Chapter 2 For a moment , the entire room went silent , everyone staring at me in disbelief . The Winthrop Group executives began whispering amongst themselves , assuming I must be spouting nonsense out of desperation . After all , everyone in the company knew that I had dedicated myself tirelessly for the past decade , with no expectation of reward , to achieve our current success . Langley , youre the companys second in command ! Its just one project . Dont throw away your future over a momentary impulse ! Hearing this , Camila seemed to think I was threatening her , and her face flushed with anger . Rylan , have you lost your mind ? she spat . How dare you lose your temper after just a few words of criticism ? Youve really crossed the line ! Let me remind you , youre only the nominal CEO . Im the one who truly controls this group ! I laughed inwardly . < ว G I laughed inwardly . She should be overjoyed that I was handing over the CEO position . Wouldnt it be a dream come true for Camila to see her beloved first love rise to the top ? Oliver clutched the CEO position transfer document tightly , a glint of greed flashing in his eyes . Yet , he feigned a selfless and righteous posture , saying , Mr. Langley , are you offering me the CEO position in a moment of anger ? Please dont misunderstand . Camila was just trying to help me catch up on the schedule by lending a hand . Its all for the sake of Winthrop Group . Besides , how dare I replace you ? Youre a veteran of the group . The CEO position is not something a newcomer like me can aspire to . Everyone knows how dedicated youve been to the company all these years . The CEO position rightfully belongs to you . As he spoke , Oliver made a gesture to return the transfer document to me . But his hand remained firmly pressed against the document as if afraid I would actually take it back Seeing his two faced act , I smiled faintly , Why would I be angry ? Youre a highly educated overseas returnee . Im overjoyed to have fresh blood in the group . I have complete confidence in you as CEO . Camila gave me a suspicious look , then snorted coldly , Oliver , since hes offering to step down , just accept it . With your capabilities , the CEO position would be yours sooner or later anyway . Theres no question of whether youre worthy or not . Everyones here , so they can all be witnesses . As soon as she finished speaking , Oliver immediately stopped refusing and hugged the transfer document tightly , his eyes almost overflowing with greed . Watching him , I sneered inwardly . Camila , spending all her time flirting with Oliver , had no idea how technically challenging the Oldom project indeed was . I had spent an entire year tackling it , finally achieving a breakthrough in the formation control algorithm for desert environments . But they didnt know that the core program was still on my encrypted hard drive , not yet handed over . Even if they stole it , without the basic annotations , it would take them half a year just to crack the code . Without me , how could they possibly pull off an aerial performance with tens of thousands of drones ? The drone swarm they saw as a gold mine would turn into a man eating locust swarm ! Besides , Oliver probably didnt realize that the CEO position wasnt all sunshine and roses . Mastering the core technology also meant shouldering all the responsibility . For this Oldom project , the down payment alone was five million dollars . If the performance failed , not only would they have to pay back the full amount , but they would also face the wrath of the royal family . Not to mention the fierce competition in this industry , rivals could completely crush the company because of one wrong move . Since they considered me useless , there was no need for me to remind them kindly . The day the project failed would be the day the Winthrop family faced utter ruin . Camila seemed a bit sheepish seeing me so readily step down . With a simulated cough and a haughty tone , she said , Alright , Rylan , you can stop standing there . Youll need to hand over your work anyway . Were celebrating Olivers success tonight . Since youre being so understanding , you can come along . Her condescending tone almost made me laugh . If the Oldom project succeeded , the bonus would be at least tens of millions of dollars . They cut me out of the profit sharing , and now they think a meal will make it all okay ? What a joke ! The thought of dining with a weasel like Oliver made me sick . I was about to decline when Oliver chimed in , feigning sincerity . Oh dear , Mr. Langley wasnt around when I booked the private room , so I forgot to reserve you a seat . Its my fault for not being thorough . I may have sprained my ankle today , but I should still take responsibility . Please have a seat . Ill go get a chair from outside and buy some drinks . < 11 I knew he was deliberately playing the victim , trying to score points with the Winthrop family . As expected , Camila immediately fussed over him , her voice full of concern as she guided him to a chair . Oliver , youve done more than enough for the company . Such a huge project relies entirely on you . How can we let you do these errands ? She then shot me a disgusted look . What are you waiting for ? Dont you have any common sense after all these years at the company ? Either go buy the drinks , or dont bother coming ! Her blatant double standards made me scoff inwardly . It was Camila , always taking me for granted . Back in the company , I worked day and night but was never included in any team dinners . Now they act like theyre doing me a favor . Oliver , pushing his luck , said with a smug grin , Mr. Langley , Im so sorry to trouble you . Ill make sure to toast you properly later … Before he could finish , I let out a cold laugh and kicked the leather executive chair right out from under him .