When Serenity arrived at the store, she just so happened to see Josh coming out.He turned his head and waved goodbye as he walked away. Serenity did not have to ask to know that he was speaking to Jasmine.He greeted Serenity politely when he saw her.Serenity smiled back. She was not familiar with Josh but was aware of his true identity, so she was a bit reserved.Josh and Serenity had nothing to talk about either, and she was his friend’s wife. It was inappropriate for him to interact much with her when his friend was not around.“I’ll head back to the office, Ms. Hunt.”“Bye, Mr. Bucham.”Josh smiled, got into the car, and quickly drove away.Only then did Serenity enter the store.As soon as she did, she saw a large bouquet of flowers placed on the cashier’s desk. At a glance, there seemed to be ninety-nine roses. In addition to the bouquet, there was a large bag beside it that was filled with a variety of snacks Jasmine ate regularly.There were also a few sets of Jasmi
Finally, Jasmine mustered the courage to shamelessly ask Elisa about Josh. She found out that if Josh truly wanted to mess with someone, that person’s fate would be worse than death.His play was to let that particular person lose everything bit by bit and taste despair one drop at a time. It was a slow torture to the mind.Therefore, Jasmine was a little worried she would offend him if she rejected him, and he would unleash his anger on Zachary instead.“I’ll give it a try. Don’t worry, I won’t force myself.”Although she was worried, she would not actually force herself when it came down to it.“Seren, did you not go to the Stone residence last night? I was shocked by your sister’s face when she brought Sonny over.”Serenity’s expression turned resentful at the mention of that incident. She cursed the entire Brown family in her heart.If not for Olivia and Chelsea picking a fight with Liberty, she would not have gotten into a fight with Zachary again.Well, with a character l
Turning around, Liberty went back into the office. That colleague was still chatting away happily with the others.Liberty went straight to that person’s desk and only then did the colleague realize that Liberty had come back.The woman was a bit overwhelmed by the embarrassment of being caught red-handed while speaking badly behind someone’s back.“Do you have a crush on Mr. Lewis?”Liberty’s words instantly made the girl’s face turn red.“Of course not.”She denied it.“Then is it fascinating for you to spread rumors that Mr. Lewis and I have a secret affair? I heard the bitterness in your tone, so it’s clear that you have a crush on Mr. Lewis. That’s why you’re always targeting me.“Whether you believe me or not, I don’t have any interest in Mr. Lewis. I’m indeed divorced, but that’s because my husband cheated on me. Was I supposed to keep him until the new year before divorcing him? Now that I’m divorced, do I have to be subjected to rumors by you saying that I’m seducing M
Duncan spoke up. “I know I made things hard for you in the company because I personally hired you, but you don’t have to worry about what others say. Just do your own thing.”“Mr. Lewis, I want to resign.”Duncan’s eyes deepened as he asked, “Why do you want to resign?”Liberty was silent, then she raised her head to look at Duncan and said, “Back then, I was told that I came in through the back door, and I was secretly targeted by everyone. However, I put up with it in order to get a divorce and win custody of my son.“It was because I needed a job to fight for Sonny’s custody.”“So now that you’re divorced and you’ve won the custody of your son, you want to resign?” Duncan picked up from where she left off. “You haven’t even completed your probation period.”He added, “You’re a capable person, and you’re good at your job. I believe that you know this too, but whatever they say about you, you don’t have to listen to them as long as you have a clear conscience.”“They’re also sa
“What do you think? Do you want to rent it? If you do, I’ll give you a discount since you’re Zachary’s sister-in-law. Your rent will be a little cheaper than others, but don’t tell anyone else. If they find out, they’ll come to me asking for a discount as well. That would be a huge loss.”Liberty was immensely touched. She had to cross that street every day to and from work, so she knew very well how much traffic that street held.Snack bars, restaurants, and even dessert stores over there had a remarkable business.She had been incredibly envious of those who could rent a shop lot and open a business on that street. Unexpectedly, those shopfronts belonged to Duncan.“How much is the monthly rent?”“All stores in downtown Wiltspoon are much more expensive than other places. Among the stores I have there, the smallest is about forty square feet, and the larger ones are more than a hundred square feet. What kind of eatery are you planning to open?”“A breakfast store.”“Then you d
“Tell me, Hank. Did you offend all your clients? What did you do?”Hank managed to secure plenty of business and made a lot of money for the company. He entered Waltham Electronics as soon as he graduated and worked here for many years, so he was considered a tenured employee. The boss trusted and relied heavily on him.There were numerous managers in the company, but Hank was the youngest.He was promoted to the position of a manager because he brought great profits to the company. Although the management was jealous, they could not say anything about it.The boss attached great importance to Hank. If he was invited to a business reception but was unavailable to attend, he would ask Hank to go in his stead to see the world and attract more customers for the company.Hank did not let him down either. After attending the business reception, he indeed got to sign many more orders for the company.However, now, all the orders that Hank signed were either canceled or had their cooper
