Chapter 417 Crisis.

Christina immediately called the factory manager to ask about the situation.

Despite her calling three times in a row, no one answered the phone.

“Where did the factory manager go?” Christina asked the security guard coldly.

“He hasn’t come to work since a few days ago. I don’t know where he went,” replied the security guard truthfully.

With how things had turned out, it was obvious that the factory manager had planned all along to take the money and run away.

“Should we call the police?” Rayne asked, worried.

“Don’t call the police for the time being. We can’t alert the media. Otherwise, it will have a great impact on the brand.” Frowning, Christina narrowed her eyes, which gleamed icily.

“What should we do? We don’t have the stocks. We can’t possibly shut down the store after one day of opening, can we?” Rayne said in dejection.

Christina wore a look of concentration in her eyes, appearing calm.

Taking her time, she stood where she was and thought for a moment before making up her mind. “Rayne, do as I say.”

She then whispered her instructions to Rayne, telling her what to do about the store.

“Okay. I’ll see to it now.” After that, Rayne turned around and hurriedly walked out of the factory.

Christina called Rainbow Factory and ordered a batch of fabrics from them, but she explained in advance, “I’m currently short on money and can’t fork out that much for now. Can you deliver the goods first? I will pay in full after a month.”

“I’ll say no if it’s others, but considering that we’ve worked together for so many years, I trust you,” the owner of Rainbow Factory agreed readily.

“Thanks for your trust.”

After hanging up the phone, Christina felt that things were finally going a little smoother.

Afterward, she asked the security guard to get all the employees of the clothing factory to come over.

As it was the early hours of the morning, many of them were still sleeping. After being woken up, they arrived at the factory from the dormitory in their pajamas.

“I’m sorry for waking everyone up so late, but this is an emergency. I hope you can help me with the delivery of a batch of clothing.” Christina pleaded with sincerity.

There were murmurs of complaints from the employees. Then, voices of dissatisfaction arose from them.

“Seriously? Are you asking us to work overtime when you haven’t even paid us last month’s salary?”

“No way. I won’t work overtime. How can you expect us to work without pay after you’ve owed us wages for so long?”

“We’ll only work after you give us our wages from last month.”

The employees were furious.

Walking up to a conspicuous area, Christina raised her megaphone and shouted, “The factory manager took my money and ran away!”

Upon hearing the shocking news, the employees gasped in shock.

The factory manager ran away? From whom should we ask for the money that has been owed to us for over two months? I’m doomed. Where am I supposed to get the money to send back to my parents in my hometown if I don’t get my salary?

After giving them some time to discuss among themselves, Christina added, “Work now if you don’t want to lose your job. I’ll pay you for the overtime accordingly. Moreover, I’ll pay the wages owed to you after the manager is caught.”

After a moment of deliberation, the workers exchanged looks.

“Last month, we were given a pile of stinky fabrics to work with, causing several people to faint. They’re still lying in the hospital now!”

So another person comes here to make a scene after the manager ran off huh?

Taken over by rage, someone picked up a piece of old dirty cloth on the ground and threw it at Christina.

A scream pierced above the noise. Christina dodged the dirty cloth, feeling shocked and disquieted.

These people are too rude. They don’t listen to explanations at all’

There was a burst of mocking laughter from the employees. Then, the person who threw the cloth questioned loudly, “Why should we trust you? We don’t know you. If you don’t pay us for the work done and run away, from whom should we ask for the money? I think it’s better to sell the stuff in the factory to get back some of our wages, isn’t it?”

“He’s right. Don’t listen to that woman’s nonsense!”

Irritated, Christina shouted, “As long as you promise to deliver the goods on time, I’ll definitely pay the wages!”

However, all of them ignored her. Someone even took the lead to head to the workshop and started to dismantle the things inside.

Just as Christina was feeling helpless and troubled, the sound of a car engine came from the factory entrance.

The car came to a halt with the headlights on.

Everyone turned to look over and saw a man walking in against the light. His tall and slender silhouette exuded an air of aloofness.

He looked even more handsome than the male models on posters.

As everyone watched in puzzlement, the deputy factory manager emerged from behind the man.

“This factory has been acquired by the CEO of Hadley Corporation. No wages will be owed to you as long as you manage to deliver the goods.”

Hearing the deputy manager’s words, the workers stopped what they were doing All of them knew that Hadley Corporation was a rich and large company.

Now that the factory was owned by Hadley Corporation, they no longer needed to worry about not being paid The deliveryman of Rainbow Factory soon delivered the high-quality fabrics. Under the arrangement of the deputy factory manager, the workers started working as instructed.

The sound of machines running on the assembly line echoed in the middle of the night.

Christina let out a sigh and stepped down from the stage.

Based on the current progress of the workers, they should be able to deliver the first batch of goods within a month.

Christina was relieved that things had stabilized for the time being.

Dragging her tired body out of the factory, she saw the man standing beside the car, waiting for her.

The pitch-black sky above him was littered with brilliant stars. The faint light illuminated his stern side, profile, making his eyes look like abysses.

Christina did not want to alert Nathaniel in the first place, but unexpectedly, he showed up.

Walking over, she rubbed her hands uneasily. “You came all the way here despite being so busy. You must be tired, aren’t you?”

Her voice was so soft and gentle that it was like a whisper to Nathaniel.

Nathaniel was a little displeased with her for hiding this matter from him, but his heart softened at the sight of her dejected expression that made her seem like a child who had done something wrong. “Get in the car.”

Opening the door, he let Christina slip inside the car before he did.

While on the way home, a deafening silence filled the air inside the car as Nathaniel was reading documents with a tablet in his hand.

When the car made a turn, Christina’s body moved to the side slightly, and she knocked her head on Nathaniel’s firm arm.

As the physical distance between them was shortened, his faint woody fragrance filled her nostrils.

The wonderful scent had a calming effect on her.

After a while, the car was back on the straight road, Hence, Christina positioned herself so as not to be too close to Nathaniel and disturb him while he read documents.

Before she could move, her head was pinned down by Nathaniel so that she was leaning on his shoulder.

“Stop moving around,” he said in a commanding tone.