Joshua was genuinely annoyed, and Yosef decided not to continue poking at him. Just as they turned the corner of the hallway toward the entertainment area, they saw Cynthia and Mitchell sitting together, chatting in the lounge.At that moment, Joshua's footsteps halted, fixating his gaze on her relaxed expression when she was with Mitchell."What are you looking at?" Yosef followed his line of sight and. Upon seeing Cynthia with Mitchell, he commented, "I didn't expect Mitchell to attend this event as well.""How did you pursue Madison?" Joshua suddenly asked.Yosef was stunned, and he could not help but suspect Joshua was intentionally trying to make him feel uncomfortable today."Sorry, I forgot you're still nursing an unrequited love as you still haven't won her over," Joshua added abruptly.Yosef felt like punching him. He had just been about to mention that Joshua was currently in the same boat, but then he saw Joshua walking toward Mitchell. Yosef frowned, unsure of w
"Why are you here?" Joshua did not answer her question but instead asked what he wanted to know.Cynthia remained silent, maintaining her indifferent demeanor, emanating an icy aura that kept people at a distance.This kind of conversation weighed heavily on Joshua's heart. Yet, even so, he still wanted to be with Cynthia. It was as if, by being together, his aching heart could find a momentary peace, even though it still hurt a bit.It was still better than having nothing at all.The two of them remained in a standoff, neither speaking further. Time continued to pass them by.Cynthia did not enjoy the tense atmosphere, and without a word, she turned to leave.However, Joshua grabbed her arm and held on tight."What the hell do you want?" Cynthia could not understand his behavior.Joshua did not release his grip, and his eyes darkened as he said, "You still haven't answered my question.""Blind date," Cynthia replied simply."With Mitchell?""It's none of your concern."
"Do you have any requests on the timing?" Yoel did not ask much and just thought it was a normal meeting."Any time will do.""Alright."Yoel was quick.Arrangements were made for the two to meet the next day, and when Old Man Yates heard that it was Joshua, he invited him to meet at the old manor.When Cynthia got the news, she was still at Arch International Group."Are you sure you heard it right?" Cynthia held the mobile phone in her hand and somewhat doubted it."I am sure you heard me right. Joshua probably has already arrived. However, what is he going to do there?" Kendrick had always kept up with what happened around the old Yates manor.Cynthia's calm mood was disturbed again.Thinking about what Joshua did, she said, "Courting death."In order to prevent Joshua from doing anything, Cynthia handed over the matters to Moe and drove toward the old manor by herself.With Grandpa's negotiation style, he could close the negotiation in less than ten minutes with people h
Old Man Yates excused himself as he saw them. Cynthia felt even more suspicious at this.When did Grandpa do this?"Mr. Neal, I will go back to the company to work on some things. Call me if you would like to come back later, and I will send someone to pick you up." Yoel also knew that it was not appropriate for him to stay."Okay."Soon, only Cynthia and Joshua were left in the yard.Cynthia looked at Joshua suspiciously and asked, "What are you doing here?"Joshua looked over with his dark eyes, occupied by Cynthia's figure.He really wanted to say something like, 'It has nothing to do with you.'However, he knew that such an answer would only push her farther and farther until she became a stranger.Why was this guy not talking?"To talk to your grandfather about something," Joshua said in a shallow tone, drinking tea slowly."About what?""Business," Joshua said very lightly.Cynthia looked at him suspiciously.Grandpa had already handed over everything to her dad s
"Cynthia," Old Man Yates called out to her.Cynthia paused and looked back.Before she could ask, Old Man Yates said, "Please send Josh back. It just happened to be on your way back.""I..." Cynthia wanted to refuse.Joshua declined and said in a deep voice, "Please do not trouble her. I will call my assistant, and he will come to pick me up.""No trouble. It is on her way anyway," Old Man Yates instructed decisively.She really did not want to send Joshua back.Her mind turned quickly, and she immediately answered, "I have to do some other things before I go to the office. Let Mr. Leigh send him."Old Man Yates was obviously a little unhappy and said with a straight face, "Please just follow my orders. Why did I not realize that you were so ignorant before? Today we must send Josh to the company safely."Cynthia was tired and forced to say, "Got it."She glanced sideways at Joshua, said something and left.Joshua then had a polite small talk with Old Man Yates.Cynthia hea
"Here we are," she said briefly.Joshua sat unmoving and looked sideways at Cynthia.Once he got out of the car, he would not be able to see her anymore. Cynthia did not hear the sound of him getting out of the car. Thinking he was asleep, she turned her sideways eyes to call him again but just bumped into his bottomless eyes.At that moment, she saw many emotions deep in Joshua's eyes. Among them was loneliness.She obviously did not love him anymore and had no feelings for him, but she was still stabbed by the suppressed eyes intertwined with various emotions."We arrived at Neal Group. You can get out of the car now." She turned her eyes away and did not look at him again. Joshua gave a low hum.Then he unfastened his seat belt, opened the door and exited the car.Cynthia was about to start the car and leave but saw him standing outside the car door, holding the door open with his palm for a long time."In the future, your grandpa will not ask you to marry or go on a bli
"What did he talk to my grandfather about today?" Cynthia asked proactively.Yoel paused, then pushed his glasses. "You could have asked me a little more tactfully."She was so direct that it made it really hard for him to answer.Cynthia was stumped. Was it not tactful enough?"What can you tell me?" she replied."Joshua told me not to say anything if you ask. If you really want to know, you can ask Mr. Neal." Yoel called Joshua out."Does it have anything to do with me?" Cynthia was setting up a trap.Yoel maintained a gentle attitude. "I do not know.""Collaboration?""I am not sure.""Marriage?""Please ask Mr. Neal."Yoel vaguely answered all the questions. Cynthia also knew that she would not be able to get anything out of him, so she hung up the phone after casually saying a concluding remark.Back at the Arch Group, Moe just returned from talking about cooperation with someone and seeing her obviously worried. He walked over and asked, "What's wrong?""Are you f
Moe almost answered Cynthia's every question.Cynthia turned the pen in her hand and finally came up with a plan. "In two days, you will fill out the check and agree to their request. Let's see what they have planned."Moe frowned disapprovingly and said, "No.""Why?" Cynthia did not understand."A girl's dignity is very important. You could not take risks casually." Moe's eyes fell on Cynthia.Cynthia put down her pen. "I know what to do, do not worry."Hearing what she said, Moe agreed.Before leaving, he looked back at Cynthia and said in a very serious tone, "Do not trust other people easily, especially other men."Cynthia was amused by his words and dismissed him after acknowledging it.Cynthia had been dealing with things for half a day. Arch International had not expanded its business or had any collaborations in the past two years, so when she came back, Moe went to deal with several business collaborations, which led to a surge in workload during this period.Cynthia
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