“What do you mean by that?” Lyla did not know if Ivanka was telling her the truth, or if she meant the opposite. Lyla’s heart clenched tightly. She did not look away but kept staring at Ivanka’s face. Lyla did not want to miss a single emotion that showed up on her face. Ivanka chuckled. “What do you think?” After muttering the words, she was in no hurry to say more. Since Lyla and her group had been unkind to her first, Ivanka naturally returned them the same favor. It was simply a wishful thought to hope they would change for the better with kindness. If Ivanka did that, she would rather commit suicide. Lyla frowned deeply. She was already in a bad mood. Upon hearing Ivanka’s words, her mood turned even foul. “Iv, what’s wrong with you today? Why are you keeping me in suspense? What happened outside?” Ivanka tidied her hair and said lackadaisically, “Indeed, something you’re unaware of has happened. In fact, Uncle Theodore has hid it from you for most of your life.” Lyl
Ivanka raised an eyebrow. “Really?” Lyla fell speechless. She grew increasingly worried with Ivanka’s increasingly nonchalant manner. She sensed that something was wrong somewhere. Yet she did not know what it was. Ivanka’s current look inevitably made her have negative thoughts. She could not stop herself from having all kinds of negative thoughts. The feeling grew worse to the extent that she did not know how to keep her composure. Lyla looked at Ivanka anxiously. Ivanka chuckled and said in a light tone, “Aunt Lyla, I always believe that you’re a smart lady. You can scheme people without making them realize all the while. Why did you become this when it comes to things like that?” At that, Ivanka paused for a moment. There was a hint of disdain and disbelief in her tone. Lyla’s expression turned dark and frowned deeply. At that moment, she decided to stop talking in riddles with Ivanka. Ivanka’s words had shaken her faith. She stared at Ivanka. “Iv, what exactly are yo
Lyla looked startled. Impossible! This was impossible! The next second, she shook her head and said unhappily, “Iv, stop that. If not, I’ll get really angry.” “I purposely came all the way here to tell you the news. Do you think there’s a need for me to play tricks?” Ivanka looked at Lyla with a smile, but it did not reach her eyes. The more Ivanka said, the more anxious Lyla grew. Lyla frowned as she stared at her. “All things need to be supported with evidence. I won’t believe in empty words.” Despite being unhappy, Lyla was both scared and wanted to know the truth. She hoped that Ivanka was giving empty words without evidence. If this were the past, Lyla would think that Ivanka was giving her empty words. However, Ivanka had changed. She had changed so much that she was no longer an innocent lady like before. Ivanka must have had solid evidence to say that to Lyla. Still, Lyla refused to believe her. Lyla believed Ivanka made up the story because she was a top-tier hacke
The corners of Ivanka’s lips curled upward. “Did you recall something?” Ivanka did not simply choose the photos. She only chose the significant ones. That day was Theodore’s birthday. Lyla took a leave to prepare a delicious meal for him. Lyla remembered waking up early in the morning to prepare for his birthday meal. After they ate their breakfast, Lyla said, “Hubby, today is your birthday. Come back early. I’ll prepare a sumptuous dinner for you.” Theodore looked a little stunned. The next moment, he smiled. “Never mind. I still have other things to handle. It’s just a birthday. It’s no longer important to me. I already had a scrumptious breakfast this morning. You don’t need to work so hard to prepare dinner for me tonight. I may need to work late and not come back tonight. You can have dinner with Chiara.” Lyla frowned. “Are you sure you’re not coming back tonight? It’s your birthday, after all.” Theodore sighed. “Sigh. There’s too much work at the company. I’ve no ch
Lyla turned to Ivanka in puzzlement. Despite this, she really wanted to know what Ivanka was about to say. “I’ll show you the photos with significant dates. Look, Uncle Theodore spent most of his time outside during festive seasons. He often told you that he had something else to handle in the company, so he couldn’t accompany you and Chiara. You never suspected him in the past. As you recall them now, don’t you realize something was off about him?” Lyla was silent. She bit her bottom lip tightly. “Besides, his mistress bought him the checkered shirt as a birthday gift. I remember he used to hate this type of shirt the most. But he eagerly put it on. Don’t you think the mistress means so much more to him than you?” As she said the final sentence, Ivanka gave Lyla a mocking smile. Lyla’s face gradually turned white. His body became tense, and she clenched her fists. She felt horrible. It was clear to see that Lyla more or less believed what Ivanka had said to her with the ph
“No!” Lyla screamed heart-wrenchingly. Her eyes were filled with incredulity. How could this be possible?! Why did Chiara have to come to this state?! No! This was not true! “Could this be part of Chiara’s plan?” Lyla remembered that Ivanka had pushed Chiara to a state where she had no choice but to resort to the last step. Lyla thought. “Could this be one of the schemes between Chiara and the mysterious person?” She remembered the mysterious person had promised to give Chiara a new identity. Lyla gradually calmed down. She seemed to know what was going on. Ivanka narrowed her eyes and noticed that her expression kept changing. Even though Lyla kept her expression well hidden, Ivanka observed the slight changes. Unbeknownst to Lyla, Ivanka could tell that Chiara had not died. It was obvious to see that this was just another setup. Ivanka did not come to visit Lyla to prove anything. Even without seeing Lyla’s expression, Ivanka knew that Chiara could not have died
