My Poor Husband Is A Billionaire

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

Then she began to type out her reply to Brandon.

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

the staff member said through gritted teeth.

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

Ignoring her, Janet texted Brandon back.

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

The message from Brandon was a godsend.

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

Brandon replied with a long message.

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

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

The data was tampered with.

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

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

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

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

"How did you find that out?"

The platform was now owned by Lester Silk Fabric.

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

As she spoke, she tucked her phone away.

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

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

Janet ignored her.

She turned around and left without looking back.

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

"What’s up, Lind?"

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

Janet asked politely.

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

Tiffany looked at her warily and then nodded slowly.

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

"I want to call him and apologize,"

Janet answered simply.

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

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

There are enough discussions about you already,"

Tiffany scolded.

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

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

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

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

Janet reached for the card with a bright smile.

Of course she knew what she was doing.

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

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

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

Janet said, her voice as sweet as honey.

When Ritchie heard this, he was surprised.

Then, he sneered.

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

Janet had given up so soon.

"You’re scared, aren’t you?"

With a smug smile on his face, Ritchie smirked.

"Come to Lester Silk Fabric tomorrow.

You can apologize there in person."

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

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

he barked at his secretary.

"I want them here tomorrow.

Call some famous personalities in the fashion industry as well.

We need people in authority for the event."

The secretary nodded respectfully.

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

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

Get your ass back here."

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

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

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

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

"Get the biggest function hall for the press conference.

I want hundreds of people to be there.

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

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

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

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

1 Another evil grin spread on Ritchie’s face.

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

The secretary pursed his lips and jotted every detail down.

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

The sun shone bright and early the next day.

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

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

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

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

Tiffany remarked from beside her.

She turned to look Janet in the eye.

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

A faint smile appeared on Janet’s lips.

"You’ll find out soon enough.

Don’t worry.

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

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

The room finally settled down as Janet took her place.

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

"Sorry for taking up your time, everyone.

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

From a distance, Ritchie frowned and narrowed his eyes.

He could sense that something wasn’t right.

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

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

"She can’t have,"

the other man replied confidently.

"We’ve taken care to sweep everything.

All the evidence has been locked away.

I think she’s just bluffing."

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

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

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

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

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

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

There is your truth.

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

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

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

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

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

His secretary was also scared silly.

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

Janet smiled and said in a calm voice.

Ritchie was exasperated to hear that.

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

"I thought you came here to apologize.

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

While smiling, Janet didn’t say a word.

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

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

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

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

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

The audience began to discuss this amongst themselves.

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

She said frantically, "I have no idea.

Don’t ask me…"

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

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

His secretary hurried to stop his curses.

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

Now, she felt much better.

"It’s finally over!"

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

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

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

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

Related videos went viral on the Internet.

Suddenly, Janet’s phone started to ring.

It was Tiffany.

"Lind, I’m impressed.

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

You really knocked them dead!"

"Oh, my God! Seriously?"

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

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

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

There was a lot of positive feedback.

"Wow.

Heart.

Heart.

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

"She’s a lovely girl.

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

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

"Even though I’m a girl, I want her!"

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

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

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

Furious, Ritchie started trashing his office.

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

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

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

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

plummeted.

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

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

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

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

Ritchie glared at him, speechless.

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

"I’m not an idiot.

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

Things didn’t end there.

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

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

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

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

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

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

I am responsible for all of this.

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

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

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

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

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

She’s just an ordinary employee.

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

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

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

Janet pulled her chair and sat down.

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

"I can’t say I’m surprised.

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

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

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

"It doesn’t matter.

Look on the bright side.

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

Now, all eyes are on my work."

In the end, Luna was put behind bars.

And Janet had become an online celebrity.

Many people now knew her name and saw her designs.

Some even paid for it.

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

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

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

How’d you get the evidence?"

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

Janet froze.

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

"A very capable friend helped me get them."

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

Janet’s eyes twinkled.

"It’s a secret.

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

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

Gerda scratched her head and hurried back to her desk.

Janet couldn’t help but chuckle.

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

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

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

Janet couldn’t help but feel a little strange.

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

"Someone texted you."

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

"It seems your wife’s missing you."

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

Instantly, his expression darkened when he read the text.

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

Garrett asked seriously, the smile wiped from his face.

"Janet’s asking Brandon out for dinner."

