Chapter 488 - 484: The Lewis Siblings Battle for Power
Therefore, those who used to restrain themselves in front of the old man were today repeatedly testing and pushing the old man’s limits.
“Dad, what you’re saying isn’t wrong, but this isn’t about Roy alone. You say that the Lewis Group has been headless for nearly twenty days now, and there are such rumors circulating outside, which greatly affects both the Lewis Group and our Lewis family.”
As soon as Sebastian said this, Aldo, the fourth son, Elizabeth, the fifth daughter, and Grace, the sixth daughter, all echoed in agreement.
“Dad, Sebastian is right!”
The old man did not make a sound, just listened to Aldo speak.
“Dad, Roy’s life and death are indeed important, but aren’t these things we can’t control? But with the Lewis Group and our family, we have the ability to make adjustments before bad things happen, don’t we?”
The old man frowned, “So, how do you guys want to adjust?”
No wonder it was crowded early in the morning – it turns out they were waiting to reshuffle and redistribute the family assets, and seize power!
Victoria then said, “Dad, in the past, Roy was the one holding the power, but in reality, we are his elders and should have some management rights too. Since he is now missing, and both the Lewis Group and our family are falling into crisis because of him, we should promptly step in and take over his responsibilities.”
Grace also chimed in, “Right, we might not have Roy’s abilities, but three cobblers make a good Zhuge Liang. There are four of us siblings, surely we can collectively match up to Roy?”
The old man snorted, “Just with you guys? Forget four, even a hundred of you can’t match a tenth of Roy!”
His disparaging remarks left his children with unpleasant expressions on their faces.
Yet soon, they gathered themselves, exchanging glances before allowing Sebastian to speak.
“Dad, even if we’re inferior to Roy, we’re certainly better than the current leaderless state of the Lewis Group and our family, aren’t we? It seems the stock market hasn’t received any news yet, but it’s just a matter of time, isn’t it? By the time the stock prices plummet, it’ll be too late for us to do anything!” The old man gave them a cold stare. “Oh? Who just said that four of you combined can at least match up to one Roy? If you can manage, let’s see you fix things when the time comes. Right now, everything is peaceful outside, why the uproar here?”
Aldo shot a glance at Sebastian, clearly annoyed with his poorly chosen words.
Then, Aldo himself said, “Dad, if we wait until the stock market crashes, stepping in then would be too late—even heavenly powers wouldn’t be able to save the Lewis Group and our family!”
Upon hearing this, his siblings agreed fervently.
Victoria then added, “Yes, dad, you always taught us to nip the problems in the bud. Now, while things haven’t yet taken a turn for the worse, it’s up to us siblings to join forces to save the Lewis Group and our family!”
The old man was on the verge of coughing blood in frustration, but he was a man who had weathered many a storm. Despite his displeasure, he calmly retorted.
“Who said that once the stock market crashes, there will be no hope? You must have forgotten the time when I suggested my retirement and proposed Roy as my successor, and you all disapproved. Didn’t you all initially handle the Lewis Group?”
After the sudden death of Roy’s father, the old man resumed control of the Lewis Group and the family’s affairs and held it for more than a decade.
Roy, however, had been following the old man around the Lewis Group since he was very young. At first, others—including Sebastian and his siblings— thought the old man was merely allowing him to tag along.
However, when Roy was in his early teens, the old man started to delegate some decision-making tasks to him.
Before Roy was even twenty, the old man announced his intention to retire and hand over the reins of the Lewis Group and the family to him.
Sebastian, the second brother, was the first to oppose the idea.
The other siblings soon joined him in dissent.
The old man said at the time, “If you don’t have the talent, don’t insist on shouldering this burden. Wouldn’t it be better to find a capable person to make money while you comfortably count your money at home and enjoy life?”
However, Sebastian and the others were even more intensely opposed than they are today.
The old man took a night to consider and set a trial period of three months.
Then, three months later, they had driven the Lewis Group to a standstill, with the stock market hitting limit after limit. Only then did the old man step in and appointed Roy as acting president. He tasked Roy with halting the downward trend of the overall Lewis Group within three months and bringing the stock price back to the level when Sebastian and the others took over.
If either of these two conditions were not met, then the old man would appoint another acting president.
The demand was extremely rigorous.
When the old man announced this proposal at the board meeting and asked everyone to vote, everyone unanimously approved the resolution.
This included Sebastian and his siblings, who confidently cast their supportive votes.
In their eyes, such a demanding requirement was too much even for the most talented business prodigy, let alone Roy who was still under twenty.