Andrew rubbed his ID badge with his fingertips, finding it somewhat amusing, yet he quite liked this vivid portrait.
You need to treat this as serious work, you know?" Finn obviously knew he had done many irresponsible things, including deliberately giving Andrew the title of a Clumsy Magician, showing no respect for Andrew's efforts, even intentionally putting on a serious expression as he pushed his luck. "Even if I am not Harry Osborn, it is still very important work.
"I know." Andrew nodded seriously.
Andrew suddenly thought back to the night he first encountered Finn, when Montgomery said a sentence—
If that puppy could be picked up by you, it would truly be its greatest luck.
Andrew looked at the ID badge in his hand and then put it around his neck.
Sometimes he feels..
Finn didn't come away empty-handed either.
Chapter 33: Birthday Gift
Finn has been very close to Marcus lately.
Marcus only feared that having too much interaction like this would arouse Harry Osborn's suspicion.
What are you worried about?" Finn twirled a stylus skillfully between his fingers, glancing up nonchalantly, his tone filled with sheer indifference. "I'm in the Brand Promotion Department, you're currently in charge of the New Energy Base. Isn't it perfectly normal for me to assist your work with promotion?
Marcus wanted to say that everyone knew Finn didn't do any actual work at his workstation.
And what was even more absurd was that Finn was drawing hamsters right there in the Osborn Group, had even assigned himself a dedicated secretary.
—It was truly laughably sophisticated.
I've been negotiating with Harry Osborn lately. He knows I'm not satisfied, so he wants to buy out the shares of the Osborn Group that I assume I could inherit," Finn said. "He offered me some very good terms.
Finn, you need to be clear that compared to the entire Osborn Group, that little amount of money is simply incomparable." Marcus was, of course, afraid that Finn might waver before the press conference, "Right now, you hold the best opportunity to crush Harry Osborn. Are you going to take a piece of cake that could melt at any moment, or an entire bakery that will continuously generate profits for you? For someone like you, a choice like this shouldn't be difficult, right?
Finn: ".." But I don't know how to make cakes. What would I do with a cake shop?
Of course I know! Only Harry always ignores me! Disrespects me! I am his younger brother, yet he treats me like some idiot he can just brush aside whenever he pleases." Finn's knuckles turned white as he clenched his fists, a flash of irritation and disgust surfacing in his green eyes, as if a long-standing wound had been touched. "I'm not so stupid that I would take the meager scraps Harry throws at me and give up the easily attainable Osborn Group.
That's right," Marcus nodded with satisfaction, looking at the long-standing resentment burning in Finn's green eyes—the resentment of being ignored and looked down upon, as well as his burning desire for control over the Osborn Group. "Why should Harry have the entire Osborn Group, while you are stuck as just a low-level employee on the 35th floor? I never imagined that Harry, as your older brother, would humiliate you like this.
Indeed.
Who could resist the temptation of the Osborn Group, with its 1.6 trillion market capitalization?
Especially since the owner of these assets is your own biological brother, who has always looked down on you.
“All you need to do is stand in the spotlight and reveal the Truth. The media has already been arranged; they will escalate the situation and publicly question Harry Osborn about the cause of Max Dillon's death, why the news of a senior electronic engineer's passing was deliberately suppressed. A hardworking technical backbone, finally discarded like trash in a corner of the morgue, without even a decent farewell, without any compensation whatsoever.”
Public opinion will ferment online in an instant. The masses will feel outraged for Max, when you add in that dirt on Harry Osborn that I gave you before—
"It's all fabricated," Finn thought absentmindedly.
"Once things start to ferment, we will immediately convene an emergency board meeting to remove Harry from his position." Marcus could already envision Harry being disgracefully kicked out of the penthouse office.
"But I don't have any shares," Finn pointed out the crux of the matter.
That doesn't matter at all." Marcus had expected him to ask that and smiled confidently. "After Harry is removed from his position, the Board of Directors will officially appoint you as the new CEO. You are Norman Osborn's biological son; if Harry could take that position, you certainly can too. Besides, haven't you already prepared to take on Harry in that lawsuit over the will?
Yes," Finn nodded, before a look of hesitation crossed his face as another thought occurred to him. "But—
Don't worry, I know your funds are insufficient. When the time comes, I will provide the financing for this lawsuit for you," Marcus said encouragingly. He naturally also cared about Finn's movements; knowing that this Young Master Osborn had been scraping money together by selling things lately, he naturally assumed he was trying to cover the litigation costs. "Once the scandal from the press conference blows up, Harry's reputation will plummet, the public will no longer trust a CEO who is nothing but lies and disregard for human life. When your lawsuit goes to trial, public opinion will stand entirely on your side. Everyone will believe that Harry forged and tampered with Mr. Norman's will to strip you of your rightful inheritance.
