Chapter 1062: Chapter 548: Extra Story: Li Chengyao’s Demands (1_2)
Rachel instantly burst into laughter and nodded hard.
Alice brushed a kiss on Rachel’s fair little face and, mimicking a child’s voice, said, "Hurry and go hide, Mommy’s coming to look for you..."
Rachel slid excitedly down from Alice’s lap...
Children are always easy to please. After she played with her for a while, the child started fussing that she was sleepy, then curled up in her arms and drifted off into a sweet sleep...
"Miss, I’ll take Rachel upstairs to sleep!"
"No need, I’ll hold her while she sleeps... I haven’t really been with her these past few days, let me hold her a little longer." Lowering her head, she kissed the child’s flushed sleeping face. For once, the worries that had been written on Alice’s face these days drew back, revealing a faint hint of contentment.
Aunt PA asked, "Miss, are things at the winery still very troublesome?"
Alice nodded. "Uncle Grant called me. He said if we still can’t find a joint investor this week, several of the wineries might have to shut down production."
Aunt PA stared in shock. "Then what are we going to do?"
Alice lifted her eyes and let out a long sigh. "The cart will find its way around the hill when it gets there; there’s still more than a week left, isn’t there? I’ll think of something."
"Can you ask some of the old master’s friends from when he was alive to help?"
Alice shook her head. "Daddy wasn’t good at socializing. All the family social events and networking used to be handled by my uncle... Now that Daddy’s gone, my uncle, in order to seize the assets, took away all his trusted people and his connections. As for Daddy’s old circles, there really isn’t anyone left who can help us..."
"What are we going to do then..." Aunt PA was as anxious as an ant on a hot pan.
Alice stated firmly, "No matter what, I will not let the Robinson wineries go under."
The torrential rain that had poured down during the day finally eased into a light drizzle at night...
Alice, in her pajamas, leaned against the headboard, a glass of red wine in her hand.
She let out a long sigh and lifted the wine, taking a sip.
The alcohol in the wine slowly numbed the nerves in her brain, cutting her worries in half for the moment, yet her thoughts remained clear.
What should she do?
There was only one week left...
The words she’d said to Aunt PA during the day hadn’t even managed to comfort herself. She’d said them only because she didn’t want one more person worrying.
Who else could she ask for help?
Her father’s friends from when he was alive――aside from Schork, had long since accepted Robinson’s bribes during the inheritance case and all stood on Robinson’s side. Schork was the only one still in contact with the Robinson family, but with his assets he simply couldn’t provide that much capital to inject into the Robinson wineries; not to mention, investing in a winery carried its own risks...
Relatives――her uncle and aunt had completely broken with her in the inheritance fight. At this moment they were probably wishing they could see the Robinson family collapse in her hands.
She had no friends, no relatives. Who else could she rely on for help?"
Knock, knock――
A knock at the door cut off Alice’s train of thought.
Alice set down the wineglass. "Come in."
Aunt PA walked in from outside and said, "Miss, I’ve noticed you haven’t eaten much these past few days. I made some soup for you."
"Thank you."
Aunt PA set the soup on the nightstand, and at the same time caught sight of the glass of red wine. "Miss, you’ve been drinking?"
"Mm, a bit of wine helps me sleep."
Aunt PA sighed softly. "Miss, Assistant Antony just called."
"When?"
"Just now. He couldn’t get through to your cell, so he called the house."
Alice picked up her phone to take a look; sure enough, there was a missed call from Keith Antony.
"I was probably in the shower just now..."
Aunt PA said, "Assistant Antony asked me about how you and Rachel are doing..."
"Oh." Keith Antony almost called once a month, showing his concern for her.
"I..." Aunt PA suddenly started stammering, "I..."
"Mm?"
Aunt PA mustered her courage and lifted her eyes to look at Alice. "Miss, when Assistant Antony called, I didn’t want to say anything at first. But seeing you worrying about the winery every day lately, barely eating, barely sleeping, sometimes even locking yourself in the study and refusing to come out, I was really afraid something might happen to you, so... so I told Assistant Antony about the Robinson family’s situation."
Alice fell silent, looking at Aunt PA.
"Miss, I know you don’t want to go to Mr. Robinson, but things are already this serious... Last time Mr. Robinson came, he wanted to help you take care of the Robinson affairs and you didn’t accept it. I think Mr. Robinson was just angry; he won’t stand by and watch you struggle."
Alice still didn’t speak, her head resting against the headboard, very calm.
Seeing Alice remain silent, Aunt PA couldn’t help asking, "Miss, did I meddle again?"
Alice shook her head where it rested against the headboard, her eyes slightly vacant, her tone slow and calm. "The reason I didn’t want him to teach me how to manage the Robinson business is because I know that if he’s by my side, the only thing I’ll ever learn is dependence... The reason I don’t want to ask him for help now isn’t pride or a fit of temper, it’s because I know he won’t help me anymore."
When Keith Antony had called her and started hemming and hawing, she already knew he hadn’t come bearing good news.
Maybe because, deep down, she’d long known it would end like this, so when she heard that answer her heart barely stirred.
"Miss Alice, I’m sorry. I’m afraid I can’t help you this time. The boss, he..."
She didn’t listen to the rest of what Keith Antony had to say. She simply smiled faintly and calmly said to him over the phone, "I understand... In any case, Assistant Antony, thank you."
"I’m sorry..." Keith Antony blamed himself deeply for being unable to do anything.
Alice soothed him. "You don’t need to worry about me. I’ll definitely solve this problem, don’t worry!"
"But..."
"Let’s not talk about it, Assistant Antony. I still have to call one of my senior uncles, so I’ll leave it at that for now..."
