Yes, yes, we're victims too. But who would have ordered the perfumer?"
"Our company is big and has many enemies. Since we deal in perfumes, it's likely a competitor."
"A competitor?"
"Dad, it's industry rivalry."
Due to the recent major incident at the Redwood Group, the Fragrance Association was also investigating the addition of prohibited substances in perfumes, temporarily setting aside Ruby's case.
Evelyn initially thought the matter might just fade away, given its complexity.
Professional certification wasn't internationally recognized, and the domestic industry association's rules were somewhat absurd. Saying one couldn't be a perfumer without this certification was ridiculous.
Being a perfumer required talent, not just hard work. And talent was the most elusive thing. There weren't many talented individuals, and to stifle those who stood out for such reasons was unreasonable.
Because of this, Evelyn hadn't bothered to get the certification. The theoretical knowledge was often useless in practice, just formalities.
But she hadn't expected someone to take this matter seriously.
Led by Dylan, about thirty perfumers had signed a petition listing her alleged crimes, demanding that the industry ban her from being a perfumer.
Seeing the petition, she was stunned.
She wasn't scared, just found it amusing.
She didn't recognize many of the names, having never met these people. Most were from the industry association, and now they wanted to ban her from being a perfumer.
On what grounds?
The petition didn't gain much traction but quickly topped the trending list, even surpassing the Redwood Group's scandal. It was clear someone had bought the traffic.
What kind of deep-seated hatred did the industry association have against her to go to such lengths?
Evelyn lay under the flower arch, sipping coffee and leisurely scrolling through her phone, quite relaxed.
"Evelyn, they're trying to ban you," Laura said, also finding it amusing. "On what grounds? How will they ban you, shut down our studio, and stop you from being a perfumer?"
"Maybe they'll unite other companies to stop buying my products," Evelyn mused.
"That's ridiculous. They should consider who backs you—the entire Seraphian Group! The nation's largest beauty conglomerate. With Seraphian Group's support, even if smaller companies don't buy, so what?" Laura found their naivety amusing.