Chapter 237 - 235: Pack Up and Leave Immediately

"You’re leaving too?"

In the cafe, as soon as Jane Sterling heard that Cecilia Sterling was also leaving, she immediately lost interest.

Cecilia Sterling gave a helpless smile. "I have important business this afternoon. I’ll ask you guys out again in a few days when I’m free."

Blair stood up as well. "Then we won’t stay either. I was planning on going to the hospital this afternoon anyway."

Jane Sterling nodded. "Then I’ll drive you to the hospital."

Seeing that all the girls were about to leave, the handsome young man next to Jane Sterling got anxious. "Don’t go! Stay a little longer."

Seeing this, Henry Marshall quickly said, "We can’t stay. As it happens, we have something to do in a bit too."

The other two guys, who were out of the loop, looked completely baffled. ’We have something to do? What is it?’

Getting close to pretty girls was the *real* important business.

"What could we possibly have to do?" one of them asked, unwilling to give up.

Henry Marshall shot him a glare. "We do!"

Cecilia Sterling could easily see what Henry Marshall was thinking and found it amusing.

"It doesn’t matter whether you have something to do or not. In any case, we’re leaving."

Jane Sterling picked up her bag and patted the young man’s handsome face. "Thanks for treating us."

Then, the three of them linked arms and left without a backward glance.

When Henry Marshall finally saw Cecilia Sterling’s figure disappear, he was so moved he almost cried. The tension that had been building inside him finally dissipated.

"Hey, what was that all about?"

His companion looked at Henry Marshall and asked, "Those girls looked like they’d be fun. They were so forward, and you just let them walk away?"

Henry Marshall couldn’t be bothered to explain, and there was no way he was going to tell them about his embarrassing situation. He just said, "Anyway, I really do have something to do. I’m heading out."

His dad had specifically told him there was something important tonight that he absolutely could not be late for.

*

Cecilia Sterling drove to Genesis Fashion Park. By now, businesses across the country had fully resumed work after the New Year, and all the staff in the property management department had returned to their posts on time.

The reason they were all so punctual was clearly due to the management style of their new boss, Cecilia Sterling. The employees who had taken unauthorized leave to go home before the holidays were all fired directly. And since they were the party at fault, they didn’t even receive severance pay.

As for the employees who stayed and worked diligently, Cecilia Sterling had also made good on her promise: for every overdue rent payment they successfully collected, everyone would receive a handsome bonus.

The new boss’s style of doing things also made everyone understand that she didn’t care that much about money. What was important was the employees’ attitude toward their work.

At the park’s property management department, Cecilia Sterling pushed the door open and walked straight in.

"Boss!"

Someone recognized Cecilia Sterling at a glance and quickly stood up to greet her. "You’re here!"

Hearing this, the others all stood up one by one. Seeing this, Cecilia Sterling raised her hand. "Everyone, please sit down and continue your work. Don’t mind me."

Holden, the young man who had accompanied Cecilia Sterling during the eviction last time, had become a familiar face to her, so she spotted him immediately. "Get me a cup of hot water."

Holden nodded quickly, put down the work in his hands, and got up to get the water. Cecilia Sterling walked over to the sofa and sat down.

But just as Holden got the hot water and turned around, a man in a suit suddenly appeared beside him. "Is that the new boss, Miss Sterling?"

Holden looked at the man and nodded, his expression a little complicated.

The man, however, snatched the disposable paper cup directly from his hand. "You go on and get busy. I’ll take it to her."

Holden didn’t dare to resist. He nodded obediently and watched the man in the suit carry the cup of water over to Miss Sterling.

Cecilia Sterling’s gaze was on the window. She only turned her head when the cup was placed in front of her, and her eyes met with a man wearing a fawning smile.

Before she could wonder, the man had already started talking. "Ms. Sterling, hello! I’m Talbot Miller, the general manager of our property management department. I’ve been waiting with bated breath to finally meet you in person! I never expected you to be so young. I didn’t believe them when they told me, but seeing you with my own eyes, you really are..."

It was a textbook example of smooth, shameless flattery, but before he could finish, Cecilia Sterling cut him off, her voice icy. "General Manager? If I recall correctly, you’ve already been fired by me, haven’t you?"

Talbot Miller choked, then gave a dry laugh. "Boss, you might have some misunderstanding about me. I took leave and went home early because of a family emergency. It absolutely wasn’t unauthorized!"

"Took leave? Who did you request leave from?" Cecilia Sterling asked him bluntly. "HR never received a leave request from you. Or do you think that since you’re the top dog around here, you don’t need to report to anyone or follow any procedures?"

"Boss, that’s not what I meant."

"I don’t care what you meant. All employees who were absent without authorization have been dismissed, and you are no exception. Furthermore, as the general manager of the management department, you let the park’s books become a total mess, with sixty to seventy percent of tenants in arrears on their rent. I find your ability to handle matters unacceptable."

"So, pack your things and leave immediately."

Finished speaking and unwilling to hear any more of his nonsense, Cecilia Sterling looked past him and called to Holden behind him, "Get the HR supervisor."

Soon, the HR supervisor came when called. He was taken aback for a moment when he saw Talbot Miller was also there, but he greeted Cecilia Sterling first. "Miss Sterling, you were looking for me."

Cecilia Sterling jutted her chin toward Talbot Miller. "Didn’t I tell you to fire this man? Why is he still here? Was a termination notice not issued?"

"The HR termination notice was issued, but President Miller... he said he wanted to wait for you to return and explain things to you in person."

Cecilia Sterling sneered. "There’s nothing to explain. You have half an hour to pack your things and leave the park. Otherwise, I’ll have you thrown out like trash, just like I did with the tenants!"

Talbot Miller had long since heard about how the new boss brought a group of burly men in black to violently evict Elysian. So, hearing Cecilia Sterling’s words now, he broke out in a cold sweat.

"Okay, I’ll leave right away."

He had thought his smooth-talking could win him a sliver of hope, but he never expected the new boss to be so decisive and completely immune to his act.

Seeing him leave, the HR supervisor couldn’t help but sigh. He explained cautiously, "Miss Sterling, I was already very firm with my attitude, but he insisted..."

Cecilia Sterling raised a hand, cutting him off. "It has nothing to do with you. Call Flora from the finance department. And tell her to bring the latest ledgers."

A short while later, Elvira Underwood came over with the ledgers. "Miss Sterling, the accounts are current as of last night. The accounts marked in red are new. The old accounts that have been settled are marked in blue, and those that haven’t been fully paid off yet also have a special mark."

Cecilia Sterling nodded. She had barely looked at the ledgers before, but Elvira Underwood had prepared them so clearly and concisely that even a layperson like her could understand them at a glance.

Elvira Underwood also helped explain from the side, "After the incident before the New Year where Elysian was violently evicted from the park, many tenants came to pay their overdue rent the very next day. Other tenants also gradually paid up before the holiday, but there are still a small number of businesses that have only paid a portion of what they owe. They are likely facing genuine financial difficulties."