Grace walked into the 7-Star restaurant, matching the vibe of the expensive place with how well she was dressed and carried herself.
Because she had to meet Dr. Shen, she dropped by a boutique on her way to the restaurant and changed out of her disguise, returning to her real self so that she wouldn’t catch him off-guard with the way she looked in her perfect disguise.
"I’m Dr. Shen’s guest." She informed the employee who greeted her at the entrance.
"This way please, mam."
Grace followed behind the woman, heading deeper into the restaurant and eventually entering one of the private rooms that was booked by Dr. Shen for their lunch together.
"Sir, your guest is here." The employee informed Dr. Shen before stepping aside to let Grace join the man at the table.
"Ms. Blackwood, it’s so good to see you." Dr. Shen said with a warm smile as he stood up and approached Grace to shake her hand. Even in his late forties, the man looked as young as if he was still in his early thirties. As usual, he was dressed neatly in a business suit.
This man, he was the CEO of Outpatient Hospital and one of her close social acquaintances.
For years, Grace had been donating to the hospital and funding several of its researches, resulting in the formation of her close business friendship with Dr. Shen.
The two of them settled down at the table and spent the next few minutes looking through the menus before finally placing their orders. Grace chose an appetizing meal for herself as she was feeling really hungry - a plate of lobster carpaccio, truffle mushroom soup, lemon-basil sorbet, and finally chocolate sphere with vanilla ice cream inside.
"So, how’s your life going now that you are no longer leading an entire business empire?" Dr. Shen asked once they both were free to talk after placing their orders.
A waiter entered the room to serve them water before leaving. Once they were alone again, Grace answered, "I’m feeling much more relaxed. Now that I don’t have to work day and night, don’t have to be on edge all the time... I’m feeling really better."
The lies spilled from her lips without any problem, making her realize just how professional she had become at lying without even realizing it.
Dr. Shen nodded his head in approval. "That’s good to hear. I have always been telling you to take a break for your mental and physical well-being. But you never listened to me. I’m happy to see that you are finally thinking about your own well-being now."
They continued to chat for a while as their food finally arrived. The smell alone was enough to make Grace forget about everything else but the food. She quickly tasted the lobster and was pleased with how good it tasted.
"Are you enjoying the food?" Dr. Shen asked when he noticed the smile on her lips while she tasted the soup.
Grace looked up at the man and nodded her head in a positive response while adding, "The food here is just as good as I remember."
The two of them enjoyed the food for a while before Dr. Shen decided to break the silence. "So, what is the important matter you wanted to talk about?" He asked before looking up and fixing his gaze on Grace.
As she finally had the chance to talk about the matter for which she sought his help in the first place, Grace stopped eating and focused her full attention on Dr. Shen while answering. "I want to buy some medicines and First-aid kit Supplies in bulk. I was wondering if you can help me with this matter."
Buying serious medicines in bulk wasn’t easy, and doing so would bring her unnecessary attention. It might also alert the authorities and she would end up in big trouble. Hence, she decided to bulk buy first-aid kits and common medicines first.
"First-aid kits and medicines?" Dr. Shen asked with a look of half surprise and half confusion covering his face.
Once again, Grace found herself voicing another lie, and this was the one she had used before to hoard other supplies. It might not be the best one, but it surely helped with keeping the suspicions to minimum.
"As you already know, I have sold my company and the Blackwood Mansion is also no longer there. Though I have more than enough money right now, I still need to figure out a way to find a regular and fixed income source for my future. After thinking about it, I have decided to open a few supermarkets here and in the nearby cities. I decided to start collecting the supplies from medicines."
She knew her lie worked when Dr. Shen spoke with a hint of worry in his tone. "It’s been merely a few days since the fire incident. Even if you want to make plans for future, shouldn’t you do it after resting properly?"
She smiled and resumed eating as she replied to his question, "Dr. Shen, it’s impossible for me to sit around and do nothing. Besides, I have been feeling super excited ever since the idea of opening supermarkets entered my brain. But you don’t have to worry, I’ll take my time in collecting the supplies and will not rush this project."
Dr. Shen just shook his head as he too resumed eating. "Young kids these days are just..." Though he didn’t finish the sentence, Grace knew that he was just appalled at the thought of her opening supermarkets after selling a company worth trillions.
"Do you have a list of the supplies you want?" He asked a few moments later and Grace quickly nodded her head.
"Let me send it to you right now." She said while taking out her phone to send him the list of the medical supplies she wanted to buy through his contacts.
The private dining room was filled with deep silence for next few moments as Dr. Shen opened his phone to take a look at the list of supplies, and then... he was choking on the roasted chicken he just put into his mouth.