Chapter 206
Chapter 206
A plane crash was major news—there was no keeping the aftermath under wraps. The world was full of nosy people, especially when it involved a powerhouse like the Seymour Group.
Online speculation about Leopold's whereabouts was going wild. So-called insiders were popping up everywhere, with some even claiming the search and rescue team had already recovered Leopold's body from the ocean, but the Seymour family was refusing to make it public.
Within days, the Seymour Group's stock price plummeted. Shareholders' calls came in from morning till night, leaving Octavia without a moment's rest.
Monica practically dragged her to breakfast and watched her finish eating before asking carefully, "Today's board meeting—are you going?"
"Yes." Octavia stood up. "You're coming with me."
Monica froze. "Me too?"
Octavia said, "You're a daughter of the Seymour family. If you don't go, they'll think we're even more vulnerable."
Monica bit her lip and nodded.
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The conference room at Seymour Group headquarters was packed, both sides of the long table filled with people.
The atmosphere this time was completely different from before.
Last time, the shareholders had still maintained some semblance of caution and courtesy, but after several days, Octavia's hard-line stance had clearly exhausted their patience. They'd grown much more aggressive.
No matter how they phrased it, they all had the same goal—to install Lucas as acting CEO.
Octavia's gaze swept across the shareholders' faces one by one, then landed on Lucas, seated on the left side of the table.
He wore a dark suit today, his hair neatly combed, his expression calm and composed. A faint, appropriate smile played at his lips, like someone who had made all the necessary preparations and was just waiting to take office.
"Lucas," Octavia called out.
Lucas looked at her, his smile unchanging. "Whatever you want to say, just say it."
Octavia stared into his eyes. "Do you also think Leopold isn't coming back?"
Lucas's smile faded slightly. "That's not what I meant. I just think the company can't stay paralyzed. When Leopold was here, we all had to share his burdens. Now that Leopold's not here, we should protect the Seymour Group for him even more. I think that's the responsibility of anyone in the Seymour family."
Octavia listened, then slowly curved her lips—but it was a cold smile.
"Lucas, that sounds wonderful. So tell me—how many times have you met with Imogen these past few days? When you were popping champagne to celebrate, did you ever think Leopold might still be alive?"
The atmosphere in the conference room shifted abruptly. Lucas's smile froze on his face, a flash of coldness crossing his eyes.
"Octavia, what exactly are you implying?"
"My meaning is perfectly clear." Octavia stood up. "Leopold isn't dead yet. The search and rescue team is still looking. As long as they haven't found a body, there's still a chance he's alive. You're all sitting here discussing who should replace him—don't you think that's a bit premature?"
Daniel's expression darkened. "Mrs. Seymour, we understand how you feel, but a company can't run on emotion and faith alone. When Mr. Seymour was here, we respected him. Now that Mr. Seymour is gone, we have to consider the company's future. You can't keep blocking us. Or is it that you have your own agenda?"
"I'm not blocking anything." Octavia looked at him. "I'm just not letting you hand over Leopold's position to someone else before his death has even been confirmed. That's not unreasonable, is it? As for having an agenda—of course I do. But I'm Leopold's wife. My agenda can be judged by him when he returns."
The shareholders exchanged glances. Someone started to speak but was pulled back by the person next to them.
Daniel took a deep breath, suppressing his anger.
"Mrs. Seymour, since you don't agree to nominating Mr. Lucas Seymour, then what do you propose? Can you make the final calls? Can you handle the decisions the Seymour Group faces every day? Can you deal with all those competitors circling like vultures?"
Samantha beside him also let out a laugh, her voice gentler but raising a critically lethal point.
"Mrs. Seymour, we know Mr. Seymour favors you, but I think everyone present should remember that legally, the name on Mr. Seymour's marriage certificate is your sister Claire's, isn't it? Like Mr. Wallace said—the Seymour Group's decisions, the competitors in the market—who's going to handle all that? Mr. Seymour's legal wife would certainly have the authority, but are you?"
The conference room fell instantly silent.
Then erupted into wave after wave of discussion.
This time Octavia didn't speak immediately. She'd actually been stumped.
These past days, because John was there—Leopold's most capable butler and assistant, someone many people at the Seymour Group had listened to for years—combined with Octavia maintaining her hard-line attitude, most people had been suppressed by her identity as Mrs. Seymour and didn't dare say or do anything rashly.
But what Samantha said was the fact everyone had been muttering about.
Legally, Octavia had no authority to interfere with Seymour Group affairs either.
Seeing her silence, Lucas let out a soft laugh, straightened his suit, and stood up.
Just as he was about to speak, another crisp female voice cut him off.
"Whether she is or not, I'm still Leopold's real sister, aren't I?"
Everyone turned to see Monica, who had been silent until now, slam her pen forcefully on the table and raise her chin at them.
The usually haughty Monica was being just as imperious now. "From the very beginning, the Seymour Group's largest shareholder was my grandfather, followed by my parents and my brother Leopold. Even if Leopold is temporarily away, Grandfather's shares include my portion too. Lucas is also a Seymour, that's true, but when his mother went abroad back then, she didn't take much in shares. Has anyone asked Lucas how much his mother gave him?"
She had always been just a socialite who enjoyed the good life. Even when she occasionally came to the Seymour Group to work, it was only in name. The shareholders present had basically always treated her like a child, never taking her seriously.
Hearing her say such things now, they were all actually stumped.
Seeing no one answer, Monica quietly exchanged a glance with Octavia, then raised her eyebrow even higher, becoming even more imperious.
"Never mind my identity as Leopold's real sister—just the shares I hold are more than Lucas's. Don't I have more right to speak at the board meeting than him? Even if I'm not enough, there's still Patrick's portion. Or have you all already sold your shares to Lucas?"
Daniel startled, then said loudly, "We've been Seymour Group shareholders for how many years now—how could we just sell like that? Monica, you're young. Don't talk nonsense."
Monica glanced at him. "You've already parachuted your son into a subsidiary as a manager, and I'm a legitimate Seymour Group shareholder—I can't speak up?"
Daniel was left speechless by her retort, and the other shareholders fell silent too.
Octavia smiled slightly and quit while she was ahead.
"Monica has a business meeting to attend tonight. Whatever needs discussing, you can all come back next time."
With that, she forcefully led Monica out, ending the debate.
For them, no resolution was the best resolution. If Lucas wanted to take power, they'd just drag things out. Lucas still didn't have any way around it.