Chapter 238: Chapter 238: Crushing Scum the Scum Girl Way

Mira Quinn stammered, "Vincent, don-don’t listen to Sophia. She’s... she’s just angry that I threatened her and is making things up!"

THUD!

It wasn’t a loud sound, but it was enough to show Vincent Grant’s rage.

Mira Quinn flinched violently in fright.

Vincent Grant had already picked up his phone. "Tell me the truth in three seconds, or I’ll bankrupt the Quinn Group!"

No one would doubt he meant it.

Countless major corporations didn’t dare to cross Vincent Grant, let alone the Quinn Group, which only owned a small factory!

Mira Quinn didn’t dare hesitate any longer and shouted, "I’ll talk! I’ll talk!"

Heavy, dark curtains were drawn, blocking all light, but they couldn’t hide the profound emotions in the man’s eyes.

"I couldn’t stand Joanna Sherman and wanted to get back at her. I knew she and Sophia didn’t get along, so using Sophia to antagonize her would be the most effective!"

"I was the one who took Sophia to the hotel, and I was also the one... who drugged her drink and sent her to your room!"

Mira Quinn’s words echoed in his mind, and the look of pain in Vincent’s eyes deepened.

His fingers curled weakly, unable to even grip his phone.

It slipped from his palm.

Only after entering Zenith Headquarters did Sophia Shaw realize Joanna Sherman was there too.

Upon seeing Sophia, Joanna Sherman’s eyes flashed with resentment. But she quickly turned back to her multiple screens, her fingers flying across the keyboards with a CLATTER.

Her desk was piled high with various documents and research materials, and several of her computer screens displayed newly published papers on rocket propulsion from different top-tier journals.

She hadn’t even overlooked the ones published by Sophia.

Sophia paid her no mind, walking over to her own workstation and getting busy as well.

A few hours later, Joanna Sherman shot to her feet and stormed over to Sophia’s desk.

She slammed a tablet down on the desk. "Sophia, what’s the meaning of this? Why did you reject my entire proposal?!"

The tablet displayed the satellite launch proposal that Sophia had just revised.

A massive sea of red text, marking the revisions, covered the screen, leaving almost none of the original black font visible!

Joanna Sherman was so angry her eyes turned red.

"I know you’re doing this on purpose to undermine me!"

"Weren’t you the one who kept saying I wasn’t worth your time to target during work hours? So what is this?"

Having found something to use against Sophia, Joanna wasn’t about to let it go easily.

"So, the oh-so-professional Chief Engineer Shaw is nothing more than this!"

The anger in her eyes gradually turned to mockery.

"But I wouldn’t try anything stupid. This proposal was approved by the entire board, and Vincent Grant has already signed off on it. You can’t just change it because you feel like it!"

BEEP—

The words had barely left her lips when an electronic detector blared an alert. "Unauthorized personnel detected. Please be advised."

Joanna Sherman stared blankly at the electronic panel, only to see her own name flashing in red!

Her authorization to enter the headquarters had been revoked!

And Sophia’s finger was resting right on the delete key on her keyboard.

It was Sophia who had deleted her name!

Joanna Sherman never imagined Sophia would go this far!

Her face twisted in a snarl. "What gives you the right to do this! I’m the head of Zenith, personally appointed by Vincent Grant! This entire project was built for me!"

"Put my name back on the list right now!"

Only then did Sophia stand up, her tone exceptionally cool as she spoke. "As long as I am the Chief Engineer at Zenith, you will not be allowed in here."

Joanna Sherman glared at her.

’That tone, that look in her eyes... It’s so familiar!’

It was the exact same attitude she used to have toward Sophia!

’Sophia is using my own tactics to get back at me!’

She knew better than anyone what that look meant.

Disdain, contempt, provocation, superiority... it was the attitude one takes toward a mere ant, someone so far beneath you they’re not even on the same level!

When she had treated Sophia this way, it had felt perfectly natural.

