Oliver rose to his feet and joined the crowd around Bella.
Oliver and Harley's names were called first, followed later by three other names.
There were five applicants for the second stage of the selection process. Apart from Oliver and Harley, the rest were women.
Seeing that Oliver had also passed, there was an air of hostility on Harley's face.
"You passed too. You must just be lucky!"
"Ah, but you're unlucky. In this second stage of the test, you will definitely fail. And I will laugh at your failure to my heart's content! Hahaha..."
"Remember, don't try to get close to Bella!"
Through whispers, Harley continued to provoke Oliver.
Feeling that there was nothing to gain from Harley's silly behavior, Oliver ignored Harley's provocation.
The five of them were now in the second stage of the test room.
The table with Oliver's name on it was at the very back.
There happened to be a beautiful aquarium attached to the wall next to Oliver. The fish seemed to be swimming happily there.
With the intention of feeding the fish in the aquarium, Oliver took out candy from his mouth and plunged it into the aquarium.
Unfortunately for Oliver, just then, Grace walked into the test room.
"Hey, what are you doing?" Grace screamed angrily while staring at Oliver's drowned candy in the aquarium.
"I... I want to feed the fish," Oliver said innocently.
"Just so you know, the water in this aquarium is seawater! It's expensive to maintain! I don't want to know, but you have to pay for the maintenance!"
Grace stood up, gyrating her waist in front of Oliver.
"How much, ma'am?" asked Oliver, frowning.
"Fifteen million! And you have to pay it right now! This very second!"
Oliver bit his lower lip. In Grace's eyes, it was a sign that Oliver didn't have that kind of money. And she smiled, thinking this was her chance to get rid of him.
"If you can't pay the compensation fee, get out of this room!"
Fifteen million. Actually, that amount of money wasn't a problem. However, Oliver was barely carrying a penny at the moment.
Oliver sighed. He had escaped the situation earlier, and now he was faced with this situation. Was he destined to fail this test?
Out of ideas, Oliver finally stood up.
"So, if I can't pay now, I'm immediately disqualified?" Oliver asked.
"Yes," Grace replied curtly.
Oliver shook his head. It seemed like he had to leave. But he couldn't leave feeling defeated. There must still be something he could do.
And something crossed his mind.
"Are you sure about your decision? I answered all the questions in the first stage of the test easily. You wouldn't want to let a talented person like me go?"
Oliver said it with a sly smile. This made Grace furious again. She would have slapped Oliver if they weren't so far apart now.
"Get out! Now!" Grace shouted.
Oliver shrugged. He had tried but failed.
That was it. He turned around and moved towards the exit.
"Wait!" Bella, who had been silent, suddenly shouted. She walked quickly to Grace.
"What's wrong with you?" Grace looked at Bella in surprise.
When she heard Oliver mention the results of his first stage test, Bella immediately recalled her reaction after checking Oliver's answer sheet.
It was really shocking. Even she had only scored 91. That Oliver had gotten a perfect score indicated that he had talent.
And she remembered what Carla had said about this. Now she understood why Carla insisted on hiring participants like Oliver despite his male gender.
"I'll take care of the aquarium maintenance, ma'am. You don't have to worry about that," Bella said.
Rather than lose a talented employee, it was better to lose 15 million. That's how Bella thought.
"What?! Are you serious about what you are said?" Grace asked.
"Yes, ma'am. It doesn't matter if I have to pay the damages. It's my bet," Bella replied.
Grace snorted angrily. Bella's actions were completely unexpected.
"That's it then!" Grace said curtly.
Bella was then a little relieved and approached Oliver, making Oliver wonder what this woman was thinking about him.
"You can still take the second stage of the test. No need to thank me. Think of it as a candle light dinner because you've managed to surpass the passing grade," she whispered.
Before Oliver could comment, Bella left. He was getting curious about what Bella was thinking about him.
With the problem solved, Oliver returned to his seat.
What he didn't know was that Harley had been watching him. Harley immediately heated up when he saw Bella defending Oliver and then whispered something to him.
Harley's hands clenched into fists. He promised to teach Oliver a lesson later.
"The second stage of the test will begin. Participants, please prepare," Grace said over the loudspeaker.
At the end of the room, Bella opened a door. Out of the door came two young women of ideal bodies who were wearing only bikinis. The two bikini-clad girls strutted and stopped right in front of the test takers.
Immediately, Oliver and Harley's eyes widened.
"One of our company's flagship products is underwear. Give us your comments on the underwear worn by these two models," Grace said, breaking the silence.
One by one, the participants were asked to express their opinions, starting with the women.
Oliver, who got the last part, listened to their opinions lazily. Most of their descriptions were complimentary, especially Harley's.
It was obvious that their understanding of the fashion industry was still very ordinary.
Oliver was different, of course. When it was his turn, he explained what the other four had missed.
"In my opinion, the two bikinis they wore were very tacky and outdated. The motifs were also too busy, making my eyes hurt. The cut and stitching of the underwear patterns also seem ill-fitting and uncomfortable to wear so that the models are less free to move. Thank you."
Short and clear. And striking.
Hearing that, Grace immediately looked at Oliver sharply. This test taker expressed such an honest opinion. There were two possibilities: he either knew what he was saying, or he was just winging it.
And in Oliver's case, in Grace's eyes, it was more likely to be the latter.
"Are you saying our underwear products are tacky? How could you. Just so you know, these are the latest products for this year's summer collection!" Grace scolded, her voice trembling with emotion.
Harley, who had been waiting for this moment, smiled and spoke up.
"Let's ask this know-it-all to come forward, ma'am. Let him explain his absurd opinion. And then we can laugh about it together. Hahaha..."
After saying that, Harley looked at Oliver. From her gaze, you could tell she was ready to say worse things to embarrass Oliver.
Continued....