Ariel was a little stunned. She didn't respond."I'm sure Ms. Jones has told you everything about Stephen?" Xavier smiled. "The great Stephen Anderson with an ugly woman. How do you think that looks? Only you are a perfect match for him. We don't know what love potion Stephen has taken, but he's smitten by her."Xavier turned and continued, saying with a smile, "Ms. Clarke, you understand Stephen the best. Do you think that that woman has some leverage over him?"Ariel was stunned. She'd never thought of that! "I've interacted with her before. She's extremely scheming and manipulative. She's not an easy one." Xavier looked at Ariel even more intensely. He smiled wider."If you'd listened to me and returned to the country sooner and become the spokesperson for Robinson Jewels the day Miller Jewels launched their new product, your fame would've overshadowed Miller Jewels. Then she wouldn't have been sitting there so comfortably right now."Then Xavier passed his business card to A
In the end, Yvonne didn't meet Ariel at the jewelry exhibition.However, her face had been etched into Yvonne's mind. She looked even prettier in person than in the photos. She looked like someone who'd walked out of a painting and had an extremely delicate beauty that would make any man naturally want to protect her. Even a woman like Yvonne had a crush on her for a moment, let alone a man. So, this was the type of woman that Stephen liked.Yvonne was completely different from Ariel. She was the trusty sidekick who protected the princess."What are you thinking about?"Andy's voice pulled her out of her reverie. "Nothing.""You've been weird since you returned from the exhibition," Andy muttered. He'd caught Yvonne staring into space for no reason multiple times that day.Yvonne kicked him. "Are you back to enter the market? Why are you here at Rachel's home every day?"Andy rolled to the other side of the couch. "What's the hurry? I've seen the exhibition, and judging by tha
After dinner, Xavier drove Andy back to the hotel.As soon as Andy disappeared from sight, Xavier's expression turned cold as he looked at Kayla, who was sitting beside him. "How did you offend Andy? Also, what's going on with the portfolio?" Xavier questioned her seriously.Kayla leaned closer to the window in fear and immediately choked up."Katie lied to me. She told me she'd already sent the portfolio …"Xavier only felt irritated when he saw tears suddenly streaming down her face. The more she cried, the more stupid she seemed to him."What's the use of crying? This is your business; you'd better think of a way to resolve it. Don't expect me to help you."Xavier started the car. Unwilling to look at Kayla at all, he said icily, "You'll have to explain yourself to my mother and grandfather."Kayla felt extremely aggrieved, but she didn't dare to cry out loud, afraid it would piss Xavier off again. She bit her lips and sobbed silently throughout the entire journey.When th
The moment their words aligned, Thomas came to a conclusion, which he then thought was unlikely. He frowned and said, "Yvonne was living in the village before this. How would she know the owner of an international jewelry brand?"Katie said, "I’m not too sure about that. I’ll try to weasel information out of Andy when I get the chance to."Thomas was quiet for a minute. This was weird. Many unexpected things had happened since Yvonne had returned. He had to get to the bottom of this. He looked at Monica. "Ask the villagers what Yvonne had been doing there during the past 20 years."Monica nodded. "Alright."Katie sighed in relief when she saw that they had believed her words. This could also be a good chance to move out of the Jones family house. She masked a pitiful expression and said, "Mom, dad, I want to move out."Monica grew anxious. "This is your home. Where else do you want to live?""After my return, I tried to be good to you and Kayla. But …" Katie smiled bitterly. "I’v
Meanwhile, Stephen had just finished meeting with his foreign clients.On the way home, he rubbed his forehead, his feather-like eyelashes concealing the exhaustion in his eyes.After working under so much pressure for so many days in a row, even a strong body would start to feel the effects.Julian asked warily, "Mr. Anderson, would you like to take two days off? If you keep going on like this, I fear …""There’s no need," Stephen said in a low voice. "How many things are left on the itinerary?""Not many." Julian had checked it in the morning. They were making progress faster than they'd expected. "If we keep this up, we’ll be able to return next week.""Very well," Stephen replied. Then he shut his eyes.His head felt like it was about to explode, but as he rested, his thoughts drifted to Yvonne. Had she cooled off yet?…In the morning, Yvonne dragged Rachel out of the house, saying there was a show that they had to watch.To Rachel's surprise, Yvonne drove her to City Ha
Lindsey watched the car disappear into traffic and gathered her emotions, wiping away her tears. She gritted her teeth in anger. "Fuck! I only had one last thing to do!"Once she registered her marriage with that old fuck, she would be able to claim half of the Joneses’ property as her own. She'd kept her true intentions so well hidden. Why did Thomas have to ruin everything at the last second?"Get up. They’re already gone. How long are you going to be sitting for?" A woman’s voice sounded from above.Lindsey looked up. The sun blinded her, and she had to narrow her eyes for a while to see that it was her neighbor.Although they’d only met for a while, Lindsey remembered her because of the scar on her face. She stood up and asked, after a pause, "Why are you here? Did you see anything? Don’t you dare spread nonsense if you did!""The person you want to marry is my grandfather," Yvonne said, revealing her identity.Lindsey was stunned, but she snapped back to reality in an instan
