The conference room fell into dead silence.
Everyone held their breath.
A complaint of this magnitude could have disastrous consequences.
It would not only damage the company's reputation but could also send stock prices plummeting.
Just as Sophia Sullivan was about to speak, a woman suddenly stood up.
"Caleb Vance, how dare you shift the blame?"
Her voice rang out, sharp with anger.
"You were in charge of this project from start to finish. Ms. Sullivan only assisted with the fragrance."
The woman had always clashed with Caleb, and now she didn’t hold back.
"You were quick to take credit earlier, but now that there’s trouble, you’re trying to pass the buck?"
Another person stood up.
"Mr. Sullivan, the internal records show Caleb reported the quantity as four thousand five hundred."
"It’s in black and white. He can’t deny it."
"He’s never around when work needs to be done, but he’s the first to claim credit."
More and more people joined the criticism.
Caleb’s face turned ashen, his fingers trembling.
He hadn’t expected to be ganged up on like this.
Sophia watched coldly.
Some spoke out of principle, but most were motivated by self-interest.
She had seen this kind of scene too many times.
Ethan Sullivan slammed the documents onto the table.
"If you can’t even count properly, what business do you have managing projects?"
Caleb immediately put on a pitiful expression.
"Mr. Sullivan, it was just a momentary oversight—"
Before he could finish, his words died under Sophia’s icy gaze.
"Assigning blame now is pointless," Sophia said clearly.
"The priority is to mitigate the losses."
She laid out a detailed plan.
"First, we’ll appease Mr. Roland. Then, we’ll expedite production."
Ethan nodded in approval.
"We’ll proceed as Ms. Sullivan suggested."
After the meeting, Sophia immediately got to work.
"Everyone, follow the formula and speed up production."
Once tasks were assigned, she grabbed her bag and headed out.
At the teahouse, Mr. Roland arrived late.
Sophia stood to greet him.
"We take full responsibility for this mistake."
She handed him a cup of Oolong tea.
"I hope we can offer you a satisfactory compensation plan."
Seeing her, Mr. Roland’s anger subsided somewhat.
His previous experience with her fragrance work had left him impressed.
"How did you know I love Oolong?"
"Your tea scent is quite distinctive," Sophia replied with a smile.
The exchange eased the tension.
Mr. Roland hadn’t planned to pursue the matter anyway.
Sophia then presented him with a bottle of perfume.
"This was specially blended for you."
Mr. Roland took a whiff, his eyes lighting up.
"Tea as the base, sandalwood to finish—very refined."
"A gift as our apology," Sophia said sincerely.
"The missing stock will be replenished by tomorrow."
Mr. Roland held the bottle admiringly.
"Such a small matter didn’t require your personal attention."
He pulled out a business card.
"Ms. Sullivan, would you consider joining our company?"
"The compensation will be more than satisfactory."