Chapter 212
The call ended. Lucinda slipped her phone back into her pocket and glanced over at Reginald.
He turned his head, raising an eyebrow. "What's wrong?"
Lucinda held out her phone. "My mom transferred me money again. Five hundred thousand dollars. She said to buy myself something to eat."
Reginald looked at the screen and couldn't help laughing softly. "That's my mother-in-law for you."
Lucinda sighed helplessly. "All she does now is send me money, day in and day out."
Reginald nodded with mock seriousness. "That's great. Now there's someone else to spoil you along with me."
Lucinda rolled her eyes at him but couldn't suppress the smile tugging at her lips.
Then she relayed Valencia's message. "Tomorrow night, La Perle Blanche. My mom's treating you to dinner. The whole family will be there."
Reginald's eyes lit up instantly. "Really?"
"Yes."
After receiving her confirmation, his smile broke free. "Perfect! I'll definitely be there!"
"Tone down that grin a little," Lucinda said, unable to resist.
He tried. Didn't quite succeed.
The car continued forward, passing through several blocks before entering a development zone.
The towering buildings gradually receded, replaced by large stretches of open land along the roadside.
Reginald turned onto a side road and stopped in front of a massive metal gate.
The gate slowly opened. Through the car window, Lucinda gazed past the neatly manicured lawn to a building with an unusual design.
The entire structure was covered in curved panels of deep blue glass that refracted an almost liquid light in the sun, as if it had grown straight out of the ground.
"What is this place?"
"You'll see when we get there."
He got out, walked around to her side, and opened her door, extending his hand as if to take hers.
She placed her hand in his. He closed his fingers around it, and they walked toward the building side by side.
The moment he pushed open the heavy glass door, Lucinda stopped in her tracks.
Before her stretched a vast, boundless galaxy.
The entire venue soared dozens of feet high. The dome used holographic projection technology—the Milky Way flowed slowly overhead, nebulae, auroras, and shooting stars appearing in succession, as if she'd truly been transported into the depths of space.
Beneath her feet was transparent glass. The galaxy flowed right at her feet.
In the distance, slowly rotating star rings and floating points of light drifted by, so beautiful she almost forgot to breathe.
Lucinda gazed quietly at everything before her, her eyes shimmering slightly. "It's beautiful."
Reginald had been watching her reaction the entire time. Seeing the wonder in her eyes, his lips curved upward gently. "Do you like it?"
Lucinda nodded softly. "I do."
She opened her mouth, unable to resist asking, "What is this?"
"The Stellar Pavilion." Amusement threaded through Reginald's voice. "Took almost two years to build. The materials are special optical fibers. I hired experts to write the program—the logic behind the light flow simulates the actual movement of real stars. Where you're standing is the center point. All the light you see is spreading outward from beneath your feet."
Lucinda looked down at her feet. Sure enough, the small patch of ground where she stood glowed with a faint warmth.
The points of light seemed to sense her presence, their flow slowing slightly, as if responding to her.
She paused, then turned to look at Reginald. "Reginald, how much did you spend on this?"
"Not much." He turned his face away. The tips of his ears flushed red for a moment.
Lucinda nodded and didn't press further.
She could guess. His "not much" could probably buy the entire development zone.
Just then, Reginald pulled a document from the inside pocket of his coat and held it out to her. "Sign this."
"What is it?"
"Sign first."
She took it and flipped open the cover.
It was an asset transfer agreement. The recipient column already had her name filled in. The transferor was Reginald.
She scanned a few lines below and saw the words "Starlight City South Development Zone, Lot A-07, attached structure."
She closed the document and looked up at him. "If you don't tell me what it is, I won't sign."
Reginald stood in place, still holding the document, his gaze resting on her face. He was silent for a moment.
Lucinda stared at him, her expression growing more serious. "Tell me now."
The air was quiet for a few seconds.
Reginald ultimately couldn't withstand Lucinda's stare. He looked down at the document in his hand, then sighed and opened it again with the air of someone resigned to his fate. "This facility, including this building and the surrounding land, is all being transferred to your name."
He paused, his voice dropping. "I was planning to tell you after you signed."
Lucinda looked down at the dense clauses on the document, something soft bumping against her heart.
This man spent so much money just so she'd feel comfortable accepting his gift?
She closed the document, looked up at him, and couldn't help smiling. "Okay. I'll sign."
Reginald froze, his eyes brightening. "Really?"
"Yes." She pulled a pen from her pocket, flipped to the last page, signed her name, then handed the document back to him. "But next time you're giving me something this huge, tell me in advance. Otherwise my hand will shake when I'm signing."
Reginald took the document and looked at the slender, neat handwriting. A smile spread from his eyes. "Okay."
Lucinda added, "This is the last time."
She looked at him and suddenly thought this man could be adorably foolish sometimes.
Just then, a side door suddenly swung open. Several people carrying cameras and reflectors filed in.
Leading them was a middle-aged man in a black vest with a long-lens camera hanging around his neck. When he saw Reginald, he strode over quickly. "Mr. Lancaster, the set and lighting are all adjusted. The four trunks of clothing are also prepared according to your instructions."
Reginald nodded, then turned to Lucinda, his voice softening. "Let's take some photos. This facility just opened—it hasn't been released to the public yet. You're the first person to come in. I want to commemorate it."
Lucinda's gaze swept over the four open wardrobe trunks, then across the row of lights and backdrop already set up. She smiled helplessly. "You even arranged a photographer?"
"Yes." He nodded matter-of-factly. "Booked in advance."
"...Fine."