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.

a long time since

"Let’s not talk here.

It’s so cold!"

whined, her teeth

a thought

I forgot all about

and ran to the

Ethan followed behind her.

extremely flustered, and he couldn’t

told you to keep an

to the side while he cleaned up the

Janet stood in the corner, restlessly

"I’m sorry.

were talking to Charis, so I

Ethan had guessed this.

hands, he raised his eyes to look at Janet

"It’s my fault.

you enough sense

out his arms and said

and leaned her face against his

from Patrick, she

I just got him

a huge grudge against

we just go there?"Chapter 461 In Order To Survive Shelia

on her forehead in a casual manner, flipped the meat over, and went

you really don’t want to tell me, then

was just being

nothing, and silently retracted

feeling that Shelia didn’t

fruits and poured the

definitely could

Here you go."

"And what about you?"

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

more for myself

take the meat, Shelia smiled as if

"Don’t worry about it.

This meat isn’t poisonous.

can rest assured and

high alert right then, watching Shelia with vigilant

be an easy-going person, this

that

she was wrong and he was on

"I’m not very hungry.

go ahead and

look away and placed

the

nodded and said, "Okay, it’s perfectly fine if you

a bite out of

for some time, she furrowed her brows and stuck

really hard to

was not cooked

just now must

you tell me?

Victor didn’t say a word and only continued to

turned around and spotted Victor’s smiling

smiling? Van, you

smiling?’ Victor never even realized that he was

and gently touched the corner of his

to roast

gone

get

not tired at

just sit

chin, Shelia proceeded to sit down

blinked her eyes and said, "Van, you’re good at cooking

learned how to survive in

spoke in

"Survive in the wildness?"

the very first time that Shelia had

of your way to

Shelia did earlier, Victor also crushed some fruits and poured the juice over

he used a knife to slice

what Shelia

a while, he said, "I have no

fact, Victor knew the reason

learned that because he wanted to be prepared in case

even under ner protection, Victor

learn more skills so that he would at least have a better chance to

"Alright."

Shelia continued to focus her gaze

eye, Victor caught a glimpse of Shelia’s profile and the dust that rested on

stretched out a hand to

was startled and turned to look

Victor looked straight into Shelia’s eyes, he

retracted his hand, looked away, and explained, "Your nose has

"Is that so?"

ahead to rub her nose with the

about now? Is it still

"No,"

said, glancing over

"Good."

Shelia smiled.

other than roasting meat? I want to

Can you teach me?"

do you want to

"In order to survive."

naturally.Chapter 462 Come

shelia said casually.

Victor felt sad

flipped? It’s

Shelia pointed out.

Victor saw a small burn on the meat’s exposed side when he looked at

the meat over while he was

.

thoughts about whether or not to

all, Shelia’s own

on the other hand, didn’t seem to

asked, "Will you please

"Hmm,"

after

"Is that a yes?"

glowed, and she broke into

dimples, meanwhile, became much more

Victor nodded, "Okay."

grinned broadly as she said,

ever encountered,

"Orphanage?"

That’s where I

orphanage was taken over and

clouded as she spoke

was

younger, she prepared great meals and gave me

an orphan…’ Victor

to look after you since the orphanage was

didn’t you leave with the other

Victor and answered, "I

was the only home Shelia had

you being

her head, Shelia

desperate to visit her tomb,

to them, and I don’t intend to

dingy ground, Shelia lay down

bathed in shards of sunshine that had been scattered by the trees and fallen to

hands behind her head,

disappointment as she gazed up at

to

what keeps you

are people

me if I

no idea that I

I meet her again in

said, blinking her

on Shelia

continued, "If she had the chance to see you, Van, it would be more than likely that she

in her heart for adorable

that I was a

didn’t seem appropriate to use this term to describe a

at Shelia, Victor concluded

description of

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

since she was deaf, mute, and

never referred to us by

card was

it from her pocket as if it were a treasure and presented

each kid was

and let us take them as we pleased, but we were naughty,’ shella erupted into

stared at the

get the best

Shelia inquired.

"It’s definitely the best."

"I am the only

was toasting as they were

gave her the meat after he re-applied

set

Eat, please."

gut

she put her hand to her stomach and ate

It’s much better than the meat i made myself! Van,

Victor’s expression softened somewhat.

felt rejuvenated after a

rose to her feet, she said,

was ready to rise when Shelia

"Come on, get up."

was taken aback, and after a little pause, he took Shelia’s hand in his

learning the hard way, Shelia used a dart to put marks on

track of time as

had

on a

sure how far we’ll have to travel until

can get out before the sun

some water as

and

said incoherently, "I’m sure we

Let’s move forward."

still have

"Like never before…"

and continued to hold

forward motion, she murmured, "Van, you

be

to the side of her

mud after a day and a night in the

you? What’s your

"Plan?"