With just a sentence like this, she already did not know what else to say. It was as if she was waiting for Ivanka to continue. Lyla did not even dare to keep her emotions under too much control. She was in a state of absolute panic. Her brain was messed up from panic, and she could not think through anything. The main point was that Ivanka was here. She did not dare to expose her emotions. This would only let Ivanka see through her all the more. Ivanka was too smart and too scary! “You don’t have to pretend. I’m aware of a lot of things. This includes Chiara faking her death and keeping it from you because she’s worried that she might be seen in this place.” Lyla was shocked! This despicable person! Lyla did not dare to show too much of her thoughts. Instead, she shook her head, puzzled. “What’s going on? Iv, what do you mean by Chiara faking her death? Is she still alive?” When she spoke of the latter, Lyla still looked a bit hopeful. However, she did not dare to have to
“He had never kept his misdeeds under wraps properly. Haven’t you realized that he’s the one who always ends up exposing the things you did?” Lyla’s expression changed. She could only play dumb and act in disbelief as she shook her head. “Iv, what the hell are you talking about? I really don’t understand what you’re talking about…” Ivanka sneered. “As long as Theodore is around, you all will keep losing. He has a family outside, yet you are suffering on his behalf here. Your daughter is barely even a person now. By the way, I already know of her new identity. In fact, I learned of it through your husband. Don’t you think I’m amazing?” “If this continues, Theodore will only become a burden to you. If you want to succeed, you can only let Theodore get the legal judgment he deserves, not you… You’re here spending your days in torment without knowing how miserable it really is outside.” Lyla’s face was a little pale. She did not know what to say. The irritation inside her was gro
Ivanka frowned deeply. Michael was in a horrible state. He had been poisoned and suffered gunshots. He had a strong tolerance to medicine and pain. But it was his mental condition that caused him to fall into this state. Not being fully recovered also added to the burden. Ivanka gave him a white pill which she had formulated by herself. After that, she had the security guard carry Michael into her car. Then, she sent him to the hospital. They arrived at the emergency department. Xavier had finished attending to his patients. When he walked out of his office, he saw Michael being carried into the hospital. He then saw Ivanka beside Michael. Xavier frowned. His expression became tense, and he asked solemnly, “What’s happened to him?” “He’s weak and had previously been poisoned. Since you’re around, you can look after him.” Ivanka summarized Michael’s condition. After hearing Ivanka’s brief explanation, Xavier gave Michael a checklist and put him on a drip. After that,
Since Jonah had come to this and Ivanka was not an ungrateful person, she nodded and gave her word. “Jonah, I’ll give this my all. Don’t worry. As long as it’s within my ability, I’ll help you.” Jonah had to be bound to the wheelchair at the moment. Since Ivanka had shared a similar experience when she took over Lane’s Group back then, she naturally figured out how wolfish and greedy his adversaries would be. Jonah was injured because of her. She swore to give her all to save him from whatever crisis he was facing. Jonah took advantage of this and asked, “What time are you coming tomorrow? I’ll have my assistant get ready.” Ivanka thought for a moment. “Tomorrow afternoon.” She needed to manage her company affairs during the first half of the day. Jonah was content upon hearing her answer. “Good. I’ll wait for you tomorrow.” “Okay.” Ivanka nodded before hanging up. When she returned to her office, she did not expect to see Michael sitting on the couch. She nearly jum
There was only one possibility. Ivanka was calling somebody else. Michael wondered who could strike up such a long conversation with her. Sandy and Ivan had returned to the country. Ivanka’s besties were around her. Even if Ivanka deliberately approached Chiara, she could not possibly have so much to chat with Chiara. If Ivanka’s phone call was business related, there was no need to chat this long. Michael eliminated the possible reasons one by one. In the end, he thought of Jonah. Michael’s expression instantly turned as dark as thunderclouds. His gaze was dull and cold. Evan noticed it. He also saw the call record on Michael’s phone. Evan quickly persuaded Michael, “Mr. Barkworth, Ms. Lane could be tied up with her work, so she couldn’t answer your call. We could go to her workplace now.” Michael said nothing. He gave a cold glance at Evan. Evan got a shock. The next second, Michael turned around and left his office. Looking at Michael’s fading silhouette, Evan wi
