When Claire heard that her father wanted her to accompany him to meet up with his first love, Claire refused directly without any hesitation at all. “I am not going!”Jacob spread out his hands before he said, “Then, don’t stop Charlie from going with me. No matter what it is, one of you has to come with me today.”“You…” Claire was furious and she asked, “Is it more important for you to have a meal with your old classmate or is it more important for us to find mom? Dad, can’t you differentiate which is more important to you right now?”Jacob blurted out, “Of course, I can differentiate it very clearly! Of course, it is much more important for me to have a meal with my old classmate!”“You…”Although Claire usually had a very good temper, she was about to blow up and explode in anger at this time.Jacob replied indifferently, “Claire, you have to understand one thing. This world does not revolve around your mother alone. There are four people in this family. Your mother and I hav
Elaine knew clearly that this was a threat. As long as she started eating, and as long as she reached out her hand to touch the lunch box, she would probably have to suffer a beating.Therefore, Elaine cried as she continued pleading, “Sister Jennifer, you have already beaten and scolded me as much as you wanted to yesterday. Can you please be merciful and let me off today?”Jennifer raised her brows before she said, “Even if I let you off, who can bring my dead mother back to life then? Do you know how miserable my mother was when she drank a bottle of pesticide and laid in the hospital bed as she tried desperately to catch her breath as she suffocated to death?”Elaine burst into tears as she said, “Sister Jennifer…I know that you are a filial daughter but I have not harmed your mother in any way…”Jennifer replied angrily, “You are still trying to talk nonsense with me? Let me tell you something. My mother was killed because of her unfilial daughter-in-law! That is the reason wh
At a little after eight o’clock in the morning, Charlie drove the old man out of the villa.There was still more than two hours before the plane landed but Jacob could not wait any longer.After leaving the villa at Thompson First, Jacob hurriedly asked Charlie, “My dear son-in-law, do you know where I can buy a bouquet of flowers? I want to buy a bouquet of roses to give to Matilda.”Charlie replied, “Dad, your classmate will be bringing her son along with her today. Do you really think that it will be appropriate for you to give her roses in front of her son?”Jacob thought to himself for a few moment before he nodded and said, “You are right. I should just give her an ordinary bouquet of flowers then.”Charlie replied, “I know of a flower shop nearby. We can go there and buy a bouquet of flowers first.”As soon as they arrived at the flower shop, Charlie spent five hundred dollars to ask the florist to help him to prepare a bouquet of flowers that symbolizes friendship. After
Matilda’s appearance was even more impeccable. She was really very beautiful and she looked very elegant and classy. She had the smart and intelligent look that could only be seen in previous generations of intellectuals.There was a very famous television celebrity in this age group and she was an actress named Catherine Zeta-Jones. She could easily be considered as one of the most charming and beautiful woman amongst all the other women in her age group. However, Matilda was even more beautiful compared to Catherine Zeta-Jones!Catherine Zeta-Jones was in her early fifties and she was still extremely charming and beautiful. Matilda was three years younger than her but she looked like she was six or seven years younger than her!How could this possibly be an aunt who was nearly fifty years old?She was simply an older sister who looked like she was in her thirties or early forties!Charlie was stunned. He really did not expect Jacob’s first love to be such an impeccable and super
Paul’s Oskian language was indeed very good. If anyone closed their eyes and listened to them speak, no one would be able to tell that he was actually an American. Charlie was also very surprised and he shook Paul’s head before he said in admiration, “Mr. Paul, your Oskian language is indeed really very impressive.”Paul smiled humbly before he said, “Mr. Wade, you are thinking too highly of me!”Jacob hurriedly said, “By the way, Matilda, I have already booked a room at Shangri-La hotel for lunch today. Why don’t we head over there to have a welcome meal for you and Paul now?”Matilda smiled before she said, “Thank you, Jacob. I really appreciate the fact that you came all the way here with Charlie to pick us up and treat us to lunch today…”“It is only right for me to do so!” Jacob smiled awkwardly before he said, “Well, we happened to drive here today so we can go together in one car!”“Okay.” Matilda nodded before she said to Paul, “Son, tell your driver that we will not be ta
The foreign driver nodded hurriedly before he said, “Okay, chairman. I will go right now!”After that, he opened the trunk of the Rolls-Royce Phantom before he took all the suitcases from Paul’s hand and placed them in the trunk.After he was done, he asked Matilda, “Chairman, aren’t you and the general manager going to the Shangri-La hotel in this car?”Matilda nodded before he said, “I will be going there in my old classmate’s car. You can leave first.”Jacob looked at the new and luxurious Rolls-Royce Phantom in front of him and he could not help but feel particularly uneasy at this time.He could clearly tell the value of this car.An ordinary car like this would have cost at least eight or nine million dollars. Furthermore, this car was equipped with a golden man logo which was made out of pure gold. This would cost them an extra two hundred thousand dollars!Jacob could not help but feel a little more inferior at this time.Therefore, he hurriedly said, “Oh, Matilda, perh