slow to

we leave the forest? Where

travels and explore the world’s finest

I can no longer

answered with a

"Shelia."

mind

"What’s the problem?"

with me after we get out

I will

can count

me to

all right with you? If

was concerned that

for a while before

"No, I’m not.

you the best I

Victor convinced her.

and smiled at

when we get out of

"Sure."

from the woods,

463 Let Her Go The sun started to disappear below the horizon, basking the forest in a pale red glow that passed through the

light glimmered on the bodies of Victor

walking since high noon and

they saw

we’re out

we’ll meet local villagers if we walk

We can…"

could finish her sentence, she

She was confused.

wanting

"Van?"

well, well, i didn’t expect you

came, Shelia looked for the

were parked not

front, looking at them intently as he played

could feel right away that they were

who in turn stood

off Norton, watching his

Shelia could hear, Victor said, "Run into the forest when I

get lost even when it

of the forest,

you can get back

"And then?"

her

straight

"Walk along this road.

you meet villagers, borrow a mobile phone from them, and call this

that Norton didn’t intend to let him

to play a game with Victor by

if he couldn’t escape

promised to give Shelia a family, bring her back to see

Victor could not fulfill the promise

wrote a phone number on

once you

he whispered.

is my

her and she will pick you up wherever you

down at her

looked at her and

"No."

pulled her

eyes were a

to remember the number,

a good

Victor frowned.

he coughed violently as soon as he finished

adamant and

just didn’t want to spread her palm and

hear what Victor and Shelia were talking about, he could

"Tut, tut, tut, this is so

strong feelings for each other! I’m so moved by

when saw Norton

pulled Sheila behind

injured and keeping himself standing steadily was taxing

hard for

up to

and Shelia

patience with them, Norton pulled

was too fast for Victor to

"Let her go!"

kept a firm grip

hearing vexation

know you

as he wiped the mud on Shelia’s

incense Victor, Disregarding body pain,

in his tracks when something silver

a knife that Norton pressed

a mouthful of

"No."

"What are you saying?"

tone and gave Victor a mocking smile, pretending not to hear what Victor had

he had difficulty in

fist and tried

want

to do with

So, let her go!"

wow! This

Norton curled his lips.

don’t want to let her

comes from but

for you to die alone? I can do

red eyes,

tip of the knife pressed against her neck, all Shelia could do

body was

she saw Victor spat out blood and

that all you can do?

kept his mocking smile plastered on

his eyes narrowed in anger when he heard

you

you are

Shelia swallowed.

a sense of accomplishment by

in you to do what you intend to

So, cut the crap.

to kill

"Shelia…"

tried to

that she was provoking

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

Norton was indeed angry.

but he kept his voice in check as he

you really

Shelia rolled her eyes.

can help you

Norton said, laughing derisively.

to his men and instructed them, "Tie

eyes and asked anxiously,

Norton didn’t answer.

just glared

as

Shelia was taken to one

made to ride a different

his brain thinking about where Norton was taking them.Chapter 464 Victor Woke Up

river was

over, it inundated Shelia, making her

the blue veins on his neck became very

and yelled, "Let her

to open her eyes because of the gushing water, Shelia had difficulty

actually wanted Victor to

opened her

enough, her

expression on Victor’s face,

might be strong but he was useless in this kind

me laugh,

you think that I’m a good man? Why

cunning smile, Norton approached the rope, squatted down, and blew the

of you wanting to save her so much, I

some good in me,

could just glare at

whatever it took to

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

appeared

up and looked at Victor

"Here’s what I’m thinking.

two are the weakest among

killed two people, and the one on the

continued, "You want to save

speaking, the two men who had been holding Victor’s arms let go of him and took a few steps

his hand, Norton touched its tip with his thumb and warned, "But of course, you have

these two before

goodbye

washed away, I’m afraid that you won’t even find her

at the flickering flame, Victor didn’t care about anything

so he quickly rushed up and fought against

a mercenary and the most popular

even his weakest subordinates should be strong as

Victor was currently

in his peak state, he might not even be

tall and burly men

Victor was at a disadvantage from

two men punched Victor right in his abdomen one after another, and hit his back with

was hit,

repeatedly, his strength left him, and he eventually knelt on the

being broken scattered all over his

time, Victor’s face looked

to stand, not ready

on his feet,

still able to subconsciously use his arm to block

a mouthful of blood, and a tooth

Victor’s vision became

on the rope, which was only a

didn’t matter how many

out and the rope was grasped, Shelia’s

he was willing to

wanted to go on, his body couldn’t keep

the ground

time, Victor was somewhat awakened when he felt droplets of

struggled to open his eyes, but his vision

on the

help but wonder

hadn’t fully recovered yet, so he thought that he

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

up, but he couldn’t move even an

move his hands a little bit, grabbing the mud

at the

no trace

"Ahem!"

