“If it were ten years ago, when talking about this, I would definitely feel sorry and sad,” Justin said, then smiled.“But now things might be different. Over the years, I’ve grown up, become a father. I’ve been through so much. In my heart, the surrounding life now has many things, many issues, and that matter is no longer the center. Of course, I can’t always revolve around it, make it the focus. So I just want to say... that’s it.”“Yeah, I know how strong you’ve become. But earlier... did that butler see Julie?” Monica was outside and witnessed everything. She had considered intervening to stop Julie but didn’t make it in time, and she didn’t know what Justin’s intentions were. But then, through the crack in the door, she saw Justin’s attitude, knowing he didn’t want his daughter to appear in front of the Kimberly family butler.“Yeah, that’s right,” Justin sighed. “Indeed, humans plan, God decides.”“The Kimberly family, or your grandfather, doesn’t know about the existence of th
Justin sat back for a moment, pondering, then let go of all his grudges and take Julie to see Mr. Kimberly one last time.He walked over to Julie’s room, pushed the door open, and stepped inside.“Daddy!”Julie, currently being fed her dinner by the nanny, lit up upon seeing him.“Daddy, what’s wrong? Did you just have some wine?”Julie’s senses were keen, allowing her to smell the alcohol on Justin despite his recent entry into the room.Her words made him pause, and he involuntarily sniffed himself. Sure enough, the smell of alcohol was strong.Justin suddenly felt ashamed and somewhat guilty in front of his daughter. Appearing before Julie in this state, did he resemble a drunken wastrel?He couldn’t even handle his own affairs and had to resort to alcohol. With Julie being a child and currently unwell, smelling alcohol like this, he wondered if it made her uncomfortable.“Um... Daddy has a bit too much smell now. I’ll come back in a bit, okay?”Justin intended to return to his roo
Justin still believes that Katherine will do nothing wrong with him. No matter what she does, he still believes in her morals and boundaries. She will definitely not cross them. Although most corporate leaders would choose more discreet and private locations for collaboration discussions, as restaurants in shopping centers are less likely to have private rooms. But there will always be exceptions.Justin trusts Katherine, to trust in their love, so he doesn’t follow her inside but waits outside. His hands tap nervously on the steering wheel. Despite thinking so, despite trying to suppress other thoughts, there’s one thing he’s not admitting to himself, that he’s afraid, he’s afraid that Katherine might do something behind his back, might do something wrong. His inaction, both a choice to trust her and an act of fear and cowardice, he’s not facing the truth. What if Katherine truly betrays him?Thinking this, Justin’s fingers unconsciously tighten on the steering wheel. And he feels li
They all went to the Starbucks cafe across from the company. It’s an expensive coffee brand and seems to be dubbed as “only for the wealthy.”“Feel free to order anything, even the most expensive ones. Today, it’s on me, no need to worry,” Katherine said generously, then flaunted her wealth to everyone. Other colleagues reacted with surprise, each with a unique expression, but most were insincere.“Oh, Katherine is so generous.”“That’s right, and she’s wealthy, too. Thank you so much. I’ll definitely enjoy today’s meal.”“She’s beautiful, generous, and rich. Why isn’t our CEO infatuated with her?”“Isn’t this also that old man’s money?”A female colleague expressed disdain, then was promptly hushed by others. The atmosphere at that moment fell into a strange state.“Ha ha, let’s order, shall we?” Mina, an older colleague, spoke up to defuse the tension.But Katherine didn’t ignore it. She felt an intense discomfort and anger inside. She clenched her fists tightly, but maintained a sm
"What!? Locked?Katherine seemed to be attacked, she looked at the cashier incredulously. Facing everyone's skeptical eyes, she got angry for no reason.“There's no way the card could've been blocked. Surely the card swiping machine is faulty, please try again quickly.”Katherine rolled her eyes, banged her hands on the table, her attitude extremely fierce and impatient.At this moment, Belle said:“Sister Katherine, please calm down. If you can't swipe your card, you can transfer money or cash. How can you make it so difficult for people?Of course, Katherine couldn't transfer money or use cash because she didn't have it. She had already spent the money that Laramie gave her a few days ago. Lately, he only buys things for her and doesn't give her money.Katherine began to panic, she immediately pushed Belle away, then shouted at the cashier:“Let me try again, there's no way the card is locked.”“I've tried again three times, clearly the card is locked.”The cashier was extremely awk
Katherine felt a sudden wave of disappointment and reluctance upon hearing Justin's words. Perhaps Justin had always been sweet and accommodating to her, but he had never negotiated with her like this before.But at the same time, Katherine also felt uneasy. She glanced back at her colleagues. They quickly turned away as if they were engaged in normal conversations with each other. Katherine clenched her fists; she knew she shouldn't stay here any longer."Let's go," she said, then walked away.Katherine looked around the café, trying to find a secluded spot away from prying eyes as much as possible. Then she sat down.She didn't know why Justin came to find her at this moment, but it certainly wasn't the right time. Katherine's mind began to wander, thinking about how she would explain to Laramie later when meeting a strange man, especially using his card, would definitely reach his ears.Thinking about this, Katherine unconsciously felt annoyed. As soon as Laramie sat down, she ques
