“Okay. I trust you too!” Joseph nodded. “Think about it carefully. Did she hold a grudge against you because you made a mistake when discussing the endorsement with her? For example, you refused to meet some of her requirements, or she was dissatisfied with the fee paid to her."Joseph pondered it, ‘Could it be that something went wrong during their discussion, and it wasn’t rectified in time because he thought it wasn’t a big deal? Could they be taking revenge on him because of that?’“No,” Damian recalled the meeting and shook his head. “It was a pleasant discussion. She said nothing about the endorsement fees and quickly agreed to be our model. During the shoot, everything went well too. She had never requested anything and cooperated well with our team.”Since things were going swimmingly, Damian didn't give it much thought, much less anticipate that it would deal him a fatal blow.“That’s weird.” Elizabeth, who was listening in on their conversation, straightened her back. “
Elizabeth was displeased by Joseph’s words, thinking he was protecting Eloise. “How is that impossible? You’re training Damian to be the successor of the company these days. She could be jealous and hold a grudge against Damian and is plotting something to destroy us! She and that model are both in the same line of work. Don’t you forget that!”The more Elizabeth explained, the more she was convinced by her own assumptions. Then she pulled Damian into her arms and began to wail again. “We’re so miserable! My son, you’re finally going to succeed, but I can’t believe someone tried to stop you by doing all these…”“That’s enough. Stop overthinking! Eloise is not that kind of person!” Joseph rebuked, then continued after taking a breath, “She’s concerned about the bigger picture. This isn’t just about the jealousy both of you feel but involves the entire Tanner Corporation. What good would she gain out of destroying the company? Do you think she’s that dumb?”Elizabeth was stunned by hi
However, something would eventually break this place's peacefulness and tranquility.“Aunt Stephanie.” Arianna greeted. She was standing by the door, her hand holding tight onto a folder. Stephanie nodded. “Ari, I know you’re here to visit your uncle, but he’s not able to meet guests right now.”“I don’t want to disturb Uncle Derrick either, but something happened in the company, and I must ask him for advice. Also…” Arianna lowered her head and smiled, tucking her hair behind her ear. “I’m not a guest!”“That’s…”While Stephanie was hesitating, a cough came from within the room, followed by phlegm spitting and Derrick’s voice. “Is… that Ari? Let her in.”Stephanie moved to the side, but she was now looking at Arianna, feeling conflicted. On the other hand, Arianna was happy when she got Derrick’s permission to enter his hospital ward. She did so with a smile on her face.The ward was clean, and there were fresh flowers in a vase on one of the shelves. A faint scent of flowers wa
It was evident that Arianna was flustered. “N-Nothing! I meant Benedict had not been around recently, so I’ll be your daughter for the time being. I’ll take his place. No! I’ll take good care of you!”Anyone could tell something amiss from her guilty and anxious expression, let alone someone like Derrick. He was just sick, not out of his mind, so he held her wrist firmly. “That doesn’t sound right! Are you guys hiding something from me? What is it? Steph?” He turned to look at his wife and called her name sternly.Stephanie bit her lower lip and just let her tears fall. She said nothing. Since he could not get an answer from his wife, he turned back to look at Arianna, who was right in front of him. “Ari, tell me! I’ve always doted on you and treated you as my daughter! Tell me what happened to Benny!”“Uncle Derrick, please don’t ask about that anymore. You should take care of your health first!”Derrick used another hand to hit the bed repeatedly. “Are you guys trying to piss m
Thud! He fell back onto the bed heavily.“Uncle Derrick!” Arianna exclaimed.Stephanie rushed forward, exclaiming frantically, “Derrick?! Derrick! Doctor! Call the doctor!”In a panic, she pressed the emergency buzzer by the bed, and soon, a doctor and a few nurses rushed in, kicking the rest out. Then they began with their emergency procedures.Stephanie stood outside the door and appeared to have aged rapidly. She looked lifeless while her tears fell like a broken pearl necklace.She was not in good health in the first place, and now she looked like she would collapse at any minute. Arianna did not leave and stood by her side, passing her a tissue. “Aunt Stephanie, don’t be too upset. I’m sure Uncle Derrick will be fine.”Stephanie refused to take the tissue from Arianna but suddenly raised her head, staring at the latter with resentment and anger. “Ari, why did you say something like that? Don’t you know that you can’t stir up your uncle’s emotions, especially right now?”“Au
Stephanie was furious and pointed toward the hospital ward. "Your uncle is still under emergency procedures, and we're unsure what will happen to him next, yet you're already rushing to seize control of the company? Ari, you’re not our daughter, but we've watched you grow up. Don’t you have the slightest bit of respect for your uncle? You can wait to do this later, can’t you?”“The company’s the one that can’t wait any longer, not me.” Sighing, Arianna put the papers back into the folder. “Aunt Stephanie, you don’t work for the company, so you might be unclear about the things going on there. Now that the company is in such a dire situation, I want to get through it as quickly as possible, but... I can’t make any decisions when I lack the authority to do so. I can wait, but I may not be the only one to disturb Uncle Derrick then. “Rather than having that happen, why don’t you let me handle this? You and Uncle Derrick watched me grow up, so how could I not look after you two? Don’t w
“How long do we need to put on this show?” Stephanie asked, unable to tolerate it anymore.She felt terrible about her promise to perform an act with Derrick. She was not a good liar in the first place, but she had to deal with those who came to visit Derrick with ulterior motives from time to time. She had to watch their fake concern and listen to all those exaggerated compliments when they were here.She had never gone through this, but while Derrick was "ill and in the hospital," she saw many things she had never seen before. Initially, they would test the waters with caution, which turned into indifference gradually. Now, even her own niece was coming to seize power.“Joseph came over yesterday, didn’t he?” Derrick asked lightly, looking out the window. At the time, he was sleeping, but he vaguely heard voices outside the door. Stephanie probably stopped them at his door.Stephanie nodded. “Yeah. I told him you’re resting after getting a shot, and you’d be asleep for a while, s
Her husband’s words opened the floodgate of her memories.When Benedict was young, he was smart and talented. A sensible boy, he was eager to learn and possessed unique ideas for doing business. Although his opinions might not always be correct, he had his way of thinking and understanding. At that time, the family led a peaceful life, and Derrick loved the child and had high hopes for him. Later, when Benedict was around thirteen or fourteen years old and had entered the rebellious phase, the Tanner Corporation expanded rapidly, and its operations got busy. With Derrick hardly at home and herself not in good health, Stephanie could not cope with the disciplining of their son. It was during that period that Eloise visited their house the most often. Eloise always told Stephanie to rest and offered to help her with everything at home, even small things concerning their relatives. Benedict became closer to Eloise than to Stephanie. It was around this period that Benedict was s