"Ah, so you know him. It seems like we have quite a connection!" Toland laughed.
"I've been doing some small business at the New Mountain City University now. I leave my goods in his security room every day, so we're quite familiar with each other," Rosendo said with a smile.
"It's good to be familiar. Please take care of him at the New Mountain City University in the future. Thank you for that," Toland said happily when he heard that Rosendo was doing business. His son had been working for over ten years without a chance to make big money, and now that Rosendo mentioned he was doing business, Toland wondered if he could help his son earn some extra income.
"No problem. If there's an opportunity, I'll let him do business with me," Rosendo replied. He thought that in the future, when he started making big deals, he would need many talented people by his side. For now, it was important to get acquainted with them and pave the way for himself.
"Time to eat." Vanessa's crisp voice came from outside.
Just as Rosendo was about to suggest going out for lunch, Vanessa rushed in holding a large bowl of food. "Rosendo, don't get up! Stay in bed while I bring your meal here. Taste my cooking today and see how it is," she sweetly smiled at Rosendo.
"With Vanessa cooking, there's no need to taste it; I already know it will be delicious." Rosendo took the bowl from Vanessa and flattered her.
"You always know how to butter someone up." Vanessa complained about Rosendo flattering her but felt incredibly happy inside nonetheless. Sometimes girls were strange like that - they would say they disliked something out loud but secretly enjoyed it very much.
After finishing lunch, Rosendo suggested heading back home. Toland wanted to persuade Rosendo to stay until he recovered from his cold, but Rosendo was determined to leave. Toland prepared a lot of local products for Rosendo, which could be sold at hotels and surely fetch a good price.
Rosendo didn't have much with him, so after putting on the clothes Vanessa brought for him, he leaned on her fragile shoulder and left. As for the local products that Toland gave him, Rosendo declined them. He needed someone's support even just to walk now; there was no way he could carry so many things.
They hadn't gone far when they saw two black cars parked in front of them. The car doors opened, and an elegant figure stepped out and quickly ran towards Rosendo.
"Rosendo!" Johanna exclaimed ecstatically upon seeing him.
Then, several people got off the two cars one after another, Tyson, Willie, Cheryl.
Johanna ran up to Rosendo and tightly held his hand. Tears of joy streamed down her face as she said,
"Rosendo, it's so good to see you're okay. You have no idea how worried I was about you yesterday....." Johanna couldn't help but cry. It wasn't sadness but overwhelming happiness that made her unable to control her tears.
"Hey Rosendo, you've kept me on edge for so long and made me sad for such a long time. You owe me big time from now on, got it?" Cheryl joked with Rosendo.
"I got it. I'll make it up to you in the future," Rosendo replied with a mischievous look on his face. He realized he quite enjoyed teasing this playful girl.
Following Rosendo's gaze, Cheryl looked down and blushed instantly. She playfully exclaimed, "Where are you looking?" Cheryl quickly covered her chest with her hand.
She felt both happy and shy - happy because Rosendo seemed interested in her figure and shy because he was openly staring at her neckline; clearly showing interest in her breasts.
"Rosendo, what happened? Why do you need someone's support? Did something happen to you?" Johanna asked anxiously when she saw Vanessa helping Rosendo walk.
"It's nothing serious; just a slight cold," Rosendo smiled and answered. In fact, his condition was more than just a cold - due to extreme exhaustion yesterday he needed proper rest for a couple of months in order to fully recover.
"You caught a cold too! Quick—quick get into the car! I'll take you to the hospital," Johanna said nervously.
Before Rosendo could respond to Johanna's words,Vanessa interjected first with an expressionless face saying: "We don't need your kindness. We'll take the bus ourselves." Vanessa was angry at Johanna. If it wasn't for saving Johanna, her Rosendo wouldn't have ended up in such a weak and sickly state, completely different from his usual energetic self.
"Rosendo ! It seems like you're going back to the city, right? Why don't you come with us? With your current condition, taking the bus is inconvenient and crowded," Tyson suggested.
At this moment, a BMW drove by. Because the road was narrow and only one car could pass at a time, the BMW kept honking to urge Tyson's car to move faster.
Tyson turned around and wanted to drive the car to a wider area. His appearance caught the attention of the person in the BMW, who turned out to be Nicolas.
"Mr. Nicolas, what are you doing here? Isn't East Mountain Village ahead? Why did you park your car here?" Nicolas shouted loudly at Tyson from ten meters away. He came to visit Rosendo as well, and not only him but also his daughter came along.
"You're here to see Nicolas too, right? If that's the case, you don't need to go all the way to East Mountain Village because he is right here," Tyson replied upon recognizing him as an acquaintance. So he didn't bother driving anymore.
Upon hearing Tyson's words, Nicolas turned his head and called out inside his car: "Miranda, come out quickly! Your Rosendo is right here."
Miranda got off the car and said excitedly to her father: "Really? Where is he? Take me there!"
"He should be just up ahead!" Nicolas pointed forward.
"Rosendo... Rosendo..." Miranda shouted loudly while running towards him.
"I'm here." Upon hearing Miranda's voice, Rosendo responded loudly.
After finding Rosendo, Miranda rushed towards him without hesitation. Her sudden embrace almost knocked down Rosendo if it weren't for Vanessa's effort in supporting him; otherwise they would have fallen down for real.
"Be careful; he is very weak now with a fever and cold," Vanessa reminded Miranda earnestly.
"Oh no! Rosendo, you caught a cold! Get into my dad's car quickly; I'll have my dad take you to the hospital," Miranda expressed her concern.
Vanessa didn't like the idea of riding in Johanna's car; she didn't want Rosendo to get too involved with them. As for Miranda's family car, she didn't have to think too much about it. Even if this little girl liked Rosendo so much, he wouldn't be interested in someone much younger than him. So Vanessa helped Rosendo into Nicolas' BMW.