Chapter 761: Chapter 761: By My Side
On the second day, when Xu Ke arrived at the Calvin estate, he glanced at the student roster and asked, "Why isn’t Norman here today?"
Xu Ke’s question made the atmosphere tense, "What’s going on?" There was confusion in Xu Ke’s tone.
"Don’t wait for him, he won’t be coming anymore," Albo said, fiddling with his fiery red hair.
Xu Ke observed the reactions of the crowd and, combined with Albo’s words, had some guesses in his mind. However, a person expelled from their family held no value, so Xu Ke didn’t pursue the question further. Seeing everyone else was present, he began the new lesson.
Those who learned quickly, like the brothers Job and Albo, had already started learning new content, while those like Marian, who were slower, were still learning simple galloping. Surprisingly, Nancy’s progress today was astonishing; she seemed like a sharp blade gradually coming into its own.
On the surface, Xu Ke was observing his four students, but, in fact, he focused most of his attention on Nancy. Although Nancy was discreet, Xu Ke keenly noticed her subtle changes, sparking his interest in her. Although this interest wasn’t enough for Xu Ke to abandon Claude to be by her side, it still made him ponder a bit.
When today’s lesson ended, Xu Ke approached Nancy, speaking with the encouraging eye of an ordinary teacher: "You did well today, keep it up. I believe you can achieve something in equestrian skills."
Even though it was a very ordinary remark and Xu Ke’s gaze was as usual, Nancy felt something was off. The action of taking off her gloves slowed involuntarily.
She had the habit of overthinking; upon hearing a remark, she couldn’t help but turn it over in her mind, wanting to know if there was another meaning behind the words. Therefore, when she saw nothing unusual in Xu Ke’s gaze, Nancy flashed a shy smile, as if embarrassed by Xu Ke’s praise, yet inwardly she couldn’t help but chuckle at her tendency to overthink.
After speaking, Xu Ke went to find Claude, not caring whether Nancy had any other thoughts. After several days of interaction, Xu Ke had more or less eliminated those unworthy of competing for the family estate. Apart from Claude, who was clearly the most advantageous choice on his list of allies, the other was Nancy, who showed her potential today. Although this was just about horse riding, sometimes small things reveal big truths; Xu Ke instinctively felt Nancy was not a simple character.
When Xu Ke arrived at Claude’s estate, Claude was still in the study and hadn’t come out yet. In the living room was a man in a business suit holding a document folder.
"Mr. Xu, please sit here patiently for a while; our young master is still upstairs handling business affairs." The estate’s butler served Xu Ke a cup of tea and a plate of snacks, his attitude noticeably more enthusiastic than before.
Xu Ke was momentarily stunned, but he quickly understood the reason for the change in attitude, and his expression became more natural. He even had the leisure to observe the man sitting across from him, but since the butler was present, Xu Ke did not initiate any conversation.
The man looked very young, like a recent graduate newly entering the workforce. Sitting in the living room, his body and spirit were both tense, and the good suit he wore was troubled with creases he had made on his pants, with sweaty palms also leaving dark stains on them.
The red tea in front of the man was almost finished, but the pastries remained untouched.
Xu Ke glanced at the man, selected a nice-looking pastry from the plate, and put it into his mouth, all the while combining the conversation with Marian and making bold speculations, though nothing showed on his face.
Xu Ke wasn’t kept waiting long before Claude called the man upstairs. Soon after, the man came out of the study looking relieved, briskly walking towards the exit, as if something dreadful were chasing him out of the house. As they passed each other, Xu Ke even caught a hint of a smile on the man’s face.
"Are we going to start the lesson now? Why hasn’t the young master come down yet?" Xu Ke brushed nonexistent pastry crumbs off his clothes and asked.
"No, today’s riding lesson might need to be postponed; the young master is asking you to come up now." The butler replied.
"I wonder what he wants me for?" Xu Ke guessed it might be related to the folder the man who just went upstairs was holding, but couldn’t be sure of the exact connection.
"I don’t know either; no one can guess the young master’s thoughts." The butler said expressionlessly.
The two soon arrived at the study door, where the butler stopped and didn’t step forward any further. Instead, he opened the door, gesturing for Xu Ke to enter and said, "Please go ahead."
Xu Ke glanced at the butler, walked in alone, and the butler considerately closed the door behind them.
"I wonder what you called me for?" Xu Ke sat confidently across from Claude and asked.
"Thank you for your help with yesterday’s matter; otherwise, it would’ve been difficult for me." Claude picked up his glasses from the desk and put them on his nose. Because of the sunlight, Xu Ke couldn’t quite clearly see Claude’s eyes.
"It was nothing, just a little assistance." Xu Ke replied.
Behind the glasses, Claude’s eyes greedily and appreciatively gazed at Xu Ke, a blush subtly tinging his cheeks, and even his throat felt itchy. He wished to see Xu Ke stretch his hands out so he could closely examine what kind of hands could create such perfect artworks. Indeed, his first impression of Xu Ke being different from others was for a reason.
Claude was lost in his thoughts and, unusually, a bit distracted.
Xu Ke waited for a while, finding it odd that after saying those words, Claude seemed to have nothing else to say, so he asked, "I wonder if there’s anything else you called me here for?"
Claude was brought back to reality by Xu Ke’s voice. He reached out to adjust his glasses and said, "Sorry, I got distracted thinking about something. I called you over today because I want to discuss something with you. I have acquired a factory today, and I would like you to help me manage it and complete its transformation."
"I’m just an equestrian teacher; isn’t it a bit hasty to leave the management of the factory to me?" Upon hearing Claude’s words, Xu Ke displayed a suitable expression of anxiety.
"I believe in you. From the moment you went into the secret room and got me the information I needed, I knew you could accomplish this, and you could do it beautifully. With your capabilities, it’s a waste to just be an equestrian teacher." Claude placed his crossed hands on the table, looking at Xu Ke as he spoke.
The room became quiet for a moment.
"No rush; I don’t need you to decide right now. You can go back to where you’re staying and take your time to choose, but the factory can’t remain unmanaged for too long, so if possible, I hope you can give me an answer by tomorrow. Can you do that?" Claude’s demeanor seemed gentle but was indeed firmly setting the deadline for Xu Ke.