Everyone Can Hear My Thoughts, and Now They're Panicking

Jasper Sterling suddenly let out a soft laugh. He leaned closer to his phone and said, "Senior, don’t you have anything you want to say to me?"

Jane Lancaster was taken aback for a moment. "What do you want to hear?"

"Oh, there’s a lot I want to hear. How about this? I’ll come find you right now, and we can talk face-to-face," Jasper Sterling said with a smile.

’Forget all that talk about being inauspicious or unlucky. He just wanted to see her right now.’

’Ideally, every minute of every day. Ideally, for all the years to come. He wanted to see her every single day.’

He quickly made up his mind. "Then it’s settled. I’m heading over right now."

Jane Lancaster: "..."

’Wait, are you serious?’

Jasper Sterling was serious. He hung up the phone, then nodded to Cecilia Nash and Sylvan. "Well, this is as far as I’ll take you. Goodbye."

Sylvan: "How come you get to go see her just because you want to? That’s not fair! I want to go too..."

Cecilia Nash pulled Sylvan back and said with a smile, "Of course. Goodbye. We’ll be waiting for you and Little Ian to come visit us."

She was incredibly observant and sharply noticed that Jasper Sterling’s outfit seemed to have been put together with great care.

In her memory, this junior had always been neat and tidy, but that was because he was so handsome and a bit of a clean freak. It gave people the impression he put a lot of effort into his clothes, but he actually didn’t.

But his clothes these past few days were clearly different. You could tell he had put some thought into them.

"Dressing so handsomely and looking so distinguished... wouldn’t it be a shame if no one got to see it?" Cecilia Nash muttered to herself.

Sylvan waved a hand in front of Cecilia Nash’s face. "Why are you smiling so weirdly? What’s a shame?"

"It’s nothing," Cecilia Nash said, but she couldn’t stop a fond, knowing smile from spreading across her face.

Sylvan: "..."

’Ah, now her smile is even weirder!’

—

Jane Lancaster hadn’t expected it either. Jasper Sterling really meant it when he said he was coming over.

When she came downstairs and saw the person sitting in the living room, she froze for a moment.

Seeing his sister, Alvin Lancaster quickly said, "Jane, Young Master Sterling is here to drop something off."

During the apprenticeship ceremony the other day, Jasper Sterling had called the Woods War Family and demanded they return the apprenticeship gifts. At the time, they had only returned a portion.

A few of the most valuable items had been taken by Quentin Woods. Taking advantage of his age, Quentin Woods threw a fit and shamelessly refused to acknowledge it, claiming that anything that fell into his hands would never be returned. He even declared that they could have his life, but not his money!

But Jasper Sterling had said he would follow up on the matter personally and ensure it was handled flawlessly. He sent people to hound the children of the Woods War Family every day to collect the debt.

The Woods War children were utterly terrified of this powerful figure and had no choice but to pool their money, buy new items, and present them to Jasper Sterling for his inspection.

Only after Jasper Sterling inspected them was he satisfied. At least none of them had been foolish enough to try and cut corners.

He said that since Jane Lancaster was the one who requested the apprenticeship gifts be returned, only she could sign for them. Thus, Alvin Lancaster had no choice but to call his sister down.

’Truthfully, their eldest brother was the one who bought the items... but he probably didn’t want to see them again anyway. It was just as well they were returned to his sister.’

Now, looking at Jasper Sterling’s smiling face, Alvin Lancaster felt a strong sense of dissonance.

’Could such a refined and humble person really be capable of sending people to press for debts every single day?’

Then again, Jasper Sterling was probably the only one with the means to do it. If it had been the three Lancaster brothers, it would have been like throwing good money after bad, never to be seen again.

This whole farce had finally come to an end, and the Woods War Family’s reputation was completely ruined.

But even if their reputation hadn’t been tarnished, they wouldn’t have been able to act so arrogantly for much longer. The investigation into Quentin Woods’s academic fraud was already underway, implicating quite a few people. Now, everyone in Stratton was on edge.

Jane Lancaster looked at the returned apprenticeship gifts with a hint of understanding in her eyes.

’A few of these aren’t in Julian’s style... Did someone get presumptuous and add their own things?’

