A Graduation Gift

"Yeah, this is the only way. But Lionel...be careful. Don't get involved with her again. I would never agree to something like that again!"

Jill warned Lionel strictly. Alas, the mother couldn't see the sadness in her son's eyes.

He couldn't tell her he wanted to get back together with Cassandra. In fact, he deeply regretted his decision of divorcing her before. However, it was sad that she just didn't want him anymore.

"Don't worry, Mom. I understand what you are thinking,"

Lionel said with a forced, bitter smile on his face.

He turned his head around to look inside the hospital room. Horace lay on the bed, staring at the ceiling.

Rufus's hatred towards his own father had completely destroyed him, despite how powerful he had been in the industry all his life. Now, every day was nothing but a nightmare for him.

Horace's mind started to fly back to the times when he was young. He was so ambitious and capable at the time. It was in those days that he had met a young woman from Ling family at a party, and had immediately fallen in love with her.

Lucky for him, she had fallen in love with him too. Soon, they started dating. But something always bugged Horace. It was the inheritance right of the family business.

to lose its power and status. They couldn't have

was very powerful and influential. Jill was their favourite daughter. Tactically, it only made sense for Horace to be with her in order to get the support of her family.

Ling family's daughter and

with a boy. The boy in her womb was no one else but Rufus. She wanted to meet Horace and talk about him, but

family for support. She was left with no choice but to abandon her family and move out of the house. She

faults made Rufus suffer for a very long time, eventually resting in his heart like a deep wound that

And now...at this stage of his life, when he needed support the most, his own son had nothing

good childhood and didn't see him growing up. All of these compromises, for what? Only to find out from his deathbed that he had miserably failed to take the moral path in life, and that even when he tried to make up for it and build a good relationship with his son, it didn't work

that he had kept afloat somehow all these years was now going to go

was tired both physically and mentally.

lost a lot of weight in the past few days. No one would know if they could hope for his well-being anymore, or was it already too

made the call. Part of him was convinced that she wouldn't pick up. Just when he was about to give up hope, she answered. "Hello..." Cassandra said,

abrupt. But I had no other way..." Lionel said, almost confessedly. Something in him felt like it was melting. "Do you think Rufus will forgive us if my mother apologised to him?" he continued. Cassandra didn't say anything back.

the phone, Cassandra listened intently, with a surprised look plastered on her face. She had never expected Lionel to call her, let alone asked her for