Chapter 8: Chapter 8: Brother, Don’t Panic, I Have a Way~

###Chapter 8: Don’t Panic, Big Brother. I Have a Plan~

「Three days later.」

Benjamin Sterling was in his office, casually flipping through a luxury car magazine. He was already calculating which new car he’d buy once the project funds came in.

Suddenly, a finance alert popped up on his phone: [BREAKING NEWS! Cosmos Capital officially announces the successful launch of the "Caelus Project!"]

A smug smile spread across Benjamin Sterling’s face. ’Maxine Rhodes actually did a decent job this time,’ he thought. He straightened his tie, cleared his throat, and, with the air of a victor, dialed President Warren’s number.

"President Warren!" Benjamin Sterling exclaimed enthusiastically the moment the call connected. "I saw the news. Our partnership is finally set in stone! I’m hosting a banquet at Pearl Pavilion tonight—you must grace us with your presence! Maxine Rhodes was only able to close this deal thanks to my guidance behind the scenes. If it weren’t for me..."

President Warren cut him off coldly from the other end. "President Sterling, I think you’ve misunderstood."

"Misunderstood?" Benjamin Sterling paused for a second, then chuckled. "President Warren, you’re being too modest. The news is already out, our..."

"Our project has indeed launched," President Warren said, his tone laced with undisguised sarcasm. "But our partner isn’t The Sterlings."

He paused deliberately, each word a slap in the face. "After all, a company that suppresses its own core employees and shamelessly takes credit for their work is hardly trustworthy."

The smile on Benjamin Sterling’s face froze instantly. The phone slipped from his hand, clattering onto the desk.

The next second, he immediately called Maxine Rhodes.

This time, the call connected surprisingly quickly.

He furiously demanded over the phone, "Maxine Rhodes! What the hell is going on?! How did the project fall through?!"

Maxine Rhodes’s voice was unusually calm, even tinged with a hint of mockery. "Benjamin Sterling, perhaps you should ask your dear Rose that question."

"What do you mean?"

"I mean," Maxine Rhodes said at a leisurely pace, "just as I had finalized everything and was about to sign the contract with Cosmos Capital, someone couldn’t wait to use your phone to text me. They told me that even if the project succeeded, the credit would go to Rose Joyce, and that I should recognize my place as a mere tool. President Warren saw that message and concluded that The Sterlings’ internal management is chaotic, rife with nepotism, and utterly devoid of integrity. So, he decided to terminate the partnership."

Benjamin Sterling understood in an instant and whipped his head around to look at the innocently-faced Rose Joyce beside him.

Rose Joyce felt a pang of guilt under his gaze. She lowered her head and mumbled an excuse, "Benjamin, I just... I just wanted to remind her..."

A wicked flame of anger surged in Benjamin Sterling’s heart, but seeing Rose Joyce’s pitiful and delicate appearance, he swallowed the reprimand that was on the tip of his tongue.

Suppressing his fury, he said to Maxine Rhodes on the other end of the line, "Rose is just too naive. She doesn’t understand these things! She meant well! Even if... even if she said something she shouldn’t have, as the project lead, couldn’t you have prioritized the bigger picture? Couldn’t you have explained things to President Warren? You sabotaged the project. This is just you turning love into hate, using your position to settle a personal grudge!"

"Think whatever you want." Maxine Rhodes’s voice was completely flat. She hung up immediately after speaking.

When Benjamin Sterling tried calling back, he found he’d been blocked.

...

Ever since the "Caelus Project" fell through, the fortunes of Sterling Enterprises had been on a slippery slope, heading straight downhill.

Client relationships, once meticulously managed by Maxine Rhodes, began to crack. Several projects that had been considered sure things started running into frequent problems. The company’s financial statements grew uglier by the day, and its cash flow was flashing red alerts.

Benjamin Sterling was at his wit’s end, throwing tantrums in his office all day and looking at everyone as if they owed him a million dollars.

Returning to his office, Benjamin Sterling felt a fire of frustration burning in his chest with nowhere to go. Rose Joyce stood beside him, carefully massaging his temples and cooed, "Benjamin, it’s all my fault... If I hadn’t made my sister angry, she wouldn’t have deliberately ruined the project, and the company wouldn’t be in this state."

