My Poor Husband Is A Billionaire

Pleasantly surprised, Janet looked up from her phone and sneered at the HR staff.

Then she began to type out her reply to Brandon.

"Miss Lind, please sign on the resignation notice,"

the staff member said through gritted teeth.

She grew angrier when she saw that Janet began to tinker with her phone.

Ignoring her, Janet texted Brandon back.

"Are you serious, Mr.Larson? What did you find?"

The message from Brandon was a godsend.

She was just about to accept the fact that the Larson Group had given up on her.

Brandon replied with a long message.

"Upon investigating the matter, we found out that Lester Silk Fabric took over the platform recently.

Luna didn’t upload the design drafts a year ago, but a few days ago.

The data was tampered with.

Lester Silk Fabric used their connections and managed to get to your works before the show officially began.

They asked Luna to make a collection based on your works and posted them on the platform.

They tampered with the date and time stamp of the post to frame you for plagiarism."

Janet had already guessed that it was Lester Silk Fabric behind this, but she had no idea how they did it.

"How did you find that out?"

The platform was now owned by Lester Silk Fabric.

How could they have let Brandon investigate them? "We have tech guys here.

They were the ones who found evidence of them tampering with the platform’s database.

Even if they had altered the original date of uploading, our tech guys were able to retrieve it.

We also have a video confession of the staff who tampered with the data."

Brandon’s words lifted a weight off of Janet’s heart.

He sent two videos to Janet and said, "We’ve done what we could.

You should be able to take it from here now, right?"

All of a sudden, Janet felt a surge of energy.

She stood up with a confident smile and said to the HR staff member, "I didn’t do anything wrong and I knew that the company won’t fire me because of some groundless accusation!"

As she spoke, she tucked her phone away.

The staff member gritted her teeth and glared at her angrily.

"Janet Lind, you plagiarized someone else’s work yet you feel no shame?"

Janet ignored her.

She turned around and left without looking back.

******* Tiffany looked up in surprise when Janet entered her office.

"What’s up, Lind?"

"Miss Fisher, can I have Ritchie Lester’s number?"

Janet asked politely.

In Tiffany’s eyes, she looked inexplicably relaxed, as though her career wasn’t in danger.

Tiffany looked at her warily and then nodded slowly.

"I have his number, but may I ask why you need it?"

"I want to call him and apologize,"

Janet answered simply.

"Lind, are you crazy? Go back to work.

You didn’t plagiarize anything, so keep a low profile for now.

There are enough discussions about you already,"

Tiffany scolded.

After saying that, she lowered her head and continued to work.

But Janet stayed glued to the spot, staring at her with fierce determination.

After hesitating for a few seconds, Tiffany relented and held up Ritchie’s business card.

She said in a resigned tone, "I don’t know what you’re up to, but I hope you know what you’re doing."

Janet reached for the card with a bright smile.

Of course she knew what she was doing.

That evening, Ritchie received a call from an unknown number.

"Mr.Lester, this is Janet Lind from the Larson Group.

After giving it some thought, I want to apologize in public,"

Janet said, her voice as sweet as honey.

When Ritchie heard this, he was surprised.

Then, he sneered.

He was under the impression that Ethan’s wife was a stubborn woman, but it turned out he was wrong about her.

Janet had given up so soon.

"You’re scared, aren’t you?"

With a smug smile on his face, Ritchie smirked.

"Come to Lester Silk Fabric tomorrow.

You can apologize there in person."

Chapter 318Press Conference Ritchie had a devious grin on his face when he hung up the phone.

"Call all the designers under Lester Silk Fabric and the people in charge of the fashion week,"

he barked at his secretary.

"I want them here tomorrow.

Call some famous personalities in the fashion industry as well.

We need people in authority for the event."

The secretary nodded respectfully.

He was about to leave when Ritchie stopped him in his tracks.

"Where the hell are you going? I’m not finished yet.

Get your ass back here."

The poor man scurred back, cursing his boss in his mind.

ver "Invite every media outlet in Seacisco, especially the ones that prioritize viewership over anything.

And make sure to tell them to hype up the event as much as they can!"

Ritchie sat back on his chair as his plan began to take shape.

"Get the biggest function hall for the press conference.

I want hundreds of people to be there.

Oh, and don’t forget to arrange for a live stream, too.

Contact our usual sponsors and tell them their products will be displayed throughout the feed.

We might as well make some money while we’re at it.

And remember-our main goal is to discredit Janet and end her fashion career for good."

1 Another evil grin spread on Ritchie’s face.

He wanted to screw that woman over so badly that she could never get back on her feet again.

The secretary pursed his lips and jotted every detail down.

This time, he made sure that his boss was finished before leaving the office.

The sun shone bright and early the next day.

Just as planned, the press conference was held at the largest meeting hall in Lester Silk Fabric.

Cameras littered all around the room, squeezed in among the throng of people who came to watch the spectacle.

Even as she swept a glance over the crowd, Janet didn’t feel panicked in the slightest.

"It looks like the Lester Silk Fabric really wants to do you in,"

Tiffany remarked from beside her.

She turned to look Janet in the eye.

"You’re not just going to stand there and let yourself be bullied in public, are you? What’s your plan?"

A faint smile appeared on Janet’s lips.

"You’ll find out soon enough.

Don’t worry.

I’m not particularly inclined to suffer any misplaced grievances, either."

With that, she walked onto the stage, all calm and grace.

The room finally settled down as Janet took her place.

Without wasting her time, she whipped out a flash drive and held it up for all to see.

"Sorry for taking up your time, everyone.

In order to convey my sincerity more properly, I have prepared a couple of videos for today’s press conference."

