Tous les chapitres de : Chapitre 311 - Chapitre 320

It didn’t take long for the moderator to receive instructions.With practiced ease, he addressed Nina’s request and announced that she was welcome to continue.No one said it outright, but Nina knew Leo had stepped in for her.Her eyes found his across the crowded room.She couldn’t make out his expression clearly from this distance, but she didn’t need to.She knew he was on her side.Nina took a deep breath.Then she spoke, calm and direct.“The new technologies and patents Ms. Gibson presented earlier weren’t actually developed by her.”The room went still.“The research was done by someone else. She simply copied the work and passed it off as her own.”The room erupted.An accusation like that was extremely serious.And making it here, in front of some of the most prominent people in the industry, made it even more damaging.If Nina could prove what she was saying, Yvonne’s professional reputation would be destroyed.Yvonne shot to her feet.She slammed a hand again

“Who exactly is Nina Walker? She’s this young, she has access to Bode Institute data, and she’s already managed to build on it?”“She’s with Mendel. And with Leo Taylor backing her, I doubt access to resources is much of a problem.”“Sure, but resources only get you so far. Money can get you access to existing research. It can’t do the actual work for you.”“Exactly. Gibson Corporation has plenty of money too. So do a lot of people in this room. If funding were all it took, someone else would’ve done it already.”“That’s fair. She clearly knows what she’s doing.”The room was buzzing now.Nina looked across the crowd and found Leo.She had felt a little guilty about throwing the entire conference into chaos and had wondered whether he might be upset with her.But Leo didn’t look upset at all.Instead, he raised an eyebrow at her from across the room.The message was obvious.“Nicely done.”James and Yvonne, sitting beside him, were nowhere near as calm.James turned to Yvo

The reporters had finally gotten a major story, and there was no chance they were letting Yvonne walk away easily.Questions immediately came at her from every direction, with microphones practically shoved in her face.“Ms. Gibson, how do you respond to Ms. Walker’s accusations? Did you actually use her research?”“She only pointed out two examples today. Are the other technologies and patents you presented also based on her work?”“Did you know beforehand that Ms. Walker planned to challenge you? And if you did, were your responses already prepared?”Before long, the questions moved beyond the conference altogether.“Is there some kind of personal history between you and Ms. Walker? Why would she choose an event like this to accuse you publicly?”“And what exactly is your relationship with Mr. Gibson? He’s married and has a child. Are you having an affair with him?”Yvonne had been listening with a tight expression, barely holding herself together.But that question finally

Once Nina and Leo left the conference, neither of them brought up what had happened again.As far as Nina was concerned, it was over.She had said what she needed to say, and there was no point dwelling on it.Leo, on the other hand, knew it wasn’t quite finished.But whatever came next wasn’t something Nina needed to worry about.He would take care of it.Nina assumed they would be flying back to Burgola City that day, so she asked what time they were leaving.“We’re not leaving today,” Leo said.Nina immediately assumed he planned to go home and stay in Harbor City for a few days.“In that case, I can book a flight back myself.”Before leaving, she still wanted to meet with Alan and the others one more time. Other than that, she had nothing keeping her in Harbor City.“You don’t need to,” Leo said. “You’re not leaving yet either.”Now Nina was completely confused.“Why? Do you have something else planned?”He did.Leo wanted to spend a few more days with her in Harbor

The Taylor estate sat in one of Harbor City’s most exclusive waterfront neighborhoods, tucked against the hills with sweeping views of the ocean and marina below.The property was surrounded by lush greenery, with the coastline stretching out beyond it.When Nina had lived in Harbor City before, most of her life had been spent in ordinary neighborhoods.She had never set foot in a place like this.For the first time, she truly understood just how wealthy the Taylor family was.As their car approached, a pair of tall wrought-iron gates slowly opened.Several members of the household staff were waiting near the entrance, dressed in crisp formal uniforms.They greeted Leo as the car passed.The main house was still some distance from the gate.Perfectly trimmed hedges lined the private drive, while warm landscape lights followed the stone path all the way toward the house.Before they even reached the entrance, Nina could already see four people waiting outside.Leo glanced tow