The Substitute Wife: My Poor Husband Is A Billionaire

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

Then she began to type out her reply to Brandon.

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

the staff member said through gritted teeth.

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

Ignoring her, Janet texted Brandon back.

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

The message from Brandon was a godsend.

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

Brandon replied with a long message.

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

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

The data was tampered with.

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

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

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

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

"How did you find that out?"

The platform was now owned by Lester Silk Fabric.

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

As she spoke, she tucked her phone away.

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

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

Janet ignored her.

She turned around and left without looking back.

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

"What’s up, Lind?"

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

Janet asked politely.

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

Tiffany looked at her warily and then nodded slowly.

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

"I want to call him and apologize,"

Janet answered simply.

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

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

There are enough discussions about you already,"

Tiffany scolded.

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

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

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

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

Janet reached for the card with a bright smile.

Of course she knew what she was doing.

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

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

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

Janet said, her voice as sweet as honey.

When Ritchie heard this, he was surprised.

Then, he sneered.

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

Janet had given up so soon.

"You’re scared, aren’t you?"

With a smug smile on his face, Ritchie smirked.

"Come to Lester Silk Fabric tomorrow.

You can apologize there in person."

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

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

he barked at his secretary.

"I want them here tomorrow.

Call some famous personalities in the fashion industry as well.

We need people in authority for the event."

The secretary nodded respectfully.

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

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

Get your ass back here."

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

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

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

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

"Get the biggest function hall for the press conference.

I want hundreds of people to be there.

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

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

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

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

1 Another evil grin spread on Ritchie’s face.

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

The secretary pursed his lips and jotted every detail down.

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

The sun shone bright and early the next day.

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

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

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

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

Tiffany remarked from beside her.

She turned to look Janet in the eye.

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

A faint smile appeared on Janet’s lips.

"You’ll find out soon enough.

Don’t worry.

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

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

The room finally settled down as Janet took her place.

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

"Sorry for taking up your time, everyone.

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

From a distance, Ritchie frowned and narrowed his eyes.

He could sense that something wasn’t right.

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

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

"She can’t have,"

the other man replied confidently.

"We’ve taken care to sweep everything.

All the evidence has been locked away.

I think she’s just bluffing."

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

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

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

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

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

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

There is your truth.

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

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

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

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

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

His secretary was also scared silly.

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

Janet smiled and said in a calm voice.

Ritchie was exasperated to hear that.

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

"I thought you came here to apologize.

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

While smiling, Janet didn’t say a word.

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

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

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

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

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

The audience began to discuss this amongst themselves.

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

She said frantically, "I have no idea.

Don’t ask me…"

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

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

His secretary hurried to stop his curses.

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

Now, she felt much better.

"It’s finally over!"

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

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

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

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

Related videos went viral on the Internet.

Suddenly, Janet’s phone started to ring.

It was Tiffany.

"Lind, I’m impressed.

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

You really knocked them dead!"

"Oh, my God! Seriously?"

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

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

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

There was a lot of positive feedback.

"Wow.

Heart.

Heart.

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

"She’s a lovely girl.

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

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

"Even though I’m a girl, I want her!"

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

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

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

Furious, Ritchie started trashing his office.

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

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

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

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

plummeted.

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

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

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

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

Ritchie glared at him, speechless.

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

"I’m not an idiot.

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

Things didn’t end there.

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

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

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

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

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

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

I am responsible for all of this.

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

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

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

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

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

She’s just an ordinary employee.

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

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

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

Janet pulled her chair and sat down.

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

"I can’t say I’m surprised.

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

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

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

"It doesn’t matter.

Look on the bright side.

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

Now, all eyes are on my work."

In the end, Luna was put behind bars.

And Janet had become an online celebrity.

Many people now knew her name and saw her designs.

Some even paid for it.

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

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

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

How’d you get the evidence?"

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

Janet froze.

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

"A very capable friend helped me get them."

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

Janet’s eyes twinkled.

"It’s a secret.

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

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

Gerda scratched her head and hurried back to her desk.

Janet couldn’t help but chuckle.

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

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

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

Janet couldn’t help but feel a little strange.

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

"Someone texted you."

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

"It seems your wife’s missing you."

