The morning meeting had not gone well, and returning to AtL in the afternoon only caused Ou Yunchen more headaches.
Mrs. Su had used Lawyer Ma's phone, marking the first argument they had since they began their partnership.
—Ou Yunchen on the phone—
Mrs. Su: "You must give me an explanation. Why did you reject the project Lawyer Ma brought?!"
Ou Yunchen: "I don't like providing guarantees."
Mrs. Su: "You don't like it? Based on what grounds do you dislike it?"
Ou Yunchen: "Based on the fact that I am the CEO of AtL. I have the right to make decisions for AtL!"
Mrs. Su: "Ou Yunchen, have you forgotten something? You are under my protection. AtL was opened with my money. You are merely a professional manager tasked with making money for me!"
Ou Yunchen: "I haven't forgotten. But I must also remind you that this was a partnership from the start, and you also gave me authority."
Mrs. Su: "Authority? Heh, yes, I gave you authority, but I never gave you permission to act on your own!"
Ou Yunchen: "AtL is what I've worked hard to maintain until now. I don't want to see AtL fall into crisis because of excessive guarantees!"
Mrs. Su's voice suddenly rose as she replied, "This is my company! Guarantees bring in returns faster than other projects! I will decide how many guarantees AtL takes!"
Ou Yunchen: "If you are worried about insufficient funds, then I can tell you that AtL has no such concerns at the moment, nor do we rely on guarantees for profit."
"Furthermore, why did you and Lawyer Ma reach an agreement without consulting me beforehand? AtL is still under my final say."
Mrs. Su: "I am the one who controls the ownership of the company. You are just working for me!"
Ou Yunchen: "I'll say it again, we are partners, and AtL is not something you can dispose of as you please."
Mrs. Su: "Exactly! I will develop AtL however I want! Do you understand?"
Ou Yunchen: "I'm not arguing with you. It wasn't like this when we started our partnership, and the contract we signed doesn't say you can act arbitrarily."
Mrs. Su: "You should have known long ago that signing the contract meant accepting all of this."
Ou Yunchen: "I was very sincere at the time..."
Mrs. Su interrupted again.
Mrs. Su: "You defied me, and therefore, your initial sincerity has lost its meaning."
Ou Yunchen, having calmed down, realized that Mrs. Su now perceived him as a threat due to his growing influence. Hence, she was collaborating with Lawyer Ma. Previously, she could only exert pressure indirectly through Lawyer Ma, but now, it was a direct confrontation.
Ou Yunchen: "Do you feel threatened by me?"
Mrs. Su: "By you? You can't threaten me."
Mrs. Su: "Go on vacation."
Ou Yunchen: "Are you terminating our partnership?"
Mrs. Su: "That depends on you."
—End of Ou Yunchen's call—
After hanging up, Mrs. Su was still unable to calm down.
Honestly, Ou Yunchen had almost made her lose her temper, but if Lawyer Ma hadn't been there, she would have found it difficult to maintain her elegant demeanor.
Lawyer Ma: "What did he say?"
Mrs. Su: "If he were smart, he would know not to do things that go against my orders."
Lawyer Ma: "The guarantees will continue, won't they?"
Mrs. Su: "I hope so."
Lawyer Ma: "His power is still too great. We can't have this every time. I feel like soon, he won't even regard you with respect."
Mrs. Su: "How dare he!!!"
Lawyer Ma: "Through AtL, he's already filled his own pockets. Do you think a phone call to get him to sign a project can control his ambition?"
Mrs. Su knew in her heart that without her direct involvement in AtL and without wielding power, everyone in the company listened only to Ou Yunchen. This was equivalent to handing over money, power, and people entirely to Ou Yunchen.
As AtL grew stronger, the outside world recognized Ou Yunchen through AtL, which Mrs. Su saw as an ominous sign!
Lawyer Ma: "We still need to find a way to get Ou Yunchen out."
Mrs. Su: "Do you have a plan?"
Lawyer Ma: "We need to make him make a mistake, then we'll have a legitimate reason to force him out."
Just outside the door, Su Ruiyi was leaning against it, having overheard the entire conversation inside.
Su Ruiyi quickly put down the cat in her arms and was about to send a message to Ou Yunchen on her phone.
Butler: "Miss!!! Why are you upstairs? There's a package for you."
Startled by the butler's call from downstairs, Su Ruiyi dropped her phone. To make matters worse, Mrs. Su and Lawyer Ma inside had also heard the commotion.
The moment the door opened, Su Ruiyi quickly picked up her phone, ready to flee.
Mrs. Su: "Stop right there!!!"
Su Ruiyi slowly turned around, hiding her phone behind her back.
Su Ruiyi: "Mom..."
Mrs. Su: "What are you doing up here?"
Su Ruiyi: "It's... it's Jixiang! She ran off, and I came up to catch her!"
Mrs. Su: "What are you holding?"
Su Ruiyi: "N-nothing..."
Mrs. Su: "Give it to me!"
Su Ruiyi: "It's really nothing..."
Mrs. Su: "Give it here!"
Terrified, Su Ruiyi frantically tapped the screen, hoping to cancel the message she had inadvertently typed.
The phone was handed to Mrs. Su, who glanced at it before returning it to Su Ruiyi.
Mrs. Su: "Butler, bring the package up."
Su Ruiyi quickly retrieved her phone and, with a worried look, saw a message from emmanual. It seemed she had accidentally opened it earlier.
The butler brought up a small box. The address indicated it was shipped from abroad.
The package was opened under everyone's watchful eyes, revealing a pair of Jimmy Choo high heels.
Inside the box was a card with a personal message from emmanual.
"Hope these shoes won't rub your feet,
— From your good friend, emmanual."
A faint smile finally appeared on Mrs. Su's face. It seemed Su Ruiyi had a good relationship with emmanual privately.
Seeing that Mrs. Su was about to ask further questions, Su Ruiyi quickly grabbed the shoebox in one hand and Jixiang in the other and hurried downstairs.