"Jasper Sterling..." She had just said his name when she noticed him watching her with a smile, his charming eyes sparkling with affection, making her breath catch in her throat.

"Senior, please speak," Jasper Sterling prompted gently, indicating he was at her service.

"Could you help me sell all these things? Just transfer the money directly to me, whatever the amount."

"Alright," Jasper Sterling agreed without hesitation, as if he had expected her to say that all along.

Jane Lancaster: "Thank you. Sorry to trouble you."

Jasper Sterling’s voice was gentle. "It’s no trouble. I happen to be free anyway."

Several times, Alvin Lancaster wanted to interrupt and say he could help. As her second brother, he should be the one to handle his sister’s affairs without question. How could they trouble an outsider?

’Besides, who was it that presumptuously added things? Could it have been Jasper Sterling?’

But since he hadn’t handled the items himself, he couldn’t figure out what exactly had been added.

After they finished speaking, Jasper Sterling drank another pot of tea before having his people take the items and prepare to leave.

Jane Lancaster froze. ’Is that it?’

’Didn’t he come here for me to say some auspicious words? Does he not need me to say them anymore?’

"Jasper Sterling, that project is definitely going to make a fortune! And you’ve already overcome your tribulation, so everything will surely go smoothly from now on. You’ll become the richest man in the world!" Jane Lancaster said, maintaining her persona as a mystic.

Alvin Lancaster: "..."

’It seems Jasper Sterling avoided a fatal disaster thanks to my sister’s prophecy. So, do her auspicious words carry some kind of blessing?’

Jasper Sterling gazed at her. "And?"

’And?’ Jane Lancaster’s gaze fell on him. "Your outfit is really nice. You have this noble, aloof air, like a runaway heir from a powerful family!"

Jasper Sterling smiled at her, hearing the THUMP-THUMP of his own heart. There was nothing more wonderful in the world than this.

He had put so much effort into his outfit, and she had actually noticed and even given him such high praise.

Jasper Sterling’s Adam’s apple bobbed as he suppressed the urge to hug her. He had so much he wanted to say, but in the end, it all came out as a single sigh. "Senior, why are you so good?"

"You’re always so gentle and generous, so considerate of everyone’s feelings, never letting anyone’s expectations go unfulfilled."

His eyes were as gentle and calm as still water. "So, if I had an expectation for you, you wouldn’t let me down either, right?"

Jane Lancaster: "..."

’Just one compliment and I’m "good"? Aren’t your standards a little low?’

’Have you forgotten how I gave you the cold shoulder for all those years?’

"What expectation do you have for Jane?" Alvin Lancaster asked in a low voice.

Jasper Sterling: "To make a fortune with me. To live long and keep earning ’til the end."

’I like the sound of that!’

Jane Lancaster’s eyes lit up. "Okay!"

—

Caleb Lowell had heard that Julian Lancaster wouldn’t be home for the next couple of days, so he made a special trip to the Lancaster estate.

Jane Lancaster didn’t live in the school dorms, and due to her health, she hadn’t even participated in the freshman military training. He couldn’t find her at school, so his only option was to try and catch her at the Lancaster estate.

Luckily, Alvin Lancaster was also home. The two of them were on good terms, and since Alvin was soft-hearted, he most likely wouldn’t turn him away at the door.

He had saved up a lot of things he wanted to say to Jane Lancaster.

His car was stopped outside the main gate of the courtyard. He sat in his car, patiently waiting for the gate guard to announce his arrival.

Just then, the electronic gate suddenly opened, and a car drove out.

Caleb Lowell’s eyes narrowed slightly. "What is Jasper Sterling doing here?"

The driver tactfully got out of the car to ask the gate guard for information. He returned a moment later to report, "President Sterling was here to deliver the apprenticeship gifts returned by the Woods War Family."

Caleb Lowell had also heard recently about how Jasper Sterling had been relentlessly pressuring the Woods War Family. It seemed that ever since Quentin Woods had offended Lana Sterling, Jasper had completely set his sights on them.

Speaking of which, Lana Sterling had only suffered a minor injury that time. There was really no need to go to such lengths. Caleb Lowell had always looked down on people who threw their weight around, and he never expected Jasper Sterling to be that kind of person.