"Oh, my dear Uncle Obadiah, we don't have any rule about kicking an important shareholder out of a shareholders' meeting. And being late—well, that's hardly a big deal for us, is it?"Tony Stark naturally wasn't going to let the fighter he'd worked so hard to bring in get thrown out before even stepping onto the stage. So he immediately began to defend Zhou Yi.
And everyone knew one thing very well: in the entire shareholders' meeting, no one was more famously late than Tony Stark. Not even close.
"I agree with Mr. Stark. Mr. Zhou is an important shareholder, and his opinion is absolutely indispensable to the execution of our corporate plans."With Tony taking the lead, of course others stepped in. And when Obadiah saw exactly who had spoken, his already darkened expression sank even further.
Stark Industries was originally founded during World War II as a weapons company. Because two generations of Starks were unparalleled inventors, the company grew within just two generations into one of the world's most prominent multinational giants.
In the field of high-tech, only Osborn Industries, Hammer Industries, and Japan's Yashida Corporation could even hope to compare—and even then, Stark Industries was the undeniable leader.
A corporation this massive—one whose financial power could easily crush more than half the countries in Europe—naturally had a complex ownership structure.At the top was its master, Tony Stark, who held roughly 23% of the shares. He was the largest shareholder, as well as the owner of countless patents that the company depended on for survival. Those patents came from both him and his father. His position in the company was essentially unshakable, unless Stark Industries' stock somehow crashed off a cliff.
But honestly, even the U.S. government wouldn't let that happen.
Next came Obadiah Stane. As one of the founders who'd built the company alongside Tony's father, he was unquestionably the second-largest shareholder, holding about 11%. He effectively ran the day-to-day operations—as long as Tony allowed it.
Then came Zhou Yi. Originally he held only 2%, but as IT stocks surged, he used his holdings, along with some deals made through Wall Street and various stockholders, to steadily increase his shares. Eventually he reached 6.7%, becoming the legitimate third-largest shareholder.
The remaining shares were split up as follows: around 5% held by small investors, 7% by Wall Street magnates, 10% divided between the U.S. Air Force and Army, and 4% and 5% held by Osborn Industries and Yashida Corporation respectively—standard cross-holding among major corporations.
The last 28% was held by more than twenty different companies and families. But by Stark Industries' rules, anyone with less than 1% was not eligible to attend the shareholders' meeting. So only six or seven people actually had the right to be present.
And among these six or seven, none would dare offend a giant like Obadiah. Most of them followed his lead.Which meant the person who spoke up earlier clearly came from a different faction—and the party most willing to stir trouble was unsurprisingly the U.S. military.
Once the military voiced its opinion, Obadiah knew there was no point dragging this out any further. He could only grit his teeth and say:
"Very well. Mr. Zhou, we were discussing the company's proposal to begin official arms transactions with sixteen regions in the Middle East. Based on our analysts' calculations, the annual profit will be around twenty billion dollars. The Middle East is at war, Africa is at war—the more they fight, the more we earn. And the more influence our nation gains over the region. I trust everyone understands this. If this plan succeeds, all your dividends will be considerable, won't they?"
Obadiah made one last attempt, hoping to sway the shareholders with money. And at the mention of profits and dividends, a few people did shift in their seats.
Twenty billion was a lot—but everyone here knew that was just the official number for tax filings. The real profit would at least double.Of course, Stark Industries would never be foolish enough to evade taxes outright—that would be suicide. Everyone in the U.S. knew the IRS was the most violent branch of government, bar none. Even Stark Industries wouldn't dare provoke that rabid dog.
America was notorious for heavy taxes, especially for multinational corporations. To legally reduce taxes, every major company and every rich person had specialized accountants calculating how to avoid them. And the most common method among major corporations was charity.Firefighter charity, veterans' families charity, African children charity—you could even run a charity over a dead dog if you needed to. The purpose was almost always tax avoidance.
Tony Stark's reputation as a philanthropist came exactly from this—one fundraising gala after another as the head of Stark Industries. Everyone here had similar titles. Their motives were mostly the same: avoiding taxes.
