Playtime's Over, CEO: She's Really Done With You-Chapter 358: The Dark Horse’s Threshold

The sound of Seraphina practicing piano came from downstairs, and Serena Sterling smiled faintly.

After grabbing her things, she sneaked a look at Seraphina, who was diligently playing the piano. Instead of choosing her usual Porsche, Serena opted for a more discreet Audi.

The driver, who also served as her bodyguard, nodded to her, and then the car started. They picked up Raine, the assistant, halfway and headed to the expo together.

There was a radio playing inside the car.

As soon as Raine got in, she began reporting and mentioned the news about today’s expo.

"... Besides the few companies we are interested in, there are others, such as one we heard latest news about..."

Serena listened calmly as Raine mentioned the company.

Back when she was still married to Julian Lawson, she had been keeping an eye on various industries, conducting thorough research and having analysts evaluate information.

Reclaiming the Sheridan Family’s assets was something Serena had planned for a long time, and she was determined to succeed.

Therefore, researching industries and selecting collaboration projects had already been carried out long before she won the game.

She had previously contacted these people, but not in depth.

The opening yesterday was merely to announce her formal entry into the field, not the start of her work.

Attending this expo was just the final step.

Serena glanced through her tablet, looking at the latest information Raine had sent over.

Her mind was filled with thoughts.

This company was like a dark horse that had burst onto the scene.

During previous research, they had also been reviewed, but recently, the company had made new breakthroughs.

This was different from before.

"How’s everyone else at the company?" Serena asked casually.

Raine replied, "As per Serena’s previous instructions, they’re tracking other leads and doing... that task."

Serena nodded, "How is the progress on what I gave you yesterday?"

Raine looked at Serena in the rear-view mirror and said, "I’ve arranged for people to focus on it, aiming to complete it as quickly as possible."

"That’s good," Serena said, putting down the tablet and looking out the car window.

The weather was a bit gloomy today.

She hoped everything would go smoothly.

...

Soon, Serena and Raine arrived at the expo.

Although it was called an expo, it would be more appropriate to call it an industry conference.

The conference was not open to the public; only those invited could enter. The invitees varied in status, and each booth had its own strengths.

Serena was one of those invited.

After signing in, she entered. There weren’t too many people, but not too few either.

Typically, top-notch tycoons would have companies seeking them for investments.

But since Serena wasn’t a huge entity, and Aeon had just opened, having the qualification to be invited was already impressive.

"Mr. Sheridan!"

"You’re here too, Mr. Sheridan!"

"Serena, I didn’t expect you’d be interested in the robotics industry too."

Serena responded to each greeting.

Of course, she was interested; even before the divorce with Julian Lawson, she had been paying attention to the industry.

At The Lawson Corporation, everyone saw her as just a decorative figure.

After some pleasantries, she went to check out several booths.

Then, she prepared for the main event.

Everyone took their seats, and the meeting session began.

Some qualified companies presented their latest achievements on stage.

Serena listened while sitting with Raine below.

...

While the conference was underway.

At Lawson Tower.

Isla Lawson was sitting in the first meeting room.

Information was being reported there.

"Buzz buzz."

Isla’s phone vibrated.

"Guess who I saw at the conference?" someone messaged her.

Isla replied with a "?"

"Serena," the other person replied, "I didn’t expect her to attend. I heard before that she was interested in robotics, but thought she was just talking. Didn’t expect she really came. No idea who sent her the invitation."

Isla’s eyes gleamed.

She glanced at Julian Lawson, seated at the head of the meeting room.

Julian remained as calm as ever, steadily handling the company’s daily affairs.

It seemed Julian was unaware of this.

Thinking this, Isla replied, "Keep an eye on her for me, see what she’s planning. I’ll head over once this meeting is done."

As Miss Lawson, there would be someone to personally receive her if she wished to go.

"Alright."

...

Time slowly passed.

"It’s here," Raine whispered to Serena.

Serena nodded, while looking at the booklet in her hand, and next to it, the tablet Raine handed over contained the latest company updates.

The founder took the stage with their latest achievement.

"This is our latest research and development achievement, please have a look," the person proudly showcased.

The robot on stage opened its eyes. Although its movements were somewhat hesitant, it no longer evoked an unsettling first impression.

The founder smiled and introduced, "We..."

Beside her, Raine continued quick exchanges with the company.

The emergence of this dark horse was the latest news of the day.

They had been keeping it under wraps tightly.

The stage presentations continued, while data on Serena’s device refreshed at a rapid pace.

Countless new pieces of information kept pouring in. 𝑓𝘳𝑒𝑒𝓌𝘦𝘣𝘯ℴ𝑣𝘦𝑙.𝘤𝑜𝑚

Luckily, this was a team she was familiar with.

They had a tacit understanding among them.

Serena focused on reviewing data and listening to the presentation, unaware that someone was watching her and messaging someone else.

"There’s a dark horse today, seems Serena is very interested in them."

"I’ll send you the detailed information."

Upon receiving the message, Isla immediately forwarded it to her subordinates.

In Aeston, companies like The Lawson Corporation usually got first-hand resources.

In the midst of Isla’s anxious waiting, someone beside her coughed twice and nudged her.

Isla snapped out of her thoughts and realized everyone was looking at her, especially Julian Lawson, who was focused on her, a slight frown of displeasure on his face.

"Mr. Lawson just asked you..." her colleague quickly reminded her.

Isla calmed herself and responded.

After speaking, Isla finally exhaled a sigh of relief.

But Julian didn’t immediately shift his gaze; he continued to look at her.

This made Isla’s nerves tense once more.

Thankfully, Julian only held his gaze for three more seconds before allowing the meeting to continue.

The meeting quickly came to an end.

Isla grabbed the materials and prepared to rush to the conference.

Julian watched her back as she left, pondering something unknown.

...

On the other side.

"...We have other technologies as well, currently under intensive research. We are very confident in these new technologies, which is why our company has set certain thresholds for this round of financing," the dark horse founder announced, brimming with confidence.

"First of all, there’s a financial threshold. We aim for substantial investment," he said.