Justin’s words struck directly into Katherine’s black heart, leaving her with only one thought: that Justin was insulting her, and she couldn’t believe anything else! Katherine clenched her fists, thinking that Justin had done enough wrong to her already, yet now he was raising his voice to scold her. Who gave him the right to criticize her?“That’s enough!” Katherine snapped, continuing, “You have five minutes to apologize to me.”Justin felt genuinely amused after hearing that; he couldn’t believe Katherine had changed so much. Indeed, the Katherine now and the Katherine before seemed like two completely different people. If it weren’t for this familiar face, he would have thought that the person sitting in front of him now was someone else. Not her, not the person he had once passionately loved, nor the kind of girl who had disregarded everything to save him.“Are you giving me orders? Katherine, up to now, I still don’t see you being wrong. I’m not apologizing to you,” Justin reto
But now, whatever Katherine thinks or feels, Justin no longer cares. He glanced at her once, then left.Justin’s decisive and indifferent action made Katherine want to bite his head off. Why could he do that? Why could he leave her amidst this mess? Indeed, everything people said was true; Justin didn’t love her at all. He only saw her as a passing fancy, to discard when convenient.Katherine was boiling with anger, her eyes teary, hands trembling as she clenched them tightly. The chatter around her felt like countless ants running all over her body, biting and causing immense discomfort and pain.She couldn’t stay here any longer. Katherine reminded herself, then swiftly left the café and headed straight to the office.Right now, she needed tranquility to regain her composure. Katherine felt immensely overwhelmed and dizzy, as if everything around her was collapsing. Why was the world treating her like this? Just when moments of happiness were within reach, misfortune struck. Did she
The sudden incident left Jeannie terrified. Even after the bicycle was hit, she hadn’t recovered.Ricard comforted Jeannie and then angrily walked to the driver's seat of the BMW, shouting, "What kind of driving is this? Didn’t you see the red light?""What's the rush? What's the rush?" The car door opened, and the young man stepped out slowly, "I didn't hit anyone. Just compensate you, right? How much do you want? Three thousand yuan enough?"The young man pulled out three thousand yuan from his pocket and threw it on the car's hood. Before Ricard could respond, he added another three thousand: "If it's not enough, here’s six thousand, okay?"Ricard took a deep breath, "This is not about money. I need your attitude, apologize to us!""Apologize? You must be joking. I didn't hit you. You just want money, right? Fine, here's ten thousand yuan. Is that enough?" The young man threw another stack of money on the hood.He then glanced at Jeannie, trying to gauge her reaction, but she didn'
The staff's words made Jeannie unconsciously look at Ricard.Although they had registered their marriage more than a month ago and even took wedding photos, their relationship had always been lukewarm. Now, suddenly being called Ricard's girlfriend, Jeannie's heart skipped a beat, and even the tension of the impending bungee jump was pushed aside."Hey, man, come here. What are you hiding from? Your girlfriend dares to jump, and you're hiding behind her. Come and hold her tightly." The staff urged, waving at Ricard.Of course, Ricard didn't refuse the staff's suggestion to jump while holding Jeannie, cheerfully running over.Jeannie looked at Ricard in front of her, seeming a bit hesitant: "Didn't we buy two separate tickets? Can't we jump one at a time?""That's right, a couple's ticket. Come here and stand firm, put on the equipment, and don't mess around." The staff said while fitting the equipment on Jeannie and Ricard. The eighty-meter-high jump platform had a hot wind blowing in
“Sure.” Ricard didn't hesitate to hand the Coca-Cola to Jeannie.Jeannie looked at the dark carbonated drink in her hand. There were many things she always wanted to try: singing wildly, acting cute like other girls, playing with social media apps, buying her favorite snacks. But due to her family's strict upbringing, she never did anything too extreme. She never went to karaoke to sing loudly, never bought a pile of snacks, never bought a bunch of cold drinks in the summer. She always maintained a calm and mature demeanor, drinking a hot cup of tea at the company every day. Sometimes she would see others with a cold drink and feel a desire to take a sip, but she feared that doing so would shatter the dignified image she had built in front of her employees. Although she appeared to have many things, she had never experienced things that were easily within reach for ordinary people.Like Coca-Cola. When she was young, her family didn't let her touch these carbonated drinks. As she grew
