Martha chuckled.The sound of her soft laughter lingered in the private dining area for a brief second before fading into the low hum of the restaurant. Benjamin returned the faintest smile, but his attention was already back on his meal.She had wanted immediate action earlier. Wanted to cut off the Lins before they could cause further trouble.And he had denied it.Not out of weakness, but strategy.Martha watched him in silence.She replayed his words in her mind.She had to admit, there was weight behind it.Mercury Corporations was not a small firm that could be audited in a single afternoon. Not like it could be shaken and cleaned in one decisive sweep. Over the years, the company had expanded aggressively and diversified into industries that most corporations would not even dare approach for fear of going bankrupt. Even absorbing competitors along the line.It was massive.And because it was massive, it wasn't entirely clean.Martha for one, knew this better than anyone.Yes,

“Pass these investment proposals over to the boss. I will go over the rest.”Ainsley stopped in her tracks and was about to reach out to get the documents when it suddenly struck her.The boss?She paused halfway. Surely she hadn't just misheard her employer, right? She thought to herself as one of the qualities of Ms. Mathews she had come to learn about in the few months she had been interning at the company was her being absolutely clear about whatever she said.She smiled faintly, then briefly gathered the documents and was about to head over to the other end of the table when she suddenly slowed down in her steps.That young man across the table was the ‘boss’ Martha just mentioned? How then was he so strikingly familiar? she thought to herself.More importantly, that face.She thought as she walked closer.She knew that face.On the other hand, it was only as he heard Martha refer to the young lady as Ainsley that Benjamin, who had been contemplating her exact identity, finally r

“Dude, you’ve been trending.”Benjamin stared at Elise.For a moment he did not react at all.The words simply hung in the air between them as the noise of the courtyard carried on around them. “Eh… What?” he asked slowly.Elise exhaled through her nose like she was trying very hard not to lose her patience.“I said,” she repeated, pointing at him slightly, “you’ve been trending.”Benjamin blinked again.That did not help clarify anything.“Trending where?” he asked.Elise opened her mouth to answer.But before she could say anything else, someone suddenly rushed toward them from the side.“Benjamin!”Both Benjamin and Elise turned.A boy from their class approached quickly. Benjamin recognized his face immediately. They shared two lectures together, although they had never really spoken before.The guy looked excited.Actually, excited was an understatement.His eyes were practically shining.“Dude!” the boy said as he stopped in front of Benjamin. “You’re my hero now.”Benjamin fro

Morning had already settled fully over Memoville Academy.From the outside, the administrative building looked calm and dignified. Tall glass windows reflected the bright sky above the campus while the trimmed hedges around the entrance gave the place a quiet, prestigious appearance.Inside, however, the atmosphere was less peaceful.On the top floor of the building sat the office of the school’s vice president.The room was large and carefully arranged. A polished wooden desk stood near the windows, while several tall bookshelves lined the walls. Certificates, plaques, and framed photographs decorated the space, each representing years of academic achievements and institutional pride.Behind the desk sat President Harold Whitmore. Harold was a man in his late fifties with neatly combed grey hair and thin reading glasses resting low on his nose. His posture was straight as he reviewed a stack of documents placed neatly in front of him.The morning had been routine so far. Emails, adm