Ever since Rickard started to fight back, Hesper instantly realized that Rickard had been giving in deliberately before. But why would that matter? The use of others’ feelings for her was also a means of business. It was not that she could not use it, it was just that she could not be bothered to use it.Nathaniel came to Genecity only to deliver things to Hesper. Since he had done everything that he wanted to do, and Hesper was busy with work every day and did not have time to entertain him, he returned to Emperion.“There will be a charity auction tomorrow night. I’ve rejected a few events of such nature on your behalf before this because the company hasn’t officially stabilized and gone on track.” Renee updated Hesper on an invitation. “But this is different. The organizer specially sent an invitation letter here, so do you want to attend the event?”When she was in Emperion, Hesper often followed Matthew to various auctions, which were always great opportunities for companies to
Before Hesper had the time to say anything, beeping sounds started to ring in her ear, signaling the end of the call.‘If Seth slipped his business card to me secretly, it means that he doesn’t want Nathaniel to know about this.’Hesper was forced to listen to those incomprehensible words and felt that the matter was getting more and more dubious. Nathaniel was most likely to know something about this, but Hesper had an inexplicable intuition deep down.‘I guess I shouldn’t ask Nathaniel about this matter first, at least not now.’Letting go of her doubts for the time, Hesper reminded herself not to think about those complicated matters.‘The most urgent task on my hands at the moment is to make it impossible for Duval Group to recover, and then get Renfrew’s custody back, and lastly, make sure that Lane Holdings settles down in Genecity smoothly. There are still too many things to focus on, so I have no time to think about all these illusory affairs.’Hesper put her phone down,
Juniper was born with a delicate and captivating look, so as long as her beholder did not deliberately try to find fault in her appearance, she might even look a little innocent and artless.“You look nice.” Ariana nodded. “However, I’m here to tell you to not go to the charity gala tonight.”Ariana’s gaze and expression still looked gentle and amiable, but what she said did not seem to leave Juniper with any choices.Juniper’s expression turned cold instantly, and she stared at Ariana in confusion.“Why? I’ve been preparing for this event for a long time, and I only want to be there to...” Juniper’s eyes wandered out of focus for a split second, and she exclaimed with a frown, “I don’t care. I must attend the function tonight. If you don’t want me to go, shouldn’t you at least give me a valid reason?”Ariana nodded. “Rickard and Hesper will be attending the banquet tonight too, so I don’t want you to go. This is the reason.”‘Nowadays, there’s been so much ruckus going on betwee
When Zikmund heard that Rickard was attending the event this time around, he guessed that he must have come to see Hesper. After all, the organizer had already announced Hesper’s attendance, so many people who wanted to get to know Hesper decided to attend too.‘Is Rickard worried that Hesper will gain more connections in the business circle, or is he afraid that Hesper will fall for someone else?Zikmund pulled Rickard out of the car, only to choke on the smell of the smoke inside and begin sneezing. In the past, Rickard would only light a cigarette when life was not going his way, but something like this had never happened before.Zikmund sighed.‘What else can I do? He’s still my best friend, my brother. I can only help him out.’“I’ve arranged something for today,” Rickard said indifferently.Zikmund was a little confused.‘What arrangement is he talking about?’Without any further explanation, Rickard walked straight into the venue.Zikmund was still bewildered, so he str
What was more, Rickard treated Juniper so well back then, but Juniper only wanted to take advantage of him, then pinned the blame on Hesper when things went south.If it was not for Rickard’s blind trust in Juniper, perhaps these things would have come to light since the very beginning. Taking advantage of this situation, Juniper should have left immediately, but she was shameless enough to stay and pester Rickard further for so many years.The former relationship between Rickard and Hesper was no longer a secret because of the blabbermouth, Juniper. So when some attendees who knew about the relationship between Rickard and Juniper saw the posture of the three of them, they could instantly imagine a huge, dramatic scene in their mind.However, the auction began officially, not giving the imagination more time to develop.The auction was completely transparent. Everyone sat in the auditorium and would raise their placards to bid for any item that they wanted.Hesper had seen a lot
Juniper did not expect that Rickard would intervene in the bidding out of the blue and raise the bid to such a high price in one go.She only had $25,000 in her possession, which she had managed to scrape together with great difficulty. She had not been working and getting paid for several months and she had never had the habit of saving money, so she was about to spend all the money that she had earned before this.Ariana was also afraid that she would use the money to commit crimes, so she stopped giving her a large amount of pocket money. Juniper had to save for a few months just for tonight.Juniper prayed deep down that Rickard would stop bidding. $22,500 might be nothing to Rickard, but it was basically all she had at the moment.At this moment, her heart was bleeding deep down, but she still had to maintain her proud smile on the surface.However, the $24,000 that Rickard followed up with in the next second broke her fantasy completely.Juniper could not help but look at R
