The internet would store data. After all, when Henry was imprisoned and the York family’s assets were seized, it caused quite a stir.As soon as the Twitter post went up, people quickly dug up the old news articles and recent reports about Henry's release to summarize the timeline."Lavinia Luxe is unreliable if they hire people like this. I'll never buy from them again." Someone posted with a goodbye emoji.Meanwhile, the Opulent Prowl account left a response to that comment. "It's not like that. Shannon changed her name and nationality, so, understandably, a background check wouldn't catch it."Amidst the tens of thousands of comments, Opulent Prowl replied to only that one, and it was in defense of Lavinia Luxe.Someone immediately gave them a thumbs-up. "What a class! This is why I love this brand!"There were some, however, who disagreed. “I can understand not recognizing that Candice and Shannon are the same person, but a new identity comes with a lot of lies, fake degrees,
She had been careful enough to try to make no mistakes at all points, yet the problems she had encountered this time were nothing short of an unmitigated disaster.Opulent Prowl didn't just have a domestic market. It also had a stable overseas market and customer base. The issue arose in the overseas market.Celeste learned about this problem from Spencer, with whom she hadn't been in contact for a long time.It was past 2 a.m. when a WhatsApp voice call came through, and Celeste was in a deep sleep.She woke up from her dream. Her head ached, and her mind was in turmoil.Why was he calling at this hour? Didn't he know there was a six-hour time difference between Carlino and Franciso?In the faint light of her phone screen, Celeste groggily pressed the answer button before she could even say hello."Who selected the models for today's fashion show in Franciso? Who was in charge?" Spencer questioned straight away. His tone sounded unusually serious.Celeste's sleepiness was gone
Celeste, being a designer herself, understood the gravity of issues related to racial discrimination, national sentiments, sexual orientation, or territorial disputes. She would never take these matters lightly.Although she didn't personally handle every detail of model selection, she always reviewed the final choices.Especially in Astrania, where people's stances could be ambiguous, she had even stricter requirements for overseas models.What happened that day was undoubtedly the result of someone bribing the models with a substantial amount of money to cause trouble deliberately.The slanting-eye gesture was highly offensive to Solacians, and the association with the Brightstar Council, a notorious extremist organisation in Franciso, only added fuel to the fire, which was clearly intending to bring Opulent Prowl down.By the end of the night, Celeste's throat had developed two large blisters, rendering her unable to speak."Don't worry, I'm here. Megan and I are flying to Fra
"Yes, mommy. I'm safe here with dad and grandma," Leo reassured Celeste."Take care of yourself and my little sister. Everything will be alright."Just like Celeste, he had assumed that the baby she was carrying was a girl.In moments like this, Celeste truly appreciated the advantages of having a brilliant child. He was intelligent and perceptive, able to sense danger, and less likely to be manipulated.Of course, the downside was also apparent. He tended to overthink and internalise his worries."Leo, I have faced many challenges before, and I've always managed to overcome them. You need to trust that I can turn bad situations into good ones," she said gently to Leo.He responded with a soft "mm.""This isn't a big issue. I will handle it smoothly.""Mm.""So don't worry too much. If you worry, I will feel uneasy too."Being open and honest was the best way to deal with a genius child. This was something Celeste had learned over time.If she hid things from Leo, it would o
There were strict security checks for attendees at the press conference, so no one knew how the man managed to get in, let alone bring in a can of surstromming.The can of surstromming was thrown at Celeste from a tricky angle, and the smell of liquid splattered all over her body, face, and hair.Already sensitive due to her pregnancy, the horrible stench made Celeste gag uncontrollably.She opened her mouth but couldn't speak."Everyone, stay calm and don't harm the pregnant woman." The security personnel was alerted and shouted. They quickly rushed over and shielded Celeste.The man who disrupted the event was restrained but continued to hurl profanities and cause a commotion."D*mn it, I can't stand the sight of you! You filthy traitor!""A traitor's child will be no better!" Others chimed in."Yeah! Celeste, we didn't expect this from you!"The scene was so chaotic that Celeste couldn't tell if these people were paid by her rivals or if they were acting on their own.Main
Hence, Liam drove the car away under Damon's instructions.The car passed by Celeste and drove further away, and she felt a wave of relief wash over her.No matter the circumstances, people always care about how they appear to those they care about, even now when she was pushed to her limits and feeling utterly lost."Let's go, we should head back." Her female assistant came over to support her. She then led her into the car and drove her home.Meanwhile, in Franciso, Winston and Megan sent a message confirming that Henry's people were behind the chaos.The three models had taken a large sum of money from Henry to take the risk at such an event. Although Lavinia Luxe said they had nothing to do with it, Winston and Megan didn't believe them."I've handed over the evidence we found to the investigation team and have been posting the results on major platforms. Opulent Prowl should be able to resume operations soon," Winston said.Looking at the evidence Winston had gathered, Cele
To Arno, Celeste's plan seemed like a pipe dream.There were plenty of wealthy and influential people in Carlino who had tried to reclaim the artifact from Nilson over the years, yet he had never budged.Why was Celeste so confident that she could succeed?Unable to resist her persistent coaxing, Arno eventually relented and shared what he knew.Nilson was over 80 years old, coming from a prominent family, and owned hundreds of farms and vineyards.Arno showed Celeste the latest reports on Nilson, highlighting his 80th birthday celebration where numerous Franciso nobility, along with their children and gifts, waited respectfully outside his door.Despite his extraordinary status and illustrious background, Nilson had never married and now lived alone with a dog in a small town in Franciso."What is he like?" Celeste asked."Exceptionally cold, eccentric, and dislikes human interaction," Arno replied. "In this picture, the visitors left their gifts outside without being let in."
