Chapter 401 Apology
William grabbed Mary just as she was about to turn back and said with a grin, "Tell 'em what? I'm already broke. Saying that just tells 'em I'm still a loser. Forget it, we've been through worse. I don't care."
Mary looked at William with a pout, holding his hand, and said, "William, I hate seeing you treated like this."
"It's cool. Go on, they're all waiting for you, the big-shot businesswoman," William said, tapping Mary's nose and smiling.
Mary rolled her eyes playfully and said, "I'm just your wife. If it weren't for you, I'd be just another worker bee."
William didn't say anything, just kept making tea, then carried the cup into the living room.
He walked in just as the relatives were chatting about BK Pharmaceuticals.
Ragnar's son, Solon, sipping his tea, asked with a smirk, "Mary, I heard your company got some cash from Crescent Investment Group?"
Before Mary could answer, Margaret butted in excitedly, "Yep, Crescent Investment Group invested billions in Mary's company. It's gonna be in the Fortune Global 500 soon! Mary's gonna be a billionaire."
"Yeah, I heard that too. Margaret, what's the deal with this company? Such a big investment, do their CEO have a thing for Mary?" Delia guessed.
"Right, I heard the CEO is some young guy in his twenties, worth hundreds of billions, all personal assets!" Hazel added.
As they spoke, their faces lit up with pride, feeling all high and mighty being related to Margaret. Crescent Investment Group was the talk of the town lately.
With such a big partnership, the future looked bright!
Mary was on her way to becoming a billionaire!
They had to get close to Mary fast, after all, they were family, and there'd be plenty of perks.
Margaret was basking in the attention, even outshining Ragnar.
She said proudly, "Oh, these are small matters. If the CEO really likes Mary, I'd be thrilled for her to remarry."
A relative chimed in, "If I were a few decades younger, I'd definitely go after him!"
"It's different now. Mary will be a billionaire, only a CEO like him is worthy of her," someone complimented.
"Some people just don't measure up, a useless bum, really disgraceful," a voice scoffed.
Everyone was praising Mary while trashing William, who sat quietly.
The room was filled with nasty sarcasm.
Margaret was over the moon, never feeling so proud. She then glanced at the grim-faced William with disdain.
William was all talk and no action. Margaret thought he had money and she could benefit from it, but who knew he went bankrupt!
He was destined for a life of poverty!
If the young CEO of Crescent Investment Group really liked Mary, Margaret would be all for it.
The gossiping old woman started grilling Mary, "Mary, do you know the CEO of Crescent Investment Group? I heard he's a looker. You must have met him. What's he like?"
William listened silently, feeling helpless.
A bunch of relatives were heatedly discussing the young CEO of Crescent Investment Group, clueless that the CEO was right there, being mocked by them.
Mary smiled awkwardly, looking at these hypocritical relatives, not sure what to say.
"Sorry, I haven't met him either," Mary said, tucking a strand of hair behind her ear.
Everyone was stunned, especially Margaret, who muttered, "You haven't met him? That's odd. Is he that mysterious?"
"Makes sense. Such a rich guy must be low-key," a woman chimed in.
"Yeah, Mary, you gotta be on your toes. You gotta seize the opportunity," someone said, almost blatantly suggesting she should get close to him.
Mary frowned at this, glancing at William sitting in the corner.
Worried that William might get the wrong idea, she quickly said, "Don't say that. We're just doing business, nothing more."
Margaret cut her off, "What do you mean? Mary, you gotta hold on to a guy like that. He's wealthy. Even if you're not into him, at least get more investment from him."
Margaret had it all figured out. Even if Mary didn't like the dude, more cash was always a win.
She didn't buy that the CEO would invest in Mary's company for no reason.
Just then, Chloe walked in, looking like she'd had a rough day. Business was tough, and money was tight, keeping her super busy.
Chloe's face was sour as she entered, clearly unhappy, and she tossed her bag onto the sofa.
Everyone could see she was in a bad mood.
Inigo, with a cheeky smile, approached and asked, "Babe, what's wrong? Still worried about the company?"
As he spoke, he handed Chloe the tea that William had brought.
Chloe took a sip, pulled out a gift, and handed it to Ragnar, saying, "Grandpa, happy birthday."
Ragnar happily accepted it and handed her an envelope stuffed with cash, saying, "Good. You're so thoughtful."
Inigo's eyes were glued to the envelope, clearly scheming.
Chloe sat down and sighed, "The company's short on funds right now. I can't do anything about it."
The Kipling family's faces fell.
This issue had been bugging them for a while.
Alexis kept giving Solon looks, and Solon finally said, "Mary, I know you're the chairwoman now, and your company's doing well. My company's having some funding issues. Can you lend me ten million dollars to tide us over?"
Suddenly, the living room went dead silent.
Those not involved pretended to be indifferent, while Margaret's family felt like they were sitting on pins and needles.
Mary said, "Solon, I'm really sorry. I don't have that kind of money. Even though I'm the chairwoman, I’m still on a salary."
The Kipling family's faces changed completely.
They had invited Margaret's family over today for this very reason.
Chloe, looking frustrated, stood up to leave, saying, "Dad, she definitely won't help us. Think about it, what kind of relationship do we have with her? We're not even close relatives. Why would she help us? Fine, I'm going back to the company."
Solon, face red, continued to look at Mary and said, "Mary, I've looked into your company, and I know you have money now. Can you divert some funds to help us? Don't worry, I'll have Chloe repay you soon."
Upon hearing this, Margaret immediately refused firmly, "What? You want my daughter to misappropriate company funds? No way! Absolutely not!"
Solon quickly explained, "Margaret, please, if we don't get this money, we'll go bankrupt!"
Solon had tried everything and was desperate.
Margaret firmly said, "No way."
Solon turned to Mary, who also looked helpless, saying, "Solon, I really can't help with this. It's illegal."
Chloe stomped her foot and glared at Mary, saying, "If you won't help, then don't. Stop pretending. Do you really think you're so great just because you're the chairwoman? Maybe you got there through some shady means. Dad, stop begging her. I'll handle it myself."
Her words were almost slanderous.
Inigo seized the opportunity and sneered, "Definitely through shady means. What a slut! How else could she become the chairwoman?"
Suddenly, a discordant voice rang out.
"What if I can help you?"
William, with a cold expression, stood up and said, "But I have a condition: you and Chloe must get down on your knees and apologize to Mary for what you just said."
No one expected William to stand up for Mary at this moment, and they all turned to look at him like he was nuts.
Log in with Google Account
Chapters
Favorite
Settings
