"President, the energy merger meeting is about to begin in five minutes." Special Assistant Nate knocked on the door before opening it and entering the hotel conference lounge, respectfully inviting President Ned to attend the merger negotiations with GreenTech Renewables Ltd.
"Just a moment." Looking toward the door, Ned gestured for his assistant to step out first, then continued giving instructions to the PR manager on the video call: "Immediately allocate ten million pounds for PR expenses. Get racing teams to show support and have celebrities endorse it right away. Don't be afraid to spend money—we must ensure this merger is presented perfectly."
"Yes, understood, President." The finance manager and PR manager replied in unison.
After ending the video conference, Ned immediately walked out of the lounge.
Special Assistant Nate was waiting outside the door. Seeing his boss emerge, he quickly followed.
"Are the journalists and media all here?" Ned asked as they entered the elevator.
"Yes."
"Has Director Jones arrived?"
"Yes."
"What about the merger contract?"
"It's already been delivered to the venue." Adjusting his gold-rimmed glasses, Ned's special assistant Nate always answered without any expression.
Though Nate considered himself calm and pragmatic, he had to admit that in his entire career, he had never met a man more cold-blooded and ruthless than his boss—despite being so young.
Only in the elevator did Nate dare to study the reflection in the mirror of Edward James Harrington (Ned)'s face...
It was a handsome, striking yet austere face, devoid of any expression. Even six months ago, when the President officially assumed the role of director at Harrington & Co. International, Nate had never seen a trace of joy or triumph on this young boss's face—only a near-indifferent calm.
Harrington & Co. International is a British energy giant dominating the North Sea oil, gas, and offshore wind sectors, focused on the transition from traditional to renewable energy. Supported by the UK government's "net zero emissions" policy, this merger was initiated amid global energy price fluctuations and the impact of the EU's Carbon Border Adjustment Mechanism (CBAM). The company sought strategic expansion to strengthen its supply chain and build reserves in green technology.
"When the signing ceremony begins in a moment, come in with me. I'll leave midway through—you stay in the venue on my behalf to handle the media and journalists," Ned instructed.
"Yes." Nate replied crisply and dutifully. He never asked unnecessary questions and was mostly silent and quiet.
This was exactly the kind of subordinate Ned wanted—one who got things done without talking too much.
"President." Just before entering the venue, Nate suddenly called out to Ned.
"What is it?"
"There's a personal matter I need to inform you about. Before I came to the lounge earlier, Miss Yamamoto Yui called. She said she was very pleased to be your companion at the dinner banquet and is looking forward to tonight's celebratory salon going smoothly. She'll be waiting for you at 5 p.m. in the private booth on the second floor of Crown & Cipher cafe." Nate relayed the message as concisely as possible.
Ned turned sideways to look at his special assistant. "Alright, got it," he replied steadily.
Then, without any facial expression, he strode quickly through the doors that the doorman slowly pushed open.
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As soon as Ned appeared, the flashbulbs from the on-site photographers began popping one after another—
Nate, following closely behind him, immediately assumed the role of host. "Ladies and gentlemen, please take your seats!" he politely invited the media and journalists to enter.
The reason the merger signing ceremony was held on such a grand scale was that this acquisition would enable Harrington & Co. International's market value to grow by an estimated 20%, with revenue projected to increase by 12% in the following year.
From a political perspective, this merger plan had received strong support from the Department for Business and Trade (DBT). It would significantly strengthen the clean energy and digital technology sectors in the UK's "Industrial Strategy," enhance Britain's energy independence, and reduce reliance on imports from Russia and the Middle East.
At the same time, the merger brought together the Harrington Foundation (which donates £100 million annually, with a focus on climate change) and GreenTech's charitable arm (which supports community solar projects), forming a new, massive charitable organization called the "Harrington Green Future Trust."
These blockbuster announcements had dominated the front-page headlines of major newspapers and electronic media in London and Manchester for nearly a week.
"Director Jones." Upon entering, Ned strode toward the signing table and nodded while shaking hands with Mr. Jones, the representative of GreenTech Renewables Ltd, who had been waiting there.
