Chapter 345: Spill The Truth
Todd came by to pick up Wendy after work as usual.
Wendy had already told him several times that he shouldn’t stop by so frequently.
Todd simply promised that he would only come by if he were free.
In reality, he continued to pick her up every time.
Since it was impossible to make him change his mind, Wendy stopped talking about it.
In any case, it only took her ten minutes to get home from work.
She and Todd walked back to her place as usual, when it suddenly started to drizzle and neither of them had an umbrella.
Todd looked up at the sky before glancing at Wendy.
He proceeded to take off his coat and reached his hand out to hold it over Wendy’s head.
Wendy was caught by surprise when Todd did it.
"It’s just a drizzle, I’m fine." Wendy was clearly rejecting his gesture.
"You have a weak constitution to begin with, you will fall sick if you walk in the rain," said Todd with concern.
"It will get tiring for you to hold the coat up. Besides, it’s hard for you to walk this way." Wendy lowered her eyes and noticed how close Todd was.
Every now and then, they would even make physical contact.
Wendy felt a little uneasy, so she moved to the side a little.
Since Todd’s arms were not long enough, Wendy got into the rain the moment she moved.
Wendy looked at a huge tree by the roadside and smiled forcibly as she said, "If we walk under the tree, we won’t get wet."
Todd knew that Wendy was tactfully turning down his kind gesture, so he put his coat away.
The atmosphere became very awkward.
Wendy contemplated before she said, "Oh yes, I have some good news to share with you."
"What is it?" Todd looked sideways and saw a smile on Wendy’s face, which got rid of most of his disappointment.
"Mr. Woods told me that the board of directors has agreed to transfer shares to me," said Wendy with a smile on her face.
"Huh?" Todd’s expression instantly turned solemn when he heard the news. "Is HG Enterprise giving you its shares?"
Wendy already expected Todd to react this way.
This meant that there was more than met the eye between Todd and HG Enterprise.
However, Wendy was smart enough to keep this observation to herself. She simply lowered her head as she walked with Todd. He had slowed down and seemed a little unhappy, which prompted her to say, "Todd, aren’t you happy for me?"
The moment she finished her sentence, a thought crossed Wendy’s mind. "I am so sorry Todd. I forgot that you asked for shares as well, but they refused to give them to you..."
When Wendy saw Todd’s reaction, she felt that Todd was jealous and unhappy since she did not know the truth about HG Enterprise.
After all, he had made immense contributions to HG Enterprise in his time there, but they still refused to give him any shares. Yet here they were, giving them to Wendy.
Todd realized that Wendy had misunderstood. He wanted to explain things to her but did not know what to say.
Todd took a deep breath and halted in his steps as he looked at Wendy and said, "Corrine, things aren’t what they appear at HG Enterprise. Trust me. Don’t take up the shares or continue working for HG Enterprise. Why don’t you join me at Lewis Designs?"
"Why?" Wendy shook her head perplexedly. "I know HG Enterprise refused to give you shares. Now that they have given them to me, you should be happy even if you feel jealous since you are my boyfriend."
"If it were some other company offering you shares, I would definitely be happy." Todd shook his head as he thought about how to say this to Wendy. "You can’t take HG Enterprise’s shares."
"Hang on, Todd..." Wendy reached her hand out and gestured in bewilderment. "Why can’t I take the HG Enterprise shares?"
"HG Enterprise isn’t as simple as they seem." Todd felt powerless and did not know how to explain things to her. He could only repeat himself, "Whatever it is, you can’t take their shares or join their board as a director."
Wendy frowned.
Todd must know something about HG Enterprise. Perhaps he was secretly involved in the group.
Judging from Todd’s reaction, it might be bad news for Wendy to take the HG Enterprise shares and join its board of directors.
Perhaps it spelled bad news for HG Enterprise if she became a shareholder, so Todd did not want her to become one.
The answer hinged on whose side Todd was on.
If he worked for HG Enterprise, he was naturally on its side.
If he had no involvement in HG Enterprise, then he must know some secret about them that made him worried for Wendy’s well-being.
