Chapter 169 Meeting the Parents, Sounds Good to Me

Chapter 169: Chapter 169: Meeting the Parents, Sounds Good to Me

No one knew that, though.

Evan York was preoccupied and wasn’t in the mood to think too much about Faye. "Maybe geniuses like her just don’t take these things too seriously. There are always a few who don’t care about fame and fortune."

Stella Sutton considered it and agreed. For a mastermind like Faye, who could single-handedly compile such a massive database—including various prescriptions considered top secret within the industry—writing a formula was child’s play. Naturally, she wouldn’t fret over a few of them. It was precisely because of their immense value that the licensing fees were so astronomical.

Having figured this out, she turned toward Julian Sterling, who was sipping from his glass, and offered a faint smile. "Julian, my mother said she wants to invite you to dinner. After all, you’ve been paving the way for me since this project began, making sure everything goes smoothly."

Finn Lockwood, in high spirits at the thought of the project securing a resounding initial victory soon, immediately raised his glass. "Meeting the parents? I think that’s a great idea."

Julian’s expression remained placid, the curve of his lips unreadable.

Stella couldn’t help but cover her mouth with a soft giggle. "It’s just a private get-together," she said bashfully.

Evan looked over and raised his glass as well. "Congratulations."

In the few days since Sophie Winslow returned from The York Gardens, she had been so busy she barely had time to dwell on what happened that day. Everything was proceeding as normal.

Ms. Winnie Hayes didn’t seem to harbor any dissatisfaction toward her. Sophie had assumed that even if the older woman didn’t outright retaliate, she would at least throw a few roadblocks in her path within the industry. But nothing happened.

If anything, she felt a bit bad for Winnie. At the end of the day, the matriarch simply missed her granddaughter too much. She clung to the marriage arrangement with the Hawthorne Family to comfort herself, believing it guaranteed the child would eventually return home. Now, even that small shred of hope seemed shattered. Yet, everyone had their own perspective. Sophie could understand Adrian Hawthorne, and she could understand the York Family; everyone had their own difficulties.

Her project was still in its early stages. There were numerous technical barriers, and she had to keep a close eye on many different aspects. If they were developing standard smart medical devices instead, both the time and financial costs would have been drastically reduced.

During the lunch break, as her colleagues headed downstairs to eat, Sophie received a call from Peter Preston.

"Peter?"

"Come downstairs," he said. "Something’s happened."

The moment Sophie stepped out of the elevator, she spotted a figure sprawled across the lobby entrance.

A woman in her forties was bawling hysterically, drawing a massive crowd. Employees from other companies had gathered at a distance to watch the spectacle, and many were already snapping photos. Her extreme accusations echoed through the lobby—cries of "fatal malpractice!" and "Helios’s drugs will kill you!"

Upon seeing Sophie, Peter frowned and explained, "She claims her husband took our company’s medication, which caused severe side effects. He’s already unconscious."

Sophie’s expression turned grave. "That’s impossible. Health issues are caused by a multitude of factors."

"I’ve already explained that to her, but she refuses to listen," Peter said. "If she keeps making a scene, it’s going to look very bad for us. Once public opinion turns, it’ll be a nightmare to handle."

Sophie stared at the man in the woman’s arms. Ignoring Peter’s attempts to stop her, she walked straight over.

The woman, who had been loudly airing her grievances, immediately pointed a finger at Sophie’s face and cursed. "Have you no conscience?! You’re paying for my husband’s life!"

Sophie crouched down. "He collapsed, and instead of taking him to a hospital, you dragged him to our pharmaceutical company. Are you actually worried he’s going to die, or are you just worried you won’t get a payout?"

The woman’s expression turned vicious, and her hysterics intensified. "Are you cursing my husband to die?! How can you be so evil?! Is this how Helios treats ordinary people?!"

Sophie still had patience. Ignoring the woman’s tirade, she reached out to take the man’s pulse. Although this was a corporate office where most people assumed the staff consisted solely of pharmaceutical researchers, she had practiced medicine for over a decade. Even doctors who had done clinical rotations for ten years weren’t necessarily better than her.

