Chapter 120: The Appointment

Amanda Vance arrived at the hospital early. When she saw Samuel Ford, she stopped in her tracks and glanced sideways at him. ’Is it just my imagination,’ she wondered, ’or have I been seeing an awful lot of President Ford lately?’

Even when they didn’t see each other, he would call.

As the thought crossed her mind, Amanda’s expression wavered. She hadn’t realized it yesterday, but now that she thought about it... ’Are we really that close already?’

Samuel Ford had noticed her approach before she even entered the room. He was surprised, however, when she came in and simply stood there, watching him without a word.

After a long moment, her gaze still fixed on him, Samuel Ford finally looked up at her.

He was sitting by the window, and the sunlight catching his profile cast a warm glow on his usually stern features. It made him look less like the cold man from the rumors and more like a gentle scholar.

Startled by her own notion, Amanda shook her head, trying to banish such ridiculous thoughts. She stepped fully into the room. ’Yep, still the same expressionless, unattainable man,’ she thought. Giving a slight nod, she greeted him, "President Ford."

"Mm." His gaze swept over her almost imperceptibly. Samuel wanted to ask what she had been staring at, but the words died in his throat.

Amanda checked Mr. Ford’s pulse and found that everything was progressing well. As she was about to leave, Samuel Ford followed her out. She glanced back, assuming he wanted to ask about his grandfather’s condition. Without giving it much thought, she spoke before he could ask, "Mr. Ford’s condition is much better now. As long as he avoids any major stress and doesn’t have another episode, he should be almost fully recovered in a month or two."

"Mm." They walked a few more steps. When he saw her looking at him quizzically, he finally said, "Colt came by yesterday."

"Oh?" The sudden change in topic caught Amanda off guard.

Samuel Ford continued, "He didn’t get to see you. He was very disappointed."

Blinking, Amanda finally understood. The thought of the little boy made her smile. "Something just happened to come up yesterday, otherwise I would have loved to see him. He must be a very sweet kid."

She almost laughed just thinking about their previous meeting and how the little boy had mumbled about not liking his own voice, which was why he used a voice changer.

’He’s so young, but he’s already so concerned about his image.’

Sensing her interest in the topic, Samuel shamelessly used his son as an excuse. "Well, you can see him next time, then. He’s always talking about you at home. Says he really likes you."

Amanda’s expression softened even more. "I really like Colt, too."

"It seems like fate. The two kids get along so well, too. Why don’t we all go out together on Saturday?"

"Huh?" Amanda turned to him, surprised. ’Is he asking me out?’

Samuel’s throat tightened, but his expression remained impassive. He said nonchalantly, "It’s boring for the kids to be cooped up at home all the time. They should interact more with other children their age."

’Oh, so it’s for the kids.’ Amanda nodded. "Mm, that makes sense. I’ll see you Saturday, then. Just pick a place, President Ford, and send me the address."

"Great. Colt will be thrilled to see you."

"ACHOO." In the classroom, Felix Ford suddenly sneezed. He rubbed his nose, puzzled. ’Who’s talking about me?’

Mumbling to himself, he ran off with his little backpack to find Jean Vance. He found Jean holding a tiny laptop, his fingers flying across the keyboard as lines of code filled the screen. After a moment, Felix suddenly pointed at one spot and said, "You wrote that part wrong."

Jean’s hands froze. He glanced at Felix, then back at the screen. Sure enough, he’d made a typo. After fixing it, he asked casually, "You know how to code?"

"Nope." He didn’t even know what coding was.

"Then how did you know I made a mistake here?"

"Oh, you mean that," Felix said, as if it were the most obvious thing in the world. "I see my dad do it all the time. I guess I just picked it up from watching him."

"Your dad knows how to write code?"

He understood that. He nodded seriously. "That’s right. My dad’s a coder."

That’s what he’d heard his dad’s classmates call him during a reunion dinner.

The Ford Group was in the tech industry, so it wasn’t surprising that Samuel Ford knew how to code. Jean didn’t give it much thought and went back to finishing his work. Turning to Felix, he asked, "Did you need something?"

"Oh, right!" At Jean’s question, Felix remembered. He rummaged through his backpack for what felt like an eternity before finally pulling out a card. "This is for you. You can buy anything you want with it."

It was a black card with gold accents. It looked very familiar.

Jean pressed his lips together. From his own backpack, he pulled out an identical card.

Felix’s eyes widened in astonishment. "What? How do you have one, too? Did my dad give it to you?"

At that, a flicker of disdain crossed Jean’s eyes. He explained calmly, "I earned it myself."

Felix was dumbfounded. He even started to stutter. "You... you earned it yourself?"

He knew this wasn’t just any regular bank card; you needed a lot of money to have one. He’d even tried to max it out once when he was mad at his dad, going on a massive spending spree, but the balance had barely budged.

He’d realized back then just how powerful the card was. He never imagined that Jean would have one too, let alone that he’d earned it himself.

Suddenly, the card in his own hand felt a little pathetic.

’We’re the same age, we have the same face, we came from the same mom and dad, but Jean is already so independent and self-reliant. I’m still just spending Dad’s money. I’m so lame.’

He abruptly shoved the card back into his bag as if it were a hot potato. Dusting off his hands, he pretended nothing had happened and said coolly, "So, uh, how’s that investigation of yours going? Any progress?"

Jean wasn’t the type to show off. He had only pulled out his own card because he didn’t want to be indebted to Felix. Now that Felix had dropped the subject, he put his card away as well. He mulled over the question for a moment before answering, "Her card had an anti-surveillance system, which I’ve already cracked. But she hasn’t contacted the other party in the last couple of days. We’ll have to wait."

"Oh, okay." Felix nodded. ’In that case, I can still spend more time with Mom.’

’Perfect.’

Seeing right through him, Jean shot him a look, his voice turning serious. "You have to be careful. Don’t let anyone find out. And most importantly, you absolutely cannot let my mom and your dad know we exist. If they find out, you can forget about ever seeing Mom again."

He knew his mother’s temper. She would never forgive that man.

No matter what his reasons were.

Felix might not have listened to any other warning, but the thought of his mom leaving sent him into a panic. He puffed out his chest and declared, "Don’t worry! I won’t ever appear in front of Dad with Mom! If I do, I’ll... I’ll turn into a puppy!"