After Charlie dashed out the door, he quickly noticed that Claire hadn’t gone far. She was huddled in the corner by a pillar, tears streaming down her face.

He approached her gently, removed his coat, and draped it over her shoulders. “Hey, don’t be upset. Being the director of Wilson Group isn’t the end-all; you’re capable of so much more…”

Claire looked up, her voice trembling as she replied, “You don’t understand. If I become the director, my parents will finally hold their heads high in the family. How could Grandma go back on her word…”

Charlie persisted, “Who knows? They might come crawling back, begging you to take the position. But look at you now with that tear-streaked face; you won’t look your best when it’s time to go on stage…”

“No way, it’s impossible. Grandma has already announced it; there’s no turning back now. You should go inside and leave me alone…”

At that moment, Lady Wilson and Harold burst out of the hall. The elderly lady was out of breath from running, followed by a throng of onlookers eager to witness the unfolding drama.

As soon as Harold spotted Charlie and Claire, he rushed over, glancing down at Claire’s tear-stained face. “Claire, you need to talk to Miss Young right away! Don’t let her terminate our contract!” he urged, anxiety etched on his face.

Claire blinked in confusion. “Terminate our contract? Why?”

Harold snapped, “Stop pretending! You must have told Miss Young to humiliate me in front of everyone! If you don’t fix this, I won’t let you off the hook!”

With a sharp slap, Lady Wilson reprimanded Harold again. “How dare you speak to your sister like that! She is our director at Wilson Group!”

Harold, fuming, protested, “Grandma, didn’t you say you wanted me to be the director?”

“If it weren’t for your manipulation, I wouldn’t have changed my mind so suddenly! Keep this up, and you’ll be out of the Wilson family!” she retorted.

Harold seethed with anger after being slapped twice, but he knew now wasn’t the time to explode. He had to hold back his rage.

Turning to Claire, Lady Wilson pleaded, “Claire, I’m begging you. You’re now the director of the Wilson family; please talk to Miss Young. If you don’t, we’re all finished!”

Claire glanced at Charlie, still looking bewildered.

Charlie shrugged and said, “I told you they would come begging you to be the director, but you didn’t believe me. Look at you—your makeup is a mess now…”

Feeling shy, Claire wiped her tears and replied, “Okay, I’ll try to reach out to Emgrand.”

She took out her phone and dialed Doris, with all eyes fixed on her.

After a brief wait, Doris answered. “Hello, Miss Young. My grandmother has asked me to inform you that I will be taking on the role of director at Wilson Group and overseeing the project with Emgrand Group. We hope you can give us another chance…”

Doris chuckled, “Absolutely! If you’re the director and in charge of the project, then we can move forward. But if someone else takes that role, then it’s off the table…”

“Miss Young… thank you so much…” Claire said, her mind racing with confusion.

“It’s all thanks to my chairman’s decision. He might share more with you personally soon…” Doris added with a smile.

This left Claire even more puzzled. Who was this chairman? She had never met him, yet he seemed determined to help her at every turn.

“Could you please come back to the hall?” Claire asked nervously.

Doris had initially left because of her irritation with Claire’s family, making it awkward to invite her back. Yet, to Claire’s surprise, Doris agreed without hesitation. Soon, Doris’s car pulled back up to the hotel entrance, sending shockwaves through the gathered crowd. Gasps of awe and fear rippled across the onlookers as they turned their attention to Claire.