It was past seven in the morning when Sabina Ferilli woke up. She put on a dark blue silk robe and walked to the bed, pushing open the bedroom window and leaning on the windowsill to look out.
This was a south-facing bedroom on the second floor of the villa.
Looking around, the Italian Neoclassical villa was situated on the highest point of a rolling hill in the southern suburbs of Florence. The villa had three floors, and its rustic light grey exterior complemented the rough stone walls surrounding it. Looking out, the expansive view encompassed many other large and small estates.
Judging from the terrain, the northern side of the villa should offer a panoramic view of the entire ancient city of Florence.
It was evident that this place had likely once been the residence of some nobleman. Unfortunately, after World War II, the monarchy was abolished, and Italy's aristocracy generally declined, replaced by many new capitalists who rose with Italy's economic recovery.
Compared to the vast farmlands outside other cities, the area around this estate still maintained its original state of dense bushes. It was not hard to imagine that the surrounding large tracts of land were also privately owned.
Sabina Ferilli was curiously speculating about the price of this estate when a knock came at the bedroom door.
Opening the door, Sabina Ferilli saw Sophia Fessey, dressed neatly, appearing outside. Her well-tailored white shirt and beige trousers made her look more like a capable career woman.
"Good morning, Miss Ferilli. Breakfast is ready. Would you like to join us?"
"Oh, alright. I'll just change", Sabina Ferilli nodded, remembering her pyjamas. She instinctively clutched at her collar, then added, "And good morning to you too, Ms. Fessey".
Sophia smiled as she watched Sabina Ferilli return to the bed to take off her pyjamas, then said, "No need to rush. You can wash up or take a shower first. Also, I've had your car sent to the repair shop. It should be fixed by noon. However, it will probably cost quite a bit".
Sabina Ferilli was about to put on last night's dress when she heard this. She picked up the dress and walked towards the bathroom. Hearing about the car, she glanced at Sophia guiltily and said, "Thank you, Ms. Fessey".
Sophia's smile didn't fade. She gestured slightly and said, "Then, the dining room downstairs".
Half an hour later, Sabina Ferilli arrived in the dining room, where everyone was seated at the dining table.
However, Simon Westeros had already finished breakfast and was sitting at the table, flipping through a thick stack of local Italian newspapers, a pencil in one hand, occasionally circling and marking things.
The female assistant named Jennifer, with her hair tied in a ponytail, was still eating her food in small bites. She merely greeted Sabina briefly before lowering her head again to resume her meal. With her hair tied up, her head bowed, a section of her neck, as white as jade, was exposed. Sabina couldn't help but look a few more times; she was a standard dark-haired Latina with a fiery figure but wheat-coloured skin, so she envied Jennifer's fair skin.
After exchanging greetings, Sabina Ferilli accepted the breakfast offered by Sophia and ate in small bites, occasionally trying to strike up a conversation with Westeros.
However, she no longer held much hope in her heart.
Everything had gone smoothly last night, or so she thought. To her surprise, Simon Westeros had another woman by his side, and she was a very jealous one. Last night, until she was led to the guest room by Sophia, the female assistant had stayed by Simon Westeros's side, not giving her a single chance.
Sabina Ferilli had originally fantasized that Westeros might come to her bedroom late at night, but this never happened until dawn.
Furthermore, the more mature and charming Sophia Fessey clearly had an unusual relationship with him; otherwise, this woman wouldn't be staying here.
It was said that he also had a formal girlfriend.
The current situation, well, he truly was a playboy.
Thinking of this, she still felt that there might be an opportunity, as long as the other two women left.
However, the difficulty seemed somewhat great.
Lost in these thoughts, after breakfast, Sophia collected everyone's dishes. Sabina wanted to help, but noticing his female assistant still sitting in the distance, a strange competitive feeling arose within her, and she remained seated, motionless.
The atmosphere in the dining room became a little tense.
Until Sophia reappeared, smiling as she said to Jennifer, "Jenny, would you help me pack my luggage? I'm not sure if anything might be left out".
Feeling the faint hint of teasing in Sophia's tone, Jennifer's face flushed slightly, and she reluctantly stood up and walked out.