spurting

unto the soil and opened his eyes as wide as he

if he was waiting for

for a long

didn’t even know how much

found the

someone would raise her head from the river or come out from somewhere and

to loss of blood and the excruciating pain he

he lost consciousness

again, he was

found him near the

rescue him lasted

found out that Victor had fractures in

chest and lungs were inflamed, and

he woke up was ask Carolyn to send

still wearing an oxygen mask and

of danger yet, but all he

was, but she could sense that she must

send people to search for

lasted for seven days,

there was still no news

was able to give Victor was a crumpled playing card that got wet from the rain

could easily recognize

later,

did after fully recovering was buy a

of Hearts card in a box and buried it

nothing on the marble

wasn’t even Shelia’s name

Victor’s recovery, while Karl was on a business trip,

rush him to the hospital, but

It was also in that

finished

over several small companies under the control of the Sullivan

the sales of these companies from a very low level to one of the top in

outstanding ability, Carolyn gradually handed over the

this time, Roger entered the ward

her sitting on the edge of the bed, holding a bowl

can’t eat

porridge for about

stand the smell of porridge

no choice but to put the

"Eat it again when

tongue out, not

saw Roger standing at the door, so he politely greeted,

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

kid gradually got

liked about him was that Roger would bring some snacks when

couldn’t eat too much, he could at least

course, Joey could only eat them

turned around and was

that you wouldn’t

send Rachel a message in advance to ask her if she wanted to

every time, he would still insist on

had an important project meeting today, so he might not be

it would probably

initially, I

moment before

Rachel furrowed her brows

"Rachel, Victor woke up."

Roger broke the news.

465 Dark Circles The operation done to Victor lasted for more

closed for several times

do anything but

the operation began, the

indicated that the surgery was

saved, but he wasn’t completely out

wheeled

not until two days ago that his vital signs became

became eligible to be transferred to

was still

field to check

what he was

Victor sustained serious injuries.

old wounds had healed, they still had an

new injuries just

he said that only

you at least tell us when he will

in a

can’t

expert couldn’t help but frown as he

I may be blunt, please consider preparing for the

Is he going to become a vegetable for the rest of his

was obvious that this

there was

for Carson and Lukas, Rachel was the first one to know about

that Rachel

leaned against the wall outside Joey’s ward, holding

looked slightly disoriented, and there

went down to tell

the tragic news,

as if she had already prepared herself for something

Carson was

know when she became

been in a coma for about

might have

for 70 hours before the indication

the cigarette in Carson’s hand and reminded him in

You can’t smoke here."

senses, Carson put out the

didn’t bother continue discussing about Victor’s grim

then changed the subject and asked, "Anyway,

"Joey? He’s fine.

checked him up yesterday and said that he has been

his plaster will be removed

through the

sleeping soundly

stretched for

I’m leaving

saying that, Carson turned around and

he really just visited to tell Rachel

he had

an eye,

made aware of Victor’s condition, Rachel didn’t

stayed in Joey’s ward almost twenty-four

the same time, Carson didn’t show his face

was also convinced that

that Victor

Obviously, Rachel was stunned.

Roger for a long time without being

was as if she was still judging Roger’s expression if he

Rachel… Do you want to go

pressed her lips hard

pulled her sleeve and pulled her

I want to see

was Joey, pleading in a

that Victor was in a coma after obtaining serious

woke up in the hospital, he actually

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

the truth, Rachel didn’t have

nor did he pester Rachel

just smiled and made

daddy bad? They say bad people

we don’t have to worry too much about

she felt a lump in

a few moments, she mustered her

"Yes, of course."

following two weeks, Joey had a good rest

Victor, as if

up in the middle of the night from time to

kid for keeping it all inside him, but Rachel

"Okay…"

heart softened, and

was in the second inpatient

fully healed yet, it was inconvenient for him to walk all the way

him sit in

pushed the wheelchair for him, and the three of them went to

they

finally stopped at the floor of the ward where Victor

and there was only one patient at this time, Carson was sitting on the sofa in

heard that there were steps approaching, he furrowed his brows and eventually saw three people approaching like a

wer If Victor had seen this scene, Carson knew that

first time I’ve seen you

What brings you here?"

set the document he was

"Have you been beaten?"

blinking his innocent

who will be beaten

where did those dark circles around

"Dark circles?"

almost choked at Joey’s

he picked up his phone, opened its

that

looked totally haggard, and his eye bags were so big that

this was only

hadn’t have a good sleep for

a handsome young man, but even

"Ha-ha!"

seeing the upset look on Carson’s

Joey’s seemingly innocent laughter, Carson realized that he was fooled by this little

Carson stepped forward and

"You, brat.

your

sharp pain on his face and retorted, "Huh? Who said that you are

have no opinion

I

We are best friends.

one who picked

how I became

and crossed his arms

you don’t want it, that

Carson’s hand away using his uninjured hand and said, "Humph! If I don’t want to admit it, no one

tongue as he

voice, "I also didn’t expect

I said, it’s a fact

change

but he stuck out his

of his

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

that Mr.Sullivan

came here with Rachel and Joey

Roger explained.

didn’t plan to lose his composure just because

"Oh, I see."

at the room and

He is resting inside.

