The Supreme Soldier in the City
Chapter 150: There’s Always Someone Better

Chapter 150: Chapter 150: There’s Always Someone Better

Lucy Campbell also signed the contract, and then their hands clasped tightly together. Lucy earnestly said, "Miss Lopez, I’m entrusting you with my company."

Gina Lopez nodded firmly, "Miss Campbell, you trust me so much, I definitely won’t let you down."

They released hands and sat down again. Lucy said, "I absolutely believe in your abilities. From now on, it’s all up to you. The company is still a blank slate at the moment. I only have one project here. As for how to proceed, that’s up to you to recruit and make it happen."

When Gina first arrived, she found that apart from a few security guards, there was no one else in the company, which was completely beyond her expectations. She had thought that taking over the company, there would at least be a basic scale established, but now she realized that everything was up to her to handle. While that was certainly much more difficult, it was also a great opportunity and challenge. She immediately said, "Okay, I will have a detailed business plan ready within a couple of days for Miss Campbell to review."

Lucy shook her head, "I am returning to the Capital of SSUP tomorrow, and I won’t be coming back for a while, so you can make your own decisions on how to proceed. There’s no need to consult me."

"Alright, then I’ll go ahead and do it," replied Gina succinctly, readily agreeing.

At this time, James Brown had walked over to the window and was looking outside through the floor-to-ceiling glass. Although it wasn’t a high story, the view wasn’t that broad, but there was a small garden outside. When the window was opened, the air was exceptionally fresh.

He had heard everything the two of them had said very clearly, and it was only now that he realized that not only had Lucy given him an empty title of CEO, but she had also granted Gina such great autonomy. To him, it felt as though Lucy had just tossed in five hundred million and then washed her hands of the whole affair. In the world of business, this seemed excessively careless—if Gina wanted to, taking the money would be all too easy.

James Brown didn’t believe Gina Lopez was that kind of person, but in the face of such huge interests, whether she could maintain her integrity was something he didn’t dare to judge. He had seen too many people change due to profit; who could guarantee that Gina wouldn’t be tempted by profit in the future?

A knock on the door sounded again, and Lucy glanced at James, "Could you open the door, please?"

James felt there was something peculiar in Lucy’s gaze. Judging by the footsteps, there should be two people outside. Who could these two be? Unless he had some suspicion, he had no reason to heed Lucy’s request to open the door.

Upon opening the door, James saw two stunningly beautiful women, dressed in trendy fashion—it was Alice Brown and Jennifer Hog, the two TV hosts.

"Mr. Brown, hello!" they both greeted crisply, their faces bearing smiles sweet enough to melt bones.

James nodded his head, appearing quite composed, "Please come in."

Alice Brown and Jennifer Hog entered the office, first politely greeting Lucy and then turning their gaze to Gina. Seeing another woman in the room aside from Lucy gave them a sense of competition.

Lucy invited them to sit down. "Miss Lopez, these are two endorsers I previously signed. Although they’re not as famous as the big celebrities, their temperament and appearance are in line with our company’s standards. As for the specific promotion and advertisement production, those follow-up tasks are for you to discuss with them."

Gina reached out her hand to them, "Gina Lopez, I’m very pleased to be working with both of you." She was already somewhat acquainted with the two women.

Alice Brown and Jennifer Hog quickly stood up again to shake hands with Gina. They had not expected Gina to be so young and yet the boss of a company with a five hundred million investment. Being so young and already in such a position naturally made them wonder if she had some connection with James.

Lucy then said, "Later, I will be hosting a few city leaders to ensure that things go smoothly in this regard. I will also take the opportunity to introduce you to them, Miss Lopez."

James immediately said, "Then you go ahead. I don’t need to be there."

Lucy squinted at James, "That won’t do. How can you be the CEO if you don’t go? Don’t worry, I’ll let them know not to interfere with your life. When helping someone, you should see it through to the end. You can’t quit halfway."

James Brown frowned and said, "Alright, I’ll go take a look."

Although it was just a sentence and an expression, the impact on Gina Lopez was significant. Just what kind of person was Lucy Campbell? She was the number one beauty of SSUP Country, with a background so powerful that it was beyond the imagination of ordinary people. To her, those mayors, and even the Mayor, were surely nothing significant, yet she was so polite and soft-spoken to James Brown. Wasn’t James Brown just an ordinary retired soldier? How could he make Lucy Campbell act like this?

