Chapter39 Great to Work With You
Ariana frowned, staring at the manager who was slumped on the floor. "Hey! What's wrong with you?"
The manager acted like he hadn't heard her. His eyes were vacant, and he just kept repeating, "It's over... I'm totally finished..."
"Loser," Ariana spat out impatiently, her contempt obvious.
She turned and walked away. The anger from not seeing Miranda's face drop in despair burned hotter.
She thought, She's just someone who got kicked out of her own company. What kind of trouble can she cause?
She was able to snatch the first place she looked at, and She can snatch the second! Miranda thinks she can start her own company? She's dreaming!
Still... that woman named Alice seemed pretty important.
No, She need to find Harrison right away.
No matter where Miranda looked next, Ariana was determined to have Harrison preemptively sign the leases for those offices at a high price. She wanted to make sure Miranda couldn't even rent a tiny office in all of A City.
With her mind made up, Ariana didn't spare another glance for the manager she had just dragged down with her. She strutted off in her high heels, full of satisfaction.
...
A half hour later, the car smoothly pulled up in the most prestigious area of the city center.
Miranda followed Alice into an impressive office building. When the elevator doors opened on the top floor, a whole floor of spacious, bright, and impeccably furnished office space was revealed. She was genuinely stunned.
"This place..." She looked out the window at the incredible view that overlooked almost half the city. She spoke without thinking. "The rent must be crazy, right?"
"It was just sitting empty anyway. We figured it'd be good to get it rented out," Alice said casually.
Internally, she was complaining furiously.
Empty? Yeah, right!
She got a message from Prescott late last night, and She had my whole department move out overnight to clear this entire floor. Then She rushed people in to put in all-new furnishings.
Otherwise, how would it have just "conveniently" become vacant exactly when you needed it?
Miranda took a tour and grew more and more pleased. This place was a massive upgrade from the last one in terms of location, size, and decor.
She tentatively asked about the price.
The result surprised her even more. The rent was only slightly higher than the previous place. The value was unbelievably good. She was definitely getting a bargain.
"This is it," Miranda said immediately.
This time, nothing went wrong.
The moment Miranda signed her name on the lease, a huge weight lifted from her shoulders.
"Miranda, congratulations," Alice said, extending her hand with a sincere smile. "Congrats on getting your own company. We have high hopes for the 'Starlight Project' and look forward to our future partnership."
Miranda shook her hand back, a relaxed smile finally appearing in her eyes. "Great to work with you."
That afternoon, Miranda, Lisa, and the rest of the former project team officially moved into the new office building.
The facilities were top-notch, and even the office computers were the latest models, saving her a huge chunk of money on purchases.
By the time all the employees had finished their onboarding, everything was settled, and night had fallen.
Miranda leaned back in her large leather office chair, her eyes closed, rubbing her throbbing temples. From being kicked out of the Ning family to owning her own company, it had only been two short days, but it felt like a century.
Knock, knock.
The office door was tapped, and Lisa walked in. She saw the exhaustion etched across Miranda's face.
Miranda opened her eyes at the sound. Seeing Lisa, her voice was slightly hoarse. "Is everyone settled in?"
"Yep," Lisa nodded, placing a list on her desk. "Everyone is super motivated."
Miranda looked at the list and then spoke. "Lisa, notify everyone. For our core technical staff, I'm going to allocate company shares and offer them dividends based on their technical contributions."
Lisa's eyes instantly lit up.
But after the initial excitement, she calmed down. A look of worry appeared on her face. "Miranda, the office building is sorted, but funding is the main problem. Once the project restarts, the ongoing R&D and operations will require a lot of cash. The money we have won't last long."
This was the most critical, realistic issue.
Miranda knew it well. She was silent for a moment before speaking slowly. "I've thought it through. I have a number of properties in my name, plus my shares in the Lancaster Group. Tomorrow, I'm going to the bank to apply for a mortgage loan."
This was her last resort.
Lisa saw the desperate, determined look in Miranda's eyes, and the fire in her own chest was reignited.
She nodded firmly, her voice ringing with conviction. "I believe in you! Miranda, with you leading us, we'll definitely make this work!"
They shared a small smile. Despite the fatigue, the flame of hope had been rekindled in both their eyes.
...
On the other side of town, Ariana found Harrison and exaggerated the story about Miranda having someone powerful backing her.
But after she finished showering him with affection and asked Harrison to help rent out every office building Miranda might look at, Harrison's answer stunned her.
"Too late. She's already leased a new office building."
Ariana shrieked. "How could that happen? I told you to check, didn't you find it? Or did you just not offer enough money?"
"It's not about money," Harrison frowned tightly, a trace of irritation he didn't even realize was there in his tone. "That building is owned by a Prescott subsidiary. It's not normally available for rent."
He paused, then continued. "Miranda gave the people Lancaster fired a job, at least. Let's just drop this."
Ariana was clearly upset. "Harrison, she's started a company. She could become your competitor later. We can't let that happen, can we?"
Harrison frowned. "Her company just started. She can't cause any waves. I did hear she's tight on cash right now. She's apparently going to the bank for a loan."
He said this unintentionally, hoping to calm Ariana down and prove that Miranda was actually in a difficult position.
But his words, falling into Ariana's ears, instantly illuminated the dark corner of her heart.
A bank loan?
A slow smile crept across Ariana's face.
Miranda, you think just because you got an office, I'm out of options? I'd like to see which bank in A City would dare give you a loan!