However, Melanie quickly thought it through.Good at blending perfume, a strange temperament, an old man living in the countryside, and a hidden identity... All of these descriptions matched Elder Gibson.The news really did let Melanie relax a little. “How can you be so sure that Elder Gibson will help me?”“Would he give his enemy a whole room’s worth of dresses?” Jeffrey scoffed.It was all Jeffrey’s fault that he couldn’t even think of buying Melanie any more outfits because she’d run out of room to store them. All he could do was partition a walk-in closet in the room next door for her.If it weren’t because Elder Gibson was old enough, Jeffrey would have forced her to return those dresses!“Do you need my help during the competition?” he asked after giving it a thought.He had to do something to show that he existed too. He couldn’t simply watch someone else helping his woman the entire time.Melanie wanted to say no, but when he saw how expectant Jeffrey was, she gave it
“I’m sorry, but I have a request.”Melanie raised her hand calmly. “I have a request.”Eaton, who was seated together with the judges, said, “Go ahead.”“Something’s wrong with my base fragrance. I request to get the other one,” Melanie said.“Are you trying to openly cheat?”John couldn’t hold it anymore and immediately led others on the offensive. “The contest’s rules are clear. All contestants can only use the base fragrance that has been stored with the association. You want to change the rules at the last minute? You’re crossing the line!”“That’s right. It’s not fair for all the other contestants if you’re trying to get any special treatment, isn’t it?” Immediately, someone took John’s bait and questioned her in agreement.Melanie turned around and looked at John, his face red with him almost screaming. She calmly said, “Don’t be so excited, Mr. John. What I’m referring to is the other portion of the base fragrance that is saved with the association. I didn’t bring it with
The netizens who were watching the stream kept on posting comments. “Melanie is really so interesting!”“She has both brains and brawn!”“Hmph.”Jeffrey’s smile was one of joy. She was beautiful and interesting, and these mortals had only seen a little bit of her!“Boss? Boss?”William carefully and slowly increased his volume. He only realized that his boss was watching the competition’s live stream from the change in his voice.Jeffrey turned his attention back to William, annoyed.“These documents require your signature,” William said.“Bring them along. I’ll sign them when we’re enroute.”Jeffrey closed the stream on his computer before standing up and patting his suit. He then said, “Let’s return to Harbor City.”“There’s another appointment later tonight...”“Delay it.”“Understood!”William quickly ordered the driver to prepare the car.It seemed like the boss was very enthusiastic about wanting to pick up his missus. -Melanie couldn’t leave the venue even afte
Melanie turned around and gave John a helpless smile. “Mr. John, no wonder your score is so low. You’ve been spending all your effort to look at how I blend my fragrance.”John was so angry that he huffed at his beard and said, “Don’t change the subject!”He then turned around and looked at the judges. “Judges, everyone here is a professional. If you don’t believe me, we can review the competition’s recording.”“Tell me, what did Melanie do wrong?” Eaton asked with a frown.“Her last two steps were completely reversed!”John said with full confidence, “Everyone in the industry knows that the order of these two steps is already fixed. She doesn’t even know the basic order of things. What right does she have to get such a high score?”After Eaton discussed it with the assistant head judges, they agreed to review the video.The large screen began to show how Melanie made the fragrance. And when she almost reached the final steps, as expected, everyone realized that she did it in re
“Elder Gibson!”Everyone from the media turned their cameras toward his voice. The honorary chairman himself had appeared! As he made his grand entrance, two young aides stood behind him.The ten juniors and devotees stood up from their judges’ seats and made some room, while respectfully inviting Cyrus to the central seat.“You’re finally here, Elder Gibson. I thought you weren’t coming...”Eaton finally felt the anxiousness in his heart slowly drifting away. “What? I promised you I’d come, didn’t I? Am I someone untrustworthy?” Cyrus gave him an unhappy glare.“Of course, of course. You’ve always been a man of your word.” Eaton was humble before the elder.Cyrus looked at Melanie. Melanie simply gave him a simple nod and smile. He raised an eyebrow. It seemed like the young woman already knew who he was and wasn’t surprised at all...He was somewhat disappointed. He wanted to give her a surprise!“Elder Gibson, it’s good that you’re here. Now that you’re here, all of us con
While Cyrus sounded like he was scolding all the professionals that were present, his words made them even more motivated.Many of them didn’t expect Elder Gibson to keep on trying to find ways to be creative and improve his methodology despite his old age. A lot of people that were present felt ashamed. Many of them had thoughts of wanting to slow down once they reached their forties and fifties with some success.“And you.”Cyrus turned around and looked at the professional from the other city. “I heard you praised contestant number ten and you enjoyed watching her performance. If you enjoyed her performance that much, you were still going to overrule your own judgment just because of two reversed steps?”The professional couldn’t even raise his head as his face burned red.“I’ve also done the same thing. Since you’re all from the higher echelon of the association, are you going to deal with me today right here right now?” Cyrus’s voice boomed as he stood in front of the microph