Ethan put his phone down and sighed.

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

Garrett leaned back with his hands clasped behind his head.

"Yeah.

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

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

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

It’s not good for my heart either,"

he sighed.

Ethan frowned and started typing out a brisk reply.

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

You’re an employee of the Larson Group.

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

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

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

That’s thanks enough, Miss Lind,"

Ethan replied politely, keeping things professional.

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

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

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

Transfer her to a subsidiary company.

Then, bring Charis here."

Garrett was just about to take a nap.

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

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

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

"Why did you want to dismiss Janet?"

Ethan asked in a low voice.

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

"I just wanted to protect the company name,"

Charis answered defensively.

Ethan narrowed his eyes at her coldly.

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

No one other than me.

Understood?"

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

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

"I see how it is.

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

Ethan had already noticed that something was wrong with Charis.

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

She and her family had always valued their image.

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

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

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

Charis was a dignified woman.

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

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

She hadn’t cried in years.

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

She had been reluctant to leave him.

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

She and Brandon had worked together for years.

They had shared the company’s ups and downs.

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

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

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

"I met Brandon first,"

Charis muttered through gritted teeth.

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

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

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

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

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

But she couldn’t act as overtly as before.

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

She had to be more careful now.

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

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

Janet’s voice dripped with sarcasm.

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

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

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

But he couldn’t tell her this.

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

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

The manager of the shop at work fired me.

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

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

In fact, there was some truth to his story.

Ritchie had indeed caused him a lot trouble after all.

Hearing this, Janet’s heart immediately softened.

She walked over to help him with the vegetables.

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

I was worried something bad happened to you."

"The problem’s been solved.

Don’t worry,"

Ethan said with a reassuring smile.

That much was true.

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

"Your brother is really hard to deal with."

Janet pouted like a child.

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

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

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

Janet looked up at Ethan curiously.

Almost immediately, she saw the lust in his eyes.

His face was so beautiful.

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

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

Janet’s face turned as red as a tomato.

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

Then she focused on chopping the vegetables.

Amused, Ethan patted her on the head affectionately.

He really liked it when she blushed.

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

He had to admit it really turned him on.

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

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

Ethan stroked Janet’s hair.

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

A long forgotten name appeared on the screen.

It was Patrick Lester.

Chapter 324 Nora’s Birthday Ethan pursed his lips.

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

It was winter and the cold wind was unforgiving.

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

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

Janet’s voice broke the silence.

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

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

He was answering the phone out on the balcony again.

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

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

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

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

"I was busy just now,"

Ethan simply replied.

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

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

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

She wants you and your wife here."

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

— – Janet had overheard Patrick’s loud voice.

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

Ethan held her tighter and sighed.

"We are.

Patrick seldom summons me.

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

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

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

Janet smiled at him sweetly.

"I can tell that you’re fond of her."

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

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

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

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

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

She was the only Lester who ever cared about Ethan.

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

"She’s a kind lady,"

he said calmly.

time since they

"Let’s not talk here.

It’s so cold!"

whined, her

a thought occurred

"The eggs! I forgot all about

embrace and

Ethan followed behind her.

stared at Janet, who was extremely

told you to keep an

to the side

corner,

"I’m sorry.

I rushed to you and forgot I was

Ethan had guessed this.

freshly washed hands, he raised his eyes to look at

"It’s my fault.

didn’t give you enough sense

that, he spread out his arms and said gently, "Come

face against his chest, blushing

from Patrick, she

hates you and I

probably has a

something bad happen if we just go there?"Chapter 461 In Order To Survive Shelia

casual manner, flipped the meat over, and went

to tell

was just being a

silently retracted the knife he was hiding

feeling that Shelia didn’t mean him

crushed some fruits and poured the juice over

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

more for

meat, Shelia smiled as if she

"Don’t worry about it.

This meat isn’t poisonous.

can rest assured and eat

on high alert right then, watching

though Shelia happened to be an easy-going person, this didn’t mean that she

thought that

injuries, she knew she

"I’m not very hungry.

ahead and

to look away

roast the

he wanted to help, Shelia nodded and

bite out

furrowed her brows and stuck out

really hard

was not cooked fully

I gave you just now must be the

didn’t you tell me? You even finished

the meat out, Victor didn’t say a word

aside, Shelia turned

you did this deliberately,

I smiling?’ Victor never

his hand and gently touched the corner of

to roast

have gone

get

tired at

sit right

her chin, Shelia

skillfully, she blinked her eyes and said, "Van, you’re good

learned how to survive

in

"Survive in the wildness?"

first time that Shelia had

you go out of your way

also crushed some fruits and poured the juice

a knife to slice

he heard what Shelia asked,

while, he said, "I have no

knew

he wanted to be prepared

time that even under ner protection, Victor would find himself in danger

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

"Alright."

