Chapter 529

That night, people started showing up at over ten of White’s chain shoe stores, all asking for refunds. The weird part? Every single pair looked like someone had deliberately trashed them. Some staff tried to reason with the angry customers, but it only made things worse—one store even got trashed. Five or six big orders were canceled. Julian White was so stressed he even skipped dinner. He never really chased fame or fortune—just thought as long as the money’s enough to live on and the business stays honest, that’s good enough. White’s shoes had a solid reputation in the industry. No celebrity endorsements, no flashy ads—just word of mouth from happy customers, and the business grew on its own. Their brand had been around forever—three generations and counting. Folks’ grandpas wore these shoes, so did their dads, and now their grandkids too. Something like this—mass refunds and canceled deals—had never happened before. Despite being on edge, Julian still managed to keep his cool. “We’