Stella Nash was stunned.
What do you mean, fighting over the lab?
The lab...
Wait a minute!
Does this guy think I stayed to talk to him because I want to fight over the rights to use this lab?
Oh my god!
What kind of logic is this?!
Where did Rona Muir dig up this hidden gem of a guy?
Jiro Hirayama saw Stella Nash freeze, so he doubled down: "If you want to use the lab, then apply for another one. This one's mine for now! Hans already agreed—while I'm here, this lab and all its equipment are under my control!"
Stella Nash sighed helplessly. "I'm not fighting you for the lab!"
Jiro Hirayama relaxed instantly and muttered, "As long as you don't fight me for the lab, that's fine."
Then Jiro Hirayama got tense again: "And you can't fight me for Rona either! She's my wife!"
Stella Nash couldn't help but laugh out of frustration!
Yeah, right!
With that weird logic of yours, if Amy really tries to flirt with you, she must be short-circuited!
With your way of thinking, it'll take you eight hundred years to figure out what Amy is up to!
Fine, I meddled too much and worried for nothing!
All of Amy's flirting was wasted—if this straight guy ever figures it out, I'll admit defeat!
Stella Nash couldn't be bothered to argue with Jiro Hirayama anymore and turned to leave.
Jiro Hirayama frowned, thinking Stella Nash was weird. No, he had to keep a closer eye on Rona from now on. He couldn't let Rona get too close to Stella Nash!
What if Rona gets charmed by her?
Ah, I miss my wife.
I wonder when my wife will be back.
At that moment, Rona Muir—who was on Jiro Hirayama's mind—wasn't idle either.
After having dinner with Sean Kerr that night, he not only checked into the same hotel as Rona Muir, but also booked several adjacent rooms and had a bunch of lab equipment delivered.
Yep, still the same domineering CEO, still the same formula.
Even as a farm owner now, he still doesn't hold back when it comes to being bossy.
Sean Kerr saw Rona Muir and immediately smiled: "I thought about it seriously last night. You said you could extract something from these seeds to add to cosmetics—why don't we just run an experiment? If it works, I'll scale up and plant more Subtype Castor Bean. If it fails, you won't have to waste your energy on it."
Rona Muir was definitely tempted.
Even though Jiro Hirayama said it worked, she still wasn't sure if it was really effective.
If they could test it, that would be perfect.
"But all my R&D staff are back in China," Rona Muir hesitated.
"No problem, I had a few researchers from my cosmetics company transferred over," Sean Kerr smiled. "I've booked the whole floor, and the equipment's here. It's quiet, sealed, and safe—perfect for experiments. Besides, this isn't some dangerous test. As long as the tools are all there and the bacteria are up to standard, we can do it. Plus, it's just a preliminary test, not production, so we don't need a super sterile workshop. You can monitor everything in real time to check the pros and cons of the active ingredients."
Rona Muir was shamelessly tempted: "Alright, let's research it first. But I'm warning you—if we get results, this is a Danni Cosmetics product. You can't pull your old tricks and compete with us again."
Sean Kerr sure has a lot of black marks in his history.
Sean Kerr was a little stung, but replied, "Relax, I won't steal your results. The Kerr Family's cosmetics won't use Subtype Castor Bean as a raw material without your permission."
"That's more like it." Rona Muir nodded, satisfied.
Sean Kerr shook his head helplessly, his tone full of affection: "You, honestly."
They got right to work.
Sean Kerr's team quickly changed the layout of the hotel rooms.
The hotel originally didn't agree to it.
But, emmm, Sean Kerr has money—and after buying shares and becoming the hotel's biggest shareholder, there was nothing to disagree about.
The whole floor became Sean Kerr and Rona's territory.
Countless pieces of furniture were moved out, and countless pieces of equipment were moved in.
Soon, the neatly arranged hotel rooms became their temporary lab.
Every day, Rona Muir and Sean Kerr dove into the lab with a few others, extracting active elements from Subtype Castor Bean seeds, sorting them, and running experiments one by one.
One day, Rona Muir was grinding seeds, smashing them into powder to see if adding them to a face mask would preserve their activity.
She was busy working when Sean Kerr, dressed in a white lab coat, knocked and walked in: "Time for lunch."
Rona Muir glanced at the time and realized she'd been busy all morning.
She stretched lazily. "Got it, I'll be right there."
Carefully, she collected the powder she'd just made and put it into a bottle.
After tidying up her workspace, Rona Muir changed out of her lab coat, let her hair down, and left the lab.
From a distance, she saw Sean Kerr smiling at the elevator, so she hurried over.
These days, they've just been eating the hotel's buffet.
Mainly because it's convenient and saves trouble.
They could eat anytime, no need to waste time waiting for food.
Once inside the elevator, they started discussing today's experiment results.
Ding—the elevator chimed.
A beautiful woman walked in from outside, with a graceful figure and delicate features.
Rona Muir was so focused on the experiment that she didn't even look up.
Just then, Rona Muir heard someone across from her call out in surprise, "Rona Muir? Sean Kerr? Why are you two here? Don’t tell me you two…?"
Rona Muir looked up and froze, blurting out, "Zoey Chow? Why is it you?"
The woman said too, "Yeah, I want to know why you’re here."
The woman in front of her was a member of N City's upper-class circle.
She liked to gossip about the entertainment industry, so most people didn’t bother with her.
After all, everyone's status was clear, and getting mixed up with showbiz would only lower their class.
Zoey Chow gave Rona Muir and Sean Kerr a meaningful look and lowered her voice: "Relax, I won’t say a word."
Rona Muir was totally confused: "Say what?"
What did she have to hide?
What was with Zoey Chow’s "I know but I won’t tell" expression?
She was just doing research with Sean Kerr—not alone, there were seven or eight researchers with them!
Sean Kerr glanced over, didn’t explain, just nodded at Zoey Chow without greeting her.
When they reached the basement buffet, Zoey Chow suddenly linked arms with Rona Muir and smiled, "Long time no see! Mind if I join your table?"
Rona Muir’s lips twitched—she wanted to say she minded, but could she?
But everyone’s in the same circle—you see each other all the time, so you have to give a little face.
The three of them entered the restaurant, and Rona Muir spotted a minor celebrity waiting eagerly at the buffet entrance.
Zoey Chow introduced him: "This is Lucas Lin. He recently starred in the web drama 'Scream Moment.' He feels his acting needs work, so I brought him out to gain some experience. This is Rona Muir, CEO of Danni Cosmetics."
Lucas Lin greeted Rona Muir, "Hello, Ms. Muir."
Lucas Lin discreetly sized up Rona Muir.