"That's right, Sebastian! I also think that you've gotten a lot cockier lately. Listen to the boss and do as you're told."

"You used to work all year-round without ever taking a break, but you actually dared not to come in for overtime today. I really think you need to work on your work ethic more."

Cody then cocked an eyebrow at me while standing behind Irene, his lips curving upward in a smug grin.

He knew that he'd gotten the better of me. He feigned innocence as he gently tugged at Irene's sleeve, saying, "Don't do this, Rene. I only just joined the company half a year ago. It's obvious that I'm the one out of my league because Sebastian has been working here many more years than I have!

"He's been here so long that you should still reward him for his loyalty even if he never made any contributions after all."

Irene's eyes flickered as she said disdainfully, "Cody, you earned this promotion yourself because of your skills and abilities. As for someone else, he only got his promotion because of his seniority. If seniority alone could get someone promoted, then maybe he should be the CEO instead."

I chuckled sarcastically at that.

Back then, when we first started the business, I had felt sorry for her and thus took on the most responsibilities myself, moving around the executive departments while letting her be the high-ranking decision maker of the company.

I had diligently created a lot of value for the company over so many years, and yet, she ignored all of that and made me out to be completely worthless instead.

I cocked my eyebrow and said coldly, "Kindly approve of my resignation as soon as possible, Ms. Owens. Otherwise, I'm going to get the Labor Department involved."

She still didn't think much about it and cackled.

"That's enough, Sebastian. Stop pretending like you're actually going to resign for real. Where else can you go anyway? Don't you dare forget that you also have shares in this company too."

She looked like she had everything under control, as if she'd already seen right through me and that I was simply throwing a huge hissy fit.

Unfortunately for her, she couldn't have been more wrong about everything.

I replied coldly, "Ms. Owens, I have already transferred all of my shares under Cody's name. I don't want anything else. I just want to resign."

Irene's expression froze on her face. She stared at me incredulously.

The people from the legal department then whispered in her ear.

"Ms. Owens, it's true that we've already received the share transfer notice from Mr. Hart's lawyer."

Cody, who had been watching the drama unfold by the side, suddenly realized that he'd just been struck by a windfall. His eyes lit up at once, and his face turned bright pink with excitement.

"Sebastion! You shouldn't have transferred the shares to me out of spite! Quick, tell me, how can I return them to you?"

I nearly laughed out loud at his horrible acting.

Irene's eyes widened into saucers. She then frowned hard with a bewildered expression on her face as if she'd just encountered the most difficult problem in her life.

She seemed to only realize now that I was set on leaving. And that thought sent her into a panic.

She fought to keep her composure and tried to coax me to stay by painting a rosy picture for me.

"Sebastian, our company is about to go public. If you're sensible and obedient, then I will also be promoting you soon. I'll also agree to your request in the past."

I found it severely laughable.

Even now, she still didn't have the courage to openly and honestly disclose her marital status to the rest of the company. She still remained vague and elusive about it the whole time.

And yet, I kept letting myself be gaslit by her time and time again for years.

But now, I wasn't going to play her games anymore.

I coldly showed her the digital plane ticket on my phone and sighed, saying, "Time waits for no one, Ms. Owens. My plane is leaving soon. You can talk to my lawyer after this."