Chapter 152 - Devious Plan
"...What a damn bitch. Oops."
Lu Shao shot her a weird look so she sheepishly smiled. She innocently looked at him as if she didn’t just blurt out something vulgar.
He withdrew his gaze and returned back to his screen.
"It seems that Linda Yang has been hooking up with our Planning Director."
"So it seems. But what about it?"
It’s not like she or the Lu Corporation cares that the Planning Director and Linda Yang is hooking up ah.
Recalling their previous meeting back in the airport, she grimaced.
"I found the original post who leaked our data leak issue. Then I checked that blogger’s finances and I saw a recently wired money on his account. Six digits. Then when I traced back the account, it pinged back to one of Linda Yang’s assistants."
So Linda Yang used her assistant’s bank account to wire the money? Isn’t that plain stupidity? If you were trying to hide your traces, then why would you use someone’s bank account that is closely connected to you?
Ah, not that she’s really complaining though. It is good news that she is stupid so now they knew how the news was leaked to the press. It must have been the Planning Director who lea...wait a second.
That’s not it though. Something clicked in her mind.
"But the Planning Director wasn’t supposed to know about the data leak though. I only called for the Marketing Director, Finance Director, Software and IT Director, and Operations Director back then. I did inform the PR Director so they could draft the apology email and refund to the customers but the Planning Director wasn’t involved in any way in it." Xiu Mei pointed out.
"But aside from the Directors, there are others who knew about the incident right?"
"Well, some marketing team members knew about it but I didn’t mention that something was stolen from our database at all. I’d say only the IT team who investigated the attack would know about it aside from me, my assistant, and the directors, I guess."
Xiu Mei analyzed the whole picture again from the very start.
"Then someone from the IT department must’ve been bribed and opened their mouths or maybe they were just really loose-lipped." Lu Shao said, taking in all the other information Xiu Mei was sharing with him.
"That’s highly possible. But why though? Why would the Planning Director target the company when the president dumped him a very important negotiation? I doubt that being blinded by love would lead him to be a blabbermouth to her."
"Maybe the negotiations are going south?"
"So before the company could fire him, he wants to hit us first? Even if he really is planning that, with the foothold our company has in the whole industry, who dares to hire him again right? Ah! But the president did mention that maybe the leak was masterminded by our competitors. You know, maybe someone bribed him behind our back or he was already a spy for the other companies in the very beginning?"
Since the Planning Director was already at his position when she came to the company, she wasn’t sure how they did the background check for him before he got the position.
"We did a thorough background check on him before so being a spy from the very beginning is impossible. Though he might have really taken bribes from our competitors after that. It’s not like we’re keeping an eye on all the Directors in our company."
Xiu Mei nodded her head, acknowledging that it was possible. Pursing her lips, she pushed forward a suggestion to Lu Shao.
"Since we haven’t found any evidence yet proving that he took a bribe, why don’t we make him confess his sins himself then?"
Lu Shao raised his eyebrow, intrigued by her suggestion.
"Oh? Then let’s hear it."
After hearing his agreement to cooperate, she revealed a devious smile.
Aside from doing their work in cleaning up the dirtbags in their company as secretaries, she can consider this her petty revenge for all the stress and upcoming overtime that he caused.
Calling for her assistant, the three of them huddled in Lu Shao’s workstation and started building their plan.
A few days later, a rumor started buzzing around the company. A gossip going around was nothing new but apparently, it was about someone taking a bribe from other companies.
Obviously, a lot of employees were already stressed and tired dealing with the aftermath in various areas so the object of the gossip became their target to relieve all those stress.
Who is it?
Of course, well, it was none other than the Planning Director. Since the position he was occupying was pretty high, everyone discreetly gossiped about him behind his back. It was only after the 2nd day did he become aware of the rumors going around. By then, it was already too late to rectify.
"Ms.Xiu, I need to talk to the president." The Planning Director sounded rushed and desperate on the other line.
Unfortunately for him, instead of Xiu Mei, it was her assistant who received the call from the Planning Director.
"I’m sorry, Ms.Xiu is currently out of her office right now. I’ll be transferring your call to Mr.Lu Shao instead. Thank you." And without waiting for his response, her assistant clicked a button on her telephone directly transferring the call to the opposite table.
Xiu Mei’s assistant flashed an ’OK’ signal with her hand at Lu Shao before completely putting down her telephone. Lu Shao, receiving the baton pass from the assistant nodded and picked up the ringing telephone.
"Hello?" Just like his boss, he answered the call in such a cold manner instantly intimidating the other person.
The Planning Director was taken aback for a second. He hesitated.
He was looking for Ms.Xiu... why did he suddenly get transferred to Mr.Lu Shao?
Ms.Xiu would have been easier to talk to....
"If no one’s speaking then I’ll be dropping this call then." While the Planning Director was still hesitating, Lu Shao pushed him into the corner.
The day before yesterday, it was already announced that the President would be going out of the city starting tomorrow due to some business trips. Hence, anyone who needs to report back to him has to do so until today.
"No! Ah, no. It’s me, the Planning Director. I would like to speak with the President this afternoon if he has time." He was tensed when he was saying that is if he was being pressured to do so.
However, Lu Shao quickly shot his request down. "I’m sorry, Mr.Bai(Planning Director) but the President does not have any free time left for the rest of his afternoon. If you’d like, you can tell it to me first then I will notify it to the President."
"No! It is imperative that I talk to the President immediately. I-It’s... It’s uh, related to the negotiations for the Green Energy Industry project we’re taking over."
"Apologies, Mr.Bai but we really can’t accommodate your request at the moment. The earliest that I could schedule your appointment would be on Friday next week. Will that be alright with you?"
"But..."
"If it’s really important, I would be more than glad to deliver it on your behalf to the President."
The Planning Director was cornered. On the other side, the people behind him were pressuring him for some information. The Lu Corporation suddenly put pressure on some handful of their competitors affecting their stocks. Right now, they are forcing him to convince the President to release the pressure on their companies.
With that in mind, he finally gave in and accepted to meet Mr. Lu Shao instead of the President.
Though at the back of his mind, it would’ve been better if it was Ms.Xiu instead. In his experience, women are easily fooled than men.
After the call, Lu Shao looked at the two women at the opposite table. He flashed a triumphant smile and announced, "He bit the bait."
Xiu Mei smiled knowingly as if she already knew that it would have gone that way as she expected while her assistant grinned at her.
Quietly, she cleaned up her desk and picked up her laptop and purse leaving no trace of her presence there. Since she was supposed to be out of the office, she will not let him pick up any signs that he was being tricked.
Knocking on the door to the President’s office, she opened it and met Lu Chen’s eyes who was currently in the middle of a conference call with someone. Keeping her footsteps light, she approached the sofa and put down her stuff there.
She quickly opened her laptop and after clicking a few more stuff, a live video stream in the seventh-floor conference room flashed. She smirked. It was the setting she chose where the Planning Director would confess all the things he did behind their backs for all those years.