"Ms. Torrey, are you just pretending to be a wolf in sheep's clothing then?" Miranda asked."Something like that," Ariana said. She continued, "Don't alert them of this just yet. We need to slowly collect evidence. The way that they embezzled the company's funds has undoubtedly affected the shareholders' returns. "Wait until we've got enough evidence and have gotten rid of their contacts in the company. That'll be the time when we send them to prison."Miranda stared at Ariana for a long while. She finally said, "Ms. Torrey, you seem different from before."The Ariana Miranda used to know was smart, too, but she didn't know anything about the business industry or how things ran. However, after hearing what Ariana had to say, Miranda figured that it made a lot of sense.Miranda couldn't help feeling amazed."Ms. Ziegler, you've been working for this company for a few years. My father even helped you financially before, so I hope that you'll take my side.""I'll help you, Ms. Tor
"If Ariana wants to see me, tell her I'm busy," Brian said."But Mr. Lodge, didn't you say that you wanted her to give in to you?" Emily asked."I want her to be helpless and desperate with no one else to help her."A cold glint appeared in Brian's eyes. He continued, "I want her to get on her knees and beg Evelyn for forgiveness."…At that moment, Ariana was busy purchasing some health supplements and skincare products. While she was on her way downstairs for a cup of coffee, she suddenly caught sight of a bodyguard in black shadowing her out of the corner of her eye.The black-clothed bodyguard stood out like a sore thumb amongst the other shoppers. Everyone's attention was on him.Ariana couldn't help shaking her head and chuckling softly to herself when she saw this.Brian was overestimating her by getting someone to shadow her like this. Was he worried that she would hurt Evelyn? Or was he just waiting to see if she would get desperate trying to save her company?Ariana
"Ariana, did he apologize?" Belinda asked.With Belinda questioning her like that, Ariana purposely cocked her head to glance briefly at Brian.Seeing that Ariana was about to speak, Brian suddenly realized that she might be harboring ill will toward him and that she could spout nonsense to Belinda. So, he quickly rushed forward and grabbed Ariana by the arm, roughly yanking her to her feet."Grandma, I've got something to discuss privately with Ms. Torrey. We're going upstairs."With that, Brian tugged Ariana up the stairs with huge strides.Everything had happened so suddenly. By the time Belinda finally realized it, she shouted at Brian, "Brian, you imbecile! Ari is a woman! I'm not going to forgive you if you bully her!"Brian pulled Ariana to the second floor and threw her onto the bed. Then, he locked the bedroom door behind him."What are you trying to do, Mr. Lodge?"Ariana leaned against the side of the bed and looked at Brian, standing at the door, with mischievous ey
"So, does that mean we have no deal?" Ariana asked."What do you think?" Brian snapped.Ariana knew that Brian wasn't someone who took her threats seriously. The only reason why she came over today was to remind him that she had her boundaries as well. Even the tamest of dogs wouldn't hesitate to attack when faced with danger—what more herself? Furthermore, she wasn't going to be a pushover."Want to make a bet, Mr. Lodge?""What bet?""I bet that you'll meet your downfall very soon if you continue working against me."Brian didn't respond.Ariana got to her feet and turned to leave. At the door, she paused for a bit and said, "By the way, Mr. Lodge, I forgot to tell you that I haven't told your grandmother that you've been targeting me. Do you want to guess whose side she'll take once I tell her afterward?""Ariana Torrey!""Brian Lodge, the fact that I haven't told her that you're targeting the Torreys shows that I'm being sincere here. You'd better stop it with your stupi
"Since you're the one who made the promise, Ms. Lambert, then you should think of a solution yourself."Arian then turned to the maid by the side, Summer Sanchez, and said, "Summer, arrange for a hotel room for Ms. Piper here. Ms. Piper can stay there for however long she wishes to. However, she needs to know who the real head of this household is. Ms. Piper, don't you think so?"Ariana hadn't missed the look Fiona gave her earlier. When Fiona heard this, a look of fear came over her face at once. She looked toward Gwen for help.Gwen flew into a rage and yelled, "Excuse me, Ariana Torrey? You're not even the head of the household yet, and you're already throwing your weight around, I see. Don't forget that I always end up being in charge! How dare you say such a thing to us?""Ms. Lambert, I have always been the one in charge of things in the Torrey household. In the past, I only treated you with respect seeing that you were older than me, which was why I handed the reins to you.