"Once we reach that stage, your chances of winning the lawsuit will become an absolute certainty. Harry Osborn will be stripped of his right to inherit the estate, all the shares in his hands—won't they all eventually end up in your grasp?" Marcus curled his lips, his smile brimming with the casual arrogance of someone who had already won.
Marcus, of course, had to make those words sound beautiful and enticing.
Only by making Finn completely trust him and sharpening this "Osborn bloodline" blade could he make him willing to stab Harry in the back. Once Harry has completely fallen, how could a foolish Young Master who only knows how to hide in his office drawing hamsters be his match? Moreover, they both have the Osborn family's hereditary diseases; as long as the research project is in his hands, it can be said that the chance of survival for both of the Osborn sons lies in his hands.
“A truly perfect plan.” Finn couldn't help but clap his hands.
If it was just acting before, this time it was genuine praise from the heart.
—This plan was simply a Path of Death tailor-made for his Misery Plan.
“Marcus, with your support, I feel much more at ease.”
Finn was grateful to have met such an excellent villainous mentor, who taught him step-by-step how to completely ruin a winning hand.
"My previous Host always encountered such major troubles." This stirred up memories of Finn's past work.
System PP: 【And then?】
Of course, with my assistance, you will perfectly crush them, clearing all obstacles along the way to reach the pinnacle of your life." Regarding his glorious history with the system, Finn was naturally proud and smug; although this set was different, his abundant experience meant it wouldn't be an issue. "Facing my first major nemesis, I'm actually a little excited.
System PP was somewhat confused: 【Host, weren't you planning not to participate in Marcus's mission this time?】
But this is truly a great opportunity!" At this thought, Finn felt a sense of regret. "I'll be here conspiring with them, then I can secretly leave a flaw in these conspiracies for Andrew, who is now my secretary, to discover. Andrew already hates me, so he will definitely take this chance to let Harry know about it.
Harry could sweep us all up before the press conference, while simultaneously conducting a major internal reshuffle of the Osborn Group, completely rooting out the parasites within the company, then walk onto the stage of the press conference alone and handsome. Since Andrew helped him, Harry would surely give him a massive sum of money as a reward, Andrew would be able to reach the pinnacle of his life, no longer having to endure my oppression.
Maybe because of this, Andrew and Harry could even become best friends!
The more Finn thought about it, the more he felt this was the correct plotline.
The plot might not have accumulated enough Misery Value at this point, so I'll simply go to Blake to help me find someone to kidnap Harry. I understand the principle that villains die because they talk too much; I'll even make sure to time it so that I'm alone with Harry, stupidly complaining about all sorts of nonsense on one side, then have Spider-Man make a grand entrance! Peter will definitely feel disappointed in me for doing this, he won't expect that I'll remain unrepentant and even try to harm my own biological brother! Then, I can easily resolve the situation.
From the second Young Master Osborn, who lived a life of luxury and spent every day drawing hamsters instead of worrying about food or clothing, to a notorious prisoner with nothing left—just tell me, isn't this plot tragic enough!
Finn was calculating happily in his heart; this was practically the Main Brain chasing him down to feed him.
But unfortunately, such a great plot was disrupted just because he had promised Peter that he would behave himself and celebrate his birthday quietly.
Finn lamented in his heart—a playful heart really hinders one's work!!
System PP was just about to comfort Finn when he heard Finn thinking to himself—
I've only just become human; it's normal to be a bit playful.
System PP: 【..】Have you already talked yourself out of it?
It didn't matter; Finn had other arrangements in mind, planning it after his birthday would be just as good. It was just a shame to have missed such a great opportunity, which would inevitably cause the progress to drag on a bit; Finn couldn't help but feel it was somewhat of a pity.
Finn was busy dealing with Marcus, he hadn't expected that Marcus would even hold a small shareholders' meeting behind Harry's back just to make him believe that he could safely take the position of CEO. The meeting was held in a private club, where the shareholders standing with Marcus publicly declared their support for Finn Osborn becoming the new CEO.
Finn's face showed a timely expression of emotion and gratitude.
—Good grief, in order to trick him into the trap, Marcus really went all out with the theatrics.
These shareholders claim they will support him, but in their hearts, they are likely calculating that Finn Osborn is a brainless fool, that by supporting his rise to power, they will have the chance to completely encroach upon and carve up the interests of the Osborn Group.
As the so-called small shareholders' meeting proceeded, it gradually devolved into a struggle session against Harry Osborn.
The meal was quite lively; Finn occasionally chimed in, joining in the condemnation of Harry with righteous indignation.
Before leaving, Marcus turned his head to look at Finn, his eyes filled with a look of determination, certain that his prey had already stepped into the trap: "I have already paved the road for you; now you only need to act according to the plan. Remove the greatest obstacle and reclaim everything that belongs to you."
