"What's wrong?" Cynthia asked casually."You haven't come to work for the past two years because you married him?" Moe pondered over the recent phone call and everything that had happened during this time.Cynthia did not hide it either. "Mmhmm."Moe asked one last question, "His name is Joshua Neal?"Cynthia raised an eyebrow slightly, surprised that this guy knew quite a lot. "Yes."At this moment, Cynthia was unaware that her assistant had already blocked Joshua. Moe vividly remembered Yoel complaining countless times about Joshua's various shortcomings. With a boss as difficult as him, he must have also been a terrible husband. No wonder Cynthia divorced Joshua. Good riddance."What are you thinking about?" Cynthia knew her assistant well. "Ms. Yates, from now on, please focus on managing the company diligently. Don't get married anymore," Moe said seriously."Understood," Cynthia replied nonchalantly with a faint smile, her response extremely perfunctory.For the r
It was better to go early than late and resolve things. Upon hearing that, Jonathan's face lit up with joy, and he finally let go of the burden he was carrying. "I'll wait for you at the company. Let me know when you arrive.""Okay," Cynthia replied.After hanging up the phone, she informed Moe about the matter. Moe distributed the documents she had just signed and drove her there.By the time they arrived, it was already half past ten. Upon hearing that Cynthia had arrived, Jonathan immediately greeted her and took her to his office. Unfortunately, Cynthia had no intention of staying here for long. After obtaining the position of investment advisor and signing the contract, she planned to leave."Cyn!" Jonathan called her.Cynthia stopped in her tracks."There's one more thing." Jonathan took an invitation letter from his office drawer and walked over to her. "Old Man Neal sent us an invitation to his 80th birthday party. What do you think? Should we go?"From a business pa
"When did she join the company?" Cynthia asked the team manager, who had reprimanded the arrogant girl earlier.Not knowing what was going on, the team manager impulsively answered without inquiring about Cynthia's identity, "In July.""Show me her work tasks from the past two months," Cynthia said calmly.The team leader immediately opened the folder on the computer. Then, assuming Cynthia was a new executive from the Yates Group, she began explaining one by one, "These are all the proposals she has worked on since she joined.""Only two proposals?""Plus the one she's currently working on, a total of three."The team manager was exhausted.When this person was assigned to their department by the chairman's secretary, she genuinely tried to guild and teach her the ropes. However, the newcomer was like a lost cause. Not only did she not improve, she did not even try to learn! That was why she could not produce anything when asked to present the proposal, which led to the tea
"Kendrick." Cynthia smiled slowly."You little brat, where have you been for the past two years?" Kendrick stood up and hugged her, genuinely fond of his cousin. "You went off to have fun, leaving me to manage the company. I don't even have time to date.""I went to Jiverton." Cynthia found it easier to be around her family.Kendrick let go of her and playfully poked her forehead with his hand. "You silly fool!"Cynthia touched her forehead. Although two years had passed, time flew by quickly for adults, and two years felt like a blink of an eye.After exchanging pleasantries, Kendrick suddenly remembered that Cynthia had asked him a question earlier. "By the way, did you ask me something when you came in?""I asked if there were any executives with the surname Shayne in the company.""Shayne? I don't think so.""None?" Cynthia was puzzled. Was Michelle using her mother's surname?"Yeah." Kendrick nodded, concerned about her confusion. "What's wrong?""Nothing. I'm going to f
The first person to appear was Michelle, and there was clearly an unbridled arrogance in her eyes when she looked at Cynthia.She opened the door slightly and said to the person outside, "Dad, it's her."As Michelle spoke, Jonathan's figure appeared in the meeting room. Cynthia saw him, and he saw Cynthia at the same time. In that instant, a thunderbolt of shock passed through Jonathan's mind, and all he could think was, 'What do I do? What do I do?'Why was it Cynthia? How did Michelle manage to offend Cynthia?"So, this is your dad?" Cynthia clenched the corner of the contract, her tone unchanged.Jonathan wanted to explain, but Cynthia gave him a look. In that look, Jonathan saw the same indifference, distance, and dislike present the first time he had an unpleasant encounter with Cynthia.Michelle did not notice anything unusual and continued speaking, "Yes.""May I ask what position Mr. Shayne holds in the Yates Group?" Cynthia treated him completely like a stranger.Jon
She could not let someone else take the blame for her! Michelle listened to their discussions without paying them any attention. The reason she had asked Jonathan to come, besides dealing with that arrogant woman earlier, was to let these people know who was behind her. They were always asking her to work. Was she here just to work? Compared to the bustling discussions outside, the meeting room seemed much quieter.Jonathan sat awkwardly in front of Cynthia, feeling lost, like a child who had done something wrong. "Cyn... things aren't what you think. Michelle's mom was worried that Michelle couldn't find a job, so I suggested she try at the Yates Group. There was absolutely no intention of using connections," Jonathan explained, not wanting her to misunderstand too much."Doing three sets of proposals in two months, one still unfinished, two deemed unsatisfactory, with a monthly salary of 3,000 USD, and you call that not using connections?"Jonathan fidgeted with his fing
