Before the banquet ended, a single message stirred up a storm online. Very quickly, news such as "Well Spring Pharma Suspected of Copying Hopeful Faith", "Chuck Jensen Challenged at Launch", and "Chuck Jensen Absent from Banquet" began spreading quickly. Well Spring Pharma's PR department pulled an all-nighter, forcefully deleting negative news and erasing bad comments. However, their actions weren't very effective. On the contrary, it attracted even more dissatisfaction and speculation. Since they couldn't contact Chuck, the PR department had no authority to respond on his behalf. Hence, it was the only thing they could do. All the staff at Well Spring Pharma were extremely anxious about the turn of events and public opinion. Yet Chuck was still shut in the hotel room, completely in the dark about what was happening.Leonard had cut off all Chuck's contact with the outside world except for supplying him with three meals a day. The black-clad men who delivered his food would
Leonard said nothing. He merely stared at the door.What Mark had done was openly declare war. This was definitely not only because of Chuck. Mark no longer wanted to continue pretending and wanted to get rid of him and Claude.At that thought, a chill ran down Leonard's back. He furrowed his brows and made up his mind. It seemed that the collaboration with Kendrick couldn't wait any longer.If Claude was still refusing to cooperate, Leonard was going to move on. After all, he didn't want to get killed with an idiot.…Chuck followed Mark into the car. He thanked him, "Thank you so much…"The next second, a phone, whose screen was lit up, was thrown onto Chuck's lap. Chuck looked at Mark in confusion. "What is it?""Have a look."Chuck picked up the phone. What he saw stunned him, but the shock soon turned into rage. He said fiercely, "Someone must have been behind this!""Obviously." Mark side-eyed Chuck and said, "You stole Hopeful Faith's core technology. Do you think Y
That afternoon, Well Spring Pharma released an official statement online. They denied all the claims online, calling them false information, and stated that they would see to the bottom of the source of the rumors.Besides that, Chuck had even recorded a statement personally. He claimed that Well Spring Pharma's platform was the result of many years of planning. He stated that he also hoped to have less internal fighting within the medical industry. He hoped they could put more effort into medical research instead.His speech was extremely polite and well put. But he also implied that this was the work of Well Spring Pharma's rival. It was obvious to the public who the rival was.Once the video was posted, the criticism was once again directed at Hopeful Faith.Compared to the international medical corporation that was Well Spring Pharma, Hopeful Faith was just a private medical platform. Naturally, they would be called into question."I can't see how it was plagiarized. They are
"Didn't you instruct Stephen to look after me?" Conan asked with a smile."Although he's always cold, he still listens to you. If he hadn't been prepared this time, Hopeful Faith would have been ruined in my hands."Conan teased, "As for what he did, you'll just have to wait and see."Yvonne was baffled. She was so worried about him, yet here he was still in the mood to tease her?"By the way, is Stephen by your side? Could you thank him for me? He hasn't been replying to my calls or messages.""No, I came to Well Spring Pharma's press conference alone. He said he had other things to do." Yvonne looked out of the window. She suddenly missed Stephen. She wondered what he was doing at that moment."I see …" Conan was a little disappointed. "Alright, then. Do thank him for me when you have the chance. I still have a meeting to go to. See you.""Okay." Yvonne hung up. She exhaled and suddenly thought about Chuck.Chuck must have surely approved Well Spring Pharma's statement. D
"Yvonne, if you're still angry, tell me. I will do my best to make it up to you." Leonard looked extremely sincere. "I really hope that our relationship won't be strained because of Howard and Jade's incident. You—""Does Claude know that you're making up with me?" Yvonne casually interrupted Leonard. "That day at the hospital's entrance, Claude wanted to avenge Jane right on the spot. Do you think he would be willing to cooperate with me once more?"Leonard paused for a while before clearing his throat. "I won't lie to you. My relationship with him recently has also been rather strained. He's too stubborn and won't listen to me. "Of course, I understand that Jane is his only granddaughter. It's normal that he would still hold a grudge, but …"Leonard's gaze gleamed ambitiously. "I can't just keep going on like this. If we were to continue this way, Mark will be the one who profits."Yvonne raised an eyebrow. "What you're saying is that you want to go behind Claude's back and
"What?" Yvonne no longer looked delighted. She pretended to be curious and asked, "Leonard, are you interested in the arms business?"Leonard was stunned. "I was just casually asking. After all, you have contact with so many wealthy people. I just wanted to know if you have any connections in this business. "You know this too—Mark has always been controlling the Emerald Group's arms business, which is why he can be so cocky."Leonard looked troubled. "If we have a way of shaking things up, perhaps even stealing his business, that would truly hurt him."Yvonne nodded in agreement. "Of course."Seeing Yvonne's reaction, Leonard finally believed what Kendrick said. It seemed like Yvonne didn't know whose life she had saved.It was better that way anyway. It meant that Yvonne wouldn't snatch his business.Leonard was secretly thrilled by that thought. He gave the server a glance, signaling him to fill his glass filled with red wine once more."The arms business will be something
At the mention of Chuck, Yvonne remembered something else. "Conan called me. He said you have something up your sleeve. What is it?""You'll find out about it soon." She had predicted that this was how Stephen was going to respond. She tutted and said, "Fine. I don't want to know anyway. Also, Conan asked me to thank you on his behalf. He said that you're not picking up his calls or replying to his messages."Yvonne thought it was a little unfair to Conan. "You clearly care about him. Don't treat him so coldly. It won't kill you to reply to his messages.""I'm only doing it because you asked me to," Stephen said.Yvonne couldn't be bothered to deal with his pretense. "Alright, fine. I don't care how you see it. Anyway, I've already thanked you on Conan's behalf. I'll take it that you accept it."Then, she yawned. "I'm a little sleepy. I'll nap for a while. I'll text you when I reach the hotel." She hung up without waiting for Stephen's response.Stephen smiled at the phone.
Despite the controversy online, within less than half a month, the number of daily users for Well Spring Pharma's platform exceeded Hopeful Faith's by a mile.Well Spring Pharma had a long-standing reputation. Hence, the public would be more willing to trust its quality.On top of that, Well Spring Pharma had spent a huge amount of money on promoting the platform and creating more resources for it. This made it seem extra special in the eyes of the public.Chuck was very happy with the results of the new platform. He deliberately rewarded the team who had built platform and even praised them during a meeting.However, his behavior made the original Hopeful Faith core team members extremely unhappy.After the meeting, they gathered together and discussed among themselves. A young man with black-framed glasses grumbled, "Mr. Kirby, they only managed to build the platform because of the technology we provided. "Yet, today Mr. Jensen only praised the people from Well Spring Pharma
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