I held Willow's hand. "Rome wasn't built in a day. Willow, as long as we work hard, we'll get there one day."Willow looked up at me dejectedly. "Really?"She leaned against the car window listlessly and didn't say a word for a long time. I leaned closer to her and comforted her softly.After some time, she turned her attention elsewhere.…Zach followed them from behind. He looked as Aralyn patiently pacified Willow. He remembered how she would always hold him in her arms when he was upset. Back then, when he had his mother's love, he didn't know how to cherish it.It was only after losing it that he realized there was no one else like her in the world who was a gentle yet steady presence. Most importantly, she loved him unconditionally.He couldn't understand how he had managed to lose such a wonderful mom.His phone rang, so he answered it.Charlotte said with a smile, "My sweet grandson, I've found you a tutor just as you asked.""Thanks, Grandma," Zach replied as his eye
Julian asked calmly, "Hmm?"I asked, puzzled, "Didn't I tell you? I put a small recording device inside the dolls."Willow clearly didn't want us to hear what she said to her grandparents. Naturally, I wanted to respect her privacy.As such, I didn't plan on secretly listening to the recordings. When the time came, I'd have Julian hand them directly to her grandparents.It was only now that Julian realized how much I had prepared in advance. "When did you do that?"I replied lazily, "While Willow was upstairs speaking to the mirror."Julian continued, "When did you buy the recording device?""A long time ago," I answered honestly. I calmly added, "Back when I hadn't divorced Shayne yet. The things he and his family did and said were so outrageous. Then once the opportunity presented itself, I could leak all those videos and recordings. It would be my way of getting back at them."Julian looked at me and said approvingly, "Not bad.""Would you mind if I did that?" I was think
"We should have a good meal to celebrate," Julian said, looking at Willow. "What do you want to eat?"Willow thought carefully. "Hmm..."Lately, she had tried a lot of delicious food. Unfortunately, at the moment, nothing came to mind. "What do you think, Mommy?" I knew of a few restaurants Willow would enjoy, but I didn't decide immediately. Instead, I told her about a few restaurants and their specialties."Then let's try that restaurant near Daddy's office this Saturday."She then looked at Julian. "Is that okay?"Julian agreed unconditionally. "No problem."...Zach quietly waited near the villa for a long time and watched them train in the yard.He saw Willow acting spoiled toward Aralyn. He then watched the family enter the living room together.Zach suddenly felt as though his and his mom's positions had reversed.In the past, when Shayne first brought Luna back home, he would bring Luna, Mason, and Zach out to play, leaving Aralyn alone at home.Back then, did Aral
Julian understood what I was worried about. He placed his hands on my shoulders and said earnestly, "You don't need to worry about this. Leave it to me. I'll take care of it."His dark eyes were determined. I understood that everything he did was for Willow's sake. "Alright."Julian released me and stepped aside to find someone to gather information on the little girl.The little girl was called Pamela Winslow. Her parents operated a small company. Julian got her father's phone number and called him. He then got straight to the point about his intentions.Pamela's father didn't answer immediately.Julian was aware that, as a parent, they were definitely very cautious. They were afraid that their child would get hurt.As such, Julian explained that they could record Pamela at home and give the recordings to him when she went to kindergarten. He didn't need to interact with her directly. He also offered to collaborate with Pamela's father as a gesture of gratitude.Pamela's fa
Then why did the restless unease in Shayne's heart settle the moment he felt Aralyn's presence lingering in every corner of the house?He sat in the living room. Now, he didn't even know what love was. His friends all said he loved Luna. He had her, and they even had a child together. However, whenever he thought about spending the rest of his life with Luna, he felt suffocated. It wasn't until Luna moved out with her child that he finally felt a sense of relief.People often said that bystanders had the best view of things. Shayne couldn't stop himself from wondering if loving someone felt the way he did whenever he faced Luna.…Willow must have been completely exhausted yesterday. When I went to wake her up, I had to call her several times before she answered groggily.After opening the door, she sleepily walked to the bathroom to wash up. She then did her usual morning routine which consisted of practicing speaking in front of the mirror, reciting phonetics, jogging, then
Zach's voice gradually weakened. "But who will be good to me?"His mother no longer wanted him, and his father didn't care about him. He stared at the ground, not wanting to cry, but the tears still fell one drop at a time.…Shayne didn't need to drop Zach off, but he still arrived at the kindergarten at drop-off time. Seeing Zach's pitiful appearance, he approached him and asked, "Do you need my help?"Zach raised his head, looked at Shayne, then shook his head. "It's fine."Confused, Shayne asked, "Why? You're following her around every day. Aren't you trying to spend more time with her? Isn't it better if I could find an opportunity for the two of you to be alone?"It was good, but the one who caused her to give up on him was Shayne. If he hadn't secretly brought him to meet Luna, he wouldn't have been deceived into thinking Luna was good. Then, he wouldn't have started hating his mother more and more. He also wouldn't have started bullying her.Aralyn now treated him li
Julian looked at me with amusement. "Haven't you asked about the salaries of the others in our household?"I was stumped by that question. Julian then explained, "None of their monthly salaries are less than 30 thousand dollars. Besides, Willow has autism. She doesn't really like interacting with people. Taking care of her is harder than taking care of other children. So, it makes sense that I'd increase your salary."He added calmly, "Of course, the most important thing is that she's improving under your attentive care. I had wanted to give you even more in bonuses, but I was afraid you wouldn't accept it, so I settled on 80 thousand dollars. This is already my lowest offer."I responded, "But this is all part of my job scope."Julian's dark eyes looked pleased as he smiled. "In my opinion, you should be rewarded if you do well.""Alright," I replied. He had successfully convinced me.I then said, "But what about the posters? Didn't we agree on that? Just pay me a normal rate.
