After all, Paul had grown up in a strict upbringing with high intellectual development, he was quite a broad-minded and unbiased gentleman. Thus, he was calm and collected when he heard Charlie describe his ‘job’, unlike others who usually looked at him differently afterward.As for Charlie, there was nothing for him to feel embarrassed or ashamed of. He was a live-in son-in-law for three years now, it was nothing new for people to learn that he was a moocher.At this moment, Paul said, “By the way, Charlie, since you know Mr. Cameron from Shangri-La, I wonder when is it convenient for you to introduce him to me? Well, I intend to actively expand my local resources and network in Aurous Hill since I’ll be shifting my company here. I will be very grateful if you can help me with this.”Charlie didn’t want Paul to know how close he was to Isaac Cameron. He almost guessed his connection with the Wade family just now, after all, it could be possible that he would discover more details a
Jacob glanced at Matilda in bewilderment. “Matilda, are you very proficient in law and the firm?”Paul chuckled and said, “Uncle, don’t underestimate my mother. In fact, she is also a Ph.D. graduate from Yale. She and my father met at the Master’s School at Yale and married afterward. Later, my father founded the law firm and my mother was always there to assist him. If not because of my mother, my father’s career would not take off and sail so smoothly.”Then, he sighed, “Too bad I’m still not capable of handling the firm myself yet, so I need my mother’s help to assist me.”Matilda chuckled, “Son, you have done a great job. I hope that you can grow up as soon as possible and take over the company as a whole, then I can finally enjoy my retirement.”She couldn’t help sighing, “Now that I’m back to Oskia and Aurous Hill, my biggest dream is not to start our family business here, but to enjoy the retirement life of an Oskian old lady peacefully.”Then, she secretly gazed at Jacob a
The lunch gathering at Shangri-La was delightful and fun. Jacob and Matilda were feeling equally happy. She was feeling under the weather after her husband’s death but it seemed that the sky had cleared now.Paul was very pleased to see his mother in such a good mood.As for Charlie, he felt sorry for his father-in-law.The reason was nothing more than Matilda being too perfect for him. He couldn’t imagine what would happen when such a glamorous, elegant, wealthy lady who was also single returned to Aurous Hill. She would attract a lot of attention, especially the pursuit of other wealthy old men, which would only accumulate troubles for Jacob.Matilda and Paul were rather exhausted after traveling for long hours back to Oskia. Hence, after lunch, Jacob and Charlie sent them to their room at Shangri-La.Again, Jacob was taken aback because Matilda and Paul checked into the extremely luxurious executive suites.The executive suite in Shangri-La was second only to the presidential
Jacob suddenly turned his head to Charlie and asked worriedly, “Charlie, do you think your mother-in-law will ever come home?”Charlie frowned rather awkwardly. “Dad, what do you want me to say? Should I say yes or no?”Jacob startled in bewilderment then said sheepishly, “Hey, stop beating around the bush. I know you are not satisfied with your mother-in-law too just like me, right?”Charlie turned to him in shock and exclaimed, “Dad, I never said that!”Jacob looked askance at him and said, “It’s just between us, you don’t have to hide with me. Claire is not here anyway, we can say whatever we want, am I right?”Charlie knew what his father-in-law was thinking.He was looking for a partner in crime.He didn’t want Elaine to come home, but Claire wanted her mother to be found as soon as possible. Hence, a psychological confrontation had formed between the father and daughter which made the current score at 1:1. Charlie was the neutral party, in this case, so Jacob desperately
Charlie had never thought that his father-in-law could be so villainous, but he could understand his feelings.After all, the lady was the first love that he hadn’t seen in more than 2 decades who was as perfect as ever. Putting himself in Jacob’s shoes, he wouldn’t want anything or anyone to mess this up.Moreover, Elaine was like a death-defying time bomb. Once initiated, her blast would be so devastating, it would be equivalent to the detonation of a nuclear bomb.Hence, there was nothing wrong with him being so cautious.However, he didn’t know that Elaine was currently in the detention center, suffering from inhuman torture. She would remain in the living hell as long as they didn’t get an okay from Charlie.When they arrived home, Claire had just returned home too. He frantically walked to her and asked, “Dear, have you gone to the police station? What did the police say? Did they have any news about mom?”Claire was pale and worried. “The police told me that they had issue
Although Claire knew that it was most probably Dad’s idea, she couldn’t help feeling disappointed.Charlie quickly asked, “Dear, where are you going later?”Claire answered, “I’m going to meet mom’s friends and also the beauty salons that they often visited for their facial and spa.”Jacob hurried and said, “Oh, Claire, I won’t go anywhere today. I’ve invited my friend over for dinner tonight. She wants to cook for us tonight, so I need to get the ingredients ready and clean up our house.”Claire asked skeptically, “Dad, didn’t you already have lunch with your friend just now? Why do you want to see her again tonight?”Jacob cleared his throat and explained, “Lunch is lunch, and we ate at a restaurant. They came all the way from the States, it’s our courtesy to invite them over to our place and have a home-cooked meal together. This is a decent way to entertain your friends!”Claire exclaimed in dismay, “Dad, even if you want to entertain your friend, can you please observe the s
