Rosie chuckled. “I thought you were going to talk to me about something serious. There is nothing to be curious about. These two young ladies are very intelligent. They are well aware of my preferences. Both of their gifts must be exceptional. But, if I open it and show it to everyone, am I not comparing them?” It would be unfair to both gift-givers. Chiara dashed over and grabbed Catherine’s hand. “Catherine.” She whispered her name. Then, she looked at Rosie with a smile and said, “You are right, Grandma. Catherine just came up with that idea out of nowhere. There is no need to compare our gifts. Catherine only mentioned it because she thought it was an interesting idea. Please do not take offense.” It sounded like she was interceding for Catherine, but some wondered if Rosie was picking favorites. “Is Ivanka’s gift unpresentable?” they wondered. “Is she trying to save her from embarrassment?” Rosie was irritated to see Chiara digging a hole for Ivanka. She had faith in I
Mr. Harvey responded and went to the gift room. Everyone was eager to see what was going to happen. Ivanka and Chiara were more than just sisters; one was Michael’s ex-wife, and the other was his current girlfriend. The problem was that both his ex-wife and current girlfriend had a close relationship with the Barkworths. They each had their own group of supporters. Rosie and Jay backed Ivanka, while Samuel and Mindy backed Chiara. Chiara was Michael’s lifesaver. Chiara would win in the end, no matter what the crowd thought, but she had stated that she would never marry Michael, making it a difficult situation. It was a chaotic situation overall. Everyone was expecting a drama. There had been major drama after major drama since Michael and Ivanka’s divorce. Chiara did not take a seat and instead stood on the side, as she needed to get her own gift. Catherine’s eyes were full of confidence. She cast a glance at Ivanka. She looked at her like she was going to fail misera
Sandy moved a little faster as the crowd was watching them. Chiara looked at her gift box and was a bit puzzled. She thought. “Didn’t she just prepare a common rosary? Why did she need such a big gift box? Did she prepare something else?” Chiara sneered internally, thinking that even if she did, it would be fine. She was unconcerned. Ivanka’s creativity was limited. She did, however, have a surprised expression on her face when she saw Ivanka’s gift. It was not the rosary she bought at the mall that day! Instead, it was a gold cross! Furthermore, the texture of the cross clearly differed from the one she had seen previously. The design and color were also distinctive! The rosary she saw had dark lines patterned on its surface, but this was a gold cross. Its surface had no lines, and it was very smooth. The crowd was staring at the gift, unsure what kind of gift it was. Sandy, on the other hand, smiled and introduced it. “Mdm. Barkworth, Iv is a humble girl. She is embar
Rosie’s eyes were filled with concern. If there were fewer people present, she would have loved to lift Ivanka’s dress and inspect her knees. Chiara’s face turned pale! She yelled internally, “Ivanka, you really went all out!” Even Catherine felt a little embarrassed to take out her gift. She had not opened the gift box she was holding because she had only untied the thread. She only had to lift the cover when it was her turn. Sandy chuckled and said, “Mdm. Barkworth, the pastor from St. John Cathedral said you could put the gold cross in your bedroom. It will bless you with longevity!” Rosie nodded with a smile. “Of course. Crosses bring blessings, and this gold cross has been blessed with holy water and prayers, making it an especially meaningful gift.” She took Ivanka’s hand in hers. “Sweetie, you’ve gone through so much for this gift. You must not repeat this in the future, okay? It’s just a birthday.” Ivanka smiled and shook her head. “This is what I should be doing,
Catherine was still full of confidence. After all, this was a gift that Rosie liked, and it looked really nice. Anyone could see that it was something of great value.The gift was slowly unwrapped in front of everyone’s eyes.When those rosaries were unwrapped in front of everyone’s eyes, the Barkworths’ expressions changed!Rosie, in particular! Her hands began to tremble violently. Her grip on Ivanka appeared to have tightened as well.Sandy felt a sense of satisfaction upon observing this!Rosie had a gloomy expression on her face. However, because they were in public, she was unable to speak openly.Chiara’s expression stiffened. She could not understand why they were in such a bad mood.Mindy was terrified. She gave Catherine a quick look, signaling her to take it away right away.Catherine, on the other hand, misinterpreted her signal. She instantly smiled and said, “These rosaries are purely natural and handmade. Chiara personally oversaw the creation process. Chiara’s f
Despite the fact that there were over a hundred guests at the party, silence filled the hall at that moment. Not even the sound of cutlery clinking against plates could be heard. Chiara panicked. Even if she was stupid, she knew that she had been tricked! Ivanka had tricked her! She thought that she had been far enough to escape notice from Ivanka that day. She thought that was why Ivanka revealed that she wanted to buy a gift for Rosie. It turned out that she knew from the start that she was secretly watching her. She said she wanted to buy a gift on purpose. She was waiting for her to walk into the trap she had set up for her! She thought. “That b*tch! Ivanka that b*tch!” She was married to the Barkworths for three years. She knew exactly what Mrs. Barkworth hated the most, but she never told her. Chiara shook her head in puzzlement. She looked at Ivanka disappointedly and said, “Iv, what are you talking about? You never told me that Grandma doesn’t like this. You tol