"How could this be your fault!" Benjamin Sterling slammed his hand on the desk. "It’s all because that woman is too jealous! As a woman yourself, you’ve done much better than her."

Rose Joyce feigned a pout. "Oh, stop~"

However, hearing the office chatter about wanting Maxine Rhodes back made Rose Joyce’s heart feel heavy, as if stuffed with cotton. She absolutely would not allow her dear Benjamin to think of that woman again.

Her eyes darted, a plan suddenly forming in her mind. "Benjamin, I’ve thought of a way."

"What way?" Benjamin Sterling asked, rubbing his temples.

"If we can get Ethan Hawthorne of the Hawthorne Group to help," she said, her voice soft yet seductive, "with the Hawthorne Group’s status in Kingsland, the company could definitely be brought back from the dead!"

Benjamin Sterling gave a bitter laugh and pushed her hand away. "Ethan Hawthorne? Forget about me, what company in Kingsland doesn’t want to get in his good graces? But a man of his stature... forget about a partnership, I don’t even know which way his office door faces."

"That’s where you’re wrong~" Rose Joyce suddenly put on an air of importance, a smug curve to her lips. "I have a way to contact him."

Benjamin Sterling’s spirits lifted at once, and he leaned forward slightly. "Really? What’s the connection?"

"You don’t know this yet," she said proudly, "but my paternal cousin’s son’s wife’s younger brother... is Mr. Hawthorne’s driver!"

She paused deliberately, savoring the look of surprise on Benjamin Sterling’s face. "The connection might be a bit distant, but he’s part of his personal staff. He can definitely pass on a message."

Benjamin Sterling’s eyes lit up as if he’d just grasped a life-saving straw. "Then what are you waiting for? Contact him right away! Here, tell him The Sterlings are hosting a business banquet and would be sincerely honored if Mr. Hawthorne would grace us with his presence!"

"Leave it to me!" Rose Joyce immediately took out her phone. "I’ll arrange it right now," she said, brimming with confidence as she scrolled through her contacts. "As long as we can get Mr. Hawthorne to come, let’s see who in the company still dares to gossip!"

A black Maybach glided smoothly down the bustling streets of Jaxen.

In the back seat, Ethan Hawthorne was resting with his eyes closed while Erza Sinclair reported the upcoming schedule from the side.

In the driver’s seat, the newly hired driver, Chris, felt his phone vibrate. He glanced at the caller ID and put on his Bluetooth headset.

After a torrent of chirping from the other end of the line, Chris replied, his tone somewhat smug, "Oh! So President Sterling of the Sterling Group wants to invite our Mr. Hawthorne to a banquet? Hahaha, you’re too kind, going out of your way to find me... Aiya, let me tell you, our Mr. Hawthorne is an incredibly busy man..."

Erza Sinclair frowned, about to speak up and stop this unprofessional behavior.

Suddenly, Chris felt a chill on the back of his neck as an icy gaze seemed to pierce through the back of his seat.

He glanced instinctively at the rearview mirror and met the eyes of Ethan Hawthorne, who had opened them at some point. The gaze was so unfathomably deep it scared him into almost biting his tongue.

"Mr. H-Hawthorne..." Chris wilted instantly. His volume plummeted as he stammered into the phone, "Uh... I-I’m busy right now. I’ll call you back later!"

He hastily hung up, and the car fell into a heavy, oppressive silence.

Chris gulped, then turned his head to flash an overly eager, fawning smile. "Mr. Hawthorne, Special Assistant Sinclair, my apologies! That was my sister’s husband’s paternal uncle’s niece. She said that Boss Benjamin Sterling of The Sterlings wants to cordially invite you to a banquet. What do you think...?"

Erza Sinclair remained expressionless, his tone cold and hard. "Mr. Hawthorne never attends banquets hosted by nobodies. Reject it."

"Right, right, I’ll do it right..." Chris nodded hastily.

"Wait."

Ethan Hawthorne spoke up, his gaze landing on Chris’s face—a face that was still a bit childish, yet had already learned how to curry favor. "You just said... Benjamin Sterling?"