Marianne held back the tears in her pair of big eyes, and she looked at Charlie angrily. It seemed as if she wanted to say something, but she said nothing in the end. Shawn hurriedly reminded her in a low voice, “Marianne! Mr. Wade is talking to you! Why are you standing there in a daze? Hurry up and answer him!”Marianne stubbornly turned her face to one side and then reached out her hand to wipe the tears from the corners of her eyes. Charlie felt guilty, but he did not know how to explain himself. So, he said to Shawn, “Mr. Long, you don’t have to force it since Miss Marianne does not want to talk to me.”Shawn laughed embarrassedly and said, “My daughter doesn’t know any etiquette. Sorry, Mr. Wade...”Charlie shook his head slightly and then turned to look at Kathleen as he said, “Miss Fox, thank you for going through the trouble of coming all the way here from afar with Master Yant. I will treat you to dinner if you’re not in a hurry to go back.”Kathleen smiled and said,
“Cough, cough... Miss, did you say that you’re loving one thing on account of another?”Jarvis looked at Kathleen in surprise as he did not expect Kathleen to say this so lightly. When Kathleen saw Jarvis’s astonished expression, she smiled and said, “Master Yant, you are also a vigilant martial arts expert. Didn’t you hear what I said when I already said it so clearly?”Jarvis hurriedly said, “No, no, it’s just that I did not expect you to say these words, miss. I was just a little surprised...”Kathleen smiled and said seriously, “Master Yant, you don’t need to be so surprised. I’m not the only one who likes Mr. Wade. Did you notice how Miss Long was looking at Mr. Wade with a sorrowful expression in her eyes? The amount of sorrow that a woman has in her eyes when she looks at a man is an expression of how much she loves him.”Jarvis nodded and smiled as he said, “You’re right...”Kathleen could not help but sigh as she said, “Oh, Mr. Wade has only been in Hong Kong for just t
Janus sighed and said, “My mother is already old, and she is in her eighties. I’m afraid that the situation would not be very optimistic now that she has suffered a stroke at this age.”Charlie smiled faintly and said, “Don’t worry, there will not be a problem.”Janus nodded slightly, but he also had a very worried expression.Porter drove quickly and arrived at Church Hospital very soon.Janus hurriedly pushed the car door to get out of the car without waiting for the car to stop. After that, he darted all the way to the lobby. He approached the nurse’s desk to inquire about the relevant information about his mother, and the nurse on duty quickly found the old lady’s department and ward number. Janus quickly followed the instructions and ran quickly to the ward where his mother was.When he came to the door, he stopped and knocked gently on the door.A woman’s voice soon sounded from inside, “Please come in.”Janus then pushed the door of the ward open. He saw that there wa
At this time, the old lady had already lost all ability to perceive, and her breath was also very weak.Janus and his mother had not seen each other for twenty years, and they were finally reunited now. However, Janus did not expect that his mother would already be dying and that it was difficult for her to even glance at him.Janus thought of the past twenty years and how he had failed to perform his filial duties in front of his parents. Janus broke down completely as he held his mother’s hand and cried like a child.His younger siblings were also overcome by his emotions, and they too began crying in front of their mother’s bed. When Charlie saw this, he deliberately took out a Healing Pill before he stepped forward and handed it to Janus as he said, “Uncle Janus, this pill should be able to cure your mother. You can give it to her now.”Janus looked at the pill, and he immediately thought of something. So, he subconsciously fumbled in his pocket and took out a small wooden bo
The old lady looked at Charlie and was very surprised when she saw that Charlie was so young, but she still said respectfully, “Young Master Wade, I would like to thank you for your great kindness on behalf of our whole family!”Charlie hurriedly said, “You’re welcome, Granny. Uncle Janus was my father’s best friend before he died. These are the things that I should be doing.”Having said that, Charlie then asked with concern, “How are you feeling now? Are you feeling any obvious discomforts?” The old lady was stunned for a moment and said in surprise, “Oh... after hearing you say so, I really don’t seem to be feeling any discomfort anywhere at all...”After that, the old lady tried to sit up on her own, and she felt that her body was very light. Previously, it was as if she had lost half of her life due to a stroke, but she could not feel any signs of a stroke at all now. She was also in a surprisingly good state in general. Several of her children were also shocked and speechl
Meanwhile, the Long family had also returned to their mansion in Steerlain Island by car.On the way back, Shawn and Jenna sat in one car while Marianne drove her own Tesla.When Shawn had seen that his daughter was in a trance and seemed lost, he had wanted her to go back with him in one car, but Marianne had refused. Marianne was upset and wanted to be alone, but to her surprise, all she could think of was Charlie on the way back. She subconsciously thought of the bits and pieces of her memories with Charlie ever since they had met. The more she thought about it, the more she felt that Charlie was already embedded in her heart.However, when she thought of how Charlie had been deceiving her from the beginning to the end, she could not help but have even more complaints against Charlie. Fortunately, although she was upset, she did not encounter any unexpected incidents on the way back, and she drove her car home safely. After she had parked the car, Shawn looked as if he ha
