Yvonne snickered arrogantly and swept a glance at every member of the Carrington family."So, these are the true colors of wealthy people." Yvonne crossed her arms across her chest. "Mr. Carrington, since we aren't worthy enough to be your friends, let's just split ways. I don't need to be insulted by this bunch of people."I knew a long time ago that you wealthy people are judgmental. I just didn't expect you all to be so stupid and not know right from wrong."Yvonne looked at Agatha. "Especially you, you old hag. If you have delusions and paranoia, I urge you to see a doctor, in case you cause more trouble for the younger generation."Mr. Carrington has been searching for you for the entire night. But when he got back, he still had to take your scolding. "He's the only one good enough to put up with you. If it had been us, we would have fought back."You should thank God every single day to have such a great-grandson. Don't be an unappreciative bitch."Agatha was furious. "
In the study, Otto closed the door behind him and went up to Agatha. "Great-Grandma, what is it?""I found the missing child from back then."Otto's heart sank, but he feigned a casual tone. "Is that so? I guess congratulations are in order. Your wish for many years has finally come true.""Hmm." Agatha sized Otto up and said, "I'm relieved to hear you say that. It looks like I was overthinking before. I thought you, among the entire family, didn't want the child to come back the most."Otto nodded. The frostiness in his gaze faded. "Since I was a child, you taught me that we should help each other out in the family. How could I have any malice toward my own family?""Good. It's good that you still remember what I said." Agatha looked at Otto. "When I see that child once more, I will bring him home. I hope you will care for him and guide him. "After all, he has been away from the family for many years. He isn't familiar with our family at all. If you could do your best to help
"That's right." Otto nodded. "He used Great-Grandma to split me and Calbert up, taking us down one at a time. In the future, I can't contact Calbert openly. I would be easily restricted.""Not to mention that the moment you are caught in contact with Calbert, he can easily use it to snatch away the business' management from you," Yvonne added. She sneered. "Mark played a great move. He cleared the way without having to show up."If Otto had defended Calbert and Yvonne at Carrington Mansion, Agatha would have used it to subdue Otto. By then, when Mark returned, she would also force Otto to compromise.It was a perfect move.Calbert could not keep up with their conversation. "So, what you're saying is that we have no choice but to admit defeat?""Admit defeat? It's still early!" Yvonne smiled. Her eyes gleamed ambitiously. "Mr. Carrington doesn't just have you. He has me too.""You?" Calbert was curious. "What can you do?"Then, Calbert suddenly realized something. "Hold up a se
At the same time, Agatha eagerly called Mark to tell him about the situation."My child, I've done as you said. Things went really well. When are you coming back? I'll come and pick you up.""What's the rush?" Mark held his phone and looked at the blue sky out of the window. His gaze was still frosty."Give me some time. At least, let me get used to my new identity. That way, I can openly return to the family with you."Agatha nodded deeply. "You're right. It must be tough for you to come to terms with your new identity. When you're ready, just let me know.""Okay.""Then…" Agatha was extremely careful when she spoke to Mark. "If you need any help, let me know. Even if I have to sacrifice my life, I'll help you achieve it.""Hmm. I understand." Mark's tone was flat, but Agatha didn't mind one bit. After all, it had taken so much effort to find the child. How could she expect him to be close to her right away?She smiled benevolently. "As long as you know that I care."Then,
Three days later, Yvonne and Edith packed up and prepared to head back to Northerna City together.Otto dropped them off at the airport. As they were about to part ways, Otto suddenly remembered something. He said, "Calbert said he's going into hiding for a while. He wants to secretly look into Mark, so he couldn't see you off today."Yvonne smiled. "It's fine. He did the right thing.""Otto." Edith looked at Otto worriedly. "Will you be alright alone?"Otto hummed in response and smiled gently. "Go with Ms. Miller. I'll come and see you two during the jewelry exhibition. I must attend it. After all, your designs will be on stage for the very first time." Edith felt a little embarrassed. "I'll have to work hard. I don't want to let you down.""You won't. I believe in you."Otto looked at Yvonne and said with a smile, "Sorry to bother you with taking care of my mother again.""It's no big deal."Yvonne heard an announcement at the airport and pulled Edith along. "It's time t
After breakfast, Yvonne, Nicole, and Edith headed to the living area to discuss the stage design.Nicole drew the drapes and turned on the projector to display the presentation slides.Edith came over with a plate of fruits and placed them on the coffee table. She followed Yvonne and sat on the floor.It was dark in the living area, making the stage look even more real on the screen, as if they were right on it.Soon, the presentation slides finished playing.Yvonne hugged a cushion and leaned back on the couch. She furrowed her brows. "Even after seeing it once more, I feel like something is missing.""I think so too, but the stage design team says it's really hard to make any more changes." Nicole turned to Yvonne, looking troubled. "Especially the designer. He's really firm on this decision. He said this stage design was the best design he's ever come up with in his life."If we bring up any more suggestions that don't convince him, he might quit."Yvonne chuckled. "That's
When Edith returned after making the call, Nicole had already left. "Where's Ms. Princeton?""She went back to the office. She has many things to deal with." Yvonne noticed the smile on Edith's face. "Has Ms. Doyle agreed to it?""Hmm. I told her I was collaborating with Miller Jewels, and she was really happy for me. When she heard about our request, she happily agreed to it."Edith smiled even wider as she thought back on her conversation with Lexi. Although she was venturing on a path in life that she had never explored before, thanks to the support of good friends, she had grown less afraid and more confident about it."Ms. Miller, I really want to thank you for this opportunity—""Stop right there," Yvonne interrupted. "If you're always going to be so polite with me, I'll have to thank you for every meal you make for me.""No need." Edith waved her hands. "It'll be so tiring to live together like that!""Oh, so you know it's tiring."Seeing the smile on Yvonne's face, Ed
On the day of the meeting, Yvonne was still uncertain. She didn't know what Stephen meant by that full stop. She'd decided against sending another message to ask about it. Since Stephen had already seen the message, she figured it was up to him if he came or not. Even though she tried to console herself by thinking of it this way, she was still eager to see him.At that point, she could no longer differentiate if she wanted to see him or if she was worried about taking her businesses back. At that moment, she stood facing the night breeze. Her mind was in a mess, and her heart was pounding.When the bell on the glass door to the open-air restaurant rang, she jumped in panic and turned around. But it was just the waiter coming in to serve some wine.Her heart sank.She exhaled deeply. What was going on? They were only just meeting up. Was there a need to be so nervous?The waiter went up to Yvonne and asked, "Miss, should I help you aerate the wine?"Yvonne looked at her wat
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