Orange Industries, suburban weapon testing ground.
In fact, this place was less like a weapon testing ground and more like a banquet.
Aside from the vast testing area that occupied most of the ground, and the various incomprehensible equipment, nearly a third of the venue was filled with lavish cold buffet tables.
Waiters in tuxedos bustled about, while 'guests' in expensive attire were scattered in small groups around the tables, holding their wine glasses and chatting amongst themselves.
The current scene, compared to the somewhat empty weapon testing ground next to it, always gave people an indescribable sense of incongruity.
These people included investor representatives, small shareholders with individual holdings, and high-level veterans from within the company; in essence, they were all considered 'insiders' of Orange Industries.
However, it was these 'insiders' who, on the very grounds of Orange Industries, were openly discussing Luca, the company's successor, without any reservations.
"Tsk, tsk, I originally thought the Orange Family boy would be more like Ms. Gina, but who knew he insisted on learning from Hermann to develop some energy gun?"
"He'd be better off spending that time cultivating a relationship with Stark Industries; who knows, the company might even turn a profit tomorrow!"
The speaker was just a tiny shareholder of Orange Industries, with no deep background, but that didn't stop him from looking down on Luca.
In fact, he wasn't the only shareholder with similar views.
Even though the shares held by these small shareholders weren't much, perhaps not even 20% when combined, if they truly united to cause trouble, there were plenty of ways to sabotage things.
Of course, no one would turn down money. If the leader of Orange Industries could expand the company and increase the value of their shares, they would definitely be among the first to rally around him.
However, even among small shareholders, opinions differed.
A middle-aged gentleman with a few White hairs at his temples glanced at the speaker and said softly,
"Don't underestimate this young master of the Orange Family family either. As far as I know, the shares he holds now weren't inherited. He can simply kill his own uncle if he wants to. Tsk, tsk..."
At these words, several people around them turned their gazes.
Clearly, many people were still unaware of this news.
"Did Congressman Kangno come specifically this time because he received some news?"
The questioned middle-aged gentleman showed a profound expression, adjusted his tone, and then shared with everyone the news he had heard from a 'friend'.
Congressman Kangno, originally from Tennessee, was currently a state congressman for Tennessee.
Although Orange Industries' headquarters was located in New York, for cost considerations, large factories were still chosen in convenient, low-labor-cost U.S. states like Tennessee.
Congressman Kangno had obtained some company shares as an advisor to Orange Industries.
Similar individuals included a retired Army procurement director and a retired consultant for Marine Corps special forces.
Such retired 'old cadres' who received share dividends or consulting salaries were quite common in various U.S. arms companies. They usually only made occasional appearances, offering policy guidance or introducing contacts.
However, those two did not belong to the small circle currently gathered together.
After listening to the news shared by Congressman Kangno, several people around them either looked puzzled or pondered in silence.
Someone, it was unclear who, was the first to sigh.
"Alas, if Ms. Gina hadn't fallen into a coma, it wouldn't be this situation now..."
At this point, the man paused slightly, then shook his head somewhat helplessly.
For some unknown reason, the others also let out a sigh in a somewhat tacit understanding.
These people sighed not out of concern for Luca's current predicament.
Compared to pitying a young man who inherited a vast fortune, they were more concerned about the company's future.
And in this regard, Luca's mother, Gina, enjoyed a considerably high level of trust in the eyes of these shareholders, and even among all employees of Orange Industries.
This was also why the initial shareholder hoped Luca would be more like Gina, rather than Hermann.
The reason why most of these people had not yet sold their shares, and why Orange Industries had not yet fallen apart, was not just Luca's seemingly ambiguous relationship with Stark Industries.
The more important reason was likely their continued hope for Gina to awaken and regain control of Orange Industries.
In fact, Orange Industries currently had few truly impressive products.
Aside from some 'civilian household weapons' manufactured to diversify the product line, which could only rely on scraps from major established military industries, Orange Industries' core business could be roughly divided into three parts.
Firstly, and originally Orange Industries' main business, was the 'Smart Chip Combination Kit' which had previously been outsourced and manufactured for Stark Industries and Hammer Industries.
The 'smart' mentioned here, of course, was not an artificial intelligence butler similar to 'Jarvis' created by Tony Stark himself.
Instead, it was a modular chip that integrated various smart components such as 'Smart Ballistic Aiming Module', 'Smart Voice Recognition Module', and 'Lightweight Smart Weapon Control Module'.
Compared to smart systems from other large companies in the same category, Orange Industries' 'Smart System Combination' had the advantages of modularity and low cost.
The former was a core demand of Stark Industries for secondary weapon component suppliers, while the latter was the corporate philosophy that Hammer Industries consistently pursued.
However, with both of these orders falling through, Orange Industries' production capacity in this area was severely oversupplied, and a large number of customized production lines in the factory were idled.
This was also one of the main reasons why Orange Industries was currently on the verge of bankruptcy.
Orange Industries' second distinctive product was the 'Combat Drone' that the company had been independently developing for several years.
In fact, the combat drone project had always been strongly advocated for development by Luca's mother, Gina.
Initially, it was because of Gina's past battlefield experiences and her judgment on the development of the military industry.
She wanted to make combat drones Orange Industries' flagship product in the future, thereby breaking free from the situation of relying on large military enterprises through OEM production of spare parts.
It also aimed to prevent a crisis for Orange Industries if Hammer Industries one day decided to 'abandon its weapon division'.
Moreover, Orange Industries' original 'Smart Combat System Module' had excellent compatibility with 'Drone Combat' itself, and the company had ample funds at the time.
The prospects for all of this should have been excellent.