The man that was being escorted by Morgan Group’s bodyguard was one of John’s assistants.However, he wasn’t the type with any bravery. He was probably already warned by the bodyguard. He was scared of Cyrus, but he was even more scared of Jeffrey.After he was escorted on stage, he explained everything to everyone.In front of countless cameras, he explained in detail how John had asked him to contact the media, and then had them wait for the elder at the airport, and finally pinned the blame on Jones Enterprise.“You’re making things up!”John was so scared that his lips became pale. “I never expected you to be a spy from Jones Enterprise! Tell me! Who arranged you by my side so you can accuse me when the time’s right?!”“How can you say that?”There was fear and disappointment on his assistant’s face. “I’ve done many things for you, and you still want to refute it? You know how many things need to remain a secret? I’m no fool... I saved evidence for them all!”John suddenly
“Aren’t our base fragrances protected inside the association’s safe? How can someone do anything to it?” One of the contestants who couldn’t take it anymore asked the judges.“That’s right.”Melanie calmly answered on the judges’ behalf. “The committee was worried that something else might happen and decided at the last minute to prepare another portion of the base fragrance as insurance.“For the sake of fairness, I would like to ask the associate to use machinery to analyze the base fragrance that was manipulated to prove what I said is true,” Melanie said.Elder Gibson nodded, and the staff next to him quickly made a move.He first took the base fragrance that was contaminated to the machine so that it could be analyzed.“The reason that I’ve asked to ban the White Group’s perfume department is because the White Group’s contestant has absolutely run foul of the competition’s rules and used some despicable tricks to sabotage another contestant. Just this alone is enough to supp
Pleasantly surprised, Melanie turned around to see the man she had been looking for. She never stopped saying his name in her head. He stood right behind her.At that moment, she stopped thinking completely.Without even hesitating, she ran toward him and dove into his arms."Ughh."Jeffrey groaned in pain. He did not dare to press against her stomach. Instead, he arched his back to hold her."Where the hell have you been? Do you have any idea how I…" She cried so much that she could not speak."Alright, alright. Good girl. Don't cry. I've come back."Jeffrey kept rubbing the back of her head. "Eagle was too neurotic. I've nearly gone mad from dealing with him. I finally got him to regain some of his sanity today… That's how I had the chance to find you…""How did you know where to find me?" Melanie asked."Today is the day of Nathan's trial. I know you'd definitely be in the courtroom," Jeffrey said confidently.Melanie finally calmed down a little. After letting go of him,
"We're not together…"Kenneth's facial expression changed as soon as he saw Melanie.Melanie noticed there was a hint of guilt in his eyes. This was an unsettling feeling for her. "Then where is he? What happened to you guys?"Noticing that she was shaking, Annie and Carson, who had accompanied her to court, rushed forward to assist her."Eagle had a prior arrangement with Nathan. Once Nathan and Leo's plan at the York family's residence was thwarted, Nathan would press a button. Eagle would then receive a code to detonate a bomb. He'd blow us all up," Kenneth explained."Jeffrey was the one who noticed Eagle wasn't in the right state of mind. That's why he informed me to leave with Mr. Oliver. He… Stayed behind to persuade Eagle…" He added."What happened then?" Melanie's voice was shaking."All I knew after that was that the hotel blew up. I waited for him to contact me but he never did. Mr. Oliver and I have been on the run from Nathan's shadowy pursuits. I only managed to sn
Three days later, the trial was officially in session.Leo's attorney was practically defenseless because the York family's allegations of him poisoning Joseph had been proven beyond a shadow of a doubt. Leo was directly sentenced to life in prison.Nathan's attorney, on the other hand, was clever. They tried everything they could to deflect Nathan's allegations.After the presiding judge evaluated the case, he looked up. "Does the plaintiff have any more evidence that the defendant, Nathan, intentionally killed someone?"Hank sat silently at the plaintiff's table.They could only provide evidence of the time when Nathan had tried to murder Hank. However, they had no evidence of Nathan being involved in the explosion on the island this time.Hank looked at Melanie in the audience. She was also frowningThe presiding judge's implication was well understood. Without more evidence, Nathan would not receive a life sentence…"The plaintiff simply does not have sufficient evidence to