Cynthia did not say much about the outcome. However, thinking about Michelle's previous words, she caressed the contract and slowly uttered, "She threatened me earlier, saying that once her father finds out, I won't be able to stay here."Jonathan's expression changed. What was Michelle blabbering about?"Her father has no right to control you, let alone interfere in our Yates family matters," Jonathan replied clearly.Cynthia's gaze fell on him, not making it difficult for him. "I don't want to see her in the planning department next time I'm here. If she still can't perform the job after training, she will be dismissed."The Yates Group would not easily dismiss someone they hire. If the job performance were not up to standard, they would provide paid training for half a month or a month. If the performance did not improve after training, they would transfer the person to another position. A dismissal was only considered a last resort, and Michelle had crossed Cynthia's bott
The team manager was confused, but she quickly went to grab a form after noticing that Jonathan was still silent about the matter. "Here."Michelle was shocked! What was going on? Was Uncle Yates not going to say something? "Didn't you want to resign?" Cynthia was always direct. Michelle pursed her lips and reluctantly took the form, feeling extremely resentful. Her gaze could almost burn a hole through Cynthia. With everyone watching, she could not back out, especially with Jonathan present.Then, Michelle took the pen from the side and wrote slowly. Deep inside, she desperately hoped Jonathan would speak up, reprimand this investment advisor, and keep her here. She wanted him to tell everyone that she was his daughter, but Jonathan did not say a word even after she finished filling out the form."Being foolish isn't the problem. The problem is being foolish, yet not giving any effort and not wanting to learn," Cynthia said harshly while she looked at the resignation fo
Isabella glared at Nick. He actually betrayed her! Caught off guard by Luther's honesty, Nick quickly explained, "Don't look at me like that. Luther forced me to do it. If I didn't agree to his request, he would've spilled my past to my current girlfriend.""Current girlfriend?" Isabella looked puzzled.Nick confessed honestly, "My new girlfriend."Isabella was at a loss for words. Nick was very handsome. His looks could rival top celebrities. Naturally, with his face and charisma, he had no shortage of admirers. That led to a habit of frequently changing girlfriends."I made my rules clear to her. No shady behavior allowed," Nick added quickly, sensing what Isabella was thinking.Hearing this, Isabella did not say much.A moment later, Luther, seeing that their conversation had wrapped up, took Isabella's hand and left. On the way back, he deliberately brought up the topic of proposals."What kind of proposal do you like?" Luther asked."Anything works," Isabella replied
There was a time when Isabella considered letting Luther propose to her. However, he had not shown any signs that he would or asked for her ring size. There was no need to overthink it; that fool probably had not even thought about it. Nonetheless, Isabella did not blame Luther. After all, she was well aware that everyone expressed love differently. Yet, that was also precisely why she wanted to propose to him, to make him understand just how much she cared."What's wrong?" Annie asked, concerned."I'm just worried," Isabella replied. The ring sizes had been a constant worry for her."Because of what you just mentioned?"Isabella nodded. "Yeah.""Why do you want to propose to him?" Annie looked toward a dark corner. "In most relationships, the boyfriend proposes to the girlfriend, right?""I want him to feel loved," Isabella answered simply.Luther was different from most people; he always suppressed his negative emotions and limited his freedom. He no longer wanted to restr
"No," Luther declined; he still wanted to be the one proposing to her."Okay," Joshua agreed readily.Luther nodded, letting his mind wander. In the following days, Isabella kept checking on the progress, each time being informed that there was no opportunity to measure Luther's finger.In the blink of an eye, three days passed.Cynthia and Matthew had a conversation with Isaiah.Due to prior preparation, Isaiah handled Cynthia and Matthew's questions smoothly. Although they knew Isaiah had not been entirely truthful, based on his attitude toward Sandra, they agreed to the marriage without excessive probing into his relationship with her.As for Isabella, she waited for a few days but had not received any news. Frustrated, she decided to go to Jiverton herself to find Luther.When Joshua heard about her plan, he asked her to give him a bit more time. He assured her he would have the sizes by next Friday at the latest."Really?" Isabella was worried about running out of time.
