Standing Right Next To You - Chapter 451

Stephen Jin cleared his throat when he found all eyes now on him, ready to hear what he was about to say.

Without wasting too much time, he began narrating everything he knew about that old lady who worked alongside him in Obsidia Designs.

“I heard this from my elder sister so you can trust the authenticity of this information.” He mentioned beforehand lest they doubt what he was about to say.

Lina had never met Steph’s elder sister but from what she had learned about her from him, she was sure that the other lady was both smart and a competent working woman.

She was the one in charge of the Jin family business as both the sons were not interested in working there.

The elder son, Noah Jin was a professor in a well-known university, and the youngest of the family, Stephen Jin had entered the fashion industry.

Thus the boys had chosen to pursue their passions and left the family business into the capable hands of their elder sister who had a knack for it anyway.

The parents were still worried that their daughter would be burdened with too much workload as she was a working mother but their worries were for naught.

Their son-in-law was a good man who did not object to his wife working in the Jin family business and had supported her all along.

Even the Feng family which she had married into weren’t averse to the idea of their daughter-in-law working outside.

Thus with so many supportive people around her, she had been able to secure her position as the head of the Jin family business until now.

From what Lina had heard from Steph, his elder sister wanted him to come back home and inherit the business as she could not take care of it forever.

She had her own family to look after and hence was hell-bent on training him to replace her as the head of the business in the future.

After a lot of disagreement, the siblings had made a wager that if he could succeed in the fashion industry without utilizing their family’s resources then she would allow him to do as he pleased.

However, if he failed to survive in the competitive world of fashion or used their family’s name and resources to get ahead in his line of work then he would lose the wager.

He would then immediately have to return and start working in their company, under her, to learn the ropes before taking over completely.

Stephen was confident in his talents and had declared that he would not return to the family business as he had no interest in it.

Despite his adamant attitude, his elder sister often taught him certain matters related to their company.

She believed that sooner or later he would come back to his senses so she continued to train him whenever they met.

Even if it was the tiniest of lessons, it would be fine as long as he kept it his mind for later use.

‘She’s a smart one.’ Lina praised this elder sister and even agreed with what she was saying.

Stephen need not step out of the fashion industry entirely to inherit his family’s business.

He could still design clothes in his spare time as there were people who had done the same in the past.

‘If he can make a name for himself now then his future works will only gain more fame over time.’ She thought of a way to make things work in his favor.

If ever Stephen had to leave Obsidia to inherit his family’s business then he could open his own line and launch new designs when he had the time.

He could also establish a new department in his company that would focus on the fashion sector.

If these were not feasible then he could always sign a freelance contract with her company and continue to work for her whenever he had the time.

Obsidia would take care of the publicity, marketing, and sales while he only had to focus on the creation of his brilliant designs.

‘Just like what he is doing right now.’ She added and even made an entire future plan for him in the few seconds that Steph had paused.

There was still time for any of these plans to be put into use so she chose to focus on what he was saying now.

“My sister always pesters me to behave and not cause a mess outside the family which she might have to deal with later on.” He muttered in a low voice, sulking that he was still being treated like a child.

However, Leon and Benji did not think that there was anything wrong with what his elder sister had commanded him to do.

After all, who did not know about the bad reputation this young man had for not being able to control his fiery temper.

He was called ‘Obsidia’s Little Devil’ for a reason and they were sure that this was also the same reason why his sister had asked him to be mindful of his behavior when he was outside the house.

“However, when she learned that Jasmine Tong works in the same place as I do, she forbade me from even contacting her.” He disclosed the odd part of this matter.

Lina frowned as this was a little excessive in her opinion but did not voice out her thoughts and waited to see what else she could gain from him.

Stephen paused for a while longer before finally explaining why his sensible sister had asked him to stay miles away from that old lady.

“That lady was never the issue…” He uttered in a somber tone before looking into her eyes.

“The name she now carries is the root of all bane for everyone around her.” He sneered without concealing his hostility as he continued from where he had left off.

Lina’s frown only deepened the more she heard about what was being said but she remained silent until Steph had completed stating what he wanted to.

Thanks to his cooperation, she had figured out why Jasmine Tong had been able to behave in this way and still not be worried about a thing.

From what she had learned, Jasmine came from a middle-class family and had made a name for herself as an extraordinary seamstress during her youth.

While her customers were many it was not to the point that she could be called a rich madam.

However, her luck had turned around when she fell in love and married a certain man.

This man with the surname Tong was able to change her identity from being a normal seamstress to a high profile designer in just a few months after their marriage.

Mrs. Jasmine Tong had soon become a household name in the fashion industry for her traditional designs which did a great job of displaying the beauty of ethnic attire.

From there, she only faced success and never once felt wronged while being under the constant protection of her husband.

While this might seem like some fairytale story even to Lina who had read hundreds of novels to this date, she knew that all that glitters was not gold.

In the same way, the fame and fortune that Mrs. Tong had amassed over the years was not the sole outcome of her talent and efforts.

It was also due to the power her husband held in their city.

Not many had met the mysterious Mr. Tong but his reputation preceded him.

If that was not all, under his protection, Mrs. Tong was thought to be someone untouchable.

There was a reason why she had reached such great heights within a short amount of time.

“Rumors have it that her husband silenced her rivals in business before they could surpass her.” Leon also chimed in with what he had heard about her.

Lina did not know what to believe but the negative opinions about this couple implied that there really was nothing good to say about them.

Mrs. Tong did have skill when it came to designing traditional wear but there were many who were better than her.

However, every time she faced defeat or was on the verge of being surpassed by someone else, her husband would swoop in and be her knight in shining armor.

Lina loved reading about those men who stepped in to protect their beloved when she was having a tough time but it did not mean that they would hurt the opposite person unilaterally without any valid reason.

Loving someone did not mean that one could act as they pleased, ruining the lives of others, just to impress the one they loved.

Mr. Tong had done just that, attacking the people who stood in the way of his wife and her desire to stay at the top of her game.

If Jasmine Tong was truly so bothered and threatened by a rival’s success then she should have worked harder to improve her skills.

She could have even used a different marketing strategy but she had done nothing of that sort.

Instead, she had gone straight to her husband and complained to him, leading to the annihilation of her rivals who were just as skillful as her, if not, even better than her.

The information Stephen and Leon had revealed was from the time when Mrs. Jasmine Tong was still an individual designer, not affiliated with any famous brand.

These things had taken place even before she had joined Obsidia so now a new, pressing question had popped up in Lina’s mind.

“Did Wade know about this when he signed a contract with her?” She inquired as her eyebrows furrowed together with the information she had just received from the two men.