Chapter 234 Two Rivals See Red the Moment They Meet
Courtney was taken by surprise. “They belong to Sunhill?”
“Yes.” Bill turned around and began to sketch down some designs on the blackboard. “In the early years, Sunhill Enterprise’s clothing company was involved in a scandal. After suffering damage to its reputation, the entire clothing company went bankrupt and was liquidated. Later, they wanted to join the clothing industry again, but the impact of the previous damage was still fresh, so they could only give the company a name that seemed to have nothing to do with Sunhill.”
If they thought about it, it was just a way to clear the air and confuse the public.
Usually, most people wouldn’t think to find out which company was the main source of the product they were buying. Sunhill Enterprise had used this practice to their advantage and managed to form a new clothing company.
This thought didn’t even cross Courtney’s mind. If it wasn’t for Bill, she would have thought that the company called Ivory Apparel and Designs was just another incompetent business.
“Even if they’re under Sunhill, we still have to report them. At the very least, we must let them know that we’re not someone to be messed with,” Courtney said with a frown.
So what if the matter was related to Alexander? She found it ridiculous that a company as dignified as Sunhill Enterprise would profit off such an unseemly clothing company.
Bill gave a noncommittal raise of his eyebrow. “It’s up to you. We won’t be producing the clothes from the previous season anymore anyway. If they want to copy, they can only copy the outdated outfits.”
Obviously, Bill didn’t bother with these imitations. After all, elites didn’t busy themselves with mundane affairs. It was normal for him to be unwilling to argue with others about such trivialities.
Courtney, on the other hand, could never turn a blind eye to misconduct, so she ordered her assistant to arrange for a commercial lawyer to send a letter of demand to the companies that imitated their creations, including Ivory Apparel and Designs.
On Friday night, Courtney flew to Shanghai to attend a business banquet.
Her purpose was clear. Among those who attended the reception, the general manager of Sakura Group’s eastern branch was one of them. Sakura Group wanted to order a batch of staff uniforms, and this man was responsible for this matter. If her efforts were successful, she would be walking away with an order worth one hundred million. It would be a great help to Citron Apparel’s early stages in the market.
At the cocktail party, the elites of Shanghai and Melrose City’s clothing companies could be seen at every corner.
Courtney got to know about the party through Leila Marshall, the chief editor of Shanghai’s beauty and fashion magazine, VV. Elijah had introduced her to Courtney before he left Melrose City.
Leila was an utterly straightforward lady. The manner in which she spoke and acted was as swift as the wind. “Mr. Graham has helped me multiple times in the past. I knew that he was married, but I didn’t expect his wife to be so young.”
Courtney smiled and went along with her, not elaborating on her relationship with Elijah.
There was no need to explain much about her and Elijah’s situation to irrelevant parties, and it was hard to clarify anyway.
Leila brought her around the party and got her acquainted with a number of other guests before bringing her to Dominic Willis, the general manager of Sakura Group.
“President Willis, this is President Hunter of Citron Apparel that I told you about on the phone.”
Courtney stretched out her hand. “Nice to meet you, President Willis.”
“Nice to meet you too.” Dominic politely shook her hand, appearing completely at ease.
Evidently, Leila had given him a brief introduction of Courtney’s company prior to the banquet; otherwise, he would have been asking about why he had never heard of Citron Apparel before.
“President Willis, it’s a little noisy here. Why don’t we go over there to have a chat?” Courtney took the initiative to strike up a conversation with Dominic. She was a businesswoman after all, and no one came to the reception looking to relax. They were all here to engage in business interactions, so she might as well be more direct.
Dominic briskly agreed.
With Leila tagging along, the three of them moved to the lounge of the banquet hall.
At a corner in the banquet hall, a lithe figure holding a champagne glass was watching Courtney, seemingly lost in thought. Her eyes were sparkling with a dark gleam.
“Hey there, pretty lady. What are you doing here all alone? Don’t you have anyone to accompany you?” A man’s voice sounded from beside her.
Britney cast the man a sideways glance.
The voice belonged to Tobias Crane, Shanghai’s famous playboy. He had been pursuing her for more than two years now, and he was extremely willing to spend money on her. But, he always had women around him, and she was still pining for Alexander, so she never really gave him a second thought.
If anything, he was just a diversion for when she was bored.
As a matter of fact, she was just feeling bored when he approached her. He was the one who invited her to tonight’s reception, and it just so happened that she was in Shanghai shooting an advertisement. She had some spare time, and she was bored, so she agreed to attend.
“That’s right.” Britney laughed. “Someone invited me to be his guest but ditched me as soon as the party started to flirt with other girls. Doesn’t that leave me without a companion?”
“Whoever it is, he must be blind. How could there be anyone at this party more attractive than you?” Tobias was a true sweet talker; he didn’t even hesitate to insult himself.
Playing along, Britney chuckled, then pointed with her delicate finger. “There; that woman over there is rather good-looking. Her beauty is comparable to mine.”
“How could that be?” Tobias said while casually looking in the direction she was pointing at. When he caught sight of Courtney, he couldn’t tear his eyes away from her.
If Britney was an ice cube, then the woman standing in the distance dressed in a burgundy halter neck evening gown was a ball of fire. Her long, wavy hair hung loosely across her shoulders, and the young woman’s mature charm carried with it a rare sense of purity.
Who’s this rare beauty?
Tobias figured that there was an eighty percent chance this woman was one of the boss’ mistress.
“Can’t take your eyes off of her, can you, Mr. Crane?” Britney teased from beside him, but her eyes glinted darker. “If you like her, judging from your charm, it shouldn’t be a problem to take her to bed tonight, right?”
Coming back to his senses, Tobias shook his head. “Forget it. I’m not walking into the lion’s den; I’m not looking for trouble. That’s Sakura Group’s general manager, Dominic Willis. I don’t have the guts to mess with his girl.”
“I don’t think that’s the case,” Britney said, acting doubtful. “That woman is Courtney Hunter. I know her. She came with Leila Marshall, the chief editor of VV. It looks like Leila is making business introductions. I don’t think Courtney has ever met President Willis prior to this.”
“Really? Business? What business?”
“A clothing company that she just started. Courtney is Alexander’s ex-girlfriend. She started her business after they broke up. It seems like she has rather good connections; she’ll be a good match for a nobleman like you.”
Tobias liked the sound of this, and he couldn’t help but look at Courtney a couple more times.
“You said that she’s Alexander’s ex-girlfriend, right? Aren’t you his ex as well? It’s normal for rivals to see red the moment they meet. Do you want me to take revenge for you?”
“I guess it’s out of the question.” Britney took a lazy sip of her champagne. “Alexander and I haven’t had any contact in a long time. As for Courtney, I had some grudges against her last time. But, rather than taking revenge, I’m just hoping that you can have a good time tonight.”
Tobias enjoyed being flattered, and Britney’s words were particularly pleasant to his ears. He was bursting with joy. “Don’t worry, Britney. Since you’re being so thoughtful of me, while I enjoy myself tonight, I’ll also punish her on your behalf.”
