Ariel could tell that the woman was likely a member of Westcrest’s board of directors.

Jayson didn’t respond but smoothly introduced, “This is Ms. Walker, Mr. Hockney’s assistant at Faye Tech.”

Serena’s expression brightened with understanding.

Ariel closed her laptop politely and nodded, “Nice to meet you. I’m Ariel Walker.”

Serena found Ariel’s confident demeanor quite likable at first glance.

Just then, Nancy and Renee, having finished their chat, walked over.

Apparently, Nancy hadn’t heard Serena’s words. She naturally linked her arm with Jayson’s and greeted Serena gracefully, “Good to see you, Ms. Rose. I’m Nancy Stanton.”

Nancy didn’t spare Ariel even a glance.

Ariel’s gaze turned cold, and she quietly turned away.

Since the hospital incident last time, she couldn’t be bothered to keep up the pretenses anymore.

Serena didn’t notice the tension between Ariel and Nancy. She only saw the intimacy between Jayson and Nancy and immediately understood their relationship.

She pretended nothing had happened earlier. “Ms. Stanton, I’ve heard of you from my son, Zach. You’re a rising star in aerospace, right? Very impressive.”

Nancy smiled modestly. She hadn’t expected Zach to have mentioned her to his mother. “Mr. Quinton speaks so highly of me.”

Serena had other business to attend to, so she said, “Please have a seat. We’ll start shortly. We can talk more after the event.”

Chad returned at that moment.

More people were streaming in, and Ariel saw many familiar faces.

Frederick and Zach entered and took seats nearby.

Several industry leaders had arrived as well.

Ariel didn’t pay much attention. Instead, she focused on tidying up the project proposal in the presentation.

Tonight, besides Jayson, the most prominent figures were Chad, Zach, and their circle. Their seats were adjacent, so as the event was about to start, they inevitably exchanged a few words.

Jayson, aware of Faye Technologies‘ recent publicity, said to Chad, “Mr. Hockney, will you talk about the new project later? From what Mr. Pearce told me, the core breakthrough this time is the engine system technology, right?”

Nancy smiled faintly and added, “Domestic aviation tech has some shortcomings. Mr. Hockney, is the engine breakthrough really true?”

She had returned from studying in Merinia and was well aware of the gap in this field.

If Faye Technologies truly had new technology, Nancy suspected that it must have been backed by Carlos behind the scenes. It was impossible for just the other engineers and technicians to achieve it.

If Faye Technologies had such a big expert, how could they have been so quiet and unnoticed?

“Mr. Hockney, why not share some details with us first?” Frederick asked with interest.

“Mr. Hockney, as you know, Vireon’s strength lies in new materials. Faye Tech needs funding but also production technology support. Perhaps we can discuss it further?” Zach smiled.

Chad calmly replied, “Sure.”

Ariel understood Chad’s meaning. He wasn’t ready to dive deep into the discussion yet.

She glanced at the time and leaned to Chad in a low voice. “You’re not scheduled to speak for another hour. Any investors you’re interested in?”

The new project was expected to raise around 500 million dollars–a large sum requiring careful consideration.

Her voice was low. Those nearby didn’t know what she said to Chad but felt she was interrupting the tech discussion.

Nancy subtly frowned. Then, she smirked and lightly but firmly slapped her purse on the table.

Frederick frowned briefly, then smiled. “Ms. Walker, please don’t interrupt. Can’t you see everyone’s talking to Mr. Hockney? Or do you speak for him?”

In his eyes, Ariel was just an assistant, unprofessional and lacking tact.

How could Chad be so obsessed with her?