Chapter 1377
"Mr. Alonso, we''ve heard your daughter Wendy has high hopes for this project and the Alonso
family is dead set on closing this deal. How are the negotiations going?"
The reporter''s question made Cole''s face tighten up in an instant. He speared the reporter with an
icy stare and asked curtly, "Where did you get wind of my negotiations in the M Country?"
Another reporter piped up immediately, "Your daughter Wendy spilled the beans!"
"Don''t you know? The Harper Group is having a board meeting right now and Presley, in his bid to
curry favor with you, is using his position as chairman to strong-arm Damon into marrying your
daughter. And your daughter is supposedly at the meeting too!"
Cole''s face turned ashen. The crowd was puzzled at his reaction.
"Mr. Alonso seems a bit off."
"It''s not just seeming, he''s really not okay!"
"But that can''t be right. He just closed a big deal. He should be fine!"
"Yeah."
Everyone was left scratching their heads. Then, a voice came through the TV speakers, "Mr.
Alonso, ording to reliable sources, you haven''t signed any contracts with your partners in the M
Country this time. What went wrong?"
The Harper Group''s boardroom fell deathly silent. Wendy and Presley''s smiles froze on their faces.
People in the boardroom gawked at them, then a low murmur of conversation broke out.
"No contracts signed. What does that mean?"
"It can''t be. Big projects like this are usually kept hush-hush."
"But the reporter just said he had reliable information."
Everyone turned their gaze to Wendy, their eyes full of questions.
Wendy forced a smirk, furrowed her brows and retorted, "That''s ridiculous. It''s an Alonso family
project, and my father personally negotiated it. How could there be any problems? Besides, who
else would they coborate with on such a great project?"
As soon as Wendy finished speaking, some people shot confused nces at Chloe. She sat closest
to the multi-media podium, one hand on the conference table, the other holding a remote, lifting and
putting it down intermittently. From afar, no one could really make out her expression, but they could
just about see the faint smile on her lips.
The reporters'' questions made Cole''s face darken even more. He wanted to leave, but was stuck in
ce.
"Mr. Alonso, can you confirm if the deal has been closed?"
"Mr. Alonso, is this news true?"
"We heard this project was a win-win for both parties, why did it fall through? Mr. Alonso, can you
clear up our doubts?"
Throughout, Cole remained stone-faced and silent.
Then another group appeared at the arrival gate. They were all suited up but in different colors, like
they were trying to make a ssh. Their hair was perfectly styled, clearly using some heavy-duty
products. Each face full of confidence, they were a sight to behold.
Seeing them, Chloe frowned slightly, rubbing her forehead in a somewhat helpless gesture.
These guys were way too showy.
Their arrival immediately drew everyone''s attention.
Seeing the chaos, the leader of the group raised an eyebrow, sporting a wide grin, "Oh, isn''t it Mr.
Alonso? Look at how lucky it is , we meet again."
Axel''s voice rang out. Cole turned to look and seeing Axel and his team approaching, his face
turned even grimmer.
Some reporters noticed the time, realizing there should be no other flightsnding at this hour, and
spected that Axel and Cole must be on the same flight. They both came from the M Country and
the phrase "meet again" got them all excited.
Recognizing the man in the red suit as Peck Innovations'' highly paid CEO, Axel, a reporter thrust
the microphone his way.
"Can you confirm, Axel, that you''ve met Mr. Alonso before?"
Axel nodded, "Yes, in the M Country. We bumped into each other almost every day."
This answer made Cole''s team extremely uneasy. Yes, almost every day. ,While they were in the M
Country for a few days, nning to negotiate further to maximize their gains, however, they were
never given an opportunity.
Every day, they sought to negotiate with their M Country partners, but almost every time, Axel and
his team would show up.
They always seemed to have perfect timing, showing up before or after them. Again and again, they
were watching as contracts were signed with Peck Innovations.
Peck Innovations was clearly gunning for them. Even though they had grievances, they had no
choice but to suck it up. They couldn''t do anything; the contracts were now out of their reach.
When they realized there was no going back, they prepared to return home, only to see Axel and
his team at the gate, breezing past them into first ss. Now they''d just gotten off the ne and
were already cornered by reporters.
Axel''s arrival made these already excited reporters even more thrilled.
"Can you tell us, Axel, what was the purpose of your trip to the M Country?"
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"Why were you meeting with Mr. Alonso every day?"
Axel chuckled, but his expression seemed somewhat ufortable, "I''d rather not discuss that. I
feel it might be inappropriate."
"Can you answer, Axel?"
Axel looked torn, ncing back and forth at Cole, before he finally decided to say, "Alright! To be
honest, this thing has been eating at me. I might as well take this chance to share the good news
with my colleagues and my boss."
A few reporters rolled their eyes, "Axel, spit it out already!"
Axel smiled, turned his head and loudly said to Cole, "Mr. Alonso, I''m sorry! I''ve swooped in and
snatched a big deal right from under your nose! But don''t hold it against me, I''m just a cog in the
machine! And you saw it with your own eyes, the real deal-maker wasn''t me, but the big
shareholder of our Peck Innovations! She was the one who made all the arrangements in M
Country. So if you''re looking to stir up trouble in the future, don''te after me, go after her!"