"Uncle Abbott, are you sure you heard that right?" Cedric Grant asked in disbelief.

"That’s what she told me. If you don’t believe me, you can ask her yourself."

Cedric Grant quickly grabbed his phone to dial Sophia Shaw’s number, but it wouldn’t go through!

He then went to check WeChat, only to remember that he was the one who had blocked her.

Cedric Grant quickly unblocked her and tried to video call her.

BEEP.

BEEP.

BEEP.

He tried several times, but it never connected.

He looked closely and finally saw the message on the screen: You are not friends with this user!

’Mom... blocked him?’

Impossible.

Absolutely impossible!

Cedric Grant knew better than anyone that Sophia Shaw loved him. She loved him to the bone, loved him more than life itself. How could she possibly block him!

’She must have blocked me by accident.’

’Yes, that must be it!’

But even if it was an accident, Cedric Grant was still very unhappy.

’Honestly, Mom. Can’t even get something this simple right!’

Cedric Grant shook his head, speechless.

Auntie Joanna always said you have to prioritize what’s important.

Right now, the most important thing was getting the ingredients for Auntie Joanna and his little sister.

Cedric Grant decided to overlook Sophia Shaw’s mistake for now and borrowed Abbott’s phone to call her.

The moment Sophia Shaw’s voice came through, Cedric couldn’t stop himself from accusing her. "Mom, what is wrong with you? Why did you block me on WeChat? Can’t you be more careful?"

"You blocked me. Doesn’t that mean you don’t want to be in contact anymore?" Sophia Shaw retorted, her voice cold and distant.

She didn’t mean to intentionally retaliate against Cedric. She just didn’t like having people she wasn’t in contact with cluttering up her phone.

She routinely cleaned out her contacts list every so often.

Cedric’s face instantly flushed bright red. He awkwardly changed the subject. "The ingredients..."

"I’ll send you the details for a few trustworthy food suppliers."

BEEP BEEP—

’Did she just hang up?’

Cedric was dumbfounded.

This was the first time his mother had ever hung up on him!

Staring at the darkened screen, Cedric’s eyes immediately reddened.

DING DING DING.

A moment later, Sophia Shaw sent the contact information for several raw food processing shops.

Looking at the cold, impersonal phone numbers, the tears Cedric had been holding back suddenly fell!

Before going home, Sophia Shaw made a special trip to the hotel to see Leah Evans.

Leah Evans was slumped listlessly over the arm of the sofa, a beer bottle in her hand, looking utterly dejected.

"What’s wrong? Job hunting not going well?"

Sophia Shaw asked, glancing at the beer in her hand.

Leah Evans nodded.

"I’ve applied to dozens of companies, and not one has worked out."

Sophia Shaw sat down beside her and patted her shoulder comfortingly. "Why don’t you go work at our uncle’s company?"

Even though their uncle’s company was struggling right now, it could still offer Leah a position.

"No, absolutely not!"

Leah Evans reacted strongly.

"I left home precisely because I didn’t want my family arranging my life. How could I go work for my brother-in-law’s company?"

She wanted to make it on her own and see what she was truly capable of.

After so many setbacks these past few days, Leah Evans felt an indescribable sense of misery.

"If it was really because I wasn’t skilled enough, I could accept that. But I don’t think that’s the case."

Sophia Shaw sensed there was more to it. "Did something happen?"

Leah Evans hesitated for a moment before nodding. "Actually, a lot of companies have called me for interviews these past few days. And every time, I got the distinct impression they wanted to hire me, but as soon as I left, they hired someone else."

"Today, a company was finally willing to take me. They even had me fill out the new-hire paperwork. But as soon as I turned it in, they suddenly changed their tune, saying the position was already filled and HR had made a mistake."

"I refused to accept that, so I pestered the HR department for a long time. They finally told me, in a roundabout way, that the problem was my family connections."

Leah Evans pulled out a form from under her leg. "I listed you and my brother-in-law as my emergency contacts."

The moment Leah mentioned someone was pulling strings, Sophia Shaw already had an inkling.

Now, seeing the form, she was even more certain of her suspicion.

The Shermans!

It was the Shermans again!

She had thought that if she just stayed away from Leah, Leah would be able to find a job without any issues.

She had completely overestimated them.

How could the Sherman Family be so despicable!

After shamelessly sucking her mother dry and turning her into the other woman, now they were even harming an innocent, unconnected person!

Sophia Shaw trembled with rage. She gripped the paper so tightly her knuckles turned white.

She clenched her jaw, but still couldn’t control the surging hatred!

It took a long time for her to suppress the lingering hatred. She said to Leah, "I’ll figure something out for your job."

「The next day.」

Sophia Shaw brought Leah Evans to a company.

She went to find Levin Sawyer.

When he heard Leah didn’t have a job, Levin Sawyer was readily agreeable. "That’s easy. Our company’s accountant was just transferred. We’re hiring for the position."

Sophia Shaw pulled Levin Sawyer aside. "I came to you only because your company isn’t controlled by the Shermans. There’s no other reason."

"Leah has to rely on her own abilities. You absolutely cannot go easy on her."

"Don’t worry, I’ll have the HR department follow the requirements strictly."

"Thank you."

Sophia Shaw said sincerely.

She told Leah to go prepare for the test, then stood in the hallway by herself. Thinking about the Sherman Family’s past bullying, her hatred was still difficult to quell.

Levin Sawyer could see she was in a bad mood. Like a magician, he produced two tickets. "This should help cheer you up."

Sophia Shaw took them, her eyes instantly lighting up. "NASA? They’re actually in Serrath?"

Seeing the look in her eyes, Levin Sawyer knew his remedy for her sorrow was working. He nodded. "They are. And our professor is here too."

"That’s wonderful!"

At the mention of their professor, Sophia Shaw’s eyes were already welling up with tears.

She impatiently grabbed Levin Sawyer. "Let’s go, hurry!"

Sophia Shaw was excited the entire way there.

When they arrived, she didn’t even hear what Levin Sawyer was saying before she jumped out of the car, ticket in hand, and rushed into the venue.

Once inside, she finally realized she had no idea where their professor was.

She had been too excited and hadn’t thought to ask Levin Sawyer.

"Well, well, look who it is."

Sophia Shaw had just taken out her phone to call Levin Sawyer when a shrill voice cut through the air.

Phone in hand, she turned around to see Sharon Sherman walking in, clad in a bright red dress and high heels.

Sharon’s critical gaze landed on her, and she sneered, her lip curling in disdain. "When did the NASA exhibition get so low-class? Do they let just any riff-raff in now?"

She was followed by a few of her friends, who all put on airs and shot malicious glares when they saw Sophia.

"She definitely snuck in!"

Having failed to get her revenge several times, Sharon Sherman was filled with hatred and itching for a chance to humiliate her.

She immediately waved at a guard standing nearby. "Quick, drag this person who snuck in out of here!"

Hearing that Sophia Shaw had snuck in, the guard looked nervous.

He walked over. "Miss, do you have an invitation?"

"Someone who snuck in isn’t going to have an invitation," Sharon Sherman said impatiently.

Her friend, Sherry Judd, chimed in, "Exactly! Only representatives from companies with professional qualifications and qualified individuals can get into this exhibition today. She’s just an unemployed nobody!"

Jenna Judd was her older sister, so Sherry had learned from Jenna long ago that Sophia Shaw had been fired.

Hearing Sherry Judd say that Sophia Shaw was just an unemployed nobody, the guard’s expression became troubled.

"Miss, you’d better just leave on your own!"