Clash at the Meeting

Entering the meeting room, there were more than a dozen people seated inside, with an empty chair in the middle. Sitting at the head to the left was Walter Steele, the uncle whom Thea had seen at the funeral, the person who would marry Moira and become Thea's stepfather. She doesn't know if there is a term for marrying into a family, but this man would be living with Moira and her daughter in the Queen Mansion for the next few years.

Describing him as gentle as jade sounds a bit odd, but this uncle indeed had exceptional grace, giving Thea an encouraging look as if she were his junior.

Although this was her own company, Thea couldn't afford to act cold as she was here to seek cooperation. Facing the goodwill of the uncle, she nodded and greeted, "Mr. Steele, it's nice to meet you."

"Please call me Walter. Welcome to the group." Walter was somewhat surprised by Thea's politeness. In his impression, this girl kept her distance from everyone except Robert. Normal conversations like this usually happened only in extremely private settings.

Moira was now surrounded by happiness. It was a good start that her daughter could communicate normally with her boyfriend! She had been avoiding Walter lately, fearing that her daughter would see something she shouldn't, which might be too much for her to handle.

After all, she was just a fifteen-year-old girl. Her father and brother had just passed away, and she hadn't recovered from the shock yet. Then you tell her that the deceased isn't her father, that her real father is someone else, and after two days, you tell her that her mother is going to find her a stepfather. Wouldn't anyone go crazy with such a messy situation? Anyway, Moira felt that if she were in her daughter's shoes, she would have to go to the neighboring Arkham Asylum for treatment. But looking at Thea's current strong appearance, could it be that Malcolm's genes had endowed her with extraordinary resilience?

Moira continued to introduce the people in the room to her daughter. This is someone from the administration department, and that is someone from the finance department and so on. After the introductions, Thea realized that Walter was still the vice president of the company. She remembered he was supposed to take over as president. Did she remember it wrong, or did history change?

Soon Thea received her own position as the president's assistant, commonly known as the executive secretary, and the president was none other than her own mother.

Actually, she didn't remember it wrong. There was indeed a slight change in the plot here. Originally, Moira and Walter's relationship had heated up quickly, from colleagues to friends to boyfriend and girlfriend to marriage, upgrading every day. Combined, they were nearly eighty years old and had a quick flash marriage. The board of directors saw that the situation was irreversible and approved Walter's appointment as president.

But now, because of Thea's biological father exposure plan, Moira had been accompanying her daughter, and her boyfriend could only stand aside. Additionally, Moira doesn't want to complicate matters by having her charming daughter around her own boyfriend and fiancé. Their relationship was already messy enough; let's not make it more complicated!

After weighing the pros and cons, Moira could only take on the role of president herself while also nurturing her daughter. Honestly, she wasn't interested in this position at all, but for her daughter's sake, she could only grit her teeth and continue.

The following meeting was dull and boring. This department wanted a raise, and that department wanted to lay off employees. Although it couldn't be said to be trivial, it was all routine matters for the company group.

Moira kept an eye on Thea, afraid that she would get bored and do something like picking her nails or yawning. Unexpectedly, her daughter sat upright, listening attentively to the speeches of several executives without any impatience, and kept jotting down notes in her notebook.

Ah, how time flies! Moira felt a sense of relief as her daughter has matured.

The meeting lasted for an hour, and Moira summed up, stating that this meeting was a successful and victorious one, hoping that everyone would continue to shine for the company. With that, they could adjourn.

Just as they were about to leave, a middle-aged man with a sly look on his face smiled and said, "Miss Queen, this is your first time attending our meeting. Do you have any insights to share?"

Ay, Thea immediately judged that this person was not on good terms with her mother or, more precisely, not compatible with the Queen family. What opinions could a newcomer like herself possibly have? If she said something right, others might think she was arrogant; if she said something wrong, she would become a laughingstock. It's bullying to take advantage of her youth and lack of understanding of these workplace traps!

"Mr. Andre, I'm new here, completely unfamiliar with the company. I can't even offer basic suggestions, let alone profound insights. You're just joking," Thea replied politely.

Unexpectedly, the little girl from the Queen family didn't fall for it. She was much stronger than her playboy brother. The sly-looking man was a bit persistent, continuing to say, "No problem, just speak your mind. We were all your father's old subordinates, all considered your elders. No one will laugh at you." After saying this, he even chuckled, indicating that he was very magnanimous.

What the heck, what do you mean no one will laugh? I haven't said anything yet, and you've already labeled it as a joke! Thea's anger surged.

Checking her notes, she found that this guy was the head of the weapon development department, the one she had coveted for a long time. Robert's judgment of people really wasn't that great. This man clearly harbored dissatisfaction towards her family. With the weapon development department being crucial to her future, he had to be kicked out.

"Mr. Andre, I indeed have no suggestions for the company, but I have a question that I hope you can answer," Thea said casually.

"Please go ahead."

"In your report just now, you mentioned increasing the investment in the Weapon R&D Department. I looked at the group's investment in the Weapon Development Department over the past few years, and it has consistently shown a year-on-year increase, with an approximate 20% increment on the previous year's basis each year. Why is this number so coincidental?"

Hearing this question, the man named Andre breathed a sigh of relief. "There is a scientific basis for this. As for why it's exactly a 20% increment, it can only be considered a coincidence. I've explained this to the vice president before." In other words, this matter is quite complex, and he feared that a young girl like her wouldn't understand.

Walter also nodded, indicating that he knew about this.

Thea remained calm as this was within her expectations. "Mr. Andre has been in charge of the Weapon R&D Department for the past three years. However, in the research reports of these three years, 19 technologies were applied for in 2004, 12 in 2005, and 17 in 2006. Is there a significant fluctuation in the strength of our technical personnel during these years?"

Andre had a premonition of what she was going to say, but with the conversation reaching this point, he could only persist. "Yes, there is a significant fluctuation. Scientific and technical research is like this!"

Thea chuckled, "This G-12 anti-gravity suit filed in 2005 is specialized protective clothing for high overload, right? Why is something that was clearly researched and completed two years ago mixed in with a bunch of other research projects in your recent report, and now you're requesting funding from the company for its research again? Can you explain why?"