Chapter 109 - Eat My Dust (1/2)

Oakwood Capital

Inside a meeting room, Olivia tried to dodge the small talk that Chanel Greene attempted, but she knew that she could only hold the fort for long as it was impolite for her to ignore her client for an extended amount of time.

She just smiled and smiled while Chanel Greene talked non-stop whilst signing the doc.u.ments.

After almost an hour which should have been only a ten-minute engagement, all thanks to her client's cacophony, Chanel Greene finally finished signing the doc.u.ments.

Olivia swiveled her chair and stood up, walking as far away as possible to grab a glass of water for her guest and herself.

She need not do it, but she volunteered herself just so she could breathe a little away from Chanel's potent perfume.

While she was pouring the water, Olivia couldn't help but wonder whether Ms. Greene also showered with Chanel soap.

”Oooow, you're back! I was just talking with your secretary. I noticed you're using a competitor's security system. AHAHAHAHAHA!”

Olivia's lips twitched, but she was quick to hide it by taking a sip of her water. She didn't know whether Chanel Greene was tactless or just plain clueless. Giving her client the benefit of doubt, she chose the latter. Yeah, she looked clueless to her.

”The system's installed when we leased the space,” she lied. Though a security system was in place, she still had it replaced because of the unreliability and untrustworthiness of the existing one which was a product of Ms. Greene's company.

”Really?” Chanel Greene pulled a duck face as she tilted her head. She remembered winning a bidding on this project a decade ago, but shrugged it off when Olivia flashed her a smile.

Seeing her client in deep thought, Olivia knew it wouldn't be long before she'd be placed on a hot seat, so she straightened her spine, weaved her fingers, and rested it on her l.a.p.

Magnetized by Olivia's smile, which she practiced and perfected in time, Chanel Greene's focused her attention on the lady across her.

She listened and answered to the string of questions that Olivia prepared for her starting with the most important of them all, ”So, Ms. Chanel, how do you see yourself in the future?”

…

Shibumi Hotel

After three hours and a change of scene, Olivia and Chanel just finished their kaiseki meal—a multi-course Japanese dinner in Shibumi Hotel which houses one of the hotspot restaurants in the business district.

”I'm surprised you haven't asked me yet. How I got where I am now.” Placing her sakazuki sake cup back on the table, Chanel Greene looked straight into Olivia's eyes, gauging the enigma in front of her.

”Are you talking about what I found in the dark web about your… history?” Olivia took a sip of her sake, hiding a smirk. ”Personally, I don't dwell too much on what happened in the past. It's there for a reason, nothing but a blip in time.”

”AHAHAHAHA! I really like you, Ms. Lin! See. Only a woman could understand a woman. I mean, we had to work twice as much as our male counterparts. That's why I can't believe some ladies who pull other ladies down instead of helping each other up. Gosh, it's so hard to be on top.”

Locking gazes, Olivia asked, ”How does it feel? To be on top knowing that people were talking behind your back about what you did just to be up on the pedestal?”

Chanel Green pulled a duck face, a single eyebrow raised at the sudden slingshot of insult. She leaned on her seat, crossing her arms over her c.h.e.s.t and posed a question, ”Was it my fault to see the loophole in the system? Was it my fault that I used my robots to my advantage?

”As I said, women like us need to work harder. We need to play dirtier because if we don't, well, the system would only swallow us whole. Do you think if I played nice, I would have the riches that I have now? No.

”It's easier to judge people like me because unlike you, who's born with a silver spoon, I was born to a family of salarymen—people who had to sell our souls to the devil just so we could get a taste of heaven here on Earth.

”So to answer your question, I don't care what people think. They could eat my dust for all I care. HAHAHAHAHAHAHAHA!”

Olivia offered to pour a sake on Chanel Greene's cup to which the other returned the favor too, pouring a serving to the former's empty cup.

Clearing her throat, Chanel Greene continued to wash her hands, ”And it's not like I'm trampling other people. As a matter of fact, I am helping less marginalized communities by giving them jobs—doing the assembly and botting for me. It's just that I pay them minimum wage, while I earn millions in return. AHAHAHAHA!”

Her hand dramatically flew to her temple, heaving an exaggerated sigh. Chanel Green felt it was time to conclude their dinner. ”Ooow thank you so much for the scrumptious dinner, Ms. Lin. But I think we have to retire for the night.”

Across Chanel Greene, Olivia let out a small smile before pressing the button on the table to call for an attendant.

In Shibumi Hotel's lobby, Olivia and Chanel's entourage just stepped outside the lift when the latter snorted.

”Look at that. I bet the Prime Minister's daughter is waiting for him in their lover's nest. What a poor little rich girl.”

At that moment, everything slowed down as Olivia's neck snapped to the left in its own accord and there she saw a man she never dared see in another woman's arms.