Which meant the dividends on paper had little to do with the actual payout.If Zhou Yi agreed to the proposal, he'd only receive a dozen billion on paper, but in reality he'd pocket well over twenty billion.The difference was enough to make anyone dizzy with temptation.
"Okay. I understand Mr. Stane's point. No one wants to offend Mr. Franklin. But I have one small question."Sitting beside Tony Stark, Zhou Yi flipped through the documents Obadiah had prepared.
"In this list of armed groups we're supposed to sell to, not all of them seem to be friendly to our beloved military. If one day our missiles end up landing on our own people, what then?"
"We have no 'our own people,' Mr. Zhou. We are businessmen."Obadiah forced down his displeasure and spoke slowly, emphasizing every word.
"Of course. I understand." Zhou Yi smiled. "But don't forget—we might be businessmen, but the American people see us only as Americans. If my unpleasant prediction comes true, then when the angry public demands accountability, who do you expect to take the blame?Let me say this upfront: I veto this proposal."
As soon as he finished, Tony Stark chimed in:
"Hey! I'm declaring the same. I'm not against it, but I don't support it either. Bottom line—I won't take responsibility for it. Definitely not!"He repeated "not" twice to show he meant it.
The military certainly wouldn't support the plan. Wall Street didn't want to get dragged in either. They loved money, sure—but most of them were Jewish. There was no reason for them to support Muslims.And the ones most likely to fight in the Middle East were Jews and Muslims.
They didn't care much about the Middle Eastern people, but assisting the enemy while taking the blame? That was something none of these shrewd men would ever do.
Osborn and Yashida, naturally, were delighted to see their rival lose a huge deal.
In what felt like mere moments, more than half of Obadiah's proposal collapsed.And even with his notoriously thick skin, he knew the remaining half had no chance.So he simply sat there, dark-faced and silent, from that moment until the meeting ended.
Everyone understood: this wasn't resignation.This was a quiet volcano.
Even Tony Stark was wise enough not to poke the old man further.
As soon as the meeting ended, Obadiah left Stark Tower with his entourage, clearly unwilling to look at those two troublemakers for even a second longer.
Watching Obadiah's car leave, Tony raised his glass and sighed."Well, that really was kind of mean, Yi. Maybe we went too far."
"Too far? That's your problem. Obadiah's your uncle, not mine."Zhou Yi rolled his eyes and finished his champagne in one gulp.
"Hey, buddy! Can't you at least pretend to sympathize? He watched me grow up!"Tony protested, wearing an expression that—if one didn't know better—might have convinced someone he actually felt sorry for his uncle.
Zhou Yi already knew Tony's shamelessness well. If someone could suggest opening champagne to celebrate after something like this, expecting genuine sympathy from him was pointless.So he simply chuckled.
"What does 'heh' mean? Buddy, are you looking for a fight?"Tony snapped back immediately.
Zhou Yi wasn't the type to back down."Oh, feel free to bring Hogan along. I don't mind two-against-one. Really."
After thinking about Zhou Yi's combat ability and estimating his own combined with Hogan's, Tony wisely changed the subject.
"Speaking of which—we haven't seen each other in so long. Shouldn't I throw a party to celebrate? I'm sure those lovely ladies miss us terribly. And the usual rule—I get first pick. Also, I'm letting you off this time; Hogan isn't as easy to deal with as you think."
"Let's talk about it in a few days, old friend."Zhou Yi put down his glass and stood up."Unlike you, I'm not carefree and unburdened. I have a troublesome parent-teacher meeting to handle."
"Oh, such an enviable problem." Tony raised his glass with a grin."You know, I've always wanted a cute little sister."
"Go to hell, Tony."Zhou Yi cursed, made a gesture at him, and headed for the elevator.
Tony returned the exact same gesture and reminded him,"And buddy—don't forget about the party. I'll have Jarvis notify you once it's ready."
"Relax. That's something I'd never forget.By the way, are you inviting Pepper? I'm very curious."
With that, Zhou Yi stepped into the elevator and left Tony's private floor.
"Wow… really not willing to lose even a little, huh?"Tony chuckled, though his gaze drifted toward a holographic projection—Pepper Potts' image.
"But why wouldn't I invite her?"