"I didn't even say anything!" Alexander puffed his cheek arrogantly. "Even if the birthday gift is here, I still haven't figured out how to send it to him." Lily sighed as she rubbed her temples. Even thinking about it bothered her."Aren't you going to go back?" Alexander asked. It did not seem like she was planning to personally send the gift over from what she said. Lily shook her head and sighed again. "I didn't consider that." "Why not?" After a pause, he questioned again, "Is there anyone back there that makes you not want to go back? Or is it something else? What about your parents?"Alexander had never heard Lily mention her parents before. Back when he looked into her background, he did not find any information on them either. It seemed that she had covered her tracks."They’re no longer around," she said calmly. "They passed away together in a plane crash." Alexander did not know what to say. Her calmness bothered him. How could she say such terrible things so casua
However, his dreams were about to come crashing down.Nathaniel had never imagined that instead of being greeted by a doubling in sales or profit, he would get shot down, bullet after bullet.At 9:00 AM, a famous verified account posted three videos. The first video was nothing serious. It was a financial interview that Nathaniel did a long time ago. In the video, he proudly talked about his perfume with his head held high.He told the host about his optimistic view on the prospects of the perfume industry and lamented the lack of top-tier perfumers in this country. He also emphasized developing and researching new products, stating that perfumers could discuss with him whenever they have a new idea.Nathaniel mentioned that if the perfumers were keen to proceed with their fragrance, he would personally supervise the development and preparation of the perfume throughout the entire process. Before he ended, he also brought up the difficulty of being a perfumer in this time and space
Lily did not need to take a stand as she had already won everyone’s recognition.Those who had doubted her came forward to apologize, and it quickly began to trend on the Internet.On the other hand, this morning had been a nightmare for Nathaniel. Just when he thought it was over, another wave crashed over him. Just as it was about time to get off work, a few more pieces of news popped up. This news was about whether he and Lily had really been together or entangled in unrequited love.In the video, Nathaniel and Melanie's classmates from universities—be they their friends or classmates who did not know much about the relationship or despised Lily's introverted personality—had no idea of Nathaniel and Lily's relationship. They all felt that he and Melanie were a natural pair.However, the tides had turned.The video continued, and one of their tutors, who was a professor, showed up on the screen.It was an honorable thing to be Lily's tutor, so he happily participated in the inter
Lily once had too much alcohol when hanging out with Jenny and Olivia, and since then, she did not allow herself to get drunk again. So, right now, she only drank sparingly."Why wouldn’t you have a drink on such a happy occasion?!" Olivia reached out to take Lily's glass. "Have a drink! I'll send you back if you're drunk.""Forget it. I'd rather rely on myself." Lily barely reached the door the last time Olivia sent her home, but fortunately, she bumped into Alexander.Olivia immediately knew what Lily meant and explained, "It'll be different this time! If I can't get in this time, I'll call someone to get you."Jenny, who stood aside listening, shook her head and intervened. "Stop trying to get her to drink. It's not a good thing, you know? Right, Lily, I'm curious. What were you waiting for? I'm sure you didn't collect all these pieces of evidence today; why did you have to wait until now before publishing it?"Was it so that sc*mbag would have a few days of pride, only for him
He picked up the phone in befuddlement and wanted to call his mother. However, on the verge of pressing the dial button, he remembered her stern warning, "Don’t call me!"That was right. Eloise was a busy woman. How could she have time to answer his phone calls? Even if she had answered, it was useless as there was nothing she could do. After a brief pause, he exited the call interface, opened a text messenger, and typed, “I lost, sorry, and goodbye.”"Mr. Hall..." His secretary was waiting for him at the door, a box in her hands. Nathaniel motioned for her to leave with a feeble wave of his hand. “Leave. You should leave!” He forced himself to stand up, walked over to the floor-to-ceiling windows, and looked out. This city still had plenty of life, prosperity, and glimmering beauty, but none of it belonged to him.He vaguely remembered the first time he moved into the office. It had just been established, but the sales from the perfumes developed by Lily were doing very well. I
The temperature dropped every day until it started snowing at night. Since it did not snow very often in Sapphine City, when it did, it only covered a thin layer on the tree and melted before more snow could build up.Heading toward Brown City, the scenery along the way changed visibly. Snowfall in Sapphine was more akin to sleet fall. It was a rain that contained some ice and looked like crystal droplets.Brown City was different. The further you went toward Brown City, the heavier the snowfall. It was not tiny droplets but large snowflakes. The snow on the ground also grew thicker. By the time they got to the Lodge house, the snow by the road was already ankle-deep.“Sapphine City is not far from Brown City. I didn’t expect such a big difference. It snowed heavily here.” Lily got out of the car and reached out to catch a snowflake. She was soon covered in a layer of snow stuck to her head, shoulder, and palm that did not melt away immediately. It had been years since she last saw
