The Apple of My Eye
Chapter 259 Industry Exchange Meeting (Part Three)

"Have you seen it? Whatever you say, no one will believe you here. This is the consequence of refusing my offer," Hoada Masahiro slyly whispered to Autumn as he walked past her.

"You..." Autumn muttered, as she gritted her teeth. "Mr. Lu, I am sorry for what happened. I have some ideas on some collaborations between Light House Company and Shining Company. How about we go and have a chat in private?" Mr. Seiten turned to Charles, while ignoring Autumn.

"Wait a minute," Charles finally opened his mouth after silently observing the entire charade unfold, noticing that Hoada was nudging Autumn to leave.

He had been patiently waiting as Hoada tried to frame Autumn. Not until everyone present was convinced of Hoada's story did he intend to expose the whole lie. In this way, Hoada would feel ashamed and guilty of his actions.

"Mr. Lu, what's the matter?" Hoada asked, as a hint of concern flashed across his face. Charles was the only uncertain factor he hadn't considered. Somewhere in his mind the fear grew that Charles would ruin his plan. And once he heard Charles's voice, cold sweat started to run down his wrinkled forehead while his eyes began twitching.

He had a bad feeling.

"This matter isn't over, not yet anyway. Why are you in such a hurry to shoo her away?" Charles asked with a confident sneer hinting at the fact that there was something Hoada was hiding.

Upon hearing this, Hoada became anxious. "Isn't that matter solved? She is a woman. It's indecent to put more pressue upon her. Mr. Lu, please just let it be, " Hoada responded with a smile pretending to be calm, even though he was bubbling with fear and anxiety inside.

"But when I walked in, I saw you slip a room card into her hand. Besides, you even threatened her to serve you well if she wanted more project budget allotted. I don't know why Mr. Seiten has even accepted such an subordinate, " Charles said with confidence.

"Mr. Lu," Seiten tried to stop Charles, as he looked a little angry. However, at this point it was impossible. Charles did not respond.

"Mr. Lu, what is it that you want from me?" Hoada couldn't help but frown as resigned to his fate. "You're taking this too seriously. I am just a man and please remember no one is perfect."

"How about this? As long as you let me go this time, I will return your favor in any way I possibly can," Hoada whispered to Charles after he walked up to him.

"What is the budget he offered you?" Charles gave a cold laughter and turned towards Autumn.

When Autumn was working on event scheme the previous night, he kept her company. It was then easy to say he was well equipped to roughly assume the expenses this event needed. Autumn was stunned, and then she blurted the budget as she had been told.

It was a small figure which was much lower than even half of the budget Seiten had slotted. Seiten's face turned red with displeasure for he realized that Hoada must have planned to misappropriate the rest of the fund.

Even though Seiten was discontented with Hoada's actions, he still had no intention of berating him in front of all the esteemed guests present there. "Mr. Lu, it is not a big deal. I think that we should talk about our cooperation matters. Don't let this small hiccup ruin your mood, "Seiten tried to persuade Charles, after passing Hoada a reproachful glance.

"Mr. Seiten is right, " Hoada added, looking worried as he knew that Seiten would berate him soon. Irrespective of that, he tried to get past it. "Please don't waste any more of your valuable time on this trivial matter."

"This wasn't a big deal, but..." Charles said with a cold smile.

"But there is one thing you don't know. Autumn is my wife. So do you think I need to sacrifice my wife's dignity to get more budget? Or... do you think that my wife will cheat on me because Hoada is more handsome and attractive than me?" Charles said to Hoada and Seiten, after he walked up to Autumn.

Charles's words flung the crowd into heated discussions. Many people in Y City had learnt that Autumn was Charles's wife. But now they were in Japan.

"Mr. Lu, you must be kidding, " Hoada responded, as he couldn't believe what Charles had just said. He knew that Autumn was a married woman, but he didn't expect in his wildest dreams that her husband was Charles. 'That is not possible, 'he coaxed himself.

Upon observing that Autumn remained silent, Hoada realized that Charles was telling the truth. All of a sudden, he felt that everything had been ruined. He was at an advantage, but now tables had changed. "Mr. Lu, you..." Seiten stammered, with fear and regret. If he had known about Autumn's identity, he wouldn't have treated her like that. "This was a mistake. Had I known that Miss Ye is your wife, I..." "Mr. Seiten, "Charles interrupted him immediately, as he stared at Seiten in his cold eyes. "I always support my wife's work. However, under no circumstance will I allow others to bully her. Today I came here with an intention to talk about our cooperation, but..."

After a pause, he continued, "Shining Company will no longer have any association or work with your company. Besides, we will stop your scheme, so you can replace other partners."

"Let's go," Charles said to Autumn as he firmly gripped her hand.

Autumn nodded in approval. After learning that Charles was Autumn's husband, the crowd understood that Hoada had lied. No one in the world who was in their right mind would cheat on a rich and handsome husband to an old, ugly and wretched man.

Besides, anyone who showed up at this event was not poor. Autumn had no reason to sell her body for this.

"Mr. Lu," Seiten called, while trying to make Charles stay. "What happened today is just a mistake. I promise you that no such thing will happen again, "Seiten swore.

"We have been looking forward to working with Shining Company. And today I finally got a chance to talk to you, I..."

"Miss Ye, please help me explain to Mr. Lu. All of this is just a massive misunderstanding, "Seiten turned to Autumn, noticing his words had failed to influence Charles's mind.

"Apologize to Mrs. Lu now. Have you ever looked at yourself in a mirror? How can you frame Mrs. Lu and say that she seduced you. It's insane," Seiten yelled out to Hoada in anger and resentment.

"I am sorry," Hoada nodded his head. No matter what Seiten would scream at him, he had to endure it. "Mrs. Lu, I am really sorry. I shouldn't have offended you and tried to malign your image. Please forgive me, "Hoada apologized to Autumn.

Hoada would not dare to disobey Seiten's command. He was afraid of losing his new title of general manager. Moreover, now he feared being dismissed altogether.

Therefore, he kept apologizing to Autumn while slapping himself. Autumn was dumbfounded at the sight before her.

"Mrs. Lu, if you are still feeling angry, I can fire him to make you feel better," Seiten said to Autumn, pushing Hoada aside.

"No, there is no need for that..." Autumn shook her hand, looking at Charles for she didn't know how to respond.

"Mrs. Lu, we sincerely hope to work with Shining Company in the near future. I hope you could speak on our behalf to Mr. Lu," Seiten pleaded with genuine concern, while Autumn was at a loss for words.