The media's flashbulbs began popping intermittently again... This was a grand event...
The merger ceremony officially began. Ned nodded to signal the start, and Director Jones from GreenTech took the floor: "Ladies and gentlemen, I am here to announce that the merger cooperation between GreenTech Renewables Ltd and Harrington & Co. International is officially signed today... This historic merger will bring about..."
The flashbulbs kept popping relentlessly at the scene, for this was not only the top story in London—it was the most closely watched piece of news across all European media that day. Major electronic media outlets in London had dispatched satellite news gathering (SNG) vans early in the morning, stationed and ready, lest they miss this internationally significant event and end up with an exclusive scoop gap in tonight's broadcast.
Director Jones handled the media with ease, delivering the official post-merger guidance statements.
GreenTech Renewables Ltd was an innovative green technology company with a market value of approximately £10 billion, headquartered in Manchester in northwest England, specializing in solar panels, wind turbines, and carbon capture technology.
After its founding, GreenTech faced immense financing pressure due to rapid growth. Impacted by the 2024 interest rate peak, the company's debt ratio surged by 20% almost overnight, putting GreenTech at a life-or-death crossroads.
At the same time, Harrington & Co. International extended an olive branch for cooperative merger, and the two parties actively pushed forward for this reason, ultimately leading to the smooth execution of this merger.
Watching the green energy company he had founded single-handedly—GreenTech—rise from the brink of death, regain vitality, and poised for even greater development post-merger, Director Jones was beaming with joy. Facing the media flashbulbs and journalists' questions, he welcomed them all without refusal, utterly exhilarated...
At the other end of the venue, apart from a cool smile, Ned showed no expression. He was the most silent focal point of the entire room.
For four years, he had devoted himself entirely to his career, stepping toward success one stride at a time. By now, processes like commercial mergers, annexations, and acquisitions had become, in Ned's eyes, nothing more than commonplace games of money.
............
On the second floor of the Crown & Cipher hotel, in a VIP booth in the cafe, at 4:45 p.m., Miss Yamamoto Yui was already waiting inside, awaiting Ned's arrival.
When Ned reached the booth, Yui stood up to greet him.
"Mr. Harrington." A flower-like smile bloomed on Yui's fair, snow-tender face. Upholding traditional Japanese virtues, Yui greeted Ned with a very polite ninety-degree bow.
With her high education and professional experience, Yui had been an exchange student at Keio University's Shonan Fujisawa Campus (SFC) and the École hôtelière de Lausanne (EHL) in Switzerland. She had over 350,000 followers on Instagram, where she mainly posted about Michelin-starred kaiseki cuisine and zero-carbon hotel rooms. Currently, she served as special assistant to the president at her father's hotel, Fujiwara Imperial Tokyo.
"Miss Yamamoto, hello!"
"Mr. Harrington, please just call me Yui." Her beautiful smile was as restrained and soft as warm spring sunlight, and her English was as fluent and pure as her native Japanese.
Yamamoto Yui was a very refined Japanese heiress with not a trace of arrogance.
"Yui," Ned smiled, going along with it. "Shall we go? The dinner salon starts at 19:00—you only have two hours left for styling."
"Yes! Thank you so much, Mr. Harrington! You're such a gentleman!"
"Just call me Ned. Let's go!" With that, he turned directly and headed toward the parking lot of C&C.
Turning off the TV news, Matthew Wilson stared blankly at the screen, his face expressionless.
"That Sophie—why doesn't she just stay a proper young lady? Why go abroad at all? If she hadn't left, maybe today she could have inherited a director's position." Charlotte Wilson stood up from the sofa, muttering complaints under her breath: "If that were the case, she'd definitely be on TV today, showing off a bit. And then our whole family wouldn't have to squeeze into this tiny apartment—we could at least move to a villa, or if not that, a large flat would do. Just thinking about it feels nice!"
Matthew glared at his wife Charlotte, then shook his head in disgust.
Charlotte had already walked into the kitchen and didn't see her husband's expression—otherwise, the two would have had another big fight over Sophie.