Sabotaged at the Tender: My Bid Turned Into a "Paid Surrogate" Advertisement

My name is Evelyn Brown.

I represent the company in the IPO bidding process. Halfway through my presentation, I notice everyone in the room staring at me with puzzled expressions.

In that instant, I realize my PowerPoint slides have been swapped for a "Paid Surrogate" advertisement.

The wording is utterly humiliating. "I've lived the first 20 years of my life in a poor mountain village. I'm healthy and can promise a son. My price is negotiable."

I rush backstage, only to see the impoverished student my father, Eric Brown, has sponsored for years laughing uncontrollably.

Leaning against my fiance, Dwayne Woodruff, Katherine Cadwell says, "Oh, Ms. Brown, don't be upset! I was just teasing you to lighten the mood. You just got back home. Don't stress yourself out so much."

I grab her arm, insisting she come out and explain herself. But out of nowhere, Dwayne shoves me to the floor.

"You've just returned," he says. "We only pulled a little prank on you because we didn't want you to be too tense. If you can't handle even this amount of pressure, how can you be expected to take over the company?"

I can't help but scoff. Right in front of them, I send the live recording straight to my father, the CEO.

Without a second thought, I dial his number. "Dad, look at what your 'star scholarship student' just pulled. Can we have her and Dwayne kicked out of the company?"

Just as I ended the call, my fiance, Dwayne Woodruff, flung his teacup at me. The porcelain shards sliced into my calf.

"Damn it, Evelyn! Is that all you've got? You're always whining and tattling. Do you think you're still a baby?"

Without warning, he lunged toward me, his fingers reaching for my phone. "You'd better delete that video!"

Clutching my phone like a lifeline, I retreated as fast as I could. "And why on earth would I delete it? Just so you can keep twisting the truth?"

With tears in her eyes, Katherine Cadwell ran over. Her legs faltered as she positioned herself between us. "Dee, please calm down. It's all my fault. I shouldn't have joked with Ms. Brown like that…"

As she spoke, she hurriedly grabbed a cup of coffee from the table. It looked like she meant to offer it to me to calm me down.

But before I could react, her hand trembled. The scorching coffee splashed across the laptop I had set aside just moments earlier.

With a sharp sizzle, the screen went black in an instant. The backup I had saved of the final version of the presentation was destroyed along with it.

"Shit! I'm so sorry, Ms. Brown! I swear I didn't mean to…"

Katherine covered her mouth, tears streaming down her cheeks like a broken string of pearls. She appeared even more panicked than I was.

My whole body shook with rage, but I couldn't force a single word out.

I knew every move she made was deliberate.

Dennis Newman's expression turned grim, the weight of an impending storm hanging over him. He was the most important client at the pitch.

Annoyed, he stood up and adjusted his suit. "Ms. Brown, it seems Brown Group isn't fully prepared. We'll have to call it a day."

As he turned to leave, a wave of despair crashed over me.

This wasn't just the first project I had taken on since returning to the country—it was also my first chance to prove myself to the board.

If it ended in failure, my reputation as the sole successor to Brown Group would be completely ruined.

I looked at Dwayne, hoping he would speak. He was my fiance—the man I trusted and leaned on without question.

But to my disappointment, he didn't even meet my gaze. Instead, he gave Dennis a sheepish, remorseful smile.

Turning his head, Dwayne whispered coldly, "Evelyn, do you have any idea what it means to consider the bigger picture? For the sake of your pathetic ego, you've destroyed months of painstaking work. Is that really what you wanted?"

A chill slowly crept into my heart.

To Dwayne, it didn't matter that I had just been humiliated in front of everyone. In his eyes, my so-called pride meant nothing.

The sting of betrayal and shame threatened to overwhelm me. Tears sprang to my eyes, but I clenched my lower lip, keeping them at bay.

With a deep breath, I pulled out my phone. Clinging to the last of my strength, I forced myself to stay calm.

In a last-ditch effort to save myself, I connected my phone to the projector. Facing the crowd's sympathy and ridicule, I retrieved the rough draft that I worked on all night from the cloud drive.

"Mr. Newman, please give me five more minutes."

A few mocking laughs rippled through the crowd.

Dennis' expression grew more impatient by the second. Nonetheless, he remained in his seat, eager to see what ridiculous performance I would put on next.

In the shadows backstage, Katherine leaned against Dwayne, a disdainful smirk curling her lips. It was clear she thought of me as nothing more than a pathetic clown.