In the past, he had always had a superior attitude when facing every woman. He always felt that these women were the objects of his favor and that it was their extreme luck for them to be able to get his attention. It was also because of such an overbearing mentality that he could indulge in women for so many years. Although Jenna was still his favorite amongst all women, he still looked down on Jenna.Jenna had followed Janus to the United States back then. To Shawn, this felt like his favorite toy had been stolen from him. After Jenna had come back, he had simply wanted to keep this lost and found toy by his side forever. However, if one were to ask if he truly loved Jenna, his answer would be no. Even though he really did like Jenna very much back then, after Jenna had run away once, he had always kept himself under control, and he had not invested too much in this woman.He had been doing it very well over the years.Although Jenna was now the respectable Mrs. Long, she
When Marianne heard this, her expression immediately became a little abnormal as she stammered and said, “Why should I find out more information about him?”Shawn looked at Marianne and smiled as he said, “Marianne, you have to remember something. If you want a relationship between a man and a woman to develop well, you should not have the mentality of being vindictive and angry. If he cares for you, you have to respond better to him, and if he ignores you, you’ll have to bite the bullet and take the initiative to look for him. You cannot be angry and ignore him just because you’re feeling a little emotional!”Having said that, Shawn then said again, “If he does not look for you and if you don’t look for him, or if you put on such a gesture if he comes looking for you, even if you are fated or were given the opportunity, it would all be in vain, then!”Marianne instantly felt as if Shawn’s words were like knives stabbing her heart, but she was a strong woman, and she continued quibb
Horrified, Jacob promptly grasped the steering wheel and brought the Cullinan back under control while not hesitating to snap, "Are you crazy?! We're on the highway—that could have killed the both of us!"However, Elaine ignored him and seized the moment to open the armrest box, pulling out the large white envelope.As she opened it, she muttered, "So, it really was a wedding invitation… You really are a terrible friend, Jacob Wilson, hiding a wedding invitation like this! What's the point? Just look at that nervous face of yours—would I suspect you of having an affair with the bride-to-be?"She flipped open the card and was experienced enough to check the names first while disregarding the usual preamble. She wouldn't care about the venue or the time either, focusing solely on the professor who had somehow made Jacob very nervous.That was how Elaine found the names in less than a second: Yolden Hart and Matilda Hall.Matilda?!The name could well be knives stabbing Elaine in th
Jacob's brain blanked out, leaving only a dull hum as soon as Walker mentioned 'Professor Hall'.Already feeling nervous in the first place, he quickly said, "Okay, okay—I got it. Anyway, I'm hanging up if there's nothing else!"With that, he promptly pressed the button to hang up.Nonetheless, Elaine was soon asking in curiosity, "Who's Professor Hall?"If Jacob had any semblance of composure, he would have said 'a colleague at Senior University' as if it was perfectly natural, and the matter would have been forgotten.But the reality was that he didn't—in fact, he was the champion when it came to dropping the ball as a casual question from Elaine left him sweating all over his brow.Even as he slid nervous glances at her face, he stammered uncontrollably, "N-Nobody…"Elaine promptly noticed his strange reaction and frowned. "I'm talking about Professor Hall. What do you mean, nobody? Who are they? And what's this about an invitation? Inviting you for what?"Seeing that he was
Jacob had really had too much to drink and couldn't remember the later parts of what had happened last night—even how he had gotten home was a blur.Naturally, he also forgot that Walker had brought Matilda's wedding invitation, and therefore didn't hesitate to answer the in-car answer button.Over the phone, Walker was positively fawning as he asked, "Mr. Wilson? It's Walker. Why didn't you come in today? Had too much to drink last night?""Uh-huh," Jacob grunted, lethargic. "I did—my head still hurts now… Anyway, what's up? Trouble at the association?""No, of course not," Walker quickly said. "I was just worried you're still hungover, so I called to ask. If you need a driver or anything, you just need to ask!"Then, before Jacob could answer, he continued, "By the way, my wife is somewhat knowledgable in Oskian medicine, and she has recipes for brews that cure hangovers and nourish the liver. I'm sure you'll need the latter since you're always drinking at social events, so I as