From a distance, Ritchie frowned and narrowed his eyes.

He could sense that something wasn’t right.

Why was Janet so composed in such a situation? If anything, she should be mortified and humiliated right now, especially in front of all these people.

What was she up to? He leaned over to his secretary and asked in a hushed voice, "Did she find something?"

"She can’t have,"

the other man replied confidently.

"We’ve taken care to sweep everything.

All the evidence has been locked away.

I think she’s just bluffing."

At this point, Janet had already plugged the drive to a computer, and one of the videos was playing on the widescreen Ritchie’s eyes widened like saucers as they watched an employee of Lester Silk Fabric tampering with the time stamp on the website.

The scene changed, and this time, the same man was sobbing hysterically as he divulged what he had done.

n The clips ended, and a deafening silence fell in the room.

Janet took the microphone and said, "As you can see, this is what really happened.

Lester Silk Fabric managed to get hold of my designs prior to the show.

After that, one of their designers, Luna Mccoy, posted my entire portfolio online and edited the details to make it look like she was the original designer.

There is your truth.

Once again, I thank each of you for coming to hear me out today.

If you have further questions, kindly direct them to Mr.Lester.

I’m sure he can give you better answers than I can."

She gave Ritchie a meaningful look, then, and gestured in his direction with a wave of her hand.

2 As soon as she did, the crowd burst into an uproar.Chapter 319 The Ensuing Drama Shocked, Ritchie cursed out loud, "Fuck that bitch!"

His secretary was also scared silly.

Glaring daggers at him, Ritchie was pissed off and kicked him in the ass.

Pointing his finger at the big screen, he cursed again, "What the fuck are you doing standing here for? Turn off the projector right now!"

The secretary stumbled to the stage and proceeded to turn it off.

Ritchie snorted, smoothed over his suit and made his way onto the stage.

This happened to be his territory, not Janet’s.

He lifted his chin and approached her, holding his head up high.

"Janet Lind, you better be careful with what you say.

As far as I can see, you were just making things up so that you can get yourself out of your predicament!"

As he said this, he turned his eyes from her and exclaimed, "Give yourself up.

Apologize right this moment! Don’t waste any more of our time here!"

W "Then why did you turn off the projector if I was, indeed, making things up? That’s a sign of guilt.

If you’re so sure of yourself, you should allow me to show everyone the proof.

I’m sure that everyone here is smart enough to tell if I actually made up the evidence or not,"

Janet smiled and said in a calm voice.

Ritchie was exasperated to hear that.

He clenched his teeth tightly and pointed his finger at the door.

"I thought you came here to apologize.

If you’re not going to do that, why don’t you leave this place immediately?!"

While smiling, Janet didn’t say a word.

Instead, she turned to the audience before her and said word by word, "Everyone should know the truth by now.

I’m going to sue Lester Silk Fabric for slandering my name."

After finishing her speech, she didn’t bother to argue with Ritchie anymore and went ahead to leave the stage.

This scene was live streamed and everyone saw for themselves what had happened.

Everyone in the room and the audience in the live stream room was shocked to say the least.

The audience began to discuss this amongst themselves.

Even though Janet had only played the videos once, the reporters had gone out of their way to record them.

"Mr.Lester, could you please offer an explanation for what happened just now?"

"Lester Silk Fabric and the Larson Group have been rivals for years now.

Was this why you decided to slander Miss Lind in this way? In order to taint the Larson Group’s name?"

"If your statement about Janet plagiarizing one of your designers’ pieces was true, is there any evidence to back up your statement?"

The reporters all turned to look at Ritchie and kept on asking him and Luna questions.

"Miss Mccoy, are you going to make a statement? After all, weren’t you the one who accused Miss Lind of plagiarism in the first place? What are your thoughts on the current situation?"

"Did Mr.Lester instruct you to do this?"

"Tell us, what’s the nature of the relationship between the two of you?"

Being ambushed by the reporters, Luna’s mind went blank and she felt very embarrassed.

She said frantically, "I have no idea.

Don’t ask me…"

Under the dazzling flashing lights of the cameras, Ritchie couldn’t even keep his eyes open.

He kept cursing out loud while pushing the reporters in front of him away and saying, "Get the hell out of my way! Turn off your damn lights! You’re blinding me!"

His secretary hurried to stop his curses.

If Ritchie’s father found out about this, he would be very angry.

Having been spoiled by the Lester family since he was a child, Ritchie happened to be very irritable at this moment.

Before he took over the company, his parents had to repeatedly remind him to control that temper of his His secretary cleared the way for him while speaking to the reporters.

"Please, sirs, madams, Mr.Lester can’t answer all of your questions right now.

We’ll announce on our official website if we have any comments."

Finally, Ritchie and the senior executives of Lester Silk Fabric were able to escape the madness of the room.

Chapter 320 Take The Blame When she got home, Janet kicked off her heels and collapsed into bed.

Now, she felt much better.

"It’s finally over!"

After resting for a while, she got up and turned on the computer.

She briskly posted the evidence on the forums Luna had posted to slander her before.

A few hours later, the forums came to life as users discussed this matter heatedly.

The dramatic turning-of-tables that had happened at the press briefing soon made headlines.

Related videos went viral on the Internet.

Suddenly, Janet’s phone started to ring.

It was Tiffany.

"Lind, I’m impressed.

Have you seen the comments on the post? Everyone’s calling you a warrior.

You really knocked them dead!"

"Oh, my God! Seriously?"

Janet moved her cursor to check the comments Tiffany was talking about.

She had been focused on the media’s reports until now and didn’t know what people were saying in the comments.