No matter what, the situation was becoming increasingly dangerous and complicated.
"You have been acting strange. You overreacted a few days ago when I told you about the shares. Now, you are even more agitated." Wendy asked, "Todd, if you want me to give up the shares and leave HG Enterprise, you have to give me a good reason, right?"
"It is better if you did not know." Todd reached his hand out and held Wendy’s shoulder as he looked at her solemnly. Wendy had never seen him act this way.
Todd said in a serious tone, "All you have to know is that I am doing it for your own good and would never hurt you."
Wendy reached her hand out to push Todd’s hand away as she shook her head. "Todd, do you think I am some kind of idiot? How can you ask me to give up HG Enterprise’s shares without telling me the reason? Do you know how many shares Mr. Woods plans to give me? A total of 5%. In a couple of days, I will get 3% upfront after we sign the share transfer agreement. Do you know what the market value of 3% HG Enterprise shares is? According to the company’s market value, 3% is worth tens of billions."
"Since the board of directors is willing to give me those shares, they are validating my ability. After working for HG Enterprise for years, I have earned these shares. How could you say I cannot take them? What do you mean when you say there is more than meets the eye? Then tell me, what is wrong with the company? What do I not know about?"
Wendy was deliberately pretending to be angry in an effort to make Todd come clean with the truth.
He definitely knew something.
Todd could sense a headache coming on.
He did not expect Timothy to genuinely give Wendy the shares.
There were only two possibilities in which HG Enterprise would give Wendy the shares. Either they might want to make her a key member of the group and turn her into one of them.
Or perhaps they were simply offering them to her temporarily, so that she would continue working for HG Enterprise.
After Wendy was done with the Moonlight collection, if HG Enterprise was not happy with her work, all that remained for her was hell.
No matter what, Wendy was in grave danger.
"Corrine, I suspect HG Enterprise is up to no good by giving you the shares." Todd inhaled deeply as he thought about how to convince her and said, "Think about it. Since you are working on the Moonlight collection, they had to give you the shares so that you would continue working for them. They are giving them to you out of fear that you won’t do your best with the project. After all, you are their money-spinner. All designers have their prime. Once your prime is over in a couple of years, and you are no longer as useful to them, they will throw you out without hesitation."
"Todd, let me ask you this..." Wendy looked at him solemnly before she asked, "Do you even believe what you just said?"
"It is true that designers have their primes, but the same applies for every trade," said Wendy. "HG Enterprise started out with Mr. Woods. Then, you became their main designer. Now, I am the leader of the design team. In a few years, or maybe even a few months, someone else might take over my position. No one can stay in their prime forever, but this is hardly a legitimate reason to make me leave. Are you saying that you will stop designing because you are worried about running out of inspiration?"
"That is not the same..." Todd felt cornered. How could he convince Wendy to give up the shares? "Corrine, can you trust me this once? Although Lewis Design Company cannot compare to HG Enterprise, we can work together if you come over. In three years, I am sure it will surpass HG Enterprise. More importantly, I will never betray or hurt you. I can also give you shares to the company. I will give you half my shares. Corrine, do you get what I am trying to say?"
"You won’t betray or hurt me?" Wendy caught onto the crux of the conversation. She looked into Todd’s eyes and asked, "Todd, you did not leave HG Enterprise back in the day because they refused to give you shares, right?"
"That’s right." Todd did not deny it this time. "But you have to stop asking. It won’t do you any good anymore. Just do as I say and leave HG Enterprise. I invited you to leave with me when I left. You were so obsessed with vengeance that all you cared about was coming back to Lake City to exact revenge and refused to join my startup. Now that you are my girlfriend, you are no longer hell-bent on seeking revenge. Also, you don’t care about money and you have plenty of your own. You have already made a name for yourself in the industry. Everyone in the world knows about the famous Corrine. Since you are already famous, there is no reason for you to stay here."
Wendy was unsurprised by Todd’s answer.
