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.

been a long time since

"Let’s not talk here.

It’s so cold!"

her

thought

I forgot

from Ethan’s embrace and ran to the kitchen in a

Ethan followed behind her.

was extremely

you to

his head, he gently pulled her to the side while he cleaned up

in the corner, restlessly watching

"I’m sorry.

talking to Charis, so I rushed to you and forgot

Ethan had guessed this.

his freshly washed hands, he raised his eyes to look

"It’s my fault.

didn’t give you enough sense

his arms and said gently, "Come

obeyed and leaned her face against his

she murmured,

you and I just got

has a huge

go there?"Chapter 461 In Order To Survive Shelia didn’t notice what was going

casual manner,

want to tell me, then forget about

just being a

nothing, and silently retracted the knife he was hiding behind his

feeling that Shelia didn’t mean him any

and poured

this definitely could

Here you go."

"And what about you?"

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

more

take the meat, Shelia smiled as if she had

"Don’t worry about it.

This meat isn’t poisonous.

and

alert right then, watching Shelia with vigilant and cold

Shelia happened to be an easy-going person, this didn’t

that Victor had

his injuries, she knew she

"I’m not very hungry.

ahead

away and

the rest for

Shelia nodded and said, "Okay, it’s perfectly

took a bite out of

furrowed her brows and

really hard to

not cooked

gave you just now must be the

tell me?

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

aside, Shelia turned around

smiling? Van, you did this

I smiling?’ Victor never even

his hand and gently touched the

roast

have gone

and get some

tired at

sit right

Shelia proceeded to sit down next

"Van, you’re good at cooking meat, aren’t you? Did you learn this skill all

how to survive in the

in a

"Survive in the wildness?"

was the very first time that Shelia had ever heard of such

go out of your way to

Shelia did earlier, Victor also crushed some fruits and poured

a knife to slice

what Shelia asked, his

while, he said, "I have no

fact, Victor knew

learned that because he wanted to be prepared

under ner protection, Victor

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

"Alright."

focus her gaze

corner of his eye, Victor caught a glimpse of Shelia’s

a hand to wipe

startled and turned to look at Victor with a

Victor looked straight into Shelia’s eyes, he started to feel a

his hand, looked away, and

"Is that so?"

to rub her nose with the back of her

now? Is

"No,"

glancing over at

"Good."

Shelia smiled.

other than roasting meat? I want to

Can you teach me?"

you want to learn

"In order to survive."

out of Shelia’s mouth very naturally.Chapter

shelia said casually.

Victor felt sad upon hearing

ready to be flipped? It’s on the verge of being

Shelia pointed out.

burn on the meat’s exposed side

meat over while he was still thinking about what she

.

thoughts about whether or not

all,

other hand, didn’t seem to

asked, "Will you please teach

"Hmm,"

said after

"Is that a yes?"

and she

meanwhile,

Victor nodded, "Okay."

grinned broadly as she said, "Thanks so much,

I’ve ever encountered, except for my

"Orphanage?"

where

over

clouded as

elderly woman was a wonderful

I was younger, she prepared great meals and gave me a lot of fresh

orphan…’ Victor pursed

look after you since the orphanage was taken

didn’t you leave with the other

at Victor and answered, "I didn’t want to

the only home Shelia had known

with you being

her head, Shelia said,

visit her

unknown to them, and I don’t intend

of the dingy ground, Shelia lay down

bathed in shards of sunshine that had been scattered

her hands behind her head, her lips

as she gazed up

want to

what keeps you from

are people

find me if I go

that I have a

name when I meet

said, blinking her

eyes remained fixed on Shelia

see you, Van, it would be more

soft spot in her heart

I was a lovely

seem appropriate to use this term to

concluded that

apt description of

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

to communicate since

never referred to us

a poker card was in my

her pocket as if it were a treasure and presented it to Victor as

each kid

take them as we pleased, but we were naughty,’ shella erupted into laughter, which

at the

I get

Shelia inquired.

