Xia's father's words were like dropping a torpedo into calm waters.
"Xia's has invested a significant amount of capital and effort into this project. Shouldn't we be more cautious about the ownership of the management rights?"
"Yes, I also think it's better to have someone experienced manage this matter."
"Exactly."
...
The directors were in an uproar, all expressing their disapproval.
Xia Qingtian could understand the directors' sentiments.
Currently, Xia's equity was largely held by her and Xia Honglang. If the operating rights of the huge resort were also directly handed over to Xia Qingtian, then in the eyes of these people, Xia's would henceforth be dominated by Xia Honglang alone, and they would lose all their say.
In the original board of directors structure, although Xia Honglang was the largest shareholder, the second-largest shareholder, Director Lian, who outwardly appeared uninvolved but harbored malicious intentions in secret, and Director Su, who pretended to be ignorant and tried to smooth things over, along with other directors with their own agendas.
When they all agreed, the situation was manageable, at least not too passive.
Now, Director Lian's shares had been transferred to Xia Qingtian, and Director Su's shares had been distributed to other shareholders.
The composition of the board of directors had changed, and everyone's intentions were becoming more active.
Especially in the current situation, Xia Honglang saw unlimited potential in Xia Qingtian. Based on his years of business experience, appointing Xia Qingtian as the manager of the resort would surely bring new possibilities and opportunities to Xia's.
His age was already progressing from middle age to late middle age.
Xia's was the culmination of his life's work, and Xia Honglang hoped to see Xia's flourish.
Originally, Xia Qingtian was rebellious by nature and always pursued unrealistic dreams of being a star. Although Xia Qingyu was not his biological daughter, she was intelligent and sensible, but still too young.
He had no choice but to consider taking in a son-in-law to inherit and develop the Xia family.
But now, he had seen unlimited potential in Xia Qingtian. He had a premonition that the future of Xia's rested in Xia Qingtian's hands.
Of course, Xia Honglang did not deny that there was a slight influence of familial bias. But even setting that aside, he had seen excellent managerial qualities in Xia Qingtian through recent events.
She was calm and wise in the face of adversity, enthusiastic and kind to others, and possessed the unique drive and fearlessness of a young person.
These were qualities that Xia's desperately needed.
Therefore, from Xia Honglang's perspective, this decision was the best.
But the other directors did not think so. They felt that Xia Honglang had not taken enough from Director Lian's equity and was now preparing to monopolize power and take complete control.
Although Xia's was indeed created by Xia Honglang, they had also contributed money and effort over the years, achieving great merit.
They couldn't have this sudden move of disarming the loyal officials at this juncture!
With both sides sticking to their guns, the matter was ultimately not settled, and the board meeting ended unhappily.
As a junior, Xia Qingtian found it inappropriate to interrupt. As the party involved, she couldn't say much. More importantly, she didn't want to manage any resort at all!
She still had her dreams to pursue secretly. If she were tied down by a resort, constantly overwhelmed and exhausted, how could she chase her dreams?
The only reason she could focus on Xia's recently was because Sui Sui's voice library had been completely constructed.
Standard lines for performances and stages could be synthesized using the voice library, eliminating the need for her to do voiceovers behind the scenes.
Recorded programs could also be dubbed by her later or synthesized by the voice library and adjusted for sound effects.
However, for live broadcast events, Xia Qingtian's presence was still required.
Most importantly, Xia Qingtian did not intend to stop her dream-chasing journey here!
Therefore, she remained silent throughout the meeting. While she disagreed with Xia Honglang's decision, she could not openly refute her father in such a setting.
Silence was her last line of defense.
After the board meeting finally concluded, the directors left the conference room with grim expressions. Xia's father remained seated, also looking displeased.
"Dad," Xia Qingtian called out softly.
"Don't worry, this matter will be decided," Xia's father said, looking at Xia Qingtian with a resolute gaze. "The operating rights of that resort will definitely be yours."
But I don't want it!
Xia Qingtian roared inwardly, but outwardly could only say, "Don't let this cause unpleasantness between you and the directors. I don't mind."
"This is not only about you, but also about the future of Xia's," Xia's father retorted irritably. "As if I would harm them! If any of them truly had the ability to lead this, wouldn't I choose them?"
"The older they get, the more entrenched and complacent they become! This industry is flooded with new talent every year. If you don't advance, you retreat!"
"After a few years of comfortable living, they take everything for granted, forgetting that maintaining a business is a thousand times harder than starting one."
Xia's father grew more agitated as he spoke. Xia Qingtian, unsure how to comfort him, was getting a headache when her phone vibrated in her bag.
"Dad, I'm going to take a call," Xia Qingtian said, glancing at the caller ID. She specifically stepped out of the conference room before answering, "Hello? Ning Jie?"
"Come to the company immediately." Wen Ning's tone was grave, clearly indicating something had happened.
Xia Qingtian's heart sank. Without asking for details, she simply acknowledged and hung up.
Returning to the conference room, she informed Xia Honglang that she had an urgent matter at school and immediately headed to the Gu Corporation.
Pushing open the door to Wen Ning's office, Xia Qingtian saw Li Mengxiao, the virtual idol production company, and the music instructor all present, their expressions grim.
"What happened?" At this moment, Xia Qingtian realized the situation seemed worse than she had anticipated.
"Take a look at this." Wen Ning handed a tablet to Xia Qingtian.
Xia Qingtian pressed the play button on the video on the screen and saw a virtual idol with long pink hair dancing to the music.
Xia Qingtian didn't see any issues here.
However, when the virtual idol started singing, Xia Qingtian's expression changed instantly, "This voice!"
"It's exactly the same as Sui Sui's," the music instructor said to Xia Qingtian. "Even the singing style and vocal techniques are identical."
"If it were just a similar voice, we could say that the other production company intentionally adjusted the tuning. But the singing style and vocalization habits are exactly the same." The person from the production company looked at Xia Qingtian with a complicated expression, leaving the rest unsaid.