When Carrie had just gotten out of prison, her hands were indeed rougher, and her skin tanner. However, after some time of taking care of herself, she regained her previous smooth and fair complexion. After all, Carrie was only twenty. At this age, girls were like flowers, their skin full and bouncy with collagen.After Carrie was released, she refused to look for work. She lived off the money she had taken with her, and when that ran out, she would ask her brother for more. Her life was actually quite carefree. As someone who had never worked, her hands were naturally delicate and soft.On the other hand, the hands of the imposter were not as clean or as delicate as the real one. She had calluses on her palms, and short nails without manicure. Carrie liked to paint her nails and kept them long. She had always enjoyed having long nails since she was young. Later, when Paige forced her to learn the piano, she had to trim her nails frequently, which made her particularly resistant to p
Callum said, “You know your sister best. Even her parents couldn’t whip her into shape, yet that person had managed to turn her into an acceptable elite lady. Although she’s still lacking in some aspects, it’s close enough.“I’ll inform Zachary about this later.”Camryn said, “I think she’s targeting Serenity, but I have no idea why.”Callum reassured her, “Don’t overthink. We’ll find out soon enough. We can go have lunch when your employee returns.”“Are we eating at the manor or the hotel?”“The hotel. The manor is too far.”Although the old-timers were still at Wildridge Manor, they were leaving soon. Therefore, Callum and the others resumed their work or studies.Since winter vacation had started, most students did not have to go to school. However, Rowan, who was in his final year of high school, had extra classes, so his vacation would be shorter than the other students. “I didn’t want to return to the manor tonight, but now that I think about it, we should go back. Sere
Carrie said coquettishly. Mr. Longbottom laughed. “I can hear that you’re in a pleasant mood now. It seems like your idea is working well.”“Yes. It’s super effective. That blind girl will believe that Mrs. Longbottom and Carrie are two different people now. Of course, you’re also amazing for being able to find an imposter who looks so much like me.“I thought that stand-in was my twin. Her figure, face, and voice are so similar to mine.”Carrie finally believed that some people could look almost the same despite not being blood-related. She and “Carrie” were a perfect example. She had never met the stand-in before. Both of them were startled when they first saw each other. They thought either of their parents had cheated on their partners. Since then, Carrie feared Mr. Longbottom more. He was too powerful. Not only did he find a stand-in within days, but he also made her learn Carrie’s habits and speaking style.Carrie had always been arrogant and stubborn. Becom
However, time was not on their side. Mr. Longbottom knew things could not be rushed. Serenity and Camryn were always on their guard. Although Carrie had tried meeting them “coincidentally” and getting to know them, Serenity had always been cautious of her. Therefore, there had yet to be any progress. Mr. Longbottom had thought of venting his anger at Carrie, thinking she was useless. However, after he thought about it, it was not entirely her fault. She was incompetent from the start.Her parents had spoiled her rotten. Carrie had gotten into trouble and dragged her parents down due to her arrogance. It had caused the Newman family to fall into Camryn’s hands. Carrie also had to serve jail time and was targeted by Mr. Longbottom after she got out.She had become slightly smarter after he had gotten someone to educate her. Mr. Longbottom considered it a big achievement. “I will. I’ll succeed this time. I heard the York family is hosting a few important guests, but I
“Carrie” arrived first. However, she had to wait at the gates as she did not have the key. She drove her car inside after Carrie went in. A few minutes later, the two women sat in the luxurious living area and stared at each other. “Do I look terrible now? I think my cheeks are like buns now.” The imposter touched her face. Her cheeks hurt and were swollen. The York bodyguards did not hold back their strength. Carrie could not resist laughing. “Yes. You do look bad. You look like a red apple now.”The imposter glared at her.“Why are you laughing? I took the hit for you. Bring me some ice now. My face hurts so much.”“Are you asking me to bring you ice?” Carrie’s eyes widened. “I’m the superior one here. You should be aware of this.”“I’m acting this way because I learned it from you. Do you think I’ve mastered your attitude after only a few days? I need to practice your manners so I don’t expose any flaws.”The imposter sounded confident. She simply could not resist h
The fake Carrie was filled with anticipation. She asked, “How many of the York men are unmarried?”Carrie knew what she was thinking. She said sarcastically, “Are you fantasizing about marrying into the York family?“Not anyone can join the York family. Look at me. I’m a Newman young lady. Before my parents went to jail, we had over a billion dollars worth of assets. Even then, we weren’t even comparable with the Yorks. During banquets, my mom would greet the York madams. However, they only nodded back and smiled.“We couldn’t even have a casual chat with them. It was impossible.“They rarely attended banquets. They would only be present if they were invited by people with important statuses in Wiltspoon.“Despite their low profile, these York madams are backed by wealthy families. None of the women in the York family is poor.”After a short pause, Carrie said with jealousy, “However, there’s one now—Serenity. She and Zachary’s love story is widely known in Wiltspoon. While she