"It’s definitely the best."

the card and said, "I am the

was toasting

her the meat after

set

Eat, please."

came from her gut just

her hand to her stomach and

much better than the meat i made myself! Van,

Victor’s expression softened somewhat.

rejuvenated after a

to her feet, she

rise when Shelia abruptly

"Come on, get up."

pause,

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

had lost track of time as

had cooled down

assisted Victor in sitting down on a stone and drank

we’ll have to

get out before the

drank some

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

incoherently, "I’m

Let’s move forward."

still have the

"Like never before…"

nodded and continued to

she murmured, "Van, you

return, be

to

covered in mud after a day and a night

you? What’s your

"Plan?"

was slow

your plans once we leave the forest? Where will

know… I want to continue my travels and explore the world’s finest

can no longer walk

with a

"Shelia."

his mind after staring at Shelia for a

"What’s the problem?"

with me after we get out

will like you, I will defend you if she

can count on

to come

right with you? If you don’t want

concerned that Shelia

while before asking, "Are you joking

"No, I’m not.

you

Victor convinced her.

nodded and smiled at Victor, saying,

get out of

"Sure."

emerged from the woods, though, everything

sun started to disappear below the horizon, basking the forest in a pale red glow

the bodies of Victor

been walking since high noon and now,

they saw a relatively spacious

we’re out of the

villagers if we

We can…"

her sentence,

She was confused.

wanting to know why he

"Van?"

expect you to come out

Shelia looked for the source of

saw three cars that were parked not

them

away

in turn stood protectively in front of

eyes off Norton, watching his

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

even when

out of

and you can get back

"And then?"

her

straight into

"Walk along this road.

a mobile phone from them, and call this

that Norton didn’t intend

to play a game with Victor by

couldn’t escape

to give Shelia a family, bring her back to see

that Victor could not fulfill the promise he

hand, Victor wrote a phone

the number once you get hold

he whispered.

is my grandmother’s

pick you up

looked down at

Shelia didn’t respond, Victor looked at her and asked

"No."

her

were a little

don’t want to remember the number,

be a

Victor frowned.

coughed violently as soon as he finished

and

didn’t want to spread her palm and

talking about, he could

said, "Tut, tut, tut, this

for each other! I’m

up when

intuitively pulled Sheila

keeping himself standing

hard for him

deliberately walked up

Shelia

Norton pulled

fast for

"Let her go!"

firm

found satisfaction in hearing vexation

you

the mud on Shelia’s

Disregarding body pain, Victor rushed over and tried to take Shelia back from

he stopped in his tracks when

a knife that Norton pressed against Shelia’s

out a mouthful

"No."

"What are you saying?"

a mocking smile,

that he

and tried

want is

nothing to do with

So, let her go!"

wow! This

Norton curled his lips.

I don’t want to let

comes from but I find

alone? I can do

eyes, Victor breathed

of the knife pressed against her

body was tensed

when she saw Victor spat out blood and beg for mercy, she scoffed at

that all you can do? Threaten

smile plastered on

in anger when he

did you

you are a

Shelia swallowed.

feel a sense of accomplishment by threatening

more, you don’t have in you to do what you intend

So, cut the crap.

kill me,

"Shelia…"

desperately tried to

she was

make Norton’s hackles rise and the man would do just what

Norton was indeed angry.

he kept his voice in check

like you

Shelia rolled her eyes.

help

Norton said, laughing derisively.

men and instructed them, "Tie her

anxiously, "What are you going to

Norton didn’t answer.

just glared

did as they were

bound, Shelia was taken to one of the

to ride

Norton was

was

making her choke easily Victor saw how Shelia’s face

blue

teeth and yelled,

because of the

actually wanted Victor to

her mouth,

her eyes

exasperated expression on Victor’s face, Norton scoffed

that Victor might be strong but he

me laugh,

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

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

for the sake of you wanting to save her so much, I will

me, huh? What do you

just glare

it

in the middle of the river,

appeared and stood between the rope

stood up and looked at Victor with

"Here’s what I’m thinking.

are the

killed two people, and the

want to save her,

two men who had been holding Victor’s arms let go

playing with the knife in his hand, Norton touched its tip with

two before

goodbye

moment she’s washed away, I’m afraid

the flickering flame, Victor didn’t care about

was of essence, so he quickly rushed up and fought against

mercenary and the most

subordinates should

Victor was currently badly

be able to defeat one of the two

were tall and burly men that could easily

at a disadvantage

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

was hit,

strength left him, and he eventually knelt on

being broken scattered all over his body, making

this time, Victor’s face

still tried to stand, not ready

on his feet, he saw

use his arm to block

was hit again, Victor spat out a mouthful

point, Victor’s vision

managed to fix his eyes on the

matter how many injuries he

long as the fire was put out and the

trouble, so he was willing to do

to go

fell back to the ground and lost his

After some time, Victor was somewhat awakened when he

open his eyes, but his vision

on the ground,

couldn’t help but wonder if

fully recovered yet, so

soon enough, the sharp pain that pierced every inch of his body

to stand up, but

his hands a little bit, grabbing the mud under his hands in

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

was no trace of

"Ahem!"