Shelia continued to focus her gaze on

Shelia’s profile and the dust that rested on

out a hand to wipe off

look

eyes, he started to

away, and explained, "Your nose has dirt

"Is that so?"

rub her nose with the back

now?

"No,"

said, glancing over

"Good."

Shelia smiled.

what else did you learn other than roasting

Can you teach me?"

do you want

"In order to survive."

naturally.Chapter 462 Come With

shelia said casually.

felt sad upon hearing

meat ready to be flipped?

Shelia pointed out.

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

meat over while he was still thinking about

.

or

was, after all, Shelia’s

didn’t

"Will you please

"Hmm,"

said after

"Is that a yes?"

Shelia’s eyes glowed, and she broke into

meanwhile, became much more

Victor nodded, "Okay."

as she said, "Thanks so

I’ve ever encountered, except for

"Orphanage?"

That’s where I

the orphanage was taken over and the

eyes clouded as she spoke

woman was a wonderful

younger, she prepared great meals and

an orphan…’ Victor pursed his

look after you since the orphanage was

leave with

up at Victor and

only home Shelia had known

okay with you being outdoors on

head, Shelia

I was desperate to visit her tomb, so I

to them, and I don’t intend to

of the dingy ground,

been

behind her head, her lips

sighed with disappointment as she

to visit

you

are people

if

no idea that I have a

name when I meet her again

blinking her

remained fixed on Shelia and

had the chance to see you, Van, it would be more than

soft spot in her heart for

that I was a

It didn’t seem appropriate to use

at Shelia, Victor concluded that the

apt description of her

she was responsible for your upbringing, how come

communicate since she was deaf,

referred to

a poker card was in

it from her pocket as if it were a

orphanage, each kid was given

woman split the fruits, she put them on the cards and let us take them as we pleased, but we were naughty,’ shella erupted into laughter, which

stared at the card–the King

Did I get the best

Shelia inquired.

"It’s definitely the best."

card and said, "I am the only one with

toasting as they were

gave her the meat after he re-applied the

all set

Eat, please."

her gut

embarrassed, so she put her hand to her stomach and

the meat i made myself! Van,

Victor’s expression softened somewhat.

after

rose to her feet, she

ready to rise when Shelia abruptly extended her hand to

"Come on, get up."

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

used a dart to

track of time

had cooled

down on a

how far we’ll have

get out

some water

exhausted after so much walking, and he

said incoherently, "I’m sure

Let’s move forward."

still have the

"Like never before…"

and continued to hold

motion, she murmured, "Van, you look rather

be sure to eat

gaze to the side

small face was covered in mud after a day and

What’s your

"Plan?"

was slow

once we leave the forest? Where will you

continue my travels and explore the

can no longer walk and beg them to

with a

"Shelia."

appeared to have made up his mind after staring at Shelia

"What’s the problem?"

me after we get out

will like you, I will defend you if she doesn’t

can count

me to come with

right with you? If you don’t want

was concerned that

before asking, "Are

"No, I’m not.

promise to treat you

Victor convinced her.

smiled at

agree when we get out

"Sure."

moment they emerged from the woods,

below the horizon, basking the forest in a pale

on the bodies of Victor

since high noon

tiredness was assuaged when they saw a relatively

out

local villagers if we

We can…"

her sentence, she saw Victor

She was confused.

looked at Victor, wanting to know why he

"Van?"

didn’t expect you to come

looked for the source of

cars that were parked

looking at them intently as he played with

feel right away that they

to shield Victor, who in turn

didn’t take his eyes off Norton, watching

Victor said, "Run into the forest when I tell you

won’t get lost even when it gets

we were finding our way out of the forest, I put marks all

these marks and you

"And then?"

asked, her eyebrows

looked straight into Shelia’s

"Walk along this road.

