Chapter 1024
"You go investigate the gardener's whereabouts. I'll head back to the hospital."
Sylvia glanced at the calm swimming pool and then at the rest of the Gibson family estate. "Remember what I said earlier, restoring everything to its original state is best. Don't make any changes to your family's layout; this geomantic array was set up by your ancestors and has been disrupted by the gardener."
"You mean my family has a geomantic array?" Emiliano felt dizzy.
Sylvia nodded. Generally, in large families, ancestors would invite experts to set up a geomantic array to ensure the prosperity and safety of future generations.
The Gibson family was no exception.
"This geomantic array was meant to bring good fortune to the Gibson family, but it has been damaged. Restoring it should solve the problem."
Sylvia's cool voice explained calmly.
"I see, Miss Andrews, you are truly a benefactor to the Gibson family," Emiliano said excitedly and gratefully. "If you ever need anything from us, just ask."
"Yes, especially since the Gibson family and the Hipps family are in-laws."
"We are truly fortunate to have met Miss Andrews."
Sylvia remained indifferent, not showing any emotion despite the praise. "It's just a small effort."
She didn't linger at the Gibson family estate and headed straight to the hospital.
On her way to the hospital, she received a call from Logan. "Boss, you're back? I have something important to tell you."
Sylvia's fingers, holding the phone, glowed pale in the sunlight. "What is it?"
"About half an hour ago, we found a woman's body inside one of our machines at Longevity Pharmaceuticals' factory. It looks like she has been dead for at least a month," Logan said irritably. "Although she was found in our machine, it's clear this wasn't the primary crime scene. She was definitely dumped there."
Sylvia's expression turned serious. "Something like this happened in our factory? Did you call the police?"
"Yes, the police are already there," Logan said, feeling frustrated. This incident was a major headache for Longevity Pharmaceuticals.
It would not only affect the company's reputation but also potentially impact its stock price.
Especially with netizens spreading all sorts of rumors on Twitter, the situation was snowballing out of control.
The Larro police quickly issued a statement on Twitter saying they hadn't identified any suspects yet but would investigate promptly.
However, the trending topic of Longevity Pharmaceuticals being responsible for someone's death still surged.
For a company, such a scandal could be devastating.
A few years ago, an electronics factory faced a similar situation with employees committing suicide by jumping off buildings, causing significant negative impact. The negative effects were like a tsunami, unstoppable.
The trending topics on social media were all about Longevity Pharmaceuticals and the dead woman.
Netizens speculated wildly, even suggesting that the deceased was Logan's lover who he killed because she was pestering him while he loved Sylvia.
Another version claimed that the woman loved Logan but couldn't get his affection and committed suicide out of despair.
In short, none of the stories were positive; they were all scandalous and sensational.
Logan was so angry he wanted to smash his phone.
Longevity Pharmaceuticals' official Twitter account issued a statement clarifying that Logan didn't know the deceased and had no relationship with her. He wasn't a suspect; otherwise, the police would have arrested him immediately.
But no one seemed to care about the statement; they were all busy hurling insults.
"What a garbage company."
"All those charity works were fake, right?"
"Police should arrest everyone in this harmful company."
It was an undeserved disaster.
The saying that rumors stop with wise people didn't seem applicable in this situation.
Sylvia had almost reached the hospital room but turned around and walked out of the hospital instead.
She needed to visit Longevity Pharmaceuticals' factory immediately.
Her intuition told her that things weren't as simple as they seemed.
Exiting the hospital gates, she hailed a taxi. She had been staying at Aettosathe Hipps family for some time and felt a sense of familiarity upon returning home. Everything felt so familiar.
Longevity Pharmaceuticals had several factories across various provinces and cities nationwide.
It wasn't just Urgford; there were several branch factories.
To ensure medical supply and research, Longevity Pharmaceuticals had invested heavily.
Now, just as business was booming, an unidentified woman's body appeared, making everything seem ominous.
Longevity Pharmaceuticals' factory in Urgford was located on the western outskirts of the city, some distance from downtown.
After about an hour's drive, the taxi finally stopped at the factory gate.
The driver looked around nervously. "Why are you coming here? I heard someone died here."
Sylvia paid the fare and got out. "This place used to be mass graves!"
"When?" The driver's face turned pale, his lips trembling.
"In ancient times." Sylvia smiled at him before he took a deep breath and sped away in a hurry.
Such a beautiful woman saying such scary things? Better safe than sorry in broad daylight.
Taxi drivers were generally superstitious, especially those who worked night shifts; they often prayed for safety.
Sylvia had just wanted to tease him for being timid.
She turned towards the factory gate and walked in.
The gatekeeper, an older man in his fifties, saw a young woman approaching and raised his baton. "Hey, who are you? This place..."
He looked up and recognized Sylvia's familiar face. "Ah! Miss Andrews? You're back?"
"Yes." Sylvia nodded. "Kris."
"Oh dear, come quickly! The factory is in chaos," Kris said helplessly. "Several waves of reporters came today; it's only quiet now because it's late."
As the sun set, the reporters finally left after causing enough commotion.
The entire factory was silent; workers had been sent home due to the incident.
A gentle breeze rustled through the leaves as Sylvia walked towards the factory manager's office.
The manager was overwhelmed and
complaining to Logan. "Mr. Mertens,
what is this mess? Our factory is so well-regulated, yet this happens. Someone must be trying to
sabotage us out of jealousy!"
"We can't rely solely on the police for this. We need to investigate ourselves and find out who this woman is," Logan said, feeling a headache coming on. Especially with those foolish netizens linking him to the deceased with wild stories fit for novels.
He felt utterly helpless.
"Take me to the workshop."
A cool female voice startled them from the doorway.
Already on edge from finding a body, the manager jumped into Logan's arms with a scream of "Mommy!"
The manager was a hefty man; luckily, Logan was strong enough to catch him without being crushed.
"Boss?" Logan looked up and saw Sylvia standing at the door. He felt like he had found his savior. "You're finally here!"
He pushed away the manager and rushed towards Sylvia, almost hugging her in relief.
Having someone reliable backing him up felt amazing!
Thinking about his miserable day made him want to cry.
"It's Workshop Thirteen. Follow me," Logan said as he led the way.
The manager snapped out of his daze and quickly followed. "Miss Andrews, it's great you're back! You're our savior!"
Sylvia glanced at him. "Weren't you just screaming 'Mommy'?"
The manager awkwardly scratched his nose. "Well..."
They reached Workshop Thirteen's entrance soon after.
The door was open; it wasn't locked.
Thinking about the body inside made the manager's legs weak with fear.
"Look at you," Sylvia scoffed and walked in directly.
The workshop was brightly lit; all lights were on, casting their shadows clearly on the floor as their footsteps echoed in the empty space.ConTEent bel0ngs to Nôv(e)lD/rama(.)Org .
Logan pointed at a stationary boiler.
in
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"The body was found inside this boiler. Workers discovered it early the morning when they came in. Everyone was terrified. Luckily, our factory shuts down completely at night; otherwise, she would've been burned to ashes."
"There are traces of an array here." Sylvia walked around the boiler and pointed at a dent on the ground "Someone set up an array here to transport her body."
"Boss... what are you talking about?" Logan asked, confused.
"You'll understand later." Sylvia crouched down to examine the dent closely.