After the driver drove the Rolls-Royce Phantom away, Charlie drove Jacob’s BMW 5 Series over to the entrance of the airport.As soon as the car stopped directly in front of the three of them, the old man hurriedly opened the rear car door before he said in a gentlemanly manner, “Matilda, after you!”Matilda nodded slightly before she smiled and bent her body to get into the car.Immediately afterward, Paul walked over to the other side of the car as he prepared to get into the back seat with his mother. At this time, Jacob hurriedly said, “Oh, Paul! Since you and Charlie are both young people, you should have a lot of topics in common. You should have a good chat with him along the way to the hotel!”After that, Jacob quickly got into the back seat before Paul could even reply to his request.Paul had no choice but to get into the co-driver seat.Charlie drove toward the city and Jacob, who was sitting in the back seat with Matilda, could not help but feel a little embarrassed as
At that time, a young American boy was madly pursuing her. Out of anger and because she simply wanted to forget her past as soon as possible, she decided to accept the other party’s pursuit.Both of them got married quickly, started a family, and had children together very soon.That American boy was very kind to her and he cared for her throughout all his life. However, Matilda had always been unable to forget her ex-boyfriend even after more than twenty years had already passed by.When she looked back on their history, she realized that she had been too arrogant in the past and that was the reason why she was fooled by others. She realized that her roommate did not come to her just because she wanted to confess her mistake and ask for her forgiveness. In fact, although her roommate told her that she hoped that she would not mind this matter at all, she was secretly hoping that Matilda would mind it and take the initiative to back out of her relationship so that she would willin
Falling apart in both mind and spirit, Jacob was crying as he disembarked and took a cab to the hotel.Elaine, who had been lying around for 24 hours, was stunned speechless as she watched him enter, crying like a child.In contrast, Elaine looked like a mother to Jacob just then as he threw himself into her arms and bawled, "Darling… That prick Mr. Bay screwed me over… I have nothing left now…"Taken aback for a moment that Jacob would bawl in her arms like that, Elaine soon came to her senses and patted his back as she comforted him, "Oh, stop crying already. Who cares about some Calligraphy and Painting groupies? We certainly don't! Just hear me out and don't ever go there again!"Jacob kept sobbing, "But I care… I want to go…"Annoyed, Elaine's hand that had been patting Jacob a moment ago slid down to his hip and pinched him viciously before he noticed."Ow!" Jacob yelped in pain, and he demanded indignantly, "What was that for?!""Shut up!" Elaine snapped, glowering. "I wa
Jacob couldn't even be bothered by the looks others were giving him, and he called Mr. Bay immediately.Mr. Bay had already gone home and was seated on the couch with his wife, watching his phone and waiting for Jacob to call and demand an explanation.Mr. Bay knew that he had to answer for this and that if he avoided Jacob, it may well be a confession that he had screwed Jacob over.So, to avoid unnecessary trouble, he decided to come clean with Jacob.Naturally, by coming clean, he meant passing the buck as his wife had suggested.Hence, as he answered Jacob's call, he immediately sighed in embarrassment, "Hey, Jacob. I'm so sorry about that…"However, Jacob was so furious he immediately started bellowing, "Mr. Bay! Are you fucking with me here?! You said that the resignation letter was more of a formality, but you just made it public instead! So, all those things you said about helping me were just a trap, was it?! You're despicable! And to think I've been so good to you, even
The repeated flights had left Jacob tormented.Even before he actually had the time to enjoy Dubai, he had already gotten sick of the place and didn't want to ever return.And on the flight, he couldn't stop his thoughts from going astray.Now that he was not getting back the money he had lost, his only hope was Mr. Bay.Fortunately, Mr. Bay was serious about his promise that he would at least save him a job as department head. That was why, despite his thoughts running astray, he never considered the thought that he would be kicked out of the Calligraphy and Painting Association.As soon as his flight landed, he didn't wait to turn off his phone's flight mode, waiting for the internet connection to return so that he could ask Mr. Bay about the meeting.Once he did, he received a ton of messages from public accounts to acquaintances—many had already found out that he had resigned from the post of administrative vice-president and wanted to ask how he was doing.And Matilda was
