The Situation Reverses

Tony, who was initially prepared to watch Pepper tear Obadiah apart, suddenly stood up when he heard someone accusing his father of being a thief.

He glared at Ivan, his anger boiling.

"What did you say? I dare you to repeat that!"

Although Tony resented his father for always being too busy with work and rarely spending time with him, denying him the affection he craved as a child, it didn't mean he'd allow anyone to insult his father.

In Tony's heart, Howard might not have been the best father, but he was undoubtedly a hero, a brilliant scientist, and a successful capitalist.

Howard had single-handedly built Stark Industries and invented numerous technologies that benefited humanity.

To Tony, his father was a great man, worthy of admiration, not someone to be called a thief.

Howard Stark was Tony's one untouchable nerve.

Ivan, seeing Tony's fury, wasn't about to back down.

"Your father 'was' a thief! A robber! He stole my father's research, framed him for stealing technology, and drove him out of Stark Industries, leaving him to die on his sickbed!"

"You're lying! Your father was the thief! And you're just the thief's son!"

"You're the thief!"

The two were about to jump over the table and start fighting, but the people around them quickly intervened, pulling them apart.

"Calm down! Calm down!"

"Mr. Stark, don't be rash!"

"Mr. Vanko, this is a shareholders' meeting!"

"Everyone, get back to your seats!"

After some struggle, the two finally calmed down and returned to their respective seats, but their mutual glares made it clear that the situation was still volatile.

At this moment, Obadiah stood up, speaking calmly, "Alright, we're not children. Let's move on to tallying the shares everyone holds."

After a quick calculation, the results were close to what Pepper had anticipated.

On her side, including the support of veteran members and senior executives, they controlled 33% of the shares. Obadiah, Umbrella Corporation, and their allies controlled 24%.

With a 9% share gap, Pepper's side held a clear advantage.

A smile crept back onto Pepper's face.

But moments later, Obadiah stood confidently, smiling as he introduced someone new.

"Now, I'd like to introduce a new shareholder, Mr. Sherlock from Sherlock Fund."

"Clap, clap, clap..."

Obadiah led the applause, and those on his side immediately followed suit, clapping enthusiastically.

On Pepper's side, however, everyone frowned.

"Sherlock Fund? Isn't that the fund company on the verge of bankruptcy?"

"Yeah, last month they were about to be seized by the bank due to failed investments."

"I heard they received a huge investment recently and bought quite a bit of Stark Industries stock."

"Right, they made a fortune with our company's rising stock prices."

Obadiah nodded, "It seems everyone knows Sherlock Fund, so I don't need to introduce them further. Based on the current figures, Mr. Sherlock holds 10% of Stark Industries' shares."

At this announcement, everyone present gasped.

With Stark Industries' stock price currently around 180 per share, after issuing 500 million shares, the company was valued at around 270 billion. Stark Industries was among the top-tier companies in the country.

And Sherlock, holding 10% of the shares, was worth around 27 billion, making him the second-largest shareholder in Stark Industries.

Currently, Tony still held the largest share with 26%.

"How could he possibly have that much money?"

"Yeah, how could a fund company that was nearly bankrupt last month suddenly have so much capital?"

"Is this even real? How come we never heard about it?"

In response to these doubts, Sherlock smiled and took out several documents from his briefcase, placing them on the table.

"Our Sherlock Fund had been listed for a while. Perhaps with everything else going on recently, many of you just didn't notice."

Indeed, with recent events like the mass grave in the Middle East, the mutant attacks on the United Nations summit, the zombie virus in Japan, and the Ten Rings' takeover of the Gomira region, media headlines were constantly flooded with sensational news.

Sherlock's acquisition of shares barely made the news and went largely unnoticed.

As Pepper reviewed the share registration information and other listings, her face darkened, and her hands began to tremble.

Tony, sitting beside her, quickly noticed her unease and held her hand gently.

"Pepper, are you alright?"

Pepper, seeing Tony's concerned face, forced a bitter smile that was worse than crying.

"I'm fine... Let's just see the vote."

Deep down, Pepper knew they were likely to lose the vote, but she clung to a slim hope that Sherlock might abstain from voting.

"The votes are counted, let's begin the first round: the motion for Mr. Stark to rejoin the board."

As expected, Obadiah's side won by a slim margin of 34 to 33. Tony lost his bid to return to the board.

Tony slumped back into his chair, looking defeated, lost in thought.

Pepper lowered her head, unable to face him. She knew she had failed, betrayed his trust. The situation, which she had once believed was firmly under control, now seemed laughable.

Ivan, meanwhile, burst into triumphant laughter, "This is what happens to thieves! What was stolen will eventually be lost!"

But Tony no longer cared about Ivan's words; his focus was solely on Sherlock.

"Who are you, really? Why are you helping Obadiah?"

Sherlock, keeping his head down, avoided Tony's gaze and didn't say a word.

Only Sherlock himself knew the truth. The so-called 10% stake in Stark Industries, the Sherlock Fund, was nothing more than a front. The real force behind everything was Umbrella Corporation.

This was the allure of the American capitalist system. With the right moves, a mere 50 million could be leveraged into control over 27 billion.

But Umbrella's influence over senators and its military ties made this possible. Anyone else attempting such a move would have been devoured by regulators and other capitalists long ago.

With the vote settled, Pepper's side turned pale.

The veteran members might still live comfortably, even if removed from their positions, thanks to their remaining stock.

But the senior management wasn't so fortunate. Their shares were tied to their jobs—positions like general manager granted them 0.5% of the company's stock and dividends.

Losing their positions would also strip them of those rights. And now, it was time for Obadiah's revenge.

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