Chapter 553

Early the next morning, Ben handed a stack of contracts to Debra.

“As per your instructions, all our business partners have agreed to the plan. They’ll contact Edgar and express interest in signing contracts with him. In return, we’ll compensate them generously.”

Debra nodded as she skimmed the documents, her lips curling into a small smile.

“If they reach out to Edgar directly, it’ll be too obvious,” she remarked, tapping her fingers on the table thoughtfully. “Let’s leak a little information to lure him. Once he takes the bait, our partners can bleed Edgar dry. They don’t need to worry about anything else after that.”

“Will Edgar fall for it?”

“Oh, he will,” Debra said affirmatively. “After getting disrespected and humiliated, he will be desperate to prove himself. Once he’s fixated on a victory, he won’t care how much money or effort he pours into it.”

Ben nodded thoughtfully. “By the way, there’s something else I need to bring up.”

“What is it?” Debra asked, taking a sip of her tea.

“Andrew’s secretary reached out this morning. They wanted to discuss your debut.”

Debra spat out her tea, which startled Ben.

“Madam, are you okay?”

“I’m fine. Go on.”

“Well, Mr. Andrew Potter said you signed a contract with him, so he wants you to drop by. He said there’s no need for you to debut with a group; you can go solo. As for profits, he’s proposing a 70-30 split.”

“Andrew is talking about money with me?”

“That’s what his secretary said.”

Debra rubbed her temples and muttered under her breath, “What a vampire!”

“Madam?”

“It’s nothing.” She wouldn’t dare badmouth Andrew behind his back. She had thought he’d forgotten about this whole debut business, but apparently, he was still clinging to the idea.

Trying to stay positive, Ben suggested, “Honestly, debuting might not be such a bad idea. You’re still trending, and it would add another feather to the McKinney Group’s cap.”

“Have you ever seen a CEO take the stage as some sort of star?”

Ben immediately shook his head, like a bobblehead on overdrive.

“Exactly,” Debra mumbled. “Just find some excuse, like telling him I’m too busy with company matters and Edgar to consider anything else.”

Ben didn’t catch the latter part of her speech. “Pardon me?”

Debra covered her face with her hands. She had to admit that she didn’t have the guts to outright refuse Andrew.

“Never mind. Just tell him I’m free. He can arrange whatever schedule he wants, and I’ll go along with it.”

“Madam, you don’t want to do this, do you?”

“What does it matter what I want? The contract is in his hands.”

“But Mr. Andrew Potter is so fond of you. Even if there’s a contract, he wouldn’t make things difficult for you if you refused.”

“I know.”

“Then why…”

“I gave him my word, and I can’t let him down.”