My Pretty Sweetheart (Arianna)
Chapter 1828

As I watched the scene unfold, I seized the opportunity and hurriedly stood up. "I'm also done eating. It'll be too late if I don't go now!" I said quickly.

Aaron blocked my way and said, "Are you sure you want to choose your client over the chance of meeting lan?"

I was both surprised and delighted, exclaiming, "lan's awake?"

Aaron shrugged while replying, "Yeah, and he particularly wants to see you. Are you sure you're not going?"

"Let's go!" I gushed.

After driving for nearly an hour, we reached a holiday villa in the suburbs.

Upon entering the manor, I saw that it was surrounded by the singing of birds and vegetation. Due to the morning rain, the air was especially fresh. After getting cooped up in the car for a long while, I felt much more relaxed being out in the open.

While I stood at the corridor with my hand on the

doorknob, I grew nervous all of a sudden.

We had been friends for more than a decade, and we used to be like family. A few months ago, we were involved in a huge dispute regarding the ownership of Anne's custody, but he still protected me with his life in the end.

What would happen if we were to meet again?

The palms of my hands were sweaty. I did not dare to turn the doorknob, but a familiar voice rang out from the other side of the room, "Is that you, Arianna?"

His voice was as gentle as the sounds of nature. Who else could it be but lan?

My heart tingled as I mustered up the courage to walk into the room.

Sunlight shone on lan, making him look bright and beautiful, like a newborn angel. He was thin and scrawny; traces of being bedridden for such a long time evident in his physique. He stood with a cane in his hand, and he looked like a frail tree that could be blown over at any time.

"lan..." I marveled. Seeing him alive with my very own eyes, I was too excited to say anything else.

"Have a seat," lan gestured while grinning as he got us to sit. He sat himself on a rocking chair next to me.

The cane leaned against the side, and the chair swayed slowly. The sunlight and the smile on his face dispelled the coldness in the room little by little.

lan woke up three days ago, and he was undergoing some physiotherapy exercises. It was not until the day we came for our visit that he could actually walk. Judging from clumsy posture and footsteps, I could tell that he had not fully recovered yet.

"I thought you would bring the kids here," Ian said, laughing.

I sniffed and explained hurriedly, "Once I knew that you were awake, I rushed to see you immediately. Why don't we return to the Reid family to see the kids now? lan, you really should visit them. You were the one who protected them with your life."

"There's no need to rush," Joe assured, "We'll have plenty of opportunities to get along in the future."

Having seen him in hysterics before, I knew of his harmless sincerity toward others. I asked him, "Have you forgiven me?"

My question was subsequently accompanied by silence. The atmosphere in the room turned awkward.

A moment later, lan looked at Aaron with eyes resembling black pearls and said with a self-deprecating grin, "It looks like Aaron was telling the truth; everyone hasn't been doing well while I was in a coma." I frowned and did not know how to respond.

Someone dear to us had been hospitalized - how could anyone rest well knowing this?

"Let's not talk about this," lan said, and looked at me enthusiastically, "Regarding Anne's custody, I've asked the lawyer to withdraw the lawsuit. Like Aurelia, she is your daughter after all; that is the truth."

Gratitude and excitement immediately overwhelmed my heart. I feared up and sniffled, "Thank you, lan."

This scene of reconcilement could

easily rattle anyone's mind. Aaron,

who had always been tough, almost broke into tears. He spoke as his voice slightly hoarse, "You were once a hateful man, trying to steal my niece away. But that being in that coma did you good because you woke up with a clear mind and became less hateful. Regarding the online businesses and all other matters, I've already had people settle it for you. All you have to do now is focus on getting better. Once you've recovered, you can reopen the shop. You are a capable man, even I must admit that."

"Thank you, but I don't wish to start a new clinic," lan said as he looked at Aaron, and he suddenly felt depressed, "Silvia and I have discussed it and we're going back to Mesville." "It's good to go back and relax," I added.

There was nothing for him to miss in Jarold City, a city so cold and inhumane.

"No," lan replied, changing the subject, his eyes turning sharp, "I'm returning to take over my family business."

"Why?" I asked. He had always been uninterested in doing business, so why had he changed his mind?

Hearing this, lan's expression

changed, and the veins on his face

bulged as he revealed, "It was my brother who paid a reporter to get information about me and spread it. He has been enjoying his position as the successor of the Shelley Group for far too long. It's time for him to pay for what he had done to me."