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

Instantly, his expression darkened when he read the text.

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

Garrett asked seriously, the smile wiped from his face.

"Janet’s asking Brandon out for dinner."

Ethan put his phone down and sighed.

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

Garrett leaned back with his hands clasped behind his head.

"Yeah.

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

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

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

It’s not good for my heart either,"

he sighed.

Ethan frowned and started typing out a brisk reply.

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

You’re an employee of the Larson Group.

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

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

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

That’s thanks enough, Miss Lind,"

Ethan replied politely, keeping things professional.

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

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

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

Transfer her to a subsidiary company.

Then, bring Charis here."

Garrett was just about to take a nap.

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

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

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

"Why did you want to dismiss Janet?"

Ethan asked in a low voice.

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

"I just wanted to protect the company name,"

Charis answered defensively.

Ethan narrowed his eyes at her coldly.

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

No one other than me.

Understood?"

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

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

"I see how it is.

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

Ethan had already noticed that something was wrong with Charis.

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

She and her family had always valued their image.

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

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

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

Charis was a dignified woman.

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

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

She hadn’t cried in years.

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

She had been reluctant to leave him.

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

She and Brandon had worked together for years.

They had shared the company’s ups and downs.

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

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

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

"I met Brandon first,"

Charis muttered through gritted teeth.

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

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

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

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

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

But she couldn’t act as overtly as before.

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

She had to be more careful now.

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

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

Janet’s voice dripped with sarcasm.

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

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

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

But he couldn’t tell her this.

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

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

The manager of the shop at work fired me.

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

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

In fact, there was some truth to his story.

Ritchie had indeed caused him a lot trouble after all.

Hearing this, Janet’s heart immediately softened.

She walked over to help him with the vegetables.

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

I was worried something bad happened to you."

"The problem’s been solved.

Don’t worry,"

Ethan said with a reassuring smile.

That much was true.

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

"Your brother is really hard to deal with."

Janet pouted like a child.

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

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

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

Janet looked up at Ethan curiously.

Almost immediately, she saw the lust in his eyes.

His face was so beautiful.

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

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

Janet’s face turned as red as a tomato.

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

Then she focused on chopping the vegetables.

Amused, Ethan patted her on the head affectionately.

He really liked it when she blushed.

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

He had to admit it really turned him on.

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

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

Ethan stroked Janet’s hair.

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

A long forgotten name appeared on the screen.

It was Patrick Lester.

Chapter 324 Nora’s Birthday Ethan pursed his lips.

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

It was winter and the cold wind was unforgiving.

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

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

Janet’s voice broke the silence.

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

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

He was answering the phone out on the balcony again.

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

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

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

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

"I was busy just now,"

Ethan simply replied.

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

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

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

She wants you and your wife here."

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

— – Janet had overheard Patrick’s loud voice.

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

Ethan held her tighter and sighed.

"We are.

Patrick seldom summons me.

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

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

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

Janet smiled at him sweetly.

"I can tell that you’re fond of her."

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

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

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

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

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

She was the only Lester who ever cared about Ethan.

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

"She’s a kind lady,"

he said calmly.

time since they last met-too

"Let’s not talk here.

It’s so cold!"

whined, her

thought occurred to

eggs! I forgot all

broke free from Ethan’s embrace and ran to

Ethan followed behind her.

who was extremely

to keep an eye

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

the corner, restlessly watching

"I’m sorry.

to Charis, so I rushed to you

Ethan had guessed this.

drying his freshly washed hands, he raised

"It’s my fault.

you enough sense

spread out his arms and

face against his chest,

she murmured, "The Lesters treat you badly, especially

I

probably has a huge grudge against

if we just go there?"Chapter 461 In Order To Survive Shelia didn’t notice what

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

if you really don’t want to tell me, then forget about

was just being

at her, Victor said nothing, and silently retracted the

a feeling that Shelia didn’t mean

poured the

definitely could

Here you go."

"And what about you?"

at the meat Shelia was holding out in her hand and didn’t make

roast some more

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

"Don’t worry about it.