When Janet read the comments, she found that the video of her talking on the stage had been spread all over the Internet.

There was a lot of positive feedback.

"Wow.

Heart.

Heart.

She’s so elegant and generous! And a fierce warrior too!"

"She’s a lovely girl.

Such a polite and beautiful goddess plagiarized someone else’s work? I doubt it!"

"She’s so pretty, I’d kiss her all day!"

"Even though I’m a girl, I want her!"

Janet buried her face in her hands, her cheeks blushing furiously.

She had never been praised by so many strangers in her life.

The next day, in the Lester Silk Fabric building… "Nonsense! These reports are all bullshit! How dare they call me rude?"

Furious, Ritchie started trashing his office.

He was in trouble, but there was nothing he could do.

In recent years, Lester Silk Fabric and the Larson Group had become two very high profile companies.

What with Janet’s fiasco, the media was having a field day.

In the span of just twenty-four hours, the reputation of Lester Silk Fabric was destroyed and its stock price.

plummeted.

"There’s nothing we can do to refute the evidence that Janet posted online.

What we can do now is to try our best to keep the news from spreading.

Mr.Lester, it was your idea to bring in more reporters there…"

the secretary reminded Ritchie in a trembling voice, picking up the documents Ritchie had thrown on the ground.

Ritchie glared at him, speechless.

He picked up another stack of papers from the table and threw them at the secretary’s face.

"I’m not an idiot.

You don’t need to remind me what I said."

Things didn’t end there.

Brandon sent people from the Larson Group’s legal department to help Janet file a lawsuit against Lester Silk Fabric.

The second they got the notice of the lawsuit, Lester Silk Fabric responded quickly and held a press conference in the afternoon.

Luna expressionlessly read a script in front of countless reporters, her face pale as a ghost under the limelight.

"I admit that I peeked at Janet Lind’s work before the show started.

Then I bribed an employee to tamper with the upload date on the database.

I falsely accused her of plagiarizing my work, and I did all this to gain fame and attention.

I am responsible for all of this.

My actions have nothing to do with Lester Silk Fabric."

In the Larson Group, Janet stopped the video on her phone and sighed.

"No class! Lester Silk Fabric made an ordinary employee take the fall!"

Chapter 321 Ask Brandon Out For Dinner Gerda clicked her tongue unhappily.

"Everyone knows they’re using Luna as a scapegoat.

She’s just an ordinary employee.

How on earth could she manage to do all of this? Lester Silk Fabric is really heartless."

The other designers had also seen the video circulating the Internet.

They began to discuss in hushed voices, but the general consensus was that Lester Silk Fabric was a cold blooded company.

Janet pulled her chair and sat down.

There was no point in dwelling on it now that things had been settled.

"I can’t say I’m surprised.

Now that Luna has taken the blame, we can’t do anything to Lester Silk Fabric."

"And what about those designs? Are they really not gonna put them back on the show?"

Gerda puffed out her chest indignantly Janet smiled at her colleague gently.

"It doesn’t matter.

Look on the bright side.

I have gained considerable fame because of everything that’s happened.

Now, all eyes are on my work."

In the end, Luna was put behind bars.

And Janet had become an online celebrity.

Many people now knew her name and saw her designs.

Some even paid for it.

When the dust settled, Janet poured all her energy into her work.

She had been so busy with this matter the past few days, so now she could finally focus on other things.

"By the way, Lind, I’ve been meaning to ask you something.

How’d you get the evidence?"

Gerda was talking about the videos that Janet had posted on the Internet, which had amassed more than a million views.

Janet froze.

After a few seconds, she broke into a smile and waved her hand dismissively.

"A very capable friend helped me get them."

Gerda nudged her arm and asked curiously, "What friend? A boyfriend perhaps?"

Janet’s eyes twinkled.

"It’s a secret.

Gerda, is it just me or do you have a lot of time on your hands? Have you finished your design for this month? Don’t come running to me again when the deadline approaches."

"Ah! My God! I still have thirty-four drawings to finish!"

Gerda scratched her head and hurried back to her desk.

Janet couldn’t help but chuckle.

Suddenly, she thought of the tall and straight back of Brandon.

Now that she thought about it, she realized that Lester Silk Fabric had gone through all this trouble just to set her up.

It must have cost Brandon a lot to get his hands on the evidence.

Janet couldn’t help but feel a little strange.

Brandon had helped her countless times, but she hadn’t really ever met him in person.

She owed Brandon too much and she doubted she could ever repay him.

After thinking about it for a long time, Janet finally plucked up the courage to send a message to Brandon.

"Mr.Larson, would you be willing to let me treat you to dinner? You’ve helped me a lot and I’d like to express my gratitude somehow."

2 After hitting send, Janet put down her phone and wrung her hands nervously.

The chairman of the Larson Group had probably tasted all the splendid dishes this world had to offer.

But it was a token of her appreciation.Chapter 322 A Warning At the CEO’s office of the Larson Group.

The Larson Group’s stock price had fluctuated over the past few days.

Now that the situation was favorable for the Larson Group and its stock price had more than recovered, Ethan decided to seize the opportunity to put more pressure on the Lester Silk Fabric.

Garrett hadn’t slept properly in the past three days, dealing with the bad press: He was yawning sleepily when Ethan’s phone pinged.

"Someone texted you."

When he saw the name on Ethan’s phone’s screen, Garrett snickered.

"It seems your wife’s missing you."

Ethan smacked Garrett on the back of the head and grabbed the phone.

Instantly, his expression darkened when he read the text.

"What is it? Why’s your face like that?"

Garrett asked seriously, the smile wiped from his face.

