Chapter 50 Investors
Hospital.
Aria lay in the hospital bed, staring blankly at the ceiling.
Her hand rested on her lower abdomen, which already had a slight bulge.
The hospital room door opened, and Charles walked in carrying a thermos.
"You're awake?" He set a large bag of takeout on the metal cabinet nearby. "Want something to eat? I brought you some chicken soup."
Aria propped herself up. "Thank you."
Charles unpacked the takeout containers. The soup was still hot, so he poured it into a ceramic bowl and handed her a spoon.
Aria held the bowl with both hands, sipping slowly.
"The doctor said you're anemic and need iron supplements." Charles sat down by her bed. "Also, you can't get too emotional—it's not good for the baby."
Aria hummed softly in response, her gaze wandering.
"Does Arthur have any idea you're pregnant?" Charles asked.
He couldn't help wondering, because he figured no normal man would upset his pregnant wife badly enough to land her in the hospital.
Aria wanted to say he knew, but he didn't want this child at all—he probably thought she'd already gotten rid of it.
But there was no need to tell Charles all that.
She said flatly. "He doesn't need to know." And left it at that.
"So what are you going to do?" Charles pressed.
"Have the baby, of course. Raise it myself."
Aria gently stroked her belly, then looked up at him. "No matter what's going on with the adults, the child is innocent."
Charles let out a soft breath. "Ms. Hall, I don't mean this as flattery—I genuinely think you're very brave."
Aria smiled. "Thanks, I think so too." After a pause, she added. "Oh, and thank you again. And I'm sorry."
Charles looked up at her, a hint of a smile on his lips. Faced with that expression, Aria felt a bit embarrassed.
"Thank you for bringing me to the hospital and taking such good care of me. And I'm sorry for causing you so much trouble."
Charles's expression didn't change. "As long as Ms. Hall doesn't think I've brought you bad luck."
"Of course, personally speaking, I really hope Ms. Hall can stay far away from bad luck."
Meanwhile, Arthur had been sitting in front of his computer screen, spacing out for half an hour.
After a knock, his assistant slowly shuffled in through the door.
"Mr. Grant, the restaurant compensation has been handled."
Arthur grunted absently.
Seeing things weren't looking good, the assistant was about to slip away when Arthur called him back before he could even turn around.
"How is she?"
The assistant stammered. "Mrs. Grant was very emotional at the time. The restaurant manager said she fainted, and he was the one who called the ambulance."
"She fainted?" Arthur's voice suddenly rose as he stood up to leave, but the assistant grabbed him.
"Mr. Grant, Mrs. Grant should be fine, because Mr. White went with her in the ambulance. It was probably just from being too emotional. If you go now and she sees you, what if she gets even more upset?"
"Seeing me upsets her, but seeing Charles makes her happy?" Arthur's cold gaze swept toward his assistant.
"That's not what I meant." The assistant looked troubled. "The investment partner you've been talking to is about to arrive. You..."
Arthur's eyes darkened, his fingers tapping on the desk.
"How is this so fast? In just one day, he's already read all the proposals and made a decision?"
The assistant was speechless.
Although his instinct told him this investment partner might not be reliable, since he was already here, they had to meet him.
Just then, there was a knock on the office door, and before Arthur could say "come in," Sophie slipped inside.
"Arthur, still busy?"
Arthur glanced at her. "Why are you here? Something wrong?"
"Xavier Mitchell is here. Says he wants to talk about the project investment." Sophie's face was all sweetness.
So fast? Arthur's eyes narrowed.
Conference room.
Xavier was a middle-aged man in his early forties, wearing a casual suit, with his legs up on the table, playing with a pen.
Seeing Arthur enter, he immediately stood up and extended his hand. "Mr. Grant."
"Hello." Arthur shook his hand, then gestured for him to sit.
"Sure." Xavier put down the pen. "Mr. Grant, I'll be straight with you. We both know about the east district project. I'm very interested, but the current situation... it's really not easy to take on."
Reading between the lines, it was clear this guy Mitchell wanted to make a killing.
His face remained expressionless. "Name your terms."
"You're so direct!" Xavier's eyes lit up with excitement as he leaned forward. "Half the project valuation—I'll put in 500 million for 60% of the shares. Plus, I want control of the project."
Arthur's fingers tightened under the table.
500 million alone wouldn't solve the current crisis, and demanding 60% of the project shares plus control was pure opportunism.
"I thought you came to negotiate in good faith." Arthur's voice was calm. "If that's your offer, all I can say is don't let the door hit you on the way out."
Xavier spread his hands. "So what does Mr. Grant have in mind?"
"One billion, 45%." Arthur said. "Control stays with Grant Corp."
That was already a major concession.
But Xavier just laughed, a meaningful laugh.
"Mr. Grant, have you not figured out the situation yet?" he said slowly. "Right now isn't the time for you to pick investors—it's time for investors to pick you. You can ask around—besides me, who else dares to take on this deal?"
"But you'd better ask fast. It's only been a few days—look what's happened to your company's stock? Wait a bit longer, and my business partner might just be the bank instead."
Arthur fell silent.
Just then, the conference room door suddenly opened.
Sophie walked in carrying two cups of coffee, smiling brightly. "Mr. Mitchell, Mr. Grant, have some coffee."
She set the coffee in front of them but didn't leave immediately. Instead, she sat down next to Arthur.
Xavier glanced at her but said nothing, just picked up his coffee, took a sip, and smiled. "Looks like Mr. Grant needs some time to think this over."
With that, he stood up, pulled a business card from his pocket, and placed it on the table, pushing it toward Arthur.
"I have other business to attend to. When Mr. Grant comes around, feel free to contact me anytime."
After he left, the conference room was deathly quiet.
Sophie looked cautiously at Arthur. "Arthur, these terms... will you accept them?"
Arthur pressed his temples and closed his eyes. "Let me think about it some more."