"Okay." Isaiah already had a plan in mind.After discussing the matter, the two did not say much more. In the following two days, Cynthia and Matthew stayed home while Isabella prepared the details and processes for the proposal.However, after going through the general plan, Isabella suddenly realized a problem. She did not know Luther's ring size. How could she prepare a ring for the proposal without knowing the size?Realizing this issue, she immediately thought of flying to Jiverton to find out but hesitated due to Luther's caution. If she returned so soon after just coming back, he would surely be suspicious. After much contemplation, she came up with a solution—Joshua.When Isabella called, Joshua happened to be having a meal with Luther."I'm not busy, what's up?""I need your help with something," Isabella said, trusting Joshua's abilities, "but Luther can't know about it."Joshua instinctively glanced at Luther.Luther was confused. He glanced at Joshua's phone and
"Quit the act," Matthew said to Isabella, "It's too bad."Isabella stayed quiet. Matthew bluntly stated, "Isaiah currently oversees the company, and the annual revenue has been consistently increasing under his management. He even took a few subsidiaries public.""And?" Isabella inquired."He has a talent for this," Matthew hinted, leaving Isabella puzzled as she struggled to keep up with Matthew's pace."He's barely in his twenties, so there's no rush to get married," Matthew explained. He saw through everything, understanding Isaiah well, adding, "If there were truly such a concern, he could easily establish a company under Sandra's name in the next few years, operate it until it goes public."With Isaiah's abilities and connections, starting a company and taking it public would be a simple task. After the IPO and proper management, Sandra's value would naturally rise. This would effortlessly 'shut their mouths'. Isabella wanted to say something, realizing her dad's words
"That depends on the secret he's keeping," Matthew responded immediately, taking the opportunity to tease Isaiah, "If it's something against our moral values, it'd be hard not to form an opinion, even if we try not to.""He's not that kind of person," Isabella defended Isaiah.Matthew did not respond but just sat there. Their father-son dynamic involved banter and teasing, but when it came down to it, they genuinely cared about each other."He's just worried that you might object to Sandra's background," Isabella continued to spin her tale convincingly.Cynthia and Matthew were confused, both staring at Isabella.Isabella felt a bit uneasy. Something seemed off with her parents' expressions. "What's wrong?""Are you sure Isaiah is worried about this?" Cynthia asked.Why was their beloved daughter so bad at lying? Not catching on, Isabella nodded, "Absolutely.""Setting aside the fact that we've always taught you not to treat people differently based on their family background
"Ah, I see." Isabella breathed a sigh of relief and purposely asked, "Is it possible that Isaiah got to know Sandra through Uncle Yves and Uncle Sean?""It's unlikely," Cynthia denied. Even though they had not arranged any blind dates or rushed Isaiah into marriage, given his personality, he would not seek an introduction from anyone."Whenever you have time, ask Isaiah to bring his girlfriend home," Cynthia said, truly wishing for her children to find happiness. Isabella agreed, "Sure.""Isabella," Cynthia suddenly spoke up.Putting away her plan book, Isabella responded, "Hmm?""Do you think I look stern?" Cynthia sounded gentler than usual, lacking the usual nonchalance.Having been accustomed to being herself, Cynthia found it a bit awkward to take on the role of an elder suddenly. If she left a bad impression on Sandra during their first meeting, it could easily jeopardize Isaiah's relationship."Not at all," Isabella spoke sincerely, looking at Cynthia affectionately. "Y
Isaiah had seen through their plans. He knew that his parents' friends enjoyed watching him banter with Matthew. Every time something was like this, they would eagerly make things difficult for him.Early the next morning, Mitchell and the others began implementing the plan. Initially, Matthew did not suspect anything and thought they genuinely had urgent matters to attend to and brought Cynthia back home first.Considering Luther's upcoming proposal, they decided not to travel the world but instead explored nearby cities. After Mitchell and the others called Matthew aside, Isabella approached Cynthia. Cynthia was surprised to learn about Isabella and Isaiah's plan."Aren't you afraid of getting in trouble?" Cynthia asked."Not at all," Isabella responded very directly, her mind focused on planning her and Luther's engagement. "Isaiah said he can handle this matter, so let's discuss the proposal first. I've thought about several options, but none seem good enough.""Okay," Cynth
Isaiah was surprised."Take her to shoot wedding photos first," Isabella suggested seriously. After giving it some thought, Isaiah said, "I'll ask her during dinner.""Why bother asking?" Isabella thought Isaiah's emotional intelligence was lacking, and Sandra's expectations were too low. "Just pick a few reputable studios and let her choose one she likes."During their conversation, Isabella noticed that Sandra was slightly anticipating a wedding, although she had refused for some unknown reason. If she was not truly opposed to weddings, there should not be an issue with pre-wedding photos."If you give it directly to her, she'll probably say she doesn't need it," Isabella coined. She could see through people and was quite clever.Isaiah clearly did not consider this possibility."Take a look at these studios. My friends suggested them," Isabella had already made the selections and recommended them to him. "Weren't you against my decision before?" Isaiah, not understanding h