My Mirror Image

Chapter 149

Artwork financialization wasn’t a hot topic yet, so there were plenty of opportunities for support.

Candice glanced at Alex. She had to admit that his business acumen was indeed impressive. But

then again, if it weren’t, he wouldn’t have revived Aether Corporation.

After Alex finished, his knuckles tapped lightly on the table, his tone indifferent. “Who’s going to

handle the Blue Artifact?”

Blue Artifact was an established art museum with a significant reputation.

“I’d like to give it a try.” Candice calmly put down her pen.

She belonged to the secretariat and had the task of recording meeting proceedings.

Alex glanced at her and promptly declined without much thought, “This project isn’t for you to try.”

Alex’s refusal was decisive, and Candice didn’t argue further.

However, by the end of the meeting, no candidate had been selected.

As they exited the meeting room, Kayla asked Candice in puzzlement, “Candice, why did you willingly

take on that task?”

Candice shook her head without saying anything.

She then called Hanley from the pantry, and he answered promptly.

Cutting to the chase, she asked, “What do you think about me getting involved in artwork

financialization?”

Hanley paused before replying, “The derivative appreciation of artworks could become a major

economic focus and generate considerable exhibition fervor. It’s a good choice.”

After he finished, he inquired, “Why this sudden interest?”

“The company has a project, collaborating with Blue Artifact.” Candice’s tone softened. “I want to give it

a try.”

After ending the call with Hanley, she headed back to her office, but to her surprise, Sonia came down.

She stood meekly in front of Candice. “Candice, I’m here to continue learning from you.”

It seemed she hadn’t given up on taking over Candice’s position.

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Candice didn’t want to argue with her right now. “I’m busy at the moment, I have no time.”

“Do you need any help? I can assist you.” Sonia immediately followed up.

Giving her a glance, not wanting to waste time, Candice grabbed her things and left.

She went straight to Alex’s office. As she entered, Alex was engrossed in reading some

documents.

Seeing Candice, his face remained expressionless. “Is the medical report ready?”

Candice’s breath hitched for a moment but quickly resumed normality. She clenched her palms, her

voice steady. “I want to apply to manage the Blue Artifact project.”

Alex’s expression remained unchanged. “Reason?”

“Blue Artifact has a long–standing reputation. If someone unfamiliar goes, they might perceive Aether

Corporation’s lack of sincerity.”

He sneered lightly. “Are you familiar with the Blue Artifact?”

“I’ve gathered some exhibition and collection data about the Blue Artifact.” She placed the folder

she had brought with her in front of Alex.

Blue Artifact was a benchmark in the industry, so Candice had researched a lot about it initially.

Alex looked at the documents, his gaze slightly deepened, his thoughts unclear.

After a moment, he raised his brows to look at her, his tone indifferent. “If you said it’s because of

Hanley, I might have been more inclined to believe you.”

“Can you stop attributing everything to Hanley?” she said.

She looked at him. “I’m just trying to create opportunities for myself, and I’m confident I can do

well.”

As Candice finished speaking, a knock sounded on the door. Soon, Sonia’s timid voice came from

outside, “Mr. Elysian, there’s a document needing your signature.”

Since becoming a formal employee, Sonia had toned down considerably, at least refraining from

addressing him as Alex in the office.

After Sonia entered with the document, she handed it to Alex first before tentatively glancing at

Candice. “Candice, did you need something from Mr. Elysian? You could have told me directly,

saving you the trip.”

Candice looked at Sonia, understanding that she was subtly probing about her and Alex’s

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awaiting his response.

After a brief moment of eye contact with her, his brow twitched slightly. Then, with a cold sneer, he

tossed her folder back. “Since you’re so eager, go ahead.”

Candice breathed a sigh of relief. Having the chance to connect with Blue Artifact wasn’t a bad

thing for her.

Just as she was about to retrieve her materials, she heard Sonia’s puzzled tone, “Candice, are you

planning something else?”

Candice looked coldly at her. Sonia seemed adamant about following her everywhere.

“Candice, I know I’m not very smart, but I truly want to learn from you,” Sonia, with her innocent

appearance, now wore a sincere expression, making it difficult to refuse her.

However, Candice wasn’t moved. She wasn’t naïve and had already seen through Sonia’s

intentions.

As she was about to refuse, she heard Sonia asking Alex again, “Mr. Elysian, didn’t you agree earlier

that I could learn from Candice?”

“Yes.” His voice was indifferent and his gaze cold. “She will guide you.”

Candice felt stifled but considering the matter with Blue Artifact, having additional help might not

be bad. She also understood that Alex’s statement wasn’t meant to be challenged, so she didn’t

say anything.

However, it seemed like Sonia had made up her mind this time. Shortly after Candice left, Sonia

followed.

Standing in front of Candice, she spoke cheerfully, “Mr. Elysian said you want to do something related

to the Blue Artifact project. Do you need my help?”

“Organize this set of data.” Candice handed her an overview of Blue Artifact’s auctioned items in

recent years. “Sort it by year, price, and category.”

She wasn’t polite this time and directly assigned tasks to Sonia. Sorting documents was tedious

and complex work, causing a momentary stiffness on Sonia’s face.

She followed Candice not to learn how to arrange documents.

However, the words were out, and Sonia, reluctantly pursing her lips, took the documents and

went to the side.

Seeing her finally quiet down, Candice opened Blue Artifact’s official website to check their recent

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Artifact.

Hanley immediately called. “Are you sure about attempting to collaborate with Blue Artifact?”

“Yes.” She nodded. “Aether Corporation has placed Blue Artifact as a primary target.”

Hanley didn’t inquire further and mentioned, “I’ve been in contact with Blue Artifact recently. Maybe

there could be another form of collaboration later.”

After a brief exchange, Candice hung up. But as soon as she put down her phone, the screen lit up Property belongs to Nôvel(D)r/ama.Org.

again, displaying a new text message.

“Dorrington Hospital here to remind you that your health check–up appointment for tomorrow has

been successfully booked. Please arrive at the hospital at 8 a.m. sharp.”