Pampered by my three brothers: the return of the neglected heiress novel Chapter 1739

Chapter 1739: Drawing attention to myself

Headline: CEO of Prime Group Allegedly Involved in Stock Market Manipulation!

Teddy, Shawn, Hayley, and Patricia stared at Teddy’s computer screen, reading the article that had been posted just a minute ago. Yet, the news was already spreading fast, with multiple outlets uploading similar headlines.

In a matter of minutes, the story was climbing the trending charts as more sites began reposting the article.

Their faces paled slightly more in just a minute, eyes wide.

"Market manipulation?" Hayley scoffed. "Are these people not afraid of being sued for defamation? How could they just write everything and then use freedom of speech as an argument?"

"This is not good," Shawn muttered in disbelief. "An allegation as serious as this will not end well."

"Forget that for now," Teddy said, glancing back at the others. "Get ready. Our phones are going to start ringing any second now."

RING!!!

As if on cue, the office phone rang. The three of them exchanged glances before turning their eyes to Teddy, then to the telephone.

RING!!

Another call followed a second later.

Without hesitation, the four jumped into action. They hadn’t heard from Penny directly yet, but they’d seen her head into her office with Wild, Yugi, and a few others. It was clear the situation was already being addressed at the top.

For now, they had their roles to play.

Not just their department, but other departments were being bombarded with calls from all sorts of people.

---

Meanwhile, inside the CEO’s Office of Prime Group...

Everyone was seated on the couches.

Wild and Yugi, each holding a tablet, silently read the article about Prime Group. Not only was the company being accused of stock manipulation, but since the Miller Corporation was a subsidiary, it was dragged in as well. The accusation was serious, and if Penny were proven to be involved, she could be facing over two decades in prison.

After all, this was a criminal offense.

But despite the gravity of the situation, Penny, Zoren, Mint, and Hugo remained calm. All eyes were on Wild and Yugi as they finished reading.

When Wild finally looked up, he met Penny’s gaze.

"Why would you do this?" he asked, gesturing to the article. "Penny, leaking this isn’t exactly a brilliant marketing strategy."

Yugi nodded in agreement. "Bad press is still press, but this? This is dangerous. Especially with the Citadel auction about to launch. You’re risking everything."

"I know." Penny’s voice was composed. "But I had no choice. I needed to make a move."

"A move for what?" Wild frowned.

Penny let out a shallow breath, her eyes drifting to Mint, Hugo, and Zoren before returning to Wild. The two men shared a glance at her shift in tone.

"And it’ll make our real enemies cocky. They’ll believe no one suspects them at all."

Yugi and Wild stayed quiet. What she said made sense—but it was risky, even for her.

It didn’t feel like the Penny they knew. Normally, she never drew attention to herself unnecessarily. Then again, this was the same woman who once gambled her entire company on a friendly basketball game.

After a beat, Yugi sighed. "Penny... I get what you’re saying. But be honest with us."

Wild nodded beside him. "What you just told us... that’s only a small part of the plan, isn’t it?"

Penny hesitated for a second before he let out a weak laugh. "You caught me."

She wasn’t lying, but it was only part of it. Nathalie had lit the first match in Anteca. This was her answer: a smokescreen and a trap.

"It’s part of a joint operation between these two," she admitted, gesturing to Mint and Hugo. "If you’re aware of Cassandra Smith’s case, this is tied to that—and to several companies that are about to make headlines."

Companies tied to the Pierson Corporation.

There was going to be a major shift once it all came crashing down, and this was her attempt at damage control. Every strategist (Atlas, particularly) on the Pierson side hated this plan, but it was the best they had.

"Also..." Penny leaned back slightly, eyes steady. "I need to draw attention to myself to keep them from looking."

Wild and Yugi both looked sharply at her. "What does that mean?"

"I’ll be gone for a while," she continued. "And I don’t want the wrong people to know I’m not here."