Chapter 168: They Did it !
The conference room at Nathan Industries had become unusually quiet. The previous meeting had ended without an agreement.
Aiden had insisted on a complete legal review and Eclipse Corporation had agreed without resistance. Their representatives had left the building shortly afterward.
For the past two days, Nathan Industries’ legal and financial departments had been examining the proposal. Nothing suspicious had been found. Not a single clause appeared unreasonable on the new draft they sent.
Yet this morning, another meeting had been scheduled.
Aiden stood near the large window of Conference Room One, looking over Alkon City’s skyline.
His secretary entered. "Mr.Aiden, the Eclipse representatives have arrived."
Aiden turned. "Already?" "Yes. The chairman came personally."
Aiden paused for a moment. "The chairman himself?"
"Yes."
Aiden adjusted his suit. "Let them in."
The doors opened several seconds later.
The chairman entered alongside three representatives and two legal advisers. Unlike the previous meeting, the chairman wasn’t carrying a large stack of documents. Instead, one of his legal advisers carried a thin black folder.
The chairman smiled. "Mr.Aiden."
Aiden shook his hand. "Chairman."
"I hope we haven’t disturbed your schedule."
"Not at all. Please, take a seat."
Everyone sat around the table.
The chairman placed his hands together. "I understand that your legal department has completed its review."
Aiden nodded. "They have. And?" Aiden glanced toward his legal director.
The man opened his tablet.
"We reviewed the original proposal in detail. The financial structure is reasonable. The investment projections are supported by Eclipse’s records, and the proposed logistics arrangements are commercially viable."
The chairman smiled. "I’m pleased to hear that."
The legal director continued. "However, there were several areas that we believed required clarification."
The chairman nodded calmly. "Which is exactly why we’re here." He gestured toward his legal adviser. The man opened the black folder. "We prepared a revised agreement."
Aiden looked at the document. "Revised?"
"Yes." The chairman leaned back. "We removed several provisions that your team considered unnecessary. We’ve also modified the sections regarding investment control, supply obligations, and international distribution."
Aiden’s eyes narrowed slightly. "You changed them without us requesting specific changes?"
The chairman smiled. "Mr.Aiden, we’re trying to establish a partnership. There is no reason to create unnecessary obstacles before we’ve even started."
The legal adviser placed copies of the new contract in front of everyone.
Aiden opened his copy. He began reading. The first section covered the proposed joint venture. Nathan Industries would retain majority control. That was already different from the original proposal.
Aiden continued.
Eclipse would provide the majority of the initial capital. Nathan Industries would provide manufacturing infrastructure and distribution support. Profit would be divided according to contribution.
Everything looked fair. Perhaps even more favorable to Nathan Industries than before.
Aiden continued turning the pages. The chairman quietly watched him.
No pressure. No interruptions. No attempts to rush him.
After several minutes, Aiden looked toward the chairman. "You’ve given Nathan Industries majority control over the joint venture."
"Correct."
"Why?"
"Because Nathan Industries has the stronger manufacturing network."
Aiden studied his expression. "And Eclipse?"
"We’ll provide capital, international contacts, technology and distribution channels."
Aiden leaned back. "That’s a considerable investment."
"It is."
"And you are comfortable with Nathan Industries having majority control?"
The chairman smiled. "Of course."
Aiden said nothing.
The chairman continued. "Trust must begin somewhere."
For a moment, Aiden remained silent. Then he looked toward his legal director. "Any concerns?"
The legal director quickly checked several sections. "Nothing significant."
Aiden nodded. "Continue."
The meeting proceeded.
The contract contained clauses regarding supply commitments. Eclipse would purchase a predetermined amount of products from Nathan Industries. Nathan Industries would guarantee production capacity. There were penalties for failure to meet agreed delivery schedules. That was normal.
The legal director pointed toward the section. "This is reasonable."
The chairman nodded. "We don’t want either company to suffer because of delays."
Another section dealt with international distribution.
Eclipse would handle transportation through its overseas network. Nathan Industries would provide the necessary documentation. Again, nothing unusual.
Aiden read the section twice. There was no obvious problem.
The chairman noticed. "Something troubling you?"
Aiden shook his head. "No."
"Then perhaps we’ve finally created something both companies can accept."
Aiden gave a faint smile. "Perhaps."
The chairman smiled back. But beneath the table, his fingers slowly tapped against his knee.
Once.
Twice.
Three times. No one noticed it.
The meeting continued for another hour. Nathan Industries’ finance director reviewed the projected profits. The numbers were excellent. Better than the previous proposal. If everything worked according to plan, Nathan Industries could expand into several overseas markets within a year.
The finance director leaned toward Aiden. "This could be a major opportunity."
Aiden nodded. "I know." He looked down at the contract again. There was one section that caught his attention.
Section 18.4
Aiden read it carefully.
It concerned third-party logistics providers.
