On the other side, Tanya Sinclair returned to the research lab and immediately delved into her work. She was busy all morning, without a chance to drink water, and at noon, Serena Holloway brought her lunch from the cafeteria to eat together in the office. She glanced at her phone. That morning, she had confirmed with Daisy Bell whether she had used a secondary account to add her, figuring Daisy was busy filming and only got back to her around noon. Daisy Bell: [Ahh, I was so busy I forgot, I’ll add you with my secondary account right now.] Then Daisy’s secondary account request came through. ——[Dream of a Billion Young Men] has requested to add you as a friend. Tanya Sinclair: "..." She was already certain that [Odyssey] had absolutely nothing to do with Daisy Bell. The two were not even remotely similar. But right now, Tanya didn’t have the time to expose [Odyssey], and besides, the person had been helping her; since they were a friend and not an enemy, Tanya decided to wait until obtaining the collaboration with Westgard Pharmaceuticals to uncover [Odyssey]’s true identity. After lunch, Tanya set a forty-minute alarm for a nap and rested her head on the office desk for a short sleep. However, before the alarm could go off, Serena rushed in, all flustered. "Boss, there’s a problem!" Tanya had just woken up, her eyes still drowsy, "What’s wrong?" Serena was both angry and anxious, "The three-billion-dollar equipment you ordered has arrived, but it was directly sent by the purchasing department to the second research division! They said they received a notice from President Hawthorne allowing the second division to borrow it for a few days first." Tanya was completely awake now. "This is just too much! They’ve stolen personnel, a computer, and now the new equipment we purchased, which clearly has your name on it! How could Cindy Lynn get to use it first?" Serena was getting increasingly upset, rolling up her sleeves, "It must be the purchasing department bribed by Cindy Lynn to talk nonsense! President Hawthorne knows how important our project is, he wouldn’t let Cindy use the equipment first!" Tanya’s expression was indifferent. Vincent Hawthorne had said in the car, giving her half a day to consider; it seemed this was the consequence of her refusal. Serena still perceived Vincent Hawthorne in a favorable light, "Boss, if you feel it’s inconvenient, I can explain things to President Hawthorne for you, since the equipment was specially expedited for you!" No matter what, Tanya Sinclair was Mrs. Hawthorne; with so many years of relationship, if Vincent Hawthorne had any conscience, he would step up to help her! Serena knew too well how deep Tanya’s feelings for Vincent ran; she surely didn’t want Vincent to be troubled, so she took it upon herself to handle this situation. Tanya pulled Serena back to prevent her from rushing out. "You get busy with your own work. I’ll deal with this matter." Serena wasn’t aware of Cindy’s importance in Vincent’s life, which far surpassed what Tanya, as Mrs. Hawthorne, could match now. Tanya was merely holding onto the facade of being Mrs. Hawthorne. Serena was a bit worried, "Boss, are you okay handling this yourself?" Google seaʀᴄh NoveI(F)ire.net After Serena left, Tanya picked up a document requiring Vincent’s signature and walked out of the office, just in time to see Cindy Lynn entering the second research division with a tall man. As soon as they entered, the door was closed, and the blinds were drawn. Tanya had already guessed the man’s identity; he should be the expert helping Cindy bypass Tanya’s triple protection on the supercomputer. Admittedly, Cindy’s skills at utilizing men were indeed clever. With her gaze straight ahead, Tanya passed by the second research division directly toward Vincent’s office. Inside the second division, Nina Leslie stood leaning against the glass window, catching a glimpse of Tanya through the blinds slit. She slyly pulled down one of the blind slats with a finger and watched Tanya’s back, smiling smugly. "Tsk, Cindy, seems like someone is going to complain to President Hawthorne," Nina commented snidely. Julian Poole was standing with Cindy Lynn, reviewing her nearly completed project proposal, lifted his eyes slightly and frowned, "Is it that Mrs. Hawthorne?" On the way here, he had heard Cindy briefly explain. Last time at dinner, Julian knew that Mrs. Hawthorne was leveraging her backing by President Hawthorne to insist on accompanying Cindy on the same project. Cindy, understanding the bigger picture and considering the company’s interests, planned to give way and collaborate with her on this project. She even voluntarily relinquished the project leader position, willing to be an assistant to Mrs. Hawthorne. Yet still, that woman was not content! Cindy lamented, "She seems unsatisfied that President Hawthorne let the equipment be used by our second research division first." Julian was thoroughly amused by Mrs. Hawthorne’s shamelessness. Someone who relied on a man to navigate the workplace, and she still had the audacity to be dissatisfied?! Though he hadn’t met Mrs. Hawthorne yet, he already deeply despised her. "Don’t mind her," Julian said coldly, "Everyone in the workplace earns their keep through skills; I’m sure President Pierce over at Westgard Pharmaceuticals isn’t foolish enough to fall for a pretty face!" He had already reviewed Cindy’s plan and identified several areas for improvement and enhancement. Julian marked them out for Cindy. "By the way, there are a few experimental data points that need more precision," Julian noted, "The new equipment just arrived, let’s redo the experiments." Tanya took the document to the general manager’s office. But Vincent was not there. "Mrs.?" Jonah Rivers happened to be passing by and was surprised to see Tanya up here, "Are you looking for President Hawthorne?" Since Tanya had returned to the company, she hadn’t actively sought out President Hawthorne even once, quite different from five years ago. Five years ago, Tanya would come by whenever she had time, either taking advantage of lunch breaks to give President Hawthorne some simple massages to relieve stress or bringing homemade meals to share with him. She would even periodically place scented candles she crafted herself in his office, their aroma sharp and invigorating. Back then, Jonah admired Tanya; despite being so busy, she always found time to care for Vincent Hawthorne. "I have a document for him," Tanya replied. Jonah Rivers: "President Hawthorne went out at noon, and I can’t say why. Would you like to give him a call?" Tanya glanced at Vincent’s empty office, hesitated for a couple of seconds, but went ahead and dialed Vincent.