Chapter 148 My Sister is Smart and Capable
Edward's slap left Erica stunned.
She looked at Edward in disbelief, her eyes red. "Edward, you actually hit me? You hit me for Susanna!"
Erica never expected this outcome!
Edward's expression was serious, his cold eyes fixed on Erica. "Erica, as the heiress of the Jones family, how could you be so vicious? What happened to all those years of etiquette training?"
He had thought Erica had discovered Susanna's identity.
Now, it seemed she had misunderstood Susanna's relationship with Austin and Justin. But even so, Edward wouldn't allow her to speak about Susanna that way.
Erica said aggrievedly, "Edward, I only said that because I was angry. Besides, I wasn't wrong."
"Shut up! You tampered with the last competition too, didn't you? Erica, from today on, you are not allowed to interfere with any of the Jones family business affairs! If I find out you tamper again, I'll cut off your credit card," Edward said sternly.
"Edward, you can't do this to me."
Hearing that her credit card would be cut off, Erica panicked and feared of being nobody in the high-class social circles without money.
Edward flung Erica's hand away, his tone severe. "Erica, you should know my bottom line. Your repeated interference with the business in company is unacceptable to me."
"Edward, I know I was wrong. Please forgive me this once," Erica pleaded.
Edward handed Erica the agreement to terminate the adoption, uttering, "Take a week to mull it over. You're free to request anything reasonable."
Erica looked at the agreement in her hand, a hint of sarcasm in her eyes, and turned to leave the office.
Clutching the agreement tightly, she walked into the elevator. Her assistant asked, "Miss Jones, what's wrong?"
"The Jones family has been using me to look after Charlotte Jones for years. And now, when they think I'm no longer useful, they want to push me aside! It's not going to be that simple!" Erica said.
Erica wiped away her tears, thinking, 'I would never leave the Jones family so easily. Susanna had a real knack for manipulating people. After stirring things up with Austin, even Edward found himself defending me.'
At this moment, outside the office building.
Originally, Susanna had planned to leave due to all the commotion. There were experts at Silverpeak Group, and she didn't want to cause Arthur any trouble.
Just then, a middle-aged man hurriedly approached her. "Mrs. Miller, I've investigated the demolition compensation issue. It was a mistake on the finance side, and the money has now been transferred. I apologize for the error and ask for your forgiveness."
Susanna recognized the man as the person in charge of the demolition project. She had looked up his information and photo in the company's internal system.
It seemed her earlier tactic had worked.
Susanna feigned indifference. "I need to make a call to verify."
"Of course."
Susanna turned and called Madison. "Aunt Madison, did you receive a notification about the money transfer?"
"Let me check. Yes, it just came through. Susanna, how did you manage that?" Madison replied.
"I found the person in charge here, and they checked that it was a small issue on the finance side. It's all resolved now."
After hanging up, Susanna looked back at the person in charge, feeling that his attitude was overly respectful.
Could it be that this manager had been scolded?
Susanna kept a stern face. "Alright, since the money has been transferred, I won't pursue this further."
"Thank you, Mrs. Miller. I apologize again."
The manager of the demolition department kept apologizing. Not long after, Erica's voice came from nearby, "How pathetic!"
Susanna looked up to see Erica strutting out of the elevator. She replied calmly, "At least he knows how to correct his mistakes."
"Susanna, don't think that just because you pulled a little trick today, you've won," Erica said.
"Not bad, at least I achieved my goal."
Susanna looked at Erica. "If you attempt any more sneaky tactics in the future, trust me, it won't just be audio recordings that get released, but video as well. You should be thankful I spared some of your dignity."
Erica was furious about Susanna's speaking, stating, "Susanna, I underestimated your talent for manipulating men. You even managed to find a hacker to carry out illegal activities for you."
Susanna smirked, "I don't understand what you're talking about. You need evidence to back up your words. Can you prove that I did what happened earlier?"
Susanna wasn't stupid; she would never admit it.
Erica retorted, "You just admitted to the video and audio."
"Did I? I was just speaking offhand. Miss Jones, did you really admit that the person in the audio was you?"
Of course, Erica wouldn't admit it.
But earlier in Edward's office, she had already been scolded by Edward. After all, he wasn't easily fooled.
Susanna raised an eyebrow. "Miss Jones, if you have nothing more to add, I'll be taking my leave. Goodbye."
She turned and left the group decisively.
Erica stomped her foot in anger, shouting, "Susanna, you just wait!"
Not long after, the exclusive elevator opened, and Edward walked out, but Susanna was nowhere to be seen.
'Where is she?' Edward wondered.
Edward's assistant spoke up, "Boss, I checked the surveillance footage. Susanna has already left."
Edward breathed a slight sigh of relief. He was worried Susanna was angry and also afraid she would discover his identity now.
Until Erica's issue was resolved, he didn't dare face Susanna.
At this moment, the manager of the legal department approached. "Boss, given the serious impact of this hacking incident, I think we should report it to the police. Otherwise, how can our group's branch survive in Lindwell?"
Edward's eyes narrowed. "Report it to the police?"
"Yes, reporting it is the best option."
Edward raised an eyebrow and said, "You all can't handle a single hacker, yet you have the audacity to involve the police? Go back and file a report. If this occurs once more, you will all be dismissed."
It couldn't be reported this time.
Edward's lips curled slightly, a sense of pride swelling within him. 'It is remarkable how swiftly Susanna has honed her computer skills in such a brief period. Truly befitting of my sister,' he thought to himself.
He even took a screenshot of the company's hacked webpage and sent it to the family group chat: [As expected of my sister, Susanna independently hacked a company's network today. Impressive! She'll definitely be a great hacker in the future!]
Arthur: [Of course, and who do you think was her teacher? Susanna truly possesses a remarkable talent for this]
Aviana: [This company's webpage looks familiar. Isn't this our branch's webpage?]
