Chapter 43
I nodded as my head buzzed slightly. After reviewing Fuller Corporation’s financial
statements, I moved on to Quinn Corporation’s.
Noticing that I kept yawning, Stacey brought me a cup co coffee and asked, “By the way, Ms.
Stovall, will the company’s external audit be given to AC Credit or Harrison Credit?”
Thinking about this problem made my head spin. The middle-aged man from yesterday
asked me to hold a tender, but left everything else vague.
Perhaps I could use this to my advantage. I contemplated for a while before answering,
“How long will the audit take?”
“In previous years, it took about half a month, but I think this year, it’ll take at least one
month!” Stacey spoke while placing the audit information from the previous years on my
desk.
I gave it a cursory glance, already feeling a pounding headache as I queried, “How much
longer do we have this year?” Every year, the company’s audit had to be published on the
Economic Network upon completion. Fuller Corporation is a listed company, so many
stockholders and investors were waiting to see it.
“Not much, there’s only one and a half months left, but Fuller Corporation has branch offices
in other provinces. Although you don’t need to visit every branch office, you’d still need to
visit a few of them. Otherwise, there’s no way for you to understand the specific situation.”
I nodded and put away the documents. Checking the time and seeing that it was already
noon, I looked at Stacey and ordered, “I need to meet the president of Harrison Credit. Make
an appointment for me. The sooner the better!”
“Yes!” She paused a beat before continuing, “Do you still want to see the president of AC
Credit?”
I originally didn’t plan on seeing him, but thinking about what happened last night, I couldn’t
help but wonder if it was all AC Credit’s scheme to grab this deal.
After giving it some thought, I replied, “I’ll see him. Did AC send some of their people over
again today?”
“Well,” Stacey hesitated before continuing, “The president of AC Credit, Thomas Lowe, is
waiting in the reception area downstairs.”
The president himself came here? It seems that Fuller Corporation’s audit is indeed a big
catch.
“Make a reservation at a restaurant nearby for me.” I got up and took my bag with me. “Do it
quick. I’ll go down to meet Mr. Lowe first.”
“Yes!” Stacey left in a rush after that.
Once out of my office, I went straight to Fuller Corporation’s reception area. Fuller
Corporation was based in an enormous office building, and with its abundant funds, a
luxurious and relaxing reception area was set up in the lobby on the first floor to welcome
any guests.
Most employees were on their lunch break now, so there weren’t many people left. Hence,
when I arrived at the reception area, I immediately spotted a middle-aged man sitting on the
black leather sofa. Thomas seemed like a buoyant person, and I noticed that he looked
rather fit for his age.
Seeing me, he got to his feet and walked toward me with a smile. Extending his hand out for
a handshake, he greeted me, “Ms. Stovall, I’m the founder of AC Credit, Thomas Lowe. I’m
glad you could meet me!”
I returned his smile and said, “Sorry for the wait, Mr. Lowe, but I’ve really been very busy
lately, so I couldn’t find the time to meet you until now.” I checked the time on my watch,
then looked back at him. “Since it’s currently lunch hour, would you like to have lunch
together, Mr. Lowe?”
He smiled subtly and nodded. “Sure, Ms. Stovall. And thank you in advance!”
Both of us didn’t talk about work just yet. When we arrived at the restaurant Stacey
pre-booked for us, Thomas still didn’t mention anything about the audit.
He only shared with me some interesting events in his life, and it looked more like a
gathering between two friends. Since he didn’t bring up work-related matters, I refrained
from it as well, only quietly listening to his narration.
After some time, he peered at me and asked, “Ms. Stovall, I heard that you’re responsible for
Fuller Corporation’s audit this year?”
I nodded brusquely. “After the company went public, Mr. Fuller and Mr. Quinn basically don’t
have any spare time on their hands, so I had to temporarily take over this project.”
He smiled. “In the past years, Fuller Corporation’s audits were all handled by AC Credit, and
now…”
He trailed off, but of course I knew what he meant. With an amicable smile, I replied, “Fuller
Corporation and AC Credit have worked together for many years. Logically speaking, AC
should be put in charge, but AC’s contract with Fuller Corporation has expired. According to
our standard practice, Fuller Corporation will organize a bidding event. Of course, I hope AC
and Fuller Corporation can once again cooperate after this bidding.”
This revelation led to the conclusion of our discussion. Thomas smiled, replying in a
polished manner, “Mm. We are also looking forward to working with Fuller Corporation.”
After lunch, I sent Thomas off. Stacey followed beside me and questioned, “Ms. Stovall,
didn’t Mr. Fuller want this year’s audit to be handed over to Harrison Credit? Why do we need
to hold a bidding event?”
“If we don’t, Fuller Corporation won’t just offend AC Credit, but many other audit firms. AC
has been in this business for a long time. Moreover, they’ve been working with Fuller
Corporation all these years. If we terminate the collaboration just like that, do you think they
won’t create a ruckus by using Fuller Corporation’s past audits?”
Another reason I agreed to meet Thomas was that I wanted to see if he had something to
do with last night’s incident, but after glimpsing the reluctant look on his face after I
mentioned the bidding event, I doubt that he was involved.
However, I couldn’t be too sure. Thus, I decided to keep an eye out.
