Ever since that day, Bowen had been deliberately—or not—making his presence felt around Aubree. Beyond the occasional text messages, there were also Bowen’s so-called chance encounters whenever he showed up to pick Alvin up from school. Aubree simply ignored it all.
In Turner Group, Kelvin asked, “Mr. Turner, the flowers you ordered are ready. But are we seriously going to Bree Technology?”
Kelvin couldn’t help but wonder: Mr. Turner’s been going out of his way to impress Miss Miller lately, but she’s just been brushing him off. Now he’s even showing up at Bree Technology—won’t that just put her off even more?!
“Bree Technology is holding a board meeting. As the major shareholder with a 30% stake, how could I possibly miss it?” said Bowen.
Bowen was unfazed. Isn’t it my right to manage my investment? he wondered. He was just there for the meeting—and while he was at it, he might as well check in on his old friend.
Bowen swiftly signed off on the last document. “Get the car ready,” he ordered.
Kelvin pursed his lips. Fine, that was a waste of breath, he thought.
Playry had been online for a while now, and its growth prospects are obvious to everyone. After all, no one would pass up such a lucrative opportunity. These days, similar live-streaming platforms are springing up like mushrooms after rain, with some even launched by established internet giants.
With competition intensifying, Bree Technology had lost its greatest unique selling point. Over time, the live-streaming market pie would inevitably be divided up. Aubree’s immediate goal was to strengthen Bree Technology’s competitive edge before the market got carved up. Securing the exclusive official tournament platform for League of Legends was a prime example of this strategy.
The main focus of this meeting was precisely this. When it came to partnerships, connections and capital were indispensable—and both were major pain points for Aubree. While the profits were substantial, the expenses were just as high. Zappy was still in development and burning through cash; the gaming division was also in the works and needed more investment. Besides, after signing the contract, Randall had happily joined the company and was already hiring a whole new team—yet another major expense.
The revenue from her esports club wasn’t even enough to fund its development. Right now, Bree Technology was her only profitable venture, so she decided to seek investment.
When Aubree entered the conference room, everyone who was supposed to be there had already arrived, along with one unexpected guest.
Aubree’s gaze swept over to Bowen, sitting at the end of the conference table with that shamelessly charming smile. Honestly, it’s almost impressive how far he’s willing to go, she thought.
He’s neglecting business deals that rake in millions just to come all the way here and listen to my meeting? I should be flattered, Aubree thought to herself.
Most of Bree Technology’s shareholders were partners Aubree had personally handpicked herself—colleagues whose meetings were usually quite relaxed. With an extra person in the room today, the atmosphere shifted noticeably. Everyone sat ramrod straight.
Bowen, completely oblivious to being the source of the tension, flashed a charming smile and said, “Don’t mind me. I’m just here to see if my investment is paying off.”
Aubree did her best to ignore Bowen.
Aubree said, “Vincent, let’s get started.”
Standing beside her, Vincent projected the prepared materials onto the screen. After his presentation, he concluded, “That covers Ms. Miller’s latest strategic plan for the Bree Technology project.”
No one raised any objections—they had already reviewed the plan before the meeting. Today’s discussion was simply to finalize the polished version.
“I’ve got a question,” a voice rang out. “We just talked about seeking investment. Why not have Turner Group invest? Didn’t Bree Technology secure Turner Group’s investment through Playry when it was first founded? Logically, we could ask them to increase their investment.”
As he spoke, the person glanced at Bowen.
Besides, with Bowen, the president of Turner Group, right here, why go through the hassle of finding other investors? he wondered.
That made sense on paper, but Aubree couldn’t very well accuse Bowen of having ulterior motives. How was she supposed to just ignore him while still taking his money?
Ignore him while still take his money? How hypocritical would that be? Aubree thought.
Aubree retorted sternly. “So every time we’re short on cash, we just run to Turner Group? Are they our private ATM? What if one day they stop investing in us—what then?”
That did sound reasonable enough.