Chapter 257: Chapter 257: A Scumbag Raised by Scumbags
"By the way, I heard he’s had a huge change of heart about Sophia Shaw recently. What do you think? Do you think he’ll crush you, the Sherman Family, and the Jennings Family into dust for her sake?"
Mira Quinn’s words sent a violent shiver down Joanna Sherman’s spine, her eyes filled with panic.
"Well, well. I never thought I’d see the day the high-and-mighty Joanna Sherman was actually afraid of something." Mira Quinn savored Joanna Sherman’s expression, thoroughly enjoying herself.
She forcefully shook off her hand and commanded, "Get the money together! And don’t make me wait!"
Before leaving, she deliberately raked her eyes over Joanna Sherman from head to toe, looking at her like she was a dog—exactly how Joanna used to look at her!
With a final, derisive "Hah," she turned and sashayed away.
"AH, AH, AH, AH!" Joanna Sherman was so furious she lost control, descending into a frenzy right there on the street.
...
Vincent Grant, who hadn’t been seen for a long time, was once again in attendance at the Zenith project’s progress meeting.
When Sophia Shaw walked in, she only gave him a polite nod.
Vincent Grant returned the gesture with a slight nod of his own.
The two of them were like ordinary colleagues.
When Joanna Sherman came in and saw him, however, her face lit up with joy.
"The meeting will now begin."
Sophia Shaw announced.
After a brief introduction, the relevant departments reported on their progress one by one.
Sophia Shaw would occasionally interrupt to ask questions about points she found unclear.
Don’t let her usual gentle and mild-mannered appearance fool you; she was anything but polite when asking questions, and it only took a few for her to get to the heart of the matter.
Every single department head giving a report was on edge, terrified that one wrong answer would leave them utterly humiliated.
After finishing their reports, every one of them had beads of sweat on their foreheads.
Although Sophia Shaw’s questions were sharp and direct, she didn’t harshly reprimand those who made mistakes. She simply listed the issues. "Solve what you can internally. For what you can’t, schedule a meeting with me, and we’ll solve it together."
No one immediately requested a meeting.
Everyone wanted to prove their worth to the rocket genius, so of course, they would first do everything in their power to solve the problems themselves.
As usual, Sophia Shaw didn’t waste too much time in the meeting. Once the important points were covered, she declared it over.
"President Grant!"
Joanna Sherman stood up and rushed over to Vincent Grant.
"I have a new idea. Please, take a look."
Joanna Sherman handed over the proposal, her eyes blazing with intensity. "I’ve spent the last half-month researching rocket recovery technology. The previous recovery loss rate was still too high. If this idea of mine can be realized, our reusability could reach fifty percent!"
"Under normal circumstances, the rocket recovery and reuse rate barely reaches twenty percent. This thirty percent improvement could save us hundreds of millions on every launch!"
Joanna Sherman’s face, which had been downcast for so long, was now radiant with the excitement of her own idea!
Vincent Grant gave it a quick flip-through.
"Chief Engineer Shaw."
He called out to Sophia Shaw, who was about to leave.
"Take a look at this."
Sophia Shaw froze for a moment, her gaze shifting from the document in his hand to Joanna Sherman.
The color drained from Joanna Sherman’s face.
Vincent Grant was clearly treating Sophia Shaw as a consultant, showing his absolute trust in her!
However, Joanna Sherman didn’t want to lose face in front of Sophia Shaw, so she straightened her back and said, "Miss Shaw, I welcome your guidance."
Only then did Sophia Shaw lower her gaze, her long fingers carefully turning the pages.
Jacobs, who was standing beside her, also looked over.
’It had to be said, Joanna Sherman’s idea actually resembled something a professional would come up with this time.’
Sophia Shaw scanned ten lines at a glance.
After she finished reading, she handed it back to Vincent Grant.
She hadn’t wanted to offer an opinion, but Vincent Grant kept looking at her, so she had no choice but to say, "If there’s a budget for it, it might be worth a try."
"Is there a budget?" Vincent Grant turned and asked his assistant.
The assistant he had with him today was Timothy Morgan.
Timothy Morgan shook his head. "Zenith’s entire budget has been allocated to the current three rocket launch projects. There’s nothing left."