The car rolled to a stop at the college entrance. Selena then followed Ariana into the seventh-floor lecture hall in Block A.Since William had already started his talk for more than ten minutes, the entire hall was dead silent and solemn.Selena just stood at the entrance and peeked into the hall. She sighed and said, "It reeks of brains inside. I think we're a little too late…"Before she managed to finish her sentence, Ariana threw the door open and walked in. Selena's first instinct was to curse aloud."What the fuck?"Inside the hall, hundreds of pairs of eyes were suddenly on Ariana. William was also one of the people who looked at her.William was wearing a white button-up shirt with his sleeves slightly rolled up. He was tall and lanky and had deep-set features on his face. He wore a pair of gold-rimmed glasses on his face, and his brows gave him a cold and aloof aura.Ariana said aloud, "I'm sorry I'm late, sir!"Her haughty voice rang loudly in the hall, making some
Ariana was rendered speechless.She had indeed said that, but it was back when she was trying to defend Brian by talking shit about William to some wealthy socialites at a party.Nobody told her that William was such a petty person who held on to grudges like this! Also, how did he even learn about what she'd said about him that night?Ariana tried to calm herself down. Getting a grip of herself, she answered, "Mr. Kingsman, Goldfront Bay is only worth 500 million dollars. Brian faked the information to lure you into taking the bait and making you lose money."William released Ariana and took a seat on the couch, pouring himself a cup of coffee. He didn't even bat an eyelid as he said, "Keep talking.""The starting price for Goldfront Bay is 300 million dollars. Brian is planning to get someone to raise the bidding price to 4 billion dollars. When that happens, you're going to lose more than 3 billion dollars, Mr. Kingsman. "And with that, your finances will take a hit. That's h
Ariana was definitely getting the money."Damn, that's plucky of you, borrowing from him. You bad-mouthed him a lot previously, and now you're borrowing money from him. And he actually lent it to you?" "Brian and William are enemies. Of course, he'll lend me the money if I can help him," Ariana said."Good point," Selena said before doing a double take. "Wait, what are you helping him with?""Dealing with Brian.""What? You're really going to go up against Brian?" Selena was shocked.She had witnessed firsthand how much Ariana had loved Brian.She thought that Ariana was just throwing a temper tantrum. Who would've guessed she was serious about breaking off her engagement with Brian?She'd finally grown a spine!Ariana couldn't help but laugh bitterly when she saw Selena's shocked reaction.Even her best friend thought that she wouldn't be able to live without Brian.What did everyone else think of her, then?The eldest daughter of the Torrey family had turned into a livin
Might not be true?Evelyn had heard it clearly.Brian had forced a kiss on Ariana, and the Lodge residence was being revamped for her.Thinking of this, Evelyn headed straight to Brian's office.When she reached the door, Emily stepped forward to stop her. "Ms. Granger, Mr. Lodge is in a meeting. He can't see anyone right..."Before Emily could finish, Evelyn pushed the door open.Inside, Brian was wearing a headset and speaking to an international firm via video call. He shot Evelyn a frown for barging in.He swiftly ended the call with a few short words."Eve, I'm working."Evelyn would never have been this impulsive before.Brian put down his headset and looked at her.Evelyn lowered her head and said, "I... I didn't mean to interrupt you.""What's the matter?" Brian asked."I came to pick you up from work," Evelyn replied, forcing a smile that looked incredibly stiff.Brian didn't seem to notice anything unusual about Evelyn's mood. "I've got something going on tonigh
Brian thought Ariana was hinting at something. He said, "We're engaged. It's perfectly normal for us to share a room. My bed is big enough for three, so if you want...""Mr. Lodge, if you're trying to take responsibility for what happened earlier, there's really no need. I understand you acted on impulse because you were angry. It was just a kiss. I don't care at all."Hearing Ariana's words, Brian thought he must have misheard. "You... You said you don't care at all?""Of course. It's the 21st century. A kiss isn't a big deal. I'm not going to lose sleep over it."Brian was momentarily speechless. Ariana's words made him so angry that he just laughed.So, he was the only one who still cared about it?"You're right. I thought you cared about your chastity more than anything. Looks like I was wrong. Forget what I said before."Brian felt something tighten in his chest. He went upstairs, then stopped halfway, remembering he had come back specifically to talk about their relationsh
At that moment, Brian's voice came from behind Ariana. "Alright. I agree."Hearing this, Ariana turned around. She hadn't expected him to come back at this moment.She turned too fast and bumped into his chest, banging her nose against the badge on his suit. She stepped back, rubbing her nose. "Mr. Lodge, did you really agree to all that?"From what she remembered, he was never so easy to deal with.Brian said calmly, "What's wrong? Now that I've agreed, you're not happy about it?""If you're on board, of course I'm happy."With that, Ariana acted as though she was afraid he might change his mind. She said to Emily, "You heard it, Ms. Weston. Mr. Lodge is fine with everything. I'll leave the arrangements to you.""Yes, Ms. Torrey."Emily hurried off to prepare Ariana's new room.Ariana looked at Brian. "Mr. Lodge, if there's nothing else, I'd like to go get some rest.""Hold on." Brian suddenly grabbed her arm.Ariana frowned and glanced at his hand, wishing she could slice
