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Daisy dropped Lorna off at school and then drove to Stark Industries. Her stake in the company had already exceeded 1%, and she was still collecting shares, it is predictable that she would reach up to 1.5%.
The group, which had a peak market value of nearly $500 billion in its peak, had deep roots. Even though its stocks had been slashed, the market value still stood at over $80 billion. Daisy threw in her $800 million, which could secure her 1.5%, mainly due to the market panic caused by the Doom Group.
Navigating familiar paths, Daisy entered the Stark Industries office building. Pepper Potts still welcomed her visit with open arms.
Pepper felt quite annoyed upon learning Daisy's purpose. She had always avoided Daisy and Stark's meeting, which had been a headache for her.
Now Daisy had become a shareholder by playing the stock market... Pepper was quite unhappy. She thought, Daisy, if you have some money, why don't you invest in Hammer Industries? Why do you have to throw it into Stark Industries?!
But she couldn't say that her own company wasn't good. Instead, she chatted with Daisy with a smile on her face.
It was then that Daisy learned that Pepper was about to become the CEO of Stark Industries. The office was still the same as Obadiah's, but it had been redecorated. Daisy hadn't recognized it at first.
"Congratulations, you're probably the youngest CEO now," Daisy had always thought Pepper was lucky. An assistant without any experience as a high-ranking executive in a big company was promoted straight to CEO? Was the original Vice President dead?
"Don't mention it. The pressure is simply unbearable. I can already imagine how the media will criticize me!" Pepper complained to Daisy as her assistant wasn't present.
"I have a feeling you'll pass through this safely," Daisy said confidently.
Normally, Pepper would have been criticized to death by the media, but today's news sections are dominated by the Fantastic Four. Stark Industries' news could only take a back seat. Pepper should be able to get through this.
Perhaps they should thank Johnny Storm, who drew the media's attention?
After complimenting each other and praising each other for ten minutes, they finally got down to business. Pepper hesitated a bit and said, "Daisy, your stake is still a bit low. According to regulations, only those with over 5% and the consent of multiple directors can enter the board of directors, so..."
Daisy waved her hand. "I know about this. It doesn't need to be made public. Just maintain the status quo. You and Tony know about it, and once there's a change in the board, just know that I support you guys."
Her words were very well put, and Pepper could only express her gratitude. She promised to use her authority to temporarily conceal the news that Daisy held Stark Industries stock.
Daisy was also quite helpless. With a large sum of money of unknown origin, she could only hold it in her personal name, which was now spread across various accounts. She really needed a large corporation to help her "launder" the money into legal income.
The news about the Fantastic Four began to ferment in society. Nick Fury, who always regarded supervising superhumans as his responsibility, hastily convened a meeting with elite agents to discuss whether the Fantastic Four could be absorbed into S.H.I.E.L.D.
"Nick, I know Reed. He wouldn't come to be a special agent. He longs for freedom, not constraints. As for the others, take a look..." The head of the science department pointed to Johnny on the screen, his tone filled with dissatisfaction. "Can someone like him be a good agent?"
The meeting room fell silent. The current speaker, Agent Robert, the head of the science department, was also a Level 7 agent. His rank wasn't high, and his position wasn't important, but he had extensive experience as an agent. With his white hair and friendly demeanor, he was a senior to many agents, well-liked, and never one to vie for any benefits.
In a situation like this, where someone who usually doesn't speak up suddenly does, they shouldn't be interrupted.
The veteran agent spoke up first this time, which was rare for him. It was because he had taught Reed for a while. Reed didn't know his identity as a secret agent, but the veteran agent understood Reed's character very well. He was a pure scientist at heart.
In Reed Richards's career choices, scientist ranked first, followed by adventurer, and finally superhero.
Daisy had been pretending to be mute all along. It seemed like she had interacted with Reed, but Reed hadn't fallen from the sky to meet her, and had interacted with many people.
In just this meeting, there were teachers who had taught him, along with two classmates, one of whom had visited Reed at the hospital not long ago. These were all senior agents of Level 7 or above, with probably hundreds of Level 6 and Level 5 agents who knew Reed.
Several agents described Reed's personality traits one after another.
"Do you all think Reed Richards can't be persuaded?" Nick Fury asked democratically.
Daisy continued to play dead, while the other agents all expressed their agreement.
"Good, the meeting is adjourned! Daisy, please stay." Nick Fury left Daisy alone. Just when she thought they were going to discuss the Fantastic Four, Nick Fury changed the topic.
"Tony Stark seems to be resisting the recruitment of S.H.I.E.L.D. What do you think about this?" Nick Fury organized and filed the documents about the Fantastic Four on his desk, then asked Daisy very seriously.
From this detail, Daisy judged that Fury actually didn't attach much importance to the Fantastic Four. His focus had never wavered; it had always been on Tony Stark.
"Stark Industries is currently in a precarious situation. What conditions did you offer him?"
"Offer him the position of special consultant, working two days a week, or working a total of sixteen hours per week," Nick Fury proposed what he thought was a reasonable request.
Daisy couldn't help but feel that the situation was funny. "Sir, I don't think Stark would accept these conditions. The first condition is a bit harsh, and secondly, our help to him doesn't warrant him putting in that much effort."
Nick Fury's one-eyed gaze was surprised. "How is that possible? I've helped him withstand pressure from all sides and protect his multi-billion-dollar company. With so much effort, isn't it worth it for him to be a consultant for S.H.I.E.L.D.?"
Daisy couldn't contain her smile this time. "Sir, you're a soldier; you don't understand economics, or at least you don't understand modern corporate operations."
She didn't just mock him; she presented concrete evidence, which was the result of Skye Data's investigation and analysis.
She pulled up the data interface and explained it to Nick Fury with line graphs.
"Stark Industries has a market value of over a hundred billion, this is just an estimate. As a member of Stark's advisory team, my company can still access some of the group's data.
Although Stark announced the closure of the weapons department this year, last year's annual profit in the United States should have been around $8 billion, and with overseas markets included, annual profits should be around $10 billion."
"From the reports of the first three months of this year, there will definitely be a significant decline, and market commentators and major analysis firms are collectively pessimistic. But look here." She pointed to a string of numbers.
"Shareholders support Stark as Iron Man. With Stark's high popularity and shareholder support, his stocks have rebounded slightly. The market has always had a soft spot for high-tech stocks. As long as Stark has some new ideas and implements them, the stocks will return to their highs. At that point, with public support, it will be difficult for politicians to go after him."
Daisy summed it up briefly, starting with the simplest data and then analyzing some common stockholders' psychology.
Her conclusion was also simple: Tony Stark had the spirit of a cockroach. He could run out of Afghanistan by himself, and now he could also get through this with his own abilities.
If S.H.I.E.L.D. offered help, it would be good, but even if they didn't, he could still get through it with some difficulty. Thinking that a little favor would make Stark come and work for free for S.H.I.E.L.D. was simply wishful thinking.
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