Chapter 278


    Angeline seemed confused.


    Judging from the old man''s words, she figured he had quite a good knowledge of Joel.


    “It shouldn''t be a problem letting you know."’ The old man tightened liis grip on liis crutches, and his


    eyes gradually darkened as he began speaking. “That youngd has no parents and only has liis sister


    to depend on since he was a child. Even though life was tough for them, they eventually became quite


    capable. His sister became a nurse in the county, while he became a famous designer.”


    “And then?” Angeline''s curiosity was piqued.


    “Unfortunately, liis sister suddenly died because of an ident justst year. That left him so


    devastated that he returned to Linlow Ind.”


    That undoubtedly left Angeline at a loss for words.


    The old man heaved a deep sigh. “Ever since then, he became extremely entric. He never interacts


    with liis neighbors and only locks himself home to work on his design drawing. There were


    businessmen like you who visited him to ask for coborations previously, but he chased all of them


    out.”


    “Oh, I see.” A frown formed on Angeline''s face, and her tone had a tinge of concern. "Does he not have


    any friends?”


    “No one is willing to befriend him. You''ll know once you visit him. He''s a fine young man with a bright


    future but, sadly, very unmotivated and shows no desire for sess. He''s no different from a beggar.”


    Angeline wore a thoughtful expression upon listening to those words. Deep down, she was incredibly


    shocked.


    I can''t believe Nancy has such a weird senior. I wonder how capable he really is. Nancy has ttered


    him so much and made him sound so impressive. Was she only trying to reassure me?


    Despite her doubts, she thought she should still go and take a look since she had traveled all the way


    there.


    Sensing Angeline''s persistence, the old man lifted his finger and pointed to a mountain path not too far


    away.


    “Joel stays on the other side of that mountain. You have to climb over to get there. I see that you have


    a suitcase with you, Miss. The route is a steep and treacherous one. It''s not going to be easy for you...”


    “I''m all right. Thank you for your help. Sir.”


    After showing her gratitude, Angeline pulled her suitcase and walked in the direction of the mountain


    road.


    Only after she embarked on her journey did she realize that the old man was right—the route was


    indeed steep and treacherous.


    As the rain had just stopped, there were many muddy puddles around. The rocks made the road


    uneven and bumpy, blocking the wheels of the suitcase from rolling forward smoothly. Angeline had a


    hard time advancing.


    Swoosh!


    Just then, the branches in the bushes suddenly moved.


    She pulled herself together and shifted her gaze toward the swaying leaves. Fear started to arise from


    deep within her.


    It was a dark and windy night, and she was climbing the mountain alone. It was a situation she had


    never been through before.


    It was no wonder why even the slightest noise would make her anxious.


    By now. Angeline was trembling violently, and a sheen of sweat had formed on the hand that was


    clutching onto the suitcase handle. She could not help but gulp in anxiety.


    Nothing will happen. I must''ve watched too many suspense movies. There''s no way that there are so


    many baddies around. Stop scaring yourself, Angeline.


    Only after giving herself some encouragement did Angeline step forward and make her way toward the


    bushes.


    Lifting her hands, she pushed the branches away. What came into her vision was a ck cat with a


    pair of green eyes.


    Copyright N?v/el/Dra/ma.Org.


    Meow.


    The ck cat purred at Angeline and jumped out of the bushes.


    Angeline patted her chest lightly to soothe her heart, which felt as though it was about to leap out.


    Oh gosh, it''s merely a ck cat. Why did I freak out so badly?


    Angeline was still mocking herself for her ridiculous reaction when the sound of stic fabric ripping


    apart resonated in the air from below her feet.


    It''s all rocks and muddy grounds around this ce. Why is there such a strange noise?


    Angeline''s brows knitted into one line. Out of instinct, she stomped her feet where she stood, and at


    that very moment, the ground below her gave way without warning.


    “Ahh!”


    She let out a scream as she fell into the cer.


    Following a loud thud, her bodynded on the ground heavily. It was lucky that the ground in the cer


    was much softer, thus preventing her from suffering any severe injuries.


    identally ingesting some mud, Angeline choked and began coughing incessantly.


    After calming herself down, she fished out her phone and turned on the shlight to check the injuries


    she had sustained. Although she suffered a few abrasions, they were luckily not too serious.


    As she shone her shlight around the cer, she realized that her surrounding was full of jars of peach


    wine.


    Even though she was not an expert in brewing wine, she knew that there was a need to bury good-


    quality wine in the underground for some time so that it would be a good-tasting brew.


    This is probably the ce where the vigers bury their wines.


    Angeline felt a lot more relieved after her analysis. Since there are so many wines here, the vigers


    will probablye here often enough to patrol, right?


    With that in mind, she immediately raised her head and shouted toward the entrance, “Help! Is anyone


    out there? Help me!”


    She yelled for a long time, and her voice was hoarse from all the shouting. Yet. there was no reply.


    All she could see at the edge of the entrance above her was her suitcase.


    Well aware that she would only waste her energy if she continued screaming, she decided to stop and


    instead think of another solution.


    With a hopeful mindset. Angeline turned on her phone. Sadly, just as she expected, there was no


    signal at all.


    The cer was wet and cold. Unable to withstand the cold. Angeline eventually wrapped her arms


    around herself. At this point, her stomach was also grumbling nonstop.


    However, there was nothing she could do other thanugh in helplessness.


    “Hang in there a while more. I don''t think we can get out tonight.”


    Who would evene up here to patrol in the middle of the night? If I''m lucky enough, perhaps


    someone may pass by this ce tomorrow morning and discover that I''m in here. But for now, since


    there''s nothing I can do. I might as well preserve my energy...


    Well, reality proved that Angeline sure was one luckydy.


    A warm yellow stream of light suddenly appeared on the pitch-dark mountain. Shortly after some


    rustling noises, three men pushed aside the branches and made their way toward the area where the


    cer was located.


    The man leading the group had an immensely oppressive aura. Despite the old fisherman outfit and


    ck rain boots, the man still had the bearing of a big shot.


    “Mr. Golding, it''s sote now. There''s no need for you toe up the mountain for inspection at this


    time. Isn''t it better to wait for tomorrow morning?”


    Nigel Maguire, the second-inmand on Linlow Ind, shed a ttering smile while following


    behind respectfully.


    “I can''t wait till tomorrow,” Evander coldly responded with a deadpan expression. “I''ve booked the


    earliest flight to return.”


    He had spent the whole day resolving the dispute between Linlow Ind and the government. All that


    was left to do was thest step—an on-site inspection at the brewery.


    If there were no other issues, he would start preparing forunch matters after returning to the office.


    He had nned liis schedules so tightly that he barely had any free time to take a breather.