Johns Media Culture Media Company fell into an anxious state.
After the press conference yesterday, the crowd of annoying reporters vanished, but because of the stakeholders' meeting that very day, there was no time to rest at all.
At the moment, inside the CEO office of Johns Media.
Kristina was sifting through the documents for the meeting prepared by her secretary while Layla and Victoria were sitting on the sofa, drinking coffee.
Layla looked at the tablet in her hand. There were still all sorts of comments on Weibo, so she reminded Victoria worriedly,
"Victoria, lay low for a while. Try not to garner too much attention to yourself. We're not totally safe from the news yet. Be careful. Arya really got us this time."
Victoria stopped her movements to turn over to Layla and nod.
"I got it. I'll be careful."
"Don't worry. We've taken on several big projects this year, in which Smiths and the Martinez Corporation invested, and a large portion at that. Your popularity will surely shoot up, and you've never let us down before, have you?"
Layla comforted Victoria when she saw the sadness in her eyes.
That land was Ethan's engagement gift to Victoria. Besides being highly valuable, it meant a lot to her as well. She wanted to make a trade with Arya, but in the end, the latter made her hand it out without getting anything in return. Furthermore, she even had to spend another few million on it.
She really suffered a huge loss this time while Arya remained triumphant!
"Mmm, I know. I won't let everyone down. It'll be fine, Mother!"
Arya smiled as she turned toward Kristina.
"Grandmother, haven't you found out who's been stocking up our shares in secret yet?"
"Hmph, those cunning old foxes! I only know someone bought if off from them, but I still haven't found out who the person is. Nevertheless, we'll know very soon!"
Kristina's expression darkened when this matter was mentioned.
"Well... Then, if the person really has Sister's documents, what should we do?" Victoria looked at Kristina worriedly.
Kristina paled. The recent bout of incidents had been nothing short of chaos. She never expected Arya would become like this. In the past, she would just accept whatever was thrown at her, but her temperament got sharper after working for several years.
"I'll just have to figure it out." Kristina took a deep breath, her eyes seemed sharp as ever.
"I cannot let her threaten Johns Media with that document."
"Actually, Grandmother can try to convince Grandfather to talk to Sister. She has always listened to Grandfather. Besides, she can have a nice, long talk with Grandfather. Wouldn't that make things easier? I believe Grandfather won't let Sister sell it to just anyone, so, Grandmother, we..." Victoria said cautiously.
Kristina's expression froze before she sighed, "Your grandfather's still blaming me for that matter. How can I convince him? Plus, the document last time... Victoria, don't bother your Grandfather on this. We had an agreement before."
"But..." Victoria still wanted to say something, but Layla stopped her. It was obvious that the elder did not seem pleased.
"It's almost time. Most of the stakeholders should be present already. Let's go."
Kristina closed the document in her hand and then walked out while Layla and Victoria followed her.
Inside the huge meeting room, most of the seats were occupied except for several seats in front.
Kristina went up to the CEO's seat and sat down as Layla and Victoria sat beside her.
The higher-ups who were whispering with the other stakeholders stopped talking as soon as they saw Kristina. Everyone focused on her.
Kristina opened the document in her hands and glanced around with her sharp eyes. She then focused on the vacant seats on the left and right, especially the empty seat on the right. She frowned when she looked at them.
"CEO Kristina, that's the seat for Smith's Master. I spoke to their secretary earlier and Master Smith is on his way. Here's CEO Thomas seat. He didn't pick up the call..." The secretary quickly explained the situation to her.
There was the sound of footsteps after the secretary made her report. The crowd looked toward the entrance just as Aiden's handsome face came into view...
"Master Smith!"
The crowd was shocked. They were all familiar with Aiden, especially when Johns Media had been facing so much trouble lately. They still managed to have several projects with Smiths, and today Aiden was actually attending the stakeholders meeting?
"Master Smith!" Kristina's expression softened when she saw Aiden. Victoria and Layla traded glances with each other before putting on warm smiles.
"It seems that I'm not the last one to arrive!" Aiden grinned as he glanced at the empty seat nearby.
"Master Smith, you've arrived right on time. We were just about to start. Please have a seat!" Kristina pointed at the seat on her left as she smiled.
Aiden nodded and then glanced at his secretary. He then went toward the seat Kristina pointed at and sat down. Glancing at the still empty seat as he raised his eyebrows in surprise, he remarked,
"Is someone not here yet? Is that someone even more important than me?"
"It's CEO Thomas. He's been really cocky lately. He told me that he got his hands on some fortune, but he didn't reveal what it was. I heard that he's going to work on his own business."
"I heard about that too. No wonder he had such an arrogant vibe around him! How dare he be late for the stakeholders meeting!?"
People started whispering and discussing as Kristina's face darkened again. She gave a signal to Layla, who quickly grabbed her phone and gave CEO Thomas a call.
After a while, Layla's expression looked terrible because no one was picking up the call, and the discussions were getting louder by the second...
"What's wrong, Mother?" Victoria asked quietly while the crowd was starting to make a fuss.
