Chapter 12 The Bet


    Caroline was shocked by Leo''s words, her anger quickly shifting to disbelief. "What?!" she cried out at


    the top of her lungs, "Are you insane?"


    Reba thought Leo was all talk and no action, so she decided to give him a piece of her mind. "Help


    us win?" Rebaughed darkly. "Do you even know what you''re talking about? Do you know how


    manypanies are involved in today''s bidding war?" Reba snorted. "You should keep your mouth


    shut if you don''t know what you''re saying."


    From Reba''s perspective, Leo knew nothing about the business world.


    Reba was aware of how important today''s auction was; it was the premier business event of the


    year, one that would yield the greatest business value to the participants who knew what they were


    doing. Not a single party in attendance—from the owners of small factories to the CEOs of mega


    corporations—would want to miss the opportunity to coborate with As Beauty. The Ford family


    didn''t stand a snowball''s chance in hell.


    If the Lawsons'' hadn''t brought down their family five years ago, they might have stood some chance.


    But now, even Vesper Corporation, their only listedpany, had turned on them. The Ford family


    wouldn''t even have made it into the attendees list if it weren''t for the subsidiaries they still owned. The


    fact that they were here however, was a moot point; it was impossible for them to distinguish


    themselves from the other corporations in attendance, not when they were this weak in the knees.


    However, Leo shook his head and said tly, "Just because you can''t do it doesn''t mean that I can''t."


    Caroline immediately saw red. "What the hell is that supposed to mean?" she snarled. "Are you


    implying that we''re inept?" Seconds passed in silence as Caroline continued to re daggers at Leo. A


    momentter, a smug look spread across her features. "You sound so confident. Like you''re certain


    that you can help us win this."


    "Don''t get any wrong ideas now," Leo deadpanned, "I''m not doing this for you. I''m only doing this


    because Dad doesn''t want the Ford family to fall into ruin." Leo arched a brow at Caroline. "I couldn''t


    care less about the rest of you."


    Leo had made his stance and intentions clear. Caroline''s behavior —both in public and behind closed


    doors—had taught Leo one thing; that people change over time, and that the world is aplex


    To put it bluntly, Leo regarded William as his only remaining connection to the entire Ford family.


    And he would do everything in his power to help a family member out.


    Reba snorted and shot him a look of disdain. "In that case, I''d like to see you try and win this. Don''t


    Surprised, Caroline pulled her mother aside. "What? Are you really going to let him handle this?


    There''s still a slim chance to win if we y our cards right. If we leave it to him, we''re screwed."


    "That''s true. But dear, do you really think that we can win this on our own?" Reba said with a


    callous look. "If there''s no hope at all, why not take this opportunity to drive him out of our lives for


    good?"


    Caroline was shocked. "So, that''s what you''re thinking..."


    "You bet!" A coldness flickered in Reba''s eyes. "It happens that I don''t know how to chase him


    away. But since he volunteered, he''ll provide us with all the ammunition that we need."


    "If he messed up, no matter how protective of Leo that William is, he won''t be able to defend him


    anymore."


    Caroline also nodded, then she turned around and said to Leo, "Tell you what; you can take over the


    bidding. But if you screw this up, don''t even think about contacting any of us again. As far as I''m


    concerned, this is yourst chance."


    "No problem," Leo remained calm and said lightly, "Though I''m sure Dad would disagree."


    "That''s none of your concern." Reba snorted. "I''d focus oning up with a n to win right now, if


    I were you."


    She then pulled her daughter to sit down. Leo stood in a corner at a suitable distance from them.


    He took out his phone and calmly sent out a text. A momentter, his phone rang.


    He answered the phone and listened quietly.


    "I see." He hung up with an indiscernible expression, then waited for the bidding to start.


    After some morepanies entered the venue, Jesse Watson, the Chief Marketing Officer of As


    Beauty stepped onto the podium.


    He cleared his throat, looked around, then put on a smile, "Good afternoon,dies and gentlemen. To


    start with, I''d like to thank you all foring to the bidding of As Beauty..."


    He soon went straight to the point. "As Beauty believes in win-win situations. The design for our new


    perfume ''Angel'' has been released. Here are some pictures of the product."


    The screen then disyed exquisite PowerPoint slides to introduce the concept, message, and


    ingredients of the perfume.


    What''s next is to promote and produce new products and that''s why we''re making this presentation. I''ll


    pass on the stage to you. Please show your proposal on the screen and give an overview of your


    concept. I''ll handle the first review, and Ms. Henderson will make the final decision."


    "By the way, we''re live streaming today''s event. Ms. Henderson is too busy to be here in person, but


    she''ll be watching us online."


    A low murmuring filled the space at once.


    "Even she''s involved in this event. It must be important to her on a personal level..."


    "Yeah, she''s something of a sess story in Emerdale."


    "I thought that Mr. Watson would decide the winner. I didn''t expect him to just be the first-round judge."


    Once it was heard that Lydia herself would do the final review, all the participants became amped up.


    Even Martin was not as rxed as before, since Jesse was the most senior person he knew working


    for As Beauty.


    Only Leo kept his countenance, as if everything was firmly under his control.


    "Well, I dere this bidding open!" Jesse walked down the podium and went to the reviewer''s table.


    When he passed by Martin, he nodded at him with a discreet smile.


    Martin felt somewhat relieved, thinking, "No matter what, Jesse''s opinion still matters to Ms.


    Henderson..."


    Thepanies took to the stage in alphabetical order. With all kinds of borate PowerPoint slides


    being disyed on the screen, the representatives described their design ideas in the most minute of


    details.


    Jesse did not make any remarks, but wrote down some notes from time to time. This disappointed


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    those who tried to pick up some cues from his facial expressions.


    Many participants had a feeling in the pit of their stomachs.


    Caroline became more strained and fidgeted restlessly. She turned to Reba, "Mom, these


    failing to impress, then we..."


    "Shh." Reba was also nervous but pretended to be calm. "Just watch."


    Although both of them had seen this bidding as a chance to drive Leo away, deep in their hearts, they


    still hoped that they would have a chance to shine on this asion.


    After all, if the Ford family copsed, they would be the ones to suffer.


    "Next, Vesper Corporation!" Jesse announced the next bidder.


    Martin took a deep breath, double checked his appearance, then walked onto the stage confidently with


    files and a sh drive.