Chapter 38 Compliments and Cooperation
The girls looked at Ingrid''s grim face and quieted down.
The second floor of the banquet hall was rtively quiet. When Grant brought Nicole upstairs, an
unruly-looking young man in an expensive ck shirt stood up.
The two men shook hands briefly. Grant smiled and said, "Mr. Lichman, it’s been a while."
Gerard Lichmanughed. The corners of his lips hooked up charmingly. "Hello, Mr. Stanton."
Without waiting for Grant''s introduction, Gerard had already moved his gaze onto Nicole. It was an
appreciative nce with a decent sense of proportion that was not offensive.
"Ms. Nicole, you''re not only beautiful but also capable. I hope that you won''t mind that I put off our
dinner and invited you to this banquet instead."
Nicole smiled, "Of course not. Congrattions on J& L''s 5th anniversary. I hope we''ll be able to work
together happily in the years toe."
She made a double entendre.
Gerard smiled. "Mr. Stanton, may I talk to Ms. Nicole privately? After all, if there''s a chance for
cooperation, the person we''ll be liaising with is Ms. Nicole."
"Sure." Grant was not surprised by this request and gave Nicole a reassuring nce. He then turned
around and went downstairs towork with others.
Gerard and Nicole stood facing each other in front of the railing on the second floor under the ambient
light. The handsome man and beautiful woman talked eloquently and calmly.
"Ms. Nicole, I''d like to know why you''re so confident about this cooperation."
Gerard held a ss of wine and casually shook the burgundy liquid in the ss.
Nicole raised her eyebrows. A strand of wavy hair fell across her forehead and around her ear. The
look in her eyes was very alluring.
This belongs ? N?velDra/ma.Org.
"Mr. Lichman, the conditions I gave are very sincere. I believe that you’re also aware of it. Compared to
so many other investors, there’s no one else more suitable than Stanton Corporation. To put it bluntly,
you have the technology, and I have the money.
Stanton Corporation won''t expect J&L to be profitable i n five years. Instead, we''re looking at long-term
cooperation. I believe that in the next ten years, we will be the ones to determine the level of Al
development in this world."
Those that could pay more than Stanton Corporation could not provide more benefits than Nicole, while
those that could provide more benefits did not have the capital. 1
Gerard was not just a businessman. He was also an engineer, so he wanted to find the most suitable
business partner for his brainchild.
Nicole’s bold words made Gerard re-examine the woman in front of him with less yfulness and more
solemnity.
Gerard bowed his head and pondered. "Vice President Nicole, do you mind participating in a three-way
partnership with anotherpany?"
"Who else?"
Nicole did not believe that there was a better fit than Stanton Corporation.
Gerard raised his ss to indicate behind Nicole. Hearing the soft footsteps that gradually approached
them, Nicole''s heart suddenly jumped and missed a beat.
Nicole felt a sudden silence in the air. She turned around with her ss of wine and her smile was
frozen on her face with just one nce.
Sure enough, the only one who couldpete with Stanton Corporation in the same project was none
other than Eric Ferguson.
Eric was wearing a ck suit with expensive cufflinks that looked familiar to Nicole. It made him seem
so cold, indifferent, and unapproachable.
His gaze lingered on Nicole for a few seconds before h e greeted Gerard frankly.
Gerard’s eyes bounced between the two of them. "I guess I don’t need to introduce you both since you
should be familiar with each other. Ms. Nicole, my apologies for not telling you in advance that
regardless of who our final partner is, Ferguson Corporation will be involved in the project."
Looking at Nicole''s puzzled gaze, Gerard chuckled and continued, "That’s because Mr. Ferguson has
been funding all of my projects as an angel investor since the inception of mypany." 1