Chapter 164: Vivian’s next plot
After leaving Elias’s office, Vivian went to meet Elena.
Gone was the spoiled, emotional woman who had complained to Elias earlier. Now, she looked composed, humble, and eager to learn.
She carried a notebook and a folder as she entered the project division, where Elena was already reviewing several documents.
"Good morning, Elena."
Elena looked up. She had been expecting her.
"Good morning." She gestured toward the chair across from her. "Take a seat."
Vivian smiled warmly as she sat down. "I hope I’m not disturbing you."
"No. I already knew you’d come." Elena closed the document in front of her and met her gaze. "Aren’t we going to work together?"
Vivian gave a slightly embarrassed smile. "To be honest, I’m quite new to the corporate world."
Elena raised an eyebrow.
Vivian immediately added, "I know I have a degree in business management, but that’s very different from actually handling a major corporate project."
She laughed softly. "Earlier, I wasn’t interested in joining the family business. I thought I was still young. I wanted to enjoy life first."
She lowered her eyes as though embarrassed to admit it. "But my father insisted this time. He said I needed to take responsibility and learn how the business actually works. So he gave me the responsibility of handling this project from the Sterling Group’s side."
Vivian looked at Elena with an innocent smile.
"This project is very promising. I believe this will be another successful collaboration between our families. I’m ready to help you with anything. Trust me, I’ll give it my best."
She opened her notebook. "Tell me. What can I do?"
Elena studied her silently.
She had seen Vivian’s true nature before. She knew how possessive and obsessive Vivian could be.
On top of that, Evelyn’s warning still lingered in her mind. ’Be careful with Vivian. She is up to something.’
Elena had no reason to trust her. But she couldn’t simply dismiss Vivian either.
The Sterling Group was a major partner in the project, and Vivian had officially been appointed to represent them. If Elena treated her unfairly without reason, it could create unnecessary tension between the two companies.
So she decided to keep Vivian close enough to observe, but far away from anything truly important.
"Since you are new to the corporate world, I’ll start you with some basic responsibilities."
The smile on Vivian’s face almost disappeared. But she quickly recovered and nodded eagerly.
"I understand."
Elena turned toward her computer.
"First, review the general project timeline and prepare a progress-tracking sheet. You’ll be responsible for monitoring deadlines, meeting schedules, and the completion status of each department."
Vivian quickly began taking notes. "Anything else?"
"I’ll also give you access to the market research we’ve collected," Elena continued. "I want you to organize the reports by region and identify the cities that would benefit most from the platform."
Vivian nodded. "All right."
Elena paused and shifted her gaze from the computer screen to Vivian.
"There is also a list of technology partners. Check their company profiles and prepare a preliminary comparison based on cost, experience, and technical capability."
She deliberately kept the truly sensitive information out of Vivian’s reach. Nothing involving the core AI architecture, financial negotiations, security protocols, or proprietary technical data was given to her.
Elena handed Vivian several folders. "Start with these. If you have questions, ask me or the department heads."
"All right."
Vivian accepted the folders. Inside, however, she was furious.
’This is what she gives me?’
None of it was important. None of it would give her access to the information she actually needed.
She wanted to argue. She wanted to demand that Elena give her something more substantial. But she forced herself to remain calm.
She reminded herself why she had come. ’I’m not here to prove myself. I’m here for a purpose.’
Once she achieved her goal, Elena would be eliminated—not only from the company but also from Elias’s life. If she had to endure a little humiliation first, she was willing to do it.
Vivian smiled sweetly.
"Thank you for trusting me." She picked up the first folder. "I’ll learn from the basic work."
Vivian returned to her desk.
For the rest of the morning, she behaved exactly like the inexperienced employee she claimed to be.
Whenever she encountered something she didn’t understand, she immediately approached Elena. She asked questions constantly.
At first, Elena found it slightly surprising.
But Vivian’s questions were reasonable. She never pretended to know something she didn’t.
"Elena, I finished the vendor comparison." She placed the report on Elena’s desk.
Elena looked through it.
"You made a mistake here, though." She pointed to one section. "This vendor’s projected cost is for the second phase, not the initial deployment."
Vivian immediately leaned closer. "Oh, I see."
She made a note. "I’ll fix it."
She didn’t try to justify herself. She accepted her mistakes.
Whenever Elena explained something, Vivian listened carefully and took notes.
Her behavior was so cooperative that, to anyone watching, she looked like an inexperienced executive genuinely trying to learn. But beneath that harmless exterior, Vivian was observing everything.
By afternoon, she had already started collecting information. She carefully examined every file Elena had given her.
Vivian noted down everything that contained project codes, department names, reporting schedules, vendor categories, meeting dates, and references to different stages of development.
When she finally finished taking notes, her expression changed. The innocent smile disappeared. Her eyes turned cold.
She picked up her phone and called her father.
"Did you get something?" Cedric asked.
"Not yet," she replied in a low voice. "But I got something even more valuable."
"Elena is the central point through which most of the project information flows," Vivian continued. "The department heads send their reports to her. She reviews them, makes changes, and then forwards the approved versions to Elias and the relevant executives."
There was a brief pause on the other end of the line. "So almost everything passes through Elena."
"Exactly."
There was a pause on the other end of the line before Cedric spoke again.
"Vivian, I don’t want you involved in anything dangerous. Just learn how Elena handles the project. Find out who has access to what. That’s all."
"And then you’ll help me get rid of her?" she asked.
"If you do your part, Elena won’t remain in Elias’s life for long," Cedric replied. "He won’t keep her with him after learning she had betrayed him."
Vivian was giddy with excitement at the prospect of finally getting rid of her.
"I’ll do anything to throw her out of Elias’s life, even if it is dangerous."
"Don’t be overconfident," Cedric warned. "One mistake, and you’ll be out of the project. Then our entire plan will be ruined."
Vivian’s smile slowly faded. "I won’t make a mistake." Her eyes hardened. "I want Elias. And for that, she has to leave. Right now, she trusts me because I’m pretending to be harmless."
She smirked. "That’s her first mistake. But she’ll regret it in the end. And by then, it’ll be too late."