The Billionaire's True Heiress: From Fake Jewel to Real Crown novel Chapter 4

Claire stopped, curious about what was in the basket.

She smiled and said, “Would you mind helping me with my luggage?”-

Pearce suddenly remembered that Claire still had a bag to carry.

“Of course,” he replied, cheerful and quick to help.

He thought maybe the bag was heavy, so he braced himself before lifting it. To his surprise, it felt almost weightless.

“Is this really all you have?”

Claire smiled again. “Just a few changes of clothes. I couldn’t take anything that belonged to the James family.”

Pearce understood right away. The James family probably didn’t let her bring anything with her. He felt a pang of sympathy.

“Let’s go. I’ll take you home.”

He offered her his straw hat. “Here, wear this. You don’t even have an umbrella.”

The James family, kicking her out in the middle of the night, really were something else.

Claire shook her head. “I’m already soaked. A little more rain won’t hurt.”

Pearce didn’t push her. He figured a girl from the city might not want to wear a hat he’d already used anyway.

With the flashlight, Claire could finally see what was inside the basket. Besides a reishi mushroom, there was a thick fo-ti root at the bottom, even wider than her arm. Some vines were still tangled around it, showing how roughly it had been pulled out. Claire felt a twinge of pain just looking at it.

“You have fo-ti root in these mountains?” she asked. This one had to be at least twenty years old—a rare treasure in traditional medicine.

“We do. I went up the mountain late tonight to clear a drainage ditch. I was worried about a landslide after all the rain, and I just happened to spot it.”

He paused and smiled at her. “I’m Pearce, by the way. Just call me Pearce.”

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