However, given the circumstances, she was powerless. Besides, the point was that she had no idea what was going on here. How the lovely rosary could have become Rosie’s forbidden object was beyond her comprehension. “Get her out of here! I don’t want to see her anymore! Get out!” Rosie, who had not said anything, became even more enraged at this point. She screamed the words. Ivanka hurriedly took Rosie’s hand and said hastily, “Grandma, I’m sorry. This is my fault.” Her face was filled with a guilty expression, as if she was saying that if she had known Chiara would not trust her, this would not have happened. Chiara was speechless. “B*tch!” she thought to herself. Rosie’s heart was pounding. She was so enraged at the time that she was on the verge of losing her mind. She simply grabbed Ivanka’s hand and did not say anything. Mindy could see that things were not going well. If this kept up, Chiara might never be able to marry into the Barkworths. She hastily said, “Mum, th
The crowd was staring at them, as if they were expecting them to fight.Ivanka frowned. She looked at Chiara, puzzled, and asked, “What have I forgotten?”Rosie felt as if her heart was bleeding. She continued to clutch Ivanka’s hand tightly, as if it made her feel safe.Ivanka held Rosie’s hand and said softly, “Grandma, I will always stay with you. Always!”Rosie could not help but sigh. When she closed her eyes, tears dripped onto the table.It hurt Samuel’s heart. “Rosie, pull yourself together!” he exclaimed emphatically.Rosie remained silent, as if she was trying to keep her emotions under control.Michael took Rosie’s other hand and called her. “Grandma.”He did not say anything more, but it had given her enough comfort.He did, however, cast a stern look at Ivanka!He already sensed that something was wrong with Ivanka just now. If he still could not see that she had something to do with what happened, he was no better than a fool!He thought, “How could she betray
Unfortunately, her sly cousin beat her to it.Defeated, Candice rubbed her nose awkwardly and sat down opposite Ivanka.Rosie saw what happened between them and could not stop smiling.When Rosie was young, she was stern and decisive. She implemented strict household rules and banned everyone from talking during mealtime. But as she got older, she seldom had a chance to meet up with her grandchildren.Therefore, she started chatting with them at the dining table.Rosie started off by asking how Candice was doing.Candice was modest. “I’m doing fine these days. Hopefully I have not caused trouble for Ms. Lane.”“I see,” Rosie said. She looked at Ivanka and said teasingly, “What about you, Ms. Lane?”That form of address startled Ivanka. She nearly choked on her soup. She turned away and started coughing. Rosie told Mrs. Ruth to bring her a glass of water.Before the water arrived, Michael reacted quickly and immediately put down his cutlery. He wiped his hands on the napkin
It was still early. Michael told the driver to head over to Candice’s former residence and help her move.Her neighborhood was not a secluded area, and the facilities were not too old. But these houses were mostly for rent. There was a mix of ordinary citizens and people with shady backgrounds among the residents. The security measures in this neighborhood were unsatisfactory.Ivanka helped Candice pack her clothes and other household items, while Michael instructed the movers to pack the furniture.“Leave this. Dispose of that.”When Ivanka and Candice walked out of the bedroom, they saw Michael sitting on the couch with his legs crossed and ordering people around like a boss.Well, he was not simply acting like a boss. He was the boss.Since he decided to leave so many pieces of furniture, the movers’ job had gotten much easier.Candice hurried over and stopped them. She said with resignation, “These are still useful, Mic. Why would we throw them away?Michael glanced at the
Ivanka and Candice got into the car together.Candice instinctively took the front passenger seat while Ivanka and Michael sat in the back.The car moved smoothly toward the family mansion.Michael glanced at Ivanka and noticed her fiddling with her phone. Quickly, he leaned over, cast a shadow over her, and snatched the phone from her hand.“You’ll get carsick.”Ivanka frowned. Her gaze locked on Michael as she extended her hand. “Give it back.”Michael did not budge. Ivanka raised her voice a little. “Give it back. I’m in the middle of something important.”Michael’s striking eyes fixed on her. It was as if he could see right through her.“What’s so urgent? Isn’t it just about someone poaching employees from your company? Do you really need to spend all your time resolving it?”Ivanka’s brows furrowed even tighter.From the front seat, Candice turned around to look at Michael in surprise. “Michael, you know who is behind this?”Michael glanced at Ivanka and said, “Not on