With the two women gone, Sabina Ferilli immediately relaxed a little. She looked at the man who was still reading the newspaper and started a conversation, "Simon, are you leaving Italy?"
Simon looked up at the woman, nodded, and said, "Yes, I'm leaving this morning".
Sabina Ferilli was startled for a moment, then said, "That's… a real shame".
"It's nothing; there will certainly be many more opportunities to come here in the future".
"Oh", Sabina Ferilli traced patterns on the dining table with her finger, then boldly asked, "Then, will I be able to see you again?"
"There should be a chance".
Simon picked up his pencil and made a mark on an article, then surveyed the beauty across the table once more.
In fact, he was not entirely unfamiliar with this actress.
He remembered Sabina Ferilli playing a 42-year-old sex worker in one of his favourite Italian films, 'The Great Beauty', performing every night at her father's club. That was a 2013 film, directed by the renowned Italian director Paolo Sorrentino, and it even won an Oscar for Best Foreign Language Film. Many of the characters in the film and the carefully chosen soundtrack left a deep impression on Simon.
Sabina Ferilli should be in her mid-twenties now, at the peak of a Latina woman's beauty. However, Simon still preferred the alluring silhouette of 'Ramona' licking the back of her hand while dancing in 'The Great Beauty'.
Seeing Simon remain silent, Sabina Ferilli actively found another topic and asked, "Simon, is this house yours?"
Simon did not answer her question this time, but instead asked, "Do you dance?"
"I, um, a little".
"Take some time to learn to dance," Simon said, making another mark on the newspaper in front of him. "Next time, if there's a chance, dance for me".
Sabina Ferilli's eyes lit up, and she said, "Next time, when?"
Simon shrugged and said, "I'm not sure. Perhaps, there won't be a next time".
Sabina Ferilli felt a bit confused but still seriously noted down the matter.
After accompanying the man in the dining room for over an hour, Simon finished flipping through the thick stack of more than ten local Italian newspapers. Sophia and Jennifer then returned to the dining room, informing Simon that the luggage was packed and they could leave.
Simon handed Sophia a page of notes he had written down while reading the newspapers, saying, "Help me gather information on these people or companies. Also, I've marked some news articles in these newspapers; when you have time, turn them into clippings. Do the same for any future media reports related to this list".
Sophia agreed, and everyone left the dining room together.
The bodyguards were already waiting outside with the car. Sabina Ferilli also followed them out. Seeing the group get into the car, she didn't know whether she should take her leave. According to previous signs, it seemed there was no one else in the villa. But she couldn't possibly walk back to the city, could she?
Sophia noticed her awkward situation and, before getting into the car, proactively said, "Miss Ferilli, you can stay here for now. I'll be back very soon".
After the two cars successively drove out of the estate, Sabina Ferilli returned to the villa. Feeling the quietness around her, she inexplicably grew more curious, tiptoeing around the villa like a cat.
The three-story villa had at least seven or eight rooms on each floor. She even found the entrance to the basement, but most of the doors were locked.
Florence Airport was not far from the southern suburbs. In less than an hour, Sophia returned, but not alone. She brought some attendants with her, specifically five young women in their early twenties.
Sabina Ferilli looked at those girls, whose looks and demeanour were no less than her own, feeling a bit bewildered, even having some rather discordant associations. However, Sophia merely skilfully instructed the girls to start cleaning the villa, while she herself brought some tools to the dining room.
Following her into the dining room, Sabina found Sophia sitting at the dining table, still cutting out news articles marked by Simon with scissors and then pasting them onto a large sixteen-inch blank scrapbook.
After quietly observing for a while, Sabina Ferilli tentatively asked, "Ms. Fessey, do you need my help?"
Sophia looked at her and nodded, "Sure, you can just help me cut out the news articles that Simon marked".
Sabina Ferilli took the scissors Sophia handed her and picked up a newspaper. It was a copy of Corriere della Sera, one of Italy's largest circulating newspapers. Although it had the name of an evening paper, it was actually a morning paper.