Defensive, the woman clawed at Sophie. Sophie’s skin was fair and delicate, and several red nail marks instantly appeared on her hand. Yet, she didn’t release the man’s wrist.

She continued to take his pulse with a cold expression. A moment later, she looked up into the woman’s evasive eyes. "He’s having an acute ischemic stroke and is still within the critical resuscitation window. You’re dragging a dying man around—do you have no brain?"

It had absolutely nothing to do with their medication!

The woman was completely bluffed by Sophie’s cold, imposing demeanor.

Sophie turned to Peter. "Have someone bring down my acupuncture kit. I’m going to perform first aid. Then, call an ambulance."

Working swiftly and efficiently, Sophie performed emergency interventions on several acupoints. Soon, the man’s body twitched. Her needlework was incredibly fast and steady. The woman was so stunned that she forgot to cause a scene, and when the ambulance finally arrived, the entire farce came to an abrupt halt.

As the crowd dispersed, Peter handed Sophie a wet wipe. "Sanitize your hands. Thank God your medical skills are so impressive. If the court of public opinion had caught fire today, it would have been disastrous for us."

Having studied under Hector Caldwell for over a decade, Sophie was a natural genius. Even doctors with highly prestigious credentials on paper weren’t necessarily better at diagnosing and saving lives than she was.

But Sophie frowned. "There’s something not right about this."

Running to their door to make a scene—it was a deliberate attempt to drag Helios down. If she didn’t know medicine, they would have been hard-pressed to escape unscathed today. While such incidents weren’t exactly rare for hospitals or pharmaceutical companies, the negative fallout of a scandal was immense. A single ripple could capsize the entire boat, and everyone knew it.

Peter fell into deep thought. "What are you implying?"

Sophie shook her head. "It’s too early to say. As long as we managed to handle this sudden crisis properly, that’s what matters." They would need to follow up at the hospital and negotiate with the woman to get a clear picture of what had happened.

Peter understood this as well. Situations like this weren’t uncommon in the industry, but they couldn’t just lose heart and quit because of a small fraction of malicious people. They simply had to forge ahead.

Sophie returned upstairs, re-sterilized her acupuncture needles, and put them away. It was a personal habit to carry them with her at all times. Perhaps it was the benevolent heart of a healer, but she always felt that if she encountered someone needing emergency aid in her daily life, she wouldn’t be caught empty-handed.

Toward evening.

With an hour left until quitting time, an assistant came in to notify her. "Sophie, Mr. Preston asked you to go to his office."

When Sophie arrived, however, she saw Stella Sutton sitting on the sofa. Draped in luxury brands, Stella sat with perfect elegance. Meanwhile, Peter wore a highly meaningful expression.

Seeing Sophie enter, Stella crossed her legs and continued, "Mr. Preston, it seems Helios had a bit of an incident today? Something involving a fatality? I received some news on my end. My project team is very concerned and takes this matter quite seriously. They asked me to come and ask—will this affect our collaboration?"

"What are you getting at, Miss Sutton?" Peter asked.

Stella tilted her chin up slightly. Her expression appeared helpless, but an arrogant glint danced in her eyes. "So many people on my team care deeply about the success of this project. We’re worried that collaborating with Helios’s database might bring us negative press. After all, if someone really died, it could become a point of criticism against our own product in the future..."

"Spit it out," Sophie said, too lazy to listen to her beat around the bush.

Stella’s expression turned frigid. "Mr. Preston, you are the boss of Helios, after all. You really should discipline your subordinates properly, otherwise they tend to forget their place."

Who did Sophie Winslow think she was? Meddling in the affairs of Helios’s upper management?

Dropping the pretense, Stella went straight to the point. "What I want to discuss is whether the licensing fee can be reduced to under eight million. Please consider it carefully, Mr. Preston."

Sophie almost laughed out loud. The original fee was over thirty million, and this woman was brazenly demanding they slash it by almost thirty million. Wasn’t this just kicking them while they were down to get a free ride?