Chapter 898 Running Into an Old Acquaintance
Raffle had more that he wanted to say, but just as he opened his mouth, his assistant came over to inform him that he had a meeting, which was just the thing to get him out of the situation with Danny.
“In that case, I think we’ve said all that we need to, so I won’t be keeping you two any longer.” Raffle got up to see them off.
Alexander wisely took this cue to leave. “We shall take our leave then, Secretary Raffle. Let’s meet again another day.” The two brothers left the office soon after.
Once they were out of the building, Danny finally couldn’t hold it in anymore and started fuming, “What’s that guy trying to do anyway? Just a few words, then he immediately starts saying he wants to take my company away. How’s that any different from a thief?”
“Once your business gets to a certain point, you can’t help but be forced to deal with politicians. Remember to keep the company’s finances separate from Smith Co. and don’t leave anything that he can use against you. Don’t take on any major projects as well once you’re done with what you currently have on hand. They’re trying to use your company to get to Smith Co.’s database. The Institute of Physics is Wendy’s territory,” Alexander instructed in all seriousness.
“Shoot. I didn’t think of that. They’re so cunning! That won’t do. I’m going back to reject that Adaway guy.”
Danny started turning around, but Alexander stopped him. “There’s no point in offending the Department of Commerce. You have to learn to compromise when under someone else’s thumb.”
Alexander always focused on the long-term benefit, and naturally, Danny listened to everything he said. Thus, this matter came to an end just like that.
Back upstairs, Raffle stood by the window and stared down at the brothers standing beside the road. He had a complicated look in his eyes.
He had his phone to his ear, and as soon as the call connected, he began reporting, “Alexander Griffith is a very cunning man. It’ll probably take quite some time before we can get this done.”
Wendy’s voice came over the phone with a hint of warning. “Years and years of preparations all boil down to one moment of action. The organization spent so much time and effort to get you to where you are so that they can achieve what they want as soon as possible. Don’t forget the power you have in your hands.”
Raffle remained silent for a moment before responding firmly, “I understand, Miss Jennings. I will keep a close eye on this, and if we don’t get what we want soon enough, I will use my position at the Department of Commerce to pressure them and force their hand.”
…
After the fashion show, Princess Diana grew incredibly close to Elise almost immediately. Not only did they exchange contact, but they also often shared about their daily lives as if they were best friends.
This time, Princess Diana had gotten into a fight with Prince Caleb and invited Elise out the very next day to join her at a resort where she was taking her mind off things.
After leaving the golf course, the two women decided to go horse riding. As they were choosing their horses, Princess Diana was reminded of Prince Caleb and began complaining about him again.
“Prince Caleb loves this kind of horse the most because they’re easy to command. Men are all like that—they love being in control of everything. They’re so hypocritical and full of pride. They don’t know anything about romance!” she vented disdainfully. “But who said that women can be controlled like that? I choose to be a wild horse! No one gets to tell me how I should live my life!”
As soon as she said that, the horse beside her neighed and raised its forelegs as if it were responding to her.
That instantly drew Princess Diana’s attention. She undid the ropes to take the horse out for a ride.
“Wait, Your Highness!” The employee at the stable immediately came forward to stop her. “This horse has a very volatile temper. Many guests have fallen off because of that, so we don’t recommend riding this one.”
However, all of Princess Diana’s sensibility seemed to have taken leave of her. She continued to saddle up the horse without a care in the world. “Okay, I got it. I’ll take responsibility if I fall. Don’t worry. I’m an excellent horse rider. I know I’ll be able to control this horse. Just trust me.”
“Please, Your Highness. We can’t bear the consequences if something were to happen to you…”
The employee kept trying to talk her out of it, but she was determined to get her way. She and Prince Caleb were giving each other the silent treatment right now, and it was as if she thought she could one-up him by managing to tame this horse.
Therefore, she ignored the employee’s pleading and took the horse out for a ride.
However, she soon had a reality check in the most painful way. Not long after she started riding, the horse began to jump and gallop like crazy. It kept speeding up as it tried to throw Princess Diana off its back.
Princess Diana, who had been full of confidence just moments ago, was screaming for help as she clung to the horse’s neck for dear life.
“Help! Please! Is there anyone around to help me?! The horse is going to trample me to death! Anastasia! Think of something, please!”
Elise was just about to help when a man in a cowboy hat appeared on a nearby slope. He charged over to Princess Diana on his horse.
Soon, the two horses were running side-by-side, and the man exhibited his excellent riding skills by successfully climbing onto Princess Diana’s horse. After a few tries, he managed to subdue the horse before bringing Princess Diana back to safety.
Princess Diana was still in shock. She got off the horse in a daze and slipped. Thus, she ended up twisting her ankle and couldn’t even stand anymore due to the pain.
“Princess Diana? Is it really you?”
The man had a look of surprise now that he finally saw her face clearly.
“Samson?” Princess Diana didn’t know how to react. “What are you doing here?”
“I’m here on holiday, of course. I saw on the news that you and Prince Caleb were here too, but I didn’t think we’d end up meeting each other like that,” Samson said with a chuckle.
“Yeah, what a coincidence! Ouch!” Princess Diana gasped in pain.
“I think you should save the greetings for later. We need to take you to a doctor first.” Elise wasn’t going to reveal her knowledge of medicine so openly.
“No, no. That won’t be necessary.” Samson stopped them. “Take my advice. The doctor will just give you an injection and a prescription, and it’ll take ages for your ankle to heal. Why don’t you let me try, Princess Diana?”
Princess Diana gave it some thought and nodded.
A few people helped her to the chair, and Samson kneeled in front of her. He held her calf and got into position before reminding Princess Diana grimly, “It’ll hurt, so you have to bear it for a little while.”
Then, before Princess Diana could even respond, he quickly snapped the dislocated joint back into its place.
“Ahh!”
Princess Diana cried out in pain at first, but a few moments later, she exclaimed in relief, “This is unbelievable! It really worked! You’re amazing, Samson!”
“This is nothing. You can’t avoid injuries when you’re out and about in the world, so you’d end up picking up a few things if you don’t want to lose your life,” Samson responded humorously.
However, Elise spotted something unusual in both of their gazes. Am I seeing things?
“The Cittadelians like to say that it’s fate when you meet someone you know in a foreign country. Since fate brought us together, may I invite you two lovely ladies to join me for dinner?” Samson extended an invitation.
Elise wanted to decline, but Princess Diana agreed too quickly for her to say anything, so she had no choice but to tag along.
The two old acquaintances had a grand time catching up with each other, whereas Elise sat beside them like a third wheel. She couldn’t get involved in their conversation at all, apart from giving the occasional nod or smile.
Well, she didn’t mind that anyway. After all, Elise’s task for the day was just to accompany Princess Diana, and it was a job well done so long as she was happy.
Elise didn’t attempt to figure out the relationship between the two, but when she and Princess Diana arrived at the hotel, Princess Diana grabbed her all of a sudden and made an earnest request. “Anastasia, I hope you won’t bring up our meeting with Samson to Prince Caleb. To be honest with you, in the past, he and I had something… Well, you get it. Either way, I don’t want Prince Caleb to overthink it.”