"Janet’s asking Brandon out for dinner."

Ethan put his phone down and sighed.

"If I refuse, she’ll be very disappointed."

Garrett leaned back with his hands clasped behind his head.

"Yeah.

You can’t have dinner with Janet without her seeing your face.

Last time, when you and Janet went to the company’s masquerade ball, you almost exposed yourself.

It’d be unwise to take such a risk again.

It’s not good for my heart either,"

he sighed.

Ethan frowned and started typing out a brisk reply.

"Thank you, but there’s no need for you to treat me to dinner.

You’re an employee of the Larson Group.

I helped you to protect the reputation of the company."

Janet read his message and quickly replied, "But Mr.Larson, you could’ve just dismissed me."

"If I dismiss any employee when something like this comes up, how will we keep the talented ones? Keep up the good work.

That’s thanks enough, Miss Lind,"

Ethan replied politely, keeping things professional.

1 He had deliberately distanced Brandon from her ever since what happened last time.

He didn’t want her to suspect him of anything Reading his reply, Janet had no choice but to give up.

Ethan put down his phone, kicked the sofa Garrett was lying down on, and said, "I want you to relocate the one who had tried to force Janet to resign.

Transfer her to a subsidiary company.

Then, bring Charis here."

Garrett was just about to take a nap.

Hearing Ethan’s orders, he helplessly peeled his eyes open and stood up from the sofa.

He muttered under his breath, "This job will definitely be the death of me."

Charis had expected that Ethan would want to have a talk with her, but when she received the notice, her heart still skipped a beat.

"Why did you want to dismiss Janet?"

Ethan asked in a low voice.

He shoved his hands into the pocket of his slacks, and the light from the window elongated his shadow on the floor.

"I just wanted to protect the company name,"

Charis answered defensively.

Ethan narrowed his eyes at her coldly.

"From now on, I’ll take care of all matters related to Janet.

No one other than me.

Understood?"

Ethan’s cold voice sent a shiver down Charis’s spine.

She winced and smiled bitterly, as though she had been wronged.

"I see how it is.

You don’t trust me now? Brandon, I don’t have any ulterior motives, I swear.

Ethan had already noticed that something was wrong with Charis.

He never brought it up before because he didn’t want her to look bad.

She and her family had always valued their image.

"I’m just warning you not to act against Janet.

Otherwise, don’t blame me if I disregard our long term friendship."

Chapter 323 A Long Forgotten Name After a moment’s silence, Charis said in a low voice, "I see."

Charis was a dignified woman.

Before Ethan could say anything more, she turned around and walked out of his office, As soon as the door closed behind her, tears welled up in her eyes..

Ever since they first met, Brandon had never said such harsh words to her before, nor had he looked at her with such cold eyes.

She hadn’t cried in years.

The last time was when she said goodbye to Brandon before going abroad.

She had been reluctant to leave him.

But now, she felt bad about Brandon’s attitude towards her.

She and Brandon had worked together for years.

They had shared the company’s ups and downs.

But all of a sudden, with Janet now in the picture, Brandon suddenly was ruthless towards her.

Tears rolled down Charis’s cheeks as she realized just how important Janet was to Brandon.

The hot tears dripped from her chin to the carpeted floor.

"I met Brandon first,"

Charis muttered through gritted teeth.

Charis didn’t like to be candid with her shrewdness.

The reason why she had tried to fire Janet was to win Brandon’s heart.

In Charis’s eyes, Janet wasn’t good enough for him.

But now that Brandon had taken a liking to her, Charis figured he would deeply fall in love with her and she would eventually lose him for good.

Thinking of this, Charis was more determined than ever to separate Janet and Brandon..

But she couldn’t act as overtly as before.

Brandon had just warned her not to interfere with Janet’s work ever again.

She had to be more careful now.

On the other side… After Janet got off work, she went home, only to find that Ethan had come home early today.

"Oh, the workaholic is back! I’m surprised you still remember the way home!"

Janet’s voice dripped with sarcasm.

Looking at the man who was busy cooking in the kitchen, she was not happy.

After all, she hadn’t seen Ethan for two or three days.

That was because Ethan had been busy dealing with the plagiarism issue the past few days.

But he couldn’t tell her this.

While cracking the eggs into a bowl, he found an excuse.

"When I crossed Ritchie’s path, he made a lot of trouble.

The manager of the shop at work fired me.

I’ve been working part time the past few days while looking for a stable job."

Then, he paused and said sincerely, "I’m sorry that I haven’t been here for you these days."

In fact, there was some truth to his story.

Ritchie had indeed caused him a lot trouble after all.

Hearing this, Janet’s heart immediately softened.

She walked over to help him with the vegetables.

"So, what happened? You didn’t tell me the truth.

I was worried something bad happened to you."

"The problem’s been solved.

Don’t worry,"

Ethan said with a reassuring smile.

That much was true.

Ethan had really solved the problem that had been plaguing them the past few days.

"Your brother is really hard to deal with."

Janet pouted like a child.

After transferring the egg into the pan, Ethan turned and his eyes landed on Janet’s earlobe.

His Adam’s apple bobbed up and down as he gulped.

"How about having dinner and then a little bit of exercise to unwina: "What kind of exercise?"

Janet looked up at Ethan curiously.

Almost immediately, she saw the lust in his eyes.

His face was so beautiful.

It was as though God had chiseled his face to perfection.

His eyes stared deep into hers, filled with burning desire.

Janet’s face turned as red as a tomato.

She quickly lowered her head and said shyly, "You’re so naughty!"

Then she focused on chopping the vegetables.

