Before today, Joe had never regarded Haley as his daughter. In his mind, his daughter was someone like Xena, who would lean on him, sweet-talk him, care for him, and always think of him. But Haley carried too much of Yvonne's shadow. She looked too much like Yvonne, especially those eyes and brows, as if she had been carved from the same mold. Every time he saw Haley, he would think of Yvonne's business acumen and her strong and cold demeanor. It was a kind of deep-seated inferiority and fear from the soul. So, he simply did not like Haley. But he forgot, when pushed too far, there would be a backlash. Haley had been suppressed for too long. Any last trace of affection she had for him had been killed by him, which led to the situation today. Joe gritted his teeth and softened his tone, "Haley, your mother is watching us from heaven. She wouldn't want to see us, father and daughter, come to this point. Be obedient, give me the property deed." He regretted deeply at this moment.
But now it seemed he had been too lenient, allowing Joe to become too arrogant and forget his own identity. Reluctant as Joe was, he had no choice but to yield to Shane's threat. He could only grit his teeth and say, "Haley, I went too far just now. I'm sorry!" Haley stepped forward, looking down at Joe. "What did you mean just now? What do you mean I'm your shame?" Joe's eyes flickered, his mouth shut tight, afraid to utter a word. At that moment, Zoe's voice, full of hatred and satisfaction, interjected, "You want to know why? It's because your mother was just a woman ridden by countless men..." "Shut up!" Joe roared, interrupting Zoe. Meeting his furious gaze, Zoe was taken aback and quickly fell silent. Haley's heart sank, and she signaled to her driver behind her, "Since your mouth stinks so much, let's get rid of it." The driver understood her meaning and immediately stepped forward, delivering several hard slaps to Zoe. Zoe widened her eyes in terror, shaking her
As soon as she stepped out of the Carter residence's gate, Haley felt like all her strength had drained away. Her legs went weak, and she almost fell to the ground. Fortunately, Shane was quick to react, promptly catching her waist and pulling her into his arms."Haley, are you okay?" Shane asked with concern, noticing Haley's pale face and the pain and helplessness in her eyes.But in response to Shane's inquiry, she shook her head slowly and said, "I'm fine, Mr. Ford, what are you doing here?"Seeing her trying to appear strong despite her obvious distress, Shane felt even more heartache. Haley was always like this, accustomed to bearing all the grievances herself, no matter how heavy they were.He sighed helplessly and said softly, "The driver messaged me, saying you weren't feeling well emotionally, so I rushed over. Thankfully, I made it in time." His tone carried a palpable sense of relief.When he entered the Carter residence, he saw Joe with bloodshot eyes and he was about
The helper glanced nervously towards the living room and lowered her voice, "Miss Haley came by today and had an argument with Mr. and Mrs. Carter. Now they're having a heated argument inside."Xena paused for a moment and hastened her steps into the living room. As soon as she entered, she saw Joe and Zoe in a heated dispute."It's all your fault! Didn't I warn you before? That little vixen Haley is nothing but trouble. Now that we've lost our shares, she wants to kick us out of the house! What are we going to do now?""Are you kidding me? You've been repeating yourself over and over again. I'm sick of hearing it!""Now you think I'm annoying? Are you still thinking about Yvonne? Tell me!"At the mention of Yvonne's name, veins bulged on Joe's forehead as he violently shook off Zoe's hand."That's enough! What right do you have to mention her name?"Zoe staggered back from the force of his movement, nearly falling over. She chuckled, unable to resist a sarcastic remark, "I knew
Half an hour later, James rushed to the Carter residence and was stunned by the chaos in the yard."What on earth happened? Xena, are you okay?" James quickly embraced Xena and looked her over.Xena shook her head and tearfully recounted the events of the day, exaggerating them as if she had suffered a great injustice."I never expected my sister to be so heartless. Although my mom is her stepmother, she has always treated her with all her heart. And my dad has been extremely fond of her."James did not doubt the truthfulness of Xena's words. In his view, Haley's personality was despicable to the core.So, what Haley did was not surprising at all.He indignantly said, "Haley is really too much. How could she treat your parents like this? Wait, I'm going to call my uncle now and let him see Haley's true colors."Joe suddenly remembered Shane's cold eyes and could not help but shudder.He quickly stopped him, "James, forget it. Mr. Ford is Haley's husband. He will definitely take
Suddenly, a frantic knocking on the door interrupted the silence. "Mr. Carter, Mrs. Carter, it's urgent! The moving company is here and they say we have to move out right away!"Joe and Zoe snapped awake, jumping out of bed. They quickly changed clothes and hurried downstairs, where they found three or four movers standing in the living room, ready to start packing.The helper was desperately trying to block them from entering. Joe's expression darkened as he demanded, "What's going on? Who let you in?"Dean, dressed in a suit, walked in from outside and calmly spoke up, "Mr. Carter, Mr. Ford has spoken. While Miss Haley generously offered you three days, Mr. Ford can't wait any longer. He wants to move in himself. You must leave today."Joe and Zoe were shocked and their expressions turned grim. "What? Today? How is that possible?"Zoe and her daughter had been living in this villa for five years, and they had spent lavishly, filling it with their belongings. Not to mention Joe,
After bustling around for a solid three hours, the Carter family finally got all their luggage packed up. They stared at the suitcases in front of them, looking completely defeated. After residing here for countless years, they never anticipated that upon departure, they would be left with just a few measly suitcases of belongings. These were the only things that truly belonged to them.Joe felt utterly humiliated. And as Xena watched those exquisite pieces of jewelry slip away from her grasp, her eyes welled up with tears of anger. In her mind, those things were rightfully hers, acquired through her own cunning from Haley. Why should Haley get to dictate when they leave?She could not accept it, attempting to snatch the box of jewelry away. But before her hand could even reach it, Dean had grabbed her wrist with a swift motion. There was a sickening crack as her bones protested, and Xena screamed in pain, "Ahh! My hand! Dean, I'm engaged to James! How dare you treat me like th
The legal team hired by the Ford Corporation was among the top in the country, hardly ever tasting defeat. Joe's face turned gray, as if he aged a dozen years in an instant, exuding an air of desolation. He finally realized that Haley was determined to sever ties with him, perhaps with the influence of Shane. Once Shane got involved, there would be no turning back from this situation. With a heavy heart, he sighed deeply and walked away, dragging his feet. "Let's go. If Haley thinks she'll be better off without me as her father, then I'll see if she comes crawling back to me if Shane ever abandons her without her family's support." With these harsh words, Joe left the villa with his wife and daughter. Joe still owned another villa. It was not in a prime location and not very spacious, but at least it was a place to stay. The sudden turn of events meant the villa was left untouched, covered in dust as they stepped inside. Xena choked on the dust, coughing heavily and glancing ar