Chapter 212 Everyone Has Compassion
"You saw it yourself..." Ava frowned, struggling to wrap her head around it. "Samuel? Samuel from the Seraphian Group?"
Ava knew exactly what kind of guy he was. In Lindwood City, heck, even in all of Vistalia, the Whitman family was a big deal. Samuel, being the top-notch heir of the Whitman family, had women going nuts over him.
Could a guy like him really be with Evelyn? But Ava thought again, it wasn't totally out of the question. If Evelyn was just some random girl, she could say Samuel was just messing around, but Evelyn was part of the Jones family. If this meant something between the Jones and Whitman families, it was a whole different ball game.
Liam sighed, "Mom, I feel like Evelyn's heart isn't with me anymore. No matter what I do, it's pointless. What should I do?" He looked really down. Liam knew that if it was Kyle, he might still have a shot. But with Samuel in the picture, he had no chance.
Ava was ticked off. "What should you do? Now you're asking me? I told you before, but you didn't listen. You didn't appreciate Evelyn when she was around, and now you regret it!"
"Yeah, I didn't see things clearly before," Liam admitted, knowing he messed up. But at this point, it was useless to dwell on it.
Ava got that better than anyone. She just scolded him a bit and then sighed. "Forget it! Evelyn's not the only girl in the world, and you don't absolutely need her. But whoever you find next, be smart about it. Got it? Girls like Vivian, you can have fun with them, but don't take them seriously!"
Liam would've argued before, but after everything that happened, he just nodded. "Yeah, you're right! I'll listen to you from now on! But what do I do now?"
Even though Liam tried to show Ava he could handle things, he had to admit she had more foresight and skills. This time, he was really stuck and needed her help.
"Those two perfumes, you can't use them anymore," Ava said firmly after thinking it over.
"What?" That was like a death sentence for Liam. Those two perfumes were their main moneymakers.
Ava shot back, "Do you want the company to go under? If so, just ignore what I said!"
Liam quickly grabbed her arm. "No, I'll listen to you. But if we don't use those two perfumes, we'll only have the old ones, and we won't be able to break into the market."
Ava laughed coldly. "With the way things are now, you still want to break into the market? Keeping what we have is the priority!"
"Besides pulling the perfumes, you need to issue a statement right away. Get the best person from your PR team and carefully craft the message. Apologize to the consumers, say you were deceived too. Then take a strong stance, saying you won't use the discredited perfumer's work anymore and that better fragrances are coming soon. Lastly, express regret over the Ms. Reed incident," Ava said clearly. "Show your determination and attitude. And don't forget to mention that you and Vivian split up amicably two months ago."
"Isn't that my private business? Can't we skip that part?" Liam hesitated.
Ava tapped him on the head, a bit exasperated. "As the legal representative of the company, your attitude is of paramount importance. Plus, you can't distance yourself from this mess anymore. If you back Vivian, it shows a serious lapse in your values and judgment. It could cause a lot of trouble. If you break up with her decisively, people might not call you fair, but they'll just say you're heartless for ditching her when things got tough."
"So, there's no good way to handle this?" Liam's face fell.
"What do you think?" Ava snapped. "This is all on you! You need to handle this carefully. You should not divulge too much. Tone down your actions. Stop going to bars like you did today. Be more mindful of what you say and do."
"I messed up," Liam admitted, lowering his head.
Ava went on, "You need to make people feel like you've been hurt in this relationship. By the way, didn't you say Vivian had an affair with Rosen? Find some online marketing accounts and spread the rumors, but don't make any public statements. Just let people think you're the victim."
Liam looked up, shocked. "Isn't that basically telling everyone Vivian cheated?"
Liam still had his pride, so even though he knew about the affair, he didn't want to make a big deal out of it, fearing it would hurt his dignity.
"What's more important, people knowing about Vivian's affair or your future?" Ava shot him a look. Sometimes she wondered if Liam had inherited any of her smarts. "People tend to sympathize with the underdog. The more you refrain from expressing your stance, the more you look like the victim, and the more people will feel for you. Their sympathy can help you a lot!"
Liam said, "I get it! I know what to do now!"
With Ava's guidance, Liam finally saw a way out. "Mom, thank you! If it weren't for you, I'd be lost. I thought you wouldn't care."
"No matter what, you're my kid. Can I just watch you suffer?" Ava shook her head. "Besides these urgent issues, you need to hire some new talent quickly. Not having competent perfume makers is unacceptable. Once this crisis is over, what about the next one?"
"I've looked, but I haven't found anyone suitable." Liam had tried, but this industry wasn't popular, and finding the right person was tough.
Either they weren't skilled enough, or if they were, they didn't think Liam's small company was worth their time.
"That's why I said you were really..." Ava trailed off. It was too late to fix everything now. "Don't aim too high. Forget about top perfume makers. Don't even think about the high-level ones. If you can find a decent mid-level perfume maker or someone with potential, that's good enough. Don't limit yourself when looking for talent, got it?"
"Got it!" Liam wanted to say more, but after meeting Ava's gaze, he quickly nodded in agreement.
He really wasn't in a position to be picky. Having someone useful was already a good start.
Dear Readers,
First and foremost, thank you all for your unwavering support and love for this book. Due to some unforeseen circumstances, the updates for this book have been temporarily delayed. I sincerely apologize for any inconvenience this may have caused.
I understand your anticipation for new chapters and deeply appreciate your patience and understanding. Rest assured, I am working diligently to get back on track and continue delivering the exciting story you all enjoy.
Thank you once again for your understanding and support. I look forward to sharing new chapters with you soon!
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