Amused, Ethan patted her on the head affectionately.

He really liked it when she blushed.

He could feel that she liked him, but she always pretended to refuse him.

He had to admit it really turned him on.

But the romantic atmosphere was instantly soiled by the sound of the phone ringing.

"Keep an eye on the eggs, okay? Don’t let them burn."

Ethan stroked Janet’s hair.

Then, he took off his apron and walked to the living room to pick up his phone.

A long forgotten name appeared on the screen.

It was Patrick Lester.

Chapter 324 Nora’s Birthday Ethan pursed his lips.

He glanced back at the kitchen at Janet, then opened the glass door to step out onto the balcony He was a little surprised to see that Patrick was calling him.

It was winter and the cold wind was unforgiving.

Ethan stood on the balcony, letting the wind blow his hair.

"Why on earth are you answering the phone outside? Isn’t it cold out there?"

Janet’s voice broke the silence.

Ethan was lost in his thoughts and didn’t notice when Janet slid the door open and poked her head out.

Narrowing her eyes at him suspiciously, she looked at the phone in Ethan’s hand.

He was answering the phone out on the balcony again.

Was it Charis calling again? "It’s Patrick Lester."

Amused by the quirky expression on her face, he pulled her into his arms and finally answered the phone.

"Ethan, why the hell did you keep me waiting?"

Patrick’s irritated voice came from the other end of the line.

"I was busy just now,"

Ethan simply replied.

Patrick didn’t give a damn about whatever Ethan was up to.

There was something he needed to talk about with Ethan, so he went straight to the point.

"Your grandma’s birthday is coming up and we’re throwing her a party.

She wants you and your wife here."

Without waiting for Ethan’s response, he hung up abruptly.

— – Janet had overheard Patrick’s loud voice.

She looked up at Ethan and asked hesitantly, "So are we going?"

Ethan held her tighter and sighed.

"We are.

Patrick seldom summons me.

There’ll be nothing but trouble if we disobey him.

Besides, I haven’t seen my grandma in a very long time.

It’s only right that I be there on her birthday."

Janet smiled at him sweetly.

"I can tell that you’re fond of her."

It was true that Ethan’s expression softened when he spoke of his grandmother.

Nora Lester, Ethan’s grandma, was a distant relative of the Larson family.

She had known Ethan’s mother when she was a girl.

Although she didn’t approve of what Patrick had done, she couldn’t do anything about her son’s decisions.

She had always felt sorry for Ethan and used to secretly send him money.

She was the only Lester who ever cared about Ethan.

Thinking of this, Ethan rested his chin on the top of Janet’s head.

"She’s a kind lady,"

he said calmly.

time since they last

"Let’s not talk here.

It’s so cold!"

her

thought occurred

"The eggs! I forgot

from Ethan’s embrace and ran

Ethan followed behind her.

at Janet, who was extremely flustered,

I told you to

her to the side

in the corner, restlessly watching Ethan

"I’m sorry.

I rushed to you and forgot

Ethan had guessed this.

he raised

"It’s my fault.

didn’t give you enough sense

his arms and

obeyed and leaned her face against

the invitation from Patrick, she murmured, "The Lesters treat you badly, especially

you and I just

a huge grudge against

461 In Order To Survive Shelia didn’t notice what was going on at

a casual manner, flipped the meat over, and went on to

if you really don’t want to

was just being a

at her, Victor said nothing, and silently retracted the knife he

Shelia didn’t mean him

poured the juice over

definitely

Here you go."

"And what about you?"

to look down at the meat Shelia was holding out in her hand and didn’t make a move to

roast some more for

Victor wasn’t going to take the meat, Shelia smiled as if she had

"Don’t worry about it.

This meat isn’t poisonous.

assured and eat

was on high alert right then, watching Shelia with vigilant and

Shelia happened to be an easy-going person,

that Victor had gotten

injuries, she knew she

"I’m not very hungry.

go ahead

turned to look away and placed

roast the rest for

to help, Shelia nodded and said, "Okay, it’s

took a bite out of

chewing for some time, she furrowed her brows and stuck out

hard to

not cooked fully

meat I gave you just now

didn’t you tell me?

meat out, Victor didn’t say a word and only

meat aside, Shelia turned around and spotted Victor’s

smiling? Van, you did this deliberately,

smiling?’ Victor never even

gently touched

me to roast the meat for

have gone

and get

not tired at

just sit

her chin, Shelia proceeded to

she blinked her eyes and said, "Van, you’re good at cooking meat, aren’t you? Did you learn this skill all by

to survive in

spoke in

"Survive in the wildness?"

that Shelia had ever heard of

you go out of your

crushed some

used a knife

Shelia

said, "I have

fact, Victor knew

because he wanted to

ner protection,

to learn more skills so that he would at least have a better chance to survive in case of an

"Alright."

her gaze

caught a glimpse of Shelia’s profile and the dust that

a hand to wipe

startled and turned to look at Victor with

straight into Shelia’s eyes,

hand, looked away, and explained, "Your nose has dirt on

"Is that so?"

nose

about now? Is

"No,"

glancing over

"Good."

Shelia smiled.

what else did you learn other than roasting

Can you teach me?"

want to learn

"In order to survive."

naturally.Chapter 462 Come

shelia said casually.

felt sad upon hearing

flipped? It’s on the verge of being

Shelia pointed out.

recall by Shelia, Victor saw a small burn on the meat’s exposed side when he looked

the meat over while he was still thinking about what she

.

or not

was, after all, Shelia’s own

didn’t seem to take it

"Will you please

"Hmm,"

said after a

"Is that a yes?"

