It only took them about forty minutes from leaving to returning.Light snow was falling outside, and Nilson was still sitting in the yard. A blanket covered his shoulders, with some white specks on it. He was silently smoking a cigar while gazing thoughtfully at the gate.His dog, Oloso, was lying on a blanket at his feet, covered with another blanket."Go ahead, Leo." Celeste stood at the gate. She handed the stocking with the gift to Leo and patted his head.Leo took it and went over.Nilson looked at the returning mother and son. He was visibly puzzled."Merry Christmas, Nilson!" Leo handed the stocking to Nilson and even gave him a hug.Nilson was clearly taken aback. He didn't know how to react.Leo, having completed his task, didn't care about Nilson's reaction and ran back to Celeste.Nilson's gaze was complex as he looked at them again."Goodbye." Celeste nodded at him and then walked away with Leo's hand in hers.Everyone had their own suffering, and this was all sh
Perhaps it was Leo's behaviour that moved Nilson. For now, he had completely let down his guard."Sir, please go ahead," Leo said respectfully. In Francisian culture, it was not customary to address non-blood relatives as grandparents, and Leo, unused to calling people by name, addressed him formally.Nilson looked at Leo with his blue eyes full of longing. "Did it ever talk to you about its previous owner?"Leo's eyes flickered. "Yes, sir.""What did it say?" Nilson's blue eyes suddenly shone brightly."It said its previous owner was a very beautiful lady who liked to wear denim jackets," Leo answered truthfully.Nilson's pupils dilated instantly. Before long, his eyes were filled with tears."Yes, my lover indeed liked to wear denim jackets. Child, you truly can communicate with Oloso." Nilson murmured as his motions suddenly became uncontrollable."Many pet communicators in Franciso have never mentioned such detailed things.""Ms. York, you've raised a genius."Celeste a
Leo was only four years old, but Nilson was sure he understood the story.Then again, Leo could communicate logically with adults and fluently speak and write in Frence. If he pretended not to understand, Nilson would never believe it.Thus, Leo gave Celeste another questioning look.Only after Celeste nodded slightly did he ask, "Was Oloso with the lady in her final days?""Yes," Nilson confirmed.Hence, Leo squatted down, cupping Oloso's face, and stared into its eyes.The more serious Leo acted, the more Celeste felt a chill run down her spine. Was this considered a form of communication with the dead?Leo held Oloso's face, and the two stared at each other for over ten minutes. Nilson simply watched the scene with his eyes full of anticipation."It says the lady never believed you had someone new," Leo suddenly looked up at Nilson and said in all seriousness."Really?" Nilson's eyes brightened."Oloso said the lady kept telling it that you, Nilson, are trying to get them
Celeste and Leo finally made their way back to Carlino by the evening of the next day.She took Leo to pick up the checked bags and then remembered what Nelson's butler had said before following the process provided to collect Nilson's gift.It was a somewhat heavy square wooden box.On it, written in French, were the words "Precious item, handle with care.""What's this?" Leo was full of curiosity."It should be a gift for you, to thank you. You'll open it later," Celeste said.It wasn't until they were in the car that had come to pick them up that the mother and son opened the box in the back seat."Mommy, it's what you wanted!" Leo couldn't help but exclaim softly.Celeste's eyes widened in surprise.Inside the wooden box was the bronze dog-head incense burner!The burner lay quietly in the box, resting on a layer of soft Carlino silk padding. Celeste looked at the dignified dog's head and suddenly felt like crying.She carefully took out the incense burner. Underneath wa
It was Kenny who gave Celeste this idea while they were in Taverdale.Kenny was well-versed in capital operations, having made his start in the glove industry. He was adept at using other people's money for his purposes or facilitating the transfer of funds seamlessly from one hand to another.Having spent his youth walking by the riverside, he naturally knew better than most where the pitfalls, the fish, and the electric nets were.Among all the methods of money laundering, road construction was undoubtedly one of the best.The money that disappeared without a trace could reappear through road construction, with some over-reporting here and there. In the end, every penny could be accounted for. This required only good cooperation between the person in charge and the construction company.In a one-billion-dollar project, if the construction company was willing to compress costs to five hundred million dollars and then issue a two-billion-dollar invoice, the job was done.Henry’s
The first person Celeste thought of was Cedric from the housing construction department, who was also the same person she had played golf with all night.She called Winston to inquire about him. Winston replied, "Cedric has been promoted. You can't call him Cedric anymore. It's Mr. Tucker now."He had risen so quickly despite his young age. Celeste recalled Cedric's sharp eyes behind his gold-rimmed glasses and sincerely admired that he not only came from a strong background but also had substantial personal capabilities."Let's schedule another round of golf. I wonder if he's available?" With his recent promotion, it might not be convenient for him to be seen in public as much."I'll ask," Winston said.It wasn't long before he called back. "Cedric said he'll be in Taverdale next Friday. He's busy during the day but can meet after 8 p.m.""Alright." Celeste didn't expect Cedric to agree so readily.Soon, it was the following Friday. Celeste brought some gifts and headed straigh
Celeste had only interacted with Cedric that one time. Back then, she thought he was a difficult person to deal with. Now, it seemed he was pretty considerate of her.Little did she know that their meeting six years ago had left a deep impression on Cedric. After that, he would pay extra attention whenever he came across news about Celeste.Cedric knew all about the years of grudges between her and the Bishop family, her divorce and remarriage, and most recently, how she single-handedly turned Opulent Prowl’s reputation around.He had witnessed this woman’s growth in a parallel universe. Hence, he developed a deep respect for her.But of course, Cedric wouldn't say anything about this.He simply took a sip of tea and half-jokingly said, "Knowing how to show weakness and using beauty are two major gender advantages for women. It seems you haven't learned these over the years."Hmm. Celeste thought about it seriously. She wasn't entirely incapable of it. For instance, in the past,
At that time, he made her promise that from then on, she could only play golf with him.Time had passed, and they were no longer who they used to be. That promise naturally no longer held any weight.Nicholas invited Damon to play golf that night. The two of them were pretty happy at first, but after Celeste arrived, they could no longer concentrate on the game.Damon threw down his club and went to the lounge after seeing Celeste chatting and laughing with Cedric. Nicholas, who understood what was happening, grabbed two cans of sparkling water and joined him.Celeste and the other two soon joined the lounge area as well.Though they didn't hear much, they did witness Celeste's setback."Are you going to step in?" Nicholas raised an eyebrow.Damon snorted. "Do I look like a simp to you?"Yes.Nicholas thought that if Damon weren't a simp, he wouldn't have gone through various connections to help Celeste acquire the beast-headed incense.But he didn't dare say that out loud. "