Despite being under the watchful eye of Mark's men, Curtis still managed to secretly send a message to Yvonne.Next to him, Howard was already on the brink of losing it. He hugged his head and ran into the wall a few times.Curtis jumped. He immediately put his phone aside and held on to Howard. "What are you doing? Jade is still in there. Are you planning to join her?"Howard's face was covered in tears. He could barely stand up properly. "Curtis, I'm really useless. I can't even protect my daughter. I deserve to die.""No." Curtis looked at Mark in the distance coldly. He said softly through gritted teeth, "He is the one who deserves to die. Not you."…Jade's surgery went on for eight hours. When the doctor came out, he looked terrible. Using the local language, he asked who the family of the patient was. Howard wanted to run over, but Mark's bodyguards held him back. Mark cast them a glance, asking them to let Howard go. Howard had been living at the border for many yea
Yvonne and Jade entered the operation theater together while the others waited outside.Howard sat on the chair and silently prayed.Curtis and Stephen looked at each other, exchanging silent greetings. They knew that the surgery that day would be a tough one for Yvonne. Everyone was worried for her.As time passed, it got harder and harder to sit and wait. When the lights on the operation theater sign switched off, everyone finally sighed.By then, the surgery had already gone on for 11 hours. Yvonne came out of the operation theater. She hadn't even taken off her scrubs. She was covered in blood, which was a huge contrast to her pale face.She forced a smile at Howard. "The surgery was a success."Howard was so excited that he knelt on the spot. "Ms. Y. You're amazing …""Don't thank me first." Yvonne bent down and said gently, "Jade needs a heart transplant within three months to survive. That's why I plan to send her to Hope Health Services once her condition is more stabl
The flashes of gold went straight into Mark's heart. It felt like an insect bite, but the pain quickly spread through him.Mark gritted his teeth. "What did you do?""Just inserted a few needles into your heart, but I accidentally made it too deep.""How dare you?" Mark furrowed his brows in pain. He was about to pull a gold needle out, but Yvonne reacted quickly. She pushed his hand, and the needle went deeper into his heart."Ah!" Mark yelled. He was instantly furious. He grabbed Yvonne by the wrist tightly, as if he wanted to break it in half, but the pain in his chest was throbbing. Soon, he couldn't exert any strength.He was sweating profusely on his forehead. "Yvonne, have you lost your mind?""I only want you to have a taste of what Jade is going through." Yvonne swept Mark's chest with a cold gaze. "When you locked her up and didn't let her have her medicine, this is how she felt. How does it feel? Does it hurt?" Yvonne sneered."Here I was, thinking that your heart
Ever since returning from the hotel, Yvonne had been very quiet, barely talking at all. Other than going to the hospital to check up on Jade's condition each day, she would be working in the mines.During that time, Yvonne also got Curtis to look into Mark's businesses.A week later, Curtis handed her a document. "This has information on all of Mark's businesses.""Hmm, thank you," Yvonne responded without looking up. She gestured for Curtis to put the document by the side.Curtis placed the document down on the desk but didn't leave. He hesitated for a while before saying, "Yvonne, you can't blame yourself for Jade's incident. You've already done very well—""Curtis," Yvonne interrupted him. Her tone was emotionless. "You don't have to persuade me. I know what I should do.""But …"Curtis furrowed his brows. He heard footsteps from behind him, so he turned around to look.Seeing Stephen approaching them, Curtis nodded at him a little before leaving the study to give them some
"Take a guess. Do you think Claude and Leonard know about Jade's incident?" Stephen asked casually."I guess so, after all …" Yvonne suddenly came to a realization. "You want me to use this opportunity to tell Claude and Leonard about my hatred for Mark so that they will trust me more and perhaps even help me out?"Stephen smiled in response. As expected, Yvonne had understood it immediately.Right at this moment, her phone vibrated on the desk. Yvonne switched modes on her phone and saw that it was a call from Leonard. Her eyes glimmered slyly. "Speak of the devil."Stephen watched on as Yvonne answered the call. She had been smiling a moment ago, yet the moment she picked up the call, her expression darkened. He was shocked at how quickly her expression had changed."Can I help you, Leonard?" Yvonne asked coldly."Uh …" Leonard asked tentatively, "I've heard about what happened to Howard Hough. I never thought that Mark would be so unethical. I'll talk to him.""No need."