borrow a mobile

Norton didn’t intend to let

play a game with

felt that if he couldn’t escape this predicament, Shelia shouldn’t

give Shelia a family, bring her back to see his

Victor could not fulfill the promise he

Shelia’s hand, Victor wrote a phone number on her palm with

once you get hold of a mobile

he whispered.

is my grandmother’s

pick you up wherever you

just looked down at

Victor looked at

"No."

her

were a

remember the number,

be a good

Victor frowned.

that he coughed violently as soon as he

and clenched her

her palm and let

hear what Victor and Shelia were talking about, he could tell

"Tut, tut, tut, this is

feelings for each other!

up when saw Norton

pulled

himself standing

for him to fight

deliberately walked up to

and Shelia

Norton

for

"Let her go!"

firm grip on Shelia’s

satisfaction in hearing vexation in Victor’s

know you look

said as he wiped the mud on Shelia’s face with

this would all the more incense Victor, Disregarding body pain, Victor rushed over and

his tracks when

was a knife that Norton pressed

a

"No."

"What are you saying?"

tone and gave Victor a

he had difficulty in

clenched his fist and tried to steady

you want

nothing to

So, let her go!"

wow! This

Norton curled his lips.

don’t want

from but I find

to die alone? I can do something about that and let

eyes, Victor

of the knife pressed against her

body was

out blood and beg

that all you can do?

smile plastered on his

narrowed in anger when he heard Shelia’s disdainful

did you just

you

Shelia swallowed.

sense of accomplishment by threatening

have in you to do what you intend

So, cut the crap.

to kill

"Shelia…"

tried to stop

she was

hackles rise and the man would do

Norton was indeed angry.

voice in check as he talked to

Looks like you really want

Shelia rolled her eyes.

help

Norton said, laughing derisively.

his men and instructed them, "Tie

and asked anxiously, "What are you going

Norton didn’t answer.

just glared

men did as they were

bound, Shelia was taken

made to ride a different

about where Norton was taking them.Chapter

was

water rushed over, it inundated Shelia, making her choke easily Victor saw how Shelia’s face became paler by

clenched into fists, and the blue veins on his neck

and yelled, "Let

open her eyes because of the gushing water, Shelia had

actually wanted Victor to run

she opened her mouth, she was choked by

enough, her eyes became

the exasperated expression on Victor’s

but

making me

man? Why the hell should I

rope, squatted

save her so much, I will

still some good in me, huh? What do

could just glare

do whatever it

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

men behind him appeared and stood

slowly stood up and looked at Victor with

"Here’s what I’m thinking.

are the weakest

has only killed two people, and the

want to save her, right? Knock

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

the knife in his hand, Norton touched its tip with his thumb and warned, "But

two before

can say goodbye to your

she’s washed away, I’m afraid that you won’t even

at the flickering flame, Victor didn’t

he quickly rushed up and fought against the two

the most popular leader the Roaring Tiger

subordinates should

Victor was

in his peak state, he might not even be able to defeat one of the

of them were tall and burly men that could easily flip Victor

at a disadvantage from

them, the two men punched Victor right in his

as he was hit, Victor staggered

because he was hit repeatedly, his strength left him, and

broken scattered all over his body, making him feel

time, Victor’s face looked

to stand, not ready to

he could even get back on his feet, he saw

subconsciously use his arm to block

Victor spat out a mouthful of blood, and a

this point, Victor’s vision

to fix his eyes on the rope, which was only a few

didn’t matter how many

the fire was put out and the rope was grasped, Shelia’s life could

so he was willing

to go on, his body couldn’t

he fell back to the ground and lost his

time, Victor was somewhat awakened when he felt droplets of

his eyes, but his vision

the ground, watching the raindrops

help but wonder if

so he

every inch of his body made Victor realize

Victor wanted to stand up, but he couldn’t move even an

a little bit, grabbing the mud under his

the

was no trace of

"Ahem!"

