A heated debate was unfolding inside a boardroom of a skyscraper near Sudirman Road.
Looking at the situation, it was actually worse than words could describe.
To put it simply, it was total chaos.
It wasn't just the board of directors; every employee inside the building was in a state of mass panic—!
A middle-aged man wearing glasses kicked his chair, speaking out with mounting rage.
"Didn't I warn you repeatedly that we had to re-evaluate the piling debt in this company-?!!"
"How much longer are you going to wait to pay your debts to Bank Summa?!!"
"Do you think you can act arbitrarily just because this bank belongs to your family? Do you really want to sacrifice the entire Board of Directors to prison just for your selfishness—?!!!"
On the other side, a stern-faced man in modern formal attire immediately shot back, pointing at the man in front of him.
"Arrghhh-!!! This is insane—!!! Besides, who's the bastard that leaked this!?"
"You… isn't it because you didn't supervise your subordinates properly that this secret leaked?!!"
It wasn't just the two of them, several others were debating heatedly.
Some even attempting to hurl the chairs they were using.
It wasn't a once or twice occurrence that they had fought, such scenes had become common for the staff who usually delivered documents and food into the meeting room.
They discussed and argued over many things.
But the main subject of the debate this time was the issue of debt and the unrest at Bank Summa following the current Bank Rush.
"From the latest data, the Rush occurring over the past 3 months has seen withdrawal requests of around 2 trillion rupiah; we are most likely facing a very severe deficit."
"When combined with the debt owed by Astra International to Bank Summa, the valuation of the losses will double."
"So, in all likelihood, Bank Summa is truly finished…." muttered a director of Bank Summa whose face was deathly pale from everything that was happening.
While everyone was shouting and arguing over who was to blame, the old man at the head of the table remained silent with his eyes closed.
It was as if he didn't hear the commotion, focused on his own thoughts as he began tapping his fingers on the table in a steady rhythm.
Everyone who heard the tapping slowly began to lower their voices.
Gradually, they all fell into a suffocating silence.
After several moments that felt like an eternity, the old man opened his eyes calmly.
"So…. You were unable to manage this bank properly, Wiranto?" the old man asked in a deep voice.
Though visibly startled, Wiranto answered calmly, "I am ashamed to admit it, but I suppose that is what happened, Chairman William…"
Chairman William remained silent, closing his eyes again while massaging his temples.
Only after he opened them again did the old man ask in a voice heavier than before, "So, how much capital is needed to save this bank from bankruptcy….?"
Instantly, everyone's eyes widened, shocked by this decision.
"Father!! The losses suffered by Bank Summa are already too significant-!! It's better to just sell the bank to cover the existing debts!!"
Edward, as the eldest son of the Suryajaya family, strongly opposed the decision.
Despite this, the board of directors did not stay silent.
They immediately stated everything they would need if Bank Summa was to be saved.
"Roughly, we need about 1.7 trillion to 2.5 trillion rupiah in capital injection to truly restore Bank Summa to good health."
"After the board discussed it, we have a broad overview of the steps the Chairman should take if he needs advice on the best way to save it."
"It looks more like you've planned your own escape rather than saving it," Edward sneered, looking at the stacks of documents and proposals brought in by the staff waiting outside.
Scanning the contracts and staring at them for a few moments to make his decision, Chairman William raised his stamp to give his approval.
However, just as the room reached its peak tension due to the old man's impending decision, the same staff member from before entered the room with an awkward expression.
"U-umm… I apologize for the interruption, Chairman… e-ermm…"
Setting down the stamp he was holding, the old man looked at the awkward staff member.
"Speak…."
".... There is a Young Lady who suddenly arrived and forced her way in—"
Brakkk—
"Good afternoon, Grandpa—!! Oh, hello everyone, how are you all doing~?"
...
...
...
Chairman William gasped.
His head, which had been hung low in exhaustion, rose slowly.
His dim eyes suddenly widened.
