chapter 2
Julian's words, "She's still young and easily swayed by rumors," made me swallow back the words I was about to say.
As a secretary, I really shouldn't clash with my boss's girlfriend.
But as the chairman's daughter, watching him so unbalanced between work and personal matters, I felt only disappointment.
The next morning, I arrived at the company as usual in the family car.
As soon as I sat down at my desk, I heard a familiar voice with deliberate curiosity. "Ms. Murray is impressive, always getting chauffeured in luxury cars every day."
Sofia came to the company again. She leaned against the office doorframe, her gaze fixed on me.
Several colleagues looked up.
I put down my bag and said calmly, "Ms. Jackson, youre not an employee of this company, so my commuting method shouldnt be your concern."
"Why wouldn't it concern me?" she raised her voice slightly, sounding justified. "I'm Julian's girlfriend. If I see behavior that might affect the company's image, shouldn't I have the right to question it?"
Hearing the noise, Julian walked out of the office, frowning slightly. "Sofia, this is a workspace. Please don't disturb the employees."
He turned to me, his expression returning to its usual calm. "Ms. Murray, Im well aware of your character. However, please try to be mindful of the impact in the future to avoid unnecessary misunderstandings."
Sofia was visibly displeased but said nothing more.
Julian's seemingly fair approach made me sneer inwardly.
He had no idea who truly needed to correct their behavior.
After Julian returned to his office, Sofia quickly walked over to my desk.
She lowered her voice, laced with undisguised malice. "Don't think you're so great just because Julian spoke up for you. You're just a secretary, know your place. We'll see."
I didn't respond.
A branch manager's girlfriend talking about "position" in front of the Murray Group heir is truly laughable.
But I just lowered my eyes, hiding all my emotions.
The evaluation isn't over yet, and my identity can't be revealed.
However, the next morning, I discovered that the 7,000-page bid document on my computer was gone, and the recycle bin had been emptied.
This document pertains to the company's most important project for the second half of the year, worth 800 million dollars, and is also a key assessment of Julian's team's execution capabilities.
I walked straight into Julian's office.
Sofia was sitting on the sofa playing with her phone, as if this were her living room.
"Mr. Grant, the bid document was maliciously deleted," I reported directly, my gaze sweeping over Sofia. "Yesterday afternoon, Ms. Jackson stayed alone in the office area for a long time."
Sofia immediately put down her phone, looking aggrieved. "Julian, I was just waiting for you to finish work. How could I possibly touch the company computer? She's slandering me."
Julian looked at me with a serious expression. "Ms. Murray, such accusations require evidence. Are you sure it wasn't a system malfunction?"
I responded coldly, "I'm very sure. Deleting the file might be explained as an accident, but emptying the recycle bin is clearly a deliberate action."
Sofia's eyes suddenly reddened, her acting flawless. "Ms. Murray, I know you like Julian and want to drive me away from him. But you can't use something like this to slander me!"
Julian looked at her but said nothing.
In the end, he said to me, "Try to recover the files first. Without solid evidence, don't accuse anyone recklessly."
I watched him protect Sofia, thought of the seven thousand pages of the bidding proposal, and clenched my fists in anger.
I spoke coldly, "Since you want evidence, why don't I call the police now and investigate whether it was you who deleted it!"
Sofia's face suddenly changed.
Julian stood up and reprimanded, "Enough! The bidding documents were your responsibility to keep, and now that they're gone, it's your fault!"
"Now that the documents are gone, go work overtime immediately and make a new one!"
"If the bid fails, I'll fire you."
Behind him, Sofia gave me a smug smile.
She thought she had won.
But she didn't know she had crossed more than just a secretary's bottom line.