Free Web NovelChapter 382: Counter-Accusations
Having seen Michael’s proposal before, Christian had definitely improved upon it which meant that if Christian presented his proposal first, Michael’s would be useless.
A proposal that was presented later and was inferior had no chance of success.
Christian had not revealed anything, yet Michael’s expression had darkened. It was obvious his position was not advantageous.
There were eleven companies bidding in total, all of them big enterprises. Their proposals would not be easy to beat.
The last few presenters would have to have exceptionally good proposals or the host company would not even consider them. The ones who presented first tended to leave a more lasting impression as everything was still fresh.
On stage, Mr. Zavier looked at the assembled representatives. "Everyone has gotten their numbers? Let’s not waste time. The company holding number one, please commence your presentation now."
He then exited the stage and returned to his seat.
Number one got onto the stage. When he was done, it was evident his proposal wasn’t satisfactory. Mr. Zavier and his colleagues did not comment, but called for the next company’s representative to present.
Yonina was to go second.
She was not a strong competitor and her proposal was not very good either.
However, it was at least better than the previous one and Mr. Zavier nodded his head approvingly.
Time passed.
The other nine companies had presented their proposals and Mr. Zavier had already shortlisted some.
The only ones who had not gone on stage were Michael and Christian. By now, they both knew what number the other had drawn.
Michael narrowed his eyes as he cast Christian an annoyed look.
Christian stood up confidently and straightened his tie before walking up to the stage.
A PowerPoint presentation of his proposal began to play on the projector screen behind him.
"Good day, everyone. I am the CEO of DR Group, Christian Lucas. I am honored to have this opportunity to present my proposal for this project. This is the development plan I have worked out.
We all know that this is an important state-supported project. In the past five years, the first-tier cities have developed rapidly while the second and third-tier cities are still lagging behind.
The state has always emphasized on common prosperity, with the first tier cities leading the way and helping second and third-tier cities improve themselves. That is why today’s bidding has come into being.
According to statistics, more than eighty percent of college and university graduates choose to stay in first-tier cities after graduation.
Why is that so? It is because the development speed of second and third-tier cities is not able to keep up with their ambitions.
They have all worked hard to graduate so that they could lead better lives.
In order for second and third-tier cities to catch up with the development speed of first-tier cities and to retain their talent pool, they need to boost their economy.
The first step to boosting their economy is to expand the city.
Second and third-tier cities are by no means smaller than their better off counterparts, but their city centers are relatively smaller. There are fewer shopping malls and real estate prices are high.
This results in people feeling that the price-value ratio is not high. Even if they buy real estate in their hometowns, they are unable to find suitable jobs.
If DR wins the bid, this is what we will do.
Please turn your attention to my PowerPoint slides.
We will first build residential properties extensively, lowering real estate prices. At the same time, we will increase the number of commercial buildings and shopping malls.
Once residential property prices drop, more young people will be willing to buy a house and settle down in their hometowns.
The second step is to support the economic development of self-employed businesses. As support increases, many people will choose to stay in their hometowns and start their own businesses.
The third step, which is also the most important step, focuses on schools and hospitals.
Nowadays, a large number of young people choose to stay in big cities because they will have better educational resources for their children and better medical resources when they fall sick.
Next, please take a look at the details..."
...
With a smile, Christian completed the rest of his presentation confidently.
Mr. Zavier and his colleagues were impressed with his proposal. With approving smiles on their faces, they clapped when he finished.
"DR is indeed top of their field. Problems are presented clearly and every problem has a targeted solution. The quoted prices are also lower than average. It’s great that a big company such as yours is willing to cut profits in order to help the country grow."
"Mr. Zavier is exaggerating," Christian replied with a smile. He was very happy with Mr. Zavier’s praise.
All the other bidders present were looking on glumly. It was obvious from Mr.
Zavier’s reaction to Christian’s presentation that the rest of them did not stand a chance.
Although they had expected it, they still felt disappointed.
Michael was now the only one who had yet to present his proposal.
Looking cockily at Michael, Christian said, "Brother, it’s your turn."
Obviously furious, Michael slammed his clenched fist hard on the table top.
Shoving his chair back forcefully and standing up, he faced Christian and demanded, "Why is ninety percent of your proposal the same as mine? Also, your bidding price is just one percent lower than mine! Christian, did you..." Before Michael could finish his sentence, Yonina stood up and reached out her hand to stop him. "Michael, calm down. This is not the time or place for an argument."
"Calm down?" Agitated, Michael flung his arm out and hit Yonina’s hand away.
Yonina fell back into her seat with a cry of pain.
Christian approached them, seemingly in a good mood. He reached out to help Yonina up, saying, "Michael, we’re in the middle of bidding now. Besides, Ms. Collins here is your fiance, and she’s pregnant with your child. It seems rather inappropriate for you to treat her like this."
