Chapter 54 Back To Hometown

William's expression was unreadable as he considered Mary's request. "How many days do you plan to be gone?"

"A week," she replied.

He shook his head. "You have five days," he said coldly.

"Five days?" Mary repeated, frowning. 'It will take me a whole day just to get there, then another day to return... what can I do in such a short time? Five days isn't enough, ' she thought. She stared at William, wondering what she could say to persuade him to let her leave for a week.

As though he could read her mind, William spoke again, forestalling any objection. "This is not a negotiation. You have five days. End of discussion."

"But—"

"Or maybe you don't want to go back at all," William interrupted.

"All right, all right," Mary said, deciding it was time to retreat. "Five days."

She took a deep breath, trying to stay calm. It seemed she had no choice but to compromise in her battle with the CEO.

"When will you come back?" he asked.

Mary mentally counted the days. "Tuesday." William shook his head again.

"That won't do. Be back by Monday night," he said. His tone left no room for argument.

"What?" Mary exclaimed. She looked upset. "It will take me one day to go home!" she said. "Now I have only four days instead of five?"

William's face was implacable. "I need your cooperation on Tuesday."

Mary sighed. "I know.

All right, I'll return on Monday night." William turned away from her, effectively ending the conversation. "That's all. You can leave now."

"Yes, sir," said Mary. With a dejected air, she left the room.

As soon as the door closed behind her, William picked up the landline phone on the table. He dialed.

"Hello? Manager Lin, I need to speak with you," he said.

"Boss?" said the alert voice on the other end of the line. "What do you need? Do you have instructions for me?"

William said, "Yes. What's Victor's upcoming schedule?"

"Oh, Victor is going to Z City to attend a fan meeting over the next few days," replied Manager Lin.

"Has he already left for Z City?" asked William, unable to conceal a note of anxiety.

"Ah, let me check," said Manager Lin. He was a little confused. Since when di

ctor persisted.

"Don't you have a tight schedule? How do you have the time to visit my house?" she asked. She sat back down on the bed and picked up her noodles again, trying to eat with one hand while holding on to the phone with the other.

"I always have time for you," Victor said grandly. "How many days will you be staying here?"

"Four days."

"Okay, I'll call you later, I need to go now. See you soon! Bye."

"I haven't agreed to see you," Mary said, but only the dial tone could be heard. Victor had hung up.

Annoyed, Mary tossed down her phone on the bed. Why wouldn't anyone let her speak before hanging up on her?

She finished eating the noodles. Her purpose in coming home this week was to check on the fragrans trees her family had planted near the edge of the lot. Although that part of the land had been sold off by her, she was sure it would be okay to go and have a look.

She wanted to take some photos for her mother, and then bring some fragrans back.

After she had put away her empty bowl, she called the new owner of the fragrans trees. The man was very enthusiastic. He said that the fragrans flowers were in full bloom now and that she could take a look whenever she wanted. Mary was delighted and thanked him profusely.

Mary slipped on her shoes and went outside to look at the fragrans trees.

Fragrans flowers bloomed in August, and the fragrance spread across the clear, open air.

Even before she saw the fragrans trees, she could smell the lovely scent.

It brought back a lot of memories. When she closed her eyes, she could see herself as a young child, running and laughing in this land.

Her phone rang, snapping her out of her reverie.

She glanced at the screen. It was Victor. "Hello?"

"Where are you?" Victor asked without preamble. Mary smiled.

"I'm in the most beautiful place on Earth," she said softly. "Oh?" Victor sounded intrigued.

"Can I join you there?" Mary hesitated, then made up her mind.

"Yes, of course," she said. "If you have time and if you can find a way to get here, go ahead. I'll wait for you for half an hour."

Victor said quickly, "Okay, no problem. Just wait for me there."