violently, spurting out

unto the soil and opened

river expectantly, as if he was waiting for something to show

for a long

didn’t even know how much

never found the person he

the river or come out

to loss of blood and the excruciating pain

he lost consciousness

woke up again, he

him near

to rescue him lasted

found out that Victor had fractures

right knee were shattered, his chest and lungs were inflamed, and

after he woke up was

an oxygen

life was not completely out of danger yet, but all he cared

she must be a very important person

delay to send people to search for Shelia along the

search lasted for seven days, but

week passed and there was still

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

could easily recognize

years later,

after

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

the marble tombstone

Shelia’s name on

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

to rush him to the hospital, but he

was also in that

two more years, he finished his

began taking over several small companies under the control

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

outstanding ability, Carolyn gradually handed over the Sullivan

entered the

of the bed, holding a bowl of porridge,

eat any

been eating porridge for about

stand the smell of porridge

choice but to put the bowl

"Eat it again when you

his tongue out, not intending to

Roger standing at the door,

came to

gradually got acquainted

liked about him was that Roger would

eat too much, he could at

could only eat them in

around and was surprised to

you say that you wouldn’t

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

she would say no every time, he would still insist on

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

still visit, it would

I couldn’t

at Rachel, Roger hesitated for a moment before

furrowed her

"Rachel, Victor woke up."

Roger broke the news.

465 Dark Circles The operation done to Victor

opened and closed for several times as

anything but wait outside until the

the fourth day since the operation began, the indicator light outside the

the surgery was successfully

saved, but he wasn’t

he was wheeled

ago that his vital signs

to be

was still in a

field to check

it wasn’t what he was

Victor sustained serious injuries.

old wounds had healed, they still had

new injuries just made

that only

us

asked in a

I can’t

but frown as he made

blunt, please consider preparing

Is he

the expert didn’t say this, it was obvious that this was what he

but there was

Rachel was the first one to know about

deemed that Rachel had the right

the wall outside Joey’s ward, holding a cigarette between his

looked slightly disoriented, and there were dark circles round his

to tell Rachel about

when Rachel heard the tragic news, her face didn’t show much

if she had already

fact, Carson was a

she became

Victor had been in a coma

have been

was also there outside the operating room for 70 hours before the indication

a moment of silence, Rachel glanced at the cigarette in Carson’s hand and reminded him in a low voice, "This is the area for

You can’t smoke here."

his senses, Carson put

he didn’t bother continue

the subject and asked, "Anyway, how is

"Joey? He’s fine.

and said that

plaster will be

and peeped through the glass

sleeping

stretched for a bit

I’m

that, Carson turned around

really just visited to tell Rachel about the

that, he had

the blink of an eye, two days

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

Joey’s ward almost

didn’t show his

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

Roger broke the news that Victor had miraculously

Obviously, Rachel was stunned.

for a long time

judging Roger’s expression

you want to go upstairs

asked slowly This time, Rachel pressed her lips

of nowhere, someone gently pulled her sleeve and pulled her back from her deep

I want to

was Joey, pleading

hide the fact that Victor was in a coma after obtaining serious

the hospital, he actually

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

Rachel didn’t have the

anything, nor did he pester

smiled and made

They say bad people

to worry too

at Joey’s bright eyes, she felt

she mustered her

"Yes, of course."

weeks, Joey had a good rest

Victor, as if there

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

it all inside him, but Rachel was aware that he missed Victor so

"Okay…"

heart softened,

in

wound hadn’t fully healed yet, it was inconvenient for him to walk all the way

simply let him sit

for him, and the three of them went

enough, they reached

elevator finally stopped at the floor of the ward

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

approaching, he furrowed his brows and eventually saw three people

Carson knew that he would have been

time I’ve seen you

What brings you here?"

set the document he was holding aside

"Have you been beaten?"

asked, blinking

look like someone who will be beaten easily? Ha! I’m the one who beats

dark circles around your

"Dark circles?"

almost choked at

opened its front camera, and

realized that Joey

eye bags were so big that it seemed like someone punched

this was only to be

hadn’t have a good sleep

originally a handsome young man, but even he

"Ha-ha!"

after seeing the upset look on Carson’s

realized that he was fooled by

head, Carson stepped forward and pinched Joey’s

"You, brat.

your

and retorted, "Huh? Who said that you are my godfather? I

no

I

We are best friends.

one who picked

that’s how I became your

crossed his arms in front of

for you, even if you don’t

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

he

muttered in a slightly low voice, "I also didn’t

it’s a fact that

change your attitude towards

he stuck out

of his eye, Carson

and commented,

heard that Mr.Sullivan

Rachel and Joey

Roger explained.

plan to lose his composure just

"Oh, I see."

