Chapter 113
James called the police, and that finally dispersed the troublemakers downstairs.
William didn't go home that night. He just slept in the office lounge - he was alone either way.
It was destined to be a restless night.
On the other side of the world in Lumaria, where it was daytime, SWAN's press conference was in full swing.
William received a video James shared while he was still lying awake. Now he definitely couldn't sleep.
In the video, Swan Company presented Lolly's old manuscripts with detailed explanations. Each of Lolly's designs had a letter on the clasp of the chain link - you couldn't see it unless you looked carefully.
A staff member showed everyone through a magnifying glass on camera - clearly an "L".
After showing Lolly's past works, Swan Company brought out a printout of the manuscript Sarah had posted on X and magnified it. Same "L". They asked mockingly, "Is the Morgan Group's chief designer proving herself guilty?"
The evidence was solid. Sarah was now nailed to the pillar of shame for plagiarism.
William turned off his phone and lit a cigarette.
He wasn't worried about public opinion. Right now, he was annoyed with himself for misjudging someone. Sarah had played him for a fool, and played the entire Morgan Group for fools. The last person who dared to do that had been gone for a long time.
He had trusted her so much. When the entire internet was supporting Lolly, he hadn't doubted Sarah for a second.
Reality had slapped him hard in the face.
He opened the window. Cold wind rushed in, making his mind unusually clear.
When his cigarette burned out, he picked up his phone and called Sarah. She answered quickly.
"William, why are you calling at this hour? Can't sleep? Do you need me to keep you company?"
A flash of anger crossed William's eyes. His voice was as cold as deep-sea ice.
"Sarah, why did you plagiarize?"
He couldn't understand why she would destroy her own future. As a designer, she should know better than anyone what's taboo in this industry. He was even more curious about where she got Lolly's original design manuscript. His mind was full of questions.
The design manuscript Sarah posted on X - the paper quality, the pen strokes, everything matched exactly with the historical Lolly manuscripts Swan Company had displayed.
He wanted to believe her and defend her, but found there was no way to argue. The facts were right in front of him. He couldn't call a deer a horse.
After a few seconds of silence, Sarah answered,
"I didn't. The Eternity Pendant was my own design. William, why don't you believe me?"
William's brow furrowed. Even at this point, she was still lying, still refusing to admit her plagiarism.
He hung up and immediately contacted James, telling him to draft an apology letter right now. Swan Company had held two press conferences to publicly condemn them - clearly, they weren't planning to let this go easily.
The Morgan Group had been unfairly dragged into this dirty plagiarism scandal by Sarah. The Morgan Group's century-old reputation couldn't be destroyed - that was three generations of the Morgan family's hard work.
At this point, they could only sacrifice the pawn to save the king. Sacrificing Sarah was inevitable.
William made up his mind.
It was late at night, but plenty of night owl internet users had already seen the video of Swan's press conference. The Morgan Group's official account was flooded with angry comments.
And this was just the beginning.
The next day, the Morgan Group's stock continued to plummet at opening, causing the shareholders' blood pressure to collectively spike.
Soon, everyone saw the apology letter posted at 5 AM on the official website:
[Dear Morgan Group customers, fans, and friends who have followed and supported the Morgan Group, good morning. Our company's management made a hiring mistake that hurt our fans' feelings. We apologize to everyone.
We solemnly declare that the Morgan Group's chief designer Sarah Brown's plagiarism was her own decision. We had no knowledge of this terrible behavior. She has seriously violated our company regulations and has been fired.
None of Sarah's actions has anything to do with our company. If anyone continues to damage the Morgan Group's reputation because of Sarah Brown's foolish behavior, we will take legal action.
Thank you for your understanding.]
When people saw this apology letter, they strongly approved of the CEO's approach.
Those shareholders had long been fed up with this plagiarism-addicted chief designer. Because of William's special personal relationship with her, everyone had been angry but afraid to speak up.
This time, seeing the official statement that she'd been fired and that the company had completely distanced itself from the plagiarism scandal, they couldn't be happier.
It was truly satisfying.
The stock drop hurt, but getting rid of that troublemaker made everyone feel good. With the Morgan Group's capabilities, as long as they didn't make fundamental mistakes, they believed the fallen stock price would quickly recover.
On the company's internal network, employees were discussing heatedly.
Since it was such a sensitive topic, no one dared use their real ID. Everyone posted anonymously.
[Mr. Morgan is wise. That troublemaker should have been kicked out long ago. The Morgan Group has a bright future after this scandal.]
[Never seen someone prove their innocence like this. @Sarah Brown, are you proving your own plagiarism? Hahaha]
[Still making excuses at death's door. @Sarah Brown, do you dare to copy but not admit it? From now on, we'll call you Chief Plagiarism Officer. After all, each work you copy is more impressive than the last. You even got your hands on Lolly's unpublished original manuscript. Tell us, did you hire a spy?]
Sarah got up as usual and put on careful makeup.
These past few days, Ava seemed to have quit. She'd even turned in her work card to HR. Without that woman in the office, Sarah felt especially comfortable.
She made herself breakfast in the morning and also prepared an elaborate love lunch box.
Looking at the heart-shaped fried egg, she imagined William sitting at his desk, looking delighted. During those years abroad, she couldn't cook and ate hamburgers three meals a day.
After a while, she ruined her stomach.
Back then, he felt so bad for her. Once, he even flew over specially to teach her how to make scrambled eggs.
In his eyes, she was a little girl who couldn't do anything and needed to be taken care of.
Now she wanted to show him her growth. She could make beautiful lunches and could definitely fulfill a wife's role. Definitely no worse than Ava.
Sarah packed the lunch box in an insulated bag, changed into a professional pencil skirt, put on high heels, and went out looking great. She knew nothing about yesterday's news and hadn't even seen the new statement on the Morgan Group's official website.
She parked her car, her high heels clicking confidently.
At the elevator entrance, many people were waiting, chatting about some fresh topic.
When Sarah appeared, the chatter stopped abruptly.
She tossed her hair, looking smug. Her eyes swept over the employee elevator with a hint of contempt.
She carried her insulated bag straight to the CEO's private elevator and entered the password she knew by heart. But after entering the password, the elevator still wouldn't open. She tried several more times, but the elevator remained firmly shut.
A bad feeling welled up inside her.
The employee elevator next door had already opened. She turned and went to the employee elevator, thinking she'd go up and ask James if he'd changed the password without telling her.