Outcast Queen: Her Return from Hell novel Chapter 81

Knock, knock!

The untimely knocking interrupted them.

"Who is it?" Meredith frowned, her tone laced with displeasure. It was rare for her to get some alone time with Phoenix. Who was being so oblivious?

"Ms. Miller, it's Loretta Foster from the design department. I'm here to submit the new season's drafts."

Hearing it was work-related, Meredith instinctively looked at Phoenix.

"Go ahead and get back to work. We'll have plenty of time together later," Phoenix said considerately.

"Alright!" Meredith agreed. The moment she stood up, her entire aura shifted, instantly transforming into a sharp, commanding CEO. "Come in."

Loretta, the Head of Design, carefully walked in holding a stack of sketches. Out of the corner of her eye, she caught a glimpse of Phoenix sitting on the sofa and was secretly shocked. Who was this woman? How was she allowed to stay in Ms. Miller's office for so long?

"Loretta, is this what your design department racked their brains to produce?!" Meredith took one look at the drafts and her temper immediately flared. "Did you completely ignore the core elements and concepts I emphasized before?!"

"M-Ms. Miller, the schedule was just too tight, and everyone really tried their best..." Loretta wiped the sweat from her forehead, trying to explain. "If we don't finalize the designs now, the sampling and production process will completely..."

"Shut up!" Meredith slammed the drafts onto the desk, her voice turning ice-cold. "I pay you a premium salary to solve problems and deliver solutions! Not to listen to your excuses and complaints! Take these back and redo them! I want to see a new direction before the end of the day!"

"Yes, yes! We'll revise them right away!" Loretta felt as if she had just been granted a pardon. She snatched up the papers and hurriedly fled the room.

The moment the office door closed, Meredith's shoulders slumped. She reverted right back into the affectionate, whiny girl from earlier, sitting pitifully beside Phoenix and hugging her arm. "Phoenix, I'm sorry you had to see that. Ugh, they make me so mad. We still don't have a single decent draft for the next season's new arrivals, these people..."

She shook Phoenix's arm. "Tell me, should I just fire the whole lot of them and hire a new team?"

Phoenix couldn't help but laugh. "I heard Lumina Jewelry releases new collections every month? With such a high-frequency pace, the pressure on your employees must be immense."

Meredith pouted. "But I want to achieve even more brilliant results so you can be proud of me."

A warm feeling spread through Phoenix's chest. She coaxed her gently, "Meredith, you're already doing an amazing job. You don't need to push yourself so hard. Besides, now that I'm out, we'll have plenty of time to spend together. You can't exhaust all your energy on work, right?"

Meredith had only been half-listening at first, but the second half of the sentence made her eyes light up. She instantly perked up. "Right! You're absolutely right! Work is important, but spending time with you is way more important! I need to learn to balance work and rest!"

Prescott Manor.

Phoebe had used feeling unwell as an excuse to come home early from the company. The profound humiliation she had suffered today left her seething with anger—her father, her brother, and Xenia Upton had all been brutally suppressed by that bitch, Phoenix!

"That piece of trash... what exactly did she go through in Blackwood Penitentiary? How did she become so terrifying?" Phoebe sat on the living room sofa, her face so darkly clouded it looked like a storm was about to break. "I thought if she died in there, I would be the only true heiress of the Prescott family... But not only did she survive, she's become so impossible to deal with..."

She rubbed her aching temples, restless and anxious.

Her uncle had told her to lay low and slowly strip away Phoenix's halo... but she couldn't wait! She had to find a way to crush Phoenix's arrogance as soon as possible!

Just then, several maids walked into the living room carrying shopping bags printed with the prominent "Lumina Jewelry" logo. They were murmuring among themselves, debating whether to take them directly to Phoenix's room or store them away first.

Phoebe caught sight of the striking logo and the corner of a jewelry box peeking out of one of the bags. Her dull eyes instantly lit up!

"Are these... gifts from Dad and Julian?" A wave of joy washed over her, and the gloom of the past few days seemed to dissipate slightly. "They must have seen how upset I was and bought these especially to cheer me up! And they're the latest from Lumina, they must cost a fortune!" Her vanity and the satisfying feeling of being valued temporarily made her forget her anger.

She immediately stood up and walked over, commanding them as if it were her birthright, "Take these straight to my room."