Upon hearing that Celia wanted to leave, Yardley's face fell. Was she leaving because of his mother's words earlier? Or was there something else?"Celia, my mother is like that. Don't take what she says to heart." He walked over to Celia and put a hand on her shoulder to stop her from leaving. His gaze was deep and carried a hint of an unusual emotion. His voice was low and husky."Trust me. I'll handle things on my mother's end. She won't trouble you again."As her eyes met Yardley's profound gaze, Celia's heart skipped a beat. She took a step back and smiled. Then, she changed the topic. "Let's not dwell on this. We should get going. If we don't leave now, we'll be late."Yardley's eyes regained their usual indifference. His thin lips parted slightly as he said, "Let's go."Yardley and Celia arrived at the airport. They stopped in front of a Boeing aircraft."Is this your plane?" Celia examined the luxurious plane before her. On one of her birthdays, Barnaby had wanted
"Let's go." Yardley's gaze turned cold as he glanced at Jones, signaling him to lead the way.Soon, the group arrived at Factory One."Who's in charge of procuring the raw material?" Yardley asked. He flipped through the documents that had been handed to him.Jones replied, "It's Angie. She's responsible for the centralized procurement of all the raw materials in Festras."Frowning, Celia looked over at Jones."So, you mean she procures everything for all the factories here? If it's an issue with procurement, why is Factory One the only one affected?""Angie has been with the company for a long time. She has been handling procurement all along. It's unlikely this is her fault," Jones answered. He pursed his lips, sounding somewhat dismissive.Celia nodded and said, "Where is Angie? I'd like to meet her."Jones made a call right away. "Angie, come to my office."Ten minutes later, a woman who seemed to be in her 40s appeared. She had wavy hair and a bit of extra weight.Jo
Celia prayed hard that Yardley was okay. Gritting her teeth, she endured the pain and got out of bed. She needed to find Yardley. She had to see him in person to make sure he was safe and sound."You're awake, Ms. Stanton." Just then, Jones walked in.Celia's tensed emotions eased a little bit upon seeing him. "Jones, it's great that you're okay. Where's Yardley? Have you seen him?"Jones glanced at Celia. He hesitated a little before saying, "Mr. Hughes is—""How is he?" Celia pressed for an answer impatiently. Her voice was anxious and panicked."He's injured. They're giving him emergency treatment," Jones answered with a sigh.He then added, "Mr. Hughes' injuries are serious."A loud buzzing sound filled Celia's head. Her mind went blank.Yardley was seriously injured and in emergency treatment because of her. The terrifying scene of the warehouse exploding kept flashing in Celia's mind. If Yardley hadn't shielded her, he wouldn't have gotten hurt to this extent."Whe
"Alright, Ms. Stanton," Jones readily agreed.After Jones left, Celia returned to the room. Looking at Yardley lying on the bed, a wave of bitterness surged in her heart. She pulled the blanket over him. Then, she held Yardley's hand and prayed that he would be okay.The ticking of the clock pounded on Celia's head, causing a dull ache. Each second felt like a century.As the night went on, Celia remained at Yardley's bedside. She couldn't sleep. Unprecedented anxiety spread through every cell in her body.In the middle of the night, Celia heard a knock on the door. She thought it might be a doctor making the rounds. When she opened the door, she was surprised to see that it was Yannis.He was accompanied by several bodyguards, who stood guard outside the room."Mr. Lynch, why are you here?" Celia asked.She had thought he was in Eldoria.Yannis walked in and glanced at Yardley. "I rushed over as soon as I received the news. How is Mr. Hughes?" His tone carried a hint of
Feeling impatient, Celia said, "I want to go in and see Yardley.""Mr. Lynch said that no one could enter without his orders," the guard replied with a troubled expression.They knew that Celia was Yardley's fiancée. But since Yannis had given the instructions, they stopped her from entering.After a moment of consideration, Celia dialed Yannis' number.Hearing his phone ring, Yannis glanced down and saw that it was Celia calling. He answered the call but put it on speaker mode."Ms. Stanton, is there something you need?" Yannis asked.With a voice full of concern and anxiety, Celia asked, "Has Yardley woken up?""No," Yannis replied while glancing down at the relaxed Yardley.Upon hearing that, a pang of disappointment hit Celia. She bit her lip and said, "I'm still worried about Yardley. Can I go in and see him?"Yardley heard every word of Celia's request.The corners of his lips curved up into a mysterious smile. He was secretly delighted that Celia cared for him so much.