The budget had been more than sufficient originally, but the two satellites Vincent Grant bought used up most of the money. On top of that, the last failed rocket launch resulted in a direct loss of tens of billions.
Joanna Sherman really couldn’t blame anyone else for that.
"Actually, I don’t think this technology is an urgent priority," Elias Underwood, who was standing closest to Sophia Shaw, said coolly. "Before you can successfully recover a rocket, you first have to successfully launch one."
Elias Underwood never minced words, and his single sentence left Joanna Sherman utterly humiliated.
She argued back forcefully, "Even if we don’t use this technology ourselves, we can license it to other companies. It can save over a hundred million per use. What company wouldn’t be clamoring for it?"
"Chief Engineer Shaw, isn’t that right?"
Sophia Shaw: "..."
’How did I get dragged into this again?’
Not wanting to get involved in Zenith’s internal affairs, she just gave a noncommittal smile and walked away.
"President Grant."
Joanna Sherman looked at Vincent Grant, refusing to give up.
Vincent Grant’s eyes darkened slightly as he watched Sophia Shaw’s retreating back. He handed the proposal back to Joanna Sherman. "Take it back for now."
’He rejected it!’
Joanna Sherman had assumed Vincent Grant would give her a chance, considering their relationship, but she had completely misjudged the situation.
Joanna Sherman’s fingers tightened on the pages, grievance written all over her face. She looked as if she were about to collapse.
When Vincent Grant went downstairs, she chased after him again.
Vincent Grant happened to get into the elevator at the same time as Sophia Shaw.
Joanna Sherman rushed in after them in a fit of pique.
"Vincent, if this project succeeds, Zenith will have a new source of revenue. We can use the project to fund other projects. Future rocket research won’t need funding from the Grant Group’s headquarters anymore. I’m doing this for the good of the whole company."
"Are you disagreeing because Miss Shaw disagrees?"
Sophia Shaw: "..."
’Joanna Sherman really can’t go three sentences without mentioning my name.’
Vincent Grant rubbed his brow. "Engineer Sherman, this is an internal Zenith project. Whether it’s approved or not has nothing to do with Chief Engineer Shaw!"
Joanna Sherman sneered.
The look she gave Sophia Shaw screamed, ’I see right through you.’
The elevator reached the ground floor. Vincent Grant took a call and walked toward the exit.
Sophia Shaw turned and headed for her office.
Joanna Sherman caught up to her. "Sophia Shaw, is this rivalry fun for you? Just because Vincent doesn’t know you had a child, you’re going to emotionally blackmail him and use him against me?"
Sophia Shaw gave her a cold look.
"If you’ve got a problem with your head, go to a psychiatric hospital. Don’t have a meltdown in front of me!"
Jacobs, who was standing to the side, really couldn’t stand Joanna Sherman.
"Miss Sherman, even a rivalry requires a certain caliber of opponent. On what grounds do you think you’re worthy of competing with our Miss Shaw?"
Jacobs’s words made Joanna Sherman tremble with rage.
"Sophia Shaw, is this how you train your employees? To be so foul-mouthed and uncivilized!"
"Miss Sherman, before you accuse others of being uncivilized, perhaps you should take a look at your own manners," Sophia Shaw retorted, utterly fed up with Joanna Sherman’s neurotic behavior.
"Vincent Grant was the one who rejected the project, not me. Instead of going after him, you come here and throw a fit at me. I’d say your manners aren’t just bad, they’re abysmal."
"But I understand. After all, being raised by scum like Chad Jennings and Yvonne Sherman, it’d be a miracle if you had any manners at all."
Sophia Shaw’s words were blunt and merciless, hitting Joanna Sherman like a slap that left her utterly humiliated.
"I have work to do. If you don’t want to be thrown out of Zenith for harassment, Miss Sherman, then please don’t bother me!"
Sophia Shaw strode into her office.
Joanna Sherman stood outside the glass window, clutching the documents in a death grip, letting the hatred surge through her!
The more Sophia Shaw ignored her, the more fiercely Joanna Sherman’s competitive spirit burned!
She had to beat Sophia Shaw.
She had to win!
She would make Sophia Shaw, and even all of Lead Aerospace, come begging her to help them recover their rockets!
And she would make Vincent Grant recognize her value once again!