Now that the tables were turned, it felt worse than being stabbed!

The humiliation was all-consuming!

A fire ignited in Joanna Sherman’s chest, burning so intensely she felt she might crack apart!

She roared viciously, "I will never, ever let you get away with this!"

The door clicked open.

Vincent Grant stood there.

Joanna Sherman had found her savior. She rushed over to Vincent Grant and cried out pitifully, "President Grant!"

Then she began her tirade against Sophia. "Chief Engineer Shaw is abusing her authority! She vetoed a proposal that was approved by the entire board and unilaterally revoked my access to the headquarters!"

"This is a malicious, personal attack!"

’No matter how you look at it, no matter who’s judging, my accusations against Sophia are completely valid!’

The dazed look in Vincent Grant’s eyes cleared somewhat upon hearing Joanna Sherman’s accusations. He turned to look at Sophia in silence.

Sophia showed no intention of explaining. She simply nodded. "That’s right. It was my decision."

"See!" Sophia’s admission emboldened Joanna. "Vincent, you have to..."

"We’ll proceed according to Chief Engineer Shaw’s decision," Vincent Grant said.

"Vin..." Joanna Sherman stared at Vincent Grant in shock, unable to believe what she was hearing.

Sophia walked past them and opened the door. "Miss Sherman is no longer part of the headquarters staff. Please leave now."

Joanna Sherman stubbornly refused to move. "President Grant, I won’t accept this! Sophia clearly broke the rules, so why aren’t you stopping her?"

Vincent Grant looked wearily at Joanna Sherman. "Please leave for now. I’ll give you an answer later."

"Vincent..."

Joanna Sherman was so hurt she was on the verge of tears, but not wanting to lose her last shred of pride, she angrily stomped out in her high heels.

Vincent then slowly walked up to Sophia. "Sophia..."

Sophia simply gave him a cool, polite nod, then walked to her desk and picked up a thick binder. "These are the problems with Joanna Sherman’s proposal. I’ve already had Elder Hawthorne and Old Master Sloan verify them."

After the last incident, although Elder Hawthorne had been disgraced, he had come to sincerely admire Sophia.

The two had begun corresponding by email.

"As for Joanna Sherman’s clearance, she isn’t part of the core team. It’s inappropriate for her to have further access."

This was something anyone in the field would understand.

Joanna Sherman had been deliberately playing dumb, counting on Vincent Grant’s protection.

’Sophia hadn’t actually intended to use her position for personal revenge. But since the opportunity had presented itself, giving Joanna a taste of her own medicine—and then some—was perfectly acceptable.’

’She was no saint when it came to matters like these.’

"Alright," Vincent Grant replied quietly, raising no objections.

Sophia was a little surprised.

’Even though her own reasoning was impeccable, she knew that if Vincent wanted to, he could always find a way to protect Joanna Sherman.’

’That’s what he had always done in the past.’

But she didn’t dwell on it, simply returning to her desk and getting back to work.

"Faye..."

Vincent followed him, wanting to say something, but when he saw her brows furrow in concentration as she once again became immersed in her work, he didn’t disturb her. Instead, he retreated to the side and sat down quietly.

Joanna Sherman waited downstairs for Vincent Grant.

She waited until sunset, but Vincent Grant never came down.

In all the time since she’d been back, Vincent had never once made her wait. All it ever took was a single phone call, and he would drop even his most important work to appear before her.

The stark difference in his behavior filled Joanna with extreme resentment and a profound sense of being wronged.

Seeing Joel Hale walk in from outside, Joanna Sherman’s anger reached its peak. She strode over to block his path. "Go up and ask your President Grant if he’s planning on just handing my Zenith over to Sophia Shaw!"

Timothy Morgan, who had arrived with Joel Hale, found Joanna Sherman’s words incredibly grating and couldn’t help but retort, "Miss Sherman, Zenith is a division of the Grant Group. You’re just an employee. How can you possibly say Zenith is yours?"