Undoubtedly, the most important front-page news today was Giuseppe Tornatore winning the Palme d'Or for 'Cinema Paradiso'.
Sabina Ferilli had initially thought Simon Westeros would mark this important news, but he didn't. Upon closer inspection, she finally found a marked news article, which was about Maserati. Sabina Ferilli knew this luxury sports car manufacturer and read the article curiously. The news stated that Maserati was in trouble and might be looking for a buyer in the future.
Why mark such a piece of news?
Did Simon Westeros want to acquire Maserati?
He certainly had the capability.
It's just that...
Sabina Ferilli thought for a moment but couldn't make any sense of it. She simply cut out the report carefully and handed it to Sophia, who was beside her.
Sophia took the news article, glued it into the scrapbook, and read it carefully. She then cross-referenced it with the long list of names on the memo Simon had left before he departed.
Seeing the long list of names on the memo, Sophia inexplicably felt a surge of warmth in her heart.
Fiat.
Armani.
Ferrero.
Prada.
Maserati.
Agnelli family.
Silvio Berlusconi... Some of these names were already well-known in Italy, some were just new wealthy individuals, and some were still obscure.
Sophia did not share Sabina Ferilli's sense of confusion. Seeing this list, she could clearly perceive a strong sense of aggression.
Simon Westeros's aggression.
Sophia was absolutely certain that if given the chance, Simon would definitely make a move on the names on that memo, just as Westeros Company had bought a large number of tech company stocks back then. The continuous recovery of tech stocks, outperforming other sectors in the North American stock market over the past two years, clearly demonstrated Simon's foresight at the time.
Now, Sophia could perceive that the young man was no longer content with just that.
Or perhaps, he had never been merely satisfied with rapidly increasing the value of his investments; what he pursued should always be endless rapid expansion. More precisely, perhaps it was the conquest of the world, the domination of the world.
Such an ideal might only exist in the fantasies of many others, but he had truly and consistently been doing just that.
Since his sudden emergence in 1986, in less than three short years, Westeros Company's industries have already spanned three major fields: media, technology, and fashion. The growth rate of each company has even surpassed the centuries of accumulation of many old families. It's not hard to imagine that as long as this expansion rate continues, that young man will absolutely create an unprecedented wealth miracle, far exceeding the likes of Morgan or Rockefeller.
Thinking of this, Sophia couldn't help but feel a little regretful.
Perhaps, last night she should have been more proactive, eaten this young man first, rather than silently waiting for him to make the first move. That young man seemed to rarely take the initiative; he simply took possession of everything as a matter of course.
"Ms. Fessey?"
A voice beside her interrupted Sophia's thoughts. She snapped out of it, realizing that Sabina Ferilli had already handed over several clippings.
Composing herself, Sophia began diligently pasting the clippings, and casually asked, "Florence isn't Italy's film and television hub, Sabina. Why are you here?"
"I just finished filming a movie, right over in the eastern suburbs, and happened to be spending a few days in Florence. The invitation to last night's banquet was from the film crew", Sabina Ferilli explained. Seeing a girl's figure flash past outside the dining room, she curiously asked, "Ms. Fessey, are they all maids in this villa?"
"You could say that", Sophia nodded, "However, this is just part-time work. They are all students from several universities in Florence".
"Oh", Sabina Ferilli nodded, then added, "A few years ago, I also tried to get into the National Film Academy, but unfortunately, I failed and had to try to enter the entertainment industry directly. Unfortunately, it's really too difficult to develop in this industry in Italy, especially for actresses. Italy simply doesn't offer many opportunities for actresses".
"So, you want to go to Hollywood?"
Sabina Ferilli looked over with anticipation and said, "Ms. Fessey, can you help me?"
"I can't help you, Sabina. Look outside, none of them are less qualified than you. However, you are already far ahead of them. At least, you've met Simon. Although they serve this estate, they might know that the owner of the estate is Simon Westeros, but they will hardly have a chance to meet Simon".
Sabina Ferilli stopped cutting the newspaper and tentatively asked, "So, what should I do next?"
Sophia smiled, shook her head, and said, "I don't know. Perhaps, you should hope he doesn't forget you".