Sophia hung up the phone and glanced at Yvonne beside her. “Please continue.”
Then, Yvonne continued her speech. After hearing Yvonne, Sophia paused for a moment before saying, “Keep going with the investigation.”
“Understood, Ms. Yarrow.”
Yvonne knew Sophia had keen eyes because she had been working for the latter for five years. Whatever Sophia believed in turned out to be true, and vice versa for her presumptions about what was bad.
Since Sophia had told her to look into it further, it was clear that the company was not as good as the information suggested.
“How about the annual dinner this year, Ms. Yarrow?”
“As usual.”
Once again, Sophia refused to participate.
Yvonne responded, “Got it. I’ll send you the draft speech via email.”
Despite the fact that Sophia never attended the company’s annual dinner, she would give a speech there every year. She was also extremely generous, donating a substantial sum of money to sponsor the annual award.
As a result, even though she did not attend the company’s annual dinner every year, the employees adored her far more than other shareholders.
After all, everyone preferred a chairman with no scandals, who rarely spoke but was generous.
Sophia responded with a nod. “Okay.”
She looked at the time after she finished speaking. “If there’s nothing else, I’m heading back first.”
That afternoon, she invited Robert to have lunch with her. One year had passed in the blink of an eye, and she had also invested in Magic Sense for nearly half a year. During the Series B funding, Magic Sense would see an influx of investors.
As an investor who had already invested in the Magic Sense since Series A funding, she would definitely like future investors to invest more in it as well.
Because of that she had to meet Robert first.
“I’ll send you there, Ms. Yarrow.”
“There’s no need for that. You may leave now.”
As Sophia rarely visited the company, her secretary, Yvonne, had to do the majority of the work in her absence, and Sophia did not want to waste Yvonne’s valuable time.
I’m such a considerate boss.
Then, Yvonne came to a halt at the elevator’s entrance. “Ms. Yarrow, please be careful on your way.”
It was already eleven forty-five when Sophia arrived at the hotel. She was fifteen minutes late.
“I apologize for being late. I just had a meeting.”
Robert, who had already arrived long ago, got up and greeted her when he saw her enter the private room. “Greetings, Ms. Yarrow.”
“Did you arrive a long time ago?” Sophia asked after noticing the documents on the table.
“No. I just got here as well.”
As he said that, he pushed his glasses. After not seeing him for more than four months, the young man who had recently graduated from high school had matured considerably.
Tch! He’s not as honest or cute as he used to be.
“You lied to me, didn’t you?”
Sophia gave him a glance and said, “The appointment time was eleven-thirty. You’ve never been late, and in fact, you may have arrived earlier. Therefore, you’ve been waiting for me for at least twenty minutes.”
Seeing that he was found out, he replied embarrassedly, “I arrived at eleven-twenty.”
“So you waited for half an hour.” Sophia chuckled. “In honor of your early arrival, if your statement pleases me, I’ll definitely give you a reasonable price for the upcoming Series B funding.”
In reality, Robert had no intention of changing the investor. He had met several business owners that year. Although he was aware that equity financing was the most important factor in a company’s growth, not every investor was as forthright and honest as Sophia.
Back then, his senior, who had started a business, went bankrupt because the investor intervened too much in his business.
On the other hand, Sophia had only cared about the monthly statements since investing in Magic Sense, and she had instructed her secretary to focus on new product development. Aside from that, she never intervened in internal company decisions or any other matter.
As a result, Robert was eager to continue working with Sophia, and his face softened when he heard her words.
After graduating from high school more than five months ago, he was forced to face the harsh realities of life, causing him to no longer be the same innocent young man he once was.
As an entrepreneur, they desired an investor like Sophia the most. They would be honest with her because of how well she treated them.
“Ms. Yarrow, please find attached our annual report as well as user tracking data.”
Hearing that, Sophia reached out and took it. “You can order the food right now. Just keep in mind that I do not consume animal liver and prefer a bland diet.”
Robert was taken aback for a few seconds before realizing Sophia was asking him to place an order.
After Sophia took over the documents, she lowered her head and read them carefully. Not wanting to bother her any longer, Robert ordered four dishes as Sophia had instructed.
Sophia was sensitive to numbers because she had a strong memory that was comparable to a photographic memory.
In fact, she had directed Yvonne to organize the data from the Magic Sense app into a table format for her inspection. At the time, the information provided by Robert was identical to what she had previously read.
Then, she flipped through a few more pages before coming to a halt. “Was the massive uninstallation in November caused by the online privacy incident?”
He looked at Sophia with a solemn expression. “Yes.”
After nodding in response, he paused for a moment before continuing, “Aside from that, the incident had a significant impact on our subsequent downloads. Our app’s download numbers peaked in August and September, as evidenced by the data. However, following the online privacy incident in mid-November, the growth in downloads decreased significantly, and the number of uninstallations increased three to five times.”
Sophia raised her head and looked at him. “So you paid people to download the app and register an account?”
Without disputing it, Robert pursed his lips when he heard that.
Although he still had a smile on his face, it was not as warm and gentle as before.
After all, he could not bring himself to deny it when Sophia looked at him like that.
Furthermore, he was aware that falsifying data was what investors detested the most.
“Mr. Smith, I’m sure you’re aware that I, as a businesswoman, only invested in Magic Sense to make money, right? My purpose in investing is simple, and it is to make money.” She took a brief pause after saying that. “However, despite being top students in school, you chose to start a business rather than take a stable job paying three hundred thousand per year. I can tell you’re not just doing it for the money. I don’t like talking about other people’s dreams, but if you don’t respect your own, it will only make others look down on you even more.”
Sophia retracted her smile before explaining, “As you know, your proposal was initially dropped from the final review at Sunshine Group. I contacted you privately because I had high hopes for you. You were not only young, but you were also honest. Back then, I was optimistic about your future. But the once-visible future is now completely obscured by mist.”
“Please accept my apologies, Ms. Yarrow.”
Sophia furrowed her brows. “I’m not trying to blame you right now, Mr. Smith. I’m just expressing my thoughts as an investor.”
With that, she pushed the documents back to him. “There is still some time before the Series B funding. I really hope you can show me the same sincerity you did back then.”
The waiter brought the dishes to them as soon as she finished speaking.
She proceeded to pour herself a cup of coffee. “It’s getting late. Let’s relax and enjoy the meal.”
Robert attempted to respond, but when he noticed her passionate gaze, he remained silent.
Despite the fact that Sophia appeared to be uninterested in anything, everything was within her grasp.
Deep down, Robert knew that whatever he said at the time was a ruse.
Discreetly, he chose to remain silent quietly, allowing Sophia to concentrate on her meal.
