Chapter 147 The Engagement Won’t Last Anyway

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Sloane looked at Lucas curiously. His face was tight with restrained emotion, which only made her burst intoughter.

Lucas nced down at her, helpless as he saw the amusement in her eyes. “What? You find it that funny when I’m the butt of the joke?”

Sloane blinked innocently. “It’s not like I asked to be your elder by seniority.”

Lucas raised a brow. “We’re engaged. That makes seniority irrelevant.”

But Sloane mumbled under her breath, “It’s not like we’re staying engaged forever anyway.”

Lucas froze. The easy smile on his face vanishedpletely.

Sloane, oblivious to the sudden shift in his mood, didn’t understand why he’d gone quiet again -they’d just been bantering a moment ago.

He dropped her off at school, then headed straight back to the office.

Inside the conference room, five senior managers had been waiting for some time. As soon as Lucas entered, they all stood up.

He waved them back down and took his ce at the head of the table, his expression cold andposed.

“What’s thetest with Peak Corp?” he asked directly.

Bennie, the project manager in charge of the partnership, stood up with a slightly tense look. “Mr. Hawthorne, Peak Corp is still ying coy. They’ve got the most advanced robotics technology in the country, so they’ve been using that leverage throughout negotiations. While they’ve shown some interest in our proposal, they remain rigid on key terms–especially regarding profit shares and risk distribution.”

Lucas frowned, his fingers tapping lightly against the table. “What exactly are they asking for?”

Bennie hesitated, then answered, “They want a 60-40 profit split. They take sixty.”

Lucas let out a cold chuckle. “Sixty–forty? That’s bold. Just because they have top–tier robotics. tech, they think they’ve got us cornered?”

Another manager, chimed in. “Their stance is aggressive, yes–but to be fair, their robotics tech is exactly what we need right now. If we secure this deal, ourpetitive edge in the

8:09 Thu, Sep b4 /bN

Chapter 147 The Engagement Won’t Last Anyway

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smart products market would skyrocket. We could gain market share almost instantly.”

Lucas remained silent for a moment, his eyes shing sharply. “Peak Corp’s confidencees from knowing we want their tech badly. But they’re forgetting–we still have options. Sure, those otherpanies may be technically inferior, but at least their terms are far more reasonable.”

Bennie nodded. “There are a few potential partners offering better terms, though their tech is far behind Peak’s.”

Sam then asked, “Are you suggesting we walk away from Peak Corp and look elsewhere?”

Lucas stood up and walked to the window, overlooking the city below. “Of course not. But we can’t let them think we’re desperate either.”

Everyone immediately understood: they were to keep exploring other partners—to make Peak Corp feel pressured, maybe even threatened into backing down.

“Yes, Mr. Hawthorne,” the managers responded in unison.

Lucas turned back, scanning their faces. “Anything on their internal movements? Their stubbornness must be rooted in something.”

Laney hesitated, then said quietly, “From what we’ve gathered, Peak Corp has been getting close to anotherpany. It’s likely a strategic move to pressure us–force us into epting their conditions.”

Lucas narrowed his eyes, a cold smirk ying on his lips. “Of course. A psychological y.”

The meeting adjourned shortly after, but even alone in his office, Lucas’s thoughts didn’t return to business.

Instead, Sloane’s voice echoed in his mind: i“/iiIt’s /inot ilike /iiwe’re /iistaying /iengaged forever anyway.”

And for some reason, it bothered him more than it should have.