Sophia woke up again to a sky still wrapped in darkness.
She grumbled, shut her eyes, and let her sluggish brain slowly reboot.
Sothing felt off.
Lucas wasn’t there. Unless...
Her eyes flew open. She grabbed her phone—and instantly froze. She had actually slept through the entire day.
It was already seven in the evening... the next day.
A knock sounded. "Knock, knock—"
"Co in."
Mrs. Wilson pushed the door open with a warm smile. "Sophia, you’re awake? Dinner’s ready."
"Mrs. Wilson, I’ll be right down. Is Lucas back?"
"Yes, he’s downstairs."
Sophia nodded and headed down, only to find Lucas looking unusually tense. "What’s wrong? You don’t look so good."
"Damien was announced today as DS’s new Executive Director. Jacob officially stepped back."
"That’s it? Didn’t we already know this was coming?"
"Damien cut off Hilton Group’s partnerships with two major companies."
Sophia blinked, surprised. "You’re saying he’s openly stealing your business?"
In the corporate world, poaching contracts was nothing new. But Damien had just taken office and imdiately severed two of Hilton Group’s most important collaborations. His intentions couldn’t be more obvious.
"Did he succeed?"
"He took one of the two contracts. And if this keeps going, it’s going to get ugly for us. Damien works fast, and his thods are nothing like what we’ve dealt with before."
Lucas sank onto the couch and rubbed his forehead, exhaustion settling in. "I had to personally salvage one of today’s deals. DS is offering extrely generous terms—lots of people are tempted."
Sophia gave the kids a subtle look. They imdiately understood. She walked over and began massaging his temples, her fingers gently working into his scalp.
"Daddy, are you really tired? I’ll massage your legs."
Faye knelt down and tapped his legs lightly, and Charles mirrored her on the other side.
Angela brought him a cup of tea and held it out carefully. "Daddy, please have so tea."
Billy even grabbed a waist massager and placed it behind him.
Dustin and Eric stood on each side, kneading his arms with just the right amount of pressure.
From the kitchen doorway, Mrs. Wilson laughed. "Young Master, these children really are your sweetest little angels."
A real smile finally touched Lucas’s face, washing the fatigue from him.
"Lucas, I want to return to the YL branch," Sophia said.
"You already handed it over to—"
"I did. But I recently received updated assessnts. The numbers are still far from what they should be. I’m going back to take over."
Sean was currently in City A. She could easily have him reassigned to City C.
She wasn’t returning just because of the numbers. Ethan had already begun moving to pull the Morgan Group under his control. Naturally, she couldn’t sit still either.
"I won’t stop you," Lucas said quietly, "but you’ll check in with every day."
She smiled softly. "I will."
The next morning, Sophia headed straight to the branch office.
Sean stood before her, laying out all of the reports. "These are all the branch’s data and its current partners."
"Good. Nicely organized. Sean, sending you to City C isn’t pushing you out just because I’m taking over here. From what I’ve heard, soone in City C is deliberately suppressing YL’s branch. I know your capabilities—that’s why I’m sending you. First, find out who’s pulling strings behind the scenes. Second, there’s a family in City C—the Clark family. You should know of them. Dig into their background. If needed, use them as leverage."
Sean nodded. "Understood. No problem. I’ve already arranged the handover, and everyone here knows about the transition. There will be a full staff eting later, and I’ll formally introduce you."
He had considered every detail. Sophia nodded in approval.
Conference Room.
When Sean announced Sophia’s position, the employees below broke into applause, their expressions calm.
They had already known the result ahead of ti; naturally, there was no need to pretend to be surprised.
Sophia’s lips curved lightly. "Starting today, I’ll be taking over all operations of this branch. Also, I’ll be personally evaluating several project performances. Anyone who doesn’t et the standard will get an additional month to turn things around. If you still can’t fix it—your choices are simple: a pay cut or walking away. YL is an international company, and this branch operates in a competitive market here. Every step must be steady. From today on, I expect teamwork, shared success, and unified effort to grow YL."
Another round of applause filled the room.
After the eting, Sophia realized she had a good impression of everyone. A quick glance at their performances showed most were doing well.
"You hired a solid team," she said. "Driven and capable."
Sean straightened his back, a hint of pride flashing across his face. "They’ve been with a long ti. They’re excellent."
Sophia smiled. "I agree. Once you’re in City C, call if anything cos up."
"Got it."
Sean headed to City C right away without even stopping to rest.
Sophia let out a long breath. It had been a while since she last handled company affairs—she actually felt a bit rusty.
But the mont she picked up the first contract and skimd it, her expression shifted ever so slightly.
This contract... was from the Wright Group?
Frank had just finished seeing off a client when his phone rang.
He glanced at the screen, paused for a mont, then hesitated before finally answering. "Hello?"
"I’m back at the YL branch," Sophia said. "I just ca across a contract from you. I’m curious—does handing over such a big order an you trust YL... or is it guilt driving you?"
Frank had given YL full authorization for every luxury brand Wright Group needed.
No wonder this quarter’s quota had increased so drastically.
Sophia stared down at the contract, her eyes devoid of emotion.
"It’s not about trusting you or not," Frank replied calmly. "I handed the luxury sector to YL because I trust its reputation and brand strength. According to my research, YL has risen like a dark horse in the fashion industry over the past few years. I’m gambling on a winner—don’t tell you’re unhappy about that."
The order he placed was enormous—worth two hundred million.
Sophia raised a brow. "Of course not. I was rely asking casually. Just hope certain people don’t regret it later. After all... the fact that Mary agreed to let you work with YL is already a miracle."
"Sophia, show her so respect. Whether you like it or not, she’s your aunt by marriage. Even if you truly dislike , I believe you’re professional enough not to drag personal feelings into business."
Sophia let out a cold, humorless laugh. "Respect her? Fine. But you two never return to City Y and linger in City A instead—should I assu you’re plotting another way to deal with ?"
"Sophia, don’t think of as the villain. Your mother’s gone. I owe her... and I owe you. I intend to make it right."
"Make it right?" Her voice sharpened. "You an ’make it right’ to soone who’s already buried in the ground? Ridiculous."
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