Grace Li headed to a high-end office building in Midtown Manhattan in the afternoon to attend a board meeting with the project team. The building was located in a bustling commercial district, surrounded by towering skyscrapers, with a busy street full of cars down below. After the meeting, she took the elevator downstairs and walked out of the building, where the noise of the city hit her immediately. She hurriedly crossed the street and returned to the Nova Capital office near Wall Street. By this time, only three people remained in the office. Aiden Thompson had left early for New Jersey to handle the AgroTech project and wouldn't be back until late.
The funding for AgroTech had been successfully secured. The tough-to-deal-with old man, Rex Thompson from Silverstone Group, had decisively invested $80 million. Now, all that was left was to go through the tedious and strict processes. In New York's financial circles, every step followed a strict set of rules, leaving no room for mistakes.
Grace Li had just sat down at her desk and taken a sip of water when the office phone rang. It was Benjamin Harris's secretary calling. " Grace Li, Mr. Harris wants you to come to his office immediately after you return."
"Sure, I'll be right there," Grace Li replied.
She stood up, walked through the open office area, and headed to the corner office with the best view. The open office was full of personal items on colleagues' desks, reflecting their personalities. Motivational quotes and team photos adorned the walls. Benjamin Harris looked a bit off, his brow furrowed, and there was a hint of anxiety in his eyes.
Grace Li greeted him politely. "Mr. Harris, what's up?"
Benjamin Harris motioned for her to take a seat. "Grace, take a seat."
Grace Li sat down, and Benjamin Harris handed her a thick stack of papers. "These materials were prepared by your team, right?"
Grace Li took the materials and saw "The Moonlit Sip Project Investigation and Evaluation" written on the cover. A bad feeling crept over her. "Yeah, these are the preliminary research and analysis done by our team before the project was approved."
Benjamin Harris continued, "You gave this project a very high rating in all aspects and were pretty optimistic about its prospects."
Grace Li understood what he was getting at. When they first looked into The Moonlit Sip, based on industry research and initial communications, they were indeed impressed by the company, and she had given it a relatively high rating. However, in the venture capital industry, there is a long and rigorous due diligence process between the initial impression and the actual investment. "Sure, based on a series of data and market analysis during the initial contact, we were relatively optimistic about the project's prospects. But you know, there's still a lot of in-depth work to be done after the project is approved."
"So, Grace, you really dropped the ball on this one. You didn't even notice they were faking it."
Grace Li was taken aback by his bluntness in blaming her. She quickly defended herself. "Mr. Harris, I gave a high rating at the preliminary stage, but investing in a project requires comprehensive due diligence. After the project was approved, I wasn't involved in the subsequent in-depth work, including financial due diligence. According to the rules of our company and the industry, once the project handover happens, the responsibilities are clearly defined."
"Grace, I'm not blaming you right now. Today, our legal team and the firm's lawyers went to The Moonlit Sip, and they admitted fault and agreed to our divestment. But as the investment director of the consumer group, both you and I need to give a reasonable explanation to the LPs."
Benjamin Harris's tone seemed calm, but he was subtly shifting responsibility onto her.
Grace Li understood Benjamin Harris's intentions. He wanted someone to take the fall but didn't want it to be too obvious. She wasn't going to fall for it so easily. This project had originally been taken over by Scarlett Harris, and Grace Li had already felt wronged enough. Now, the project had hit a snag, and why should she be the one to explain to the LPs? "Mr. Harris, I remember that more than two months ago, right here in this office, you told me that the Moonlit Sip project would be led by Scarlett. Since then, I haven't been responsible for it. So the person who should explain to the LPs now is Scarlett."
Benjamin Harris patiently responded, "Grace, I know this situation isn't easy, and I truly value all the hard work you've put in. You sourced the project, and your initial rating was based on the information we had at the time. Scarlett is still learning, and she trusted your expertise on the matter. What I'm asking now is for your help in explaining things to the LPs so we can make sure we're all aligned and can move forward as a team."
Grace Li was silent for a moment. She knew Benjamin Harris was trying to protect his daughter. Scarlett had only been with the company for six months and was working hard to build her elite image in front of the partners and LPs in preparation for taking over the company in the future. If the first project she led went wrong, it would seriously damage her reputation, and she'd find it hard to win support within the company. As for Grace Li, although she was Benjamin Harris's trusted assistant, she was still just a subordinate. He could easily shift the blame onto her, reprimanding her a little to brush things under the rug.
Grace Li firmly responded, "Mr. Harris, I completely understand the situation, and I definitely want to support the team. However, after the project was approved, I lost my involvement in the decision-making process. I truly feel that the responsibility of handling this issue lies with the team members who have been in charge of it since then. I would be happy to support the explanation to the LPs, but I do think it's important to clarify the roles and responsibilities at this stage."
Benjamin Harris took a deep breath, trying again to persuade her. "Grace, you've been with me for years, and I've always thought you were someone who takes responsibility. I really appreciate you. This isn't a huge mistake. It's mainly the project side that faked the data. But from the company's overall situation, we need to give the LPs an explanation. Can't you cooperate on this?"
Grace Li remained steadfast. "Mr. Harris, please try to see things from my perspective. I sourced the project, did the research, and prepared the project approval materials. But after the project was approved, I lost the right to lead it. I can't guarantee that I would've made it a success if I'd continued, but since it's not my responsibility now, I really don't know how to explain to the LPs. This truly shouldn't be my burden."
Benjamin Harris realized that no amount of persuasion would work. He knew Grace Li had made up her mind, and pressing further would be pointless. Leaning back in his chair, he rubbed his temples and sighed. "Alright, you can go. I'll figure out how to explain to the LPs myself."
Grace Li stood up. "Okay, I'll get back to work then."
As she turned to leave, she ran into Scarlett Harris in the doorway. Scarlett's eyes darted away when she saw Grace Li. Out of politeness, she still greeted her. "Grace Li, hi."
Grace Li didn't respond and walked straight down the hallway. This was probably the first time she had been so rude, but at that moment, she simply couldn't fake a friendly expression. In the highly competitive work environment in New York, she had worked so hard, but now she felt deep frustration and helplessness.
She had thought that after six years at Nova Capital and becoming the investment director, with all the returns she had brought to the company, she had built her own career. But today, Benjamin Harris's actions made her realize that she was just a pawn, one that could be sacrificed at any moment.