It was perhaps because Ivanka was so outstanding that Candice never saw her as a peer but rather as a role model.Being praised by someone she admired so deeply was naturally a source of great joy.But Candice never said these feelings out loud, nor would she.Ivanka patted her on the shoulder. “Good job. Now get back to work and start getting comfortable in your new role. On Friday evening, Michael and I will help you with your move.”Candice nodded. She had no objections to the arrangement.For some reason, the previous incident had made its way to Rosie’s ears. Rosie had insisted that Candice move into the family’s mansion.Unable to find a reason to refuse or to push back further, Candice reluctantly agreed.“Then you and Michael will be staying for dinner at the family mansion on Friday, right?”Ivanka nodded, figuring they would likely need to stay the night as well.“Don’t overthink it for now. Get back to work, and just wait for me after work on Friday.” Candice no
“One more thing, these are my team members. They’ve seen firsthand how you’ve tried to suppress me all the time. A little payback from them isn’t exactly unjustified, don’t you think?”Before Mandy could say anything, Candice turned to the employee and instructed firmly, “Call security. Have them escort her out of the building. Make sure she doesn’t take anything that doesn’t belong to her. Thoroughly check her devices for any company files.”Mandy completely lost her composure and started yelling.“Who do you think you are to treat me like this? You’re just riding on Ivanka’s coattails! Everyone knows how someone so young became CEO. And you? Are you sticking by her? You’re no better than… Argh!”Before Mandy could finish her tirade, Candice delivered a resounding slap across her face.Not far away, Ivanka, who had come out after hearing the commotion to see if she needed to step in, slowed her steps. While leaning casually against a nearby column, she watched Candice handle the
“I understand what you mean now.” Candice’s cheeks flushed with excitement. The gloom that had previously clouded her was swept away.Her joy was genuine. She said, “In three months’ time, I’ll secure this position and prove to you and the board that your decision was the right one.”With that, Candice stood, gave Ivanka a respectful bow, and left the office.Ivanka watched her leave with a smile.All was good.While the two of them were in good spirits, someone else’s mood was far from pleasant.Mandy returned to her office, humiliated, to pack her belongings.If she could turn back time, she might have chosen not to come at all. The shame she endured was beyond anything she could have imagined.Somehow, word of what happened in the conference room had leaked. Perhaps Ivanka had orchestrated it.When she arrived at her office, she was not surprised to see all her belongings stuffed into a tattered, broken box.The box had been placed right outside her office door. It was a
“Mr. Clarke, if you don’t like my decision and want to change it, you’ll have to take my position first to do so. Now, if you’ll excuse me.”With those words, Ivanka coolly left the meeting room.Candice, though initially taken aback by the sudden turn of events, quickly adjusted to her new role. Turning to Mandy, she said, “Ms. Cruella, please ensure your office is cleared in three days, as I will be moving in.”With that, she too left the room.After they left, the meeting room erupted into chaos, with arguments flying back and forth. However, the outcome was already sealed. Ferris was powerless to change it.Though he still had cards to play, he was not about to waste them on Mandy.Sure enough, by the afternoon, employees spotted Mandy packing her belongings and leaving in disgrace.Candice, though initially satisfied, could not help but feel uneasy. After thinking it over, she decided to speak with Ivanka. And so, at that moment, she was standing in front of the door to t
Ferris was panicking at the moment. He shot Mandy a disappointing and furious glare.It was one thing for her to embezzle funds, it was another for her to get caught.How foolish!Feeling the weight of Ferris’s gaze, Mandy instinctively lowered her head.That only made Ferris more enraged.She had caused all this trouble, and he had to clean up the mess.Ivanka ignored them and turned to the other shareholders. She sharply said, “Tell me, how can someone like her hold the position of project director in our company, yet Candice can’t even be promoted to team leader?”Mandy had been personally hired by Ferris, so Ivanka criticizing her in front of everyone was effectively a direct slap to his face.That naturally made Ferris extremely uncomfortable.His expression turned even darker.“In my opinion, it’s true Mandy shouldn’t have done that, but she’s been in this position for so long. While she doesn’t have achievements, she’s at least put in the effort. How about this, let’s
However, her smile did not reach her eyes.Mandy stood frozen. She was too scared to drink the water or take a seat. Just like that, she was ignored. The atmosphere was awkward. She could only cast a pleading glance toward Ferris for support.Ferris, who was standing near her, cleared his throat and said, “That’s right. Ms. Ivanka, Ms. Cruella is right. This isn’t in line with proper procedures.”Ivanka maintained her enigmatic smile. Her index finger tapped lightly on the table. It was impossible to guess what was going through her mind.She glanced around the room. “What do the rest of you think?”She sounded like she was seeking opinions, but the weight of her presence was intimidating. No one dared to answer.Just as Ferris was about to say something, Ivanka picked up Mandy’s report and tossed it onto the floor.It happened too fast. Everyone was stunned by her action. Even Ferris was caught off guard.Mandy’s face turned pale.“Rules are made by people. Besides, Cand