Shelia’s eyes glowed, and she broke into

dimples, meanwhile, became much

Victor nodded, "Okay."

broadly as she

individual I’ve ever encountered, except for

"Orphanage?"

where I was

two years ago, the orphanage was taken over and the old

as

woman was

meals and

is an orphan…’ Victor

guardian was needed to look after you since the

didn’t you leave with

and answered, "I didn’t

the only home Shelia

okay with you being outdoors on your

her head, Shelia said,

was desperate to visit her tomb, so I

remain unknown to them, and I

of the dingy ground,

of sunshine that had been scattered by the trees and

her hands behind

with disappointment as she gazed up at

to visit

what keeps you

are people guarding

if I

had no idea that I have a name

tell her my name when I meet her again in

said, blinking

on

to see you, Van, it

had a soft spot in her

I was a lovely

It didn’t seem appropriate to use this term to

Shelia, Victor concluded that

description of

Victor asked her, "Since she was responsible for your upbringing, how come you

was unable to communicate since she was deaf, mute,

to us

card was in

her pocket as if it were a treasure and presented it

orphanage, each kid was given a unique

the fruits, she put them on the cards and let us take them as we pleased, but we were naughty,’ shella erupted into laughter, which was maybe due to the reference to the pleasant

at the card–the King of

Did I get the

Shelia inquired.

"It’s definitely the best."

and said, "I am the only one with the

toasting as they were

meat after he

set

Eat, please."

came from her gut just

to her

than the meat i made myself! Van,

Victor’s expression softened somewhat.

rejuvenated after

rose to her feet, she

ready to rise when Shelia abruptly

"Come on, get up."

after a little pause, he took Shelia’s

the hard way, Shelia used a

of time as

had cooled down

in sitting down on a stone and drank

how far we’ll have to

get out

some water as

was perhaps exhausted after so much walking, and he was coughing up blood for the

said incoherently, "I’m sure

Let’s move forward."

still have

"Like never before…"

continued to hold

motion, she murmured, "Van, you

return, be sure

to the side of

was covered in mud after a

you? What’s

"Plan?"

was slow

we leave the

continue my travels and explore

station when I can no

with

"Shelia."

have made up his mind after staring at Shelia for a

"What’s the problem?"

me after we get out

you, I will defend you if she

can count on

to come

all right with you? If you don’t want to,

concerned that Shelia

paused for a while before asking, "Are

"No, I’m not.

to treat you the

Victor convinced her.

smiled at

we get out of the

"Sure."

they emerged from the woods, though, everything

sun started to disappear below the horizon, basking the forest in a pale red glow that passed through the branches and

the bodies

noon and now,

they saw

we’re out of

villagers if we walk

We can…"

sentence, she saw Victor stop

She was confused.

wanting to

"Van?"

didn’t expect you to come out

looked for

that were parked not far

at the front, looking at them intently as he played with

away that they were

instinctively moved to shield Victor, who in turn

eyes off

a voice that only Shelia could hear, Victor said, "Run into the forest when I tell

even when

were finding our way out of the forest,

marks and you

"And then?"

her

straight into Shelia’s

"Walk along this road.

borrow a mobile phone from them, and call

Norton didn’t intend to

a game with Victor by throwing

escape this predicament, Shelia shouldn’t

give Shelia a family, bring her back to see his

not fulfill

Shelia’s hand, Victor wrote a phone

number once you

he whispered.

my grandmother’s

will pick

looked down

respond, Victor looked

"No."

pulled her

eyes were a little

want to remember the number, nor do I want

a good

Victor frowned.

was so anxious that he coughed violently as soon as he

remained adamant and clenched

just didn’t want to spread her palm and let Victor write

Norton couldn’t hear what Victor and Shelia were talking about, he could tell that they were reluctant to leave each

a condescending sneer, he said, "Tut, tut, tut, this is

for each other! I’m so moved by

tensed up when saw Norton approaching

pulled Sheila

seriously injured and keeping himself standing steadily

for him to

up to

Shelia

patience with them, Norton pulled

was too fast for Victor

"Let her go!"

firm grip on

hearing vexation in

know you look

said as he wiped the mud on Shelia’s face

pain, Victor rushed over and tried to

tracks when something

was a knife that

spat out a mouthful

"No."

"What are you saying?"

and gave Victor a mocking smile, pretending

that he

and tried to steady

you want is my

has nothing to do

So, let her go!"

wow! This

Norton curled his lips.

don’t want to let

but I find your

for you to die alone?

red eyes,

pressed against her neck, all Shelia

was

spat out blood and beg

all you can do? Threaten

smile plastered

his eyes narrowed in anger when he heard

did you just

you

Shelia swallowed.

a sense of accomplishment by threatening two

don’t have in you to do

So, cut the crap.

you want to kill

"Shelia…"

tried to

knew that she

was afraid that Shelia would make Norton’s hackles rise and the man

Norton was indeed angry.

fierce, but he kept his voice in check as

like you really want to

Shelia rolled her eyes.

can help you with

Norton said, laughing derisively.

turned to his men and instructed them, "Tie

squinted his eyes and asked anxiously, "What are you going

Norton didn’t answer.

just glared at

men did as they were

and feet bound, Shelia was

was made to ride

Norton was

river was

over, it inundated Shelia, making her choke easily Victor saw how Shelia’s

the blue veins on his neck became very

his teeth and

to open her eyes because of the gushing water, Shelia

actually wanted Victor

her mouth, she was choked by

her eyes became

on Victor’s face,

but he was useless in this kind

making me laugh,

you think that I’m a good man? Why the

the rope, squatted down, and

you wanting to save her so much, I will give

good in me, huh? What

just

whatever it took to save

was in the middle of the river, Norton squinted his eyes

men behind him appeared and stood between the

and looked at Victor with a

"Here’s what I’m thinking.

