She did not argue with him. It was a wise choice to rest there as it was already late at night. However, she dared not shut her eyes. She feared those terrible sounds and scenes in the dream would reappear if she closed her eyes. She held Alexander’s hand to prevent him from leaving, “Chat with me for a while.”“What do you want to talk about?” He sat down at the bedside and looked at her tenderly.“Anything is fine! Why don’t you tell me more about yourself?” Lily requested after some thought. She had known him for a long time but never asked him anything about himself. She only knew that the Russell family was big, but she had never met them since they got together.“About me?” He laughed. “There’s nothing special!”‘Oh my, he was too modest to claim there was anything special even though Alexander's life could be the subject of a biography. If his life was unremarkable, what about the lives of other regular people? A simple life?’“Then, tell me about your family.” Lily adjuste
If he remembered correctly, her parents died in an airplane crash when she was young. She should not remember much about it as she was still a kid at that time and was not on the plane. Could it be because she missed them too much?When they returned to the Lodge family, she did not show an intense yearning for her parents. Why did she suddenly faint today? Could the scene where Olivia’s mother was hurt be the trigger?It looked like she had a fragile heart!…“S-Something happened,” He gasped loudly and hid in a messy room to make a phone call. The room was filthy, the lights were not turned on, and slivers of moonlight shone coldly on the floor.“What are you panicking about? Didn’t you say that you’ll deal with it?!” The receiver used a voice modulator. Although his voice sounded very hoarse and strange, his impatience was obvious.“I did not expect it to be such a big fire. Moreover, there were so many people in that old building.” His hands and feet could not stop shaking ev
Olivia took leave due to her injury and dealing with her mother’s funeral.The fire caused a stir across Sapphine City. The buildings still had some residents in them even though it was old and dilapidated. There were seven dead, nine were severely injured, and 23 people with light injuries because of the fire. It was a serious matter and attracted the local government’s attention.In addition to sending condolences to those impacted, they also strictly investigated the cause of the fire. However, the alleys in the area were narrow and did not have any surveillance cameras. Moreover, it was late at night, and many residents were asleep. Therefore, no one knew how the fire started. It was already a big fire by the time anyone noticed.The tentative speculation was due to the old wiring that caused public outrage. The public believed that this was the dereliction of the government. The government failed to enforce regular maintenance and renovations on these old buildings.It resulte
“There are reporters who took your photo at The People's Hospital that day, Mr. Russell.” His assistant said hurriedly.“Yeah, I went there that day. It’s okay even if someone took my photo.” He was stunned at the news but did not seem to care much. After all, there were paparazzi everywhere. The reporters would be at locations wherever there was news, after all. However, Alexander believed it was a coincidence as they were likely there to report on the fire and not him.“But…”Alexander frowned when his assistant hesitated in his words, “If you have something to say, say it. There is no need to stutter.”“The reporter photographed you with a woman. In addition, both of you seemed intimate.” The assistant was still hesitant about his words but managed to explain it all in one sentence. His boss had never had any scandals before. Therefore, he was surprised when he received such news.The assistant continued, “The editor-in-chief of several magazines and other social media didn’t r
Although the fire had attracted a lot of attention, not everybody's focus was on it.Brandon regretted it very much. Why did he have to be so greedy and insist on the durian layered cake and milk tea? Even if he managed to cough it all out now, it would be too late.Whether at the company or home, Brittany was constantly on his back, pushing him for an answer.At first, he wanted to hide for a day or two and did not want to tell her the truth, worried that his sister would be unable to take the pressure. However, when Brittany followed him into the men's washroom, he knew he would not be able to escape."T-This is the male washroom. I think you are in the wrong p-place," Brandon said with a smile as he pointed to the male toilet sign.Brittany snorted. "Wrong place? If you, Brandon, my brother, are in the right place, then I am in the right place too.""What are you saying? I'm your brother." He looked severe, like he was about to lecture Brittany, as he turned his head toward th
She followed him in, and Brandon slammed the door with a loud bang. Two seconds later, he opened the door again and roared at the stunned employees outside, "Don't you need to work? If you're so free, why not work overtime tonight?!"The employees were speechless.Nobody dared to look anymore. They lowered their heads and got to work, or at least pretended to work.Bang! The office door was slammed shut again. The people outside shrank their necks. The president was in a bad mood, so they had better not step on his foot.Brandon was indeed in a bad mood. His image was gone, getting dragged around like a dog. Furthermore, it was his sister, so he couldn't scold or hit her. He was extremely upset.Since things had gotten to that point, there was no point hiding anymore. Brandon told Brittany in plain words, "Yes, I went to meet with Alexander."He lit a cigarette and was straightforward in saying, "Though I did not see him, only his… fiancee."He had considered his words and dec
Frowning, Brandon said impatiently, “Brittany, are you crazy? I’m your brother. Your biological brother. What are you saying?”“Huh, you’re not my brother.” Brittany was angry. She continued to yell at him, “If you’re my brother, you won’t be saying all this. If you’re my brother, you’ll tell me who the b*tch is. Tell me, is she the seductress from the Mitchell family? Or another family?”She was starting to make random guesses, thinking of the girls from the big families who were around their age. On further thought, many of them were in business marriages. The Oakley family was not bad, although they were nothing compared to the Russell family. Compared to the others, Brittany decided that she was a good catch.She was pretty, had been on screen before, and had known Alexander for many years. Why didn’t he pick her? It could only be her!“Don’t guess blindly. I’m sure that you don’t know her. I don’t know her either.” Brandon didn’t want her thoughts to run wild. He continued,
After so many years of pining after him, he was about to marry somebody else. Brittany could not accept it at all. She felt like the sky had collapsed.She was miserable and drove alone as she cried. Unknowingly, she arrived at the gate of the Tanner family. Of course, she did not drive all the way to Ruby City. The Tanner family had two properties in Sapphine. “Arianna…”Brittany sat in the car and called Arianna. She looked at the gate while crying. When Arianna heard the crying from the phone, she was shocked. “Brittany, what happened? Don’t cry. Speak slowly.”“Arianna… Sniff… Are you home?” Only at this point did she think of asking Arianna if she was home. She had driven over without asking first.“Yes, yes. I’m home. Do you want to come over?”“Sniff sniff, I’m already at your gate. C-Come and o-open the gate, please?”Brittany cried so hard that her words were muffled. She sounded so upset.“Huh? Are you at my gate? Wait.” Arianna’s hurried footsteps could be heard bef
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