Carson sighed. It was time to explain everything to Hank…Although Carson had spent a lot of time in Hank's hospital as Professor Marshall, and he would also tend to their men's wounds, as well as discuss a variety of topics with Hank, they had never acknowledged their relationship…Besides, Carson knew Hank hated him.Hank hated him for being heartless to his grandmother back then. That was why Hank changed his last name to Castillo instead of Yule…"Let's take Melanie back to rest. I'll explain the rest to you myself," Carson said. Hank had already figured out half of it."Grandpa, I'm not going back. I'll wait for the news here," Melanie said firmly.There was no sign of Jeffrey's corpse yet. She would wait until the rescue team confirmed that they could not find any corpse.She wanted a clear answer."Okay. I'll get the trailer ready for you. You can lie down inside. You can't afford to hurt your body anymore than you already have. I checked your pulse earlier. It's not loo
Buzz!Melanie's vision turned black. She began falling backward."Melanie! Melanie!"Carson propped her up and called the doctor over.However, Melanie opened her eyes after a few seconds and tried to stand up. "I'm fine… Grandpa, take me there… I want to go to the scene of the explosion…""You're in no state…""I'm fine. I can hold up," Melanie promised."If you don't let me go and see it with my own eyes, I'll be even more paranoid," she added.Carson knew his granddaughter too well. He sighed and frowned before requesting for a ride. He met up with Hank. The two of them accompanied Melanie to look for Jeffrey.Jeffrey, Kenneth, Mr. Oliver, and Eagle waited at the drop-off point near the York family's residence. Nathan had instructed them to not do anything rash.Mr. Oliver and Eagle were still useful to Nathan.Once Nathan acquired Joseph's signature, he would meet up with them.However, the small hotel they were waiting at was already in ruins. There was smoke everywher
'Chief… Frankie?'Leo turned around in surprise. Nathan did the same. They saw Chief Frankie and several Interpol agents walking out from behind a screen in Joseph's room.Melanie was a part of that group!"Aren't you… dead?" Leo pointed at Melanie in shock."Thanks to you, I'll live a long life." Melanie sneered.Chief Frankie waved his hand. The police behind him charged forward to put handcuffs on Leo and Nathan. Leo narrowed his eyes and quickly pressed a button on the remote in his hand."We'll all die together!" He shouted.However, no matter how hard he pressed, nothing happened in the room."What's going on here… Eagle?" Leo's voice was trembling.His hands were cuffed, and the remote control was confiscated by the police."Leo, you are suspected of poisoning Master York and attempting to murder Melanie and others on the island. We are arresting you for premeditated murder!" Chief Frankie uttered calmly."No… No…" Leo struggled but to no avail. He had no idea what wa
At the same time, Melanie and Carson were on a plane with Professor Turner. They soon arrived at Medonia.Carson contacted Hank ahead of time and asked him to pick them up with his men.After the exhausting journey, Melanie's face was pale. She seemed to be in very poor condition. "I've already contacted the maternity hospital for you. You can go there and wait for your delivery. Leave the rest to me.""No…"Melanie shook her head. "I have to go back."Jeffrey was still in Nathan's hands. She would not be able to wait peacefully if she went to the hospital.Carson knew his granddaughter well enough. "Let her go. Professor Turner and I will be with here. We'll be ready for anything."Carson was still disguised as Maximilian. Hank did not know he was Carson. Hank nodded in agreement.“Mr. Castillo, there's something I need to trouble you with.” Melanie said."I heard from Professor Marshall that you're on good terms with the chief of Medonia's Interpol. Can I trouble him to be a
"Wait a minute! Isn't Jefford actually Jeffrey?" Leo asked while running after Nathan.Nathan ignored him and continued to walk forward.Leo did not give up and followed Nathan closely. "Who exactly is Jeffrey to you?""Are you being unreasonable right now? Why are you still so unsure at this point?" Nathan glanced at Leo contemptuously."I'm dealing with serious business. Don't get in my way with your petty romantic affairs!"After saying that, he glared at Leo and exited the cabin.Leo felt chills in his heart, but he could not make Nathan stay…-Jeffrey was tied up on the deck all this time. His body was freezing, and his lips were turning purple from the cold."Hey, President Morgan, fancy seeing you like this!" Nathan laughed grimly when he saw the miserable state Jeffrey was in."Thanks to you, I've been more miserable than this on many occasions. This is nothing." Jeffrey made it sound like a walk in the park."Hehe." Nathan sneered."I know. You've had strong willp
Lynette seemed stunned. She could not help but stand up with the help of the railing on the speedboat. Her eyes turned red as looked at the island burning in the distance. There was a look of disbelief on her face…If they had not evacuated five minutes ago…By now…She would not have even been able to breathe and think…The explosion sent shockwaves across the ocean's surface. The ride became even more bumpy. With sea water splashing against them, they had all become wet."Are you alright?" Carson protected Melanie. He was worried she would not be able to take it.Her stomach did feel awful, but she braced herself and tried not to tense up. Her emotions would affect her baby.When Lynette heard the voices behind her, she turned around to look at Melanie. Her gaze had become much softer than before. "You're not going to give birth on the boat, are you? I'm a woman, but I don't know how to be a midwife!""I won't give birth now. There are still things left to do," Melanie said.