Zhou Capital
“Look at this… there board of directors agreed to have the Facci Group acquire the company.” Lily said. “I mean… I understand the need to increase the scope of their exploration. And I also understand that having a conglomerate like us take over, is a good decision but… isn’t this… too..” She narrowed her eyes at the documents in her hand. “Suspicious? I mean… the heir and heiresses of this company. They must have known that their profits were increasing. The company would surely grow in five years time. It will double or even triple their profits.”
After her meeting with Mr. Rossi and the executives, Lily instantly went to see Zhou Jingren to share her concerns about the acquisition.
“Do you understand what I’m trying to say? Do you think I may have become…paranoid? Maybe my mind is trying to separate from my body?” Lily asked. When reading the documents, she could not help but feel like… it was too easy. Everything was too easy as if… it was handed to her on a silver platter.
Does something like that even exist in the business world?
Now, Lily was used to forcibly acquiring companies. So maybe this was the reason why this scene was quite new to her?
“It is very suspicious indeed.” Zhou Jingren pursed his lips as he started reading the documents from Lily’s hand. “But perfectly understandable for an ambitious company like them. I mean… they could easily buy the shares back once they are able to.”
Lily turned silent. She still could not remove the feeling that something is wrong. It was as if… she was missing something here. She frowned, “The board of directors will surely agree to have this company under our wing. After all, they will only care about profits and this so far… this petroleum company screamed money and more money.”
“Don’t look at me like that.” Lily glared at him when she noticed the disbelief in his eyes. “I love money! But this is different.” Lily said. She lowered her gaze as the realization hit her. If this deal had happened before meeting this man, she would have accepted it without batting an eyelid.
However, it was different now. With her being married and pregnant, she felt that she needed to prioritize safety over all else, including money. It was as if… she did not want to gamble anymore. “You know… pregnant women are supposed to have a really strong sense of smell. This is designed so they can avoid poisonous chemicals that could potentially harm their child.”
“So… you think that this instinct is the same? Maybe it is telling you to stop doing it to avoid danger?”
“Yes…something like a radar? Maybe it is telling me that something is not right and it could potentially hurt me or our child.” Lily nodded.
“So? Are you planning to sign it?”
“Actually, if the board agrees… I won’t have any other choice but to agree too. Of course, I could easily use the fact that I am the CEO and the largest shareholder. I can use my power to… decline. But without any strong reason, I will not only lose the trust of my directors. I will also lose the reputation that I have worked so hard to build with them.”
At the end of the day, Lily was still a businesswoman. She is not deciding for herself. She was deciding for her company, for her employees and for the profit of the shareholders. This is something that she had learned to live with.
This is where her dilemma laid. She could either listen to her instinct that she couldn’t explain or do the right thing, profit-wise.
“You still have a month to decide right?”
“Yes.”
“Then… let’s use that to dig into this company, figure out what’s wrong. I will ask Bei Tian and Yuanfeng to help us out. ” He held her hand. “Stop worrying about it.”
Lily smiled in response. A normal person would not worry about the things that might happen. But she was far from normal. Her mind was not programmed to work like that. ���I have another doctor’s appointment later.”
“I know.” He gave her an assuring smile. “I will go with you.” Lily’s check up was scheduled in the afternoon as it was most convenient for their schedule.
She nodded.
“You really should stop overthinking about things. You are pregnant. This will only cause stress and anxiety. You know how that is not healthy for your body and our child.”
Lily let out a sigh and forced a smile. “I have been with the Facci Group for almost ten years now. Before meeting you… This company was my life.”
“I know… but maybe trust Mr. Rossi and Cathy to find out what is wrong? We also have Qin Yuanfeng. His expertise with computers could help us.” He leaned in closer to kiss her temple. “Your mental health is as important as your physical health.”
“You know… I just wish that sometimes my mind had a switch that I could just turn off. That way. It would be very helpful in times like this.” She said. The thing is… she could not just tell her mind to stop working. To stop thinking. To stop analyzing.
Thinking about different possible scenarios was the only thing that could make her feel better. It was exhausting — too exhausting for her mind and body. But it was not something that she could just stop because she wanted to.
Knowing that she had already figured out the next ten moves of a scenario made her feel safe. It made her feel sheltered and prepared for what was to come. It gave her confidence and assurance that no matter what happened, she could easily deal with it using her schemes.
“I’m sorry.” She uttered in a low voice as she lowered her head. She didn’t know if she was apologizing to Zhou Jingren or her child. Or maybe the both of them.