Fortunately, Elaine and Jacob's bickering never escalated.Even though Elaine was winning, Jacob found it tolerable.After Jacob finished his lunch and cleaned up, he never looked up as he said, "Charlie sent a text, saying Claire's flight would touch down earlier at three. We will leave at two."Elaine grumbled. "Why leave so early? She's coming back from abroad, and there'd be checkpoints she has to clear—she'd be lucky if she could leave by half past three. I'm sleeping a few winks now, and we'll leave at half past two."As she left the dining room, she didn't even look back as she said, "Clean up for me too."Jacob had a million complaints but said nothing as he kept his head down, throwing Elaine's lunchbox in the trash can as well.With Elaine gone, he sat on the couch as her hangover slowly cleared while his mood soured with the lack of alcohol.In the end, the pleasure of being fawned over at the Diamond Room was but temporary—the pain of his beloved leaving with someone
Vera kept her plan to investigate the identity of the abbess deep in her mind and told Charlie nothing.Instead, she smiled as she said, "It seems that it's both yours and Ms. Ito's good fortune that she has attained enlightenment. You've never had anyone who could attain enlightenment and master Reiki at the same time, so Ms. Ito will definitely be a great help to you in the future."Charlie chuckled and said calmly, "I'm not hoping for her to help. I'm simply happy for her with her enlightenment and excited to have another comrade in my solo ventures into the dark forests."Vera nodded in understanding, and she murmured emotionally, "I've lived for so long, and it's only when I opened my heart to you that I felt that sensation you described."There was a flicker of wistfulness in her eyes.She really did not expect to attain enlightenment before meeting Charlie.Years ago, she thought that she would eventually avenge her father.Now, she no longer hoped to murder Fleur Griffi
Vera was inwardly disappointed to hear that Claire was returning.That meant there were fewer chances of Charlie visiting the Scarlet Pinnacle Manor, as were her chances of seeing him again.Still, she didn't let it show, instead asking casually, "How are things at Champs Elys? Are the warriors improving at a rate to your satisfaction?""Well, most of everyone's improvement is within expectations…" Charlie explained, just as he remembered a certain someone. "By the way, there's something I haven't told you yet. Are you perhaps acquainted with the name Ito Nanako?""Yes," Vera smiled. "The Japanese lady who was with you. What about her?""She attained enlightenment days ago.""Enlightenment?" Vera did a double take and soon pressed, "Enlightenment in what sense? Essential Qi or Reiki?"After all, the former was the path to enlightenment in martial arts, while the latter meant enlightenment in cultivation.But despite the distinction between both domains, enlightenment was a comm
While Charlie had long since gotten used to Elaine and Jacob's bizarre marriage, being near the heart of the storm still took a toll on his senses—to the point that he felt physically sick.Leaving right away was therefore his best solution.Once he left, however, he realized he didn't have anywhere to go. Champs Elys was quite far, and it would take a lot of time.As he started to feel bored stiff, he remembered Vera for some reason and called her.Once Vera answered, she quickly asked in curiosity, "To what do I owe the pleasure? Lunch, perhaps?"Charlie chuckled. "Since you've put it that way… I haven't eaten either, so lunch it is!"Vera giggled. "Come over to my place, then. It's cold outside, and I was just lighting up a hot pot. I'll have Madam Marilyn prepare an additional portion.""Okay!" Charlie agreed to it without hesitation. "I can return her car too. Just wait, I'll be right there!"Once he hung up, he got on the Rolls Roycs he had borrowed from Scarlet Pinnacl
Charlie shook his head. "It's alright, Dad. You can go ahead if you're busy—I can pick up Claire on my own.""No way!" Elaine promptly snapped. "It's been so long since she came back. We are all going to the airport!"Jacob sighed in exasperation. "Well, I'm sticking to my schedule—first the Calligraphy and Painting Association, then I'll be back an hour before to pick you guys up before going together to the airport."Elaine was left fuming. "Is there no getting through to you? You really have to go to that stupid association, don't you? Okay, fine. If you must go, I will be going with you!""You're their honored vice president who will be promoted to president soon, no? As Mrs. Vice President and the future Mrs. President, is there an issue if I went for a look?"Jacob shuddered at the thought of Elaine going to the Calligraphy and Painting Association as he absolutely didn't want her to humiliate him with her antics. People would talk, asking how a proper gentleman like him c
Jacob yawned, stretching his arms and smacking his cheeks, before finally retorting in contempt, "For Pete's sake, woman—don't make dissing me a habit. Or does it please you so much?"Elaine pursed her lips. "You call that dissing? It's all facts—do you think I don't know you? Tell me, what qualifications do you have? Your knowledge about calligraphy is skin-deep, and even the frauds working on Antique Street could beat you.""Only you would have the audacity to take the role of vice president at the Calligraphy and Painting Association—heaven's above, how blind is the president to appoint you as his second fiddle? Still, you'll be packing your things as soon as he realizes the truth.""Oh, Elaine, poor Elaine…" Jacob grinned smugly at her right then. "I'm afraid things won't go the way you want. Mr. Bay's been chasing a promotion lately, and once he gets it, I will take his place as president. That means I'll be the top dog instead of second fiddle!""Bullshit!" Elaine snapped in