?Chapter 322:


    William, meanwhile, was still stuck on her sarcastic suggestion. Actually, yes… if he couldn’t stop her from buying, he could just find out which ce she wanted and buy the one across from hers. Why hadn’t he considered that earlier?


    He immediately took out his phone and dialed Luca. “Look into what property listings Ste’s been checking. If she finalizes one, I want to know the second it happens.”


    Luca was caught off guard but pieced things together quickly. “Ms. Russell’s house-hunting?”


    William didn’t bother responding to the obvious. “I’m hanging up.”


    Over the next few days, Ste was juggling two things—preparing for the uingpetition and squeezing in time to tour houses. She was rushing back and forth nonstop.


    On Monday, Paul summoned her to his office. “Sylvia, thispetition is in another region. Not everyone can make the trip, so you’ll need to pick two people to go with you.”


    Ste had assumed Elbert would handle that, since he was the team lead. But apparently, the director had ced the decision in her hands.


    Back in theb, she pulled Elbert aside. “Paul asked me to choose three people to present our project and take part in the defense. What’s your take on it?”


    Elbert thought for a moment and asked, “How about I bring you and Sandra along?”


    Their team was already one member down, and Jamir wasn’t great at speaking—he’d only struggle during the defense. It wasn’t meant to be personal.


    Ste nodded after a short pause. “Alright, we’ll go with that lineup.”


    Word of their uing trip spread through the institute like wildfire, and everyone was cheering them on with enthusiasm. “Sylvia, you’ve got this! We’re rooting for you!”


    “Exactly! You’re our brightest star!”


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    Standing proudly among her colleagues, Ste dered with confidence, “I’ll make sure we bring home the win and make the institute proud!”


    They were set to leave on Wednesday. But on Tuesday night, William showed up at Ste’s ce for dinner—bringing Rita along with him.


    “You’re representing the research institute this time,” he reminded her seriously. “Make sure you take care of yourself.”


    Ste didn’t even look up from her te. “What, you think I’m going to get kidnapped or trafficked or something?”


    William paused mid-bite, thrown off. He meant well, but somehow she always made it sound like he was being overbearing.


    “Anyway,” he continued, brushing past her sarcasm, “Neb might be expanding into that region. Since you’ll already be there, once thepetition ends, try to gather some market data. Meet a fewpany heads if you can—scope out any partnership potential.”


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