Chapter 224


    Hanley’s brow slightly furrowed. “Mr. Elysian seems idle. Is it because there’s nothing to do at the


    The tension between the two was intense. Candice’s temple throbbed, and she reached out to grab


    Hanley. “Stop talking. Nadia and the others should be waiting for us. Let’s go first.”


    She tugged at Hanley’s sleeve and swayed slightly as she spoke. Hanley’s initial cold demeanor


    gradually softened. He looked back at her and grunted, “Okay.”


    Then, he nced at Alex and spoke casually, “Please let us through, Mr. Elysian.”


    Alex’s dark eyes exuded a severe coldness as they rested lightly on Candice’s hand holding


    Hanley’s sleeve.


    Candice knew Alex’s


    temperament. Not wanting to dy things any further and without waiting


    for him to make way, she pulled Hanley toward the direction of the signpost leading into the


    bamboo grove.


    Passing through the bamboo grove would lead them to the resting area.


    Hanley allowed her to pull him without saying a word.


    It wasn’t until they had walked a certain distance that she let go of his hand. She whispered, ”


    Sorry.”


    “Why apologize?” Hanley looked at her and asked back.


    She pondered for a moment, then smiled bitterly. “It seems that every time I say I don’t want to


    trouble you, I end up doing just that. And also, about Aether Corporation…”


    He had previously mentioned not wanting her to go to Aether Corporation, but Candice had acted


    on her own.


    “It’s not your fault. I understand you want to resolve the issues with the studio. Your choice wasn’t


    wrong: Aether Corporation indeed is the crux of the problem that needs solving.”


    While speaking. Hanley enunciated clearly, exuding a calm and reassuring aura.


    “It’s just that Aether Corporationcks foresight. What is there for you to me yourself about?”


    Hanley’s final words carried a hint of helplessness as he looked at Candice. “You tend to shoulder all


    the responsibility onto yourself.”


    She remained silent. Almost no one had ever said such things to her, neither during her time at


    Aether Corporation nor when she was with Alex.


    +15 BONOS


    Most people were ustomed to assigning tasks or asking for help from her as a matter of course,


    believing she could handle everything perfectly. If anything went wrong, it was seen as herck of


    ability.


    Seeing her remain quiet, Hanley magically pulled out a small peach from somewhere and handed


    it to Candice. “Here.”


    Looking at the small green peach, she was momentarily surprised.


    He raised an eyebrow. “I couldn’t resist picking it while I was on the phone just now. Now I feel a


    bit guilty.”


    The peach was probably not ripe yet and was still plucked by him, hence the sense of guilt.


    Taking it. Candice remembered Hanley had been on the phone for a while. She casually asked. ” Who


    called you?”


    Hanley paused mid–step. “The Blue Artifact. They wanted to negotiate again after ourst


    unsessful coboration discussion.”


    Candice vaguely recalled this matter. She nodded and followed Hanley back to the rest area where


    Nadia and the others had returned earlier.


    The weather outside was hot, so no one had much interest in going out to y.


    Moreover, both sides were still in apetitive rtionship, leaving little to discuss. The department’s


    ideas didn’t quite materialize, and in the end, everyone had an ufortable dinner. together before


    leaving separately.


    Before Candice left, she didn’t see Alex’s car in the parking lot; she figured he’d left.


    She bid farewell to Hanley and headed back to the northern part of the city.


    A day of outdoor activities had yielded nothing but heat.


    Candice was exhausted and went to bed early.


    The next morning, she went to the hospital to see her grandfather.


    Yesterday, she had gone to the west side and couldn’t make it here.


    Her grandfather was still in the intensive care unit in a simr condition. When Candice inquired with


    the nurse, she learned that her grandfather’s wound had started hurting yesterday, and he couldn’t


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    sleep all night due to the pain.


    +15 BONOS


    She had to speak with Vince to understand the situation better.


    Vince adjusted his sses and said, “You don’t need to worry too much. We’ve examined the patient,


    and the wound isn’t showing any signs of infection. We’re even considering transferring him to a


    regr ward.”


    The current ICU was sterile, so she hesitated a bit. “Is it possible for him to stay a bit longer in the


    ICU?”


    She was worried that if her grandfather were moved to a regr ward, any mistake might pose a higher


    risk.


    “If the family and the patient wish so, it can be arranged.”


    After spending some time at the hospital, Candice left.


    Yesterday, when they left Bloom Garden, Hanley mentioned meeting with the responsible person from


    Blue Artifact today.


    Since the department’s project wasn’t finalized, they naturally had to look into other options.


    When Candice went there, Hanley was about to leave, apanied only by Ryan. She asked, ” Just


    the two of you?”


    “Yes. The rest have other matters to attend to.”


    Ryan grinned and jokingly said to her, “Candice, I noticed you’re quite like our manager. You seem


    to be needed for contract negotiations.”


    Candice replied, “I could be your manager if needed.”


    They arrived at the agreed location, and she was surprised to find that the person they were meeting


    was Zane, whom she had previously encountered at Aether Corporation.


    Zane remembered her and was quite surprised. “Ms. Renault, howe you’re now with Mr.


    Baldwin?”


    Candice smiled and said, “Just challenging myself.”


    Blue Artifact was nning tounch a new fun–themed series, leaning toward a childlike design


    Zane said, “This time, the target audience is mainly the youth, and we also want to promote folklore


    culture, so we need something unique that can attract attention. This time, it’s a long-


    term coboration since this exhibition will go through more than twenty cities.”


    +15 BONOS


    Series exhibitions weremon, and he added, “But we hope each city’s design will have some


    uniqueness.”


    The coboration was swiftly negotiated, and both sides were quite satisfied. The next step was to wait


    for Blue Artifact’s boss’s approval.


    After finishing the discussion, they returned to the vi. However, when they returned, Nadial


    looked at them with a peculiar expression.


    Ryan asked, “What happened? You look strange.”


    Nadia handed him the phone, sounding baffled. “It seems like Aether Corporation is having a conflict


    with Webrews Group. I just received news that Aether Corporation might withdraw from


    the cooperation with Dream Search.”


    This surprised everyone.


    “Why would they suddenly withdraw?”


    Candice furrowed her brow, recalling Francis’s attitude from yesterday, and she had some guesses in


    her mind.


    She remembered the recording of Francis she had intended to send to Mr. Jordanst night but.


    had forgotten.


    Just as she took out her phone to send a message, the phone screen suddenly lit up. Someone was


    calling her, and seeing the number on the screen made Candice’s already furrowed brow tighten


    further.