The Apple of My Eye
Chapter 386 Something Bad Happened

Giant Promise Company was gearing up to hold a new product launch the next day. Autumn and Isla had been preparing for this event since a long time ago. Earlier that morning Autumn went to the site to inspect everything one last time to ensure nothing went wrong.

This was the first and most important launch event for her since she took over Cloud Advertising Company. She was doing everything in her capacity to ensure that the event turned out perfect. "What's the matter, Autumn? Are you not feeling okay?" Upon seeing Autumn's frown, Isla came up to her and inquired with concern.

"No, don't worry about it. I am absolutely fine," answered Autumn in a soft tone. The moment she woke up this morning, her eyelids started to flutter and would keep doing so every now and then almost like a warning about something bad that was about to happen.

"Well, I am relieved to hear that. I will get on with my work then. Let me know if you don't feel well," said Isla gently. And soon after she was called to help. Autumn took a big gulp of water as she tried to calm herself down. As soon as she looked up, she spotted a familiar figure lurking in the backstage.

If she was not wrong, it was Paula. She had disappeared ever since she stole Autumn's scheme and lost her competition with Autumn. Upon spotting her, Autumn had no idea what Paula was doing here, which seemed rather ominous to her.

She immediately put down the bottle of mineral water and rushed backstage, as she yelled out for all the staff's attention, "Everybody, may I please have your attention for a moment? Please run through your designated responsibilities carefully. Should you replace something wrong or even confusing, please do approach me at the earliest. Thank you!"

"What's going on?" asked Isla with eyebrows raised with confusion. Everyone was already terribly busy with their assigned chores. And now that Autumn asked them to re-check their work, it was just adding to their work load and stress which would increase the chances of making a mistake. Therefore, no one was really willing to spare moments to follow her instruction through.

However, Isla knew and understood very well that Autumn was not a troublemaker and had no intentions to increase the workload, and she must have a genuine reason for making such a sudden request. Autumn's brows also furrowed as she replied in an attempt to voice her concerns, "I don't know. I just feel like something bad is going to happen. My eyelids have been fluttering since I woke up. Oh, by the way, I also think I just saw Paula. She ran away from the backstage. I'm really worried as to what could go wrong and that is why I ordered this check."

Isla pondered for a bit, and suddenly realized that the most important thing were the new products. This was the first and yet the most significant step for Giant Promise Company to transform itself into a clothing company, so no mistakes were allowed in such a dire circumstance. "Please come with me," she requested Autumn.

She then led Autumn to the room where the clothes, which were going to be showcased at the launch event, were carefully stored. But as they reached there, they were appalled to see that the door was wide open and all the clothes were missing from the racks. Autumn's fears had come true.

"It was her, I am sure of it now!" Autumn's blood ran cold as she turned pale at the sight of the empty room. Apart from how important the event was to her, she also did not want to ruin Giant Promise Company's reputation. It was a big burden.

What was more, it was a personal feud between Paula and her, and Giant Promise Company could not be involved.

"God, what will we do now? Isla, what am I going to do to rectify this situation?" Autumn was totally freaking out, she could not think clearly as her mind started to spin. It was Giant Promise Company's new product launch, and now these new products themselves were stolen, from right under their noses, just when event was scheduled to start.

"The only thing to do right now is to approach Mr. Xu with the truth and ask him if they have extra clothes to spare, " Isla responded as she maintained her calm. "If you replace it difficult, I'll go and talk to him." Isla knew how much pressure Giant Promise Company was under to cooperate with Cloud Advertising Company. If there was no new product, Giant Promise Company would become a laughingstock, no matter how grand the event arrangements were. So at any cost, they must get other new products before the show time.

"No, I'll manage it. This is my mess to clean." Autumn gritted her teeth, in a bid to appear composed. She had to face the situation. "You check here to ensure there are no more problems. I'm going to speak with Mr. Xu about this situation."

Autumn walked out of the backstage in a brave stride to look for Andy. He was talking to his friends when she found him. Autumn had to bite the bullet and addressed him. "Excuse me, Mr. Xu, may I have a word with you? This is rather urgent." She interrupted their conversation rather abruptly in an embarrassed tone.

"Okay then I will see you in just a bit, "Andy said to his friends after he gave Autumn a nod. As his friends walked away, he turned to Autumn, "How many times did I tell you not to call me Mr. Xu. We are a family, and that sounds strange coming from you."

"No, not to me, at least not while we are working, I think it's better if I stick to calling you Mr. Xu, "Autumn persisted.

Andy shook his head and stopped requesting her. "What do you want to talk about in such a rush?"

"I am sorry but something terribly bad has happened, Mr. Xu. All of the new products lined up for the launch event are missing. Now the models have arrived, but there are no clothes... " Autumn plucked up her courage to tell Andy the awful news. As the organizer of the event, she felt ashamed to have made such a stupid mistake.

"What, how could such a thing happen?" Andy stared at Autumn in shock. "Who did it and why?"

"This is not the time to disucss who is to blame. Mr. Xu, I want to know if you have another batch of clothes from this collection we have to unveil today. We can't afford to cancel the show now..." When she said this, she was so nervous that her hands were sweaty.

Andy frowned slightly, and responded, "There are only two sets of clothes made from this very collection. One has been misplaced as you mentioned and the other one... is still in the display window of my company, but..."

He raised his hand to look at the time on his watch and continued, "The launch event is just about to start, and my office is quite far from here. About that if you encounter a traffic jam, you will not be able to get back in time even if you do pick up those clothes. Oh, my god, what are we gonna do now?"

"Anyway, Mr. Xu, please inform your staff about the current situation and I'll go fetch the clothes right away." Autumn decided in the nick of time. "Don't worry! Now that you have chosen to cooperate with Cloud Advertising Company, I will certainly not put you in a difficult position like this again. I'm sure I will bring all those clothes before the show time. Trust me!"

"Autumn... "Andy wanted to say something else, but Autumn had turned around to leave. After taking her car keys, she headed straight for Giant Promise Company. On the way, she called Isla, "Hey, this is Autumn. I'm on my way to Giant Promise Company to fetch the clothes now. I'm afraid I might be late. Please buy me some time by all possible means!"

"Got it, I'll do my best," answered Isla. "Hurry back and have a safe drive."

Once Isla hung up, she suddenly caught sight of Paula from the corner of her eye. She wanted to go after her, but it was time for the launch event, and as the host... she had to go on the stage and engage the guests.

At this point, a sudden rush of anxiety washed over her. After all, she knew there were no clothes for the show stored backstage. In addition... she was a member of Cloud Advertising Company, which took ove the job with the reputation of plagiarism, and she was afraid that she could not bear the pressure.