Chapter 156 Conspiracy
Aria looked up at him briefly, said nothing, then stood up and walked over to the flower stand. She began tidying up the leftover materials from earlier, making it clear she didn't want to talk to him.
Arthur's words stuck in his throat. Watching her cold, distant figure, the feeling of helplessness in his heart grew even stronger.
Lance walked over to Arthur's side, his tone carrying a warning, "Arthur, I don't care if that woman is one of your messy flings or not, you need to handle it. If anyone else comes to bother Aria because of you, or disturbs Aria and Jasper's life, I won't let you off."
With that, Lance turned to help Aria tidy up the flowers, leaving Arthur standing alone, watching the mother and son's figures, his eyes full of regret and helplessness.
He wanted to explain what Lance had just said, but found he had no explanation to give. Rachel's troublemaking was probably largely caused by him...
And this time, Rachel's harassment might just be the beginning of all the troubles Aria would face after returning home. If he wanted to make amends, to get closer to her, he was destined to walk an incredibly difficult path.
Meanwhile, Rachel, having left Serenity Blooms Studio, sat in her car looking at the delicate bouquet in her hands. Furious, she threw it hard onto the passenger seat, petals scattering everywhere. She pulled out her phone and called Sophie, her voice full of venom.
"Miss Smith, that woman Aria is back in the country, did you know?!"
On the other end, Sophie was sitting by the bay window in the Grant family villa. Hearing this, she pretended to be surprised, her voice wrapped in just the right amount of confusion, "Aria? When did she come back?"
Rachel paused, then said through gritted teeth, "It must have been a while ago. She's back and even opened a flower studio."
Sophie pretended not to know, "Oh? I really hadn't heard about this. How did you find out?"
"I got an anonymous text message, so I went to check it out. I didn't expect it to really be her. Mr. Grant has been going there these past few days, and today he even scolded me in front of her."
Rachel's last words were full of anger.
Just thinking about Aria's face made Rachel's jealousy burn even stronger. Aria's beauty was completely natural, with a cool, elegant look in her eyes and brows, her skin white as snow. Even without makeup, she was the kind of person who would catch your eye immediately.
She hadn't believed it when people at the company talked about it before, but now that she'd seen her in person, she couldn't stay calm. She had to figure out a plan quickly.
Sophie deliberately said, "An anonymous text? Could someone have sent it to you on purpose?"
But Rachel wasn't listening anymore, "I don't care if someone did it on purpose or not, at least they didn't lie to me. Mr. Grant really has been going there. Miss Smith, didn't you say you were willing to help me before? Can you help me figure something out now? If this keeps up, Mr. Grant's heart will definitely be all on her."
And then she would have nothing left.
Rachel's reaction was exactly what Sophie wanted. Sophie was very satisfied, though she didn't show it. Instead, she spoke in a helpless tone, "I didn't expect Aria would actually come back. I told you before that Aria isn't someone to mess with. If she could make Arthur think about her for five years, she has some real skills. Now that she's back, Arthur is distracted. Him protecting her today was to be expected, I just didn't think he wouldn't care about your feelings at all. I guess I thought things were simpler than they are."
These words instantly pushed Rachel's sense of grievance to its peak. Eyes red, she hissed, "Why? She disappeared for five years, so why can she just come back and take over his heart and make him protect her like this!"
"Tell me about it."
Sophie went along with her, adding a few subtle digs, her tone carrying a hint of "shared suffering" and helplessness, "Look at me. Even though I still have the title of Mrs. Grant, everyone knows that in the Grant family, in front of Arthur, I have no real power. I'm just holding an empty title.
I really didn't expect Aria to come back. Now it's not just you, even my life is getting difficult."
She deliberately lowered her position, putting herself in the same "victim" position as Rachel, making Rachel feel they were on the same side.
Rachel was indeed swayed, her tone softening a bit while still urgent, "Miss Smith, so what do we do now? We can't just watch Aria take everything away, can we? You promised to help me before, you must have a way, right?"
Sophie had been waiting for this desperate plea. But she still pretended to look troubled, frowning as she said, "Of course I want to help you, but I'm really powerless here.
You know, Arthur won't let me get involved in company matters now. Recently I heard there's been some problem with the company's west side project, and he's probably really stressed about it. I can barely get a few words in with him now, let alone find a chance to go after Aria."
She seemed to mention the company matter casually, but every word was guiding Rachel, her fingers lightly tapping the sofa armrest as she waited for Rachel to take the bait.
Rachel's mind was completely focused on getting rid of Aria, so she couldn't detect Sophie's scheming at all. She only felt she'd found a breakthrough and immediately said, "I know about that west side project. William seems to be in charge of it. I even helped him organize materials for it last week!"
"Really?"
Sophie pretended to be delighted, her tone full of surprise and gratitude, "That would really help me out! Assistant Morgan, actually this project was something I had him work on earlier. After I stopped being involved in company matters, he handed it over to his subordinates to manage. Now I hear there's a problem with this project. If I can help him handle it well,
and make him feel more positively toward me, then I can use that as an excuse to divert his attention. Then he won't have Aria on his mind all the time, don't you think?"
She made her words airtight, giving Rachel hope while hiding her own motives perfectly.
Rachel's eyes lit up at this, thinking it was a perfect plan. She quickly agreed, "Okay, Miss Smith, I'll look into that project and see what's going on, then I'll let you know. You have to help me then, we can't let Mr. Grant be seduced by Aria."
"Don't worry."
Sophie's tone was firm, giving Rachel complete reassurance, "We're working together. You help me figure out what's going on with that project, and I'll help divert attention from Aria. When the time comes, won't you have plenty of opportunities? My title of Mrs. Grant looks good on the surface, but really it's just for show to outsiders. If you think about it, you're by his side every day, much closer than I am."
These words completely dispelled Rachel's last doubts.
In the Grant family villa, Sophie hung up the phone, and the gentleness on her face instantly faded, leaving only cold calculation in her eyes.
The west side project was something she'd been eyeing for a long time. Using the excuse of dealing with Aria to get her hands on it couldn't be more perfect.