Hesper was indeed thinking about leaving early. Although there was a dinner party after the auction, she had already gotten the business cards of the people that she wanted to know. She even got to witness Rickard and Juniper’s epic fight scene live.‘There’s nothing better than getting to go back and rest early.’Hesper yawned, and through her teary eyes, she saw Rickard looking back at her. His gaze was filled with complex emotions that could not be easily ignored.However, she did not want to see his gaze, and she did not want to understand his emotions either.Rickard looked away and then said, “What’s going to happen tonight has nothing to do with her, so it’s better for her to leave early.”Zikmund curled his lips, wondering when exactly Rickard started to possess the ability to rise above his old self and the characteristic of self-sacrifice.‘Love does make someone go blind.’Sitting at the back, Juniper could clearly see all the tiny movements between the two. When she
There was a foreign yet familiar feeling. Hesper turned around. 013 was still looking at her. He hadn’t expected Hesper to suddenly turn around, so their eyes immediately met. 013 looked down and tugged on the mask he was wearing, then left the place through the back door. Hesper was stunned for a moment, then remembered the black mole under his eyes. He was the man who pushed her in Salt City!Isaac and Renee were with her, so even if she knew that the assassin was there, she couldn’t do anything about it. That person obviously noticed her gaze and that’s why he left.Hesper sat there for a while, thinking, then slowly got up. A lot of eyes were on her, and when she stood up, they all looked toward her. However, Hesper didn’t have time to care about that. Before the assassin showed up, she could still lie to herself about having more time and that the man might have been arrested, but now, it seemed that the person had been observing her and was ready to pounce when she wa
He had never anticipated that he would end up loving her so deeply.It could be said that amidst all the misunderstandings and complexities, their journey together had taken many winding paths."I wouldn't risk getting into trouble just to set off fireworks for someone I didn't even like," Rickard said, his voice gentle. "You dummy."His words were soft, but as Hesper listened to his explanation, she cleared her throat, and her eyes turned bloodshot. She had never imagined that the person she had loved so intensely in her youth had, at some point in their lives, secretly admired her.Hesper attempted to smile but ended up with teary eyes. Seeing this, Rickard reached out and affectionately ruffled her hair. "If it's going to make you cry, I won't say anything more."Hesper pursed her lips. "If you don't want to talk about it, then don't."Rickard, despite understanding her reluctance, couldn't help but reflect on the past and openly admitted to the emotions he had felt in his you
They were flooded with memories, and Hesper couldn't help but admit that she had been through so much with Rickard. Her eyes welled up with emotion.The livestream ended, as they couldn't maintain constant surveillance of their lives. Even though they hadn't gone home yet, the crew had left.In the past two days, people had gotten to know them quite well, so the crew decided to give them some alone time.Hesper sat in the passenger seat and stole a glance at Rickard. She couldn't help but say, "I never expected that the only time you were seen as making a mistake in Grandpa's eyes was because of me.""There are many things you don't know," he replied. Hesper raised an eyebrow and asked, "Like what? Tell me."Suddenly, Hesper recalled the countless times Rickard had looked at her. Yet, during those moments, Rickard had always had feelings for Juniper. She knew that was the reality, so she never expected that Rickard might have had the same strong feelings for her as she had for h
Hesper glanced at Rickard, who remained emotionless, but she still reached out to hold his hand.[This is tough to see. Both of Rickard's parents are no longer here… Sigh.][Hesper immediately checked on Rickard. If I were Rickard, I'd love her so much.]Ernest shook his head and remained silent as he flipped to the next page. Most of the pictures were of Hesper after that. She hadn't realized she had so many childhood photos. Julian appeared in some of them, too.Before everything went sour.Rickard didn't have many pictures. As he grew older, he became quieter.Most of them showed Hesper standing next to Julian, but there was something off about them.[Did you notice... In many of those pictures, Hesper was looking at Rickard, and in others, Rickard was looking at her.][Oh my god, is this puppy love? I had no idea!][I remember Rickard had another lover.]Hesper had noticed, too, but there was no need to remind people that Rickard used to hate her, so she dismissed it as a
