Mr. Villain's Lovely Wife

Chapter 45

“What do you mean, Mr. Weiss?” Izzy asked, her expression calm though a hint of curiosity flickered in her eyes.

Calen stepped forward, a triumphant glint in his gaze. “The projected costs for the cultural center are disproportionately high, according to the preliminary budget breakdown included to your report,” he said, clicking his remote to display a slide he had prepared. It showed what he believed to be Izzy’s earlier data, with the cultural center’s costs seemingly dwarfing the casino’s revenue projections. “These numbers don’t align with realistic market estimates or even the government’s benchmarks for similar projects. I think it’s fair to ask for clarification.”

Izzy’s lips twitched into a faint smile as she glanced at the slide interesting,” she said, taking a step toward the screen. Let’s unpack this, shall we?”

Clicking her remote, Izzy brought up her actual data, which had been distributed in the board’s official reports. The numbers were starkly different from the ones Calen had displayed–precisely calibrated and well within industry standards. “Mr. Weiss, the figures you’re presenting don’t match the final budget in my report,” she said, turning to face him. “Would you mind telling me where you sourced this information?”

Calen faltered for a fraction of a second but quickly recovered. “It was included in an earlier draft,” he said. “Perhaps you failed to update all your materials”

Izzy nodded slowly, the faint smile still playing on her lips. “Ah, that must be it,” she said. “Let’s address that discrepancy.”

She clicked on her next slide, which displayed timestamps of her report revisions alongside a summary of the changes. The board murmured as they noticed the meticulous detail in her work. Izzy’s final draft clearly outlined the adjusted cukural center costs–streamlined and optimized without compromising quality

Seeing this, Calen’s expression turned ugly. Clearly, the numbers weren’t the ones he had seen. Did something happen! “You see,” Izzy began. “These revisions were made three weeks ago and presented last week to CEO Weiss. They were distributed to every member of this board and uploaded to the project’s central repository. However, I made a few changes this week. The changes was made in response to updated supplier negotiations and government feedback, reduced costs by, 15%. I ensured that all stakeholders had access to the latest figures. So, Mr. Weiss, I’m curious–why are you using outdated, numbers? Were you able to see the updated reports?”

Calen stiffened slightly, the flicker of unease in his posture betraying his confidence. “I must’ve been given incomplete data” he said, his voice tight. He was certain that those numbers were not the ones given to him. Changes? Monica didn’t mention,

changes! Even his team had

any

Izzy

mentioned any changes!

tilted her head slightly, her gaze sharp. “Incomplete? That’s odd, considering my team ensures synchronization across all documents.” She clicked on another slide, showing an internal email thread that verified the report’s dissemination. “And just to confirm, Mr. Weiss, you were ce’d on these updates, weren’t you?”

to respond before continuing. “Of course, mistakes can happen,”

its expected revenue contributions, showing significant return on invesenient within three years. The accompanying notes detailed partnerships with local artisans and sponsorships from–global luxury

the region. By leveraging these partnerships and aligning with Macau’s vision, we’ve ensured that the center enhances our profitability while meeting regulatory requirements. As you can see, the ROI

the board absorbed the data. Jørgen Lund broke the silence, his voice firm. “Miss Rossi, this is well- presented.

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887%.

have to admit, I was skeptical about the costs,

table as murmurs approval for Izzy’s work grew louder. He opened his mouth as if to interject, but Izzy wasn’t

a detailed timeline of her report updates and the team members involved. “I’d like to address another concern. Over the past month, my team flagged suspicious access

authority, What Izzy was addressing. however, were minor concerns flagged by the system. They weren’t significant, but handling them would showcase her competence to

employee from my team–someone who no longer works with us–attempted to access early drafts of this report after leaving the company. I’ve already alerted corporate security, and the

room went completely still. A few board members exchanged glances, their expressions ranging from surprise to suspicion Calen’s

“Of course, I trust that we all value the integrity of this process,” she said, her voice cool.

melt into the floor. “Mr. Weiss,” the CEO said, his tone sharp. “Do you have

a tight smile. “No,” he said after

calculated as she addressed him directly. “Mr.

himself. “Of course,”

slide, which displayed an excerpt from Macau’s regulatory guidelines regarding foreign investments in integrated resorts. Highlighted in bold was a specific clause pertaining to cultural contributions as a

the casino should take precedence, with cultural elements introduced later,” Izzy began, her tone calm but precise. “Could you explain how your phased approach ensures compliance with

stopped himself. “Well, the Act allows for certain exceptions,” he began, but his hesitation was

but unyielding. “Exceptions, Mr. Weiss? Could you clarify which exceptions you’re referring to? Because, to my knowledge, Clause 8.3 has no exemptions for

grew silent, all eyes turning to Calen. He opened his mouth, but no words came out. His gaze darted toward the board members,

further. “For context,” de said, clicking to another slide. “My team conducted a thorough review of the advisory board’s recent approvals. All projects with cultural components deferred to later phases faced either rejection or significant delays in licensing. That’s why my

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