For Ricard, physical endurance wasn’t an issue. Cycling seventy kilometers, even carrying Jeannie, was no problem for him. Along the way, they chatted and laughed, making the time fly by.Two hours passed unnoticed. The midday sun blazed overhead, heating the road. Ricard cycled along the highway, enjoying occasional shade from roadside trees."President Demneri, are you thirsty? I’ll buy us some drinks." Ricard stopped at a roadside stall, buying two cold Coca-Colas."Why Coca-Cola?" Jeannie asked, puzzled.“For the refreshing taste.” Ricard took a gulp, letting out a satisfied “Ah.”“I’ll have water instead.” Jeannie placed the Coke on the counter, opting for a bottle of mineral water.Ricard gallantly opened the bottle for her, and Jeannie took small sips.Ricard could tell Jeannie was very thirsty, but she still drank slowly, a habit from childhood.“Alright, let’s go. Only twenty kilometers left. If I speed up, we can reach Haihu soon and enjoy the afternoon there.”Ricard resume
Ricard heard the cheers and smiled, looking at the woman standing at the microphone with pride. This was his wife, capable and talented! With a few short sentences, she had inspired everyone’s enthusiasm. The employees' attitude towards work could indeed shape the future development of the company.Irena, who had just been fired, had packed her belongings and quietly left through the side entrance of the company. Seeing Maria with a large rose pinned to her chest, standing at the front of the company and receiving praise, made her feel extremely uncomfortable. She had heard everything Jeannie said over the microphone. Five hundred thousand, even split between two, was still two hundred and fifty thousand each! Why should Maria get that money?Irena glared at the company's main entrance with resentment. If it weren’t for Maria and that damned new hire, today’s events wouldn't have involved her!Irena took a deep breath, trying to console herself. Even if Maria got two hundred and fifty
Jeannie chuckled lightly. "In the end, you're still trying to comfort me, but in your own unique way.""Am I? Ha ha." Ricard laughed heartily, ruffling his hair. "Sit down." Jeannie gestured to Ricard.Ricard did not stand on ceremony, sprawling comfortably on the sofa.Jeannie poured him a cup of tea, an unprecedented gesture from her. This act made Ricard feel both pampered and uneasy. "No, no!" Ricard quickly stopped her."What's the matter? Are you mocking me?" Jeannie shot Ricard a sharp look. "A man who can easily get the head of the largest corporation in France to come to Supperazza to sign a contract can’t accept a cup of tea from me?"Ricard gave a wry smile. Initially, he hadn't planned to let Jeannie know about Eugene, but with today's events, including Prince Charles’s presence, there was no way to keep it hidden.After pouring the tea, Jeannie sat down opposite Ricard, lightly rubbing her forehead. "As usual, explain.""Ah… I saved Eugene’s life once, and since then he’s
When Eugene heard that Jeannie was Ricard's wife, his expression immediately turned respectful. "Lovely lady, forgive me for saying, but you truly are the most beautiful angel I've ever met.""Uncle Eugene is the manager of the Zefiro Group, the largest financial group in France," Prince Charles reintroduced Eugene to Jeannie.Although Prince Charles didn't use flowery language or mention astronomical wealth, saying it was the largest in France was enough for Jeannie to understand the significance of the old man standing before her. A man like this could hardly be someone Ricard found to collude in defrauding the company.Outside the reception room, Naccy and her group waited for the outcome.Jeannie quickly exited the reception room, and they all looked at her, awaiting a response.Jeannie scanned the group and spoke, "Director Naccy, this has been a misunderstanding. Mr. Eugene is indeed the partner Ricard found.""How can that be?" Naccy's first reaction was disbelief. How could so
"Mr. Eugene, please wait. I'll go get Ricard.""No need," Eugene called Maria back. "Ricard entrusted this deal to me. If you don't sign it, I'll refuse to cooperate.""What?""Girl, how your company distributes the bonus between you and Ricard is none of my business. You can discuss it with your boss later. For now, go get the contract."The sudden success of the deal and the enormous bonus were overwhelming for Maria. It took her a while to process it.As Maria left the reception room to get the contract, her face still showed signs of disbelief.Everyone in the business department saw Maria's expression. When she left the reception room, they all started talking."What's wrong? Couldn't close the deal?""She looks like she failed.""She's a rookie trying to handle a deal herself. What did you expect?"Kristy and others showed disdain. "No," Maria waved her hands. "The deal is done. The client agreed to sign the contract.""Signed?" Kristy's eyes widened in disbelief. She knew the v
"Three... hundred thousand?" Maria's eyes glazed over at the number. Her family was ordinary, and her parents had worked hard their whole lives without saving that much money. Three hundred thousand was enough to buy a house in Supperazza, enough for someone unemployed to live comfortably for years, or to buy a BMW. For Maria, three hundred thousand was an unimaginable fortune.Hearing Eugene say that this deal alone could yield a bonus of three hundred thousand made Maria feel like she was dreaming. "Girl, so, will you sign the contract, or do I need to call Ricard?"Maria swallowed hard, stammering, "I... I..."Hearing Maria's response, Eugene felt a bit disappointed. He understood that three hundred thousand might not mean much to him, but it could change an ordinary person's life. With three hundred thousand, they could buy a big house, a luxury car."I... I need to call Ricard and ask him to treat me to a good meal. Three hundred thousand is a lot! Mr. Eugene, please wait a momen