Chapter 120 He Wants You to Go See Him
Here's the translation:
Vanessa's eyes flickered, and she said hesitantly, "Are you... are you telling the truth?"
Vincent reached out and stroked her hair. "Of course. I have no reason to lie to you."
Just then, his phone rang. He picked it up and saw it was the butler from the Black Manor calling.
He quickly answered.
"Mr. Black, you need to come back right away. Richard fell!"
Vincent's expression changed. "What happened?"
"The snow on the steps wasn't cleared properly. Richard didn't notice and stepped on it. He's been taken to the hospital. They say his tailbone is fractured. Please come quickly."
Vanessa frowned beside him. "What are those servants doing! Richard is so old—how can he handle a fall like that? Vince, let's go right away!"
On the other end of the line, the butler's voice hesitated. "Miss Drake is there too?"
Vincent sensed something off in the butler's tone and asked, "What's wrong?"
The butler stammered, "You should just come back yourself. Don't bring Miss Drake. Before Richard fell, he was very angry, and it was because of... because of Miss Drake. If she comes now, I'm afraid... I'm afraid Richard will get angry again when he sees her."
Vincent said, "I understand. I'll bring Luna with me."
After hanging up, Vanessa's lips pressed tight, and her face stiffened.
"What did you do?" Vincent asked.
Vanessa's lips pressed tight, and her face stiffened.
She lowered her head, and only after a while did she speak.
"It's nothing really. I just canceled contracts with two partners and switched to my cousin's and my father's companies."
"You mean Stellar Tech and Evercore? I didn't approve that. How did you..."
"I thought you were just too busy and it got delayed." Vanessa said this, then raised her head. "I don't think I did anything wrong. I canceled those contracts for the company's good!"
"You saw the financial reports too. Those two companies have been working with Black Group for so many years, and profits keep shrinking. At this rate, won't we be losing money in a few years?"
"My cousin's side offered much better terms than them. Isn't switching better?"
Vanessa spoke confidently, but Vincent's face grew darker and darker. He said coldly, "Do you know that those two partners are old friends who've worked with Grandpa for decades?"
"When Grandpa first started his business, he faced huge difficulties. Thanks to the bosses of those two companies stepping in to help, Grandpa got through the hardest times. Without them, Black Group might have gone under long ago."
"Grandpa said back then that as long as Black Group was still running, even if we had to lose money, we'd keep working with them!"
"Do you think only you can see the financial reports, and the shareholders and I are blind? Can you please discuss things with me before making decisions on your own in the future?!"
Such harsh words stunned Vanessa, and then her eyes reddened with grievance. "I didn't know... Fine, even if I knew, don't I have the right to decide who the company works with and who it doesn't?"
"Vincent, you're the one who put me in this position. Can't I exercise the authority that comes with it? Or did you just plan to make me a figurehead all along?"
Vincent took a breath. "That's not what I meant."
Vincent looked at her and suddenly lost interest in comforting her. He couldn't help thinking that if it were Daisy, this wouldn't happen.
She would never make decisions without his permission. She was very mindful of boundaries, never lost her composure in public, and never needed him to comfort her.
Though he knew it was wrong, Vincent had to admit he'd been spoiled by Daisy.
"You should go back first. We'll talk about this after I get back." Vincent sighed. "I need to go see Grandpa at the hospital first."
Vanessa said nothing, grabbed her bag, and left.
Vincent called his assistant to handle the follow-up from the auction, then got in his car.
"Dad, why did Auntie Vanessa leave? Is she mad?"
Vincent said, "No, she suddenly had something to do. We're going to the hospital to see your great-grandpa. He fell and isn't doing well."
Luna nodded firmly. "Okay! Let's go quickly then!"
...
At the hospital, Richard lay in bed looking terrible, his lips pale.
A fractured tailbone wasn't that serious, but given his age, recovery would be slow. Plus Richard was in a bad mood, and the butler stood by nervously.
Finally Vincent arrived, and the butler breathed a huge sigh of relief.
"Mr. Black, you're here."
Vincent nodded and walked to the bedside. "Grandpa, feeling any better?"
Richard looked at him with displeasure. "You're here? Don't worry, I'm not dying just yet."
Vincent sensed the wrong tone and said nothing, quietly giving Luna a look.
Luna immediately understood and sweetly called out by the bed, "Richard, you need to get better! Be more careful on the stairs next time."
Richard's face finally softened when he saw Luna.
"Oh my, Luna's here too! Why are you out of school so early?"
Luna's eyes rolled around. "As soon as I heard you fell, I rushed over to see you! I was so worried about you."
Even though Richard knew she was making it up, he still smiled, then looked at Vincent. "Dais... Ah."
He'd wanted to ask "Why didn't Dais come?" but then remembered his granddaughter-in-law was divorced now. Once divorced, there was no relationship. Why would she come see an injured old man?
He could only sigh.
Vincent pressed his lips together. "She doesn't know you fell. If she knew, she'd definitely come."
Richard was silent for a moment, then sighed.
"When she was always around, I didn't appreciate it. Now, I really do miss her."
"All those years married to you, she really suffered." Richard sighed again. "Forget it, let's not talk about that. Tell me, what are you going to do about the Stellar Tech and Evercore situation?"
Vincent said, "Nessa didn't understand the background. She was just thinking of the company. Since it's already happened, there's no point blaming her. I'll draft new contracts and renew the partnerships."
Richard nodded. "Let's do that then."
After staying with his grandfather a while, Vincent left the room and called Daisy.
The phone rang a few times, then she answered.
"What is it?" Daisy's voice carried some fatigue.
"You're home?"
"Yeah."
Vincent hesitated, then said, "Richard fell. He's at the hospital. He was just asking about you. Do you want to... come by?"
A silence. Just as Vincent was about to say "if it's not convenient, forget it," Daisy said, "I'm pretty tired today. Another time. I'll visit him another day."
After hanging up, Daisy lay down on the bed. Within her line of sight, a red gift box sat by the bedside.
It was the gift Richard had given her last time she went back. She'd brought it home and left it there, forgetting to open it.
On impulse, she removed the wrapping and opened the gift box.