Nia Mitchell looked up at Maxwell Peary, his gentle, deep voice filling her ears. She knew she was being a bit melodramatic, but seeing the earnest look in his eyes, a smile gradually spread across her face. "Okay, I won’t worry about anything." No one needed to grieve in advance for things that hadn’t happened yet. They happily finished breakfast; it was only eight o’clock. "Uncle, did I get up too early today?" Nia Mitchell lay sprawled on the sofa, idly flipping through TV channels without really watching. She grabbed a throw pillow, tucked it under her head, and positioned herself so she could see Maxwell Peary, who was sitting on the sofa by her legs. Maxwell Peary had his laptop on his lap, his hands flying over the keyboard. "You just noticed? I’ve never seen you get up this early for work." He had to practically drag her out of bed most mornings. Nia Mitchell silently rolled her eyes. How annoying. "Just the thought of your mother coming makes me too antsy to sleep." "Uncle, why aren’t you working in the study? Why insist on sitting out here?" Maxwell Peary sighed, closing his laptop. "Can’t you just be quiet for a while?" He looked at her helplessly. Seeing her innocent expression, he felt like all his frustration was punching cotton—utterly ineffective. "Yes, I’ll keep my mouth shut." Her eyes crinkled with a suppressed smile as she pressed her lips together. Maxwell Peary shook his head, reaching over to pull her closer. "Today, you were supposed to introduce your friends to me." He certainly hadn’t forgotten about this; it was always on his mind.Being kept hidden felt genuinely frustrating. However, only CEO Maxwell was frustrated; Bunny, meanwhile, was perfectly content. "But something more important came up today. So, could you please just put up with it and wait until next time?" Bunny’s current strategy was to stall for as long as possible. The CEO is such a busy man, he might just forget, right? "Just one sentence, and you expect me to ’put up with it’?" Maxwell Peary stressed the words "put up with it." In his nearly thirty years of life, he’d never had to "put up with" anything. Nia Mitchell was silent for a moment. Then, mustering her courage, she gave him a feather-light peck on the lips and instantly pulled back. Maxwell Peary chuckled, not pressing her further. All things had to be taken one step at a time. "Oh! Did I come at a bad time?" Suddenly, a woman’s voice came from the doorway. It wasn’t loud, but it seemed to linger in the living room. Nia Mitchell turned her head in surprise. Huh? Wasn’t that Silvia Waterborne, the legendary goddess of the entertainment circle? Silvia Waterborne, one of the most legendary stars in the Chinese-language film world. Active for over thirty years, now in her fifties, she still captivated audiences with her timeless beauty, a true trendsetter. Many of her works are now considered classics of cinema and television, and she continues to rake in awards. Her beauty radiated from within; even when portraying villains, she was captivating. Several influential directors had praised her as unparalleled. Rumor had it that she had chosen never to marry, dedicating her life to the film and television industry. Nowadays, she rarely took on film or television roles, appearing only occasionally at awards ceremonies. ɪꜰ ʏᴏᴜ ᴡᴀɴᴛ ᴛᴏ ʀᴇᴀᴅ ᴍᴏʀᴇ ᴄʜᴀᴘᴛᴇʀs, ᴘʟᴇᴀsᴇ ᴠɪsɪᴛ 𝗻𝗼𝘃𝗲𝗹·𝖿𝗂𝗋𝖾·𝗇𝖾𝗍 However, rumor also had it that she had recently accepted a role in a major period court drama. The director and Silvia Waterborne were said to be old friends of thirty years, so she had agreed to make a special appearance as the Empress Dowager.