Chapter 123: Chapter 91: A Poisonous Cake for Catherine

Li Wei stepped forward, drawing the envious and jealous gazes of the crowd. He followed Elizabeth down a thickly carpeted corridor to an elevator.

As the elevator doors closed, shutting out the sound of camera flashes and shutters from the main hall, Elizabeth turned and looked Li Wei up and down.

"Um... I’m sorry," she said, a rare hint of embarrassment on her face. "I... I didn’t do it on purpose."

"Hm?" Li Wei paused. "What?"

"I didn’t know you had also applied for this scholarship," she said, shaking her head. "Otherwise, I wouldn’t have had you do this kind of work. It’s a waste of your time. I’ll speak to the staff in charge of the scholarship."

"Wouldn’t that mean I’d be taking money from the Mellon Foundation for nothing?" Li Wei said with a smile. "I’m not sure that would be right."

"There’s nothing wrong with it," Elizabeth said, tucking a strand of hair behind her ear. "It’s just a few tens of thousands of USD. You’ll easily earn that back in the future. There’s no need to spend twenty hours on volunteer work."

’So pretentious,’ Li Wei thought. He couldn’t stand it when people tried to act all high and mighty in front of him.

’If anyone was going to show off, it should be him showing off to others.’

"I’m not the luckiest guy. I prefer to rely on my own two hands," Li Wei said with a smile and a wave. "The things you get for free often end up being the most expensive."

While 30,000 USD was a considerable sum for him right now, it was just a drop in the bucket compared to his future. He saw no need to owe Elizabeth Mellon a favor just to get out of twenty hours of work.

"Alright, then," Elizabeth Mellon said, understanding his point and nodding. "Would you like to get a cup of coffee before you go?"

However, Li Wei politely declined again. After a few more moments of casual chat, he headed back downstairs to continue helping.

Elizabeth returned to her office alone, and a blonde, middle-aged female secretary holding a schedule immediately followed her inside.

She stared blankly out the window at the Manhattan skyline, an inexplicable sense of irritation and a budding headache taking hold.

"Laura," she said, "what do you think the odds are that Li Wei can pull off a miracle and sign with the Giants straight out of high school?"

"As of now, I’d say there’s a greater than sixty percent probability," replied Laura, her personal assistant. "Judging by the current public opinion, the Giants’ owner, John Mara, is heavily promoting him. And considering Li Wei’s physical exam results, his game footage, and his rankings from the 247Sports camp, his chances of success are extremely high."

"This is giving me a headache," Elizabeth muttered to herself. "How did I manage to offend him for no reason?" 𝒻𝘳ℯℯ𝑤ℯ𝒷𝘯ℴ𝓋ℯ𝘭.𝑐ℴ𝑚

She would kneel in a church and swear she really had remembered Li Wei that day. She’d planned to visit Lady Delores’s boutique after the exhibition was over, but she had just been too busy at the time.

If Li Wei had remained just a store clerk, she wouldn’t be giving it a second thought. The problem was that he had suddenly become the boyfriend of the only daughter of one of her father’s key partners. On top of that, he was on the verge of becoming an NFL superstar, which forced her to try and mend their relationship.

"Hasn’t he contacted you?" Laura asked. "Using the private card?"

"Not at all," Elizabeth said, shaking her head in bewilderment. "So what should I do now? Laura, any advice?"

She trusted Laura’s judgment eighty percent of the time. As the senior assistant assigned to her by the family office, Laura held three master’s degrees, came from a respectable family, and was unfailingly loyal. In most situations, her advice was both precise and effective.

"His life is currently peaceful and happy," Laura said. "Financially, he’s dating Anna, the only daughter of a Russian energy oligarch and one of your father’s partners. So he has no need of your help."

"If you’re asking for my recommendation," she said, looking carefully at Li Wei’s file on her tablet, "I would suggest looking into him. Start with the people close to him and slowly repair the relationship."

"I remember you telling me," Elizabeth said thoughtfully, "he has an uncle, right?"

"Correct," Laura said. "Don Quixote Cervantes. Graduate of the University of Chicago’s economics department, a former ED in JPMorgan Chase’s investment banking division. He later resigned to start his own company, but after raising capital, he went bankrupt due to a divorce and cash flow issues. He has an ex-wife and a daughter."

"You’re suggesting we start with his uncle?" Elizabeth nodded, then asked, "But wouldn’t that make him feel like we’re invading his privacy?"

"That requires further investigation," Laura said. "But I’m inclined to think it won’t. I did a thorough check on Don Quixote the day before yesterday, and it seems he’s in a custody dispute with his ex-wife. This is the perfect time for us to offer our assistance."

"A dispute?"

"Yes," Laura said, adjusting her glasses. "Don Quixote is very fond of his daughter, but his ex-wife has custody. She’s been using his visitation rights as leverage to demand he pay for various activities, and many of the expenses are inflated. The family office’s lawyers took a brief look and believe this is an angle we can pursue."

"You mean we step in and help him get custody?" Elizabeth’s interest was piqued. "Isn’t that something Anna could do for Li Wei?"

"Mr. Sergey may be powerful in Russia, Central Asia, and Dubai, but this is New York," Laura said. "Money alone can’t solve everything here. And from the looks of it, Don Quixote’s ex-wife will certainly not give up the fight for custody, especially now that she sees Don Quixote and Li Wei are clearly about to climb the social ladder."