There are shorter ways to do it, they just have less safety net and it can be harder to see what’s happening. If I were doing it for me with no audience, this is what I’d do.
Create text and rectangle paths as above.
Copy to make two copies of the set.
Select one set and to Union. You’ll have the overall shape.
Select the other set and do intersection. You’ll have the bottom half.
Drag the bottom half and snap it to the corresponding node on the first unioned piece. Done.
It’s more efficient than using a third set to align but it could be harder to undo if you make a mistake. You’ll figure out the balance of efficiency to clarity that works for you.
Ai and Inkscape are fairly equivalent for most things. Inkscape slightly better at some things, AI is somewhat better at others. 99+% of the time there’s a way to do whatever you need in either program.
As for me, thanks but prolific doesn’t mean particularly good…