Chapter 4

Before I could even open my laptop to show the report, Claire cut me off with a frown.

"Emma, don't talk yet. Just listen to how other people solve problems first."

I took a deep breath.

"I just found out..."

"STOP."

"I contacted an industry consultant, and he confirmed..."

"STOP."

"That data report..."

This time, the entire conference room said it at once: STOP.

Just like they had countless times before, they shut me down with the same single word.

Jessica, the department head's assistant, slammed her files on the table.

"Emma, what is it that you want?"

"This is all because of you. You keep disrupting our thought process, and that's why we keep making mistakes!"

Claire stood up, her voice dripping with impatience.

"Everyone else is working overtime to fix this project, and you're just standing around getting in the way."

"If you actually had something useful, why didn't you say so earlier?"

The rest of the team piled on.

"Exactly. Now that things have gone wrong, she shows up to perform."

"Can you please stop creating problems for once?"

I stood there, the papers in my hand gripped tighter and tighter. "I'm trying to tell you..."

Claire cut me off. "Enough."

"The best thing you can do right now is stop dragging the team down."

I didn't explain any further. I turned around and walked out of the conference room.

After the door closed behind me, I saved the recording on my phone and smiled quietly.

When the project review fails, I hope they remember: it was them who refused to hear the answer.

Over the next few days, the team stayed trapped in the wrong direction.

They kept adjusting, but the results never changed.

Because nobody questioned the industry data.

In their eyes, information published by an authoritative platform couldn't possibly be wrong.

Meanwhile, I rebuilt the model using the corrected data. The project results stabilized quickly.

My new client demand forecast aligned almost perfectly with actual market trends.

I saved the final version and waited for the formal review.

A week later, the company's quarterly audit meeting began.

Every member of the project team arrived at the conference room early.

Claire sat in her seat, doing her best to reassure everyone.

"Don't be nervous."

"We just hit a data discrepancy. There's no way the entire team got it wrong."

Mia nodded.

"Right. The board won't write off the whole team over one failed test."

But despite what they were saying, unease was written all over their faces.

The senior director walked into the conference room.

"We'll go through each project in order. Present your final results one at a time."

Mia went first.

She opened her proposal. A few minutes later, the director finished reading the report in silence.

"The forecast results are significantly off from actual market data."

The color drained from Mia's face.

Claire went next. Same result.

Then, one by one, every other team member presented.

The conference room grew quieter and quieter.

Not a single proposal passed review.

The director frowned.

"Your entire team, and not one of you caught the problem with the underlying data?"

Claire rushed to explain.

"Sir, this project was genuinely difficult."

"We've all been working around the clock for a week straight."

"There may be uncontrollable variables in the data model itself."

Others chimed in.

"She's right. We gave it everything we had."

"Could we possibly get another chance?"

The director looked at them without speaking. Disappointment crept across his face, slow and unmistakable.

That's when I raised my hand.

"Sir, I have something to add."

The room went dead silent. Then, a beat later, the familiar voices piped up.

"Of course it's Emma."

"Is there really any point in listening to her now?"

"She's not about to give us another one of her useless analyses, is she?"

The same reflexive mockery, right on cue.

But this time, the director didn't let them continue.

He looked at me. "Emma, go ahead."

"In my meeting, no one's input is dismissed as worthless."

I stood up and opened my laptop.

"I've already completed this project."

Everyone froze. A flicker of surprise crossed the director's eyes.

"Show me."

Claire shot to her feet. "Sir, that's impossible."

"She hasn't participated in any of our discussions these past few days."

"Her data has to be wrong."

I didn't respond to her. I just put the report up on the screen.

"My proposal doesn't use the flawed version from the original database."

"I re-verified the data source and corrected the key indicators."

Every eye in the room locked onto the screen.

Claire's expression slowly shifted.

Because she could see my projections matched the real market trends perfectly.

The director rapidly reviewed my analysis process.

A few minutes later, he nodded.

"This is the right direction. Emma, excellent work."

The conference room was silent.

The people who had cut me off, again and again, couldn't find a single word to say.

Just when I thought it was over, Jessica's eyes fixed on my report, and she spoke up as if she'd spotted something.

"Wait. Sir, the data she used isn't from the company's public database!"