Chapter 589
“Ximber Tech? Never heard of them, but any company that designs something like this can’t be up to any good,” someone muttered, shifting the group’s focus entirely. Their attention had now completely diverted, and they all began joining in on the verbal attack against Ximber Tech.
After all, the fate of Charlotte and Elton was none of their concern.
But this cheating device directly threatened their own interests.
For ordinary people, exams were the only way to climb the social ladder. In Halcyon, exams were the fairest way to compete.
If this balance was disrupted by these cheating earrings, those who couldn’t afford them would undoubtedly suffer the most significant losses.
Melody had anticipated that someone would recognize the product as belonging to Ximber Tech, so she was well-prepared.
She spoke calmly, “Everyone, please stay calm and listen to me. Yes, this product was indeed developed by Ximber Tech, but they took into consideration the very concerns you’ve just raised. That’s why they never released it to the market. In fact, not long ago, they carried out a mass destruction of this product.”
Everyone was momentarily stunned. They hadn’t expected Ximber Tech to forgo making money off something like this.
Soon, someone began to question the situation. “If they’ve already destroyed it, then how did these two get their hands on these cheating earrings?”
“That’s exactly the issue here, but I’m sure Ximber Tech will provide you all with an explanation,” Melody replied smoothly.
Immediately, someone began searching the news and found a statement released by Ximber Tech just minutes ago.
The notice was brief, detailing that an employee responsible for destroying a batch of volatile products had secretly kept some of the Ximber Communication Earrings during the disposal process.
This person had then sold them at high prices on the black market.
The news quickly spread among the crowd.
Everyone looked at Elton and Charlotte with disdain. “So you bought those cheating earrings off the black market? How shameless. If you put that much effort into your studies, you wouldn’t need to cheat.”
“Exactly. So young and already messing around with this shady stuff. I’d say any hospital or whatever that takes you in is cursed with bad luck.”
Charlotte’s face turned gloomy with anger. “Say that again! Do you even know who I am?”
“I don’t care who you are. I’m just here to get my medicine. I’ Il say whatever I want, and I’ll call you out for being despicable.”
“You…”
Charlotte lunged forward, ready to fight, but Elton was quick to step in and hold her back. “Charlotte, the priority here is the interview, not bickering with these lowlifes. Calm down.”
Charlotte’s eyes were blazing with anger, but she managed to pull herself together, realizing what was more important. She clenched her teeth hard, glaring at Melody with fierce intensity. “Yes, we cheated. So what?”
Her shameless admission left the crowd in stunned silence. But Charlotte had already thrown caution to the wind. She shook off her earlier panic and assumed a haughty posture, looking down at Melody. “You had us take part in this assessment just for show, didn’t you? Why so serious? Or are you really planning to kick us out? You’d better think carefully before you speak.”
Faced with Charlotte’s blatant threat, Melody remained unfazed. “I’ve already made it clear. Cheaters will never be hired by Herbathrive.”
Charlotte narrowed her eyes coldly. “Fine, you’ve really impressed me. It seems like you’re hell-bent on picking a fight with the Medicines Control Agency.”
Melody smiled slightly. “I have faith in the universe’s fairness and justice.”
‘If not for such fairness and justice, why else would I have been given a second chance at life?’ she thought to herself. Charlotte sneered. “Today, I’ll make sure reality slaps you in the face. I’ll show you that I, Charlotte, am the embodiment of justice.”
With that, Charlotte took out her phone and dialed a number. “Mr. Turner, could you come to Herbathrive? I’m being bullied by their staff. What? Are you working nearby? Great, I’ll wait for you right here.”
After the call, Charlotte immediately transferred 2 million dollars to Rowan Turner, confident that he would understand her message.
Transaction complete, she looked at Melody with smug satisfaction. “You’re done for, and so is Herbathrive. I hear you’re in charge, but you’re not the owner, right? I suggest you kneel down and beg for forgiveness while you still can. Maybe your boss will go easy on you and save you from losing too much money.”
Having said this, she waited for Melody to show some sign of fear or panic, but Melody remained as calm as ever, like a mountain unmoved by the wind.
Charlotte frowned and wondered, ‘Is this ugly woman just pretending to be calm, or does she really not care if Herbathrive gets shut down?’
Before she could figure it out, Melody’s lips curled into a smile.
“What are you laughing at?” Charlotte snapped, her irritation growing.
Melody shrugged. “Oh, nothing much. I just wanted to say, Ms. Wallrich, if you don’t leave now, things might get even more embarrassing for you later.”
“How clueless can you be? Go ahead, and keep laughing. Let’s see if you can still laugh in a bit.” Charlotte retorted, her tone dripping with disdain.
Melody shrugged again but didn’t bother to engage with Charlotte any further. Instead, she simply returned to her work, attending to her patients.
The other hospital staff, seeing this, resumed their duties as well.
Only David stayed behind, ready to handle any unexpected situation that might arise from the trio’s presence.
Meanwhile, Ira, the one who had helped Elton and Charlotte cheat, was already at his breaking point.
His eyes were red with frustration as he approached Charlotte. “I’ve done what you asked. My reputation is ruined. Can I go now?”
Charlotte rolled her eyes, clearly annoyed. “The show isn’t over yet. What’s your rush? When Mr. Turner gets here, I’ll make sure that ugly woman apologizes to you. Then you can insult her all you want.”
Ira shook his head, his voice trembling. “I don’t want an apology, and I don’t want your money anymore. Just let me leave, please. I don’t want to be involved in this mess any longer.”
Charlotte’s gaze hardened. “You’ve already taken the money, and now you’re saying you don’t want it?”
Elton, his expression cold and unreadable, added, “Ira, you can leave if you want. But let me be clear: your dream is to get into Central Hospital, right? If you walk away now, forget about that dream. Neither Charlotte nor I will ever let you work at Central Hospital.”
Ira’s heart sank as he bit his lip in frustration, too scared to mention leaving again.
He realized that they were making him stay to witness Herbathrive’s supposed humiliation.
These two were too proud to tolerate any slight, and they wouldn’t allow him to leave before their intended victory was achieved.
Now, Ira deeply regrets his decision to help them cheat for a small profit. He was stuck, unable to back out, forced to stay by their side.
He could only hope that they truly had the power to embarrass Herbathrive. Otherwise, he feared he’d end up suffering the consequences of their failure.
Before long, the person Charlotte had been waiting for finally arrived.