Chapter 523 See Her Face Clearly

Amidst the anticipation of the audience, Neal picked up the microphone. “After much consideration, the opportunity to collaborate with Dovil Group on this project goes to Harris Group from Chanaca.

Congratulations!”

A massive round of applause broke out.

Among the crowd, some were sighing, some were gasping, and some were praising.

Only Gwendolyn and Cedrick remained calm. After all, the conclusion was not to their surprise.

Gwendolyn stood up gracefully, turned around, and gave the crowd a slight nod as a sign of courtesy and politeness.

Stepping on the red carpet, she walked up the stage and shook hands with Neal in front of everyone as an indication of the anticipation of collaborating with each other.

Sounds of cameras clicking could be heard as the reporters on the scene seized the opportunity to take photos of the handshake, Gwendolyn had an elegant smile on her face.

With that, the event had basically come to an end.

All the other companies could only leave the hall without success.

To everyone’s surprise, before the event officially come to a close, Neal made another announcement.

“To all our distinguished guests. I have gone through all of the proposals submitted by all your respective companies. After discussing with the board, we have decided that there’s another proposal that is full of potential and come to the conclusion that we will first consider collaborating with that company on our next project.”

Just like that, the crowd was once again buzzing with energy. Everyone had their fingers crossed, praying that their companies would be the ones nominated by Neal.

As the guests waited expectantly, Neal announced, “Heartiest congratulations to Antea Group! It’s an honor to work with you on our next project,”

A small gasp of surprise could be heard from the first row on the right side of the hall. It was a female’s voice.

Antea Group was Paul’s company, and Paul was the man who had been in the museum the previous day.

The young lady next to Paul hugged him excitedly.

“You were the one who did the proposal. All the credit goes to you.” Paul said.

“Thank you, Paul. I love you.

Ignoring the crowd behind them, the couple exchanged an intimate moment before the girl dressed in a white gown got up from her seat and bowed to the audience with a polite and humble smile.

From where Gwendolyn was sitting, she could only see the girl’s silhouette and a slight glimpse of her side profile.

Grabbing Cedrick’s arm, she narrowed her eyes icily. “It’s her-the girl who looks like Evelyn.”

Annie Steinfeld?

Gwendolyn repeated that name inside her head countless times.

Annie walked up the stage and shook Neal’s hand. The cameras flashed once more.

Turning to face the crowd, Annie gave the audience a big smile. Only then did Gwendolyn finally see her face clearly for the first time.

It was a foreign face, unlike Evelyn’s.

Compared to Evelyn, Annie’s nose seemed to be higher, her eyes were bigger and clearer, and her chin seemed more pointed. She had a delicate and adorable face. The warm smile plastered on her face made her look all the more pleasant.

Fixing her gaze on that face, Gwendolyn could not help but think that Annie’s features had an uncanny resemblance to Evelyn’s.

Not only so, but she was troubled by the fact that Annie and Evelyn had such a similar silhouette.

Her eyes became darker.

The open tender had come to an end. One by one, guests exited the hall.

Suddenly, Cedrick received a phone call. He trotted to a quiet hallway to answer the phone.

Gwendolyn’s gaze had been following Annie ever since the latter got off the stage.

Seeing that Annie was talking to Paul, she made her way toward the couple.

“You’re brilliant, Ms. Annie. You’re so young, yet you managed to prepare a proposal with such a huge company on your own. You even managed to catch the attention of Mr. Gray as well. Well done!”

Upon hearing Gwendolyn’s voice, Annie turned around and flashed her a friendly smile. “Not as brilliant as you, Ms. Harris. After all, I’ll only be working with him on the next project. You’re the winner of today’s event. I should be congratulating you instead.”

Standing in close proximity, Gwendolyn listened to Annie’s voice carefully. The latter’s voice was slightly hoarse, unlike the crisp voice that one would attribute to a young lady.

“Is something wrong with your throat, Ms. Annie? Your voice sounds a lot more mature than girls of age.” Gwendolyn commented.

Standing next to Annie was Paul. Even in his forties, he still looked handsome. Wrapping his arm around Annie’s small waist, he smiled and explained. “Annie has always had this voice ever since she was little, but I love her voice. I think it sounds amazing and unique.”

Gwendolyn did not once take her eyes off Annie’s face. In a casual manner, she asked, “How old are you. Ms. Annie?”

Paul answered instead, “Twenty-one years old.”

Twenty-one?

Gwendolyn did some calculations inside her head. If Evelyn is still alive, she should be twenty instead.

Annie piped up, “Ms. Harris, you have been staring at my face. Is there something wrong with my makeup?”

With a polite smile, Gwendolyn replied, “No. Your makeup is exquisite, Ms. Annie. You look incredibly amicable, which gives me a sense of familiarity.”

Annie grinned innocently at the compliment without saying a word.

Not wanting to give up, Gwendolyn continued to ask, “I remember you both are from Ospea. Why is it that you can converse with me in such lluent Chanacan, Ms. Annie?”

“I studied in Chanaea for a few years,” Annie answered with a natural look. “I really like Chanaea. I think it’s a beautiful country filled with wonderful people. If given the chance, I would go there again.”

Gwendolyn smiled in response. “In that case, you’re welcome to visit Chanaea again, Ms. Annie. When you do come to Chanaca, ring me up. I’ll gladly be your personal tour guide of the day, showing you the cultures and local customs of my country.”

“Thank you for the invitation, Ms. Harris,”

The two women exchanged friendly nods.

With his arm wrapped around Annie’s shoulder, Paul led her out of the hall.

Gwendolyn kept her eyes on the couple until they were out of her sight. Even then, she remained still on the spot, thinking over Annie’s words and body language during the brief interaction that they had.

She still found the girl bizarre, but she couldn’t quite put her finger on it.

Evelyn was an actress who had won impressive awards. If she wanted to pretend to be an innocent young lady and changed her habits, it would be a piece of cake.

Gwendolyn took out her phone to call Elven. Just as she was about to hit the dial button, she remembered that it was already nighttime in Chanaea. After a moment of consideration, she decided to leave him a text instead, in case he had already fallen asleep.

She texted: Please check if the name Annie Steinfeld is on the name list of the charity gala the other night. Look into all of her personal information and background. Everything.

Once she sent the message, she switched off her phone and put it back inside her designer bag.

Cedrick had finished talking on the phone and was returning to her side.

A cold expression was etched upon his face.

It took Gwendolyn no time to figure out that he was unhappy and anxious.

“What happened? Who was that on the phone?”

Cedrick lowered his head. He had intended to hide his feelings. Unfortunately, Gwendolyn had seen through him.

Upon seeing his reaction, Gwendolyn continued to press on the matter with a stern tone. “Tell me, did something happen to Benny and Zendy?”

Cedrick clenched his fists nervously. “Summer called me just now. She said that it rained the entire day in Salinsburgh yesterday. The temperature dropped and it was quite cold. Benny and Zendy might have caught a cold when Summer brought them to the park-”

“Get to the point!” Gwendolyn snapped.

Cedrick took a deep breath, bracing himself. “The kids are having high fevers.”