Stacey nodded with a frown on her face. “Then, why didn’t Mr. Fuller…”
I nodded as my head buzzed slightly. After reviewing Fuller Corporation’s financial
statements, I moved on to Quinn Corporation’s.
Noticing that I kept yawning, Stacey brought me a cup co coffee and asked, “By the way, Ms.
Stovall, will the company’s external audit be given to AC Credit or Harrison Credit?”
Thinking about this problem made my head spin. The middle-aged man from yesterday
asked me to hold a tender, but left everything else vague.
Perhaps I could use this to my advantage. I contemplated for a while before answering,
“How long will the audit take?”
“In previous years, it took about half a month, but I think this year, it’ll take at least one
month!” Stacey spoke while placing the audit information from the previous years on my
desk.
I gave it a cursory glance, already feeling a pounding headache as I queried, “How much
longer do we have this year?” Every year, the company’s audit had to be published on the
Economic Network upon completion. Fuller Corporation is a listed company, so many
stockholders and investors were waiting to see it.
“Not much, there’s only one and a half months left, but Fuller Corporation has branch offices
in other provinces. Although you don’t need to visit every branch office, you’d still need to
visit a few of them. Otherwise, there’s no way for you to understand the specific situation.”
I nodded and put away the documents. Checking the time and seeing that it was already
noon, I looked at Stacey and ordered, “I need to meet the president of Harrison Credit. Make
an appointment for me. The sooner the better!”
“Yes!” She paused a beat before continuing, “Do you still want to see the president of AC
Credit?”
I originally didn’t plan on seeing him, but thinking about what happened last night, I couldn’t
help but wonder if it was all AC Credit’s scheme to grab this deal.
After giving it some thought, I replied, “I’ll see him. Did AC send some of their people over
again today?”
“Well,” Stacey hesitated before continuing, “The president of AC Credit, Thomas Lowe, is
waiting in the reception area downstairs.”
The president himself came here? It seems that Fuller Corporation’s audit is indeed a big
catch.
“Make a reservation at a restaurant nearby for me.” I got up and took my bag with me. “Do it
quick. I’ll go down to meet Mr. Lowe first.”
“Yes!” Stacey left in a rush after that.
Once out of my office, I went straight to Fuller Corporation’s reception area. Fuller
Corporation was based in an enormous office building, and with its abundant funds, a
luxurious and relaxing reception area was set up in the lobby on the first floor to welcome
any guests.
Most employees were on their lunch break now, so there weren’t many people left. Hence,
when I arrived at the reception area, I immediately spotted a middle-aged man sitting on the
black leather sofa. Thomas seemed like a buoyant person, and I noticed that he looked
rather fit for his age.
Seeing me, he got to his feet and walked toward me with a smile. Extending his hand out for
a handshake, he greeted me, “Ms. Stovall, I’m the founder of AC Credit, Thomas Lowe. I’m
glad you could meet me!”
I returned his smile and said, “Sorry for the wait, Mr. Lowe, but I’ve really been very busy
lately, so I couldn’t find the time to meet you until now.” I checked the time on my watch,
then looked back at him. “Since it’s currently lunch hour, would you like to have lunch
together, Mr. Lowe?”
He smiled subtly and nodded. “Sure, Ms. Stovall. And thank you in advance!”
Both of us didn’t talk about work just yet. When we arrived at the restaurant Stacey
pre-booked for us, Thomas still didn’t mention anything about the audit.
He only shared with me some interesting events in his life, and it looked more like a
gathering between two friends. Since he didn’t bring up work-related matters, I refrained
from it as well, only quietly listening to his narration.
After some time, he peered at me and asked, “Ms. Stovall, I heard that you’re responsible for
Fuller Corporation’s audit this year?”
I nodded brusquely. “After the company went public, Mr. Fuller and Mr. Quinn basically don’t
have any spare time on their hands, so I had to temporarily take over this project.”
He smiled. “In the past years, Fuller Corporation’s audits were all handled by AC Credit, and
now…”
He trailed off, but of course I knew what he meant. With an amicable smile, I replied, “Fuller
Corporation and AC Credit have worked together for many years. Logically speaking, AC
should be put in charge, but AC’s contract with Fuller Corporation has expired. According to
our standard practice, Fuller Corporation will organize a bidding event. Of course, I hope AC
and Fuller Corporation can once again cooperate after this bidding.”
This revelation led to the conclusion of our discussion. Thomas smiled, replying in a
polished manner, “Mm. We are also looking forward to working with Fuller Corporation.”
After lunch, I sent Thomas off. Stacey followed beside me and questioned, “Ms. Stovall,
didn’t Mr. Fuller want this year’s audit to be handed over to Harrison Credit? Why do we need
to hold a bidding event?”
“If we don’t, Fuller Corporation won’t just offend AC Credit, but many other audit firms. AC
has been in this business for a long time. Moreover, they’ve been working with Fuller
Corporation all these years. If we terminate the collaboration just like that, do you think they
won’t create a ruckus by using Fuller Corporation’s past audits?”
Another reason I agreed to meet Thomas was that I wanted to see if he had something to
do with last night’s incident, but after glimpsing the reluctant look on his face after I
mentioned the bidding event, I doubt that he was involved.
However, I couldn’t be too sure. Thus, I decided to keep an eye out.
Stacey nodded with a frown on her face. “Then, why didn’t Mr. Fuller…”
