Chapter 246 - New Gossip

Steph was having a tough time trying to control his emotions after the shocking revelation during the phone call with his Noona.

Not only was he mad that she had been snatched away by that despicable capitalist but also that he had come across a truly infuriating thing in the office.

So after giving out his order, he strode away to his designated room with a heavy heart and a stormy mind. 

The moment the person summoned by Steph set foot inside the workspace which was usually forbidden for them, he felt as though he had entered a blizzard stricken zone.

The cold temperature along with the vicious eyes of the man sitting on the couch made him tremble in fear.

"Tell me everything that has happened in my absence." Steph commanded while twirling a pencil in his hand.

He had been away for a couple of days due to a problem back at home and when he returned the first thing he heard was the nonsense being spread in the office.

The person standing before him was the supervisor of the interns, a bespectacled man named Tim.

He knew that among all the employees under him, this man was the one he could trust if he needed to get information about the gossip in the building.

Tim gulped and wiped his foggy glasses as he prepared to fill his boss in on the details of the new gossip in Obsidia's building.

"There is gossip being spread throughout the building about Ms. Lina." He began after making sure that he worded his sentences appropriately.

"People are saying that she is a slacker who is abusing her relationship with the VP to keep her job without doing any work of value for the company." He informed and then shivered.

When Steph heard the accusations aimed at his Noona he gritted his teeth in anger and frustration.

'The last time it was about her entering the car with her brother and now this?' He thought back to the last incident.

"Any posts on the company forum?" He interrogated and received a swift shake of the head.

Tim was sure that there was no such post made on the forum since he had scoured the net in order to find that post when he first heard the gossip.

"Whoever started the rumor was sure not to leave a digital footprint after what happened to that employee who was fired due to her slanderous post." He commented on what he had concluded after his investigation.

Steph agreed with his assumptions as he too had tried looking at the forum but found no clues.

"You may leave but make sure that none of the people under your supervision are found spreading this matter any further." He made sure to let his thoughts be known to his employee.

Tim knew about the close relationship between his boss and the woman at the eye of the gossip storm so he nodded resolutely and then left the room.

'Miss Lina seems like a nice person and I do not understand why she is always being targeted.' He shook his head while stepping towards the interns.

His sharp eyes fell on the youngsters who straighten their backs upon feeling his scrutinizing gaze.

He examined each of their expressions to see if he could catch anyone looking guilty or suspicious but found none.

"Supervisor, don't look at us like that! We have no hand in this incident!" A short woman with shoulder-length hair hastily blurted out her thoughts.

"We like Miss Lina and would not spread such things about her. But there might be someone who could have done it." One stout man huffed while looking in a certain direction.

Everyone followed his gaze and soon they fixed their sights on one woman at the end of the line.

Vivian, the petite woman who was smirking at the calamity that had befallen the woman who was close to her boss was suddenly stunned to see everyone's eyes on her.

"I did no such thing!" She scowled at the fatty who had blamed her.

Sure, she did not like that woman one bit but she did not want to look bad in Stephen's eyes and hence had refrained from speaking about this matter.

She had even gone as far as stepping away from people when she found them discussing this topic in the break room of another department.

"I swear I did not spread anything about Miss Lina!" She yelled to prove her innocence.

There was clear anger and frustration in her voice but no guilt and fear which would be in the voice of a culprit.

"It would be in your favor if those words are the truth." A cold voice was heard from behind.

Everyone turned around and were shocked to find their boss standing behind them.

Steph glanced at the woman who had caused trouble for Lina once before and then turned away as he walked towards the elevator.

Vivian felt aggrieved that even when she had done nothing wrong, she was being subjected to such harsh treatment.

But who could she blame when she was the one who had created that vicious image for herself in the eyes of her colleagues and boss.

Steph did not bother to stick around as he had better things to do.

He rode the elevator to the top floor as he had an ax to grind with the man who could not keep his sister's reputation safe in the company.

The secretaries watched as the young man who exited the elevator strode in the direction of the VP's office.

If there was someone that they feared after the VP then it was this temperamental youngster who had an extremely short fuse.

Before they could come back to their senses, Stephen Jin had already entered the VP's office.

The women looked at each other's face in astonishment at the bravery of the youngster who had entered the lion's den on his own accord.

Inside the office, the atmosphere was more chilling than it was in Steph's office.

Wade glanced up with a scowl when the door was pushed open with being knocked.

"Where the hell are your manners?" He snarled at the intruder who had dared to be so rude as to barge into his office.

When he saw that it was this brat, his eyebrows scrunched together as he was trying to figure out why he had come here.

"Did the Jin family forget to teach their children manners? Do I need to talk to your older sister about this?" He sneered while using the one person who could set Stephen straight.

Hearing the threat in his words, Steph's steps halted and he hurriedly shook his head.

'I do not want to deal with that demoness again!' He shuddered while thinking of the past few days that he had to bear her torture.

He would much rather prefer to stay with his Noona than with that biological sister of his who only knew how to yell at him.

Seeing that his threat had worked, Wade looked at the other people in the room and nodded for them to continue.

Only now did Steph realize that there were others in the room with Wade.

He scratched his neck in embarrassment for barging in unannounced as he took another step forward.

"Quickly take a seat!" Wade yelled when he saw him dallying along at his own pace.

Following the instructions, Steph took a seat on an empty chair and looked at the others sitting in this office.

Benji, Kirk, Manager Anthony Shen, and Asst Leon Jiu were all staring back at him.

Everyone who was close to Lina in the company had all gathered together for an emergency meeting after they heard of the gossip.

"So tell me what happened?" Wade questioned his assistant who nodded his head.

The moment Wade had returned to the office from Reuben's house, he found this small group of men standing outside his office, awaiting his return.

He was just being informed about the gossip that Lina was targeted with when Stephen had barged in and distracted them.

"Someone has been cautious about this and has not let anything be spread on the forums that could be traced back to them." Assistant Kirk informed what he had discovered.

If this was a matter of cyberbullying like the last time then it could be solved in a matter of seconds by Benji who was a tech wiz.

However, the crisis this time was because they could do nothing if they had no proof.

All that they had was a rumor being spread throughout the building by word of mouth.

In a building that had over a hundred employees, trying to find the person who had initiated this piece of libel against Lina was like finding a needle in a haystack.

The fact that someone had been spreading things in such a cautious manner meant that this was not accidental but was a planned move to harm her.

'First someone messed with her car's brakes and now someone tried to turn the company's employees against her.' Wade pondered the recent events surrounding his sister.

"What should we do now?" Steph's impatient voice made the men turn in his direction.

The gossip this time was about her abusing her familial relationship with Wade to get this job and not do anything worthwhile for the company.

These claims were gaining weight since Lina had been taking too many leaves these past few days.

Even if she appeared at the office in the morning, she would soon disappear after lunch.

Seeing this unfair treatment, an unknown vigilante in the company had brought this information to the notice of the other hardworking employees.

Right now, there were a small group of agitated employees who believed that Lina was not a valuable member of their company.

Some even expressed their opinions that Obsidia would be alright without the presence of such a worthless employee. 

'They want me to fire the CEO of this company?' Wade sneered when he heard the complaints that his assistant had received from various departments.