Celeste took Leo to Francisco. She settled in a small town where Nilson lived, according to her plan.Nilson, who disliked interacting with people, had bought an entire street along with all the houses and gardens.This meant that even if Celeste wanted to be as close to him as possible, she was still at least one street away from him.She rented a lovely house for two thousand dollars. While handling Opulent Prowl's business in Francisco during the day, she would pass by Nilson's place to observe his reactions, ready to act whenever an opportunity arose.Nilson had fair skin, blue eyes, and a full head of hair. Perhaps due to his wealth and leisure, he looked at least twenty years younger than his actual age. Saying he was only sixty was entirely believable.Like many older men in Francisco, Nilson liked to wear full suits and a bowler hat. Even if he were just strolling around, he would always have his tie perfectly in place.After intentionally passing by a few times, Celeste
He never would have imagined that the intelligent and aloof Celeste would have a day like this, appearing adorably naive and innocent.Damon used to like girls who were delicate and pure, but that changed when he met Celeste.She had a face full of charm and allure, but her expression and personality were always cold and unyielding. She was pale and slim, yet not childlike. On the contrary, she resembled a young poplar tree, proud and upright.Because of her, he began to like girls who sparked his desire to conquer, and he scoffed at those who were simply weak and shy.But now with Celeste like this, he didn't feel annoyed. In fact, not only was he not annoyed, he actually found it cute and interesting.“What's your name?” she asked again."Damon.""Oh, that sounds really nice."The initial confusion in her eyes was gone, replaced by a sparkling glimmer, and her tone carried a touch of a young girl's excitement."You are actually my husband… Wow, great job, me! I've managed to
"What? Aren’t you my husband? Do I still need to avoid you while changing clothes?" The confusion in Celeste's eyes didn’t seem fake.Damon was speechless and didn't know how to respond at that moment.When Damon didn't respond, Celeste suddenly felt a bit nervous."I'm sorry… I can't remember clearly. Aren't you my husband?"Damon raised an eyebrow casually and asked, "Why do you think I am?"Celeste innocently blinked, her eyelashes fluttering like fans. "The nurse said it. Besides, if you're not my husband, why would you sleep with me at night?""What did the nurse say?" Her reasoning was actually logical and undeniable. For a moment, Damon found it somewhat amusing."The nurse said that my husband is really thoughtful," Celeste responded seriously. Then she asked, "Aren't you my husband? Then why would you be willing to stay here with me so late?"This one sentence left Damon speechless.The reason he was willing was because he was a coward. He said that he didn't care abo
Damon frowned upon hearing the classic amnesiac questions being asked."Celeste, are you trying to act out a TV drama?"Celeste still looked at him blankly. "What do you mean?"Damon didn't answer and went straight to the director's office to get Nicholas.Knowing her, she wasn't the type to joke around, especially not with Leo still missing. She must have hit her head hard.Nicholas was equally surprised and hurried back to the room with Damon.Celeste was sitting up, hugging her knees and staring into space."You're awake? How do you feel?" Nicholas asked with a smile as he entered."Why am I here?" Her voice sounded hesitant, and she turned to look at them.Her confusion seemed genuine. Nicholas and Damon exchanged worried glances."Celeste… you don't remember?""Celeste?" She asked, "Is that my name?""Yes.""I don't remember. My mind is blank.""Do you remember… Leo?" Nicholas hesitated. After all, if she knew that her child had been missing for three days, he was wo
"Alright," Celeste said in a deep voice. "Let me see Leo first."They pushed open the hidden door, revealing a staircase leading to the basement."Have Leo come to the stairway corner." She stood at the dark staircase and negotiated with the kidnapper."Mommy!" Suddenly, Leo's desperate cry echoed from inside."Leo!" Celeste ditched everything else and rushed down the stairs.She ran ahead, and as soon as she reached the corner, there was a loud explosion, and a wave of heat hit her face."Celeste!""Celeste!"Damon and Winston's faces changed drastically, shouting in alarm.The basement was empty. It was a trap.Had they been more careful, they would have noticed that both the kidnapper’s voice and Leo’s cry were artificially synthesized. But Celeste, in her desperation to save her son, had been too frantic to discern this.The basement was rigged with landmines. Unfortunately, something went wrong. The mine exploded when Celeste reached the stairway corner, instead of when
