Chapter 20

"No company can last long without innovation," Nathaniel said. "It's a problem I've been considering. I plan to implement changes before market demand forces our hand." He tapped his finger on the table, looking at the assembled board.

"It may seem like we're losing ground, especially since our competitors know our formulas. But don't forget these products have been on the market for a while. Even without publicity, rivals might have already reverse-engineered them.

"Even if our existing products still sell well, they'll soon lose their competitiveness. We should focus on developing new products, not protecting the old ones. That's crucial for our long-term sustainability." Nathaniel stood, pressing his hands on the table.

His points were sound and well-prepared. The board, initially skeptical, found his reasoning compelling.

"You might be right," one director countered, "but where are these new products? The quarterly report shows no new product launches in the last six months. The previous new product award resulted in a lawsuit and other problems. And wasn't there another crisis last month?"

"Correct," Nathaniel replied. "We don't believe in empty words. As shareholders, you need to see results. I need to develop something that reassures you, Mr. Quinn."

"That's right," another chimed in. "We need to see tangible benefits."

"Don't worry, Mr. Quinn," Nathaniel said, smiling. "We're already developing two new products, nearly ready for launch. I'm confident they'll be a hit."

Mr. Quinn nodded. "Is that so? Excellent. However, I heard Ms. Christian developed our previous successful products. Ms. Thayer's success seems undeserved. What's your explanation, Mr. Hall?"

"Those are rumors," Nathaniel explained. "I admit fault in trusting the wrong person and being framed. But Ms. Thayer developed these two new products. She also created our previous bestsellers; you can trust her abilities."

He paused, a happy expression crossing his face. "I have two announcements. First, these new products will represent MN Inc. in the annual perfume competition. I'm confident they'll bring prestige and profit.

"Second, I'm marrying Melanie Thayer. I assure you my personal life won't affect the company. Ms. Thayer and I will work together to improve MN Inc."

His explanation eased the shareholders' concerns. They'd come to question him, but his reasoning was persuasive, and the future looked promising.

"In that case, congratulations, Mr. Hall. I hope we'll have two things to celebrate in three months!"

Nathaniel smiled. He knew there would be three.

Melanie had been right; admitting their mistake was better than trying to cover up Lily's actions. This way, he’d gained the shareholders’ favor. She was his lucky star.

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Returning to his office, Nathaniel glanced at a group photo of himself, Melanie, and Lily on his desk. He displayed it boldly; he wasn't worried about Melanie seeing it, as they'd secretly held hands in the picture. He’d been dating Melanie then, positioning himself closer to her whenever the trio posed for photos. Lily had never noticed.

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Changes Made:

• Corrected spelling and typos: "nurket" to "market," "c0111petitors" to "competitors," etc.
• Improved sentence structure and flow: Many sentences were rephrased for clarity and conciseness.
• Added quotation marks: Consistent use of quotation marks for dialogue.
• Removed unnecessary repetition: Some phrases were redundant and were eliminated.
• Improved punctuation: Corrected comma splices, run-on sentences, and other punctuation errors.
• Standardized chapter numbering: Chapter 201 was changed to Chapter 20 (assuming this was a numbering error).
• Replaced informal language: Phrases like "followed suit" were replaced with more formal alternatives.
• Added paragraph breaks: Improved readability by breaking up long paragraphs.
• Corrected minor grammatical errors: Such as subject-verb agreement and pronoun usage.
• Clarified ambiguous phrasing: Made certain sentences easier to understand.

The revised passage is much more polished and professional.