Yardley's intense and unfathomable gaze remained fixed on Celia's face. His husky voice lingered in her ear.Celia's breath caught for a moment. Then, she raised her eyes to meet his profound gaze. With a smirk, she said, "I don't know what you're talking about."Yardley smiled in return. "I heard every word you said just now.""What did I say? What did you hear?" Celia felt a bit embarrassed and annoyed. She gave Yardley an angry glare.This sly man had pretended to be unconscious and fooled her! If she'd known, she wouldn't have been so worried about him.Yardley reached out for Celia's hand and placed it in his palm. He covered his other hand on top, enveloping Celia's hand completely."You said you'd do anything for me once I woke up. Well, I'm awake now. So, are you willing to marry me?" Yardley asked in a deep tone.The warmth of Yardley's touch spread through Celia's hand. It reached her heart, making it flutter."Is this your way of proposing to me?" Celia pursed her li
"Has Yannis found anything?" Celia asked, observing Yardley's confident look.Yardley leaned back and said, "They're still investigating. We'll have results soon.""We must find evidence before Jones holds the press conference. Otherwise, the situation will be unfavorable for us," Celia reminded.Yardley smiled and cast a sidelong glance at Celia. "Don't worry, I've got it under control. Jones won't be causing trouble for long."Yardley's calm smile brought her a sense of relief. Anthony's investigation would yield results soon too. When the time came, they would expose Jones.Meanwhile, the public made wild guesses about the explosion. Everyone was looking forward to the press conference. They wanted to know the truth behind the radioactive substances and the explosion.The press conference took place in the conference hall of a luxurious hotel in Festras. Celia arrived early and took an inconspicuous seat in a corner.She sent a text message to Anthony. "Did you find what
"Of course," Jones replied. He stared at Celia as if he were provoking her. Then, his expression turned grave as he made a solemn declaration."I should have concluded today's press conference after delivering the official statement to the public. But I don't want to go against my conscience. So, I've chosen to reveal the truth.""Conscience? I think you don't have one." Celia retorted. Her lips curled into a sarcastic smile.Seeing Celia's response, the reporters surrounded her and bombarded her with questions."Ms. Stanton, is what Mr. Levine said true?""Did Hughes Incorporated use subpar materials to make more profit?""Are those two warehouse supervisors innocent scapegoats?""The situation escalated beyond expectations. Did Hughes Incorporated orchestrate this explosion to cover things up?"Celia smiled and remained composed. Then, she stated, "Of course not. Every word Mr. Levine said is false. He made it all up to tarnish our company's reputation."A reporter aimed
In fact, Yardley didn't tell anyone. … Meanwhile, Morgan stumbled upon a surprising find. She discovered two healthy, month-old babies at the orphanage. "Director, is it true that no one wants such young babies?" Morgan felt a bit emotional. How could people be so heartless as to abandon their own babies? The director of the orphanage let out a deep sigh. "You don't know the whole story. Our janitor found these babies at the orphanage's entrance. Someone left them there and disappeared. "We've been taking care of them for about half a month now, and their condition has improved significantly." Looking at the adorable babies, Morgan couldn't shake the feeling that they belonged to Celia. "I'm here on behalf of Yardley Hughes else to adopt these children, but..." Morgan expressed her concerns. Morgan anticipated the orphanage director's refusal. To her surprise, he actually agreed. "The opportunity for these two babies to have some good days is preferable to nothing.
"Let's go, Celia. We shouldn't disturb the twins' rest," said Yardley as he supported Celia and got ready to leave. Celia waved her hand and stood in front of the incubator. Even with the glass barrier, she could still discern the condition of her children. She reached out to touch them, as if her touch could make them feel her presence. She resolved to take her children home safely. Celia lingered for a while before finally leaving the hospital. Once they were home, Celia locked herself in her room, disregarding any attempts anyone made to talk to her. Yardley headed to the company to attend to some matters, while the housekeepers remained at home. Meanwhile, Morgan couldn't shake her concern for Celia, so she came to visit her. Upon entering, she heard the housekeepers upstairs calling out, "Mrs. Hughes, are you feeling better? Come out and have some soup!" However, there was no response from inside. "What's going on?" Morgan asked. The housekeepers promptly briefed
Sophie had failed to get Celia's forgiveness. So, she had no choice but to pin all her hopes on Morgan.She took all the supplements to Morgan's apartment. Richard was staying there with her.Ever since the incident with Celia, Sophie's relationship with Richard had become very strained. They barely talked to one another.Sophie knocked on the door for a long time, but no one came out.She could only wait outside. After two hours, she finally saw Morgan and Richard. They came into view, laughing and holding each other's hands.This scene pained Sophie deeply."What are you doing here?" Morgan's cheerful expression faltered the moment she saw Sophie.Sophie could only put on a smile and say, "I brought all these for you. I was wrong to come between your relationship with my son."Richard glanced at the items on the ground. He could tell from a glance that they were meant for postpartum care and immediately understood why Sophie was there."Mom, you should be honest. You got the
