The telephone rang incessantly, jarring the silence. Mary, exhausted, stretched out and strained to lift the receiver, her voice faintly trembling.
“What’s going on so early, Ms. Selina?”
The alarmed voice from the other end made Mary jolt upright, speaking while hastily stepping out of bed.
“How could that have happened? How could they be so unreasonable? Alright, I’ll be there immediately. Just give me some time.”
Ana Madam had prepared breakfast downstairs and called out as soon as she saw Mary. But Mary was already out the door and driven.
Upon reaching the company, Ms. Selina informed her about the circumstances: clients who had signed contracts with Young World gathered and demanded compensation for their losses due to the boycott of author Joy’s works. The publishing house’s mishap had caused them substantial losses.
Mr. Tom, an owner of a reputable bookstore chain with branches dispersed across the country and a long-term partner of Young World, expressed his concern over the current situation of the publishing house.
“Ladies and Gentlemen,” he began, “the recent issue involving the Young World publishing house has significantly affected us. Almost ninety percent of pre-orders have been canceled, severely impacting our credibility with customers. The cost to promote these books might as well be lost entirely. Therefore, I expect that in this meeting, the publishing house must propose a reasonable solution to mitigate these losses or compensate us.”
The crowd began to murmur. Many partners agreed with Mr. Tom, continuing to demand compensation from the publishing house for violating contract conditions.
Mrs. Smith, another familiar partner of Young World, expressed her exasperation.
“The reality of this incident has surpassed my wildest imaginations,” she exclaimed, “Not only is the book “Snowfall in July” being boycotted, but we can’t sell our other books either. Many readers have even taken to our official promotion website to leave negative comments, alleging we are selling books with unknown origins and promoting low-quality works.”
The tension in the room grew with each passing day, with partners openly expressing their views on the partnership. Some even demanded to terminate their contracts and cease collaboration altogether.
Mary rose to her feet to explain. She didn’t expect them to stop criticizing but hoped someone might understand and sympathize with her hardship.
“Ladies and Gentlemen, please allow me to say a few words.”
The entire room fell silent, expecting to hear what this young, inexperienced woman would say to respond to their demands or whether she would only produce empty rhetoric.
As the room descended into silence, Mary began to speak.
“I know everyone here is in business, as am I. A business without profit cannot possibly survive. But how can we maintain a long-lasting enterprise if we only pursue our profit? We should strive for a symbiotic relationship, a collaboration for mutual growth. Only in this way can we build a resilient business community. I acknowledge that our actions have affected you all, yet the truth is not distinguishable between black and white. Please give us some time to resolve the situation satisfactorily. If we fail, we will take full responsibility as stipulated in our agreement.”
A stout young man, his mouth jutting out to reveal two bright white teeth, retorted, “What you’re saying is as if you want us to sink along with you. You’re bold enough to commit a shameful act like plagiarism. How could we trust that you won’t scam us of our money?”
The crowd echoed his sentiment, rebuking vociferously. To them, Mary’s words were empty. When advanced business, earning money wasn’t an issue; now, in the face of a crisis, it was survival of the fittest. They did not hesitate to corner others for their gain.
A woman clad in a tight, glaring red dress, clutching a high-end branded purse, spat out scornfully, “Her father was miserable to have begotten a daughter as ineffectual as her. The current predicament is also a creation of her own doing. And where is the man soon to be her husband? Why isn’t he helping her resolve this situation? Could it be that he’s already moved on to another? It is indeed fitting, for how could a woman of such incompetence keep her husband, let alone run a major company?”
These acrid words tightened their grip on Mary’s profoundly wounded heart. It cried out in pain, yet people callously added salt to the wound, causing relentless torment.
After half a day of tumult, the office finally fell quiet. Mary wanted to bury her face in someone’s shoulder and weep her heart out, but she realized all she had was gone. Her father had passed, her fiancé was with someone else, her best friend had betrayed her, and her company was on the brink of bankruptcy. The saying “misfortunes never come singly” is held. Now, she had nothing left. Her mother was her only kin, and she couldn’t bear to imagine a day without her by her side.
In her heart, a void echoed while thoughts tangled in a chaotic dance, all shadowed by an impending dread of reality. Mary approached the glass door. Watching the ever-moving stream of people, she wondered if anyone among them was traversing the very chasm she found herself in. But no answer came to her silent query, for they neither knew nor cared.
She longed to live a carefree life, to move with reckless abandon, and to do as her heart-willed. The days slipped by with cruel indifference, and days such as these were even more callously apathetic.
Mary dreaded the incoming calls, as most were laced with complaints or demands for compensation or court notifications about the issues concerning Joy’s work. The case remained unsettled yet seemed to turn against her favor increasingly. She had never felt such a burden, such a suffocating weight. Despair and powerlessness had surreptitiously sapped her of all vitality, rendering her a spectral being in her existence.
The crushing burden of an heir, particularly when inheriting a company teetering on the brink of bankruptcy, was overwhelming. Each time she closed her eyes, she wished she could remain in the comforting darkness, fearing to reopen them and confront the impending storm clouding her horizon.