Playing the Villainess, He Fell for Me

Joanna Kennedy nodded vigorously and started searching for fun places and good food nearby.

The excitement on her face was plain to see. A faint smile touched Simon Lockwood’s lips, and the intense possessiveness he felt eased a little.

He had to go survey the mineral deposits with experts and leaders from the Bureau of Mines today. The temperature on the mountain was even lower, so it really wasn’t a good idea to bring Joanna Kennedy along.

But he didn’t feel comfortable leaving Joanna Kennedy at the hotel alone, so it was good that she had a friend to keep her company.

A thought occurred to him, and he said, ”Wear your down jacket when you go out.”

”Mhm, mhm, I know...” Joanna Kennedy nodded, muttering under her breath, ”Butler Lockwood is really living up to his name. So annoying.”

The ”annoying” Simon Lockwood: ”...” ’So ungrateful.’

By the time Anna Yates arrived, Simon Lockwood had already left for the work site.

At the hotel entrance, Joanna Kennedy was bundled up in a black men’s down jacket. Though it was a short style for a man, on her, it covered her thighs. From a distance, she looked like a small child playing dress-up in an adult’s clothes.

Joanna Kennedy saw Anna Yates in the car and waved happily, her smile radiant. The faint, distant coldness that usually clung to her seemed to shatter, as if her smile alone could melt the surrounding wind and snow.

’A Joanna like this, so beautiful and bright... Simon Lockwood really has... taken good care of her.’

Anna Yates took a deep breath, suppressing the gloom in her heart before pushing open the car door with a smile.

”Why are you by yourself? Where are Scholar Lockwood and Young Master Grant?” Anna Yates asked with a smile.

In private, she was still used to calling Simon Lockwood ”Scholar Lockwood.” It was as if, after all these years, she was the only one still trapped in the haze of their middle school days.

Joanna Kennedy didn’t think much of it and said directly, ”He went to work, and Boss Grant went with him. It’s just the two of us today.”

”I did some research on the area. There’s a site with some ancient ruins that looks really historic. We can go check it out later,” Joanna Kennedy said.

”Sounds good, but let me get something to eat first.” Anna Yates sighed, holding up her hands. ”All I’ve done is drive, I haven’t even had breakfast yet.”

”Then I recommend the hulatang. The hulatang here is delicious! It has beef, and king oyster mushrooms...” Joanna Kennedy explained as the two of them walked toward a breakfast shop.

*

CRUNCH. One after another, footprints were pressed into the snow, crisscrossing and connecting. The mountains around Oakhaven were steep, and the older experts used trekking poles.

”This mountain really doesn’t look like it holds any mineral deposits. No wonder no one’s found anything for so many years,” an expert remarked with a sigh.

If not for the decision to develop the area into an economic tourism zone, who knows when this might have been found.

Walking further ahead, they saw a large expanse of blue safety fencing in the distance. The closest deposit had already been inspected; it was an ordinary coal mine, but a valuable one due to its rich reserves.

An expert took out a small hammer and tapped at the rock. His expression grew serious, and he had his student bring out the professional testing equipment.

The equipment was set up, and several experts began their survey. After a few minutes, one of them suddenly looked up, his eyes wide with disbelief. Under the anxious gazes of the others, his face broke into an expression of unconcealed joy. ”Lithium! It’s a lithium deposit!”

”...”

”...”

There was a stunned silence for a few seconds, which then erupted into a flurry of excited questions. Everyone started talking at once; even the normally composed government officials were beside themselves with excitement.

From within the crowd, Simon Lockwood’s voice cut through, clear and calm. ”What’s the rough estimate on the quantity?”

A lithium deposit was an incredibly precious discovery. To find one on this forgotten mountain was already a huge surprise. They had gotten so carried away with their excitement that they had completely forgotten to ask about the volume.

No matter how precious, a small lithium deposit was less valuable than an abundant coal mine. The crowd’s euphoria subsided a bit, and they felt a pang of shame. They hadn’t been as level-headed as a man in his twenties.

The expert took a sip of water and, without wasting any time, led the group with the equipment farther afield. They surveyed for over two more hours. Some people’s hands and feet grew numb from the cold, forcing them to stomp their feet relentlessly to stay warm.

After nearly three hours, at eleven o’clock in the morning, the final results did not disappoint. From the initial discovery point all the way to the other side of the mountain, the continuous vein was almost entirely a lithium deposit.

”This is just the preliminary survey result. The mountain’s geology is too complex for us to be one hundred percent certain, but I’d say it’s close to a sure thing,” the expert said.

Even if it was close to a sure thing, there was still a sliver of uncertainty. The officials decided on the spot to recruit workers and begin excavation that very afternoon.

”Mr. Lockwood, about those bodyguards you brought with you...” the leader from the Bureau of Mines began, rubbing his hands together as his voice trailed off.

He’d only spoken half a sentence, but his meaning was perfectly clear. He was afraid they couldn’t recruit enough people on short notice and wanted to use the strapping bodyguards as free labor.

Simon Lockwood sneered internally, but his expression remained unchanged. ”I have no objection. You can go ask them if they’re willing.”

”Oh, by the way, their daily salary is 2,800 each,” Simon Lockwood added in a leisurely tone.

The leader from the Bureau of Mines: ”...”

He suspected he had misheard. ”A daily salary of 2,800?”

’Are you sure that’s not their monthly salary?’

”Correct. Daily,” Simon Lockwood’s cool, indifferent tone shattered his delusion.

The Bureau of Mines leader forced a smile, trying to save face. ”Never mind, never mind, we shouldn’t trouble Mr. Lockwood’s people. We’ll figure something out. We always do...”

Less than half an hour after the news went out, a long line had already formed on the road beside the site.

The very young were not accepted, the age was capped at 65, and applicants needed a certain level of education and a health certificate.

Those who passed the interview would still need to undergo systematic training. This would cover theoretical knowledge, practical skills, and safety protocols. Only after passing an assessment would they receive their miner’s certification.

This process would take time, but the excavation couldn’t wait. After some discussion, their solution was to first borrow some experienced miners from a nearby region.

After a rushed and arduous journey, a large number of workers finally arrived that evening. They held a brief meeting to outline the next day’s tasks, and then everyone was sent to rest and recuperate.

After a hectic day, on top of freezing on the mountain for more than two hours, Simon Lockwood continuously massaged the spot between his eyebrows on the way back to the hotel.

He looked awful. In the front seat, the chattering Sean Grant fell silent under a glare from Jack Warren. He leaned back and asked cautiously, ”Simon, are you okay?”

”Are you feeling unwell? There should be a clinic nearby,” Jack Warren said, telling Sean Grant to find one on his phone.

”There’s a clinic just around the corner. Should we go?” Sean Grant asked, pointing to the location on his phone. He waited for a reply, though he wasn’t very hopeful.

’He knew that whenever Simon Lockwood got sick, he tended to just let it run its course, sometimes not even taking any medicine and just toughing it out.’

Unexpectedly, after a moment of silence, Simon Lockwood actually nodded.