Chapter 376
At the entrance of Kanit University,
As Ana closed the car door, a breeze carried a lower petal right onto the brim of Vanessa’s cap.
Aria approached, flicking a petal from Vanessa’s cap with her fingertips as she whispered, “Someone is following us.”
Vanessa, wearing a baseball cap to keep a low profile, adjusted her ponytail as an excuse to discreetly glance back. “The gray Honda?”
Aria nodded slightly. “Yes.”
“That’s weird,” Vanessa said. “We haven’t pissed anyone off lately, so who’d tail us all the way to Kanit City?”
Vanessa suddenly thought of someone. “Could it be Olivia? She wouldn’t actually come after you because of those rumors, would she?”
At the thought, her eyes grew
alert.
‘Damn that jerk Russell,‘ Vanessa fumed inwardly. He’s always hanging around my best friend every single day!
‘She rolled her eyes. ‘Those two idiots!‘
Aria gave Vanessa’s cap a gentle tap. “Don’t worry, I’ll keep my guard up from now on.”
“Aria!” Derek called out, his voice cutting through the summer cicadas‘ drone.
He dashed out of the school gate, juggling several cups of fruit tea. If not for the drinks in his hands, he would’ve hugged Aria tightly. “I missed you so much.”
Aria teased, “Didn’t we just have dinner the other day?”
Derek grinned and playfully joked, “Not seeing you for a day feels like ages, so after all these days, it’s practically been years!”
His eyes sparkled with such warmth that anyone unaware of the truth would have thought he was Aria’s own little brother.
That’s exactly what Gloria thought as she stood at the entrance.
It was the first time Gloria had seen Derek express his emotions so openly and directly show affection for someone.
Derek genuinely adored Aria.
Aria also seemed quite protective of him.
They looked just like real siblings, while Gloria couldn’t help but feel like an outsider.
Patrick stepped forward with a polite smile and greeted Aria. “Ms. Saxon, it’s been a while.”
“Long time no see.”
Patrick said, “I haven’t had the chance to properly thank you for helping with that scam ring. Since we’ve run into each other, how about I treat you to dinner?”
“Count me in,” Deangelo stepped forward, his face brimming with gratitude. “We owe you our deepest thanks for rescuing two of our university’s
students.”
Kanit University deliberately kept quiet about Patrick and Rhett infiltrating the scam ring. Otherwise, they would have thanked Aria publicly privately.
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Chapter 376
Let me introduce my professor, Patrick said promptly. This is Professor Deangelo Reed,”
Aria smiled and replied. “Thank you, Professor Reed. Honestly, Patrick and the others deserve just as much credit for that –
“If it weren’t for you, those two rascals wouldn’t have dared to pull it off.”
Vanessa knew about Patrick and Rhett’s involvement, but Derek was completely in the dark. His eyes widened in disbelief. He just couldn’t believe someone as capable as Patrick had actually busted an entire scam ring.
That’s so awesome.
He wouldn’t even dare to imagine it.
He wished Aria had taken him along back then.
Aria introduced Vanessa to the group. “This is Vanessa, my best friend”
“Hi everyone,” Vanessa flashed a lopsided, kittenish grin.
Deangelo studied Vanessa, suddenly struck by a sense of familiarity, but he couldn’t quite place where he’d seen her before.
Patrick suggested, “Let’s head to the backstreet first and chat on the way.”
So the five of them set off together.
As they left, Aria scanned behind them. The car was gone.
Lennox was left standing to the side, feeling resentful. Then, he put on a pitiful expression and said, “Auntie, do they have a misunderstanding about
me?”
In the past, whenever Gloria saw that pitiful look on Lennox’s face, she would comfort him despite her inner exasperation. But now, she simply couldn’t
be bothered.
A
“Even I, his own mother, got ignored. What makes you think you’d be any different? I’ve got things to do. Just go back on your own,” Gloria said curtly.
With that, she hailed a cab and left without looking back.
Lennox stared at the receding taillights, a flicker of resentment flashing in his eyes.
If she had mentioned it earlier, there would have been exactly six of them and he could have gone with them to that old restaurant.
In the car, Gloria called Arnav, her voice trembling with emotion and uncertainty. “Honey… have we been wrong all these years…?”
The five of them arrived at an old restaurant called “Flavor Essence” on the backstreet.
The signboard hanging at the entrance was worn smooth and rounded with age, its surface bearing the marks of time.
Peering inside, several vintage pendant lights hung from the ceiling. The faded retro patterns on the tiled walls and the sturdy, rustic wooden tables ar chairs added to the antique feel of the place.
The restaurant was bustling with lively chatter, nearly packed with diners.
Patrick said, “This place has been here for fifty years. Everyone visiting Kanit City comes here. The food is absolutely incredible.”
Derek swallowed hard. “Come on, let’s go in already!”
Aria knew this place well. Her mentor, Cloe, had trained here for a full year to master their culinary secrets.
10:19 Thu, 19 Jun
Chapter 376
Patrick gave the reservation number, and the group was then led to a table by the window.
After they sat down, Patrick handed the menu to Aria and Vanessa. Both smiled and said they weren’t picky eaters, leaving the ordering to Deangelo.
Deangelo didn’t stand on ceremony. With a cheerful grin, he said, “Well then, I won’t hold back.”
He gave Derek a look and said, “You pick something too.”
“Sure!” Derek said cheerfully.
Aria leaned in and whispered to Patrick, “Who else has seen that portrait sketch from before?”
Patrick froze for a second, recalling. “When I was checking on it, a few colleagues happened to see it. Why
are you asking about this all of a sudden?”
“Someone found out I was looking for someone, and they even got their hands on the sketch,” Aria said quietly.
Patrick’s expression darkened. “I’ll get to the bottom of it.”
Aria gave a brief nod. “Mm.”
Aria knew Patrick was very busy, so she didn’t bother him about it. After all, it wasn’t anything that could actually threaten her.
Now that they’d met, she figured it was fine to have him look into it.
After ordering, Derek looked at Vanessa expectantly and asked with a smile, “Vanessa, are you really that good at coding?”
If Aria said he could ask Vanessa about computer–related questions, then that meant she was a pro in the field.
Vanessa lifted her chin with a playful, smug grin. “Of course. When it comes to hacking skills, I could easily claim second place.”
Deangelo couldn’t help but laugh. “Well, she sure has a lot of confidence in herrself…”
But before he could finish, his gaze landed on Vanessa’s face and froze.
The girl before him now overlapped perfectly with the memory–the girl on the surveillance footage, flashing a peace sign with a lollipop in her mouth.
Deangelo shot to his feet, too stunned to push his glasses back up as they slid down his nose. “You’re the hacker who breached Nexa Corporation all those years ago?”
His gaze snapped toward Aria. “Could it be that you’re the Nexa executive…”
Realizing something, he stopped mid–sentence.
AD
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