This meat isn’t poisonous.

rest assured and eat

then, watching

an easy-going person, this

that

saw his injuries, she knew she was wrong and he was on guard

"I’m not very hungry.

ahead

look away and placed

the rest for

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

a bite out

some time, she furrowed her brows and stuck out her

hard to

was not cooked fully

meat I gave you just now must

me?

the meat out, Victor didn’t say a

turned around

smiling? Van, you did this deliberately, didn’t

never even realized

lifted his hand and gently touched the corner of his

to roast the meat for

have gone a

and get

not tired

sit

hands propped under her chin, Shelia

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

to survive in the

spoke in a deep

"Survive in the wildness?"

was the very first time that Shelia had ever heard of

go out of your way to

what Shelia did earlier, Victor also crushed some fruits

he used a knife to slice the

Shelia

said, "I have

Victor knew the reason

he wanted to be prepared in case of

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

he would at least have a better chance to survive in

"Alright."

her

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

a hand

startled and turned to look at

looked straight into Shelia’s eyes, he

away, and explained, "Your

"Is that so?"

her nose with

now? Is it still

"No,"

glancing over

"Good."

Shelia smiled.

you learn other than roasting meat?

Can you teach me?"

want to learn

"In order to survive."

came out of Shelia’s mouth very naturally.Chapter 462 Come With Me "In order

shelia said casually.

felt sad upon

flipped? It’s

Shelia pointed out.

saw a small burn on the

over while he was

.

second thoughts about whether or not to

was, after all, Shelia’s

the other hand, didn’t seem to take it

"Will you please

"Hmm,"

after a

"Is that a yes?"

eyes glowed, and

dimples, meanwhile, became much

Victor nodded, "Okay."

grinned broadly as she

I’ve ever encountered, except for my caretaker in

"Orphanage?"

where I was

taken over and the old woman was unwell and

eyes clouded as she spoke

was a

she prepared great meals and gave me a lot

orphan…’

guardian was needed to look after you

leave

up at Victor and answered, "I didn’t

Shelia had known for so

they okay with you being

head, Shelia

I was desperate to visit

remain unknown to them, and I

dingy ground, Shelia

of sunshine that had been

placed her hands behind her head, her lips

with disappointment as she

to visit

keeps you from

are people guarding

me if

idea that I have a

when I meet her again in

blinking

on Shelia

you, Van, it would be more

soft spot in

said that I was a lovely

seem appropriate to use

concluded that

description of her

was responsible for

since she was deaf, mute, and

referred to us

poker card was in

as if it were a treasure

each kid

the fruits, she put them on the cards and let us take them as we pleased, but we were naughty,’ shella

stared at the card–the King

I get

Shelia inquired.

"It’s definitely the best."

card and said, "I am

meat was toasting as they

meat after he re-applied the

all set to

Eat, please."

her gut just after

put her hand to her stomach and ate the meat

much better than the meat

Victor’s expression softened somewhat.

felt rejuvenated after a

feet,

when

"Come on, get up."

a little pause, he took Shelia’s hand in

a dart to put marks

lost track of time as they

had cooled

Victor in sitting down on a stone and

how far we’ll have to

get out before the

drank some

walking, and he was coughing up blood

"I’m sure

Let’s move forward."

still have the

"Like never before…"

nodded and continued

forward motion, she murmured, "Van, you look

return, be sure

to the side

small face was covered in mud after a day and a night in the

What’s your

"Plan?"

slow

"What are your plans once we leave the forest? Where will you

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

to the police station when I can no longer

answered with a

"Shelia."

appeared to have made up his mind after staring at

"What’s the problem?"

after

sure my grandma will like you, I will defend you if she doesn’t

count

to come with

you? If you

was concerned that Shelia

while before asking, "Are

"No, I’m not.

treat you the

Victor convinced her.

nodded and smiled at Victor,

we get

"Sure."

from

to disappear below the horizon, basking the forest in

the

noon and now,

when they saw a relatively

we’re out of the

if we walk a little

We can…"

finish her sentence,

She was confused.

looked at Victor, wanting to know

"Van?"

expect

looked for the source

saw three cars that were

the front, looking at them

away that

in turn stood protectively in

didn’t take his eyes off Norton,

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

even when

of the forest, I

you can

"And then?"