The Lodge family’s house was not in the center of Brown City but in the suburbs. It was a large estate that covered a vast area with beautiful scenery of the mountains and rivers.No one knew when the Lodge family first started living here, as it had been many years. The rumor that the Lodge family was an old kickboxing family passed down from generation to generation was also an unconfirmed legend. No one knew whether members of the Lodge family knew kickboxing as no one had seen it with their own eyes and could verify it.Nowadays, members of the Lodge family are mainly engaged in business. Of course, not everyone was, as there were professors, doctors, and others. They were a large family, and others tended to feel awe when someone mentioned the Lodge family. However, no one knew the direct lineage, which made their family even more mysterious.There were many cars along the way. The tire marks and the pressed snow on the road were noticeable. It was most likely due to her grandf
Lily watched Alexander until he disappeared from her sight. Only then did she get out of the car. She saw Justin looking straight at her and seemed to be waiting for her.She just realized that something was not right. Lily had already shown her face, and the servant had already sent a message. Therefore, it was impossible no one in the family knew she was here. How come there were no servants when she got out of the car?It seemed like Justin had deliberately arranged it to prevent commotion. She had nothing to hide now that she was back. She gathered up her clothes and walked over to him. Justin looked at his cousin in front of him and said, “You’re finally back.”“I said before that I’ll be back.” Lily’s words implied that she would keep her promise.He lightly nodded and said, “Grandpa is waiting for you.”It was good to have him lead the way as he had cleared the way from other guests, preventing unnecessary trouble.“I know. Thank you for the information you previously prov
Lily tilted her head up to fight back her tears, saying, “There’s something I find strange.”“What is it?” Mike asked after comforting his son.“Instead of detaining Prince Ross, Her Majesty has sent him back to Yudonia. If so, why couldn’t we reach him?”After some thought, Mike answered, “There are two possibilities. It’s probably due to poor signals, or he doesn’t want us to contact him.”The two shared a look, knowing what each other was wondering.‘Why can’t we contact Ross? Is he planning something?’…Three days later, Lily inserted the last needle into the queen’s leg and looked up at her, saying, “You should start feeling your legs tomorrow. Still, it’ll take some time before you can stand.”Suddenly, Lily chuckled.“Why are you laughing?” Yasmin touched her legs. She had begun to regain sensation in her legs over the last two days. She then began to believe that she could get up. However, the queen was hesitant when the queen heard Lily chuckle.Lily shook her head
Lily straightened up and said without resentment, “Of course, you wouldn’t.”“That’s… quite a pity,” the queen murmured thoughtfully.“Well, there’s a price to pay for everything. That’s how the world balances itself,” Lily continued, “I can’t stop you if you must carry on with R10. Still, I won’t witness whether or not it succeeds. I just wish the outcome isn’t something you’ll regret.”Lily smiled and turned to head out the door.Rick heard their conversation as he stood guard outside. After exchanging looks with Lily as she brushed past him, he entered the room and saw the needles in Yasmin’s legs. “Your Majesty, those needles—”The queen waved dismissively. “It’s okay. Lily will remove them later.”Even so, Rick was wary. “You’re being too careless, Your Majesty. What if that woman—”“She wouldn’t,” Yasmin interjected, shaking her head."Why do you trust her so much?" Rick asked despite himself. The queen fell silent. If Rick had not asked her that, she would not have rea
Lily took out a cloth and unfolded it, revealing a row of silver needles inside. Yasmin was surprised she carried the needles with her.“Tell me. What do you want?” The queen took a deep breath to calm herself. She then reminded herself that she could always say no to Lily’s request. Still, Yasmin was cautious about Lily trying to trick her.Lily casually said, "I left because Prince Ross wanted to help me. I hope you don’t punish him.""That's it?" Yasmin thought she had misheard Lily. 'Is she trying to talk terms with me just so that I won't punish my son?' she wondered in disbelief."Ross is my son. I won't harm him. Don't you think you've wasted an opportunity by making such a request?" The queen shook her head. "I wasn’t sure if you’d blame him, but he did rescue me once. If I don't do anything, it would be ungrateful of me," Lily said gently, "Also, didn’t you already lock him up?"Yasmin was puzzled. "No, I only sent him back to Yudonia. He kept trying to get me to sto
