Board members close to John, contemplating following his lead, were struck with a mix of fear and relief. Their wisdom prevailed, preventing them from resigning alongside John, thereby averting a fate similar to his.

In the Phillips Group...

“Did he attempt to reach out to you later?" Lilah inquired when calling Gerard after reading about John's incident online.

Gerard responded, "Indeed, he did but I declined. One shouldn't try to catch the fish they've released."

"I suppose he must be quite upset." Lilah chuckled. “Your determination is evident. If others didn't trust you, you wouldn't allow them to stay in your company."

"I require my employees to come together for effective management of my company," Gerard replied casually. Suddenly, his tone softened.

"Just like how I treat my sweetheart. I must stay focused."

Lilah blushed. "You're quite the charmer."

“Babe, any plans for Valentine's Day?" Gerard inquired in a relaxed and joyful manner.

"Valentine's Day?"

Lilah was slightly taken aback, having not realized that Valentine's Day was approaching.

"Don't tell me you haven't considered it." Gerard read her mind.

With a guilty conscience, Lilah responded, "Of course, I have. I've been pondering it for a while. Well... we could have a date on that day."

"With Jerrold? Or just the two of us?"

"Obviously, we'll bring Jerrold along," Lilah answered without hesitation.

Gerard felt a sense of resignation. "Tell me honestly, is Jerrold more important to you than I am?"

Lilah replied solemnly, "Gerard, why would you even ask such a question? You're being too childish. It shouldn't even be a question for you, okay?"

Lilah faintly heard the sound of teeth gritting on the other end of the line. She smirked, finding it amusing to tease Gerard.

Ending the phone call on a delightful note, Lilah returned to work in high spirits. Amidst her daily tasks, she also had to attend to other matters, including the launch of their TV drama.

The first episode was scheduled to air at seven in the evening.

Before heading home from work, Lilah received an unexpected call from Saul.

"Unfortunately, I have to inform you that our drama cannot be launched," Saul conveyed, a hint of a headache evident in his voice.

Curious, Lilah inquired about the reason behind this sudden turn of events.

"We were on the verge of finalizing an exclusive contract but the other party had a change of heart and significantly slashed our profit share. Infuriated, I terminated our collaboration. However, they also had ties with other platforms. Upon reaching out to them, all refused to work with us," Saul explained, genuine disappointment in his tone.