Chapter 722 Why Aren't You Talking?
Ambrosia could only respond temporarily like this because Katherine seemed calm at the moment and could still keep her emotions in check.
If she explained the truth, Katherine would find out that she was missing a child, and then Katherine might not remain so calm!
Katherine nodded. "Yeah! He's really lucky. Last time they said he was blown up, but he still came back just fine, didn't he? I know he won't lie to me again. He promised me he'd come back, so he definitely will. The hallway is really a bit cold. I'll go back and rest well, waiting for him to return."
Muttering to herself, Katherine turned around woodenly and walked back to her hospital room step by step.
Watching Katherine force herself to stay calm, Ambrosia felt really distressed.
Katherine didn't know that Alex had somehow come back and stolen one of her children, and now he was missing.
Yet Katherine still believed in him so much.
If Alex could never be found again and the first child couldn't be retrieved, then rather than letting Katherine know the truth, it would be better to let her think Alex had already died in that plane crash. That would be less painful than the feeling of betrayal.
Three years later, at the Melville Group shareholders' meeting, all the shareholders were present, but the president's seat remained empty.
The meeting was scheduled to start at 9 a.m., and just thirty seconds before the hour, the office door was pushed open.
A girl in formal attire, accompanied by a secretary, walked in confidently and took the president's seat without hesitation.
With a composed expression, she said calmly, "Thank you for waiting. If everyone is here, let's begin the meeting."
The Melville Group hadn't held a formal shareholders' meeting in three years.
The shareholders, mostly middle-aged men in their forties and fifties, were visibly uneasy about a woman leading the company and seemed intent on making things difficult for her.
Katherine had anticipated this and leaned lazily against the back of her chair, not at all intimidated. "I know you all have opinions about me sitting in this position, but there's nothing you can do. Since I can sit here, it's legitimate. Instead of voicing your objections, why not discuss the major decisions and future development of the group this year? After all, the future of the group also concerns your own positions, don't you think?"
An elderly shareholder seated prominently on the left side said sternly, "What does a woman know about running a group? If Mr. Melville is still missing, we should quickly elect a new president from among us shareholders to take over the group! You don't have any shares in the group, so sitting in the president's seat so openly is really hard to accept!"
Katherine looked at the elderly shareholder who was challenging her, pursed her lips, and said, "What do you mean by sitting here openly? You have no objection to Alex being the president of the Melville Group, right? I am Alex's wife. When he's not here, is there a problem with me, his wife, temporarily managing his business?"
Another shareholder sneered. "Wife? As far as we know, you and Mr. Melville are not legally married, right? At most, you're just in a relationship. What qualifications do you have to take over his business?"
Katherine remained unfazed. "Even if I don't have the legal status to jointly own Alex's shares, my two children are Alex's first heirs, right? As the mother of the heirs, I have the right to sit here, don't I? I know some of you want to take advantage of Mr. Melville's absence to seize power. But I advise you to give up! As long as I'm here, the Melville Group will stay under the Melville name!"
Katherine's words left everyone speechless. Though they were still dissatisfied, they no longer raised objections.
They had to concede that Katherine had a point. With Alex gone, his children were the rightful heirs to the group, and the shareholders had no legitimate claim to the presidency.
The meeting lasted an hour and a half, during which Katherine conducted herself with competence and poise.
Despite their reluctance to accept Katherine's leadership, the seasoned shareholders had to acknowledge that this young woman possessed considerable skill and expertise in managing the business.
"Meeting adjourned!" After the meeting, Katherine got up and walked out of the conference room to the president's office to arrange the next steps.
Fiona, who was sitting at the secretary's desk outside the president's office, immediately got up and followed Katherine into the office, her face full of concern.
"Katherine, how did it go? Did those shareholders give you a hard time?" Fiona asked.
Katherine sat in the office chair, unscrewed a bottle of mineral water, took a sip, and raised an eyebrow at Fiona. "What do you think?"
Fiona pouted in frustration. "I bet they did! Those shareholders are all talk and no action. Only Alex could keep them in line before!"
Katherine had experience managing a group. She had founded the Crescent Group herself and later handed it over to Ambrosia and Frank, rarely getting directly involved.
The new group was better, with fewer internal complications, mainly focusing on managing market risks related to business.
The more established and prestigious a family business was, the more complex the internal power dynamics were, making it difficult to handle. Dealing with those shareholders had indeed taken some effort.
However, overall, the meeting went smoothly.
By the end of the meeting, those old shareholders had no more objections.
Actually, since Alex went missing, Jackie had returned to the group, taking over management for three years.
But recently, Jackie's health had deteriorated, and doctors advised against overworking.
So, Jackie called her to the study for a long talk, asking her to temporarily take over managing the group until Alex returned, or until the children were enough to take over.
Jackie hadn't liked her much before, but over the years, he had come to understand her character and abilities, trusting her completely.
Katherine originally didn't want to get involved in the Melville family's interests, but Jackie's health was indeed failing, and the old shareholders were all eyeing the group, eager to seize control.
She couldn't refuse and agreed to Jackie's request.
Fiona had graduated from college and joined the family business as a secretary, with not much work to do, mainly to keep an eye on the old shareholders with ulterior motives.
"Katherine, what are you thinking about? Why aren't you saying anything?" Fiona noticed Katherine was lost in thought and tilted her head to ask.
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My husband fell in love with another woman and wanted a divorce. I agreed.
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To this, I had only one word: "Get lost!"）
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