"Do you really not believe in the organization?" Gwen said coldly. "Don’t worry. Forget Monica. Even if Stephen comes knocking, he won’t be able to find anything."As a secret organization that worked primarily with the rich, Emerald Group was notorious for being thorough. They even kept their employees’ identities concealed. Thus, making someone disappear and creating a new person altogether was as easy as pie.Yvonne relaxed when she got Gwen’s reassurance. "I don't need to worry since you're around, Gwen.""I’ve heard about Miller Jewels." Gwen seemed awkward. After a pause, she added, "Congratulations, Yvonne."She'd been against Yvonne taking over Miller Jewels at first. She'd said it for Yvonne's own good, as she didn’t want Yvonne to be pitted against the organization. Now that she knew Miller Jewels had crossed their first obstacle, she was relieved on Yvonne’s behalf. Regardless of which side Gwen was on, she was sincere.Yvonne smiled. "Thanks, Gwen."They talked for a
That night, Thomas sent Joseph to the town.News of the young sugarbaby had consumed the city overnight like wildfire.Stephen heard of it when his plane landed. He guessed that this was Yvonne’s doing and smirked. She hadn’t stopped to take a break since he'd left."There’s one more thing, Mr. Anderson." Julian leaned over, looking pained. "Ariel is back."Stephen’s face turned cold. "When did she come back?""The day we left."They’d been so busy with work that they hadn’t noticed the news of her return. Now that they were back, Julian had caught up on everything that had happened, and the news of Ariel returning had taken him by surprise.She’d gone abroad for quite a few years without a single peep. Why was she suddenly back?Julian discreetly observed Stephen’s expression. He couldn’t quite tell what was going through Stephen's head. He’d been with Stephen for many years, and he’d witnessed the relationship between him and Ariel.Although it had been an arranged marriage
A light breeze blew by in the courtyard. Agatha slowly recounted the past.Back then, Daniel and his wife, Katherine, had just had Mark. The entire Carrington family had been celebrating.They had doted on Mark and taken him wherever they went.That day, they had headed out. Before they'd known it, Mark had been taken away.Just when Daniel and Katherine had been on the brink of losing it, they had received a call from the kidnapper to bring the ransom to a specific spot.They had gotten the money and driven there without any hesitation. No one had thought that they would ever return after that. Even Mark had disappeared.When Agatha finished recounting this, her cup of tea had already cooled.She wiped her tears away. She said through a catch in her throat, "Katherine was hugging the bag of money tightly until the moment she passed away, as though she were hugging you."Mark furrowed his brows. Now that he'd heard the truth about Daniel and Katherine, he should have felt pain
As Yvonne left the room, she could tell that Stephen's mood was much better.She looked at him. "Are you thinking of something nice?""No." Stephen looked at Yvonne with a rare twinkle in his eyes."Let me take you to breakfast." Before Yvonne could respond, he took her hand and led her to the elevator.Thinking about how he'd stood outside her room the entire night, Yvonne decided to let him hold her hand.Then, her thoughts drifted to Otto. Somehow, she had a bad feeling.…At the same time, Mark was in the courtyard of Carrington Mansion. He sat next to Agatha and poured some tea for her.He handed her a cup of hot tea. "Great-Grandma, try this."When he noticed that Agatha had no reaction, he called out to her once more. "Great-Grandma?""Huh?" Agatha came to her senses. She looked at Mark in confusion. "What is it?""You've been distracted since yesterday. Are you thinking of something?" Mark asked.Agatha shook her head. "Nothing." Then, she picked up her teacup and
Yvonne stood by the door of the bedroom and looked at Otto, who was looking out of the window in a daze on the bed.The sun shone on his face. He looked quite hungover and had a sickly pale face.Yvonne hesitated for a while before saying gently, "Mrs. Jenner called me last night. She's worried about you."Otto didn't respond.Yvonne went in closer and added, "She said that you called her and asked about your father. She found it strange."Mr. Carrington, why did you suddenly think about your father? Did Mrs. Carrington Senior bring him up yesterday?"All Yvonne got was silence.Luckily, she was patient. She sat on the couch and followed Otto's line of sight. Tiny dust particles were floating among the sunbeams. Yvonne also fell into a daze as she watched them float about.Suddenly, Otto asked, "Have you ever felt like your world was falling apart?""Hmm?" Yvonne was confused. "For example?""I mean, like the person that you trust turns out to be different from what you'd t
