The Heart of the Earth exhibition was located in a private estate on the east side of Enssea City. When the four arrived, there was already a crowd gathered at the entrance who had been denied entry due to lack of invitation. Outside the estate gates, two giant LCD screens had been set up for those waiting to catch a glimpse of Heart of the Earth's magnificence.
After verifying their invitation cards, they entered into an enormous lawn that had been transformed into an exhibition site. A grand stage stood in its center with large LCD screens placed at each cardinal direction. Surrounding it were hundreds of pristine white seats and long tables adorned with various pastries and drinks.
The four also noticed that there were about one hundred strong and sturdy black-clad men stationed every few steps throughout the estate.
"Why go through all this trouble for something they don't even sell?" Judge asked as they made their way towards their seats, clearly confused by it all.
"Although Heart of the Earth isn't for sale, they will be auctioning off other jewelry pieces on site." Derek replied with a smile. "Besides, this kind of global tour is one effective way to boost company branding."
"Is it just for show?" Judge quipped twice over.
"You could say that," Derek chuckled once more.
"Oh, Mr Hines! You're here too?" Just then, a beautiful woman's voice rang out melodiously as she approached them holding her wine glass aloft. Behind her trailed several young men and women.
She appeared to be around twenty-five or twenty-six years old with delicate features and graceful curves accentuated by her elegant bearing. Her hair cascaded down one side in big waves revealing a snow-white neck peeking out from beneath it all.
Everybody could tell she was from a prominent family.
"Miss Ryan, hello!" Derek greeted her.
Audrey Ryan, a beautiful woman, approached with a charming smile. "Are you also interested in Heart of the Earth, Mr Hines?"
"Although I can't buy such a perfect thing, it is an honor to appreciate it." Derek replied with a smile.
"I agree!" Audrey smiled again and looked at Billy and his two friends. "Are these your friends? I don't think I've seen them before."
As she spoke, her gaze lingered on Billy for quite some time.
With Billy's handsome features and impressive physique, combined with his regal aura, any woman would take notice of him.
"This is Mr Gardner!" Derek first looked at Billy and then introduced Casey and Judge to him.
Afterwards, he turned back to Billy, "Mr Gardner, this beautiful lady is Audrey Ryan, heiress of the Ryan family."
"Mr Gardner, nice to meet you!" Audrey extended her hand with a smile on her face revealing her delicate wrist. At the same time, she felt slightly surprised as she could sense from Derek's tone of voice that he was showing exceptional respect towards Billy. And given what she knew about Derek, there weren't many people in Enssea who could catch Derek's attention like this. Even if it was she, from one of the four major families in Enssea, trying repeatedly to show goodwill towards him so as to form an alliance between World Group and her family, she had always received lukewarm responses from Derek. This made her very curious about who exactly Billy was. Actually, it wasn't just her. The group of men following behind her all looked surprised.
"Hello!" Billy said with a faint smile as he shook hands with Audrey.
"Mr Gardner isn't from Enssea, right?" asked Audrey.
"No," Billy laughed and shook his head.
"No wonder I've never seen you before," Audrey smiled again. "Are you also here to witness the glory of the Heart of the Earth?"
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