spurting

he grabbed unto the soil and opened his eyes as wide as he

river expectantly, as if he

for a long

he didn’t even know

never found the person he

head from the river or come out from somewhere and

blood and the excruciating pain he was

lost

woke up again, he was finally

him

lasted for two days

a doctor’s diagnosis, it was found out that Victor had fractures in eight different body

shattered, his chest and lungs were inflamed, and the critically ill

after he woke up was ask

wearing an oxygen mask

not completely out of danger yet, but all he cared about

even know who Shelia was, but she could sense that she must be a

dare delay to send people to search for Shelia along

search lasted for seven days, but

and there was still no

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

one could easily

later,

did after

in a box and buried it under a

was nothing on the marble tombstone aside from

Shelia’s

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

to the hospital, but he

It was also in that year that Carolyn sent

finished his

companies under the control of

these companies from

prove his outstanding ability, Carolyn

entered

of the bed, holding a

can’t eat any

had been eating porridge for about half

now, he couldn’t even stand the smell of

and had no choice but to put the

she said, "Eat it

his tongue out,

the door, so he

half a month, Roger came to the hospital to visit

the kid gradually

was that Roger would bring some snacks when he

could at least taste something aside

Joey could only eat them

Rachel turned around and was

you say that you wouldn’t

in advance to ask her

no every time, he would still insist on getting

asked, he said that he had an important project meeting today, so he might

he could still visit, it

initially, I

a moment before finally saying,

Rachel furrowed her brows

"Rachel, Victor woke up."

Roger broke the news.

Dark Circles The operation done to Victor lasted for more

closed for several times as doctors went in and

Carson couldn’t do anything but wait outside until

the operation began,

indicated that the surgery

he wasn’t completely out

he was wheeled to the

days ago

to be transferred to the general

he was still

in the field to check Victor’s condition and give a

it wasn’t what he was

Victor sustained serious injuries.

his old wounds had healed, they still had an

his new injuries just made matters

end, he said that only

us when he will

in a

afraid I can’t

couldn’t help but frown as he

blunt, please consider preparing

he’ll never wake up? Is he going to become a vegetable for the rest

it was obvious that

was a huge chance that this was it

Lukas, Rachel was the first one to

Carson deemed that Rachel

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

looked slightly disoriented, and there were

to tell Rachel about this important

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

as if she had already prepared herself for something like

was a bit

didn’t know when she became this mentally

it was when Victor had been in a coma for about half

it might have

room for 70 hours before the indication

cigarette in Carson’s hand and

You can’t smoke here."

regained his senses, Carson put

bother continue discussing about Victor’s

asked, "Anyway, how is

"Joey? He’s fine.

said that

it’s expected that his plaster will be removed ahead of

through the glass

Joey sleeping

a faint smile, he stretched for

I’m leaving

Carson turned around and

to tell Rachel about the doctor’s diagnosis regarding Victor’s

from that, he had

an eye, two days

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

ward almost twenty-four hours a

same time, Carson didn’t show his face to

diagnosis came from an expert, she was also convinced that Victor would never wake

news that Victor had miraculously woke

Obviously, Rachel was stunned.

for a long time without

if she was still judging Roger’s expression

you want to go

This time, Rachel pressed her lips

sleeve and pulled

I want to see

pleading in a

fact that Victor was in a coma after obtaining

in the hospital, he actually

on, he found that Rachel had always been absent-minded and Victor hadn’t come up

truth, Rachel didn’t have

did he pester Rachel to go to the ICU to

smiled

bad? They say

don’t have to worry too much about

she

a few moments, she

"Yes, of course."

weeks, Joey had a good rest in

as if there was nothing wrong going

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

for keeping it all inside him, but Rachel

"Okay…"

heart softened,

ward was in

Joey’s wound hadn’t fully healed yet, it was inconvenient for

him

him, and the three of them went to

enough, they reached

at the floor of the ward

patient at this time, Carson was sitting on the sofa in the

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

If Victor had seen this scene, Carson knew that he would

it’s the first time

What brings you here?"

Joey as he quickly set the document

"Have you been beaten?"

blinking his innocent

someone who will be beaten easily? Ha!

those dark circles around your

"Dark circles?"

almost choked

he picked up his phone, opened

that Joey

eye bags were

of course, this was

a good

young man, but even he was susceptible to stress

"Ha-ha!"

help but laugh after seeing the upset

Joey’s seemingly innocent laughter, Carson realized that

head, Carson stepped forward and pinched

"You, brat.

you tease your godfather?