her

looked straight into Shelia’s

"Walk along this road.

mobile phone from them, and

didn’t intend to let

to play a game with Victor by throwing him into the

if he couldn’t escape this

family, bring her back to see

not fulfill the promise

phone number on her palm with his

once you get

he whispered.

my

she will pick you up wherever

looked down

looked at her and asked in

"No."

pulled her hand

eyes were

don’t want to remember the number, nor

a good

Victor frowned.

that he coughed

adamant and

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

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

"Tut, tut, tut, this

other!

when saw

intuitively pulled

injured and keeping himself standing steadily was taxing

be hard for him to fight off

walked up

Shelia stepped

them, Norton pulled Shelia

for Victor to stop

"Let her go!"

firm grip on Shelia’s

in hearing vexation in Victor’s

know you

wiped the mud on Shelia’s

body pain, Victor rushed over and tried to take Shelia

stopped in his tracks when something

was a knife that Norton

a mouthful

"No."

"What are you saying?"

a contemptuous tone and gave Victor a mocking smile, pretending not to

felt that he had difficulty

fist and tried to steady

you want

to

So, let her go!"

wow! This

Norton curled his lips.

I don’t want to let her

from but I find your

boring for you to die alone? I can do something about that

eyes, Victor

pressed against her neck, all Shelia could do was

body was tensed

Victor spat out blood and beg for mercy, she

that all you can

kept his mocking smile plastered

anger when he heard Shelia’s

did you

said you

Shelia swallowed.

a sense of

you to do

So, cut the crap.

you want to kill me,

"Shelia…"

desperately tried to

that she was provoking

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

Norton was indeed angry.

looked fierce, but he kept his voice

really? Looks like you

Shelia rolled her eyes.

can help you with

Norton said, laughing derisively.

and instructed them,

and asked anxiously, "What are you going

Norton didn’t answer.

glared at

as they

Shelia was

to ride a different

was taking

river was flowing

inundated Shelia, making her choke easily Victor saw how Shelia’s face became

blue veins on

and yelled, "Let

open her eyes because of the

wanted Victor to run

the moment she opened her mouth, she was choked by

her

at the exasperated expression on Victor’s

might be strong but he

making me laugh,

think that I’m a good man? Why the

rope, squatted

wanting to save her

some good in me, huh?

could just

whatever it took to

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

two men behind him appeared and stood between the rope and

looked at Victor with a

"Here’s what I’m thinking.

are the

only killed two people,

Norton continued, "You want to

who had been holding Victor’s arms

with

two before the

you can say goodbye

afraid that

at the flickering flame, Victor didn’t care about

so he quickly rushed up and

the most popular leader the Roaring Tiger

weakest subordinates should be

was

his peak state, he might not even be able to

burly men that

at a

Victor rushed over to them, the two men punched Victor right in his

soon as he was hit,

was hit repeatedly, his strength left him, and he eventually knelt on

pain of his bones being broken scattered all over his body,

time, Victor’s face looked black

stand, not ready to

even get back on

still able to subconsciously use his arm to

was hit again, Victor spat out a mouthful of blood, and a

this point, Victor’s vision

his eyes on the

matter how

fire was put out and the

so he was willing to do anything

go on, his body couldn’t keep

to the

Victor was somewhat awakened when he felt droplets of rain falling

his eyes, but his vision

just lay there on the ground,

couldn’t help but wonder

fully recovered yet, so he thought that he might

of his body made

up, but he couldn’t move even

his hands a little bit, grabbing the mud

his best, he turned his head to look at the river, only to find that there was nothing

no trace

"Ahem!"