She used to find it odd for Todd to leave HG Enterprise since he was not an ingrate. Although HG Enterprise refused to give him any shares, they had groomed him into a renowned designer and given him a platform to work on. Even if he were to leave, he would not have done it in such a hurry. Sure enough, there was more to it.
"Now, you are making me really curious." Wendy looked at Todd with resolution as she smiled and said, "Todd, you know what I am like. The more I don’t understand what is going on, the more I want to figure it out. Since you refuse to tell me the truth, then I can only find out for myself, right?"
"Corrine!" Todd sounded even harsher and a little afraid. "Can’t you do as I say this one time?"
"It is true that I don’t care about money and I already have a reputation and status, but this is 3% worth of shares we are talking about. How could I just say no to it because you told me so?" Wendy shook her head before she continued, "I will not give up the shares now that they are dangling right in front of me."
The moment she finished her sentence, Wendy continued walking.
Todd watched from behind as Wendy left and felt powerless.
He did not chase after her. Instead, he took out his phone and called Timothy.
The call got through before long.
Todd wasted no time and asked coldly, "Where are you now?"
Timothy could tell Todd was so annoyed that he did not even bother with formalities. Timothy reckoned Todd had heard about the share transfer. However, it was just a matter of time before he knew about it.
Timothy said, "I am still in the office."
"Then, wait for me. I will be right over," said Todd before he hung up the phone right away. He turned and headed towards HG Enterprise.
Timothy brewed some coffee and waited for Todd at the office.
"Take a seat." Timothy gestured to Todd when he came in.
Todd walked up to the couch and sat down. There was a cold look on his face and he looked unusually solemn.
"Mr. Woods, you probably know why I am here, right?" asked Todd.
"Why don’t you try some of this coffee? I personally made you this craft brew coffee." Timothy pointed at the coffee on the table.
Todd was naturally in no mood for coffee. He cut to the chase and said, "Mr. Woods, I think you owe me an explanation."
"It was decided by HG Enterprise. You should know that I am not a decision-maker here." Timothy picked up the coffee and took a sip before he put it down and looked at Todd as he said, "Don’t worry, Corrine will never get to see any of the board members unless she really has to."
"If she has the shares, she has the right to participate in board meetings," said Todd. "Even if you deliberately prevent her from doing so now, it is only a matter of time before she starts talking to them. Also, she will be able to make major decisions for the company now that she has the shares. You have single-handedly groomed Corrine. Are you really going to stand by and watch as she follows in your footsteps?"
"I told you. I don’t have a say in these decisions," said Timothy powerlessly as he sighed.
"But you can say no to giving her shares!" Todd looked agitated as he stood up. "If you didn’t want her to have the shares, you could have just told her that HG Enterprise refused to do it."
"It is true that I want her on the board of directors at HG Enterprise." Timothy nodded. He blinked before he said candidly, "I am getting on in years. Since you refused to stay at HG Enterprise, I have to find someone to take over you, right? Corrine is the best person for the job. I know what you are worried about. Don’t worry. No one will hurt Corrine."
"No one will hurt Corrine?" Todd smiled coldly as he said, "Mr. Woods, if you really care about Corrine, you would not have repeatedly asked her to go back to the company. All you care about is profit! Don’t force me to tell everyone about what happened back in the day!"
"Todd!" The moment Timothy heard what he said, he stood up agitatedly and looked straight into Todd’s eyes. "It is fine for you to say this to me, but you had better keep your mouth shut. Otherwise, you wouldn’t even know what hit you! Also, you have no evidence to back up your story. Who is going to believe you?"
"Mr. Woods, I beg you. Don’t give Corrine the shares. Make her leave HG Enterprise."
Since his threats did not work on Timothy, he decided to ease up a little.
"I told you. I won’t hurt Corrine." Timothy sighed. Since Todd had softened up, Timothy said calmly, Don’t worry."
"How could I?" Todd’s face was filled with worry. "Why don’t you tell me who truly has control over HG Enterprise so that I can handle it myself?"
"I cannot tell you just yet." Timothy shook his head. "Just pretend you didn’t know anything about this. This would be best for both Corrine and you.
