Aurelia was taken aback and showed five fingers at Leslie. “How about five hundred?”


    He narrowed his eyes and felt speechless.


    She was once in a rtionship, yet she knew nothing about being in one.


    How could married couples discuss money?


    He reached out and poked her on the forehead gently. “Is money all you can think of?”


    “Huh?” She froze. Where Leslie touched felt like it was on fire and her heart raced.


    Leslie paused as well when he realized that his action was slightly out of line.


    He withdrew his hand and took a sip of his water. Clearing his throat, he said, “Buy me a meal.


    11


    “Isn’t that what I’m doing now?” Aurelia nced at the dishes on the table.


    “Aurelia, do you know how much you owe me? How many days has it been since youst made me lunchboxes? Are you


    seriously going to even things out just with a meal after that presentation?”


    “How about | give you five hundred and you can have whatever you want with it ...” Before she could finish her sentence, his


    sharp gaze silenced her. Changing her mind, she said, “Sure, Mr. Synder. I''ll treat you to a grand meal.”


    “He is so scary,” she thought. “He was calm just now and got upset the next moment.”


    Leslie''s furrowed brow rxed. “I''ll choose the ce.”


    “Oh.” Aurelia returned to the main topic. “So, is there any way to salvage my situation?”


    “For now, thepany wants you to write a self-reflection and read it aloud in public.”


    “How did you know that? How are you even aware of ourpany’s internal matters?” Aurelia stared at Leslie in disbelief.


    Leslie was supposed to be a programmer, so how could he be so well-informed?


    Theirpany wasn’t particrlyrge, and the recent growth didn’t warrant news spreading everywhere.


    Leslie remained unwavering. “Mr. Lynch mentioned it. He is connected with Kimberly’s social media ount.”


    Aurelia nodded. Kimberly was the type to broadcast every detail in her friend circle, after all.


    “No wonder. Now, Mr. Zeller doesn’t want me to cause any trouble, so he wants me to submit the self-reflection in advance. If |


    refuse, it’s insubordination. If | write it, I''ll be confessing to a crime | didn’tmit. That''s why | came to you,


    “The director is supporting Kimberly because she has a wealthy uncle. If you want to control Kimberly, you need to start from this


    angle.” Leslie provided a brief analysis.


    You even know that Kimberly has a rich uncle?” Aurelia looked at Leslie in amazement, then shook her head in denial. “Her uncle


    treats her like a daughter. He even covered the expensesN?velDrama.Org owns all content.


    for her study abroad. How can | control her with that?”


    “However close the uncle is with her, he’s not her father. He won''t tolerate the damage to thepany’s reputation caused by


    Kimberly unconditionally. For a business, impact on


    reputation is fatal.”


    “Impact on reputation?” Aurelia pondered his words, and suddenly it clicked. “Are you suggesting that | ...°


    “Yes. When the timees, do you think her uncle will protect thepany or his niece?” Leslie asked casually.


    In both morality and reason, Kimberly’s uncle had done everything for Kimberly. If Kimberly damaged thepany’s reputation,


    he wouldn''t support her unconditionally.


    Even if he used her as a shield to ovee the crisis, others wouldn’t condemn him for it.


    Without her uncle’s protection, Kimberly’s position in thepany would be entirely different. Aurelia guessed that at that time,


    Kimberly wouldn’t have the leisure to scheme against her.


    Aurelia gazed at Leslie with a steady look and whispered, “Mr. Synder, are you really just a programmer?”