Otto didn't back down and insisted on his right to see his grandchildren. However, Yardley paid him no mind. He shook his head and said, "Celia needs rest. Please come back another day."The next second, he instructed the housekeepers to close the door and left Otto standing outside. Otto stomped his walking cane on the ground in frustration but had no choice but to leave.As Yardley made his way back inside the villa, he thought of another troubling matter.Although they had brought their children home, the twins had been weak because they had been born prematurely. They had appointed a family doctor to treat the twins but hadn't seen much improvement in their health. Yardley sanitized himself before he went into the nursery. He felt pained when he heard the twins' weak breaths."Mr. Hughes." The family doctor spoke up with a frown, indicating that the situation was far from ideal."The baby girl has been slowly recovering, but the boy remains very weak. I don't think the n
"Don't worry. She's fine. She's just a bit weak at the moment."Remembering Yardley's words outside the ward, the doctor felt a wave of nervousness. He could tell that Yardley and Celia weren't ordinary people judging by their attire. They were certainly not ones to be trifled with."Did you say that we had twins?" Yardley turned to ask the nurse after learning that Celia was alright."Yes, sir." The nurse chuckled inwardly. She found that, despite Yardley's intimidating appearance, he was a very devoted husband.Soon, Celia was moved out of the operating room and into a VIP ward.Yardley gently wiped the sweat from Celia's face again. He took in her pale complexion; it was a sign of how much she had suffered."How's Celia?"Sounds of hurried footsteps came from outside. Ashley and the others had come over. Yardley turned and signaled them to leave.Celia had just given birth, so she needed a quiet environment to rest. Having too many visitors might affect her recovery.Ever
"How could you hit me because of her? I'm the mother of your child!" Sophie shrieked.She had never suffered such humiliation. She had been showered with love from a young age and wasn't accustomed to such harsh treatment. So, she became agitated and emotional."Isn't it all because of you that things turned out this way? Would such a thing have happened to our company? Would Richard suddenly want to break all ties with us? It's all because of your reckless behavior!" Chester vented years of suppressed grievances and dissatisfaction as if it would make him feel better.Celia watched as Chester and Sophie argued fiercely. She stepped forward to stop them, especially since there were many people outside watching the spectacle."Stop fighting. This isn't the time or the place for arguments!"Sophie went at Chester and started hitting him. Celia tried to break up their fight, but Sophie pushed her. Celia took a few steps back at that. She didn't attempt to intervene anymore."It's
"Mrs. Black, we'd intended to negotiate amicably with you and achieve a satisfactory outcome for both parties. "The decision to move out was mine, and I asked Celia to come over and help me out. If you're unwilling to be decent and compromise, then let's end things between our families here."Morgan felt relieved after expressing her thoughts. It was like a significant weight had been lifted off her shoulders. "What do you mean?" Richard panicked. Just when their relationship had slightly improved, the situation took a turn for the worse again."We're breaking up for good!"Morgan left after saying that. Jessica and Darby left with her, leaving the Blacks behind."This is all your doing! Look what you've done! How many times have I told you not to be so assertive and bossy? Why don't you ever consider my feelings?" Richard punched the couch angrily, his heart filled with bitterness.Sophie hadn't wanted things to turn out this way either, but she had been too angry and spoke
"It's fine. You two can go if you have something else to attend to," Jessica said.Soon, Celia arrived at the Blacks' residence with Jessica and Darby.Sophie opened the door and was surprised to see Celia standing at the doorstep with Jessica and Darby. She couldn't understand what Celia was up to.Once they were inside, Celia didn't beat around the bush and stated her purpose directly. "I think you might be having some misunderstandings about Morgan."Sophie smiled without saying anything."Don't you think you're interfering too much in Morgan's personal life?" Celia questioned.Upon hearing this, Sophie realized why they were there. Having discussed the issue with Chester, Sophie had finally agreed not to interfere in Richard's and Morgan's lives.So, she didn't object to Celia's words. She even agreed with Celia, much to the latter's surprise.Under normal circumstances, Sophie would have argued with her. Why was she being so agreeable this time?"How about you sign a writ
After saying that, Celia hung up.On the other end, Quinn felt very displeased. After all, it was her party, and she had personally called Celia to invite her. Quinn felt that Celia had snubbed her by refusing to attend.Quinn thought about it for a moment. If Celia didn't come, Yardley probably wouldn't either. If both of them didn't show up, it would be embarrassing for Quinn.So, she decided to go and find Celia.…Morgan was taking refuge at Celia's place, so she answered the door when Quinn came over."I'm here to see Celia."Celia had instructed Morgan to turn away anyone she didn't recognize, no matter who it was. Hence, Morgan said, "Celia isn't seeing anyone today. Please come back another time."To Morgan's surprise, her words ignited the anger that Quinn had been suppressing in her heart. The two quickly started arguing.Celia listened to their argument from her room. She regretted asking Morgan to handle Quinn. She had expected that Quinn would come looking for her