However, Liam soon averted his gaze, for the image of Celena in her power suit when she left for work that morning had materialized in his mind. In his opinion, no one was more beautiful in a suit than his own wife!Sunniva, too, had noticed Morrison's interaction with Lily and intervened. She said with a smile, "Mr. Green, let's discuss this in the meeting room."Morrison grinned back at her. "Sure!"Sunniva and Lily then led him into a meeting room adjacent to the department, where Morrison plopped down on a sofa to enjoy a cup of tea. Meanwhile, all eight of his bodyguards formed a single file line behind him, looking formidable and intimidating. Lily and Sunniva sat at the table across from him, their laptops perched in front of them. Lily turned on her laptop and the projector so that she could give her presentation, but before she could begin, Morrison called out, "Sunniva!"Once he had gotten Sunniva's attention, he continued, "Although your father and I have been friends
Although Sunniva had already been notified by Jade Lotus Pharma Group of their withdrawal, it still came as a great shock to hear Morrison announce it himself!However, Sunniva was not stupid and knew full well that Morrison was simply doing so because he wanted to get a better deal. He looked nothing like a man whose company was struggling, and Sunniva, too, had done some homework regarding the fake medicine incident Morrison had mentioned. Although the incident had garnered much media attention and backlash from the public, Jade Lotus Pharma Group was not directly involved at all, and so were saved from the negative impact. Morrison was simply exaggerating so as to make his company's fate sound more serious than it truly was.Sunniva knew that Morrison was after something but could not put her finger on what it was. Sunniva's brows furrowed in deep thought, and finally, after a few minutes, she lifted her head to gaze at him. "Mr. Green, Bristow Group and Jade Lotus Pharma Grou
Morrison immediately put down his teacup upon hearing this. Then, with a smile, he twisted his bracelet idly around his wrist as he said, "Well, truth be told, it's not a definite solution. The shareholders' committee has another way around this dilemma, provided that you are willing to consider it of course, Sunniva!"As he said this, his eyes kept darting greedily toward Lily and her voluptuous chest, a knowing smirk playing on his lips.Sunniva paused, a frown appearing on her face at Morrison's words. She cursed him in her head, for he had behaved exactly as she had anticipated. However, she did not showcase her contempt and instead said with a faint smile, "And what is this option, Mr. Green?"Morrison finally tore his gaze away from Lily to meet Sunniva's eyes. "My dearest Sunniva, as you know, Jade Lotus Pharma Group owns only thirty percent of the shares of this partnership. Certainly, this project is one that requires significant funding, and truth be told, it is also one
The research and development of a novel drug was of the utmost secret, one that was kept even from a pharmaceutical company's closest partners. To request the information as well as results of the clinical trial at such a juncture, when the project was close to ending, was akin to outright theft!Most importantly, if Bristow Group were to hand over this crucial information, Jade Lotus Pharma Group could launch the novel drug ahead of plan and keep the glory all to themselves. If that were to happen, all of Bristow Group's efforts would be for nothing!Sunniva could not allow such a thing to happen. She had poured blood, sweat, and tears into this project and would not allow anyone to steal it from right under her nose!Morrison did not seem at all surprised by Sunniva's reaction. There was a glimmer in his eyes as he stared at her, but Sunniva could not understand what he was thinking. The truth was, Morrison had not expected to successfully convince Sunniva at the get go, either.