What? Damon was also coming? Celeste felt her heart leap, and her voice became sharper as she said, "I can handle this. You can't come!"There was no response from his end.Observing Damon’s silence, Celeste quickly softened her tone. "Damon, listen to me. I can handle this alone. There's no need for you to get involved… because I'm their main target, and they likely won't harm Leo. You need to stay home and wait for him. You need to take care of him later on…""Celeste," Damon interrupted coldly. "Are you planning on not coming out alive?"Of course, coming out alive would be ideal, but she couldn’t guarantee that."Damon, I do have a chance of surviving, but when it comes to exchanging myself for Leo, there can be no room for error. We must follow the kidnapper's instructions to ensure Leo's safety."It was out of the question to provide a false sense of security and pretend to comply with the kidnapper, only to backtrack and get Leo killed.She needed to ensure Leo’s safety a
They checked all the surveillance footage near the Bishop residence and investigated every suspicious vehicle. They also had people keeping an eye on Henry, but after half a day, there was still no breakthrough.The kidnappers had taken Leo to threaten Celeste, and the lack of communication was meant to unnerve her. If it was according to predictions, she was supposed to wait for their demands. But, as a mother, she couldn't just sit and do nothing.Celeste remembered that Shannon had called her, so she found her contact in the blacklist and called."Shannon, did you and Henry kidnap Leo?" she demanded.Shannon laughed coldly. "Don't accuse us without any evidence. Your son is missing? Maybe it's karma. Hahaha!"Celeste hung up, unable to stand Shannon's smugness.Several teams searched for over 20 hours, even involving the police, but still had no solid leads. Celeste suspected Henry, but they couldn't just arrest him without any proof.She was extremely desperate. She didn't e
"Lester isn't as clever as Leo. He's just a four-year-old child, and he shouldn't have done anything like that," Serena instinctively defended Lester. Then, recalling the last time she had misunderstood Leo for similar reasons, she felt a pang of guilt and added, "I don't mean to imply anything… I'll have someone bring Lester here."Celeste nodded. "I'm not blaming Lester. I just want to understand what happened."Soon, the nanny looking after Lester brought him in. Unexpectedly, upon seeing Celeste, Lester burst into tears."Aunty Celeste, please don't hit me. I didn't mean to lose my brother!""Lester, I just want to understand what happened." Celeste was taken aback by his crying but kneeled down to speak gently. "I'm not blaming you. Can you tell me what you saw that day?""Aunty Celeste, don't hit me!" Lester kept crying, not saying a word about Leo's disappearance."Am I that scary, Lester?"At this moment, Celeste felt at a loss. She could communicate normally with Leo,
Celeste perfectly understood what Cedric's implied. "I mean, thank you for taking the time out of your busy schedule to entertain me today."Cedric had indeed wanted to help her that day, but his identity was too special to admit it openly. The scratch on the paper was a subtle hint, and whether or not she could interpret it depended on her intuition. The fact that she could decipher such a subtle hint proved her intelligence and luck.Over the years, Cedric had developed a sense of respect for Celeste after learning about her. He felt she was deserving of assistance, but he couldn't make it obvious."However, be careful. I see that Henry is at the end of his rope and might act irrationally. You should be on guard," Cedric warned.Celeste nodded, having considered this as well. "Henry wants me dead."This was why she had her brother stay abroad and sent Leo to the Bishops. With only herself remaining, it was harder for Henry to use her loved ones against her."Take care of yourse
Celeste's deduction was correct. Cedric intentionally left the mark. As Winston dug deeper, he slowly uncovered a series of issues.It was a bridge project on a highway in a poor mountainous area. Not uncommon.The problem was that the person in charge of this project was a leader assigned from a first-tier city to oversee the development. Officially, he was recognised for his capabilities, but in reality, this task was one he had to succeed in without failure.He had offended someone, and this transfer was a disguised punishment under the guise of a major responsibility.If he had managed it well, the chances of him returning to a higher development role would have been slim. At best, he could stay in this position until retirement. If he didn't manage it well, his entire career could be ruined.Someone of such status naturally had supporters as well as opponents. In such a situation, it was impossible for anyone to sabotage and create pitfalls along the way."It seems the next