Chapter 299 Stop Staring Or We’re Gonna Be Late

Sophia listened to her mother rattle on about how she was at fault. Sophia tried her best to console her mother in the beginning but ended up listening to the ranting numbly. She no longer had any idea what to say to her mother. “I’m gonna get some books from Nicole.” Sophia stood up before leaving the room with a neutral expression. Nicole’s room was next door. Sophia knocked on the door and went in after Nicole answered. “Here for the books? Give me a minute.” Nicole was helping the two kids change. Sophia nodded and found a spot to sit down. Nicole came back with Sophia’s books after she was done helping the kids with their clothes and sending them to the playroom. “There’s a total of eight books. You can read these first. Once you’re done with them, I’ll pass other books to you. However, I think you’ll learn faster by practical learning rather than reading books,” Nicole said. Sophia took over the books unenthusiastically. “Thanks, Nicole. I’ll learn the basics first and consider things later.” Nicole gave her a rough explanation of the contents of those few books and an idea of where they were applicable before finally saying in hesitation, “Your brother has done his best trying to pick things up, but it’s difficult for him to change his ways in such a short time. He never thinks before doing something. I’ll try my best to help lessen any trouble he might give you.” “Sterling does need to change his ways,” said Sophia. They spoke a little more about Sterling before Sophia returned to her room with the books. Her mom was no longer there. She might have gone to the living room or back to her own room. Sophia placed the books down and went to the living room to take a look. There was no one there. She proceeded to her parents’ bedroom. The bedroom door was half-opened. Jenny sat at the side of the bed with a tearful face. She wiped the tears on her face and took out a few bottles of medication from the drawer. Then, she poured out seven to eight pills before swallowing them. Jenny seemed to sense Sophia’s gaze and turned back toward her in a panic. “I have the flu. I’m having flu medicine!” “Have you seen a psychologist?” Sophia asked through the door. Jenny’s lips twitched as her pupils started shifting nervously. “There’s nothing wrong with me. I don’t need to see a psychologist! All doctors are the same. They’ll claim something is wrong even if there’s nothing wrong and make a mountain out of a molehill just to earn more money!” “Okay.” Sophia did not say anything more as she returned to her room. She consulted Victor for recommendations on psychologists and got a contact from Victor. This psychologist’s schedule was quite full. The soonest he could see her mother was ten days later, and it would only be for two hours. Sophia wanted to ask if there were any medications the psychologist recommended so that she could prepare some for her mom, but the psychologist was on the way to grab a flight and hung up before Sophia had the chance to ask. “Depression, bipolar disorder… Patients with such conditions involving psychological illness will normally reject seeing a doctor. “If Madam White’s condition is not at a serious stage, I would suggest Miss White not to engage another doctor before seeing Dr. Sanders. It might create resistance for Madam White to see a psychologist and affect Dr. Sanders’ evaluation and treatment.” Victor had called Sophia back to find out about the situation and advised her about it. Sophia hung up and thought about her mother’s issues. There was nothing else she could do. She arranged for a servant to check on her mom on and off. Then, she started to dive into the books seriously. She had never learned anything about this particular sector before. There was a lot of professional jargon being used. Sophia spent the whole morning reading only one paragraph. She had basically spent most of her time checking the meaning of those terms. Jenny and Nicole stopped by midway, bringing her fruits and snacks. They tried to get her to rest, but she declined. Three days went by in a blink of an eye. No one knew what Sterling had been busy with these three days. Sophia had not seen him at all until she was about to officially start work at the company. She finally saw him during breakfast. “When some of them smile at you, you won’t know what they’re talking about behind your back. Don’t be too naive and treat them as friends. You might end up being stabbed in the back! “When you meet clients, especially male clients, always go with someone else. Some of them can be quite handsy. Never stay with them alone! “Important documents must be kept in a safe place. Also, never work overtime alone. If you really need to, let me… or Charles pick you up after work. It’s not safe!” Sterling gave multiple advice while Sophia replied to him in affirmation. Beep. Beep. Sterling’s phone vibrated. Sterling quickly gulped down his congee and swallowed whatever food he had left to pick up the call. “Mr. Long… Now? This is just too damned rushed. Can’t you wait until I’m done with my meal? Fine, fine, fine. Don’t change to another personnel, I’ll come over right now!” He hung up the phone with a dark look on his face. He cursed about the situation and quickly picked up a biscuit to bite on. He then put on his suit and headed outside. “Bring along another bowl of congee with you,” Sophia shouted at him. Sterling did not look back as he waved at her. “It’s okay! That jinx said if I don’t get over there right now, he’s gonna change…” Sterling was too far by then. Sophia could not hear what he said at the end. However, judging by the conversation he had over the phone, he might be trying to say that they were going to change personnel. Her brother might not be the most competent, but he was still the eldest son of White Industries’ president and was referred to as Mr. White. Under normal circumstances, no one would act rudely toward him when they knew Sterling’s true identity, especially companies who were White Industries’ working partners. Unless… This was arranged by her dad in order to get her brother to back off. Sophia chewed on her food slowly as she turned to look at Charles chatting up James. “Hurry up and finish your food. You need to report for work after breakfast. Don’t be late on your first day,” James did not like the stare she was giving him and frowned when he said this. Charles placed some food in Sophia’s bowl. “There’s more than 40 minutes left. There’s no need to rush. Have your food slowly. I can drive a little faster later.” He turned to James and smiled. “Am I right?” James replied awkwardly. “… Yup. Although, you need to head to work too. She can go to work with me in my car.” Charles passed a paper napkin to Sophia to wipe the corner of her lips. “It’s the first day of my girlfriend’s job. It’s a must for me to give her a ride there.” James laughed drily and said nothing more. All three of them headed for White Industries after breakfast. “Do more, learn more, and talk less. You’re given the job of assistant to the chief financial officer because of your special status, but similarly, you would need to face the doubts about your work capabilities.” Charles pushed some wild strands of hair on Sophia’s head behind her ear and kissed her gently on the earlobe. Sophia reacted immediately by moving back and looking at Charles. He was now sitting straight in his seat with both hands on the steering wheel. “Stop staring or we’re gonna be late. If you want to continue staring at me, you can do that when we’re home.” Sophia, “…” She opened the door and got out of the car. She stood next to James who had already gotten out of his car for quite a while now. Then, she followed him into the company.