“This is the best birthday gift you could ever invest in yourself, isn't it?”
Finn looked up, meeting Marcus's gaze.
The anger that had previously flickered in the young man's beautiful green eyes gradually faded, replaced by a confident determination. The young man watched Marcus, slowly curling his lips into a smile, his voice clear and certain—
“Of course, this is the gift I wanted.”
When Finn came out of the private club, Marcus sent someone to deliver him directly to the party. The parties he hosted every week were usually on Friday nights, while birthday parties and press conferences were held this Sunday, meaning there were only two days left.
It was still early before the party, so Finn returned to his VIP seat on the second floor first.
He didn't let Andrew follow him today, partly because he had a special schedule of his own, partly because Andrew, Montgomery, Matt had magic performances at the party tonight and needed time to rehearse.
Not long after, Steve Montgomery came over. Knowing that Finn had arrived early, the young man clutched a stack of planning drafts in his hands and carefully reported the Halloween party proposal once more, leaving out nothing, not even the decorative details and the flow of the event.
Finn briefly shared a few ideas and excitedly expressed that he would arrange a special stage for Halloween, where he would have a breakdancing performance for an Electro-man glowing with blue light, though he requested assistance in keeping an eye on any safety hazards.
Steve Montgomery, stunned, was speechless: ".." He didn't understand what you were talking about, but it sounded very impressive.
—As expected of Young Master Osborn, he certainly has a lot of influence, even being able to invite Electro-man.
Then Finn kept Andrew behind for a private talk.
"You know, I've been getting close to some shareholders in the Osborn Group lately." Finn looked at the ID badge that was still hanging quite submissively around Andrew's neck, realizing that this young man was truly quite long-suffering.
Andrew was stunned, not understanding why Finn would suddenly say such a thing.
“These shareholders can't stand Harry as much as I do. An enemy's enemy is the best friend.” Finn even went out of his way to pick a magazine from a large collection, one that praised him excessively, to show Andrew. The cover featured Harry Osborn, with a headline claiming he was the youngest business genius. Finn feigned an air of disdain as he tossed the magazine into Andrew's hands. "Look at how the magazine praises Harry Osborn with such extravagant words, as if Norman only has this one son and everything should belong to him."
Of course, Finn deliberately picked out the magazine that praised him the most from a large pile of magazines and showed it to Andrew.
Take a good look at how amazing his older brother is; compared to his own lack of ambition, he is truly the pride of the Osborn Group.
If it weren't for Harry, the Osborn Group would have been squandered by him long ago.
Andrew held a magazine in his hands. He could only see the anger in Finn's eyes and brow, but he had always been clumsy with words and could not offer any words of comfort. Furthermore, it was obvious that Young Master Finn did not need comfort from someone as insignificant as him; he only needed to keep his head down.. Andrew thought for a moment, then forced himself to look up, revealing a face that bore a slight resemblance to Harry's, silently acted as a target for Finn to vent his emotions upon.
"These shareholders want me to join them in taking down Harry Osborn, what do you think?" Finn asked deliberately.
Andrew's body stiffened, he looked at Finn with a look of surprise.
Matters involving the power of the corporation were not something he should be told about.
“You are my secretary now. If you reveal these matters to Harry—" Finn continued.
"I won't do that!" Andrew Damon said decisively, his brow furrowing instantly. He could, of course, tell that Finn Osborn did not trust him. Andrew was not the type of person with a strong sense of right or wrong to begin with; he wouldn't bother judging whether what Finn did was right or wrong. Instead, he was more concerned that Harry Osborn might also take action against Finn.
"I don't think you have the guts either," Finn said with a light chuckle, using a mocking, provocative tone on purpose.
Andrew frowned, his lips pressed into a thin line, but he did not know how to defend himself—
It wasn't that he lacked courage; it was just that he wouldn't commit an act like betraying Finn.
They all want me to file a lawsuit, to claim that Norman Osborn's will was forged by Harry." Finn deliberately revealed this information to Andrew, naturally because these were excellent leverage that Andrew could use later to form a united front with Harry, "But I know very well, this is the will my father left behind.
In Finn's view, there wasn't a single flaw in this will.
Since Harry Osborn took charge of the Osborn Group, he has proven through his own strength that he is a top-tier manager and entrepreneur. Only he is capable of keeping those old foxes on the board of directors, who are all eager to carve up the profits, in check.
In contrast, since his father's passing, he had done nothing but indulge in food, drink, play, or find various ways to complain about being broke to Harry.
If there were really an election for Chairman, anyone with even a shred of sense would vote for him—specifically, to vote him out.
Andrew froze, his gaze fixed intently on Finn.
He thought of what Butler Joseph had said to him, a sentence so simple it seemed to explain everything—
Young Master Finn had always stayed by the side of the ailing Mr. Norman.