"No." Leonard said icily, "She must still be angry. She isn't really too willing to talk to me about working together. I was too impatient."Leonard convinced himself not to get too worked up."Knowing Mark, he would never explain to Yvonne. After all, it wouldn't matter at all. They hate each other no matter what. From Yvonne's tone, I'm sure she thinks that Mark was behind this."Leonard looked at Claude and said curtly, "Don't worry. She won't suspect your precious granddaughter."Claude smiled sheepishly. "Jane is indeed at fault on this matter. I am as well. I should have asked for more details before arranging a team of men for her."He poured Leonard a cup of hot tea. "Luckily, you reacted quickly and settled this matter in time. If not, we would have been in trouble.""Yes." Leonard glared at Claude. "If Yvonne ever finds out that Jane was behind this, she'll come at us instead."Claude nodded fervently. "There is also another thing. Jade has seen Jane before. She …""W
When the plane landed, Jade was soon handed over to the medical staff, who had been waiting for them for a long time.Jim knew that Yvonne must be exhausted from this trip, so he forbade her to come along with him. Instead, he got Stephen to take her home to rest.Yvonne couldn't argue with Jim, so she obeyed.Returning to the mansion, Yvonne took a shower. When she came out of the bathroom, drying her hair with a towel, she heard a knock on the door.She opened the door to see Stephen with a bottle of red wine and two glasses in his hands. She smiled. "How did you know I wanted a drink tonight?""You've just returned to headquarters. Your mind won't rest easily." Stephen entered her room. "You're no robot. You can't switch off whenever you want. If you really went to bed like this, you would be up all night."Yvonne chuckled gently and closed the door. Then, she headed over to Stephen by the floor-to-ceiling window. They sat on the floor with a glass of red wine each.Her hai
When Yvonne woke up the next day, she found herself alone in her room. If it hadn't been for her throbbing headache from the hangover, she would have thought that the night before had been a dream.Thanks to the bottle of red wine, she'd had a great night's sleep too. In fact, it was the best sleep she'd had during this time.She washed up and headed downstairs, greeting everyone with a smile in the dining hall.Noticing that Yvonne was in a good mood, Jim looked at Stephen meaningfully. "It looks like you took good care of her last night.""Hmm." Stephen nodded honestly.Yvonne blushed. She wanted to say something when Stephen added, "She had a bottle of 80-thousand-dollar wine. She should feel better."Yvonne was speechless. She glared at Stephen. How childish! He was deliberately misleading people!Jim looked at them both. He found them amusing. He said with a smile, "Alright, come and have breakfast. You'll be meeting a few doctors later."He continued. "I had a look at Jad
A light breeze blew by in the courtyard. Agatha slowly recounted the past.Back then, Daniel and his wife, Katherine, had just had Mark. The entire Carrington family had been celebrating.They had doted on Mark and taken him wherever they went.That day, they had headed out. Before they'd known it, Mark had been taken away.Just when Daniel and Katherine had been on the brink of losing it, they had received a call from the kidnapper to bring the ransom to a specific spot.They had gotten the money and driven there without any hesitation. No one had thought that they would ever return after that. Even Mark had disappeared.When Agatha finished recounting this, her cup of tea had already cooled.She wiped her tears away. She said through a catch in her throat, "Katherine was hugging the bag of money tightly until the moment she passed away, as though she were hugging you."Mark furrowed his brows. Now that he'd heard the truth about Daniel and Katherine, he should have felt pain
As Yvonne left the room, she could tell that Stephen's mood was much better.She looked at him. "Are you thinking of something nice?""No." Stephen looked at Yvonne with a rare twinkle in his eyes."Let me take you to breakfast." Before Yvonne could respond, he took her hand and led her to the elevator.Thinking about how he'd stood outside her room the entire night, Yvonne decided to let him hold her hand.Then, her thoughts drifted to Otto. Somehow, she had a bad feeling.…At the same time, Mark was in the courtyard of Carrington Mansion. He sat next to Agatha and poured some tea for her.He handed her a cup of hot tea. "Great-Grandma, try this."When he noticed that Agatha had no reaction, he called out to her once more. "Great-Grandma?""Huh?" Agatha came to her senses. She looked at Mark in confusion. "What is it?""You've been distracted since yesterday. Are you thinking of something?" Mark asked.Agatha shook her head. "Nothing." Then, she picked up her teacup and
Yvonne stood by the door of the bedroom and looked at Otto, who was looking out of the window in a daze on the bed.The sun shone on his face. He looked quite hungover and had a sickly pale face.Yvonne hesitated for a while before saying gently, "Mrs. Jenner called me last night. She's worried about you."Otto didn't respond.Yvonne went in closer and added, "She said that you called her and asked about your father. She found it strange."Mr. Carrington, why did you suddenly think about your father? Did Mrs. Carrington Senior bring him up yesterday?"All Yvonne got was silence.Luckily, she was patient. She sat on the couch and followed Otto's line of sight. Tiny dust particles were floating among the sunbeams. Yvonne also fell into a daze as she watched them float about.Suddenly, Otto asked, "Have you ever felt like your world was falling apart?""Hmm?" Yvonne was confused. "For example?""I mean, like the person that you trust turns out to be different from what you'd t
