Chapter 172
Lionel announced that he would be filing a formal complaint under his real name, accusing Hayes Group of copying the Quinn family’s supermarket model. He called on everyone to pay close attention.
When Nola saw the news, she couldn’t believe her eyes. “We didn’t even go after him, and now he’s coming after us? How can Lionel be so shameless?”
Stella, on the other hand, wasn’t surprised at all. “You know why some people get called bastards? That’s exactly what a bastard does, got it?”
Nola said, “He’s gone too far. Good thing you saw this coming, Ms. Hayes, so we’ve got nothing to worry about,”
“That’s right, we’re not afraid.”
When Stella first launched this business model, she knew someone would try to copy it sooner or later. But she never expected someone to imitate it before the Hayes Group’s supermarket even opened. And that copycat was none other than Lionel.
To ruin her, Lionel even threatened to sue her when the renovations of her supermarket were almost finished. She felt sarcastic that he had once been her best friend. But Stella had already handled it all, and there was nothing Lionel could do about it.
But what no one expected was that, the very next morning, the biggest headline broke. Lionel had just opened twenty new supermarkets in
Jaloria, and every single one of them got their windows smashed in.
Everything inside was trashed, and nobody had a clue what went down. The word was, someone called the cops, but when things happened, the security cameras were busted, so there was nothing to see. Whatever little profit Lionel had made was now completely wiped out.
Stella saw the news while having breakfast with Jordan. “Is this karma or what? He tried to mess with me, but it didn’t work out–and now
someone else has messed him up instead.”
Jordan glanced at the news and said, “The Quinn family still doesn’t even know who they’ve crossed.”
“Yeah, I believe that too.”
In business, they never knew whose toes they might step on. The Quinn family rose to the top so fast, so someone out there was gunning for payback. Even the supermarket smash–up was part of that revenge.
“Looks like I don’t even have to do anything. Someone else already did it for me,” Stella said with a smirk.
“So, what were you going to do?” Jordan asked, still munching on his breakfast.
“Of course, I was not going to let him off easy. He has no sense of loyalty, trying to step on me to get ahead. He must think he can just walk all
over me.”
Stella had been planning to pull some tricks with his product selection, but before she even had the chance, this whole mess went down. “But things have been pretty tense between us lately, so I bet he thinks I was behind it.”
Jordan frowned slightly, but Stella didn’t catch the change in his eyes.
After breakfast, Stella got a call from Nola and rushed off to the office.
Just as Jordan stepped out of the house, his assistant approached him respectfully. “Mr. Erwin, you wanted to see me?”
“Tell the Quinn family it wasn’t Stella who did this. As for who did, let them figure it out themselves,” Jordan instructed.
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“Yes,” the assistant replied and hurried off.
Jordan’s eyes darkened, his gaze turning cold and unreadable. He thought, ‘Lionel, your family will have to answer for what you did!
When Stella got to the office, Nola told her that all those partners they’d been negotiating with were now saying they didn’t want to work
together anymore.
“What’s the reason?” Stella asked.
“I looked into it–it’s Lionel. He’s the one pulling strings behind our backs.”
Stella couldn’t help but laugh. “He thinks he can block all my paths, huh? He must believe that if my supermarket can’t open, he will have no competition. Have you tried reaching out to those partners?”
“I did, but none of them wanted to see us.”
“If they don’t want to meet, then so be it. There are tons of brands we can cooperate with. It’s not like they’re the only game in town and I’m
out of moves.”
Nola looked at her, puzzled. “So, what do we do next?”
“Looks like I’m going to have to take a business trip.”
“But what about your health?” Nola asked, her voice full of concern.
“Don’t worry, I’ll have someone go with me. It’ll be fine.”
Nola hesitated for a moment before saying, “How about I go instead?”
“Nola, the company needs you here. If I go, it’ll make the negotiators feel our sincerity, and things will go smoother.”
Nola had to agree.
Stella gave Jordan a call and told him she needed to go on a business trip.
Jordan immediately asked, “Do you have to go?”
“Yeah, I have to. All my suppliers have pulled out, but I still need to open the supermarket. I can’t run a supermarket with empty shelves, right?” Stella replied.
“Are you going alone?”
“I have an employee go with me.”
“Is it a guy or a girl?”
Stella burst out laughing at his question. “Of course, it’s a girl.”
“Take a guy and a girl with you. I’m not okay with just two women going on a business trip.”
Stella blinked in surprise, and then caught on to what Jordan was getting at. “All right, I’ll pick a guy to go with me.”
“When are you heading out?”
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“Pretty much right away. The meations me aimed finished. I picked out only water, so give it about a month and we’ll he ready to open
“Airight, go for it”
Stella couldn’t say how she felt kind of happy, but also kind of not. She felt Jordan agreed to all this too easily. But she pushed those Thoughts aside and hurried to pack.
At the airport, Stella was heading in with two companions when Anna happened to spot her.
Anna was at the airport to meet someone, but when she saw Stella leaving with her people, she made a point to check which airline they were taking and even went to ask around for more details.
When Anna heard Stella was heading out on a business trip, a sly grin crept onto her lips. She thought, ‘A business trip, huh? Stella, let’s see what kind of trouble you’ll run into once you’re out of Jaloria.
About two hours later, Stella and her two team members got off the plane. She was perfectly fine, and the moment she turned on her phone, she called Jordan just to let him know she was there.
Stella and her team checked into the hotel first. She turned to the female employee and asked, “Have you contacted the suppliers?”
“Yes, I’ve contacted them,” she replied.
Stella gave a slight nod. They’d be staying in Austow for five days. This was where all the seasonings were produced, and that category was the heart of the supermarket’s entire selection.
After checking in, Stella and her team headed straight to the supplier’s office. When they arrived, they explained why they were there, and a receptionist led them inside.
On the way, they walked past the factory floor, and the receptionist gave them a quick introduction to it.
This was Stella’s first time visiting, and she was impressed by how well–organized everything was. Once they got inside, Stella was surprised
to see Kevin.
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