The Apple of My Eye
Chapter 899 What Do You Think

Her free hours left Sheryl feeling a bit restless, so she wanted to keep herself busy. She headed to the company to see if she could help with anything.

The moment she stepped into the office, Isla called her over for help. "Sher! Good, you're here. I'm going out to negotiate a plan. Come with me. You're the professional. It will be much easier if you're around."

Isla had run the company in Sheryl's stead for quite a few years. After Sheryl returned, Isla had tried to turn the company back over to Sheryl several times, not because she wasn't capable of the role, but because she wanted to give Sheryl back what she owned. Since Sheryl wasn't really ready or prepared to become the head of the company again, Isla wanted to involve Sheryl in everything she was handling, big or small, to help keep Sheryl in the loop of what was happening in the company until she officially took on the position of CEO again.

Sheryl found the job a bit too challenging, and declined, "I don't think I should be there. You're much more experienced in negotiation with the customers than I am. You can do a good job on your own. I can help you with any other cases that you may not have time to deal with."

"Sher..." Isla didn't like that Sheryl refused to take part in the meeting and tried to think of a reason to convince her otherwise. "This case is really important to our company. Please come with me. I want you to be there in case I'm uncertain of anything."

"But..."

Sheryl started to reject again but Isla interrupted her. "There's no 'but' here," she said firmly. Before Sheryl had any chance to reject her again, Isla grabbed her arm and pulled her into the lift. "Don't forget that you're the owner of this company, not me. It's not fair to just throw all the responsibility to me, isn't it?"

"You're very capable, Isla. I can rest assured leaving everything to you," she replied with a sly grin.

Isla felt rather delightful and proud of the trust Sheryl had in her, but at the same time, burdened by having to run the company. She knew that today, her attempt to make Sheryl take over her role failed once again, so she let that matter go for the time being and focused on the business matter at hand. She drove them to the target company.

Waiting for them outside the office was the secretary of the target company's boss. This company was investing in real estate and was linked to Cloud Advertising Company via a personal network. They wanted Cloud Advertising Company to plan a wine party for them where they could advertise for their newly constructed houses.

All the guests invited were either rich in wealth or power and could be strong potential investors. The event, therefore, was deemed extremely crucial by the CEO. He had negotiated with several other advertising companies, but all the proposed plans were substandard for his taste.

"Hi, Dillon," Isla called the secretary as she saw who was waiting for them. Clearly, the two had already been introduced. Wearing a warm smile, she greeted, "Long time no see. How is your wife doing?" "Very good," Dillon Zhang returned with an even warmer smile. "She just mentioned you yesterday. She wanted to thank you for the beauty salon's membership card you gave her last time. The service there is fantastic, apparently."

Delighted to hear that, Isla skillfully switched the topic to one of her own interest almost seamlessly. "Glad to hear that she likes it. If you really want to thank me, though, I believe I'll be needing your help later." This was truly Isla's forte. She had great skill in handling interpersonal relations for the benefit of the company. Any relation was an investment, no matter how trivial it may seem in the beginning. Though some relations may not lead to much, the one she possessed right now had the potential to do a great deal for the company.

"I can't completely assure you of this, though," Dillon Zhang replied with a hint of embarrassment. "You know that my boss has high standards. Before you, we already contacted four advertising companies, but none of them crafted anything that was even satisfactory for my boss. If you aren't confident that you can do well, I'd advise you to cancel the meeting so I don't get scolded again."

Afraid that Isla would be disappointed in his inability to influence his boss' final decision, Dillon Zhang proceeded to explain the situation, "Ms. Zhao, I'm also hoping that you can strike a deal with our company today. You'll be happy, and I will too. But it's not for me to decide. I hope you understand that I have limited power."

"Dillon, rest assured, I was just making friends with your wife when I gave her the card as a gift." Isla showed a full understanding of his situation. "I didn't mean anything else. It would be ridiculous of me to expect you to help me just because I gave your wife a salon membership card. Don't worry, we have confidence in our ability. Also, today I have the ace of our company with me."

"Ace?" Dillon Zhang's eyebrows shot up in surprise. He finally turned to Sheryl and gestured to her. "And this is...?"

"Yes, my ace, Autumn," Isla introduced Sheryl to him as he reached out to shake Sheryl's hand. "Dillon, don't worry. She can solve any problem we encounter. I'm certain that Mr. Su is going to love what we present to him." Cary Su was Dillon Zhang's hard-to-please boss.

"Autumn?" Dillon Zhang pronounced the name once, replaceing the name familiar. After a moment, it clicked, and he asked, "Is she the new employee that Mr. Shen recommended?"

Isla gave him a meaningful smile and responded, "The plan for Mr. Shen was indeed her work, but... she is definitely not a new employee."

"Then?" he asked in doubt.

"Autumn is not only a part of Cloud Advertising Company but the chairperson of the board. She's my boss. I've brought a very important figure here with me, so you should understand how important we deem this business opportunity to be." The information Isla just revealed was striking, so as to give the other party the impression that they truly wanted to work out a good deal. Isla also had the intention of making Sheryl's presence more known, so it would be easier for her to navigate the negotiation later on.

Now that she was satisfied with the introductions, Isla was ready to start.

"Let's get to the topic, Dillon. What are Mr. Su's conditions you can tell us about now?" she asked rather seriously.

Sheryl's introduction grabbed Dillon Zhang's attention, and he continued inspecting her a while longer. 'Where did this new chairperson of the board of Cloud Advertising come from? I surely haven't heard of her for the past few years. And Isla...' he thought, 'she speaks highly of her, even when she's usually so strict in business. Since it's Isla's choice to bring her, she must really be somebody. I hope they make it.' He briefly explained Cary Su's requirements and remarked with a scornful look, "Actually, his conditions aren't that hard to meet. I've looked through the other companies' proposals and they all seemed alright. I don't understand why he's so fussy about this."

Heaving out a deep sigh, he continued, "Mr. Su just didn't like them, I'm guessing. Every time I sent him a new plan, he thought it was too simple, and I had to go looking for another reliable company. At times, after getting the proposal, he didn't even go to meet the representative from the company I contacted.

It put me in a difficult situation. A few days ago, while I was struggling to replace new companies, I happened to hear Mr. Shen mentioning your company and it reminded me of you. That was why I tried contacting you, Ms. Zhao. If even you can't give him what he wants, then I don't know who else I can seek help from." With a wry smile, he went on, "I was so busy with this case that I was away from home for about a week. My wife has been complaining all the while. Please help me, Ms. Zhao."

"Sher, what do you think?" Isla turned to Sheryl and requested her preliminary analysis of the situation.

Sheryl fell into deep thought. She had to admit that she knew quite a few capable advertising companies in Y City, but if none of them succeeded to come up with an acceptable plan for Cary Su, that could only be attributed to their misinterpretation of his requirements. Their proposals may have seemed good, but the direction was probably wrong in the first place.

To make the situation worse, the preliminary plans were presented by Dillon Zhang, not by the representatives themselves, because Cary Su didn't want to meet them. Presentation by a third party would have definitely resulted in some miscommunication, so the chances of these plans appealing to Cary Su were slim.