The Calligraphy and Painting Association was certainly efficient—soon after the meeting was dismissed, the news that the administrative vice-president had resigned was posted on their official page and social media.The notice was simple and never mentioned what Jacob had done, only that the administrative vice-president had asked to resign for personal reasons. The request had since been voted upon, and all members had agreed to it.And that was how a simple and short message kicked Jacob out of the Calligraphy and Painting Association entirely.In the city, other associations closely connected with the Calligraphy and Painting Association were the various cultural societies and circles of antique enthusiasts and the Senior University. In fact, most fans of the public page of the Calligraphy and Painting Association were from the Senior City, and every lecturer, student, and even guest lecturer were subscribed.As a matter of fact, that was entirely Jacob's doing. After his lect
There weren't that many members in the Calligraphy and Painting Association—just a handful over twenty.Hence, at Mr. Bay's request, everyone showed up at the conference at 1 pm.He chose the afternoon as there were a handful who were away on outreach, including Walker, who was subbing for Jacob's lectures.Once the entire Calligraphy and Painting Association save for Jacob was informed of the mandatory meeting, every member was there on the hour, seated primly and in attention in the huge conference room.Mr. Bay didn't waste his breath on the preamble either—as soon as he saw that everyone had arrived, he announced, "Everyone, I've gathered you here today because our administrative vice-president, Jacob Wilson, has been alleged to be involved in a certain malicious scheme."Last night, Mr. Wilson submitted his resignation to me, and after a discussion with my vice-presidents, we've all decided to hold a vote. It will be open to every member in the association as we will be decid
Having sent his resignation letter, Jacob had no idea that it would be the catalyst for his dismissal.He didn't sleep well at the rundown motel either and had dark circles under his eyes as he rushed to the airport early the next morning.Clearing the checkpoint and boarding his flight, everything went smoothly until his flight to Dubai lifted off at 10 am.-Meanwhile, the other vice-presidents of the Calligraphy and Painting Association had arrived at Mr. Bay's office.They all had the same goal—pressure Mr. Bay and get Jacob kicked out of the association no matter what it took.Naturally, they knew that Mr. Bay most definitely would have to help Jacob since Jacob was close with Don Albert. If Mr. Bay insisted on protecting Jacob, they shouldn't insist, or Jacob would hear about it, and the man would bear a grudge.Even so, as the vice-presidents entered Mr. Bay's office and closed the door behind them, one of them couldn't help asking, "So, Mr. Bay—how do you intend to deal
Hence, Mr. Bay sent a reply in under five minutes after Jacob sent his resignation letter.As Jacob tapped on it, he immediately saw Mr. Bay's reply: Mr. Wilson's resignation is a huge loss to the association. However, we should also respect his individual situation and opinion. As such, to discuss our direction forward, all vice-presidents are required to attend a meeting at 10am tomorrow to discuss this matter.Jacob was still perplexed as to why Mr. Bay would reply to his mail and even summon the other vice-presidents for a meeting, and when he had a closer look, he saw that Mr. Bay had forwarded his mail to everyone else.Seeing that, Jacob thought to himself that Mr. Bay could just stick to a discussion involving just Mr. Bay and the vice-presidents instead of the entire association.As such, he sent a voice message on WhatsApp: "Mr. Bay, did you make a mistake and forward my mail to everyone else?"Mr. Bay soon replied, "Everyone already knows about your situation, so there'
Mr. Bay was left pursing his lips awkwardly. "T-That's way too despicable, don't you think? I'm the one who asked him to write a resignation and give up his place as vice-president while I handle the other vice-presidents and resolve the entire matter internally. Everyone can take a step back from escalation, and it's a solution that could please everyone."If I take that resignation at face value, won't it be like a bank goading a client into taking a scam loan? Won't he hate me to the bone if he finds out I screwed him over?""What are you worried about?" Mrs. Bay shot back in annoyance. "Are you that scared of Jacob Wilson turning against you? Hell, my own sister hates me to the bone—but what did you think I told her? That I'm never lending her the money no matter how much she hates me!"What do you think would have happened if I were worried about her feelings and loaned her the money she asked for? She wouldn't have to use a single cent to get herself a new house! She would say
"Don Albert… is giving up on Jacob Wilson?!"Mr. Bay exclaimed in shock. "B-But he was so respectful toward Jacob just the other day when we had dinner at the Heaven Springs… He gave us the best private room and even offered his best wine, filling our glasses personally…"Mrs. Bay waved him off. "You've been stuck with the retirees of the Calligraphy and Painting Association for so long that you've lost your nose for danger! Just think about it—married couples who were just sharing a bed one night could pull a knife on their partner the very next day. And these are men with priorities we're talking about."Also, you should take into account that Zachary Evans is Don Albert's right-hand man, and Jacob somehow dragged him into a fraud scheme. So, do you think Don Albert would be happy with that?"And according to Zachary's public statement, all the money they got went straight into Jacob's pocket—and what does that mean? It means Zachary is an accessory to a crime—at worst, an accomp