Chapter 52 Exquisite Design
The nurse was still tidying up the IV tubes when she heard this. She looked at Arthur like he was some kind of alien.
"Oh my God, I can't believe there are husbands like you in this world! You don't even know your wife..."
"It's anemia, plus a bit of low blood sugar. Nothing serious." Aria was afraid the nurse would mention the baby in her belly.
After all, Arthur clearly thought she'd gotten rid of the child.
If he found out the baby was still alive, there was no telling what he'd do.
The nurse was suddenly cut off and paused, looking up at her.
Aria glanced over and quickly blinked her eyes. The nurse got the hint, swallowed the words on the tip of her tongue, and went along with it. "Right, both the anemia and low blood sugar are quite severe. She can't overwork herself or get upset."
Arthur's brow was still furrowed, his gaze lingering on Aria's lower abdomen for another two seconds.
Something felt off no matter how he thought about it. A while back, she'd been throwing up frequently, which had made him suspicious, but then he'd seen with his own eyes that she got her period.
After that, she kept insisting that the period was the lie.
And now, her slightly protruding belly, her unstable emotions...
But soon, Arthur dismissed the thought.
He suddenly realized that pregnant women should be in the maternity ward, right? Why would she be in a regular ward?
This was, of course, because Charles had brought her in, and he didn't know Aria was pregnant at first either.
Aria had fainted, so of course saving her came first. By the time the test results were ready, he had already completed the hospital admission paperwork.
She was already lying in the bed - they couldn't exactly wheel her back out, could they?
Seeing Arthur wasn't dwelling on this anymore, Aria quietly breathed a sigh of relief.
Arthur stood up. "Get some rest. I'll come see you tomorrow."
Aria closed her eyes and said flatly, "No need. I can be discharged tomorrow."
"That soon?"
"Would you prefer I stay longer?"
Arthur was stumped and coughed awkwardly. "Then remember to have Lucy pick you up tomorrow. Take care of yourself."
With that, he left.
Aria remained silent, listening to Arthur's footsteps fade away. She pulled out her phone from under the pillow and sent Charles a message.
Aria: [Arthur might approach you about investing. I can't say whether that project is good or not - use your own judgment.]
A few seconds later, Charles replied: [Okay.]
-
Arthur didn't go directly to Charles.
He understood perfectly well that given the conflicts they'd had, showing up at his door would probably get him nowhere.
Apologizing or reasoning with him would be useless. Better to dangle what businessmen are most interested in - profit.
He had his assistant compile core materials on the East District project, especially highlighting several of the most attractive high-return features.
Then he used some connections to have these materials flow through a third party to one of Charles's investment advisors.
Two days later, the investment advisor called.
"Mr. Grant, I hear the East District project has run into some difficulties?" The voice on the other end was emotionless.
Arthur's lips curved into a satisfied smile.
Over the next three hours, he painted a dream-like investment scenario for the advisor, and the next day arranged for an on-site visit.
The contract was signed quickly.
By the time Charles discovered from his advisor that this supposedly promising investment project was actually Arthur's project, he'd already transferred the money.
Damn it! Charles was so angry he couldn't eat all day. Finally, he called Arthur and deliberately said, "You better believe I didn't fall for your trick!"
"I did this largely for Ms. Hall's sake. I sincerely hope that after you two divorce, she can get more money!"
Arthur dismissed these words as the rage of a sore loser, mocking him back in a few sharp sentences, which made Charles even more furious.
After the investment arrived in installments, Grant Corp's stock price began to recover.
Everyone in the company breathed a sigh of relief.
This naturally included Sophie.
She'd already bought her plane ticket abroad. That antique crown had been auctioned off too - worth seven million, she'd only gotten less than five million for it.
At least most of the money for the crown had come from Arthur, or she really would have died of heartache!
Of course, she wasn't planning to give this money to Arthur. While it was a substantial sum, compared to Grant Corp's funding gap, it was like throwing a pebble into the ocean - at most she'd see a splash.
She'd almost foreseen the terrible outcome - after the financial crisis, Arthur would go bankrupt, end up on the streets. No, that was too tragic. She couldn't bear to see Arthur fall to that level, and she couldn't save him either.
So she could only flee to another country, just like three years ago.
She'd already prepared her resignation letter.
But now, Grant Corp's crisis was resolved!
So she immediately replaced the resignation letter with a five-million-dollar check, quietly placing it in the most visible spot on Arthur's desk, with a note attached: [Arthur, this is all I have to give.]
When Arthur saw the check, he was genuinely moved.
But beyond the emotion, other thoughts inevitably crept in - like why hadn't he seen this check when money was most desperately needed?
And why, after that fraud left, had Sophie's attitude toward him become noticeably colder?
She'd even delegated her work to others, as if preparing to distance herself.
Arthur wasn't stupid.
He'd just convinced himself with the life-saving favor from years ago that he was still willing to believe Sophie loved him.
"Sophie, I can't take this money." He pushed the check back into her hand. "The project funding is already sorted out. I'll buy that crown back for you."
Sophie leaned into his embrace, saying softly, "As long as you're okay, I'm willing to do anything."
Arthur stroked her hair, but inexplicably thought of Aria.
There wasn't much time left until their agreed divorce date.
She was probably already making appointments to process the divorce paperwork.
A flash of loneliness crossed his eyes, finally transforming into determined resolve.
Maybe the paperwork would be quick, but the judgment wouldn't take effect for at least six months. Six months - enough time for him to accomplish many things.