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Obadiah didn't seem to care about Lemu's distant attitude at all and continued to chat with him, "You and your mother look exactly like each other. I met her once more than ten years ago. She had beautiful long light blue hair like you."
"Later I heard from Howard that her family took her back. After that, Howard and Maria had an unfortunate incident, and I haven't seen her since. Is she okay now?"
Slime??!
What did Tony Stark tell you? My mother? I still have your mother!
Lai Mu was complaining madly in his heart, but on the surface he just shook his head noncommittally, "It's OK."
Pepper opened the cake box. The four-layer cake was nearly 50 centimeters high and was filled with sliced strawberries and chocolate chunks, with thick cream molded into the shape of petals.
She cut two pieces of cake and handed them to Lemu and Obadiah. Lemu took them and said thank you, but Obadiah waved his hand and refused.
After taking a bite of the cake, the fragrance of the cream exploded on Lai Mu's taste buds, with the sour and sweet taste of strawberry, making him unable to help but take bite after bite.
Mmm...Mmm! Delicious!
This bald guy is actually a pretty nice person!
Seeing that Pepper had no intention of eating the cake, Lai Mu swallowed the cake and took the time out of his busy schedule to ask, "Don't you want to eat it?"
She smiled and shook her head, lacking interest. "I'm a little allergic to strawberries. You should eat more. I'll go downstairs and ask Tony to come up."
After that, Pepper got up and went to the basement, leaving only the two of them in the living room.
Chapter 17. No strong enemies outside, but disloyalty within
in the living room.
Obadiah watched with a smile as Lemu ate the cake he bought. No child could resist sugar and cream.
He also did not forget to continue telling Lai Mu about the past events.
"At that time, Howard boasted to me that he had always wanted a daughter and finally got his wish. You have no idea how proud he was at that time."
"Then when they talked about... Sophie, and how she wasn't very close to Howard, Howard sighed in distress. That was the first time I saw Howard so emotional."
"It's a pity that I can't see him now."
At this point, Obadiah's expression was filled with nostalgia, and against the gray beard on his face, he looked a bit like an old man in his twilight years.
Lai Mu finished a piece of cake, took another piece, and nodded cooperatively.
I believe it. I believe whatever you say.
He pretended to be curious. "And then? Do you know anything else about...Sophie?"
Obadiah shook his head regretfully and helped Lemu cut two more pieces of cake. "I'm sorry, if you want to hear more about your mother's childhood, you may be disappointed. I only met her once and we didn't even talk to each other."
"She always looked cold and indifferent at that time, and she wasn't close to anyone."
……
When Tony Stark came up from the basement, he heard Obadiah telling Lemu a new story.
The story about his and Howard's difficult entrepreneurial history shows how they played tricks and made rival companies run around in circles under unfavorable circumstances.
The old and the young were talking and listening to each other, and they seemed to get along very well. At first glance, it looked like a kind old man was trying to make his granddaughter happy.
"Come on, Obi, stop talking about your old history. It's the 21st century now..."
Stark clapped his hands to attract everyone's attention. At the same time, his eyes were fixed on the big cake on the table. "You brought a cake for Lai Mu? Is there any for me?"
Obadiah smiled indifferently at Stark's insult and pointed to another box on the table. "I brought you a pizza. I brought it all the way from New York."
Obadiah had just returned from a Stark board meeting in New York, and he was exhausted and on the go all the way.
Stark opened the box and picked out a piece of pizza to eat.
He knew that Obadiah would come to him for two reasons at this time. The first was about the company, and the second was also about the company, so he asked directly, "How is the situation? Is it bad?"
"If you were here, things might be better..."
Stark interrupted Obadiah and argued incoherently while chewing pizza: "You told me to keep a low profile. I did what you said. I didn't go out at all and let you handle those things..."
Obadiah stood up and sat next to Stark, sighed, and said earnestly, "Come on! All the good things you did...this is a board meeting."
"Board meeting?"
"They believe you are suffering from PTSD and are seeking an injunction against you to stop you from managing the company."
Stark stared at him in disbelief. "Wrong? Just because the stock dropped 40 points? Didn't we expect this?"
Pepper corrected him emotionlessly: "It's 49 points."
Lai Mu took another piece of cake and reached out to grab the pizza in front of Stark, but his hand was unfortunately hit back by Stark.
Stark protected the box and glared at Lemu impatiently. "Mine."
He looked at Pepper again, "These are not important. We own the controlling stake in the company, and it's good news that the stock price didn't fall below 50 points."
