Ever since Obadiah stepped down and Pepper Potts took over as CEO of Stark Industries, she had been determined to turn things around, stabilize the stock price, and get the company back on track.
To achieve this, she racked her brains for many ideas and implemented numerous measures.
Some were effective, others were useless. After a short period of practice, Pepper Potts came to a conclusion: to truly revitalize Stark Industries, other adjustments were not that important. Whether Stark himself was engaged and could come up with new inventions with commercial prospects was the real decisive factor.
The key still lay with Stark.
And so, Pepper Potts transformed into a 'nagging presence.' Whether she had a chance to meet him or not, she would call Stark every day, like a bank chasing loan payments, urging him to hurry up with research and develop new products as soon as possible.
If it were anyone else, given Stark's temper, he would have fired them without a second thought.
But with Pepper, things were different... Although he hadn't yet fully understood his own feelings and identified Pepper as his one and only, it must be said that Stark's patience with her far exceeded that with anyone else. Plus, after he got the white potion from Shi Xiaolei and spent an entire night with her, he experienced a sense of conquest and accomplishment that he had never felt before, even after countless flings... Unconsciously, Stark's subconscious had elevated Pepper's status in his heart by another notch.
If Pepper used to be 'the most trusted assistant,' then after that night, her status finally rose to the level of 'family,' truly replacing Obadiah.
In business, their cooperation was also like Stark and Obadiah's before—Stark invented various weapons, and Obadiah was responsible for promotion and sales... Because he subconsciously replaced Obadiah with Pepper, he first adopted the view that 'the more frequently she urged him, the more it proved her diligence and responsibility,' which is why Stark was so patient and didn't mind her nagging at all.
Coupled with Stark's own similar ideas, he thought of collaborating with Shi Xiaolei to develop and market new potions.
Speaking of which, because the new company immediately received orders from the military after its establishment, Stark Industries' stock price did rebound to a certain extent.
However... with potions as its main product, the new company's business scope was a bit far from Stark Industries' original focus. It couldn't get strong support from the parent company, and there was also an old giant in this field, the Osborn Group, making competition too fierce and profits slow to rise... Frankly speaking, relying on this new company to boost stock prices and completely pull Stark Industries out of the mud was still a bit unrealistic.
What else could he do? Stark had no choice but to shift his attention to the field of physics, which he was most skilled in.
When he received a call from Connie, Stark was in the lab doing research.
It was like the famous saying, 'Suddenly looking back, that person is there, in the dim light.' After much deliberation and considering all aspects... well, mainly because the loophole left by closing the weapons division was too big, and the profits from small projects simply couldn't make up for it. With almost no other option, Stark finally turned his attention to new energy based on miniature arc reactors.
"Jarvis, what time is it now?" After ending his call with Connie, Stark twisted his neck, relieving the fatigue accumulated from long hours of looking down and welding.
"Sir, it's 4:08 PM."
"Set an alarm, emm, for 5:30." Looking at the pile of devices on the workbench and mentally estimating the time needed to finish up, Stark continued to instruct while flexing his fingers: "Notify Happy,
Tell him to go to that dessert shop on 42nd Street. Remember that chocolate brand from last time? Have him buy two boxes for me; I'll take them to Connie later. Oh, and also call Pepper and tell her to change into something more casual and get ready."
"Sir, Ms. Potts is on her way and is expected to arrive in three minutes."
"Alright then, I'll tell her myself. You notify Happy for me."
"Yes, Sir."
Three minutes passed in a flash. Stark hadn't even come out of the restroom when Pepper arrived in the lab.
"Tony? Tony? Are you here?"
"Over here~." Shaking his hands, Stark walked out of the restroom: "You've come at a good time; I was just about to call you. Uh, is something wrong?"
"I have a few documents that need your signature." Clicking her heels, Pepper took a few steps forward, opened the folder in her hand, and handed it to Stark: "Here, and here, and here."
With genuine trust, Stark unhesitatingly took the pen and signed his name on the documents: "Is that all?"
"Yes, just these for now." Pepper put away the documents and closed the folder: "The other three business deals are still being negotiated. If all goes well, the negotiations should be completed before 8 PM tonight."
"8 PM?" Stark shook his head: "Are you attending too? If so, let's push it back and continue tomorrow."
"Hmm?"
"Haven't you always wanted to meet Connie?" Stark smiled, his right hand naturally resting on Pepper's waist: "She just called me and invited me over. The negotiations can wait until tomorrow; accompany me tonight, okay?"
As Stark's assistant, she had acted as his female companion more than once, attending many formal and informal dinners.
Now, hearing Stark's words, Pepper naturally recalled her past experiences. For a moment, she forgot that Connie had called and only thought of it as another formal dinner that required a female companion: "Okay, I'll go change. Tony, do I need to bring a gift? I'll go prepare one."
"No need to be so formal." Hearing the misunderstanding, Stark quickly explained: "It's just a small get-together among friends. I've already asked Happy to buy chocolates; I'll take them to the little girl later. As for you... this small suit isn't quite suitable; change into something more casual."
"OK, I understand." Imagining the atmosphere of the upcoming gathering, Pepper unconsciously adopted a more casual tone: "What time are we going?"
"5:30." Pointing to the workbench not far away, Stark said with a smile: "I'm almost done here; it should be about an hour. How about you? Is 5:30 okay?"
"No problem, I'll go arrange it." Pepper nodded.
"Alright." Stark naturally pecked Pepper lightly on the lips and patted her lower back: "Go get busy. Come back when you're ready; I'll be waiting for you here."
The sudden kiss surprised Pepper slightly.
Leaving a playful roll of her eyes, Pepper twisted her waist and turned, her light footsteps making a series of clicks as she walked out of Stark's sight.