It was all Aunt Evelyn’s fault. If it were not for her, Camryn would have been dead. Camryn had been blind for ten years. No one had expected her to be able to regain her sight again. Not everything was predictable. Carrie’s fake was speechless after being questioned. She was merely a stand-in. Even Carrie, a true elite lady, was unable to marry into the York family. Besides, Carrie had offended Callum. Her chances of becoming a Mrs. York were next to none. “Carrie” said regretfully, “I thought I could get lucky and become a missus in the York family like Serenity. It seems like it’s all wishful thinking.”Carrie smiled. “It’s no wonder you’d have such thoughts. Any girl who sees the York men will get attracted to them, regardless of her background. Unfortunately, none of the York men is normal. Usually, we’ll start getting attracted to people of the opposite sex when we reach a certain age. “However, they are different. They don’t have a love life. When they reach a m
It was every actress’s dream to be the female lead one day with her beauty and acting skills. Unfortunately, every woman trying their luck to be cast was beautiful. Even the fake Carrie’s looks were mediocre in the acting industry and not drop-dead gorgeous.Impersonating Carrie brought her a lot of income. She even got compensated for getting slapped, so she was earning a lot more than being an extra. “Wow, is it this easy to earn money? I’ll agitate your sister and make her slap me the next time we bother her again. That way, I can earn more money.”Carrie chuckled. “Are you willing to do that just for a few thousand dollars?”“You were born into a wealthy family and lived a life of luxury. You didn’t have to worry about basic necessities or money at all. You’ll never be able to experience the hardships we ordinary people go through.“You also said your family has over a billion dollars worth of assets. It’s an unimaginable amount for poor people. I can’t even gather half a m
Austin quickly left the CEO’s office. Just as he stepped out, he ran into Tati, who was looking for Isabella.“Ms. Tati,” Austin greeted politely.Tati nodded and waited for Austin to leave before she knocked on the office door and entered.“Austin came early today to cook for you,” Tati said, holding a folder in her hand and opening it as she walked toward Isabelle.She sat down at the desk, handed over the folder, and said, “Isa, this is urgent. Please take a look.”Isabella took the document, glancing through it as she replied, “He comes around this time every day, neither early nor late.”“That Longbottom fellow came by again?” Tati asked.It was only after Mr. Longbottom had directly asked to see Isabella that Tati found out the old lecher had come again.“Yes, but I didn’t meet him. He brought some gifts, claiming they were holiday presents for us. I had them sent back. He’s too ambitious, and he has bad intentions. We’re absolutely on guard against him. Why would we give
Isabella turned her head to look at Austin.Austin stopped the massage and asked in a gentle voice, “Are you feeling any discomfort? I can work on it. I don't give people massages often, so I don’t have much experience. I'll keep giving you more massages as practice so I'll be able to serve you better.”“It's not that,” Isabella smiled. “It's actually very comfortable. It’s just that I really want to meet your grandmother every time you mention her.”In Isabella's mind, Austin's grandmother had already become something of a legendary figure.Austin thought to himself, ‘Nana’s already met you. You probably met her before, you just didn't know it was her.’His nana had surely spent a lot of time observing Isabella, getting to know her, and confirming that her character and abilities were suitable for him before choosing Isabella for him.“When you’re less busy, if you’re willing, you can come visit us in Wiltspoon. Lots of flowers bloom in spring, and there’s beautiful scenery ever
When Isabella first took over the family business, many of her grandparents' and parents' friends and relatives openly tried to sabotage her. They played dirty tricks, schemed, and tried various ways to undermine her.They wanted to take advantage of her, and they also did not want her to take control of the family’s legacy. They tried to prevent her from establishing herself in the company, even going as far as to collaborate with outsiders to trap her.She had suffered countless setbacks, faced numerous conspiracies, and even experienced several so-called accidents, nearly losing her life. It was only after all this that she truly understood the treachery of human nature. From that point on, she learned to arm herself with cold indifference.Though she was taking over her own family’s business, it felt like she had to fight through a bloody battle to secure her place, as if she were a king striving to ascend the throne. It was exhausting and disheartening.However, she endured an