Carson pointed at the room and said,

He is resting inside.

go and see him."Chapter 466 Tacit Cooperation Rachel looked at

was going

"Let’s go,"

Roger reminded Rachel gently.

"Alright."

nodded and walked

her, pushing

arms were placed over

was lost in thoughts

he was about to sav something,

"Mr.Jimenez."

"Is anything the matter?"

Roger asked.

stopped and looked at the

standing very

could see him from

raised his eyebrows as if he was giving

a quick glance at him, Joey

need to

overheard what

about I

"No!"

replied in a very decisive

serious look on his

am a

so it wasn’t a problem for Rachel

that moment, they were no longer in the

room, just like it wouldn’t be right for her

reaction to Joey’s words, Rachel looked

then her gaze

want to bother the former, Carson soon observed

she wanted him to take Joey to

to pay any attention

took out his phone and turned around as

managed to give Joey a thumbs up without Rachel

Carson pretended like he was

read the plan you

headed towards

he wasn’t very

phone’s screen lit up while he was still

no call at all! Rachel saw what just

"It’s okay.

will take

He is actually right.

a boy like him

Roger smiled gently.

"Thank you very much,"

Rachel said to Roger.

those words, they displeased

that Rachel ought to have been

few days, they got along really

of them were always in one

to her, she still alienated

look of things, Rachel still

that it couldn’t

thinking about the night Rachel was standing outside the

and Joey headed towards

some time, Carson

"Where is Joey?"

he asked Rachel knowingly.

took a quick glance at the

through with

"What?"

Rachel’s sight and took a

a smile appeared on his

I am

was left with no choice! My subordinates

"Of course they are!"

Rachel narrowed her eyes.

was a fake smile on her

very good at

that Rachel knew that he had pretended to answer the call only moments ago,

his nose and coughed

you want to go

order to look through the glass

ward was

point of view, only the living room could be

pushed the door

lie in the bed for

has to undergo half a

came from behind

is in a stable

"Get out of here!"

voice interrupted

man in a suit coming

He looked dejected.

a document in his

and Carson as soon as he

was stunned at first,

"Mr.Scott!"

hung around the man’s

It was quite noticeable.

Group and the

about what just happened to

could tell from the man’s expression that the project plan had

been driven out! Her attention was drawn to the name on

was what really

She turned to Carson.

at her, she raised her eyebrows

"Well, this is Troy.

as a member of the Sullivan Group’s

she meant by just looking

was at a loss

were so many surnames in the

had

recognized who

bowed and mentioned her

"Miss Bennet."

head

was covered with

him the scare of his life! Nonetheless,

Bennet, I’m going back to

his hand and said, "Very well

do that

out of

at the

to see that Victor was sitting against the head of the

condition doesn’t seem as bad as you

is well and can

to the door and

against the door

didn’t follow Rachel

some document when he heard the

head

cast her

was in a

his face was pale despite the fact that

and

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

she walked

asked you to go out, didn’t

Victor heard the

up at the person

speaking in his usual cold and stiff tone, he said softly,

Gift Caroline’s POV: Even after we finished the dance, Charles

around, I figured it wouldn’t bode well if I lost

"The dance is over.

to

I reminded him.

loosened his grip on my waist like i

few steps back to distance myself

reason, I could still feel the warmth of his

face blushed and i felt rather

heart was

a moment, it felt like

him were the

days were long gone and I could never get

feeling conflicted

"Happy birthday, Caroline."

guests suddenly approached me

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

raising my glass and taking a sip of

knowing it, I’d had a few to drink and was starting

time, Elena came to

waiting for you on

upstairs and take a look at

she asked.

"What’s the surprise?"

This "surprise"

piqued my curiosity.

when

smile appeared on Elena’s

I followed her to the deck on

I got there, I saw that there were bright red rose petals

numerous balloons

widened in

whole scene was picturesque and

my birthday surprise?’ I had no idea who had

that came to mind was Charles, but I quickly cast

my lips, and somehow, I

on me, and

joy of receiving this birthday surprise soon died

second floor, I stared at the night scene around

and yet my

cold sea breeze, I

sudden, a fireworks display lit up the

up to the sky, a

like a

I covered my ears at

on the

began trembling uncontrollably, and i felt

the abandoned warehouse kept flashing through

of breath I felt so dizzy that I almost

panic attack, a pair of strong arms held me tightly "There’s no need to

I’m here."

came from above

It was Charles.

in his arms as tears burst from my eyes, Gently, he brushed my hair and tried to comfort

have to be scared ever