bChapter /b290

    Urban let out a derisiveugh, staring him straight in the eye. “Seems like I already gave you a chance,” he said coldly, “but you chose to throw it away yourself.”

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    If Bradley had owned up to his mistake in the office, this shareholders‘ meeting would likely have been about something else entirely.

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    Dawn quickly ushered a man into the conference room. Taking in the tense scene, his face went pale. His eyes first darted to Bradley, whose expression was thunderous with anger. In that instant, the

    realization suddenly dawned on him, he knew exactly why he’d been summoned.

    Before Urban could say a word, the man blurted out anxiously, “Mr. Soto, Mr. Kaden ordered me to

    handle the Peak Technology contract! He threatened to fire me if I refused. I… I really had no other

    choice!”

    In this tight–knit industry, if he were really fired from Alpite Group, it would be almost impossible for him to work for any majorpany again.

    All eyes turned to Bradley. Finally snapping, he mmed the documents down on the table with a loud bang. “Enough!” he roared, jabbing a finger at Urban. “You did this on purpose! You set this whole trap just waiting for me to fall into it, didn’t you?”

    Urban arched an eyebrow. “Mr. Kaden, don’t put it like that. After all, I never forced you to do any of

    this.”

    Before he could finish, Bradley furiously cut him off. “That’s enough! Just you wait, this isn’t over!” he

    snapped.

    After saying that, he shot a furious re at his boss, yanked at his tie, and strode out of the conference room. The shareholders exchanged bewildered nces, momentarily stunned by how quickly things

    had escted.

    Urban straightened his suit jacket and motioned for Dawn to distribute another set of documents. “Now, let me briefly outline our overseas market expansion ns from my recent trip to Landol…”

    Vivian pulled Maxine down onto a nearby chair. As Urban was speaking on stage, Vivian winked and whispered, “Honestly, I think Mr. Soto’s really great. Why not just dump that useless ex–husband of yours and go for him?”

    Maxine said, half–amused and half–exasperated, “Vivian, we’re just friends.”

    Vivian was nomittal and simply shrugged. “All rtionships start as friendships. Besides, Mr.

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    Soto is genuinely a great guy, I think you should seriously consider it.”

    Maxine shrugged and let the matter drop.

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    After presenting the findings from his trip to Landol, Urban nced at Vivian, who was seated behind Maxine, and announced, “We’ve made a major breakthrough. We’ve sessfully initiated partnership talks with ZR Group. This coboration will undoubtedly generate even greater returns moving

    forward.”

    Maxine felt like she’d heard of ZR Group before and instinctively looked at Vivian, who gave her a yful wink. “I’m actually the representative of ZR Group now,” Vivian said, “When headquarters heard I was vacationing in Hathnd, they specifically asked me to reach out.”

    After wrapping up her exnation, she stepped back onto the stage and gave a brief overview of the development prospects and cooperation ns. Many shareholders buzzed with excitement. This venture marked a quantum leap in Alpite Group’s overseas expansion, and before long, they might

    even rival the Noxen Group.

    Amid thunderous apuse, Vivian stepped down from the stage and slid back into her seat beside Maxine. With a yful grin, she nudged her friend and asked, “So, how did I do? I nailed it, right?”

    Maxine winked at her. “Since when did you take on this role? You never mentioned it to me. And don’t you always swear off work during vacations? What made you make an exception this time?”

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