Morrison's expression darkened at this, and he, too, said curtly, "Sunniva, are you sure this is the attitude you should adopt when speaking to me? I know you have always gotten your way, but now is not the time to be testing your limits."I'm sure you know better than me that Bristow Group cannot possibly afford to sustain the entire project without Jade Lotus Pharma Group's help! At the same time, I know that you cannot possibly find another company to partner with at such a juncture, especially not one who's willing to make such a large investment."Even if, by some miracle, Bristow Group pulls through, what is your next step? Have you considered the marketing of this novel drug? With our company handling the marketing of almost half of the pharmaceutical drugs in Drunham City, you'll have to go through us to even begin considering expanding to Athenapolis. Either way, you're stuck, and without Jade Lotus Pharma Group, you have no way out. You'll be forced to partner with us eithe
Morrison knew that at this point there was no longer any means of changing Sunniva's mind, so he sneered and stood up. With one final glance at Sunniva, he said, "I'm afraid this is where we part ways, my dearest Sunniva. As someone who has literally watched you grow up before my eyes, I'd like to offer you one last piece of advice—you still have a long way to go and plenty more to learn! Forty percent may be Bristow Group's limit, but fifty percent is Jade Lotus Pharma Group's. I highly urge you to reconsider if you do not wish your efforts to go to waste!"Ms. Eady, I hope you will talk some sense into Sunniva as well. She is incredibly stubborn, and more often than not, she bites off more than she can chew. Let's catch up again next time!" With that, he turned to leave, but all of a sudden, the meeting room door swung open, and a cold voice rang out, "If you wish to withdraw from the partnership, you are welcome to go ahead! In fact, I encourage you to do so because Bristow Group
Sunniva, fearing that Liam would say something even more horrifying than the last statement, stepped out and said hastily, "Mr. Green, it's getting late now. I don't want to take up even more of your time. Let me show you out."Morrison had no intention of wasting any more of his time dealing with a mere bodyguard, so he nodded. Then, without another word, he shot Liam another glance before sweeping out of the room.Sunniva followed him, but as she passed Liam, she paused and glared at him, hissing, "Liam, consider this a warning! Do not ever enter the meeting rooms without permission, and the same goes for my office!"Then, she turned and sauntered out of the room, her heels click-clacking.Liam merely shrugged at this and was about to leave when he felt someone's gaze on him.He turned around and saw that it was Lily, who was eyeing him rather curiously. His gaze slithered over Lily's gorgeous face and smoking hot figure. Lily had been staring at him since he showed up. She ha
Time passed by in the blink of an eye, and soon, it was 3:30 p.m. Liam was perched at his desk, scrolling leisurely through a popular social media app on his phone. All of a sudden, a hubbub ensued among the employees of the marketing department. Thora strode past Liam's desk, clutching a stack of documents, and glanced around nervously before bending down to whisper in Liam's ear, "Liam, did you hear? Ms. Bristow just called an emergency meeting with all the heads of departments!"Liam did not even lift his head at this and instead answered coolly, "What's wrong with that? Don't companies have meetings all the time?""No! This is more serious than that!" Thora shook her head, then looked around once more to make sure no one was eavesdropping on them. After making sure the coast was clear, she hissed in a voice barely above a whisper, "I wouldn't even have brought it up if I had known it was just that, but this isn't an ordinary meeting! Can't you see what's different about the com
What would Liam do if he found out Prince Faber had captured his wife? Surely he would not hesitate to turn the entire city upside down to look for her?Prince Faber was more than familiar with Liam's fierce loyalty and could not help but begin to worry at the prospect of having to face his wrath. He stared at Keyon's leering face and asked with belated realization, "Mr. Yeager, you ordered me to capture all those people from the Drunham City Connoisseurs, but the truth is, your sole target has always been Liam's wife. Is that right?"Keyon nodded, smiling. "That's right. We could care less about those businessmen. All we wanted was to get our hands on Celena Stone!"I must admit I was very surprised when I found out that Celena Stone is the wife of the great King Pendragon. Not only that, but I made an even more shocking discovery—it turns out that Liam is none other than the lone survivor of the Cole family, the noble clan who were allegedly wiped out seven years ago!"The ment
After a few moments' hesitation, he finally decided to shoot his shot. "Mr. Yeager, there is something I don't understand. Why did the Yeagers order these businessmen's capture? I've looked into their backgrounds, and they are all honest businessmen who have not broken the law before. If the media catches wind of this, they will surely accuse me of abusing my power…"This was what Prince Faber had been worried about. He had already investigated the people whom the Yeagers ordered to be captured and did not understand why the Yeagers wanted them imprisoned. They were all civilians who had not committed any crime, and he dared not even imagine the consequences if the public found out he had ordered the incarceration of innocent citizens.Keyon understood immediately Prince Faber's concern. He smiled and replied in a reassuring tone, "Worry not, Prince Faber. We Yeagers have taken care of everything. We have made absolutely sure to cover up all your tracks, and no one will know you were
