Patricia stretched with a long sigh. "After working overtime for half a month, we finally get to leave before 10:00 pm."


    I nced at the clock on the wall. It was already 9:30 pm.


    After so many sleepless nights, exhaustion was written all over my face. Fortunately, from the very first day of overtime, Alex had arranged for Lilian to stay at my ce cleaning, tidying up, and cooking meals for me. Otherwise, I couldn''t even imagine what state I''d be in after a month and a half of this.


    "Let''s go, let''s go!" Patricia stood up excitedly. "Even though it''s already 9:30 pm, tomorrow is Saturday, so there won''t be any overtime!"


    The thought of Saturday made me feel a little less drained.


    As Patricia and I packed up our things, Samson remained seated, unmoving.


    "Come on, Samson. What are you still sitting there for?"


    "Oh, you guys go ahead," he replied without even looking up. "I just need to tweak onest document. I''ll leave once I''m done."


    Patricia and I exchanged a nce before turning to leave the office.


    "That guy, still acting all high and mighty," Patricia grumbled the moment we stepped outside.


    I let out a helpless chuckle. "Young people these days. At least he''s serious when working on a project. Just let him be."


    ...


    But on Monday, Oliver came rushing into the R&D department in a panic.


    "Serena, you guys need toe to a meeting. Now."


    I looked at him in surprise. "A meeting? Why so suddenly?"


    "Juste first," Oliver hesitated as if there was something he wanted to say but couldn''t. "Mr. Hastings is already waiting in the conference room."


    When we entered, we saw Alex sitting there with a dark expression.


    "What''s going on?" We all sat down,pletely confused.


    "Your new project proposal has been leaked," Oliver said grimly. "Right now, the inte is flooded with discussions about Hastings Group''s bid price and the proposal''s contents."


    "What?" Patricia and I eximed in unison.


    "How is that possible? We spent countlesste nights preparing that proposal. How could it have been leaked?"


    Oliver continued, "And not just that. Even the coboration framework you outlined-how Hastings Group would assist Excel Group, the supply chain details... Everything has been exposed."


    I was stunned. "The proposal was encrypted, and I was the only one handling it. Not even Patricia or Samson knew the full details. How could it have been leaked?"


    "Could it have leaked after you took it home?" Samson suddenly stood up, pointing fingers. "Everything was fine on Friday, and it''s all over the inte after just two days off."


    "Absolutely not," I said firmly. "I


    carried the USB drive with me at all


    times. Myptop was issued by thepany, and I didn''t even turn it on over the weekend. If you don''t believe me, have the IT department check it."  s?novel


    Samson sneered, "Then how did the data get out?"


    Annoyed by his usations, I frowned at him. Before things escted, Patricia stepped in to


    mediate. "It doesn''t matter how


    got leaked anymore. What''s important is figuring out how to fix this. Can you two stop arguing?"


    I turned to Alex. "I do have a solution. The bid price is set, so we can''t change that. But other aspects like our coboration framework can still be adjusted."


    "But the bid is on Friday," Oliver said, looking dejected. "The timeline is too tight. We won''t make it in time."


    "We will." I looked directly at him. "I''ve always had a habit of preparing a backup n. So, this time, I made a n B."