two are the

killed two people, and the one on the right has

pause, Norton continued, "You want to save her, right? Knock them

holding Victor’s arms let

in his hand, Norton touched its tip with his thumb

two before the rope

goodbye

afraid that

flame, Victor didn’t care about

he quickly rushed up

mercenary and the most popular leader

even his weakest subordinates should be strong

was currently

not even be able to defeat one of

tall and burly men

Victor was at a disadvantage from the very

right in his abdomen one after another,

hit, Victor staggered and

his strength left him, and

of his bones being broken scattered all over his body, making him feel

this time, Victor’s face looked black with

stand,

could even get back on his feet, he saw

his arm to

Victor spat out a mouthful of blood, and

point, Victor’s vision became

still managed to fix his eyes on the rope, which was only a few steps away

how many

out and the rope was

into this trouble, so he was willing to do anything to rescue

to go

he fell back to the ground and lost

raining?’ After some time, Victor was somewhat awakened when he felt droplets of

to open his eyes, but his vision was

on the ground, watching the

help but wonder if

hadn’t fully recovered yet, so he thought

that pierced every inch of his body made Victor realize that he was

stand up, but he couldn’t

could only move his hands a little bit, grabbing the

head to look at the river, only to find that there was

was no trace of

"Ahem!"

coughed violently, spurting out

the soil and opened his eyes

as if he was waiting for something

waited for a

he didn’t even know how much

the person

the river or

to loss of blood and the excruciating pain he was

he lost

up again, he was finally

subordinates found him near the

to rescue him lasted for

that Victor had fractures in eight

and lungs were inflamed, and the critically ill notice was issued

after he woke up was ask Carolyn to send people to look

was still wearing an oxygen mask and

of danger yet,

could sense that she must be a very important

dare delay to send people to search for Shelia along the

lasted for seven days, but Shelia

there was still no news about

Victor was a crumpled playing card that got wet from

surface was mostly covered with mud, but one could easily recognize

later,

he did after

put the King of Hearts card in a box and buried it under a

marble tombstone aside from the

Shelia’s

of Victor’s recovery, while Karl was on

still tried to rush him to the hospital, but he was

was also in that year

finished his studies and finally

companies

shortest time, Victor raised the sales of these companies from

ability,

time, Roger entered the

he saw her sitting on the edge of the bed, holding a bowl of porridge,

can’t eat any

had been eating porridge

even stand the

choice but to

she said, "Eat it again

stuck his tongue out, not

the door, so he politely greeted,

the past half a month, Roger came to the hospital to visit Joey

kid gradually got acquainted with

Roger would

he could

could only

Roger, Rachel turned around and was surprised to

you say that you wouldn’t come

came here, he would send Rachel a message in advance to ask her if she wanted to eat something or

every time, he would still insist on

night, when Roger asked, he said that he had an important

still visit, it would probably be very late

initially, I

moment

Rachel furrowed her

"Rachel, Victor woke up."

Roger broke the news.

to Victor lasted for more than

of the operating room opened and closed for several times

couldn’t do anything but wait outside

fourth day since the operation began, the indicator

the surgery

but he wasn’t completely

he was wheeled

until two days ago that

to be

he was still

the field to check Victor’s condition and give

it wasn’t what he

Victor sustained serious injuries.

had healed, they still had an

his new injuries

he said that only a miracle

at least tell us when he will

asked in a

afraid I can’t say that

help but frown as

may be blunt, please consider

chance that he’ll never wake up? Is he going to become

expert didn’t say this, it was

but there was a huge chance that this was

for Carson and Lukas, Rachel was the first

that Rachel

leaned against the wall outside Joey’s ward, holding a

and there were dark circles round

just went down to tell Rachel about

news, her face

already prepared herself for something like

Carson was

know when she became

a coma for about half a

might have been even

there outside the operating room for 70 hours before the indication

the cigarette in Carson’s hand and reminded him in a low voice,

You can’t smoke here."

regained his senses, Carson put

expression, he didn’t bother continue

subject and asked,

"Joey? He’s fine.

doctor checked him up yesterday and said that he

that his plaster will be removed

through the

Joey sleeping soundly in the

for a bit and said, "Good for

I’m

turned around and left

he really just visited to tell Rachel about the doctor’s diagnosis regarding Victor’s

had

eye, two

was made aware of Victor’s condition, Rachel didn’t intend to visit

ward

same time, Carson didn’t show

the diagnosis came from an expert, she was also convinced that Victor would

Victor

Obviously, Rachel was stunned.

long time without being able

still judging Roger’s expression if he was saying the

you want to go upstairs and see

Rachel pressed her lips

someone gently pulled her sleeve and pulled her back

I want

Joey, pleading in

hide the fact that Victor was in a

the hospital, he actually had a vague

had always been absent-minded and Victor hadn’t come up in any of

Joey finally found out the truth, Rachel didn’t have the heart to

say anything, nor did he pester Rachel to

he just smiled and made

daddy bad? They say bad

to worry too much

she

moments, she

"Yes, of course."

weeks, Joey had a good

didn’t mention Victor, as if there was

up in the middle of the night from time to time and look at the ceiling with his eyes wide

all inside him, but Rachel

"Okay…"

heart softened,

was in

was inconvenient for him to walk

let him

him, and the three of them went to Victor’s ward

they

stopped at the floor of

the entire floor was a VIP ward, and there was only one patient at this time, Carson was sitting on the

he heard that there were steps approaching, he furrowed his brows and eventually

scene, Carson knew that he

first time I’ve

What brings you here?"