Meanwhile, in Aurous Hill Detention Center.Elaine could only watch the inmates finish their lunch, and Jennifer finished both lunch sets, she felt as if someone stabbed her in the heart, the sight was so painful for her to bear. She had not taken a bite of food for more than 24 hours, was beaten violently, and was forced to sleep all night in the freezing and humid toilet. She was dizzy with hunger and on the verge of collapsing.Yet, she didn’t dare to express any dissatisfaction because it would trigger Jennifer to beat her again.Because of her small appetite, Lady Wilson was full with just half of the rice portion in the lunch box.She paced leisurely to Elaine with the leftover lunch box in her hand, waved it in front of her, and asked with a grin, “Hey, you haven’t eaten anything for a night and a day, are you hungry? It must be tough, right? Would you like to have two bites?”Elaine glanced at the old lady like she was a light of hope and asked cautiously, “Really? Mom,
Lady Wilson shouted, “Wendy, come here, let’s get this shrew to the toilet and wash away the food on her head with cold water! She may take advantage of us not looking and eat it behind us! I don’t want that to happen!”Elaine cried in horror, “No! It’s almost winter now! You’re going to kill me if you wash my head with cold water!”Jennifer, who had been watching the scene, growled coldly, “Stop the d*mn bullsh*t! If I hear another word from you, I’ll shower you with cold water after the old lady washes your head with it!”Elaine wailed in extreme fright as Lady Wilson and Wendy dragged her into the toilet.Immediately afterward, Wendy pulled her head under the faucet and turned it without hesitation!The icy cold tap water splashed on Elaine’s head, making her brain freeze instantly followed by the excruciating pain from the cold that made her shiver all over.She looked at the grinning Lady Wilson, begging, “Mom, please, give me a towel, I beg you! I’ll freeze to death!”Lady
Jacob then realized that Charlie was also driving a Rolls-Royce, and it was a more expensive Phantom. Surprised, he asked, "Charlie, where did you get this car?" Marilyn had prepared the car for Charlie when he left Scarlet Pinnacle Manor. He had driven it to Thompson First, so he had decided to use it today. Charlie replied, "A client lent it to me. You sounded urgent, so I drove it over." Then, he added, "You're something else. You're crying like a baby yet you're still in the mood to ask about the car. What's going on? Your friend said you'd cried twice already?" "That bloody Simon!" Hearing this, Jacob became furious and cursed, "He still doesn't have the slightest clue! He's such a damned fool! The more I try to avoid him, the more he keeps blabbering on and on. Argh, he's so stupid!" Charlie asked, "What exactly is bothering you?" Jacob's face instantly turned dejected, and with a long sigh, he choked up and said, "Charlie— Matilda— She's getting married—" "Gettin
Things were a little different and unique in the United States, though. Westerners tended to approach marriage with greater caution. Many couples stayed together for years, had several children, and yet remained as boyfriend and girlfriend. Being together, having children, and raising them jointly didn't necessarily mean they would get married. In fact, it was not uncommon for some to walk down the aisle only after having multiple kids. Because of this environment, elderly couples in the West often limited their relationships to dating, and at most, cohabitation. Very few progressed to the stage of marriage. However, Yolden, like a young man in the throes of passionate love, had invited her on a trip, secretly prepared a proposal ceremony by the seaside, and gotten down on one knee with a ring to propose. These actions deeply moved Matilda and, at the same time, gave her an unprecedented sense of security. Now, Yolden had moved their wedding up a big step and set the date just on
Hearing Jacob's tone, Charlie could tell that Jacob must have already learned about Matilda's plans to marry Yolden. So, Charlie said, "I'm just around the corner. I'll head over now, and we can meet at the gate." Choking up, Jacob replied, "Alright, I won't drive then. I'll wait for you at the gate. Hurry!" "Okay," Charlie agreed, but after hanging up, he deliberately waited for a few minutes. It was because Yolden had just left moments ago to pick up Matilda at Senior University. If Charlie had gone there right now, all four of them could have run into each other at the gate, which would make things even more awkward. Charlie wasn't worried about feeling awkward himself—he was more concerned about Jacob being further hurt. After intentionally waiting a bit, Charlie finally drove to the university. Just as Charlie drove toward Senior University, Matilda was waiting for Yolden by the roadside at the entrance of Senior University. At this moment, Jacob stumbled out of th