Olivia was in deep remorse after she found out that Liberty had an aunt who married into a wealthy family.She should not have let her son divorce.If her son did not divorce, he could rely on nepotism to work in Stone Group, and his income would grow even higher.Maybe he could even earn tens of millions a year.She advised her son to pursue Liberty again and remarry Liberty but was sternly rejected. Jessica was downright displeased.Olivia stopped proposing the idea explicitly and thought of using her grandson instead.She thought of making her son pick up Sonny often, and then send Sonny back to Liberty. That way, Hank would be able to meet Liberty frequently. They had known each other for twelve years and had a son connecting them, so maybe they would be able to remarry after they calmed down.“Mom, tell Chelsea to drive you to Serenity’s store if you miss Sonny. There’s no need to pick Sonny up. You guys can’t coax him anyway. What if you scare him again?”Hank knew what h
Serenity did not want her sister to worry.Liberty saw that Serenity looked normal, so she was relieved and said, “Zachary treats you very well. I think he won’t quarrel with you over something trivial. I’m relieved that you two didn’t get into a fight.”Serenity thought in her heart, ‘As it turned out, he actually did quarrel with me over something trivial.’He ignored her the whole day.She refused to take the initiative to be friendly with him again.She did not feel like she was at fault.The first time they fought, she did not have feelings for him. The second time, when he saw Shawn confess to her, she did not think it through and panicked, chasing him all the way to his office to offer him an explanation.Now, she felt incredibly upset.Maybe it was because she had grown some feelings for him.“Seren, I’ll take Sonny home. I’ve decided to open a store. I have to start planning.”“Okay, take Mrs. Lane with you so that Sonny doesn’t bother you.”Liberty accepted her sis
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
Meanwhile in Satbury, a few luxury cars stopped at the entrance of Costa Corporation. The door of the first car, a Rolls-Royce, opened. A bodyguard came out of the car.He waited for his boss, who was sitting in the backseat to exit.Mr. Longbottom got out of the car. Although he was over fifty years old, he looked like he was in his forties as he maintained his appearance well.He wore a white tailored suit with a tie, which made him look more youthful.The bodyguards in the other cars alighted as well.They quickly stood behind Mr. Longbottom to protect him. It was also his display of power.A few bodyguards grabbed many gift boxes from the trunks. Mr. Longbottom stood in front of the company and raised his head to look at the sixty-eight-storey office building. It was a symbol of the O’Connor family’s abilities.Costa Corporation was not the family’s only business. They were involved in many industries and were successful in all of them.The O’Connors were wealthy and powe
Jasmine added, “In some cases, the divorced women can get married to a better man, while the divorced men can’t even find a new wife. There are many single men now.“Isn’t there a saying nowadays that men who have wives are extremely lucky?”When Jasmine was at the bookstore, she would also visit the neighboring stores to listen to juicy gossip. Many of the store owners were not locals and they had many stories to tell. Someone said there was an evil mother-in-law in a rural area who looked down on her daughter-in-law. She would egg her son on to abuse his wife and get a divorce. She would also tell her son that she could find a better and younger wife for him. However, once the divorce went through, news of the mother-in-law’s evil deeds and the son’s domestic abuse spread far and wide. Who would dare marry off their daughters to a man like that?Besides, holding another wedding would require a lot of money. The cost of a wedding had increased a lot compared to the past.Whe
“Sonny’s fine. He has recovered. You want to get Sonny from school?”After thinking about it, Serenity agreed and said, “Okay. I’ll message Sonny’s teacher later to tell her you’ll be taking him.”“Okay, Serenity. Thank you.”Hank was thankful that Serenity did not make things difficult for him. Serenity and Liberty had great character. Liberty had a new relationship and already let go of her resentment for Hank. She could coexist with him peacefully. On the other hand, Serenity still held grudges against Hank. However, since he and Liberty had divorced, he could no longer hurt her. He was also Sonny’s father. Serenity was willing to tolerate him for Sonny’s sake. Therefore, she always said yes whenever Hank requested to meet his son. “You’ll be taking Sonny out to eat after picking him up, right? Remember not to let him eat too much fried food, especially fried chicken and fries. He’ll get a sore throat.“He got a fever that day due to a throat inflammation.”“Got it. I’ll