The moment that she asked this and before Layla could reply, the door to the meeting room opened.
Suddenly, everyone turned to the entrance. The door was now opened and a slender figure appeared before their eyes.
In her usual smart, black, professional outfit with her long, black hair as well as the stern face, who else could it be aside from Arya?
The person beside her was the Vice President of Glory World, Liam. People knew him well. There were also two assistants behind them, each of them carrying a thick and heavy briefcase.
Victoria was shocked when Arya appeared. Instantly, she turned pale.
Kristina and Layla widened their eyes and could not react at all. They just looked on as Arya and Liam strolled in silently.
Arya scanned around and then traded glances with Liam. The two of them sat down in the empty seats after Liam nodded.
Everyone was shocked. Most of them had heard about someone secretly buying Johns Media's shares, so was it Glory World's doing all along?
"How could it be them? That man looks like Vice President Liam from Glory World. Who's that lady?"
"Why are they sitting in CEO Thomas's seat? Could CEO Thomas have sold his shares to Glory World?"
...
"I see... It's Vice President Liam and Director Johns. Long time no see! I wonder if you still remember me, Director Johns?" A wicked humour-filled voice rang out. Everyone stopped talking and looked towards the source of that voice.
Arya casually sat in a vacant seat. That sudden voice made her lift her head and she saw Aiden's wicked expression. Almost immediately, her eyes turned cold!
She had never forgotten how Kristina had nearly sent her to him back then!
Arya took a glance at Liam, who replied with a smile,
"Long time no see, President Smith."
"What are you doing here?" Layla demanded with a grim expression.
Kristina and Victoria came back to their senses, observing the calm Arya. Kristina could guess what had happened as she stared at Arya with her sharp eyes.
Arya glared back at Kristina with a tint of sadness in her eyes. In the end, her eyes fell onto Layla, her voice calm.
"Vice President Layla's question sounded odd. Please be mindful of your tone."
"This is not somewhere you can mess with. It's Johns Media's stakeholders' meeting! What are you guys thinking?" Kristina stared at Arya coldly, her tone sounding harsh.
"I'm surprised by President Kristina's attitude. Since this is Johns Media's stakeholders' meeting, as a shareholder, shouldn't I be attending?"
Arya gave Kristina a wry smile as if she did not see the anger on her face. She looked over to Victoria.
"Well, Ms. Victoria is here. This is the stakeholders' meeting. Your scandal is still well-discussed outside, so why are you here instead of hiding elsewhere? Don't you think the company has had enough trouble? I even heard that President Kristina was feeling unwell because of you. Shouldn't you explain yourself to everyone here?"
Victoria's face turned paler as Arya finished her sentence. She looked at Kristina helplessly with a pained expression, not knowing what to say.
"What do you mean by that? Since when did you become a shareholder of Johns Media?"
Kristina caught the keywords in Arya's sentence, and her whole body tensed up as she threw knife-sharp glances at her.
"Glory World purchased Johns Media's shares from CEO Thomas and several other people. We Glory World are now interested in the showbiz industry. Director Johns is attending this meeting on behalf of Glory World as the Operating Vice President of Johns Media. I hope we can collaborate well in the future!" Liam's timely reply erased everyone's doubts.
What!?
Operating Vice President?
The secret buyer was actually Glory World?
Kristina's eyes flew open as her whole body trembled while she suddenly thought of something!
So, did Arya sell the 20% shares Arianna held to Glory World?
Kristina stared at Arya in disbelief.
"You... Did you... That document... You... You gave it to Glory World..."
Layla was shocked as well. She glanced at Kristina beside her with unease.
Arya seemed pleased to see them freaked out. She felt much better as they looked more anxious and afraid. She remembered how Arianna had left and was forced to sign the document. She even had to stab herself on the shoulder. Upon recalling all this, coldness gathered in her eyes.
As they were still in disbelief, she extended her arm to her assistant, Reena, behind her. Reena quickly handed a document to her.
She grabbed it and flipped through it, then tossed it onto the table and pointed at the top of the document.
"Do you mean this document?"
"I know you've been putting in a lot of effort for this document lately, I'll let you take a look today."
Arya left them with a casual remark as Reena sent the document to Kristina.
"We also have a share transfer contract here. Please take a look, everyone. We Glory World now have 37% of shares. That means we're eligible to participate in Johns Media's decision as the second largest stakeholder."
Liam also signalled his assistant to distribute the documents to everyone.
Kristina's body shuddered as she looked at the document Reena handed over. Flipping it open, she could not believe what she saw. She glared at Arya with bulging eyes.
"You... You..."
Suddenly, she blacked out, and her hands let go of the document and it fell onto the floor.
"Mother!"
"Grandmother!"
"Grandmother, are you alright?"
Victoria grabbed Kristina who almost fell off the chair while Layla quickly took out the bottle of medicine from Kristina's pocket. She grabbed several tablets and popped them into her mouth.
This scene shocked most of the people in the meeting room. Many of them stood up and looked around, trying to figure out what was happening.
Aiden squinted and just observed the room. His eyes quickly locked onto the aloof and calm Arya, staring at her with interest.
