My Manor

"Who's there!" Hearing the sound of the door, Afra, who was lost in thought at that moment, immediately snapped out of it. She quickly grabbed the quilt to cover herself and shouted toward the door. At the same time, she reached for her phone. If the situation seemed off, she would immediately call Jiang Hai. After all, there were men and women in the manor, and their reputation hadn't been very good before.

Who knew there might be some unlucky person trying to take risks? One always has to be cautious.

However, in this case, she might have been a little too paranoid. Jiang Hai had a great setup here: a well-paying job, excellent living conditions, and a polite boss. Where could you find such a job? None of the men here would be foolish enough to act recklessly. When Afra spoke up, the person outside had already opened the door and stepped inside.

"It's me, it's me, it's me," the man said, pointing to himself. Afra looked closely and let out a sigh of relief. She had been wondering who it was, but it turned out to be Dinah Taylor, who lived with her. The two were good friends, so they weren't strangers. It wasn't unusual for them to take a bath together or discuss things. Afra, still blushing, rubbed against the bed and sat at its edge. Dinah Taylor didn't hesitate, walking over and sitting down beside her.

"It's so late, and you're still awake. What's up?" Afra asked, glancing at Dinah Taylor.

"If I don't come, how could I see such a beautiful sight?" Dinah Taylor smiled. "Haha, if you need it, just let me know. It's not like we haven't done this before. I'm happy to help."

Indeed, when they were together, there were no jokes off-limits. It was a natural and comfortable dynamic for them.

"No, this is Jiang Hai's place, and no one can touch it—not even you," Afra said, shaking her head with determination. Seeing the firmness in her expression, Dinah Taylor paused for a moment.

"Wait, you and Jiang Hai already… did that thing?" Dinah asked, her eyes widening with an awkward look. The more she observed, the more she felt something was off about Afra's situation.

"Yes, it's done," Afra answered frankly, not hiding the truth from her friend.

"Damn it, why didn't you call me for such an opportunity?" Dinah punched the mattress in frustration. "If you weren't going to call others, you should have at least called me!" She sounded both annoyed and eager.

"It wasn't our initiative. It was mainly Miss Feng and Miss Ai who helped. After they left, I didn't approach Jiang Hai because I wasn't sure what to do," Afra admitted shyly. She gently bit her lip, recalling the awkwardness of the situation. Dinah, on hearing this, seemed even more surprised.

"Those two women... didn't they help you make progress?" Dinah raised an eyebrow, puzzled. "Hey, if we want to, we could just force him. Jiang Hai would have to obey whether he wanted to or not." With a confident wave of her fist, it was clear Dinah had a much more aggressive attitude toward Jiang Hai than Afra did. Though both were ready to make sacrifices, one was passive and the other active.

"Don't do that. Jiang Hai is very timid. You might scare him off," Afra warned seriously. She wasn't as bold as Dinah and worried about overwhelming Jiang Hai.

"Okay, fine. I get it. But if there's a next time, I'll make sure to call you," Dinah said, reluctantly standing up. "It's late, though. You should get some rest." She patted Afra's shoulder and turned to leave.

"Oh, wait!" Afra called after her. "I heard from Darlene that two more women came to Jiang Hai's place. One is the researcher from when we were treating that disease, and the other is said to be her patient. They're not involved with Jiang Hai, are they? And would it be helpful to ask them for help?"

Afra was concerned, but Dinah's curiosity was piqued. She turned back around.

"They... don't seem to be," Afra answered, shaking her head. She had heard the same news but had done a little investigating herself. According to Darlene and Marian, the three women were just friends. When they passed by Jiang Hai's door, it was always closed, neither opened from the inside nor outside, which suggested there was no special relationship.

Hearing this, Dinah felt relieved and headed out of Afra's room. However, as she returned to her own, she couldn't help but think back to Afra's earlier reaction. Afra wasn't interested in Jiang Hai, but surely he wasn't off the table for everyone else?

Meanwhile, Jiang Hai was blissfully unaware of the thoughts running through Dinah's head. He slept soundly through the night.

The next morning, during his usual morning run, Jiang Hai deliberately made his way to the dock.

Fishermen and ranchers are early risers, and Jiang Hai's temper was good, but he still expected hard work. If anyone slacked off, not just Jiang Hai but Edward and Robbins would make sure they stayed on task.

So, everyone had gathered early at the dock, where they would prepare the waters to distribute fish food and check the health of the fish. This was a daily routine. After finishing their work, Maren Rupert, with Bell Lester, would head to the airport to fly the helicopter for a few rounds. If there were any issues with the fish—illness or a shortage of food—the plane would drop the necessary bait. They were experts in these tasks.

Jiang Hai had the luxury of not micromanaging. Since Robbins ran the ranch, he made the decisions regarding who did what. Jiang Hai handled the finances, while Edward Anderson oversaw the fish farm.

"Hey, boss, what's up?" Edward Anderson asked as he stopped his work, noticing Jiang Hai approaching.

"I have something to ask. Are there any dolphin habitats near us?" Jiang Hai greeted the men behind Edward and asked the question he had been pondering.

"Dolphins? Do they have a fixed habitat?" Tommy Charles, one of the sailors, asked in confusion.

"Not really," Andrew Christian answered, smiling. "They're not like sharks. Dolphins typically have areas they return to during breeding, but most of the time, they wander. However, some conservation areas provide protection and resources, so dolphins tend to frequent them."

"Yes, I'm looking for such a place. Are there any nearby?" Jiang Hai asked eagerly. At least he needed a direction to begin his search.

"Not really here. There are a few conservation areas in the Pacific and around Australia. As for the east coast of the United States and Florida, it's a major fishing zone, so there's not much space for dolphins. They mostly stick to tropical waters or the wider Pacific," Andrew explained, though it was clear that finding dolphins near here would be difficult.

Jiang Hai felt slightly defeated by the news. If he wanted to find dolphins, he would need to head south or perhaps venture north for whales.

"But, boss," Edward spoke up with a smile, "Maybe someone has a solution."

Jiang Hai paused, looking at Edward, surprised. Edward had a solution? As an experienced fisherman, maybe he knew something the others didn't.

"Do you remember where we sold the blue marlin after catching them?" Edward asked, giving Jiang Hai a knowing look.

Jiang Hai was momentarily puzzled. What was he getting at?