spurting out more

himself, he grabbed unto the soil and opened his eyes as

as if he was waiting for something to

waited for

know

found the

would raise her head from the river

excruciating pain

he lost consciousness

up again, he

subordinates found him near

to rescue him lasted for two days and two

out that

shattered, his chest and lungs were inflamed, and

after he woke up was ask Carolyn to

still wearing an oxygen mask

danger yet, but all he cared

who Shelia was, but she could sense that she must be a very important person due to his concern

didn’t dare delay to send people to search for

lasted for seven days, but Shelia couldn’t

was

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

with mud, but one could easily recognize

later, Victor

first thing he did after fully recovering was buy a

King of Hearts card in a box and buried it under

nothing on the marble

Shelia’s name

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

to rush him to the hospital, but he was declared dead on

It was also in that year that Carolyn sent

he finished his studies

several small companies under the

sales of these companies from a very low level to

Victor was able to prove his outstanding ability, Carolyn

entered the

he saw her sitting on the edge of the bed, holding

can’t eat

been eating porridge

couldn’t even stand the smell of

had no choice but to put

it again when you get

out, not intending to

Roger standing at the door, so he politely greeted,

to the hospital to

gradually got acquainted

that Roger

too much, he could at least taste something aside

could only

Roger, Rachel turned around

you say that you wouldn’t

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

he would still insist on getting

Roger asked, he said that he had an important project meeting today, so he might not be

visit, it would probably be very

I

hesitated for a moment before finally saying, "But

furrowed her

"Rachel, Victor woke up."

Roger broke the news.

The operation done to

of the operating room opened and closed for several times as doctors went in and

anything but wait outside until the procedure was

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

that the

life was saved, but he

wheeled to

not until two days ago that his

to be transferred to

was still in a

invited an expert in the field to

it wasn’t what he was

Victor sustained serious injuries.

wounds had healed, they still had an

new injuries just made

that only

us when he will

asked in a

can’t

expert couldn’t help but frown as he

fact, if I may be blunt, please consider preparing for the worst-case

saying there’s a chance that he’ll never wake up? Is he going to

was obvious that this

there was

Lukas, Rachel was the first one to

Carson deemed that Rachel had the right

against the wall outside Joey’s ward, holding

looked slightly disoriented, and there

just went down to tell Rachel about this important

news, her face

she had already prepared herself for

Carson was a bit

didn’t know when she

Victor had been in a coma

it might have been

operating room for 70 hours before the indication light turned

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

You can’t smoke here."

if he regained his senses, Carson

bother

asked, "Anyway, how is the little

"Joey? He’s fine.

him up yesterday and said

his plaster will be removed

head and peeped through the glass panel

sleeping soundly

for a bit

then, I’m leaving

that, Carson turned around

to tell Rachel about the doctor’s

he had nothing

the blink of an eye, two

of Victor’s condition,

just stayed in Joey’s ward almost

Carson didn’t show his face

an expert, she was also convinced that

the news that Victor had

Obviously, Rachel was stunned.

stared at Roger for a long time

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

Do you want to go upstairs and see

This time, Rachel pressed her lips

someone gently pulled her sleeve and pulled her back from her deep

I want to

Joey, pleading in

failed to hide the fact that Victor was in a coma after obtaining

up in the hospital,

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

when Joey finally found out the truth, Rachel didn’t

didn’t cry or say anything, nor did

he just smiled

say bad people live

we don’t have to worry too much about

eyes, she felt a

a few moments, she mustered her courage

"Yes, of course."

two weeks, Joey had a good rest

mention Victor, as if there was nothing wrong going

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

it all inside him, but Rachel was aware

"Okay…"

softened, and

in the

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

Rachel simply let him sit in a

wheelchair for him, and the three of them went to

enough, they reached

finally stopped at the

only one patient at this time, Carson was sitting on the sofa in the hall, dealing with

his brows and eventually

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

the first time I’ve

What brings you here?"

asked Joey as he quickly set the document he

"Have you been beaten?"

asked, blinking his innocent

like someone who will

did those dark circles around your eyes

"Dark circles?"

choked at

picked up his phone, opened its front camera,

that Joey was

haggard, and his eye bags were so big

course, this was only to be

a good sleep for

young man, but even he was

"Ha-ha!"

after seeing the upset look

laughter, Carson realized that he was fooled by this

forward

"You, brat.

tease your godfather? You have guts,

face and retorted, "Huh? Who said that you are my godfather? I don’t remember recognizing you as

have no opinion regarding

and I grew up

We are best friends.

one

that’s how I

eyebrows and crossed his arms

you don’t want it, that fact won’t

away using his uninjured hand and said, "Humph!

his tongue as he withdrew his hand

muttered in a slightly low voice, "I also didn’t expect that I would have a

a

you’d better change your

didn’t say anything more, but he stuck

of his eye,

then tried to regain his composure and commented, "I see

I heard that

with Rachel and Joey to see

Roger explained.

didn’t plan to lose his composure

"Oh, I see."

and said, "His ward is over

He is resting inside.