Eclipse would be permitted to utilize affiliated companies and contracted logistics partners to fulfill its international distribution responsibilities.
That was all. Nothing unusual. Large corporations did this constantly.
Aiden looked at the legal director. "Anything unusual here?"
The legal director scanned the paragraph. "No. It’s standard operational language."
Aiden nodded. "Alright."
He turned the page.
The chairman quietly lowered his eyes.
Aiden continued reading. Another section concerned dispute resolution.
Any disagreement would first be handled through internal negotiations. If the dispute couldn’t be resolved, both companies would proceed to arbitration.
Again, completely normal.
Aiden read the arbitration clause carefully.
The jurisdiction was neutral. Neither company received a significant advantage.
Everything had been balanced. But there was a difference between something being suspicious and something being carefully constructed.
Aiden had learned to recognize the first. He hadn’t yet learned to fear the second.
After nearly three hours of discussion, the chairman finally closed his folder. "I believe we’ve addressed every concern."
Aiden looked around the room. His legal team nodded. His financial team appeared satisfied. No one had found anything dangerous.
Aiden leaned back. "I agree."
The chairman smiled. "So?"
Aiden extended his hand. "We’ll move forward with the agreement."
The chairman shook his hand. "Excellent."
The cameras inside the conference room recorded the moment. Nathan Industries and Eclipse Corporation had officially agreed to begin the partnership process.
Everyone in the room looked relieved. Everyone except one person. The chairman. His smile remained perfectly calm. But his eyes were cold.
The meeting concluded shortly afterward. The Eclipse representatives gathered their documents and left the conference room.
Aiden remained behind with his executives.
The finance director smiled. "I think we made the right decision."
Aiden nodded. "I believe so."
The legal director closed his tablet. "We reviewed the revised contract from every angle. I don’t see anything that could seriously harm us."
Aiden stood. "Good. Begin preparing the implementation documents."
"Yes, sir."
The executives slowly left the room.
Aiden remained alone for a few moments. He looked through the glass wall toward the city. Something still felt strange. But he couldn’t explain why. He had searched for a weakness. His lawyers had searched for a weakness. Their financial analysts had searched for a weakness.
There was nothing.
Aiden finally exhaled. "Maybe I was overthinking it." He picked up his briefcase and left.
...
Several floors below...
The chairman entered a private elevator. Only two executives accompanied him. The doors closed.
The chairman’s pleasant expression disappeared.
One executive looked at him. "Chairman."
"Hm?"
"The agreement has been accepted."
"I know."
"Their legal department reviewed it for nearly two days."
The chairman smiled faintly. "That’s what I wanted."
The executive hesitated. "Then...they didn’t discover anything?"
The chairman looked at him. "Because there was nothing for them to discover."
The executive stared at him.
The chairman continued. "The previous proposal contained hidden conditions. This one doesn’t."
"Then how does the trap work?"
The chairman’s smile returned. "The trap isn’t inside a single clause."
The elevator continued descending. "It is inside the relationship between them."
The executive remained silent.
The chairman explained. "Look at Section 18.4."
"The third-party logistics clause?"
"Yes."
"Eclipse can use affiliated companies."
"Correct. And?"
"The contract doesn’t require those affiliated companies to be directly controlled by Eclipse."
The executive’s eyes widened slightly.
The chairman continued. "Once the partnership begins, we’ll transfer several international contracts through companies that appear completely independent."
The executive slowly understood.
"And if those companies fail?"
"The contract doesn’t classify their failure as Eclipse’s failure." The chairman smiled. "Instead, the failure will trigger Nathan Industries’ production guarantees and contractual obligations."
The executive stared at him. "So Nathan Industries could become responsible for fulfilling contracts they never directly signed."
"Exactly."
The elevator doors opened. The chairman stepped out. "But that’s only the beginning." He walked through the quiet corridor. "Once Nathan Industries starts fulfilling those obligations, their resources will be redirected toward contracts that generate almost no profit."
The executive followed.
"And their actual operations?"
"Will begin suffering from delays."
The chairman stopped. "Then competitors will notice." He turned around. "Investors will notice." A faint smile appeared. "And eventually, the media will notice."
The executive finally understood the scale of the plan. "But the contract itself remains legal."
"Completely. Then Nathan Industries can’t simply cancel it. Not without consequences." The chairman continued walking. "We spent months designing this structure." He stopped in front of a large glass window.
Below, Alkon City continued moving as usual. Cars passed through the streets. People walked along the sidewalks. Businesses opened their doors.
No one knew what had just happened inside Nathan Industries. The chairman looked toward the distant Nathan Industries tower. "Aiden was cautious." His expression became almost amused. "Very cautious."
The executive nodded. "But he still signed."
"Of course he did." The chairman smiled. "That’s the beauty of a perfect contract." He turned away from the window. "You don’t force your opponent to accept it."
"You make them believe they discovered the opportunity themselves."