Meanwhile, Celena and the group were taken out of the hotel and shoved forcefully into a couple of jeeps waiting at the entrance. They were whisked away to a nearby military base. Before they could even get their bearings straight, they found themselves being tossed into holding cells. Celena, on the other hand, was taken separately to a small, dark room, illuminated only by the barest sliver of light that peeped in through a tiny window. The room was entirely empty, save for a metal bed frame. A sour stench hung in the air, and it was clear this room had been abandoned for a very long time. A soldier shoved Celena roughly into the room, and before she could realize what was happening, the soldier slammed the door shut.The soldier had pushed Celena so hard that she fell onto the ground, but upon seeing that her captor was about to leave, she leaped to her feet and sprinted over to the door. "Sir, can you tell me what I did wrong? Can you please have mercy on me? Can you at least
Tristan seemed just as baffled as they were. He returned their puzzled gazes with an equally perplexed one of his own. "I… I have no idea…"The general glanced sharply in their direction, then gestured to his soldiers and declared sternly, "Take them away!"His soldiers obliged and stepped forward to restrain the members of the Drunham City Connoisseurs, who all shrieked in alarm, "Why are you taking us away?""General, what did we do wrong? We didn't do anything illegal, so why are you arresting us?""Mr. Xander, save us! They've got this all wrong!""What's going on here? Why are they arresting only us?"Celena's entire body was shaking like a leaf. She eyed the soldiers around her and asked, stammering, "General, what did we do wrong? Why are we being captured? Where are you taking us?"Tristan, stricken with panic, shoved a soldier aside and shouted at the general, "General, I'm the president of the Drunham City Connoisseurs, and I want to know why we're being taken away. Wh
Celena was utterly terrified by the sudden turn of events. She stared pale-faced at the soldiers around her, not daring to move even a muscle. What was going on?All of a sudden, a man in a uniform stepped into the room. The badge on his shoulder indicated to everyone that he was a general. The heavy thumping of his boots echoed through the silent room with every step he took. All eyes were on him as he stepped onto the stage.He carried himself with great authority, and clearly, this man was not one to be messed with. He scanned the room as if searching for someone. Finally, he announced in a deep, resounding voice, "Do not fear, ladies and gentlemen. We are here on a routine check after receiving a tip-off regarding your conference. We will release you all once we have carried out our investigation, and the process will be quicker and smoother if you all cooperate. "Now, I would kindly request you get your documentation ready so that my men may confirm your identity."Everyone
Derek nodded earnestly and replied, "Of course it's true. My sources have never failed me. I wouldn't have trusted you with this information if I didn't think you'd be interested."Celena stared at him for a moment, then turned to glance in the direction of the people he had pointed. She could not help but be tempted by the offer. She considered this for a few moments, then accepted his offer. "Alright then, Mr. Duncan. I'll go with you. Thank you for inviting me."The smile on Derek's face widened. He could hardly believe his luck—Celena had agreed to go with him! Taking that first step was always the hardest, but he had done it!Unbeknownst to Celena, Derek already knew her long before their first meeting at the conference. Her name was known far and wide in Drunham City, not least because of her beauty, but because of her—in the eyes of the public—tragic marriage. Celena had earned herself a reputation as one of the most beautiful women Drunham City had ever seen, and although
The attention they received, however, was large due to Celena and her young, handsome companion, who was a man named Derek Duncan. Their attractive looks, both individually and combined, were easily the topic of discussion that night. Everyone who laid eyes on them admired both their good looks and brains, for certainly only the cream of the crop were allowed to attend this prestigious event. What made this feat even more impressive was the fact that they were both so young!Aside from her beauty, Celena's name was already known far and wide in the business world, not just because of her strong leadership but due to her association with Liam and her company's connections with many international corporations. She had started her business from scratch, but within a few short months, she had single handedly built it up to become one of the top ten grossing companies in Drunham City.There were hundreds of people gathered there tonight, and their seats had been allocated according to t
The moment Clifford left, Kastor turned to Liam with a wide grin, all hint of his hostility now gone. "Mr. Cole, thank God I arrived just in time."He raised his brows as he said this, and Liam took this to mean he was trying to claim credit. Truth be told, he would have been able to handle things on his own even without Kastor's help, but he decided this was a detail Kastor did not need to know. Instead, he returned Kastor's smile graciously. Kastor, like a child, burst into laughter at this. No further words were exchanged, but they understood the message nonetheless.Jeffrey also grinned. "Kastor, what brings you here all of a sudden?"Kastor replied, "Ah, you might not know this, Mr. Stein, but I actually own this very restaurant that you're sitting in right now. One of my employees called me for help, citing that a brawl was about to break out, so I rushed over immediately. I had no idea it would turn out to be you and Mr. Cole!""Ah, what a pleasant surprise, then!" Jeffrey
Clifford scowled upon hearing this. He cracked his knuckles menacingly as he stared at Kastor through narrowed eyes.Kastor did not seem at all intimidated by this. Instead, he brushed past him and approached Liam, smiling. "Mr. Cole, I apologize for the delay. I rushed over as soon as I heard the news, but I was late anyway. I'm so sorry for the wait."Liam's expression eased up slightly. He tugged the corners of his mouth into a strained smile but did not reply. Clifford's expression turned even more sour when he sensed Kastor's tone. He asked sharply, "What is the meaning of this, Kastor? Are you intent on making me your enemy?"Clifford's reputation was known far and wide, and many feared him, but Kastor was not one of them. He shot Clifford a look of utmost disdain and replied, smirking, "Yes, Clifford, that's exactly what I'm going to do. So what if we will be enemies from now on? What are you going to do about it?"He was confident that Clifford would not dare to retaliate