Austin said, “He’s definitely here to discuss a potential partnership with your company.“He's just the acting head of the Longbottoms. He doesn’t truly control the family. If the real head returns, everything he’s worked for will go to someone else.“The downfall of Belinda Fisher probably gave him a wake-up call and he doesn’t want to end up like that.“He’s definitely seeking to cooperate with you regarding his personal business. He’s just using the Longbottoms’ name, since their influence in Windermere is enormous.”In terms of wealth, the O'Connors and the Longbottoms were on equal footing, but the O'Connors had fewer members and did not have the same level of influence in Windermere as the Longbottoms.Isabella said, “He’s very ambitious. A partnership would only just be the beginning. Once it’s established, he’ll start thinking about how to cheat us and steal our business.“Plus, he’s very lecherous. Nobody can put a number to how many women he’s toyed with. Some even lost
Tony was aware that whenever his wife had to play the villain, it was always to protect him. He said, “You're right, I misspoke. Your mother isn’t that kind of person.”“Manny, I’ll be leaving soon. You stay here, and I’ll leave half of my men with you. If anything comes up that you can't handle, contact me. I’ll be waiting to hear good news from you.” Tony decided to fly to Wiltspoon in the afternoon. He would only stay for two or three days before returning to Havenmill to handle business.However, as he thought about how he was working like a horse for Longbottom Corporation when many of the benefits did not even belong to him personally, Tony felt a bit disgruntled.“Got it.” Manny did not reject his father’s arrangement.As the Longbottom father and son were discussing how to deal with the O’Connors, Austin entered Isabella’s office.Isabella was busy, so Austin did not disturb her. He quietly sat at the tea table and made some tea.“It seems you’ve learned the art of tea-
Manny had never been to Wiltspoon, but he knew from his father that several prominent families in Wiltspoon had close ties with the Johnsons from Annenburg. It was possible that the child adopted by the Johnsons’ young missus was Laurence. Unfortunately, he could not meet that child, so he could not be a hundred percent certain. The child was currently out of sight and well-protected, hidden so effectively that even the Longbottoms’ information network could not find anything. The other prominent families in Wiltspoon were also helping to keep the child hidden, so Manny deeply disliked the people from these families. Even though they were thousands of miles away, they were still an obstacle to him and his father in their pursuit of becoming the true head of the family.“That's right. If we can conquer the O’Connors, we’ll have a backup plan,” his father said. “You must put your all into it, son. If you need help, just let me know, though this is also an opportunity for you to ge
Tony Longbottom was the only person who would put on such a parade. The big shots in Satbury usually had entourages of their own, but none would put on a spectacle as big as Tony would.As they departed in their car, Tony’s gracious demeanor utterly shattered.His face twisted into an ugly, cruel expression as he said, “I’ve never been treated like this before, even when the legitimate branch of the family still lived, and those two ignorant little girls actually refused to see me multiple times.”Manny was very angry too and he said, “Pops, since they refuse to go about this the easy way, we’ll have to show them the hard way. We can approach it from other angles, and once they’re completely out of business and they have nowhere else to turn to, they’ll be at our mercy.“Won’t they have to do as we please then? I want to marry them, they’ll have to marry me, and if I don’t, I’ll just make them my mistresses. Don’t the O’Connors have plenty of daughters? I’ll fuck every one of them
“Isabella O’Connor is so outstanding, so why are you asking me to go for Tati O’Connor instead?” Manny said under his breath in puzzlement.He had seen photos of the two ladies and Isabella’s appearance was more striking. She had a cold and aloof aura that easily triggered his desire to conquer her, and after just a few glances, he was captivated.If it were up to him, Manny would choose Isabella.Tony looked at his son, smiled, and said, “You can’t control her. Of course, if you manage to make her fall for you, we can talk about switching. But for now, focus on Tati O’Connor.”Tati was also beautiful. However, she did not have Isabella’s cold demeanor. She seemed much gentler, like she smiled often.“Marrying Tati O’Connor would be a big advantage for both you and our family.”Manny thought for a moment and then nodded in understanding. “Got it, Dad.”Manny’s good looks, wealth, honeyed tongue, and generosity toward girls made him good at winning them over. Pursuing a rich youn
After testing the O’Connor sisters and realizing they were not like other women, Mr. Longbottom thought of having his son marry Tati.He knew that his son would not be able to handle or control Isabella, so he set his sights on Tati. Tati probably did not realize she was considered an easy target. Most people underestimated her because she had always kept a low profile.At that moment, a young man got out from the other side of the Rolls-Royce. He resembled Mr. Longbottom. Indeed, he was Mr. Longbotton’s eldest son, Manny.“Dad.”Manny went to his father’s side and glanced at the building before him. He asked, “Aren’t we driving inside?”In Havenmill, Manny could do whatever he wished because his father was the interim head of the Longbottom family. While he had no respect for ordinary people at all, he was clever enough not to offend people he should not.He never parked his car outside the places he wanted to go and simply drove his car through the gates. However, Manny