Kristina's heart rate calmed down after taking her medicine. She panted while she slowly came back to consciousness as Victoria held her, unable to say anything.
"Grandmother, are you alright?"
"Mother, are you okay?"
Victoria and Layla's anxious voices reached her.
Victoria could not stand it anymore. A cold light flashed through her eyes as she looked at Arya, and there was anger in her tone.
"Arya, you're too much! She's your grandmother!"
Everyone was once again shocked when they heard Victoria's voice. There were some people in the room who had no idea about the relationship between them, which was why Victoria's words astounded them.
"I don't care how you attacked me. I won't say anything about it, but aren't you too much to be treating Grandmother like this? Don't you know that Grandmother fell sick because of your behaviour this time? Just come at me if you're angry! Why are you involving her? No matter what I do, you'll feel that I owe you anyway!"
Victoria's composure seemed as if she was bearing all the burden and responsibilities. She acted very protective of Kristina, and even Arya was impressed by her stellar performance.
"Ms. Victoria, I wonder what you mean by that. I'm attending this stakeholders' meeting on behalf of Glory World, so what's the problem here? Glory World has been planning to enter the showbiz industry since last year. We chose Johns Media and really hoped that we could work together. I don't understand what you mean..." Arya put on a doubtful look, her expression seeming innocent.
"Moreover, I remember that back then, when you signed the contract with Glory World, I heard from Manager of the PR Department that you mentioned you hoped Glory World and Johns Media could work well together, didn't you?"
Victoria was stunned and her face looked very pale, but just as she was about to say something —
"Impossible! This is not possible! 17%? How could you have 17% of our shares? Where did you get them from? How are they under your name? You're lying! You're lying!" Layla's sharp voice screeched through the meeting room. She finally understood why Kristina was so stirred up after she saw the document!
It clearly stated that the 17% of shares from CEO Thomas and the others were now under Arya's name. In addition to Arianna's 20% portion, it meant that Arya had a total of 37% shares. If she were to release all these shares in the market, Johns Media would not be able to take the blow!
"Isn't it written clearly there? Or else you can call and ask CEO Thomas or CEO Ronald. We purchased their shares at a high price. Oh, I forgot to tell you that they're both enjoying their vacation in Bali. I think you won't be able to reach them at the moment." Arya glanced indifferently at the tensed up Layla. She did not miss the animosity that flashed through Victoria's eyes, but she smiled as she flipped through the document in her hand.
"Can we start the meeting now, CEO Kristina? I have to report back to the company about the situation here."
"Let's start the meeting, CEO Kristina. My time is precious too. We've wasted too much time!" Aiden voiced out with a wicked smile, yet his eyes were locked onto Arya. His glances carried more intent than they seemed!
The others nodded their heads. They could not care less for the ashen Kristina and the rest.
Kristina took a deep breath while her tightened chest felt a little relieved. She looked defeated as a coldness flashed through her eyes, but with her strong willpower, she flipped open the document before her.
Layla and Victoria traded glances with each other before glaring angrily at Arya. They then kept their rage within and sat back down.
They started talking about Johns Media's upcoming projects as well as several large productions they were involved in.
Arya remained silent and did not say anything. She did not give any comment at all, but on the opposite end, Aiden voiced out his doubts from time to time.
Finally, Arya started talking when they were deciding on the female lead role.
"I don't agree with your decision, CEO Kristina. Victoria follows the style of a gentle and sweet beauty, but the role in this movie requires a woman with a strong and independent nature. I don't have any problems if you want her to change her style, but I really don't agree with trying it out on such a big project. It's too risky to experiment using most of the company's resources. Moreover, does anyone still think she's suitable to become the female lead judging by her reputation lately? I personally think the newcomer is pretty good. Her appearance and vibe fit the role, so I'm recommending her!"
"Arya, don't you dare!" Layla could not hold it in anymore and shot to her feet, staring at Arya angrily.
"We've discussed that the female lead role is Victoria's. What do you mean by that? Do you want to change the female lead role now?"
"I'm just voicing out my own opinions here. Vice President Layla, why are you so worked up? Has the matter been decided already?" Arya seemed much calmer compared to the enraged Layla.
"That's too bad then. We've signed the contract yesterday, and the female lead role has been finalized. Moreover, we've discussed it before, mostly among the experienced personnel in the industry, so I guess an amateur like you, Director Johns, doesn't have to worry about this matter." Victoria reacted, seeming angry with Arya's attitude.
After saying that, several other stakeholders who had an opinion remained silent. Of course, they did not want to go back on their words since they had given their support during the decision to finalize Victoria as the female lead.
Arya was not upset about Victoria's counter-argument at all. In fact, she was looking forward to it!
I'm going to see how far you can go!
"Director Johns, maybe stay in this industry for another few years and learn from Ms. Victoria. Then, you'll be able to become a veteran soon enough!" Aiden went along with Victoria's words.
"I have no intention of going into acting. Wearing a mask for too long makes it difficult to take off. Victoria is naturally talented. She's a born actress. I'm really impressed by her." Arya did not waver at all.