Chapter 176: Kicked an Iron Plate
The corner of Eugene Jennings’s mouth twitched, but he had to admit Arabella Donovan’s concerns were valid.
The way Prescott was glaring at Miss Chamberlain, he looked like he wanted to eat her alive. Had they not been there, he probably would have lost it and attacked her by now.
Although Special Assistant Ford was speaking to Catherine Chamberlain, he snuck a glance at Arabella Donovan out of the corner of his eye. It was clear that he was more concerned with Arabella’s reaction than Catherine’s.
Arabella Donovan shot him a look of profound disappointment. "What are you looking at me for? After being wronged so badly today, Miss Chamberlain might not want to stay at your company and take this manager position."
"Yes, of course..." Special Assistant Ford chuckled and turned to Catherine Chamberlain, speaking with a serious tone. "The general manager reviewed the branch’s financial statements for the past six months and found that you, Miss Chamberlain, have been the top seller every single month. In the last three months especially, you’ve signed nearly half of the store’s deals, and many clients have specifically requested you as their designated representative. Even without today’s incident, the position of store manager is well-deserved."
What Special Assistant Ford said was true. Catherine Chamberlain’s professional competence was undeniable.
She had defended Arabella Donovan against her superior’s pressure, mainly because she had read the company notice carefully and guessed Arabella’s identity.
But even before Arabella revealed her identity with the discount card, she had never treated them differently. Despite the disparaging remarks from Mr. Sterling and his companion, she had remained courteous and respectful throughout.
On that point alone, she was worthy of being the manager.
After speaking, Special Assistant Ford seemed to notice something and glanced at the man glaring furiously nearby, then sneered, "Please rest assured, Miss Chamberlain. Our company highly values and respects a talent like you. As long as you agree to stay on as the branch’s store manager, I guarantee nothing like today’s incident will ever happen again."
To have climbed to the position of special assistant to the general manager at such a young age with no connections, becoming the trusted right-hand man of the company’s heir, Special Assistant Ford was no incompetent fool who only knew how to fly into a powerless rage, unlike some people.
After reviewing the financial reports and the store’s security footage, Prescott’s petty motives were laid bare. It was true he hadn’t seen the company notice and didn’t know Arabella’s identity, but what truly sent him into a rage was Catherine Chamberlain’s repeated defiance.
He had always been wary and resentful of this highly capable subordinate. Catherine’s actions today had struck a nerve, and in his fury, he wanted to use this incident to make an example of her and kick this potential threat to his position out of the store.
Too bad for him, he had just bitten off more than he could chew.
Catherine Chamberlain was still hesitating, but the two young women who had been serving Arabella’s and Mr. Sterling’s parties earlier excitedly gathered around her, whispering, "Catherine, you should stay."
"Yeah, just stay. There are only a few of us in this store. We all know each other; something like this definitely won’t happen again."
Aside from Catherine Chamberlain, the other sales staff in the store were all juniors who had joined within the last year. Even if Catherine didn’t stay, none of them were in a position to take over as store manager.
Rather than wait for headquarters to parachute in a new manager—who could be good or bad—it would be much better for them if Catherine, their senior who always looked out for them, took the step up. Their lives would be much easier.
Catherine Chamberlain met the expectant gazes of everyone in the store, let out a long breath, and nodded with a faint smile. "Thank you for the company’s faith in me. I will continue to work hard."
Special Assistant Ford also breathed a sigh of relief. "Then it’s settled. I’ll have HR prepare the letter of appointment and send it directly to the store."
"Thank you."
With that, it seemed to be a happy ending for everyone. Except...
Arabella Donovan glanced at Prescott and his group, who were still standing there, not having left. The corners of her lips curved up in a meaningful smile as she said, "Since you don’t want to leave, how about you come over and apologize again?"
In an instant, all eyes were on them again.
"What?"
"I wasn’t the only one who got hit today." ’They already hate me as much as they can, so what’s one more thing?’
Catherine Chamberlain whipped her head around to look at Arabella Donovan, her eyes glinting.
Being slapped in front of everyone was undoubtedly humiliating and painful. It would be a lie to say she didn’t care at all. But she also knew she was powerless, with no influence, and couldn’t get justice for herself, so she could only endure it for now.
She never expected that this customer with an extraordinary background would actually stand up for her.
Mr. Wagner was the first to react. Seeing Prescott just standing there, dumbfounded and silent, he was so furious he couldn’t stop himself from kicking him in the leg.
"Apologize already!"
Veins bulged on Prescott’s forehead, but he was outmatched by the situation. He gritted his teeth and forced out, "I’m sorry."
Catherine Chamberlain stared at him with a cold expression, offering no response.
Just then, another commotion erupted outside the store.
"The police! The police are here."
Special Assistant Ford’s expression changed as well. "The police? Who called them?"
Everyone in the store looked at each other, clearly having nothing to do with it.
Mrs. Prescott’s eyes darted around, and then she suddenly burst into loud wails. "There’s no justice in this world! Just because she has a powerful background, she can hit people, get my husband fired, and even press charges against him! How is that fair? You’re trying to drive us to our deaths!"
A subtle expression flickered across Prescott’s face for a moment, but then his eyes turned cold and a vicious glint appeared in them.
It’s true what they say: they were two of a kind. While Mrs. Prescott was certainly ignorant of the law, she was well-versed in the modern social phenomenon of ’he who shouts loudest is in the right.’
’He’d already been fired, and the company was going to hold him accountable and make him pay compensation. Just as his wife said, he’d been backed into a corner. Why should he let anyone else have an easy time?’
’It was true that he started the physical confrontation in the store, but he hadn’t hit Arabella Donovan at first. She, however, had hit him. If they were really going to get into the details, there was plenty to argue about!’
Realizing this, Zack Prescott decisively shot a look at Mr. Sterling and his companion.
The two of them froze for a second but reacted quickly. Mr. Sterling’s young mistress, in particular, could cry on cue.
"What can we do? She’s got a powerful background and strong connections. How can us common folk ever win against the powerful? Forget her hitting people today—even if she committed murder and arson, no one could do a thing to her! The heavens are blind!"
The onlookers were speechless. ’Wait a minute,’ they thought, ’weren’t these the same people calling others ’lowlifes’ just a moment ago? And now they’re ’common folk’? Are they chameleons or something?’
Although he knew he was in the right, as a young college student who hadn’t seen much of the world, Eugene Jennings couldn’t help but tense up at the word "police." When he heard Mrs. Prescott and the others completely twisting the facts, he got so angry he rolled up his sleeves and was about to charge forward, when he heard the person beside him let out an exclamation.
"Ooh~"
Eugene Jennings: "???"
"Cousin."
Eugene Jennings: "!!!"