Gabriel felt uncomfortable as well. But since Lilia had just recovered, he couldn't let her become too upset and risk her condition worsening.He quickly comforted her, "She was so young at the time, and she had suffered such a huge blow. On top of that, Amber said such harsh things to her. It's normal for her to feel worried."Upon hearing that, Lilia was even angrier. "How could that old hag say such nonsense to such a young child?"Gabriel couldn't understand either. "It just shows she's no good!" "Yes. Once I've fully recovered, I'm definitely going to her house to teach her a good lesson and help Willow vent all that anger!""Absolutely!"…Back in the office, I turned on my laptop. Thinking about how Julian wanted to customize a doll modeled after Pamela to help Willow recover, I didn't bother with drawing comics. Instead, I sat on the couch, envisioning Pamela's appearance. Once the design was clear in my mind, I got to work on the sketch. Then, I added the colors.B
Maisy stared at Shayne.Shayne remained silent for a long time before saying, "No matter what, he's my son.""So, now you consider him your son? Too late! I'm warning you, the only reason you got to talk to him today is because I didn't notice you in time! If I catch you near Zach again, I won't let you off!" Maisy snapped.For Shayne, Zach was the only connection left between him and Aralyn.If he lost Zach too, then he would truly have nothing.Shayne looked straight at Maisy and said, "But do you have the right to interfere? You're his grandmother. I'm his father. It's already kind enough of me to let him live with you."Maisy almost laughed in anger. "Me? Interfering? First of all, you were the one who gave up custody of Zach. You were also the one who refused to give him a single cent! And now you're telling me this? Do I look like a pushover?"She had managed to carve out her own path after her divorce, despite Donald trying to blacklist her from the industry.That alone
Shayne followed behind Zach into the bedroom, only to discover that the entire room was covered with photos of Aralyn.Every wall was plastered with them.He stood there, stunned.On the desk, a small robot said in Aralyn's uniquely gentle voice, "You're home, sweetheart."Shayne looked over in disbelief.Zach sat in front of the robot, looking at it with a smile. "Yes, Mom, I'm home.""Welcome home," said the robot softly."But there's an unwelcome guest in the house," Zach said.The little robot immediately suggested, "Why don't we call someone else over to kick him out?"Zach looked at Shayne.His longing for Aralyn had only gotten better because of the robot and the countless photos surrounding him.But when he noticed Shayne was also staring at the robot, his expression darkened. "Did you hear that? You're not welcome here. Please leave."Shayne stood there, dazed. "Can I ask who gave you this robot?""No, you can't," Zach replied sternly.Shayne averted his gaze and
Yasmin narrowed her eyes.So, Luna had indeed pursued Julian.Yasmin found it oddly amusing.Since Luna was also interested in Julian, would she really help Yasmin sincerely?Yasmin wasn't sure, but she decided to put it aside for now.Either way, she would just stay vigilant.…Zach returned home, only to see Shayne standing at the door. He merely glanced at Shayne before looking away and pushing the door open to enter the house.Shayne followed behind him.As soon as Zach stepped inside, he intended to close the door.But Shayne stuck his hand in the doorway. "Can we talk?""About what? Last time we met, you hit me. What about this time?" Zach asked coldly.He didn't believe for a second that Shayne had come for anything good.After all, Shayne was an idiot who always believed whatever people told him.There was a high chance that this time, Shayne had been manipulated again and had come looking for trouble."I'm here to talk about your mother," Shayne muttered.At hi
Luna was just that attractive to men.She couldn't stop smiling at the thought."Then what kind of men do you think would like me?" Yasmin asked.Luna was momentarily stumped as she looked Yasmin up and down. Even though Yasmin was the same age as Aralyn, she lacked Aralyn's composure and calmness.Instead, she seemed a bit foolish.Luna found Yasmin somewhat annoying, but she didn't show it.She just smiled faintly and said, "Probably more mature and experienced men."Yasmin pressed her lips together. Those kinds of men were usually older, and she wasn't interested in them.Of course, Luna knew what Yasmin was thinking about but didn't show it. "I think most men aren't worthy of you, of course. Someone like Julian is just right.""That's right!" Yasmin agreed instantly.Luna nodded. "Yeah."Frowning, Yasmin muttered, "But the men who are worthy of me don't like me.""With diligence and persistence, anything is possible," Luna answered patiently.After finishing work, teas
