CHAPTER 23: CHAPTER 23: IMPROPER RELATIONSHIP

The conference room gradually filled up.

All the high-level executives from various departments of FY and the employees from the PO department were present.

Caleb Lockwood was a guest, and Peter had originally arranged a front-row seat for him. However, upon seeing Claire Shaw was present, Caleb voluntarily sat next to her, causing Chantelle Stone and Megan Ross to gossip in hushed tones.

Claire pretended not to care, but inside, she was secretly delighted.

She couldn’t wait for everyone in the company to know Caleb Lockwood was her boyfriend.

Peter pulled down the blinds, and the conference room went completely dark, except for the glow of the projector.

Serena Jennings stood at the front, facing a crowd of people, with Caleb and Claire still conspicuously whispering to each other.

This meeting was specifically convened by Peter for Serena, projecting her ten designs onto the big screen for all the company executives to score.

Initially, Caleb dismissed Serena’s designs with a sneer.

He had heard from Claire that none of Serena’s designs had been approved, and keeping someone like her in a company full of elites was just self-humiliation.

As design after design appeared on the big screen, Claire noticed Caleb wasn’t talking to her anymore. His eyes were glued to the screen, and he didn’t even notice when she tugged at his suit sleeve several times.

When the presentations were over, Peter reopened the blinds, filling the conference room with light.

"Let’s score now. Above 90 is considered passing."

As soon as these words were spoken by Peter, the designers from the PO department were in an uproar.

Heather Monroe’s requirement was that a score above 60 was passing, yet Serena couldn’t even meet that, let alone 90.

Initially, many thought this scoring was just a show by Peter.

Rumors were flying around the company, saying Serena was Peter’s fling, only there because she slept her way in, lacking real talent, which is why her designs were stuck with Heather.

But now, Peter’s demand seemed incomprehensible to them.

Not just the design department, but the sales, PR, advertising, and operations departments — all high-level leaders from every FY department scored Serena’s designs. All ten designs scored above 90.

This outcome didn’t surprise Peter at all, but Serena wore an expression of disbelief.

However, people in the conference room weren’t looking at Serena; they were all looking at Heather.

Unable to withstand the pressure, Heather stood up to explain, claiming that while Serena’s designs were good, the PO product line primarily dealt with gold jewelry. The low hardness and soft texture of gold made too complex designs and mounts too risky with current techniques.

"But as the head of the PO design group, your responsibility is to select the best designs. Whether the craftsmanship can realize them isn’t your concern. You should submit the best designs to your leaders, who will determine their feasibility for production, not you."

Sophia Shepherd bluntly rebuked Heather, whose face turned red with embarrassment, leaving her at a loss for words except to apologize.

"Now that 5G technology for gold is maturing, while Serena’s designs are somewhat challenging to achieve, they aren’t flights of fantasy. They might even drive our company’s technological innovations. After all, gold jewelry has always been a weak spot for FY."

After Sophia spoke, Serena couldn’t help but chime in.

"I have some thoughts on gold hardness and craftsmanship..." Serena began illustrating on the whiteboard, explaining her newly invented technique to everyone.

Unnoticed, people from other departments left the conference room, leaving only Sophia and a few design sub-division heads.

They were seriously discussing and researching the craft improvements for the new product line with Serena.

Even though Serena was part of the PO department, her colleagues there felt more embarrassed than proud.

Including Claire.

"What’s wrong?" Caleb noticed Claire’s mood was off.

Claire suddenly grabbed Caleb’s hand and pulled him into a corner.

"Caleb, I’m only telling you... actually... the new technique Serena mentioned... I came up with it."

"What?" Caleb was taken aback.

Claire deliberately hushed him, "Serena asked me for help with her designs. Without thinking much, I talked about this new technique I had in mind, never expecting her to present it as her own idea in the meeting..."

Seeing Claire’s eyes redden, Caleb turned to leave.

"Where are you going?"

Claire grabbed Caleb’s hand.

"I’m going to help you get justice," Caleb said resolutely.

"No... please don’t go..." Claire held Caleb back desperately. "You know, Serena... has a close relationship with Director Peter. There are rumors in the company about their improper relationship. A colleague even saw them hugging at her workstation during today’s lunch break. I don’t think anyone would believe us, and once you’re gone, I don’t know how Director Peter might target me..."

The more Claire spoke, the quieter her voice became. Just then, Serena finished her meeting and walked out of the conference room.

Turning her head, she saw Caleb and Claire in the corner, holding hands.

Caleb was also looking at her, his eyes full of disdain.

Serena had thought that after seeing her designs, Caleb would at least slightly recognize her capability beyond being a housewife.

But now it seemed she had thought too much.

Holding her stomach, Serena silently returned to her office.

Caleb comforted Claire for a while before leaving FY.

Mr. Miller came by fashionably late, carrying the millet congee and shrimp dumplings Caleb had asked him to buy.

"President Lockwood, this..."

Mr. Miller handed the takeout to Caleb, noticing his boss’s foul mood.

This was not Caleb’s usual fare. Mr. Miller knew it must be for someone else, though he wouldn’t ask for whom.

Caleb took the takeout and casually threw it into the trash can beside him.

Mr. Miller was stunned but said nothing.

Caleb had originally bought that takeout for Serena.

During the meeting, he had heard her stomach growling and saw her rubbing her stomach multiple times.

As someone with a stomach condition himself, Caleb assumed Serena was suffering from stomach pain and hadn’t eaten lunch, prompting him to order the tummy-soothing millet porridge.

But after hearing what Claire said, he felt his gesture had been unnecessary.

FY eventually developed a new technique and launched Serena’s ten designs to the market. The FY-PO series became a huge success, selling worldwide. As a high-end luxury brand, FY not only solidified its position in luxury jewelry but also made a significant impact in the mid-to-high-end gold jewelry market.

However, within FY Company, rumors unfavorable to Serena continued to spread.