Chapter 235: Chapter 232: Speed Up the Progress
"Alright, I know, at least there’s something gained, right? Better than nothing."
Elliana Lyle sat in the car, comforting Luna over the phone, as Luna’s tone and mood seemed off.
She thought Luna was upset about the unsatisfactory outcome.
After hanging up, she leaned back onto Norman Bennett, saying, "Norman, I want to take a nap, call me when we arrive."
Last night, she stayed up late waiting to watch the sunrise, but it started raining at three in the morning, making it impossible to see any sunrise.
She almost froze to death, to be honest.
Luckily, Julia Bennett drove over to pick them up in time; otherwise, with the dropping temperatures in the mountains, they would have caught a cold for sure.
"Okay." The man responded softly, gently patting her back, the best way to lull someone to sleep.
Within a few minutes, the girl in his arms was sound asleep, and he could even hear her soft snores.
He gradually slowed the patting until he stopped.
The girl’s face seemed a little thinner, not as round as before, but still beautiful, always the one he treasured in his heart.
For some reason, whenever he saw this little face, he couldn’t help but want to be closer, never feeling it was enough.
Finally, he planted a light kiss on her forehead, causing the girl in his arms to furrow her brows slightly and mumble a bit.
She looked so cute, impossible to look away from, and a gentle warmth filled the man’s eyes, focusing entirely on the person in his embrace.
Like a treasure, even more precious and irreplaceable.
"President."
Raymond Wood’s voice pulled the man from his thoughts, preventing him from kissing the girl on her lips.
"Speak!"
His tone clearly showed his displeasure.
If Raymond didn’t have anything important to say, he might as well prepare to be sent on a business trip to Africa.
"President, Will Global Films and Roland are actively recruiting everywhere, and they are thriving, almost ..."
There was no need to finish; the implication was clear.
Even as a branch, Will Global Films is formidable, let alone with Roland, a medium-sized talent agency long entrenched domestically.
If allowed to continue, in less than two years, Roland will become a major player in the film industry.
This isn’t good news for anyone.
Raymond continued, "President, perhaps consider financing from Sean Films?"
Sean Films is an international company, ranking in the global top ten, whereas Melody Harmony, though ranked in the top ten, blended various business areas and remains inexperienced in the film industry.
These are purely filming companies with a significant influence in the film industry, far beyond anything Radiant Light can compare to now.
But financing means Melody Harmony would be subject to external control, something Norman Bennett would never want to see.
"No need to consider."
Hearing these resolute words, Raymond fell silent, knowing the pros and cons.
While financing through Sean would bolster their position, it also meant sharing stocks with them.
Then it would no longer be purely a domestic company.
Melody Harmony was founded entirely by Norman Bennett, with only twenty percent of the shares belonging to shareholders, hence it was firmly in his hands.
In Melody Harmony, Norman Bennett held absolute control, not needing any votes or discussion for many decisions, even if it went through a process.
He glanced at the girl in his arms, then said, "Speed up the process with Lyle Corporation, don’t drag this year’s matters into next year."
This surprised Raymond a bit, as Miss Lyle was right there in the car, making such explicit remarks seemed improper.
But since the president mentioned it openly, he probably wasn’t afraid of Miss Lyle knowing, so he said, "The Bennetts are also involved now, coupled with Lyle’s share transfer..."
The potential difficulty seemed high.
"Discard any unnecessary things when needed."
"..."—this left Raymond speechless, given the extensive effort and money spent, obtaining an empty shell was clearly a loss.
"President, this might..."
"Do as I said."
Raymond had no choice but to agree.
Then, Norman Bennett casually asked, "How’s the factory reform going?"
Raymond replied, "There are still two days till the deadline, no report has been submitted yet."
"Alright, have the report collected by tomorrow." Since the time allotted for reform sufficed, it wouldn’t be considered premature.
"Raymond, notify everyone for a meeting at 3 p.m. regarding Roland and Will Global Films."
"President, you have a client meeting at 3 p.m. with the chairman of Bright Tower Corporation."
...
Unexpectedly tight on time, Norman felt a headache coming on, rubbing his brow with the hand holding the girl.
Finally, he said, "Change it to 4 p.m."
"Mr. Felix Hughes is scheduled at 4 p.m. to meet you, you agreed yesterday as well."
Norman responded indifferently, "You arrange it."
The implication was clear, and Raymond knew it meant not meeting in person.
The arrangement was merely to appoint a substitute.
...
―――Vicars Hotel.
By then, Elliana Lyle had woken up, feeling as if she had dreamt for a long time, vaguely remembering something had happened in the dream.
But she couldn’t recall, only the lingering sense of fear telling her it was a nightmare.
"What’s wrong?" the man asked, noticing her distracted state.
She waved her hand, "Nothing, just a nightmare."
"It’s just a dream, don’t be afraid." The man reached out to ruffle her hair.
But she already forgot it, unable to be scared even if she wanted, just feeling anxious.
Back at the hotel, Lana had prepared the passion fruit lemon tea she requested in advance, chilled, wrapped in a cup covering to hide it from Norman.
"Mmm~ delicious, but a bit hot." Her acting skills were commendable, making Lana smile involuntarily.
After all, it was quite a feat to drink iced water like hot tea, something Lana had never seen before.
However, Lana’s smile immediately revealed the trick to the man.
"Drink it after it reaches room temperature."
His words were lukewarm, yet Elliana backed down, knowing her mistakes during the day would be accounted for at night.
She quickly set the cup down, giving a sheepish smile at the man, pretending to be on her best behavior.
A small issue with the crew postponed their departure from tomorrow to the day after.
To be honest, she had never been to the desert, feeling a bit excited.
Yet also afraid, pondering whether she would encounter a rattlesnake.
The thought alone chilled her with goosebumps!
Noticing her shiver, the man found it odd, thinking she might be unwell.
It was still early, just 11 a.m., with matters that could wait, allowing for postponement.
He directly said to the girl, "To the hospital."
"Huh?" Elliana was caught off guard, wondering if something happened while she was lost in thought?
Why the sudden hospital trip?
Little did she know, he intended to take her for a health check-up.