Mrs. Wilson paused briefly, then smiled, “Tina darling, you should ask Xia herself, not me.”

Tina smiled shyly, “I’m afraid she’ll refuse. I mean, she’s busy with Aunt Cynthia’s commission for you right now. Your theater needs to attract young audiences in the future, and I count as a young audience, right? It would be wonderful if Senior Xia and Senior Matthew could join me to experience a musical.”

She clasped her hands together in a pleading gesture: “Am I being too presumptuous with this request?”

No one could heartlessly refuse such a coquettish young lady, especially when she was GMP’s potential client. Seeing Kissinger about to speak, Xia Xiaolan quickly jumped in to agree:

“Of course, it’s no problem! Matthew and I would be delighted to accompany Miss Tina to watch a musical! Right, Matthew?”

Matthew certainly wouldn’t refuse.

Tina was overjoyed. “Which show should we see?”

The three huddled together to discuss, while Kissinger looked on with satisfaction:

“Mrs. Wilson, this is what youth is all about – they become familiar with each other so quickly!”

It wasn’t for nothing that they’d increased Xia Xiaolan’s compensation – she knew exactly how to treat clients properly, heh.

Mrs. Wilson nodded, “Xia not only has the capability but is also very thoughtful.”

Tina had always been too sheltered by her family.

Everything in New York seemed novel to her.

Perhaps she had become curious about Xia Xiaolan yesterday, which led her to follow her to the GMP office today.

Mrs. Wilson was indifferent about this. Xia Xiaolan wasn’t someone with ulterior motives, and having someone to keep Tina happy wasn’t bad – Tina’s parents would even be grateful to her!

Xia Xiaolan had no desire to keep Tina happy.

As for watching Broadway musicals, she had seen dozens in a week and still hadn’t processed them all. She didn’t want to step into a theater again anytime soon.

She agreed to Tina’s request only because she didn’t want to refuse in front of Kissinger and create additional complications.

If Tina started talking about home renovation and specifically requested her services like Mrs. Wilson had, the partner would certainly not let go of such an opportunity.

However, Xia Xiaolan truly didn’t want to accept this commission.

Besides not wanting to owe Mrs. Wilson any favors, during her month-plus internship at GMP, Xia Xiaolan had been operating beyond her capacity.

The theater renovation was her final commission. After completing it, she would return to Cornell to continue her studies.

She had learned quite a bit during her GMP internship and also realized she still lacked considerable knowledge. Continuing her education was a good choice. Honestly, she even missed the Big Demon King a bit.

Taking Tina aside, Xia Xiaolan dismissed Matthew and asked Tina directly:

“Miss Tina, do you genuinely want to invite me to the theater, or do you have something you want to ask me? Apart from being unable to accept your commission, I’m willing to help with anything else. I might be a bit abrupt saying this, but I prefer handling matters directly.”

Since Tina spoke Chinese, Xia Xiaolan used Chinese.

Tina tilted her head, “Why couldn’t I genuinely want to invite you to the theater? I’m quite sincere about wanting to be friends with you.”

“And then?”

Tina looked confused: “What do you mean, ‘and then’?”

“I mean, if we become friends, what does Miss Tina plan to do?”

Xia Xiaolan wanted to look in a mirror to see if she was truly universally beloved.

Was she too handsome?

She wasn’t a man – surely Tina couldn’t have fallen in love at first sight!

Wait, yesterday at Mrs. Wilson’s house, Tina’s gaze had been constantly following Harold.

“Is this about Harold?” Xia Xiaolan probed.

Tina’s cheeks reddened, and she patted her face, “Is it that obvious?”

She hadn’t intended to hide her feelings.

Xia Xiaolan nodded, “Anyone who isn’t blind could see it. However, if you have feelings for Mr. Harold, you should tell him directly rather than taking this roundabout approach of becoming friends with me.”

Being friends with her would be useless.

Xia Xiaolan had no idea about Harold’s preferences.

Tina was quite exasperated by her matter-of-fact response.

Anyone who wasn’t blind could see it, yet Xia Xiaolan couldn’t see that Harold liked her.

“You’re interesting. Now I genuinely want to be friends with you.”

Tina really wanted to know why Harold liked Xia Xiaolan, apart from her being young and beautiful… well, extraordinarily beautiful. But with Harold’s wealth, finding other beautiful women wouldn’t be difficult.

“Miss Tina, I’m not opposed to making friends in principle, but I’m really busy right now. Regarding the theater visit, we could either postpone it, or Senior Matthew could accompany you instead. Would either option work for you?”

Xia Xiaolan was slightly worried that Tina might be a spoiled young lady who would make a fuss if she didn’t get her way, so she offered two solutions.

This was a polite refusal – postponing meant indefinitely.

Tina chose the second option:

“Then let Senior Matthew accompany me. Otherwise, you wouldn’t believe in my sincerity.”

Tina sighed with an air of maturity beyond her years.

Xia Xiaolan suppressed a smile. The young lady’s princess temperament wasn’t too severe, and she was quite straightforward in her words and actions, not particularly calculating. If she weren’t so close to Mrs. Wilson, Xia Xiaolan would have been willing to associate with her more.

…

“…That’s how things have been these past few days.”

Mrs. Wilson had approved the commission proposal, and the team had gotten into their groove. Xia Xiaolan finally had time to talk properly with Zhou Cheng.

What had happened to Zhou Yi recently remained their main topic of discussion:

“Is it okay to leave it alone as Uncle suggested? Whether out of guilt or at the end of her business trip, Ye Xiaoqiong quickly left New York. Jim is certain about this.”

Zhou Yi must be an idiot.

With a thief eyeing her, she still welcomed them with open arms. Zhou Cheng almost wanted to deny she was his cousin.

With Zhou Yi being so stupid, would Xiaolan doubt the Zhou family’s genes?

“Darling, let’s follow Uncle’s advice. Don’t return the money to her, let her worry and suffer a bit. You’re already so exhausted, and you still have to look after her. You’re even younger than her – she should be the one taking care of you!”

Is Zhou Yi taking care of her?

Xia Xiaolan couldn’t help but shudder.

Please, not. She wouldn’t dare let Zhou Yi take care of her – what if the big fool’s care left her half-paralyzed or something?

Zhou Cheng was right; Zhou Yi must be in agony now.

First, her money was stolen, creating significant financial pressure.

Second, the near assault by two thugs – this would be tremendously traumatic for any woman.

Zhou Yi wouldn’t even tell her about it, let alone others, forcing her to bury this incident and keep the secret to herself.

“However, it’s somewhat encouraging that she’s still attending classes normally under such pressure. I think this is her greatest progress.”

You could call Zhou Yi stupid and cowardly, but she did have some resilience.

—It was like when a doctor pronounced a patient’s death sentence, but the patient proved through multiple revivals that they could still be saved!