Shayne had no other way to relieve his feelings now.Although drinking could make him forget Aralyn, he would feel like his heart had been hollowed out the very next day. It was unbearably miserable.Hence, he wanted to meet Zach. Zach was one of the few family members he had in this world.Once Shayne made the decision, he drove to Zach's place.…Luna never knew that pregnancy could be so exhausting. The animation project had just ended, but she had to design drafts for trendy toys now. She was dead tired.And now, someone was knocking on the door in the middle of the night.Luna opened the door.The person standing at the door was Yasmin, someone she had seen on TV.Recently, Luna had also learned a bit about Yasmin. Although she was rather fierce and seemed immature, she was about the same age as Aralyn."What are you here for?" Luna asked in surprise."To chat with you."Without even waiting for Luna to invite her in, Yasmin walked straight into the living room and s
Julian walked out, having just finished his shower. When he heard my conversation with Willow, he explained, "Your mommy is even more amazing than you think. Tens of millions is actually just a safe guess."Willow's mouth dropped open in surprise. "Wow, she can make even more?"Julian remained composed. "Yeah, these designer toys are selling really well, and they've also boosted sales of related merchandise and some comic books."Willow looked at me with even more admiration.Smiling, I uttered, "It's all thanks to your daddy."However, Julian was humble. "It's clearly because of your own hard work."I didn't deny it.Julian then asked, "The toys you designed yourself are also making a lot of money, right?""I heard from Mark that their sales are catching up to the designer toys. They've also made a huge profit. When the hype starts dying down, I'll release a new set of dolls. Based on my current inventory, I think I can keep the momentum going for at least another year," I s
"Alice doesn't know much, but these manufacturers definitely do. If you contact them and ask for a list, do you think they'll help you?" I asked.Mark hesitated for a moment. If everyone took advantage of this trend and increased production, they could make more money.And the more people knew about it and discussed it, the longer the hype would last, and the more money everyone could earn.Of course, they would be willing to introduce their peers.Once Mark understood this, he excitedly said, "Got it! I'll contact them right away!""Okay." My tone finally relaxed.…Mark was dedicated to this job. He proactively reached out to the factory owners. After explaining the pros and cons to them, he asked them to introduce other factory owners to him.Each of them was enthusiastic. Within just a few dozen minutes, he had already gotten at least ten phone numbers.He called them one by one, explaining his needs.To ease their concerns, he mentioned his referrers and emphasized that
Aralyn had always been the one to soothe them, including Charlotte.Shayne had now come to realize that Charlotte wasn't as great as he had once imagined.It was just that, when Aralyn was by his side, she had been afraid of affecting his work. So, no matter how much trouble Charlotte caused, Aralyn always covered for her.Yet, he refused to cherish the woman who had cared so much for him.Shayne took a deep breath, suddenly feeling exhausted."What's there to think about?" Charlotte asked."In all the years Aralyn was with me, the money she spent didn't even add up to what you both spend in a month, or even a week. Wait, even a day," Shayne said coldly.Charlotte felt that Shayne had become stingy. "But you're supposed to spend the money you make.""My son and wife didn't get to spend it. It all went to you." Shayne's voice was filled with self-mockery.Charlotte was a little annoyed. What did he mean by that?She had worked so hard to raise Shayne. It was only right that he
"Other people don't know the truth, so I can understand if they blame me. But Shayne knows, yet he still blames me!" Charlotte said.Luna sighed. "Don't let others sow discord between you. As for Shayne, he's still dreaming about getting back together with Aralyn. He's probably still hoping to have more children with her."But Aralyn no longer had any interest in Shayne.Luna understood this very well. If she were married to a man like Julian—gentle, rich, handsome, and loving—she wouldn't even consider someone like Shayne.Sure, Shayne was somewhat good-looking, but he was also stingy and emotionally unavailable.The contrast was just too brutal.If Aralyn broke up with Julian and got back together with Shayne, Luna would seriously question whether Aralyn had a mental illness.Charlotte, of course, didn't think her son had done anything wrong. Hence, in her mind, Aralyn was the one at fault."Aralyn must have been secretly contacting Shayne! Otherwise, why would he still be th