The next morning, Yvonne opened her door to see Stephen standing outside. She was caught off guard."What is wrong with you this morning? Why didn't you knock…"While talking, Yvonne noticed that Stephen was still wearing the same clothes as the night before. She furrowed her brows and asked, "Don't tell me you didn't leave last night? Have you been standing outside this door all this while?""Hmm." Stephen looked at Yvonne intently. "I thought you would've figured it out quickly."Yvonne was speechless, but she thought to herself that she'd slept like a baby the night before.She smiled at him. "Figure what out?" She noticed Stephen frowning as though he were on the brink of losing his temper.She quickly added, "I-I mean, you have to give me a hint, right? I've thought about it the entire night, but I still don't understand. My brain isn't functioning well."Stephen asked suspiciously, "You've been thinking about it the entire night?""Yes, which is why I didn't look for yo
"If I hadn't come to find you tonight, you probably wouldn't tell me anything about what happened tonight, would you?" Stephen asked in retort.It wasn't a big deal, as long as they returned safely. Yvonne wondered why she needed to report this to him.But she still smiled. "It's late. How could I disrupt your rest? It would've been the same if I told you about it tomorrow morning, right?"Stephen sniggered. "Yvonne, you still don't know where you've gone wrong."He suddenly went in closer to her. Yvonne instinctively retreated until her back was up against the wall. She glared at him."What on earth is wrong with you? I've already said that I would've told you tomorrow morning—"A punch went past Yvonne and landed brutally on the wall.Yvonne was a little stunned. She looked into Stephen's eyes and furrowed her brows. "Stephen, I don't want to quarrel with you for no reason. "Mrs. Carrington Senior went to look for Otto today. Calbert couldn't reach him the entire day, so he
Jane returned to the private room, distracted.She sat down next to Cory. She looked at him as he reached his hand out to her in confusion.Cory furrowed his brows and asked unhappily, "Where's the wine?""Wine… Yes! Wine!" Jane came to her senses. She was just about to get up when Cory pulled her back.He grabbed her by her chin and forced her to look at him. "What happened when you went out?""N-Nothing."Cory tightened his grip. Jane furrowed her brows in pain. "I-I… I saw Yvonne. She told me that she and Stephen got remarried.""What?" Cory relaxed his grip a little. "They got remarried?""Hmm.""So, what?" He had no intention of letting her go, and he looked at her sharply. "Does it bother you so much that Stephen got remarried?"Jane looked at Cory frantically. "Cory, what do you mean by that?""What do I mean? You know what I mean."Cory went in closer. His tone turned icy. "You used to pursue Stephen. Now that you know he's gotten married, you're in this shitty mood
Yvonne turned around to see Jane smiling at her ambiguously. She furrowed her brows. How were they always bumping into each other?Jane crossed her hands in front of her chest and leaned against the wall. She swept her gaze at Calbert and Otto. "Two guys and one woman. You sure know how to have fun!"Calbert instantly snapped, "What the hell are you talking about?""Why are you being so fierce? Did I hit the nail on the head?" Jane snickered. "Two guys and a woman came out of a private room in the middle of the night. Anyone would come to the same conclusion. We're all adults. There's no need to pretend to be innocent.""You—" Calbert was about to go up to Jane, but Yvonne stopped him."Since Ms. Ford is here, I'm guessing so is Cory?" Yvonne smiled, yet her smile didn't reach her eyes. "If you cause a scene here and this bar gets raided, guess who'll be the ones walking out here alive?"Jane's expression turned ugly. "Are you threatening me?""It's just a kind reminder." Yvon
Calbert and Yvonne managed to track Otto's car to a bar, thanks to the information they'd gotten from his staff. Otto's car was right outside the bar.Calbert looked at the neon sign and furrowed his brows. "Why is Otto here? Did what Mrs. Carrington Senior said really hit him so badly that he has to drown himself in alcohol?"Yvonne said nothing and headed directly inside the bar."Wait up for me!" Calbert went after her. He subconsciously protected her from all the drunk patrons.The lighting in the bar was dim. Many of the patrons were drunk and having fun.Yvonne and Calbert walked around the booth area, but Otto was nowhere to be found. They pulled a server over to ask if there was a patron by the name of Otto Carrington who had reserved a private room.Coincidentally, the server had just taken two bottles of wine to Otto's room. So, he led them to the private room.Calbert tipped the server before opening the door and entering. The entire room reeked of alcohol.He looked
After Agatha left, Otto stood in the same spot without moving.A long time later, Zac entered the office. He looked at Otto's back and asked quietly, "Mr. Carrington, will you still see the client?""No." Otto sounded heartbroken.Zac didn't dare ask further questions. He gently closed the door and reminded the secretary that no one was to disturb Otto.In the office, Otto was alone. He slowly walked over to the couch and slumped into it. His mind was in a mess."Alexander was the one who planned the kidnapping back then."Agatha's words rang in his mind for a long time.Alexander's young face appeared in Otto's mind, smiling at him affectionately."Otto! Amazing! Yes! Just like that!""You're amazing at badminton! You're going to make the country proud! I'm going to be so proud of you!""Otto, my son!"Memories of his interactions with Alexander flashed across his mind at that moment.Otto couldn't imagine that such a loving father would do such an absurd thing. Alexander