I stared at his face, pondering for a moment, and mischievously said, "Well, let's hear the bad news! After all, I thrive on bad news. It gives me positive energy."

"The bad news is that the design for the second phase of the Avalon Hills has been rejected. The groundbreaking ceremony might be delayed."

"Rejected?" Our plan was quite authoritative, so rejection was unexpected. "Wasn't it already approved? Why the rejection? Are their demands too high?"

Ryan looked at me and smiled. "Yes, rejected."

Just by looking at Ryan's calm expression as he delivered this news, I knew he was setting a trap.

His calm smile revealed that this wasn't bad news, so I quickly pressed on. "Don't play tricks on me. What's really going on?"

Ryan suddenly chuckled, pointing at me. "You're quite the little trickster. Nothing scares you."

"I have no reason to panic at all. Your calm smile isn't fooling anyone. Now, spill the beans. What's the situation?"

He then earnestly said, "The design proposal fo