Hesper and Rickard entered the room and awkwardly informed Ernest that everything had been live-streamed just now. Ernest was shocked, but upon hearing that it was something people do, he nodded."It's fine. There's nothing that others can't hear."Hesper pursed her lips and glanced at Rickard before saying, "We didn't expect the Summers to come and see you. You should move in with us so these people will leave you alone."If Ernest lived with them, no one would dare intrude because they represented power and influence.Who would dare challenge them?"I don't want to get involved in your life. Renfew and Renarie would keep you occupied enough."Hesper understood that he had already made up his mind not to live with them, so she didn't press the matter further.She could understand his concerns, as many things might become inconvenient. Besides, Ernest didn't want to disrupt their lives either."We'll be heading to Fredonia soon, so even though we have filming to do, we wanted t
So what if the cameras were still recording?"Was my son's life not as valuable as your son's?"If he had grasped this earlier, recent events might not have unfolded. Jade had a point.The live chat fell silent. Though they lacked the full backstory, they could deduce what had transpired in the past.[I heard Rickard lost his parents when he was a child. I feel sorry for him.][His parents died because of that incident. It's no surprise if he harbors resentment.][Truthfully, this old man has no shame. If my child were responsible for another child's death, I'd beg for forgiveness.]Everything unfolding before their eyes was purely coincidental, and no one had control over the situation. They could only watch and terminate the livestream immediately if anything escalated.Fortunately, Jade received a stern talking-to and refrained from discussing the matter further, but Mrs. Summers did not fare as well. Hesper and the others bore witness to her irrational behavior.[This is e
"We've known each other for years, Ernest. I saved your life once, and now your descendants want to take my son's life!"As they approached, Jade Summers was angrily berating Ernest before him. Hesper's countenance immediately turned frosty as she walked over to Ernest."You should conduct yourself more appropriately, Mr. Summers Sr."Jade was taken aback to see Hesper, but he composed himself, took a deep breath, and fixed her with a hatred-filled gaze."If it weren't for you, none of this would have happened. You're just a woman. Since when do you get a say in the Duval family matters?"In the 21st century, people were all for equality. Besides, Hesper was no ordinary or unintelligent woman. Naturally, she had a voice in these matters.The viewers were inundated with comments when they heard Jade's words, and the live chat exploded.[Who is this guy? He looks old but lacks respect.][What's the argument about?][I sense some drama.]Rickard walked over. Jade had thought he
[Didn't Hesper mention that Mr. Duval Sr. took care of her? Maybe she did grow up well.][I'm certain she did. Hesper doesn't strike me as someone who would tolerate mistreatment.]Hesper and Rickard were under constant surveillance throughout the journey, and they hadn't allowed Benji to accompany them. Rickard was behind the wheel, with Hesper in the passenger seat.During the drive, they remained silent, but to observers, it appeared as though they were in harmony.Upon arriving at the ancestral mansion, Hesper noticed other cars parked around and cast a curious glance at Rickard. Visitors to Ernest's home were a rarity."Sir, Ma'am, you're back," a young housekeeper greeted them. It was the same person who had assisted Wendy earlier, but they couldn't recall her name. Nevertheless, Hesper had faith in her.Noticing the housekeeper's troubled demeanor, Hesper deduced that the guest inside was likely unwelcome. However, she couldn't fathom who would disrupt Ernest's life. Given
Rickard noticed something in Hesper's expression, prompting him to ask, "Is there something else you haven't told me?"Being intimately familiar with each other wasn't always without its challenges. Hesper could never conceal anything from him.She sighed and replied, "It's nothing. Just that Pennleigh will also be on the list."Rickard fell silent.Hesper was aware that sometimes Rickard might not appear bothered, but Pennleigh's presence did bother him.Observing Hesper's awkward expression, Rickard lowered his gaze and suddenly took on a pitiful appearance, like a big dog caught in the rain.Yet, she knew he was merely putting on an act. Still, every time she saw him like that, she couldn't help but miss the Rickard who didn't engage in such playful antics. His character had undergone a change.Hesper found it amusing but didn't quite know how to express it. She sighed and added, "It's a fantastic opportunity. I know you'll let me go, right?"Rickard had no intention of inte
"Sullivan lied to her. He had her parents quietly killed. She found out after she turned her back on you."Benji lowered his gaze. "She was already dead when you came back. It was suicide."The conclusion lacked the weight necessary for such a betrayal. Hesper shut her eyes. The person she had trusted most was Renee. They had shared countless years together.Hesper acknowledged that their bond might not have been a genuine friendship. Renee had abandoned her when given the choice.However, Hesper had faced such situations before.Thankfully, there had been someone who had placed her first in their heart, reassuring her that she wasn't always relegated to being an option. Hesper stood in silence for a while before simply nodding.There was nothing she could do to aid Renee now. Renee had entered and departed alone, leaving no trace behind with Hesper.When the topic was broached, it weighed heavily on her heart. Hesper understood the situation but found herself at a loss for word