Chapter 308 Crest Corporation's Second Largest Shareholder
Chapter 308 Crest Corporation's Second Largest Shareholder
Alexander was now the majority shareholder of Crest Corporation, holding absolute controlling interest. Recently, he'd increased his stake to a staggering sixty-five percent—only to reduce it back down to fifty-one percent.
Until the financial reports went public, no one could trace where those divested shares had gone.
But William had his suspicions: Alexander had actually gone through with the asset split and completed the initial stock transfer.
Of all Alexander's holdings, his equity stake was the crown jewel.
Rumor had it that at Crest's current valuation, even owning a mere 0.1% of the company's stock would guarantee a lifetime of luxury and ease—let alone a whopping fourteen percent!
William immediately brought the matter to Mary.
Mary was livid.
She couldn't fathom what kind of hold Grace had over Alexander, that she could lead him around by the nose like this.
Her dissatisfaction with Grace deepened into outright resentment.
William asked, "Mom, what do we do? Alexander seems to have made up his mind."
Alexander's position was crystal clear.
He wanted Emily to terminate the pregnancy. At the same time, he intended to marry Grace.
But Mary retorted, "She hasn't even married in yet, and she's already this brazen. What will happen once she's officially part of the family? Will I have any peace left? I don't agree!"
Samantha chimed in from the sidelines with her usual passive-aggressive tone. "Mom, it's not really about whether you agree or not anymore. Alexander is protecting Grace, and with him backing her, she's untouchable. Whether you agree or not, he's still going to gradually transfer all his shares and assets to her. By then, forget Emily—none of us will see a single dime."
Mary bristled.
Samantha had accidentally let slip what she really cared about!
So she'd been eyeing Alexander's assets all along!
Mary snapped, "What good does my agreement do? Even if I agree, there's no guarantee he'll stop. From where I'm standing, he doesn't give a damn about me as his grandmother anymore. Whether I agree or not, he'll do whatever he pleases! After all, the Hayes family answers to him now!"
Samantha pressed, "Then… what about Emily's babies? Are we still letting her have them?"
Mary's expression hardened. "Whether we let her or not, things have already come to this point! If you ask me, we might as well let her give birth. They're Hayes blood either way. Even if Alexander refuses to acknowledge them, I will!"
Over the years, Mary had accumulated a fair amount of real estate in her own name. Supporting two children wouldn't be a problem.
She refused to believe that Alexander could stay cold-hearted forever. Once Emily actually gave him two sons, surely he wouldn't be able to ignore his own flesh and blood!
Besides, the children in Emily's belly were merely tools—leverage to counterbalance Grace's influence.
---
That evening, the family gathered to celebrate Max's birthday.
Just like Liam's.
This was Alexander's first time celebrating Max's birthday with him.
Grace gave Max another set of LEGO bricks as usual.
Every year, she agonized over what to get Max for his birthday. But no matter how many times she gave him LEGO, Max never tired of it.
Liam's gift was a high-definition digital camera. Lily gave Max a full set of mystery boxes.
Alexander's gift was the most interesting—a Hubble space telescope.
It hit Max right in the heart.
Max was deeply fascinated by astronomy, and he never expected Alexander to nail it so perfectly.
Now, he could use the Hubble telescope to stargaze with Mommy!
This was, without a doubt, the happiest birthday Max had ever had in his eight years of life.
Both Daddy and Mommy were by his side, along with Liam and Lily to celebrate with him.
After this birthday, he would officially be eight years old.
---
That night, Grace went into Max and Liam's room as always, giving each of them a goodnight kiss.
Perhaps because he'd had so much fun, Liam could barely keep his eyes open, but he stubbornly waited for Grace's goodnight kiss before allowing himself to fall asleep.
Grace kissed Liam's forehead, and he immediately closed his eyes, content, drifting off almost instantly.
She moved to Max's bedside and gently kissed him. "Max, Mommy's getting married."
She'd agreed to Alexander's proposal—they would register their marriage next Tuesday.
Max replied, "Mommy, I just want you to be happy forever. If Daddy ever dares to bully you, I won't let him get away with it!"
Alexander's recent behavior had deeply satisfied Max.
He now accepted Alexander—truly accepted him.
On the matter of Emily, Alexander had been uncompromisingly firm. He had gradually transferred fourteen percent of his stock to Grace's name. She already held fifteen percent from before—over the years, Max had quietly acquired that stake in her name. Combined with Alexander's transfer, her holdings now reached an astonishing twenty-nine percent, making her Crest Corporation's second-largest shareholder.
Meanwhile, Alexander's current fifty-one percent stake was indivisible.
Beyond that, Alexander had also commissioned a third-party notary to certify his will, allocating inheritance rights proportionally between Max and Liam, with a special clause: children born outside of marriage shall have no right of inheritance whatsoever.
This meant that the vast majority of his assets had been allocated before the marriage.
As for the indivisible portion, once he and Grace registered their marriage, it would all become marital property shared between the two of them.
Max asked, "Mommy, after you and Daddy register, when are you planning the wedding?"
Registering was just the legal formality of becoming husband and wife.
In his heart, Daddy still owed Mommy a sacred and solemn wedding ceremony.
Grace replied, "We haven't discussed it yet. But now that we're legally married, I suppose the wedding will be planned soon enough."
She was pregnant now. Either they'd hold the ceremony before she started showing, or they'd wait until after the baby was born.
She could accept either option—it would depend on Alexander's decision.
After all, planning a wedding took a tremendous amount of energy. Whether to announce their marriage publicly or hold a low-key ceremony—she'd defer to his judgment.
Max said, "Okay."
---
Grace returned to the bedroom. Alexander had just finished showering and emerged from the bathroom wearing a bathrobe.
His hair was half-dried, loose strands falling over his brow and eyes, giving him an unexpectedly youthful, almost boyish appearance. It was hard to believe he'd already passed his thirty-third birthday.
Alexander asked, "Are both kids asleep?"
"Yeah."
Grace hesitated, then said, "Tomorrow's my day off. I'd like to take the kids out somewhere."
Alexander replied, "Since you're off tomorrow, let's go look at wedding houses."
His sudden suggestion caught her off guard.
"Wedding houses?"
Grace asked, puzzled, "Do we need to buy a new place? Isn't this house fine for our marriage?"
Alexander said, "This house is in your name—it's your premarital property. As for after the wedding, I'm planning to buy a villa as our marital home."