"Sherly...?" Chairman William's voice was hoarse, heavy with burden.
There was a flash of surprise, followed by deep anxiety.
In the middle of this bloody meeting, the presence of his favorite granddaughter was the last thing he wanted.
The others were also shocked because suddenly.
A beautiful young girl with flowing black hair entered the room in her distinctive high school uniform, acting as if she couldn't read the room at all.
The expression and vibe she brought truly broke the previous tension, which vanished as quickly as Chairman William stood up with a wide smile on his face.
"Hahaha—!! Good afternoon, my beautiful granddaughter-! Shouldn't you still be in school right now?"
"By the way, why have you come here? Did you miss your Grandpa~?"
"Maybe, maybe not…. Ufufu…."
"Grandpa looks very tired," Sherly said softly, though her eyes swept sharply toward the directors who looked stunned.
"I came because I couldn't stand seeing my father talking in his sleep every night while the people in this room are getting ready to flee abroad with our money."
When the girl said that, some of them dismissed it as just an emotional outburst from a little girl.
Others only hoped they wouldn't end up on her radar as an enemy, wanting to avoid becoming targets of the Chairman's criticism.
Knowing the atmosphere was not in good condition, Chairman William asked her gently.
"Sherly, what brings you here?"
"If you need something, you can ask through Hendrik, it will surely be given right away."
Shaking her head lightly, Sherly replied casually, "Un, I understand that, Grandpa. But that's not why I'm here."
Seeing Sherly walk casually toward the table filled with documents, Chairman William could only watch in confusion.
"Then, what brings you here, my granddaughter?"
Sherly immediately grabbed a document after hearing the question and showed it to her grandfather.
"I came because of this, Grandpa."
"Hmm….? The Bank Summa issue? What do you understand about that, Sherly? Isn't your daily life just shopping and having fun at school?"
"So, what could you possibly understand about Bank Summa? I'd bet a can of sardines tonight that you don't understand a single thing about it."
Her father mocked her lightly amidst the tension, seeing his daughter whose gestures had suddenly shifted, acting like a mature woman.
"Ufufu. Very well, let's bet on that, Father."
After saying that, she let everyone settle back into their seats, then stood beside her grandfather's chair.
The tension in the room had eased because of Sherly's arrival.
However, the pressure began to mount again as the atmosphere fell into silence, with the girl just standing there, looking at everyone with an unreadable smile.
Only to drop an atomic bomb in the middle of the silence.
"Injecting capital is the worst way for our family."
.....
Instantly, the silent room erupted again because of Sherly's blunt statement.
"What kind of reckless statement is that!!!"
"What does a high school girl know about anything—!!"
"Even if I have to stake my career, I am completely against such a stupid, baseless argument from a child who knows nothing!!"
Sherly only smirked coldly as she heard the directors raging at her words.
"Know nothing, huh…. Fine, let's play. Please, ask a question that makes you think my statement is incorrect."
"Tch… Hello, little missy, what do you actually know?"
"All this time, Bank Summa has supported Astra International's liquidity like a dairy cow, just to nurse your reckless expansion."
"We all know this problem started from bad credit on your end."
"So, why should we bear the weight of all the sins?"
Sherly smiled coldly, her gaze sweeping across the faces of the board members who were flushed with rage.
"Bear the weight of all the sins?" Sherly repeated with a mocking tone that made the room grow even colder.
"An interesting assumption, Mr. Director."
She then straightened her posture, leaning forward slightly, and snapped her fingers in the air right in front of the director's face.
"You are right; Bank Summa was the financier for Astra's expansion."
"But don't flip the logic here." Sherly casually walked toward Chairman William's side.
"Astra International is a healthy company with real assets and high productivity."
"What is unhealthy is how you, as the bank managers, deliberately left the credit tap open without supervision, just to create an unhealthy dependency."
Sherly picked up several pages of documents and slammed them onto the table.
"You call this 'Astra's sin'? Wrong. This is managerial sabotage—!"