Chapter 191: The Iron Tree Blooms

"Jean, I’m going to see Mr. Sawyer. Do you want to come?"

Amanda Vance asked after breakfast on Saturday morning.

She was going to discuss something with Joshua Sawyer today.

Jean Vance thought for a moment, then shook his head. "You go ahead, Mom. I’ll stay here and wait for you."

"Alright." ’The topic of today’s conversation probably isn’t suitable for a child anyway.’ "You be good and wait for me at home. I’ll be back soon. Call me anytime if you need anything."

"Okay."

After giving him a few more instructions, Amanda Vance left.

Jean Vance leaned against the window and watched until she was gone before turning back to his room. He called Felix Ford and said, "...Your dad won’t be there, will he?"

’He was so afraid of Mom running into that man.’

Ever since she came back that day, she hadn’t mentioned him at all. He didn’t know what she had learned from Mr. Ford, but he could tell his mom was now deliberately avoiding the Ford family.

"He won’t," Felix Ford said, rolling over. "Don’t worry, Dad is working overtime. He’s a workaholic; he won’t be wandering around."

’He was sure of it.’

"Okay, that’s good." Jean Vance sighed in relief.

Thinking about what Jean said, Felix Ford blinked and asked, "You just said that the Mr. Sawyer Mom is meeting is a lawyer. Do you think she’s going to talk about me?"

’For example, how to make it so he could be with them officially in the future.’

Jean Vance didn’t say anything. He thought it was very possible.

’But Mom still didn’t know Felix Ford’s true identity. Mr. Sawyer was certainly capable, but the Ford family was no pushover.’

Felix Ford didn’t think too much about it. Just the thought that his mom had promised not to abandon him made him incredibly happy.

Seeing her little grandson so happy, Mrs. Ford breathed a sigh of relief. Ever since Samuel had left with Colt that day, he hadn’t been back. She knew he must still be conflicted. But the old man was stubborn, dead set on preventing the two of them from being together.

’Neither of them was the type to compromise easily, especially on a major life decision like this. Even if she wanted to mediate, she wouldn’t know where to start.’

’The root of the problem was clear, and simply saying a few words would be useless.’

But she had still been worried, so she had rushed over today to check on him. Seeing her little grandson looking so well, she finally felt at ease. She smiled and beckoned to him. "Colt, come here."

Felix Ford liked her too, so he scampered over happily and threw himself into her arms, calling out in a sweet voice, "Grandma."

Cuddling his soft little body, Mrs. Ford’s mood improved considerably. She stroked his little face and asked, "Why are you so happy? Did something good happen?"

Felix Ford’s eyes darted around. He knew he couldn’t tell her about his mom, so he mumbled and said casually, "Dad said he’d bring me a treat when he gets back."

Mrs. Ford chuckled. Looking at her grandson’s innocent face made her want to laugh. ’He really is just a child. A little treat is all it takes to make him this happy.’

"Isn’t it Saturday? Where’s your dad?"

"He went to the office."

Hearing this, Mrs. Ford was taken aback for a moment. She hadn’t thought much of it before, but hearing that her son was working overtime, she suddenly realized something. If she remembered correctly, her son hadn’t worked overtime in a long time, not just on weekends but even on weekdays. During that period, she had often seen him at the hospital.

Amanda Vance had been a frequent visitor back then, too.

Understanding his intentions, Mrs. Ford’s brows furrowed even more deeply.

’She knew her own son best. He might have seemed cold and indifferent for the first twenty-odd years of his life, but a man like that doesn’t fall in love easily. And once he does, he can’t take it back. Her son had clearly fallen hard. If he couldn’t have his way...’

She sighed, the worry in her eyes deepening.

’It seemed peace and quiet would be a rare commodity at home from now on.’

Meanwhile, at the Ford Group, Samuel Ford finished reading one document and opened another.

Several secretaries stood outside the door, looking anxiously at Assistant Young. Assistant Young pinched the bridge of his nose, feeling a headache coming on. It wasn’t that they’d never seen President Ford work himself to the bone before, but he hadn’t been this frenetic in months. They had all grown a little complacent, and this sudden return to such high intensity was hard to adjust to.

’Sigh. It really is easy to get used to the good life.’

"Assistant Young, shouldn’t you go try to talk some sense into President Ford?" one of the secretaries whispered.

’When the big boss was working this hard, how could they dare to slack off? Besides, the atmosphere around President Ford had been absolutely oppressive lately!’

Assistant Young shook his head decisively. ’No way. Anyone could see President Ford was in a bad mood today. Going in there now would just be asking for trouble.’

But then... he seemed to remember something. After a moment’s thought, he said, "I’ll give it a try."

The secretaries’ eyes lit up. They looked at him expectantly, pinning all their hopes on him.

Assistant Young felt the pressure was a bit much. He quickly averted his gaze, straightened his tie, and raised his hand to knock on the office door.

"Come in," a flat voice called from inside.

The secretaries ducked behind the wall and gave Assistant Young encouraging gestures. He just shook his head at them. ’This bunch...’

His expression turning serious, he pushed the door open and walked in. He shot a quick glance at his boss’s face before quickly lowering his eyes. He said tentatively, "President Ford, I just received word that Dr. Vance has an appointment with Lawyer Sawyer today."

’As he said this, his heart was pounding. He wasn’t sure if it would work.’

He was President Ford’s assistant for both work and personal matters and had been with him for quite some time. Therefore, he was well aware of how different his boss was when it came to Dr. Vance.

All those times he’d arrived late or left early were to rush to the hospital to see Dr. Vance. He even sent Rocco and his men to help her. He had never seen his boss be so dedicated to anyone else.

And this time, he guessed President Ford’s bad mood was also because of Dr. Vance.

Sure enough, Samuel Ford’s expression shifted slightly. He asked, "Where?"

Assistant Young gave him an address, which happened to be not far from their company.

"President Ford, are you going to go?" Assistant Young asked cautiously.

Samuel Ford didn’t speak. His gaze fell back to the document on his desk, his fingers slightly bent, tapping lightly on the surface.

Glancing at the document in his boss’s hand, which hadn’t been turned for a long time, Assistant Young understood. He retreated silently from the room.

A short while later, Samuel Ford came out. Without needing to be told, the ever-perceptive Assistant Young presented the car keys.

Samuel Ford glanced at him and said in a low voice, "It’s the weekend. You all should go home and rest."

"Yes, sir." Assistant Young let out a huge sigh of relief, a genuine smile spreading across his face.

In truth, President Ford never forced them to work overtime. It was just that seeing someone as wealthy as him work so hard made it impossible for them to relax at home. Besides, the company offered generous overtime pay, which was nice, but the base salary at Ford Group was already excellent. They didn’t really need the extra money, so they’d rather rest at home if they had the time.

Now that President Ford was gone, they were finally free.

The secretaries blinked and gave Assistant Young a thumbs-up. One who was on good terms with him came over and asked curiously, "Young, what did you say to President Ford? How come he left so quickly?"

With a twinkle in his eye, Assistant Young chuckled and said, "I just told him it’s the weekend and he should get some rest. President Ford is a father, after all. He needs to spend more time with his child. So, he left."

The man didn’t believe him. "That’s it? It was that simple?"

"What else could it be?" Seeing that he was about to ask more, Assistant Young quickly cut him off. "Alright, alright. Aren’t you happy to have the day off? Everyone, hurry home and get some rest."

"Okay." Everyone began to disperse. ’Who cares what he said, anyway?’

Assistant Young watched the direction Samuel Ford had left in, smiling and shaking his head. ’His President Ford, that old iron tree, was finally blooming.’

’How wonderful.’