Chapter 248 - 246: An Even Split

"Oh, Jeb, Mr. Young, I’m not late, am I?"

Cecilia had been feeling down these past few days and hadn’t smiled in a long time. She almost failed to switch gears, but thankfully, her tone was still cheerful.

The words came out first, followed a beat later by a smile spreading across her face.

"Not at all. We got here half an hour early on purpose. I missed our last meal, so Jeb had to fill me in on all the details, right?" Mr. Young said with a smile.

Cecilia glanced at where the two men were sitting. The table was large, and though they were the only two in the room, they were sitting on opposite ends as if they were miles apart.

"You two are sitting way too far apart!" Cecilia teased with a laugh. She chose a seat right in the middle and then waved them over. "Hey, it’s just the three of us. It’ll be easier to talk if we sit closer. Otherwise, we’ll have to shout. Jeb, Mr. Young, come on, move closer to me."

Without a word, Wesley Yates picked up his wine glass and moved to the seat on Cecilia’s left. Mr. Young also rose with a chuckle and sat down on her right.

"That’s more like it. Much better," Cecilia said, looking from one to the other with a satisfied smile.

Wesley Yates looked at Cecilia and asked calmly, his voice full of concern, "Cecilia, are you hungry? We can eat first and talk later if you want."

Mr. Young looked at Wesley Yates across Cecilia. "You know, I’ve been here for over half an hour and haven’t even touched my food, but I don’t see you asking if I’m hungry."

"What’s it to me if you’re hungry?" Wesley Yates retorted bluntly.

"You..."

Cecilia quickly cut in, "No fighting today! Let’s eat while we talk."

With that, Cecilia poured a glass of wine and raised it to Mr. Young. "Mr. Young, I’ll drink a penalty glass. I came back after the New Year but didn’t get a chance to visit you. It was rude of me."

"That’s right. I was wondering when you’d come see me." Though his words held a hint of reprimand, Mr. Young was smiling.

Cecilia quickly explained, "Plans never keep up with changes. My best friend’s mother passed away suddenly, and I’ve been with her these past few days. I’m sure you understand, Mr. Young."

"Oh, of course, that’s very important. I understand."

Hearing this, Cecilia smiled faintly and drained her glass.

"So, Jeb, how did the discussion with Mr. Young go?" Cecilia put down her glass and cut straight to the chase. "You specifically arranged to meet here today. I’m guessing things are already decided?"

Wesley Yates nodded. Mr. Young jumped in, "This is a great place. As for the due diligence on that foreign company, I had my people look into it. It’s true, their parent company’s core project has run into huge trouble. Everything that informant of yours, Winston Marshall, said is true."

Wesley Yates added, "The only fear now is that Aetherium might be an empty shell. If we decide to acquire it, we’ll need to hire a team to perform a financial audit beforehand."

Cecilia nodded. "Then we probably don’t have much time. Why don’t we have Chairman Marshall set something up? We could talk to their person in charge here in Cathay."

’Once word gets out, someone is bound to rush in and try to snatch this meal.’

Wesley Yates glanced at the time. "They’ll be here in half an hour."

"You already set it up?" Cecilia was surprised. ’Jeb is really efficient,’ she thought. ’He scheduled both meetings back-to-back, just staggering the times.’

Mr. Young said while eating, "So let’s use this half hour to confirm the final details."

He then looked at the two of them. "An even split, or what?"

"Even split, of course," Wesley Yates said without hesitation.

They both looked at Cecilia, who blinked. "I’m fine with whatever. If you and Mr. Young want a larger share, I don’t have a problem with that."

"What larger share? Since it’s the three of us together, we split it evenly," Wesley Yates said firmly.

Mr. Young chuckled. "We couldn’t take a larger share even if we wanted to. An even split will nearly drain us dry as it is. This place definitely won’t be cheap."

"If it’s just the three of us splitting it, then what about Chairman Marshall’s six thousand? Are we just ignoring that?" Cecilia suddenly remembered that Winston Marshall also wanted in on the deal.

Wesley Yates let out a nearly inaudible scoff. "Forget about that pittance. I never planned on bringing him in."

Cecilia nodded in understanding, then asked, "So, can we haggle on the price when we talk to them?"

’Jeb and Mr. Young are definitely more experienced in this area than I am.’

Mr. Young shook his head. "The price was definitely set by the parent company. The person in charge here probably has no say in it."

"So it’s a take-it-or-leave-it deal?"

"You could say that."

Cecilia pouted, feeling a bit disappointed. ’I was hoping to watch a major business negotiation. I would have learned something, but it seems I won’t get the chance.’

Soon, Winston Marshall arrived. With him was an unfamiliar face—a very elegant, middle-aged woman.

"Everyone’s here." The moment Winston Marshall walked in, he started greeting Cecilia’s group, making a point to introduce himself to Mr. Young and get acquainted.

Only then did he introduce the woman to the group. "This is the person in charge, Miss Julie. Julie and I are old friends. I’ve already given her the general rundown. Shall we sit and talk?"

Everyone took their seats, but Julie’s gaze couldn’t help but linger on Cecilia Sterling.

Although she had been mentally prepared by Winston Marshall’s description, seeing Cecilia in person still left her curious and shocked.

’She’s so young!’

"Julie, this is Miss Cecilia Sterling." Noticing Julie’s reaction, Winston Marshall quickly made the introduction.

"So young and beautiful. It’s quite surprising," Julie said frankly, her expression and tone openly conveying her admiration for Cecilia.

Cecilia smiled gracefully and responded generously, "You flatter me, Julie. You’re the true model of a successful woman, so elegant and classy."

Sometimes, all it takes is a single, mutual compliment to bridge the distance and create a sense of kinship between women. Julie’s first impression of Cecilia was excellent.

After watching them both put down their wine glasses, Wesley Yates spoke up. "Since we’ve all done our homework on each other, let’s get straight to the point. Miss Julie, how much is your group planning to sell Aetherium for?"

As he finished speaking, all eyes turned to Julie.

She calmly straightened her posture and slowly said, "The parent company’s final price is two hundred and seventy thousand!"

Wesley Yates’s expression remained impassive.

Mr. Young, however, raised an eyebrow slightly.

Cecilia, for her part, glanced from one to the other, wanting to see their reactions.

Winston Marshall’s mouth fell open in surprise. It wasn’t that he thought the price was too high; he was just subconsciously shocked to hear the number "two hundred and seventy thousand."

"Will you accept a financial review by an audit team?" Wesley Yates asked, getting to the heart of the matter.

Julie nodded readily. "Of course. Don’t worry, Aetherium’s operations are all normal. It’s not an empty shell. However, you’ll have to cover the cost of the financial audit yourselves. The group is pinching every penny right now, as you can imagine."