The next morning, Yvonne opened her door to see Stephen standing outside. She was caught off guard."What is wrong with you this morning? Why didn't you knock…"While talking, Yvonne noticed that Stephen was still wearing the same clothes as the night before. She furrowed her brows and asked, "Don't tell me you didn't leave last night? Have you been standing outside this door all this while?""Hmm." Stephen looked at Yvonne intently. "I thought you would've figured it out quickly."Yvonne was speechless, but she thought to herself that she'd slept like a baby the night before.She smiled at him. "Figure what out?" She noticed Stephen frowning as though he were on the brink of losing his temper.She quickly added, "I-I mean, you have to give me a hint, right? I've thought about it the entire night, but I still don't understand. My brain isn't functioning well."Stephen asked suspiciously, "You've been thinking about it the entire night?""Yes, which is why I didn't look for yo
"If I hadn't come to find you tonight, you probably wouldn't tell me anything about what happened tonight, would you?" Stephen asked in retort.It wasn't a big deal, as long as they returned safely. Yvonne wondered why she needed to report this to him.But she still smiled. "It's late. How could I disrupt your rest? It would've been the same if I told you about it tomorrow morning, right?"Stephen sniggered. "Yvonne, you still don't know where you've gone wrong."He suddenly went in closer to her. Yvonne instinctively retreated until her back was up against the wall. She glared at him."What on earth is wrong with you? I've already said that I would've told you tomorrow morning—"A punch went past Yvonne and landed brutally on the wall.Yvonne was a little stunned. She looked into Stephen's eyes and furrowed her brows. "Stephen, I don't want to quarrel with you for no reason. "Mrs. Carrington Senior went to look for Otto today. Calbert couldn't reach him the entire day, so he
Jane returned to the private room, distracted.She sat down next to Cory. She looked at him as he reached his hand out to her in confusion.Cory furrowed his brows and asked unhappily, "Where's the wine?""Wine… Yes! Wine!" Jane came to her senses. She was just about to get up when Cory pulled her back.He grabbed her by her chin and forced her to look at him. "What happened when you went out?""N-Nothing."Cory tightened his grip. Jane furrowed her brows in pain. "I-I… I saw Yvonne. She told me that she and Stephen got remarried.""What?" Cory relaxed his grip a little. "They got remarried?""Hmm.""So, what?" He had no intention of letting her go, and he looked at her sharply. "Does it bother you so much that Stephen got remarried?"Jane looked at Cory frantically. "Cory, what do you mean by that?""What do I mean? You know what I mean."Cory went in closer. His tone turned icy. "You used to pursue Stephen. Now that you know he's gotten married, you're in this shitty mood
Yvonne turned around to see Jane smiling at her ambiguously. She furrowed her brows. How were they always bumping into each other?Jane crossed her hands in front of her chest and leaned against the wall. She swept her gaze at Calbert and Otto. "Two guys and one woman. You sure know how to have fun!"Calbert instantly snapped, "What the hell are you talking about?""Why are you being so fierce? Did I hit the nail on the head?" Jane snickered. "Two guys and a woman came out of a private room in the middle of the night. Anyone would come to the same conclusion. We're all adults. There's no need to pretend to be innocent.""You—" Calbert was about to go up to Jane, but Yvonne stopped him."Since Ms. Ford is here, I'm guessing so is Cory?" Yvonne smiled, yet her smile didn't reach her eyes. "If you cause a scene here and this bar gets raided, guess who'll be the ones walking out here alive?"Jane's expression turned ugly. "Are you threatening me?""It's just a kind reminder." Yvon
Calbert and Yvonne managed to track Otto's car to a bar, thanks to the information they'd gotten from his staff. Otto's car was right outside the bar.Calbert looked at the neon sign and furrowed his brows. "Why is Otto here? Did what Mrs. Carrington Senior said really hit him so badly that he has to drown himself in alcohol?"Yvonne said nothing and headed directly inside the bar."Wait up for me!" Calbert went after her. He subconsciously protected her from all the drunk patrons.The lighting in the bar was dim. Many of the patrons were drunk and having fun.Yvonne and Calbert walked around the booth area, but Otto was nowhere to be found. They pulled a server over to ask if there was a patron by the name of Otto Carrington who had reserved a private room.Coincidentally, the server had just taken two bottles of wine to Otto's room. So, he led them to the private room.Calbert tipped the server before opening the door and entering. The entire room reeked of alcohol.He looked
After Agatha left, Otto stood in the same spot without moving.A long time later, Zac entered the office. He looked at Otto's back and asked quietly, "Mr. Carrington, will you still see the client?""No." Otto sounded heartbroken.Zac didn't dare ask further questions. He gently closed the door and reminded the secretary that no one was to disturb Otto.In the office, Otto was alone. He slowly walked over to the couch and slumped into it. His mind was in a mess."Alexander was the one who planned the kidnapping back then."Agatha's words rang in his mind for a long time.Alexander's young face appeared in Otto's mind, smiling at him affectionately."Otto! Amazing! Yes! Just like that!""You're amazing at badminton! You're going to make the country proud! I'm going to be so proud of you!""Otto, my son!"Memories of his interactions with Alexander flashed across his mind at that moment.Otto couldn't imagine that such a loving father would do such an absurd thing. Alexander