CHAPTER 184: CHAPTER 185 LOVE IS A TORTUROUS THING (2)

Besides, he had already died over ten times during this meeting. This was sufficient evidence that his President was currently in an extremely irritable mood.

"Out."

Without even lifting his head, Kris Cooper resurrected his character on the spot.

Tommy Taylor left the room, closing the door behind him.

Throwing his phone on the desk, Kris Cooper propped his feet up on it, his gaze fixed on the chair Vera Wave had occupied. After a moment, he lowered his feet, stood up, snatched his phone from the desk, and headed for the door. He pulled it open, then glanced back at the chair she had used.

Idiot!

Noticing some papers under the table where she had sat, he strode over. He bent down to pick up the few pages and glanced at them, his amber eyes slowly narrowing.

The papers in his hand weren’t the documents she had dropped. It was the love contract, and in the space provided for Party B, her name—Vera Wave—was already signed.

「...」

「Forty-eighth floor.」

"Director Perkin! Director Perkin!" Kylo Sail called out, hurrying after Archie Perkin, the Director of the Finance Department. "Could you spare a moment, please?"

Archie Perkin turned his face and, seeing her, smiled.

"Miss Sail, what’s the matter?"

"I’m just a little... I don’t quite understand." Kylo Sail smiled at him. "Do you... really think Vera’s plan is solid?"

Archie Perkin showed an enigmatic smile. "What do you mean by that, Miss Sail?"

"Oh... You... You mustn’t misunderstand." Realizing she had misspoken, Kylo Sail quickly corrected herself. "I just wanted to ask for your guidance on where I fell short this time. Knowing my shortcomings will help me improve, right?"

Archie Perkin nodded. "I appreciate your work attitude, Miss Sail. Frankly, both your proposal and Miss Wave’s are excellent, each with its own merits. You could say... they’re evenly matched."

As the Director of the Finance Department, Archie Perkin certainly knew how to phrase things diplomatically.

"However..." Archie Perkin shrugged. "Miss Sail, you may not fully understand this project. It’s a housing project in collaboration with the government. This project isn’t high-profit; it’s more of a reputational one. Securing the maximum return for the minimum investment has always been Ashton’s guiding principle, hasn’t it?"

Of course, that was just one aspect.

Although Kris Cooper had only said one sentence during the meeting, everyone present had to ponder its profound implications carefully. He hadn’t asked about anything else, only the budget. What did that signify? It signified that Kris Cooper was satisfied with both proposals and was only concerned about which one was more cost-effective. Therefore, when Vera Wave stated one million, Kylo Sail had already lost.

Both proposals were of a high caliber, each with distinctive features.

If costs weren’t a factor, Archie might have leaned towards Kylo Sail’s proposal. However, he certainly didn’t want to make a poor impression on the new President over such a proposal.

The President had already shown his inclination; would the senior executives dare to oppose him?

No one would be so naive as to believe he was *actually* just playing games in there. Anyone who had been with Ashton for a significant time knew that the former President, Christopher Cooper, loved gaming. These highly intelligent leaders could defeat the ultimate game bosses while effortlessly outmaneuvering others. Otherwise, how could they be the ones in charge?

Thus, he had wisely made his stance clear: he was unequivocally on the side of the company’s interests.