Chapter 567


    What a small world.


    Manuel thought Charlotte and Sophia were friends when he heard them greet each other. His smile


    grew wider as he said, “Ms. Yarrow, you and Charlotte know each other?”


    Charlotte''s expression turned grim when she heard that.


    Heath had broken up with her after that day.


    She had gone to look for him many times after that because she could not ept reality. However, she


    could not find him. She had no choice but to ept her fate and take the three million to look for her


    next target.


    Charlotte had been working at Blueshadow for three years, and Manuel was satisfied with her. Manuel


    had always been generous to his subordinates. If their negotiation for the acquisition were a sess,


    Charlotte would receive a hefty amount of severance pay.


    However, if the negotiation ended badly, not only would she not get any severance pay, but it would


    also be difficult for her to find work in the industry if Manuel found out she was the reason the


    negotiation failed.


    Charlotte had already lost Heath. Now that it was clear to her that she no longer had a wealthy partner,


    she could not bear to lose her job.


    Otherwise, she could not meet better and more outstanding men.


    Because of that, she had no idea how to respond to such a situation.


    The incident from the other day could not be considered a big deal, but it all depended on Sophia''s


    reaction.


    Manuel turned to look at Charlotte. “Charlotte, are you friends with Ms. Yarrow? I''ve never heard you


    mention it. I didn''t know you knew Ms. Yarrow.”


    Charlotte could not find it in herself to smile in this situation. She nced at Manuel and replied, “Yes,


    we''re friends.”


    However, Sophia had a different answer. She chuckled and said, “Please don''t misunderstand, Mr.


    Lancaster. Ms. Brooks and I have only met once. We can''t be considered friends.”


    Manuel and Charlotte immediately turned pale when they heard that.


    Manuel was in his forties and had been in the industry for almost twenty years. It was impossible for


    him not to understand the hidden meaning behind Sophia''s words.


    Charlotte had never received such a fast public humiliation. She had just admitted that she and Sophia


    were friends, but thetter had immediately denied it, saying that they were not considered friends.


    In an instant, the atmosphere turned awkward.


    However, Sophia pretended not to notice the tension in the air. She smiled and nced at Yvonne.


    Yvonne nodded in understanding. “Mr. Lancaster, Ms. Yarrow is rather busy. It''s best if we get down to


    business right away.”


    Coincidentally, the speaker for today was Charlotte.


    After such an awkward start, Charlotte struggled to keep a professional smile as she stood at the


    podium.


    The word “chaos” could be used to describe the entire presentation. Before Sophia could voice her


    opinions, Manuel stared at Charlotte icily and said, “Charlotte, what''s wrong with you today? You


    should''ve let me know if you weren''t feeling well. Why are you acting tough?” After saying that, Manuel


    quickly turned to look at Sophia apologetically. “Ms. Yarrow, I must apologize for the unsatisfactory


    presentation. Charlotte is sick today, so she''s slow to respond and not speaking as eloquently. How


    about we have Ms. Capwell exin it to you once more?”


    The corners of Sophia''s lips curved into a smile as she nced at Charlotte before turning to look at


    Manuel. “Ms. Brooks indeed doesn''t look too well. Her tongue is not as sharp as the other day. The


    presentation was quite messy, but I got the gist of it. After all, she was speaking in Chanaean. Mr.


    Lancaster, I don''t have much time, so there''s no need to switch to a different presenter.”


    Sophia rejected Manuel''s request and turned to look at Charlotte. She held out her hand and said,


    “Please continue, Ms. Brooks.”


    Manuel had just reprimanded Charlotte in front of so many people. When Sophia asked her to


    continue, her presentation only worsened because of the embarrassment she felt.


    Manuel''s face was as ck as thunder, but he had no choice but to endure it. After all, Sophia had


    rejected his request to change presenters.


    Whether it was Charlotte or Manuel, those ten minutes left in the presentation were agonizing.


    When she finally finished, Charlotte nced at Sophia.


    She froze when she noticed the half-smile on Sophia''s face. In a panic, she scrambled to gather her


    notes, almost falling onto the floor in the process.


    Yvonne reached out to support Charlotte while thetter nced at Sophia. For a while, Charlotte


    wondered if it was a good idea for Sophia''s secretary to help her.


    Charlotte was in despair as she returned to her seat. She dared not look at Manuel, who was seated


    beside her.


    Neither party in the conference room spoke. Awkwardness and tension filled the air.


    N?velDrama.Org: text ? owner.


    Of course, those feelings only applied to the people from Blueshadow.


    Sophia did not speak first simply because she wanted the other party to start the conversation.


    In reality, Sophia had no intention of doing anything to Charlotte. After all, the incident from the other


    day was a small matter, and many days had passed.


    She had considered it even after speaking to Heath that night.


    Sophia had asserted dominance at the start of the presentation because she wanted to lower the


    acquisition price to an amount that she was satisfied with.


    Now it seemed that the people from Blueshadow were indeed a bit weak-minded.


    Manuel mustered his courage to break the silence and said, “Ms. Yarrow, as you can see, Charlotte


    has provided a summary of the situation. How about—”


    Sophia did not hold back either. She interrupted Manuel and brought up the issues in Blueshadow that


    Charlotte had mentioned and gave Manuel one final blow by saying, “Mr. Lancaster, based on what I


    know, Blueshadow''s current situation is far worse and chaotic than what you have presented. Ms.


    Leighton learned that Blueshadow''s revenue has declined over the past two years. Apart from the


    issues that Ms. Brooks has mentioned, such as slow updates of products and inability to adapt to the


    market trends, there is another crucial point that I''d like to draw your attention to. Three years ago, a


    batch of face cream manufactured by yourpany caused serious allergy problems. I don''t quite


    agree with how yourpany handled that issue.”


    Manuel could not find the words to refute Sophia. “Ms. Yarrow, what are you trying to say?”


    Sophia smiled. “Four billion.” She paused momentarily before continuing, “Mr. Lancaster, I believe the


    company deserves this price. Blueshadow is a well-known brand, but its reputation has been destroyed


    because of the incident from three years ago. We would need to invest arge sum of money and


    manpower to help you restore Blueshadow to its former glory. Apart from that, in the property list that


    yourpany has given us, many expensive machines are at the end of their useful life. We would


    need to fork up another big amount to rece these machines. I''m sure you know that, right?” She


    then cast Charlotte a nce. “This is the most sincere price I can give you for the sake of Ms. Brooks.


    Mr. Lancaster, it''s fine if you think Sunshine Group has given you a low price. We''ll have other chances


    to coborate in the future.”


    At that point, Blueshadow no longer had the right to decide.


    Manuel knew that Sophia was right.


    Although Prosperity Enterprise could give him a much more eptable price, Blueshadow would end


    up being destroyed in their hands.


    On the other hand, he would happily give in to Sunshine Group because they were willing to keep the


    brand name “Blueshadow.”