"You might as well say that you're smart. That's the crux of the matter," Arnold teased. I wasn't affected at all. "Exactly. Wasn't it supposed to be super exclusive, as Melvern prepared it? How did they get caught?""At first, the parents involved in the event suspected us, the Beringer brothers, because only a few of us left the gathering. The leak could only be from us," Arnold explained. "All fingers pointed at us. That's a typical reaction.""Are you saying someone reported this?" I asked curiously. It seemed unbelievable, as the informant had to be one of the attendees.I glanced at Arnold, asking, "Was it someone from here?""Yes, it was someone with inside information." Arnold didn't deny it. "You don't think it was us, do you?"He looked at me, teasingly smiling. "At that time, all accusations were directed at us. Grandma warned us not to say anything. So, regardless of how the outside world criticized the Beringer family, we just ignored it.""Grandma Rose is indeed
Arnold was dismissive of my skepticism."The affair between that woman and Melvern isn't as big a feud as it seems. Just because he stole his wife? Nonsense. Melvern sees Liora as nothing more than a piece of clothing." Arnold seemed quite repulsed."Why is that? Atticus doesn't seem afraid of Melvern. But from what I see, there's a possibility that Atticus is right about Melvern coming back for revenge. Could it be because of this report from back then?" I questioned."This incident was the main factor that led the Sunny family to leave Foswood." I had to admit that fact. Arnold looked at me calmly, then continued, "Atticus's greatest resentment was Liora’s family forcing him into marrying her.""Forced?" I questioned this statement. "Why?" Arnold chuckled. "It's hard to believe that a distinguished CEO like Atticus was 'forced' to marry Liora, right?"I nodded. "Yeah!""That's now. At that time, Atticus was just a small contractor, barely making a name for himself."I no
"The girl was from out of town. She's from a humble background, and even if she wanted to make a scene, she didn't know how. Besides, her family was very poor," Arnold explained, and suddenly, I understood what would happen."After the incident, the Sunny family spent a considerable sum to settle the matter, giving the girl's family only 70 thousand dollars, and that was the end of it." Arnold sighed, shaking his head."70 thousand dollars?" I exclaimed, "This is outrageous! They just dismissed a precious life for 70 thousand dollars?"Even though I guessed the story's outcome, I didn't expect the Sunny family to be so heartless, treating human lives like they meant nothing.Arnold helplessly replied, "The girl's family was too impoverished. That's how it goes. They had never seen so much money. They even feared they couldn't get their hands on the 70 thousand."I felt speechless, and a sense of powerlessness overwhelmed me."Afterward, under heavy pressure, the Sunny family immi
I wasn't pleased by the way Arnold questioned me."At the very least, he's righteous enough to report it. Such things cannot be tolerated," I asserted with a sense of justice.Arnold looked disdainful and said, "Nonsense! Don't admire him blindly. What's the matter with you? You're the classic example of a blind follower!""You just praised me a moment ago, and now you're making me feel worthless."I glared at him in displeasure, but truth be told, I admired Arnold. He was fearless of anyone and spoke his mind freely. His words, particularly those directed at Melvern earlier, opened my eyes to a new perspective. He seemed to hold everyone in contempt."Some things can't be judged based on surface actions to determine good or bad. Sure, Atticus released his anger at that time, but have you seen the chain reaction since then? Did he really gain an advantage?" Arnold asked.I frowned, thinking. I believed that Atticus became involved with Liora as a result of this incident, ruinin
Arnold explained how he knew about these things. From this perspective, this was the most authentic version. The reason everyone kept silent was to avoid public outrage.After all, this was not a glorious matter, no matter from which angle you looked at it. This was the dark side of the city."Looking at it now, I don't think Atticus will deceive you. This turned out to be an unexpected stroke of luck. Atticus has some merits. He's very sharp-minded. Think about it. He turned a small contractor's business into the leading one in Foswood. That's his strength!"But it shows he's not afraid to go the extra mile. He's a businessman, right? It's normal to go the extra mile for profit. Otherwise, how could he achieve his goals? Of course, now the leading power is you!"When he said this, he put on a playful smile."In my opinion, our grandma is the most shrewd," I praised."That's right, she's quite the strategist," Arnold openly admitted.We both burst into laughter.Before we cou
The three of us drove to Arkadia and headed straight to the children's department. The girls' section was filled with a dazzling array of items. Arnold was overwhelmed and fluttered around, exclaiming at every item. He insisted that he wanted to buy everything.Ultimately, I took charge and picked out two dresses and a pile of accessories. After all, Ava had a lot of clothes already, and I couldn't possibly buy her everything.Whenever Atlas went abroad, he would usually return with a whole set of clothes, dressing her from head to toe.She would even receive gifts from Ivanna, Lauren, Rose, Ryan, and Carol and Eleanor. Her dressing rooms were like little stores, overflowing with items.Whenever I tried to stop them, they all said the same thing. "Daughters are meant to be spoiled."I was both helpless and speechless.This time, Atlas bought art supplies for Jenny while Arnold shopped for toys for Myra's child and Charlie. After more than an hour of shopping, we had quite a
Arnold leaned out of the car and shouted, "Let's go. Ava just called. She's anxious to have us back!"I was relieved. This was the perfect opportunity to excuse myself. I apologetically told Michelle, "I need to go. Ava’s waiting for us. I'll definitely come to the reunion tomorrow. See you then!"Michelle seemed unsatisfied. After all, I hadn't introduced Atlas to her. She stepped forward, looking at Atlas, and introduced herself. "Hello, I'm Chloe's classmate. We're very close."She reached out a hand to Atlas, eyes filled with anticipation.Atlas didn't bother to extend his hand and just nodded slightly without saying a word. He was very cool toward her.When she saw Atlas's indifference, Michelle quickly withdrew her hand and turned to me. "You can bring your kid to the reunion tomorrow, Chloe. You have the oldest child among all our classmates. Let's all meet and catch up. It's a rare occasion, after all."She said this while still staring at Atlas, obviously directing her w
Atlas sensed my discomfort and explained, "We can't confirm anything right now. We're still getting the details from the airport.""Why did they say she's no longer within the borders of Jitador?" I questioned Atlas, feeling lost at this piece of news."That was Jared's speculation. After he arrived, we initiated a comprehensive investigation involving the Attwood and Huffman families, and our people. During that time, the hotel surveillance malfunctioned. This is definitely not a coincidence."Atlas slowly walked toward the floor-to-ceiling window in the study, gazing at the darkening sky outside. He continued, "But before the malfunction, the surveillance showed that Trinity was in her room the entire time. No unfamiliar faces entered her floor at night. The surveillance glitch started around midnight, and at 1:45 AM, she even had her bodyguard, Erik, bring her late-night snacks."My mind was trying to process what Atlas was saying."When did they discover she was missing?" I as