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

have no

and I grew

We are best friends.

the one who picked

that’s how I

eyebrows and crossed his arms in front of

for you, even if you don’t want it, that fact

using his uninjured hand and said, "Humph! If I don’t want to admit

he withdrew his hand

also didn’t expect that I would have a

said, it’s a fact that you

you’d better change your

more, but he stuck

of the corner of his eye, Carson recognized Roger standing

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

heard that Mr.Sullivan has woken

with Rachel and Joey

Roger explained.

to lose his composure

"Oh, I see."

at the room and said, "His ward

He is resting inside.

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

what was going

"Let’s go,"

Roger reminded Rachel gently.

"Alright."

walked towards

her,

were placed over his

in thoughts for

he was about to sav something, Joey spoke before

"Mr.Jimenez."

"Is anything the matter?"

Roger asked.

looked at

standing

could see him from

as if he was giving Carson

at him, Joey turned his

need to

what Joey

I take you

"No!"

replied in a very

serious look

am

wasn’t a problem for Rachel

moment, they were

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

Joey’s words, Rachel looked

then her gaze fell

former, Carson soon observed that she was staring

she wanted him to take Joey to

and refused to pay any attention

took out his phone and turned around as if nothing

give Joey a thumbs up

pretended like he

Mr.Ramos! I have read the plan you sent

headed towards

very good

up while he

saw what just happened clearly and understood that it was all a

"It’s okay.

take

He is actually right.

him to

Roger smiled gently.

"Thank you very much,"

Rachel said to Roger.

when he heard those words,

Rachel ought to have been closer to

past few days, they

of them were always in one

reasons best known to her, she still

things,

it

night Rachel was standing outside

Joey headed towards

time,

"Where is Joey?"

he asked Rachel knowingly.

quick glance at the phone in

you through with

"What?"

followed Rachel’s sight and took a peek

appeared

I am

no choice! My subordinates are

"Of course they are!"

Rachel narrowed her eyes.

a fake

not very good at

Carson realized that Rachel knew that he had pretended to answer the call

touched the tip of his nose and coughed to

want to

in order to look through the glass panel on

ward was a

of view, only the living room could be seen, and it

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

doctor said Victor would lie in the bed

to undergo half a

came from

a

"Get out of here!"

interrupted Carson’s

man in a suit coming

He looked dejected.

document

Carson as soon

at first, then

"Mr.Scott!"

card hung around

It was quite noticeable.

an employee of the Sullivan Group

was no need asking about what

from the man’s expression that the

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

surname was what really interested

She turned to Carson.

looked back at her, she raised

"Well, this is Troy.

a member of

exactly what she meant by just looking at

was at a loss for

so many

he had to

recognized who

and mentioned

"Miss Bennet."

nodded her head

was covered

Victor had given him the scare of his life! Nonetheless, he was still holding the document tightly in

Miss Bennet, I’m going back

and said,

do

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

looked at the

see that Victor was sitting against the head of the bed at that

seem as bad as

is well and

door

against

follow Rachel

document

his head and say

her gaze on

in a hospital

pale despite the fact

frowned and

for more than seventy hours

that she walked towards

asked you to go

the footsteps, his

person who was

of speaking in his usual cold and stiff tone,

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

I figured it wouldn’t

"The dance is over.

time to

I reminded him.

through his eyes, but he still loosened his grip on my waist

took a few steps back to

feel the warmth of

and i felt rather

heart was

moment, it felt like I had returned to

with him were the happiest

even as I reminisced, I knew that those days were long gone and I

down, feeling conflicted

"Happy birthday, Caroline."

suddenly approached me and

gaze from behind me and began chatting with the guests with a smile on

said, raising my glass and taking a sip of

it, I’d had a few to drink

Elena came to

surprise waiting for you on

upstairs and take a look at

she asked.

"What’s the surprise?"

This "surprise"

piqued my curiosity.

when you get

appeared on Elena’s

her to the

bright red rose petals scattered across the floorboard, forming a

were also numerous balloons

widened in

whole scene was

birthday surprise?’ I had no idea who

first person that came to mind was Charles, but

could it possibly be him?’ A bitter smile appeared on my lips, and somehow, I began to despise

on me, and yet I still couldn’t forget

this

stared at the night

sea was tranquil, and yet

of the cold sea breeze,

display lit up the

the fireworks shot up to the sky, a deafening sound

like a

noise, I covered my ears at

the

i felt like my blood

incident at the abandoned warehouse

of breath I felt

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

I’m here."

voice came from above me, making me feel

It was Charles.

his arms as tears burst from my eyes, Gently,

to