"Three days," Lily replied.“That’s it?!” Yasmin was in disbelief. She thought Lily would try to buy some more time and suspected she would say the process would take several months or even years.‘I haven’t felt my legs for over a decade. I wouldn’t mind waiting for three more days.’“Are you sure I can get up and walk in just three days?” Yasmin pressed her legs hard but felt nothing. She would have treated her legs long ago if it were that easy.The queen had visited many famous doctors from various countries, but they could only stop her legs from getting weaker. However, Lily confidently told Yasmin that she could fix her legs so quickly.Yasmin wanted to believe it.After some consideration, Lily said, “I can’t guarantee that you’ll walk as fast as you once could. After all, you haven’t used your legs for a long time, and your muscles have atrophied. Still, you’ll recover slowly.”Yasmin nodded repeatedly, thinking it was good enough. She never dreamed of walking as well a
“Because only our opinions matter." Lily thought of something and said, "Unless you choose to believe Rhea.""I… don't trust anyone." Yasmin’s expression stiffened as she turned her wheelchair away."Your Majesty, I know you're dedicated to the experiment, but there are other things in life. Have you ever considered letting go of your burden to sightsee? You’ve done enough as a queen over the last few decades. Aren’t you tired of living a lonely life?”Lily gently spoke as she gazed at Yasmin’s back.The older woman caressed her knees with both hands and stared down at her legs, murmuring, “Sightsee, huh? I’ve forgotten what that’s like.”Yasmin had not used her legs for many years. Initially, she could still stand up and sometimes took a few steps. However, she could no longer get to her feet.She had grown accustomed to sitting in a wheelchair, but she felt a pang of sorrow after hearing Lily’s suggestion.Lily asked, “What if I can help you stand again? What if you can walk a
"Yes, I returned not just for him but also for you," Lily said, "I'm sure you were anxious for my return, weren't you?"Yasmin scoffed dismissively. "Why would I be? I have my bargaining chip. Besides, did you honestly think I couldn’t bring you back?""Bargaining chip? Do you mean Nick?" Lily shook her head with a smile. "Don't forget that he's not my son. Do you think he'll be much of a bargaining chip to you if I choose to ignore him for my three children?"She did not wait for Yasmin to reply and continued, "Besides, Nick still has a father who’s willing to die for him. If Mike decides to take drastic action against you— Yes, you're a queen, and you don't care much about an insignificant businessman.“However, don't forget that his business spans worldwide. There's no guarantee what he might do. Who knows, he might spread information that can affect Your Majesty and Yudonia's reputation?""You…" The queen was exasperated but could not retort.Lily noticed it and casually said
Rick could only remain silent at that moment.Yasmin then turned her wheelchair around and blandly said, “Bring Lily over. I’d like to see what excuses that sly woman can come up with.”"Your Majesty?" Rick was puzzled. "You know she'll just lie to you. Why must you—"Yasmin interjected, "I'd like to hear what she has to say."Rick had no choice but to leave and do as she said.As Lily was about to doze off, she heard noises from outside and opened her eyes. Immediately after, the door opened, and Rick appeared. He glared at her and spoke coldly, “Her Majesty wants to see you.”Lily glanced at Rick calmly and stood up as if she had expected his appearance. On the other hand, Mike rose before her and headed out.However, Rick stopped him as he reached the door. “You stay.”"But we came together!" Mike glanced over his shoulder at Lily, signaling her to persuade the man. Rick added, "The queen doesn’t wish to see you. Just stay here!"Lily patted Mike's shoulder and said gentl
Everyone was shocked when Lily returned to the embassy with Mike. One of the staff members quickly left to report the news to Queen Yasmin.Meanwhile, Lily saw people peering at her and Mike from the corner. Afterward, several guarded-looking men appeared. Lilt recognized them as the queen’s attendants. They brought Mike and Lily inside and then gave the duo a thorough search.The men only relaxed after finding nothing suspicious about the duo. Even so, Lily could not see the queen as the men told her to wait in an innermost room instead.After returning to the embassy, Lily felt a sense of strange familiarity. Although she knew the place well, her mindset had changed.She previously hated the embassy and simply wanted to escape. However, she had returned with a critical mission. Not only did she have to complete it, but she also needed to leave the place in one piece.While she was calm, Mike was somewhat anxious. He clasped his hands on his knees and glanced around as he sat dow
"I promise I'll do anything you want, okay?" Mike begged. He was desperate to see his son, so he decided to follow Lily when she insisted on returning to the embassy.Mike continued, “If any of you go with her, they might stop or suspect you. They won’t do that to me. It’s natural for me to want to see and rescue my son. I’m the best candidate because it makes sense for me to sacrifice myself for him.”After a short silence, Lily said, “You’re right.” She then looked at Alexander, who pondered before slowly raising his head and saying, “Me too.”Dominic tapped the table. "So do I."Cameron thought for a moment before saying, "I've no objections."Seeing this, Austin spread his arms and said, "Since you all agree, what else can I say? Let's do it!"It did not matter whether or not he agreed, but he just wanted to support Mike. The latter nodded and became emotional, saying, “Thanks, you guys!”"Why are you thanking us? Just be careful, and don’t be rash like you promised," Aust