At the same time, Naomi's team was extremely anxious. They held an emergency meeting through the night.Naomi sobbed anxiously. "I-I… I don't know what happened. M-My phone broke on its own."Her assistant was helpless. "Stop crying. Now that things have come to this, what's the point of you crying?""I-I'm telling the truth. I was still using my phone to watch the news in the afternoon. Then, all of a sudden, a series of codes appeared!"Naomi thought back about how she hadn't been able to control her phone. She was frightened. "It was as if my phone were being controlled by someone else. It opened the app and took screenshots. It was terrifying!""The technicians are already dealing with your phone. We'll see who's messing with you." Her assistant sighed. "But, even if we find out who it was, it's pointless. The company just called me."Naomi grabbed her assistant's hand. "Does the company have a solution?"The assistant looked away, not daring to look into Naomi's hopeful
There were a series of rear-end crashes on the highway in the morning rush hour. There had been cars in total, and it had created a huge traffic jam.The driver returned to the car to report the situation to Stephen. "The traffic police said that we would only be able to leave after an hour. "Mr. Anderson, I've already contacted another car to come and pick you up."Stephen looked out of the window in silence.Julian was curious. "Sir, what are you thinking about?""Cancel my schedule for these two days.""What?" Julian was a little stunned. "Why?""Take me straight to the hospital.""What?" Julian was baffled. He followed Stephen's gaze. Paramedics were carrying an injured man on a stretcher to an ambulance.Julian was worried. "Mr. Anderson, are you hurt somewhere? Do you feel ill? I'll get a doctor to check on you right away."He was about to get out of the car when Stephen snapped in annoyance, "I'm fine. Just do what I said."… In less than half an hour, the accident
Inside, only a warm lamp by the nightstand was on.When she saw the figure lying on the bed, Yvonne couldn't help but stop in her tracks. Perhaps it had been too long since she had seen him; she suddenly felt a little timid.Back then, she left with such determination and hadn't even left behind a single message. She didn't know if Stephen hated her, since he hadn't contacted her in the past six months.At first, she had been a little resentful, but when she saw the scars on her body, she felt that perhaps it was a good thing for Stephen to be so heartless as not to look for her.After all, she looked terrible. How was she worthy enough for him?Thinking back to that time, it truly had been the darkest and most pessimistic time of her life.Perhaps it was her low self-esteem, but during that time, she hadn't even dared to look at any news about Stephen. All she did was dream about him over and over again.At that moment, she was standing five steps away from him, yet she didn'
At that moment, Yvonne was already on the plane to the border. Once the plane landed, she walked out of the terminal in her high heels and saw Calbert waiting by the car in the distance.She went up to him and asked, "What did you mean on the phone?""Come with me and you'll see."As Calbert got back into the car, Yvonne opened the back passenger seat and got in too.Calbert slammed on the gas pedal, and the SUV sped forward. An hour later, they reached their destination.Yvonne got out of the car. She looked over to see the wilderness in front of her. The wind blew by, creating a little storm of dust."Why did you bring me here?""This is the border of the land." Calbert went forward. "I'm taking you to see something."Yvonne was perplexed. She hesitated for a while before following him.They went through thickets, one in front of the other. Calbert suddenly stopped in his tracks and pointed ahead with his chin.Yvonne looked ahead to see two graves, one big and one smal
Since she was already at the border, Yvonne wasn't in a rush to leave. She prepared to stay for a few days and headed over to the market to get some gemstones.While she had been making her jewelry, she had realized she was missing some gemstones. This was a good chance for her to get them all.Thus, Yvonne hung around the gemstone market for a few days straight.Charlotte was grateful to Yvonne for helping her in the past, so she accompanied Yvonne to look for quality and inexpensive gemstones.That day, while Charlotte wasn't around, Yvonne helped check up on Betty's eyes.After the check, Yvonne said nothing for some time. Betty seemed to have realized something. She held Yvonne's hand and smiled benevolently at the latter, consoling her, "Miss, I'm old. It doesn't matter whether I can see or not. You don't have to waste your time on me.""I'm sorry." Yvonne felt apologetic. "I'm not good enough.""It's fine. You don't have to apologize to me. If it hadn't been for you ba
Yvonne's gaze darkened. She didn't turn around.Calbert immediately stood up. He looked at Jane coldly. "You're not welcome here.""Why?" Jane crossed her arms in front of her chest. She pointed at the market with her chin. "The market is open to all. Do they select customers?""Customers?" Calbert sneered. "You're not here to look for gemstones. You're here to look for trouble.""This is where you're wrong. I'm really here today to buy something. I just never thought that I would meet her here."Jane looked at Yvonne's back and sneered. "What? You were still so cocky back then at the bar, but you don't even dare to face me now. Or do you only dare to see other people at night?"She paused for a while before continuing sarcastically, "Are you so ugly that you don't dare to show your face during the day?"Calbert glared at Jane. "Watch your mouth."If they hadn't been in the bustling market, and if he hadn't wanted to attract any attention, he would have already slapped Jane u
Tension loomed in the air.As the crowd nervously looked on, Yvonne moved her leg away. "Jane Ford, your life isn't worth all the other lives."Jane got up. Her entire back was covered in dirt, and her skirt's hem was dirty too.The bodyguards immediately went up to Jane, wanting to help her, but she shoved them away. She glared at Yvonne with bloodshot eyes."Yvonne, I'm not done with you! I'll make you pay back what you owe me!"Then, she yelled coldly, "Let's go!"Seeing Jane getting into the car, Benji looked at Yvonne hesitantly. "Ms. Miller, thank you."Yvonne ignored him. She merely looked at Calbert. "Let them go.""How could you so easily—"Seeing Yvonne leave, Calbert furrowed his brows tightly. He glared at Benji. "Tell Cory to look after his woman. If she does such a thing again, don't blame me for teaching her a lesson on his behalf!"As Yvonne and Calbert left, Benji finally dared to breathe. He had to admit that even if Yvonne was a woman, the air with whic
"I went to the gemstone market. I initially wanted to get some stuff, but I bumped into the woman who captured me at the bar the other night," Jane replied to Cory before Benji could say anything."I was still angry about that incident, so I got into a quarrel with her. I'd only said a few words when she attacked me!"Jane pursed her lips, looking aggrieved. She grabbed Cory's hand and placed it on her waist. "I was thrown to the floor. My hip hurts so much it's about to break."Cory was still looking at Benji. He asked coldly, "Why didn't you bring that woman back?""He wouldn't dare!" Jane interjected once more. "I was being stepped on by that woman, yet all he did was try to talk her out of it!""Was that really the case?" Under Cory's cold gaze, Benji hesitated. He subconsciously glanced at Jane.Cory made up his mind. He rubbed Jane's hip and sent her away. "Get the household staff to deal with your injuries."Jane pursed her lips. "Will you stand up for me?""Let me
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