Belinda had seen Gwen's true colors a long time ago. Yet, because Gwen was Ariana's stepmother and the lady of the Torrey family, Belinda treated her with courtesy.But when Belinda thought of Igor's disgraceful behavior from the previous night, she had no desire to humor Gwen any further.She asked indifferently, "Mrs. Torrey, how much money are you hoping to borrow?""Not a lot... just 90 million."Belinda froze. 90 million? That was a bold request indeed."Mrs. Lodge Senior, I know the Lodge family has immense resources. 90 million is just a drop in the bucket for you. Please have mercy on us. We really are facing a crisis, or else I wouldn't be begging for your help."Gwen was anxious to redeem the Aurora Pearls. The seller had said the price would rise again in a couple more days. If she waited too long, even 90 million wouldn't be enough."Mrs. Torrey, you're quite brazen. Do you think we're just a convenient ATM for the Torreys?"Belinda was already displeased with Arian
Ariana's eyelid twitched as she asked, "Emily, what does this mean?""It's a gift from Mr. Lodge. He asked me to apologize for his impulsive behavior earlier..."Before Emily could finish, Ariana shut the door in her face.Emily called out urgently, "Ms. Torrey! Mr. Lodge really is sorry! He even sent someone to pick you up! Please don't make this difficult for us! We're just following orders! Ms. Torrey!"Inside, Ariana ignored Emily's shouts.However, Gwen hurried downstairs. She pointed at Ariana and snapped, "What's wrong with you? You dare turn away Mr. Lodge's secretary?"Since Igor had offended the Shaw family, Gwen was desperate to latch on to Brian now. She couldn't afford to offend him.Putting on a flattering smile, Gwen opened the door and said to Emily, "Ms. Weston, don't mind Ariana. She's just shy. I'll make sure she goes with you!"Ariana found it laughable to see Gwen currying favor with Emily.Gwen still owed Ariana money, yet she shamelessly suggested sendin
Only Ariana had slapped him again and again. Only she dared to do that."Mr. Lodge..."Emily entered the office and said, "Ms. Torrey knocked over the decorative plant by the entrance as she left.""Let her knock it over.""What?" Emily was taken aback.Let her knock it over?Brian wiped at the blood where Ariana had bitten his lip. "Go to the Torrey residence and bring Ariana back here. Tell her I said she isn't allowed to go anywhere without my permission.""Mr. Lodge, that might not be a good idea. What if she leaves again? That would only make you look bad."The last time Ariana left, Brian threw out all her belongings in anger. Going back to fetch her now would be embarrassing enough. If Evelyn learned about this, it could blow up.Brian said, "I told you to do it. Are you going to defy me?""Certainly not." Emily quickly lowered her head.Brian said, "Ariana is my fiancée. I want her to live with me. Is there a problem?""No.""Then get going. Don't make me say it th
Seeing Brian speak up for Ariana, Belinda merely nodded."Ariana, you've always been smart and well-behaved, but when it comes to matters affecting both families' reputations, you've been too careless. We'll let last night slide, but if it happens again, don't blame me for being mean. I'll have to reconsider your engagement then," she said with a smile, but there was a warning in her tone.Ariana tried to free her hand again, but Brian held on firmly. She was about to speak when Brian said, "You're right, Grandma. Ari has always been smart and well-behaved. Her brother is the one causing problems. Next time, she'll watch him more strictly, so it won't happen again."He then turned to Emily. "Emily, please escort Grandma out.""Yes, sir." Emily helped Belinda out.Brian pulled Ariana behind him, blocking her from view. She frowned and reached out with her free hand to pinch him hard at the waist.He gasped but had to stifle the sound in front of Belinda. Ariana felt a bit gratifie
Ariana lowered her gaze slightly.Belinda said, "Igor is already 19, isn't he? Why can't he watch his mouth? I heard he's been going around saying he's the future brother-in-law of the Lodge family. What's that about? Does he think the Lodges will back him up if he causes trouble?"Brian spoke up. "Grandma, I'll handle this.""How exactly will you handle it?" Belinda glanced at Brian. "Are you going to call off the engagement with the Torrey family?"At the mention of calling off the engagement, Ariana's lips curved slightly. She had allowed Igor to run wild at the banquet precisely because she knew Belinda's temperament.In her past life, Igor had acted the same way at a banquet. He ended up offending the Shaw family.At that time, Ariana kept apologizing to the Shaw family on Igor's behalf and ended up disgracing the Lodge family. When Belinda found out, she began to dislike Ariana.In her previous life, Ariana went to great lengths to win Belinda's favor once more. She did ma
Gwen felt sick at the thought of how much money she had lost.Ariana didn't care about Gwen's losses and deliberately drove away in the sports car that Gwen had sent over. Admiring the vibrant red color, she said with satisfaction, "This sports car is fantastic. I love it. Thanks, Ms. Lambert."With that, Ariana got into the driver's seat, leaving Gwen on the verge of fainting again in the driveway.In the rearview mirror, Ariana saw Gwen raging in the front yard. A faint smile curved her lips."Gwen, did you think this was over? No, it has only just begun," Ariana thought.Meanwhile, Brian was busy at Lodge Co."Mr. Lodge, aren't you going to step in? The Torrey family is in chaos, and Ms. Torrey might not be able to handle it all by herself," Emily said quietly.Everyone knew about last night's fiasco. It was going to be a lifelong joke. Igor's reputation in their circle was shot.Ariana, as his sister, was bound to be affected. If Belinda heard about how disreputable the Tor