Lai Mu muttered softly, "Stingy..."
But in his heart, he secretly instructed the Great Sage to buy more Stark Industries stocks.
This is the best opportunity to buy at the bottom. Soon Stark will debut as an idol...Iron Man, and Stark's stock will see a huge rise.
Obadiah's face darkened, and he was a little angry, but he wanted to persuade him again. "Tony, the board of directors has the right to do so. They feel that you and your new decision are not in the best interests of the company."
This sentence immediately irritated Stark. He stammered, still choking on pizza, "This is a whole new direction! I can take responsibility for it. I can handle it!"
He hated being told what to do, and this company was named Stark, so why should he listen to those idiots?
Pepper sighed, a smile that was three parts helplessness and four parts tolerance appearing on her face.
Stark also sighed, picked up his pizza and prepared to leave, "Okay, I'm busy, I'll stay in the basement."
Obadiah stopped him, "Hey, hey! Tony, listen, I'm trying to salvage this thing, but you have to give them something that can convince them, okay? You analyze this for the engineers."
He pointed to the lit reactor on Stark's chest, "You must..."
Stark refused three times in a row, "No, never, no way, this project is my own! The conversation is over, so let it go."
"Okay, give this back to me."
Obadiah snatched the pizza from Stark's hand like a child, then generously opened the box and said, "I can only give you one more piece at most."
Stark took one more piece, "Two."
Obadiah followed Stark, unwilling to give in and trying to get some information, "Do you mind letting me go down and see what you're up to?"
"Goodnight, Obie."
Stark meant to dream on.
Obadiah turned around helplessly, looked at Lemu and Pepper, smiled, spread his hands and sighed.
Pepper was in a low mood and just forced a smile. The situation of Stark Industries was not optimistic.
Lai Mu guarded his cake vigilantly, still chewing it in his mouth, like a little squirrel guarding its food.
Obadiah suppressed his anger and tried to appear as kind as possible, "Relax, I won't touch your cake. I have work to do, so I have to go first."
He looked at the pizza box in his hand and handed it over, "This box of pizza is yours, too."
Obadiah leaves the Stark mansion.
Lai Mu saw everything he did just now, including his words, actions, expressions, and so on.
To be honest, if Lai Mu didn't know the trajectory of the future and knew that he was the mastermind behind the scenes, it would be hard to believe that this kind, humorous, and childlike old man would be an ambitious conspirator.
Even with the God's perspective, Lei Mu could not see any flaws in Obadiah. His every move was reasonable, every expression was just right, and every word seemed to be a true expression.
Like an elder who really cares about Tony Stark in every way.
When it comes to acting, I still have a lot to learn - the road is long and arduous, but I will continue to explore.
But why was Obadiah able to fight with Howard but backstab and toy with Tony Stark at will?
This magical contrast brought back Lai Mu's memories of some common sense he had learned as a child.
……
Once upon a time, someone taught him this.
You must remember that ambition is a double-edged sword, especially for those who are extremely ambitious.
They always desire higher and more, and are never satisfied. In the pioneering period, ambitious people will be the best partners and comrades-in-arms. They will actively bear positive pressure and responsibility, and are a sharp blade pointing at the enemy.
During the period of maintaining the status quo, without external enemies and pressure, the ambitious will turn their swords against the comrades and partners who once stood by their side, leading to internal strife and oppression.
They are like bloodthirsty wolves, always needing to eat meat. When there are prey, they are the best hunters; when there are no prey, the flesh and blood of their companions are equally delicious.
For those in power, those who are ambitious but lack strategy are a useful blade. They are the best knife to get rid of the enemy; they are also the best shield...
Ahem, stop...
In short, if there are no strong enemies outside but there are dissenters inside, then turmoil will come.
Chapter 18. Final test before the armor takes off
Los Angeles Tech's vice president, Amy K. Sr.
This smiling old man has been sighing frequently lately, and his wig has turned a lot whiter due to his worry.
He accepted a good student, a super genius, of whom he was proud and had high expectations.
But, but! The student he just accepted hasn't been to school for almost six months!
This student signed up for all the courses in the four years of college and completed all the homework well. But he never showed up for class and was always absent for roll call. Almost all the professors remembered him.
There are only so many people in the entire school, and the teacher-student ratio is close to 1:3. Many courses have only a few or a dozen students. This outlier student stands out like a light bulb.
Some professors felt insulted and declared in class that they would fail the course no matter what.