Cooperation Rachel looked

was going

"Let’s go,"

Roger reminded Rachel gently.

"Alright."

and walked

her, pushing Joey’s

placed over his

in thoughts

about to sav something, Joey spoke

"Mr.Jimenez."

"Is anything the matter?"

Roger asked.

stopped and looked at

not standing

result, Joey could see him from the corner

eyebrows as if he was giving

a quick glance at him, Joey turned

I need to

overheard what

I

"No!"

replied in a

serious look on his

am

was a bathroom in Joey’s ward, so it wasn’t a problem for Rachel to

they were no longer

boy to the ladies’ room,

Joey’s words, Rachel looked

then her gaze fell on

the former, Carson soon observed that

him to take

to pay any

that, he took out his phone and turned around as if nothing had

Joey a thumbs up without Rachel

he was answering

the plan you

he headed towards

very good

lit up while he was still

at all! Rachel saw what just happened clearly

"It’s okay.

take

He is actually right.

boy like him to be taken to the

Roger smiled gently.

"Thank you very much,"

Rachel said to Roger.

when he heard those words, they

thought that Rachel ought to have been closer

past few days, they got along

them were always in

known to her, she

of things, Rachel still didn’t love

that it couldn’t be achieved

night Rachel was standing outside the operating room

and Joey headed towards the

some time,

"Where is Joey?"

he asked Rachel knowingly.

glance at the phone

with the

"What?"

followed Rachel’s sight and took a

appeared on his

am through with

choice! My subordinates

"Of course they are!"

Rachel narrowed her eyes.

a fake smile on her

not very good at

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

touched the tip of his nose and coughed

want

to look through the glass panel on the

ward was a

view, only the living

Rachel pushed the door open in no time and walked

said Victor would lie in the bed for two

half a year’s

came

in a stable

"Get out of here!"

interrupted

saw a man in

He looked dejected.

a document in his

and Carson as

first, then his

"Mr.Scott!"

card hung around

It was quite noticeable.

the Sullivan Group

about what just happened

tell from the man’s expression that

was drawn to the name on the

was what really

She turned to Carson.

her, she raised her eyebrows

"Well, this is Troy.

member of the Sullivan

what she meant

at a

many surnames in the

he had to

who Rachel

bowed and mentioned

"Miss Bennet."

head slightly in

forehead was covered with

the scare of his life! Nonetheless, he was still holding

Bennet, I’m going back to

his hand and said, "Very well

should do that

Carson said, Troy went out of sight in a blink

at

that Victor was sitting against the head of the bed

as

and

the door and

against

follow

reading some document when he heard

didn’t raise his head and say coldly,

her gaze on

was in a

his face was pale despite the fact that

frowned and looked

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

that she walked

asked you to go

heard the footsteps, his

the person who was walking

and stiff tone, he said

we finished

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

"The dance is over.

to let

I reminded him.

but he still loosened his grip on my waist

took a few steps back to distance myself from

some reason, I could still feel the warmth of

blushed and i felt

heart

it felt like

with him were the happiest

that those days were long gone and I could never get them back

feeling conflicted

"Happy birthday, Caroline."

suddenly approached me

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

glass and taking a

it, I’d had a few to

Elena came to

for

upstairs and

she asked.

"What’s the surprise?"

This "surprise"

piqued my curiosity.

when you

smile appeared on Elena’s

her to

that there were bright red rose

also numerous

eyes widened in

whole

surprise?’ I had no idea who

mind was Charles, but I quickly cast aside that

on my

this much effort on me, and

this

stared at the night scene

and

cold sea breeze, I felt even

lit up

shot up to the sky, a deafening sound resonated

sounded like

I covered

squatted on the ground and

began trembling uncontrollably, and i felt like my blood

abandoned warehouse kept flashing through

of breath I

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

I’m here."

from above me, making

It was Charles.

as tears burst from my eyes, Gently, he

to