Charlie asked, "There are too many new domestic energy brands now. Do you think they still have a shot in vehicle manufacturing?" "Of course," Yolden affirmed. "There are indeed many new energy brands now, and many of them are struggling on the edge of survival. A lot of them have already disappeared, but the automotive market is so vast, and new energy vehicles only account for a small portion of it, which proves that the future of new energy still has great potential. Now, if the focus is only on competing with other new energy brands, the scale is indeed a bit small. The scope should be broadened to compete with traditional gasoline vehicle manufacturers. If you can cut Toyota, Honda, and Hyundai's global sales in half, that would truly be a giant." Yolden paused for a moment, almost as if remembering something, and then said, "Actually, you could consider researching this field. You don't lack money or resources, and with Ito-Schulz Ocean Shipping Group as your logistics channe
When Jacob came to his senses, he was already in tears. The student presumed he was unwell and asked, "Mr. Wilson, do you want me to call your wife to pick you up?" Elaine's sarcastic face immediately popped up in his mind, and he trembled with fear. He quickly wiped away his tears and stammered, "D-don't bother... I... I just got something in my eyes..." The student obviously didn't believe him and asked worriedly, "Why don't you call your wife? Or I'll call a cab for you." "No, no." Jacob waved his hand and said, "I'll call my son-in-law to pick me up. He has just returned to Aurous Hill, so it shouldn't be a problem." After that, he quickly took out his phone and called Charlie. Just a few minutes ago, Charlie had left the cafe and was about to walk Yolden to his car. When he saw Yolden walking straight toward a domestic new energy vehicle, he asked curiously, "I don't think you were driving this model before, were you?" "I just bought it," Yolden replied with a smil
If Matilda still had feelings for Jacob, his nostalgic strategy would definitely have a strong impact. However, Matilda had already decided to move on, so Jacob's suggestion did not stir any emotions in her at all. With an apologetic smile, she said, "Sorry, Jacob, Yolden is downstairs waiting for me. We have something to discuss. How about another day? We can have dinner together, and I'll treat you." Jacob didn't expect the nostalgia strategy to fall flat. His original plan was to use nostalgia to get Matilda to go with him to eat near the school, then take the opportunity to revisit old places and subtly reignite their past memories. After all, revisiting old places was the best way to rekindle old feelings, no exceptions. It was like drinking the pasta water after cooking the pasta. However, he never imagined that Matilda's expression wouldn't change in the slightest. There was no shyness, no hesitation, no nervousness, and certainly no fluttering heart. She simply and
Matilda had been listening attentively before, but now, she was lowering her head, fiddling with her phone, and her expression even carried a hint of shyness and happiness, like that of a young girl. Jacob felt a pang of jealousy. While doing the presentation, he couldn't help but resentfully think to himself, "What has Matilda been chatting about with that Yolden guy? She's so happy..." At that moment, Matilda had just received a message from Yolden. In the message, Yolden informed her of the outcome of his conversation with Charlie and expressed his desire to have the wedding as soon as possible. Seeing how eager her beloved was to marry her, Matilda naturally felt very touched. At that moment, she had completely fallen into Yolden's love. For this man, who had a similar background, education, values, and even lifestyle to her own, she could find no fault with him. She felt that he was perfectly tailor-made for her by heaven itself, almost as if everything about him perfectly m
Charlie's worries were not unfounded. He had long known that Jacob had not completely given up on Matilda despite her relationship with Yolden. After returning from the cultural exchange in Korea, Jacob had been more dejected than ever before—something he hadn't even displayed when his family had gone bankrupt. If there was still a chance to salvage the relationship when one's beloved was merely dating someone else, their marriage was tantamount to a death sentence. Furthermore, considering the high intellectual backgrounds of Matilda and Yolden as well as their age and life experience, their decision to marry at this stage of life undoubtedly signaled their intention to build a long-term future together. This left Jacob with absolutely no chance at all. At this moment, Jacob was blissfully unaware of the devastating news and was busy conducting a calligraphy and painting workshop at Senior University. The so-called workshop was essentially a few slides showcasing classic
After that, Charlie asked with a bit of curiosity, "When did you and Matilda decide to get married?" Yolden smiled sheepishly and explained, "Remember when the city organized our cultural exchange trip to South Korea? I confessed to Matilda during that trip, and she accepted. After spending some time together, we both felt we were a great match. Considering our age, we didn't want to delay such an important decision any longer, so we decided to take the next step and build a family together." He continued, "Last month, we went to Lambonear for a few days. I bought a ring and proposed to her by the seaside, and she said yes. We also sought the opinion of our respective children—Autumn and Paul—and they were both very supportive. Both kids are exceptional and independent, so they urged us to have the wedding as soon as possible. I wanted to wait until you returned so I could check your schedule. For our wedding, we'd like to ask you to be our officiant." "What? Me as the officiant?