It was why Ivanka still came for Jonah in spite of her unpleasant experience with Margaret in the hospital last time. Jonah had been injured because of Ivanka. She came for him only. The other people did not matter to her. Jonah’s heart sank upon hearing her words. His expression tensed up. He could imagine the indifferent look on Ivanka’s face right at that moment. She had that expression on her face simply because he was never really important to her. Jonah was upset precisely because of her indifference to him. He wanted to say something to her but did not know how to begin. He was also not in the position to say that. It did not take long before Ivanka’s gentle but rather indifferent voice rang in his ears, “Jonah, don’t worry. I’ll treat your legs until they recover. Don’t run into any conflicts with your mom because of me.” Her words pulled Jonah’s wandering mind back into the present moment. He felt a heavy weight on his heart. “Iv, I trust you. You don’t need to
Margaret became frustrated and grabbed Ivanka. She could not understand why Ivanka was fine while Jonah ended up in such a bad situation after the accident.Then, Jonah defended Ivanka. There was also all the talk about Ivanka’s treatment. Margaret was curious to see what kind of miracle medicine Ivanka could develop.In the end, Ivanka’s treatment did not work. Moreover, her relationship with Jonah, which had finally started to improve, was once again ruined because of Ivanka.Jonah scoffed. “Mom, I’m not an eight-year-old anymore. You’re saying all this because you want me to go along with your plans for an arranged date, right?”Margaret had not expected Jonah to guess her thoughts. She was about to insist on her point when Jonah spoke first. With a mocking smile, he said sarcastically, “Do you think anyone would date someone like me?”He had a point. But Laura might be one such person.However, Margaret did not like her. She would do anything to keep Laura from becoming her d
“That’s because you want him to fall in love with you!” Margaret snapped.Ivanka chuckled softly. Her tone was edged with sarcasm. “Love? Does it really matter that much?”Margaret felt humiliated and furious. She pointed a finger at Ivanka’s face with a hostile expression. “If it doesn’t matter, why are you doing all this? Stop pretending, Ivanka!”Ivanka let out a bitter laugh. “Pretending? What am I pretending for? Is being divorced a crime? Margaret, you’re a woman too. How would you feel if someone accused you like this?”She hoped Margaret would take a moment to reflect. After all, she was Jonah’s mother, and Ivanka did not want their conflict to escalate.But Margaret was unmoved. Her glare turned colder, sharper, and filled with hatred.“You think I’ll just let this go?” Margaret said sharply. “If it weren’t for you, Jonah wouldn’t be in this mess! I meant every word I said, and nothing will change that.”To her, Ivanka was nothing more than someone scheming to use Jonah
“Ivanka,” Margaret took a deep breath while trying to compose herself. When she looked at Ivanka again, her expression was calm. She said, “I don’t know how deep Jonah’s feelings for you run. What I fear most is that once he becomes fixated on you, that’s it. When he falls for someone, his heart won’t make room for anyone else. In that way, he’s just like his father.”Ivanka’s gaze wavered. She bit her lip and was unsure of what to say.“I beg you, don’t hurt Jonah anymore!” Margaret’s voice carried a note of desperation.Ivanka’s expression turned extremely complicated.There was a time when Jonah came to her only to use her. Back then, they were both using each other. It made things simple.But later, Jonah unexpectedly started talking about marriage. Perhaps it was to provoke Michael, or perhaps he simply wanted to keep her close because she was useful to him.At some point, though, it seemed Jonah had become serious about her. She could not pinpoint when it happened. Perhaps
Jonah frowned in clear disagreement, but he stayed silent. Ivanka’s confident smile reassured him and made him trust her.Eventually, he let go of her wrist.Ivanka noticed Margaret putting on her shoes. She quickly followed, stepping outside just as Margaret was about to get into her car“Margaret,” she called out.Margaret frowned slightly and stood still.Since Jonah had not come out with Ivanka, she decided she could spare a moment to speak with her.She turned and looked at Ivanka coldly.Ivanka softened her tone. “Let’s take a walk.”Margaret did not respond, but her silence was enough of an agreement.They walked slowly around the edge of the mansion. The surrounding area was all part of the Sadler family estate.Margaret suppressed her anger and glanced at Ivanka before speaking in a composed tone, “Alright. What do you want to say?”Ivanka met her gaze briefly before looking ahead and said, “Do you know what will happen if Jonah’s coughing continues?”Margaret’s he
Margaret glared at Ivanka and scoffed, “If there’s an issue, I’ll get another doctor to handle it. It’ll be anyone but you, Ivanka. Haven’t I made myself clear enough? I’ve told you this before.”She hated how Ivanka ignored her warnings and kept coming back to visit Jonah time and again. What if Jonah got too close to her and ended up ruining his reputation? If Jonah had not been here, Margaret would have been even harsher.Ivanka frowned as she met Margaret’s sharp gaze. “I’ve never tried to get close to Jonah like that. We’re just friends. I know I’m not good enough for him, so I’ve never even thought about it.”“You might not have, but he has!” Margaret snapped, raising her voice.“Mom!” Jonah’s expression darkened.Jonah was usually calm and polite. This was the first time Ivanka saw him looking so upset and was about to lose his temper.Ivanka’s eyes flickered with hesitation. She was unsure of what to say.Explaining Jonah’s coughing would do no good. Margaret would not