466 Tacit Cooperation Rachel looked at

was going

"Let’s go,"

Roger reminded Rachel gently.

"Alright."

and walked

her,

arms were placed over his

was lost in thoughts

when he was about to sav something, Joey

"Mr.Jimenez."

"Is anything the matter?"

Roger asked.

stopped and looked

not standing very

result, Joey could see him

raised his eyebrows as if he was giving

taking a quick glance at

to

overheard what Joey was

I take

"No!"

replied in a

serious look

am

ward, so it wasn’t a problem for Rachel to

at that moment, they were no longer in the

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

words,

then her gaze

to bother the former, Carson soon observed that she

wanted him to

to pay

and turned around as if nothing

give Joey a thumbs up without Rachel

like he was answering

I have read the plan you sent to

headed towards

he wasn’t very good

while he was still holding

what just happened clearly and understood that it was all

"It’s okay.

take Joey

He is actually right.

embarrassing for a boy like him to be taken to the bathroom

Roger smiled gently.

"Thank you very much,"

Rachel said to Roger.

when he heard those

thought that Rachel ought to have been closer to him than she

days, they got

were always in one

for reasons best known to her, she still

of things, Rachel

knew that it couldn’t be achieved

about the night Rachel was standing outside the operating room where Victor was

Joey

some time, Carson came

"Where is Joey?"

he asked Rachel knowingly.

took a quick glance at the phone

you through with

"What?"

sight and took a peek at

appeared on

am through

left with no choice! My subordinates are too bad at making

"Of course they are!"

Rachel narrowed her eyes.

fake smile

not very good at

had pretended to answer

tip of his nose and coughed to ease the awkwardness

you want

raised her head in order to look through the glass

was a

view, only the living room

see Victor, Rachel pushed the door open in no time and

Victor would lie in the

undergo half a

came from

is in a stable condition now,

"Get out of here!"

interrupted

and saw a man in a

He looked dejected.

was a document

and Carson as soon as he

first, then his face

"Mr.Scott!"

hung

It was quite noticeable.

an employee of the Sullivan Group and the director

about what just happened to

could tell from the man’s expression that the

must have been driven out! Her attention was drawn to the

surname was what really

She turned to Carson.

looked back at her, she

"Well, this is Troy.

of

what she meant by just

was at a loss for

were so many surnames in the

he had to

who Rachel

and

"Miss Bennet."

nodded her head slightly in

forehead was covered with

life! Nonetheless, he was still

Bennet, I’m going back to the

waved his hand and said, "Very well

should do that

what Carson said, Troy went out of sight in a blink

looked at the door

was sitting against the head of the

condition doesn’t seem as bad

well and can

walked to the door

against

didn’t follow Rachel

reading some document when

didn’t raise his head and say coldly,

cast her gaze

in

was pale despite the fact that he lowered

and looked

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

she

asked you to go out, didn’t

heard the footsteps,

up at the person

speaking in his usual cold and stiff tone,

The Birthday Gift Caroline’s POV: Even after we finished the

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

"The dance is over.

to let

I reminded him.

he still loosened his grip

few steps back to

feel the warmth of his touch on

face blushed and i felt rather

heart was

like I had

him were the

I reminisced, I knew that those days were

looked down, feeling conflicted and dispirited

"Happy birthday, Caroline."

guests suddenly approached

the burning gaze from behind me and began chatting with the guests with a

glass and taking a

few to drink and

time, Elena

a surprise waiting for you on the second

go upstairs and take

she asked.

"What’s the surprise?"

This "surprise"

piqued my curiosity.

when you

appeared

I followed her to the deck on the

saw that there were bright red rose petals scattered across the floorboard, forming a

also numerous balloons around

eyes widened in

say, this whole

this my birthday surprise?’ I had no idea who had

to mind was Charles, but I quickly

be him?’ A bitter smile appeared on my lips, and somehow, I began to despise myself for having such

effort on me, and yet I still couldn’t

receiving this

stood on the second floor, I stared at the night scene around

and yet my mind

of the cold sea

sudden, a fireworks display lit

to the sky, a deafening sound resonated in the

sounded like a

I covered my ears at

the ground

uncontrollably, and i felt like

at the abandoned warehouse

was out of breath I felt so dizzy that I almost

attack, a pair of strong arms held me

I’m here."

from above me, making

It was Charles.

my eyes, Gently, he brushed my

have to