Furthermore, it seemed that James Brown didn’t seem to see Lucy Campbell as all that remarkable either. When he spoke to her, he was quite casual, as if even having been her bodyguard wasn’t enough to justify such an attitude.

Alice Brown and Jennifer Hog were even more perplexed. They only knew of James Brown’s fake identity, so they harbored hopes for this wealthy young man, worrying that there might be something between Gina Lopez and him. But it seemed that there was no ambiguity in their behavior, and even Miss Lopez was shocked at the tenderness with which Lucy Campbell spoke to James Brown, suggesting that she had just found out about their relationship.

Taking advantage of their cooperative opportunity, both women naturally wanted to develop a closer relationship with James Brown. His sudden departure last time left them frustrated, but it also showed them that they were attractive enough to him. Now, they had made up their minds to cozy up to him and, ideally, get entangled in a romantic relationship.

After chatting for a bit, Gina Lopez, Alice Brown, and Jennifer Hog were all covertly observing James Brown from time to time, which made him even more uncomfortable. Previously, he and Gina Lopez were rather friendly, but now he couldn’t help feeling that their friendship might have run its course.

"You keep chatting; I’ll step outside for a bit," James Brown said and then quickly lit a cigarette and walked out, avoiding the others staring at him as if he were a panda.

At half-past ten, James Brown and his group of five arrived at the L Hotel in the city. Upon seeing Lucy Campbell head upstairs, Alice Brown whispered, "Miss Campbell, Mr. Brown, Manager Lopez, should we wait on the first floor... for a while?"

Lucy Campbell replied indifferently, "No need. Let them come directly to the private room to find us."

Jennifer Hog expressed some concern, "Those city officials pay a lot of attention to these things. If we wait for them in the private room..." She didn’t dare finish her sentence, but the implication was clear to all.

Gina Lopez chimed in, "Miss Campbell, how about this? You go up first, and I’ll wait here with James Brown. That way, we can show our sincerity and avoid any negativity towards our company later on."

Lucy Campbell smiled slightly, took Gina Lopez’s hand, and said, "Really, there’s no need. Just by inviting them for a meal, I’ve already given them enough respect. If they still nitpick over these trivial matters, then they’re truly ungrateful. Besides, I want you to establish some authority. You are my spokesperson. Here, they might not treat you exactly as they would treat me, but at the very least, they dare not look down on you in any way."

Gina Lopez kept silent this time, but her heart was like a stormy sea. As a businesswoman for several years and a company head, she faced government departments often, always humoring them with a smile. She knew they were taking advantage of her but had to play along. Suddenly, she felt a sense of exhilaration and gained tremendous confidence in running her company.

Alice Brown and Jennifer Hog were dumbstruck. The bureaucratic world paid the strictest attention to such protocols, and they had attended many city events, very aware of the principle "an official at a higher level crushes the one below." Even the heads of the wealthiest groups in YODC City had to be polite in front of the city leaders.

Yet here was Lucy Campbell, completely disregarding the city leaders. How powerful must her background be? Those from the Capital of SSUP were indeed formidable, which further solidified their intention to get close to James Brown.

James Brown was not oblivious to the ways of the bureaucracy, but he looked at such matters with indifference. He sought nothing more than to live his life in peace, so no matter how high-ranking an official was, it meant nothing to him. Otherwise, he wouldn’t have behaved so casually in front of Lucy Campbell.

In less than ten minutes, someone knocked on the private room door, and four men entered. James Brown recognized two of them, Mayor Christopher Brown and Mayor Daniel Quinn; the other two men were strangers to him.

"Miss Campbell, we are terribly sorry. We got stuck in traffic for a bit and made you wait," Mayor Christopher Brown immediately apologized to Lucy Campbell upon entering.

Seeing these four men enter together, Alice Brown and Jennifer Hog’s eyes widened. These were the most important figures of YODC City. Aside from the Mayor and the Mayor, there were also the Executive Deputy Mayor Johnathan Davis and the Chief of the Public Security Bureau, John Harris.

The fact that these four appeared together at a social event was already shocking enough. Yet in front of Lucy Campbell, they showed no pretense. Were these the city leaders they knew? What kind of backgrounds could Lucy Campbell and James Brown have? Their minds seemed unable to contain their imagination anymore.

Now the two realized how big the world was. The city’s top leaders, who seemed so unassailable to them, were actually not that significant in the eyes of some. Their gazes toward James Brown became even more intense.