The matter between Yonina and Michael had been all over the media and almost everyone present knew about it.
It was fine when no one talked about it. However, now that Christian had opened the gates, the other people in the room started discussing it among themselves.
"Mr. Lucas is too much. She’s pregnant with his child. How could he push her away like that in public?"
"Didn’t Mr. Lucas say that the other Mr. Lucas’ proposal was similar to his own? Do you think Christian Lucas stole his brother’s proposal?"
"Who knows? For all you know, Michael Lucas only said that because he realized Christian Lucas’ proposal was superior to his."
"I heard that the brothers do not get along. It seems that rumor is true."
...
The comments came one after another but Michael simply ignored them all.
The show was not over yet.
Michael looked around. Due to overwhelming pressure from the crowd, he reached out to Yonina, his face expressionless.
It was obviously not a sincere apology. Tonelessly, he said, "I’m sorry, I was too agitated earlier."
"That’s enough," Mr. Zavier spoke sternly. Looking at Michael, he asked, "Are you still going to present your proposal and bid? If you’re not, we’ll take it as you gave up. If you’re still bidding, get on the stage now."
This was a project that could decide the future of a company. Even if the chances were slim, none of the company representatives present would give up without trying.
Thus, Michael composed himself and stood up with a smile on his face, as if nothing out of the ordinary had happened.
"Of course I will still be bidding. I spent two months personally putting together this proposal." freeweɓnovel.cøm
Michael emphasized the word "personally".
As it was, his proposal was exactly the same as Christian’s.
....
Leaked proposals were a common occurrence during a commercial bidding.
As long as there was no evidence, it couldn’t be proven that a certain proposal belonged to any particular entity.
Christian could also say that it was Michael who had seen his proposal and copied it.
The company calling for the bid only wanted the cheapest and the best proposal.
Whether it was copied or not was of no concern to them.
They just needed the winner of the bid to complete the project according to the proposal submitted.
Michael walked onto the stage, trying his best to keep his expression composed.
When the PowerPoint presentation was shown behind him, everyone could see that his proposal was indeed very similar to Christian’s.
The only difference was the quoted price. It was just a bit higher than Christian’s.
Everything Christian said while presenting his proposal was also in Michael’s script for his presentation.
Michael could not repeat the words Christian had already said. For a few long seconds, Michael stood on stage silently. He did not know what he should say.
However, he could not simply remain silent. Mustering his courage, he presented his proposal despite it being almost the same as Christian’s.
The quoted price was already on the PowerPoint and he could not make impromptu changes to it.
The most important part of a bid was the price. Whoever had the lowest price usually had an advantage and no one was allowed to change their quoted price once the bidding started.
Otherwise, whoever got on stage last would have an unfair advantage. They would be able to improve on their own proposal based on the ones which had been presented before theirs and adjust their prices according to others’ quotes. A bidding like that was unfair and meaningless.
When Michel finished his presentation, the crowd started talking among themselves again.
"These two proposals are indeed similar."
"Yeah, other than the quoted price, everything else is almost the same."
"It seems Mr. Michael Lucas is fated to lose this bid."
"In business, whoever wins has the final say. All I can say is that Mr. Michael Lucas was too careless. He shouldn’t have given his brother the opportunity to steal his proposal."
...
With his fists clenched tight, Michael stepped off the stage. All the way, his gaze was fixed furiously on Christian.
The more incensed Michael was, the happier Christian got.
Mr. Zavier shook his head helplessly. There wasn’t much he could do.
No matter what means Christian had employed to get his hands on Michael’s proposal and price, based on the judging criteria of the bidding, the fact remained that Christian’s price was lower.
Mr. Zavier stood up and walked onto the stage. Looking down at the people below the stage, he said, "Today’s bidding ends here. In three days, we will officially inform the winning company. Those that do not receive any notification can assume they have lost. Once again, we thank everyone here for your participation. Farewell."
After bowing to the assembled representatives and their assistants, Mr. Zavier led his group out of the conference room.
The rest of the company representatives did not follow him out immediately. They remained at their seats because each of them could sense that there was a confrontation brewing.
Michael’s eyes were bloodshot with rage as he spat venomously at Christian, "Christian! Just how did you get your dirty hands on my proposal? How can you be so despicable?"
"Michael, you’re maligning me." Looking aggrieved and hapless, Christian said, "I don’t know why your proposal is the same as mine. I was just about to ask you if you stole mine!"
"I stole your proposal?" overwhelmed with anger, Michael burst out laughing, "Would I be so stupid as to put a price that was higher than yours?"
"You might have known you didn’t have any chance of winning and instead tried to frame me!" Christian denied Michael’s accusations. "Such is not unheard of in business dealings!"
Christian was not above hurling counter-accusations at Michael.
