The True Heiress's Return novel Chapter 75

Chapter 75
The Nelson family restaurant has a beautiful European-style terrace that looks out over the backyard. Yvette used the excuse of getting hot milk to come over here.
But after trying for a long time, she couldn’t catch a single word of the conversation between the two brothers. Yvette was really annoyed. ‘What kind of spell has Shakira cast on Mitchell? Why is he defending her so much now!’
Just then, Yvette received a message on her phone, and a cold smirk crept into her jealous eyes. ‘Shakira, let’s see how long you can keep this up!’
In the following days, all the companies interested in bidding for the Southville development were secretly competing and pulling all sorts of tricks to ensure they secured the project.
Shakira was also super busy, arranging hot baths and acupuncture for Walter. She thought Walter wouldn’t cooperate with the treatment, but surprisingly, he was the one who asked her when she could give him acupuncture. When she first heard it, she was taken aback, “Are you getting hooked on the needles?”
Walter’s handsome face turned dark with anger.
Shakira quickly decided not to joke around anymore and got serious. “Actually, I want to stabilize your cold condition before treating your leg injury. Once that’s under control, the treatment will go better.”
Walter’s leg had been injured for over half a year; he wasn’t in a rush. Besides, he somehow trusted Shakira’s abilities. “Alright, we’ll go with what you said.”
“Great! So three hot baths a week, with about ten sessions in total. After soaking for half an hour, we’ll do the acupuncture. Can we start around nine every other evening?” After saying that, Shakira murmured to herself, “Wait, I forgot you need to rest by ten. That might affect your sleep. But I have a competition coming up, and I need to attend a simulation class after school, so I’ll be back a bit later…”
“Let’s stick to this schedule; I can make it work.”
This arrangement gave Shakira more time to breathe. Before she knew it, only two days were left before the bidding.
Shakira learned from Xanthe that the Smith family was feeling confident about the bidding. In contrast, Xanthe had lost all faith and was feeling down. She told Xanthe to cheer up Enrique at home; until the bidding was over, anything could happen.
After class, Shakira walked out of campus as usual. She needed to stop by a private lab to pick up the results for Walter’s pain medication, which she had sent for testing. As she stepped out, she sensed something off and turned to look back. Behind her were groups of students leaving campus; nothing seemed unusual.
Shakira turned back and hailed a taxi. Once the taxi drove off, a van slowly crept out from around the corner, stealthily following the taxi. Inside a nearby business car, an assistant watched the situation and quietly reported, “Mr. Nelson, Ms. Nelson is being followed.”
Finn looked up from his documents, frowning. “Follow them.”
The lab was located in a quieter area of the new district, almost deserted at the entrance. Shakira asked the driver to wait a bit and paid him in advance, then quickly walked into the lab. The van parked closely behind and out stepped six intimidating, muscular men, charging aggressively toward the taxi. But before they got too close, a black business car spun around and blocked their path.
Finn rolled down the window. “Before you go after my sister, why don’t we have a little chat?”
*****
08:21
Tue, Oct 22
Chapter 75
Q
73%
Shakira arrived at the lab and headed straight to the office of the senior manager. Jasmin Sullivan, who had looked serious earlier, jumped up to close the door as soon as she saw Shakira. “You finally made it! That thing you asked me to test… Oh my god, it almost scared me to death!”
Shakira raised an eyebrow. “Was the composition what I guessed?”
“No! There’s an anesthetic ingredient in it, and it’s banned here because it has a very serious side effect, which is…”
Shakira took the composition report from him, her expression turning grave. “Using it in excessive amounts can lead to addiction.”
Jasmin nodded rapidly. “Luckily, I personally tested it in a private office. No one else knows. If this leaks, you’ll be in big Jasmin nodded rapidly. “Luckily, I personally tested it in a pr
trouble!”
“Whether I’m in trouble is up for debate, but someone definitely is,” Shakira said, tossing the report into the shredder, watching it turn to scraps. She turned to Jasmin, who was staring at her with wide eyes, practically leaning in. Shakira couldn’t help but ask, “Aren’t you male? Don’t you like women?”
Jasmin huffed. “I have an eye for beauty! You really are gorgeous Uncle-in-arms.”
Shakira took his comment as a compliment. “You’re not bad looking either.” She had only seen Jasmin twice, but he had the natural advantage of being a pretty boy, and he took great care of his appearance-something few women could rival.
+6
At her compliment, Jasmin wasn’t happy. He covered his face, gazing at Shakira with a woeful expression. “You don’t know! I used to be even better looking! But two years ago, my master got the news about the ancient teacher recruiting disciples. He sat up in shock, dragging me back for training, insisting I couldn’t lose to the ancient teacher’s disciples…”
Shakira organized her thoughts. “So it seems the training didn’t have the desired effect?”
Jasmin complained, “Not at all! He just thinks I’m not manly enough for you. My master wouldn’t dare to compare his medical skills with the ancient teacher.”
Shakira was speechless. ‘So this mysterious senior brother has some self-awareness after all.’ Shakira took out a letter from her bag. “I have a letter for my master. At the end of the month, Uncle-in-arms will send someone to deliver the usual supplies; can you help me take it there?”
Jasmin accepted the letter. “No problem.”
As Shakira left the lab, she noticed two tire marks on the ground that hadn’t been there before she entered. She looked around cautiously to make sure there was nothing unusual and then left.
The bidding meeting for the Southville development was held at the official office. Each company could send only three representatives to the meeting, and there were twenty seats for public oversight, with the whole meeting being broadcast live. In the audience, Shakira sat at the very last position, looking stunning with just a hint of makeup. Her naturally beautiful face now had a touch of allure, catching the eyes of many around. She scanned the room and noticed Finn and Lago sitting far apart, both wearing displeased expressions when they glanced at each other. Shakira raised her eyebrows in surprise. Xanthe, who had no high hopes but came to watch the show, squeezed into the seat behind her.
Seeing her look over there, Xanthe was also surprised. “Aren’t they supposed to attend the bidding together? Why are they separated? Do they plan to bid separately for a better chance?”
Shakira leisurely said, “Why don’t you mention that they couldn’t agree on the price?”