asked Joey as he quickly set the document

"Have you been beaten?"

asked, blinking his innocent

who will be beaten easily? Ha! I’m the

where did those dark circles around

"Dark circles?"

almost choked at Joey’s

phone, opened its front camera, and looked

realized that Joey

bags were so big that it seemed like

of course, this was only to

good

handsome young man, but even he was

"Ha-ha!"

seeing the upset look

innocent laughter, Carson realized that he was fooled by this little

Carson stepped forward and pinched Joey’s face

"You, brat.

dare you tease your godfather? You

and retorted, "Huh? Who said that you

have no opinion

and I

We are best friends.

the one who picked

how I

and crossed his arms

don’t want it, that

using his uninjured hand and said, "Humph! If I

he withdrew his hand from Joey’s

also didn’t expect that I would have

it’s a fact that you can’t

change your attitude towards

but he stuck

of his eye, Carson

composure and commented, "I see that you’re not

heard that Mr.Sullivan

I came here with Rachel and

Roger explained.

lose his composure just because of Carson’s

"Oh, I see."

and said, "His ward is

He is resting inside.

Tacit Cooperation Rachel looked at the ward Carson

knew what was going

"Let’s go,"

Roger reminded Rachel gently.

"Alright."

walked towards

followed her, pushing

placed over

was lost in thoughts

when he was about to

"Mr.Jimenez."

"Is anything the matter?"

Roger asked.

and looked at

was not standing very far

him

if he

after taking a quick glance at him, Joey turned

need to use the

overheard what Joey

about I take

"No!"

in a very decisive

serious look

I am

it wasn’t a problem for Rachel

they were no longer in the

it wouldn’t be appropriate for Rachel to take a boy to the ladies’ room, just like it

to Joey’s words, Rachel looked

was Roger, then

to bother the former, Carson

him to

coughed and refused to pay

and turned around as if

give Joey a thumbs up

pretended like he was answering

I have read the plan you sent to

talking, he headed towards the nurses’

he wasn’t very good

lit up while he was still

implied that there was no call at all! Rachel saw what just happened

"It’s okay.

will take

He is actually right.

like him to be taken

Roger smiled gently.

"Thank you very much,"

Rachel said to Roger.

he heard those

to have been

days, they got

them were always in

for reasons best known to her, she still alienated

of things,

knew that it couldn’t be

the night Rachel was standing outside the operating room where Victor

Joey

some time,

"Where is Joey?"

he asked Rachel knowingly.

took a quick glance at the phone in his

with the

"What?"

and took

smile appeared on his

I am through with

was left with no choice! My subordinates

"Of course they are!"

Rachel narrowed her eyes.

a fake

not very good

answer the call only moments ago, the smile on his face

tip of his nose and

you want to go

head in order to look through

was

only the living

Rachel pushed the door open in no time and

said Victor would lie in the bed for

has to undergo half a year’s rehabilitation

voice came from behind

in a stable condition now,

"Get out of here!"

interrupted

stopped and saw a man in

He looked dejected.

a document in his

and Carson as soon as he came

at first, then his face

"Mr.Scott!"

hung

It was quite noticeable.

was an employee of the Sullivan Group and the

about what just happened

man’s expression that the project

was drawn to

was what really interested

She turned to Carson.

back at her, she raised her eyebrows

"Well, this is Troy.

works as a member of the Sullivan Group’s project

meant by

a loss for

many surnames

had to choose

who

and

"Miss Bennet."

her head slightly in

was

him the scare of his life! Nonetheless,

Bennet, I’m going back to the

and said,

do that

Carson said, Troy went out of

at

to see that Victor was sitting against the head

seem as bad

is well and can work

the door

leaned against

follow Rachel

document when he heard the

head and say coldly,

cast her gaze

in a hospital

his face was pale despite the fact that he

and

she waited outside the operating room for more than seventy hours half a month ago, Rachel would have thought that the

was so entranced that she walked

to go out, didn’t

heard the footsteps,

looked up at the person who was

in his usual cold and stiff

Birthday Gift Caroline’s POV: Even after we finished the dance, Charles kept his hand

were many guests around, I figured it wouldn’t bode well if I

"The dance is over.

time to let

I reminded him.

eyes, but he still loosened his grip on

steps back to distance myself

reason, I could still feel the warmth of his touch

face blushed and i

my heart

moment, it felt like I had returned to

with him were the happiest

that those days were long gone and I could

looked down, feeling conflicted

"Happy birthday, Caroline."

approached me and

forced myself to ignore the burning gaze from behind me and began chatting with the guests with a smile on my

glass and taking a sip

to drink and was starting to get

Elena came to

a surprise waiting for

you like to go upstairs

she asked.

"What’s the surprise?"

This "surprise"

piqued my curiosity.

know when

appeared on Elena’s

my confusion, I followed her to

bright red rose petals scattered across the floorboard,

were also numerous balloons around the

widened

this whole scene was picturesque

surprise?’ I had no

to mind was Charles, but I

smile appeared on my

never spent this much effort on me,

joy of receiving this birthday surprise

I stared at the

tranquil, and yet my mind was

sea breeze, I

sudden, a fireworks display lit up the sky,

sky, a deafening sound resonated

like a

by the noise, I covered my ears at

the ground and

body began trembling uncontrollably, and i

incident at the abandoned warehouse kept

breath I felt so dizzy that I almost

strong arms held me

I’m here."

came from above me,

It was Charles.

my eyes, Gently, he brushed

to be scared