Taking the car to the hotel, Old Mr. Robinson and the others walked deep into the villas until they noticed a quiet, remote courtyard. As the house staff guided them, they entered the villa and changed into indoor slippers before heading to the tearoom in the backyard. Although it was called a tearoom, it was more like a greenhouse. As they pulled apart the beaded curtains, the aroma of flowers wafted into their noses. Arthur took a deep breath. He was just about to praise the manager for having such elegant taste when he saw a familiar figure standing behind the flowers.Yvonne plucked a flower and looked at the group of people. She smiled. "You're here."Arthur was stunned. Why was Yvonne here? Xavier was equally surprised, but Caleb was calmer than them. He smiled as if waiting to see what was going to happen next.Yvonne was in a simple gown that day, and she looked extremely elegant as she stood among the flowers. While Arthur and Xavier were still stunned, Yvonne calmly wa
Yvonne had predicted that Arthur would react like this. She shrugged casually. "I am indeed not better than you, but I still have the right to hold onto the Eight Saints figurines.""How dare you!" Arthur glared. "I won the bid for the Eight Saints figurines! What right do you have to hold onto it?""The fact that I'm in charge of it." Yvonne indifferently poured herself some tea and blew on the cup. "I'm not in a hurry to sell the Eight Saints figurines. Without you, there will still be other people who will come up with a high price. Since you're an old customer, I'm sure you know that Xenia's Auction rules this island, and I make the rules," Yvonne said sternly.At that moment, Arthur completely panicked. He started to believe every single word she said. He held onto this walking stick tightly and said through gritted teeth, "It was Kayla. She didn't want to see you and Xavier together in the same place."Xavier looked at Arthur, amused. "Isn't that enough? Is there anything e
Meanwhile, Arthur was led inside by a fat woman."Linda isn't back yet. Do you want to wait for her?" The woman went into the kitchen and made a cup of coffee for Arthur. Arthur scanned the surroundings. The three-story building wasn't spacious, yet it was filled with items scattered all around.The woman was into boarding, taking in a dozen or so foreign students. Naturally, there were many things around."This place might not be the best environment, but I treat them all very well," the fat woman explained with a smile.Arthur didn't take the coffee. He merely retrieved a check to pass to the woman. "This is Linda's living expenses for the next year. If it isn't enough, ask me for more."The woman looked at the number on the check and smiled widely. She immediately placed it in her pocket. "You're ever so generous, but …" she continued asking curiously, "All these years, you have given Linda so much money, yet you refuse to tell her who you are."Arthur said with displeasure, "
Late at night, the casino downtown was still lively, with people engrossed in gambling and alcohol. Amidst the crowd, a young girl rushed into the casino. Wading through the people, she took the elevator up to the fifth floor. The moment she stepped out of the casino, she heard the sound of someone wailing.Her heart sank. She quickly headed over to the source of the screams, which were barely muffled by the door.She pushed the door open and yelled, "Stop! I've brought your money here!"Everyone looked at her and stopped their beating. The man on the floor already had a swollen face beyond recognizable. The young girl's heart hurt badly. Tears almost fell. "Aston, are you alright?""Oh, is this your little girlfriend?" The man sitting on the couch with crossed legs whistled. "Not bad, Aston Chambers. You lucky bastard.""L—let Aston go! I—I have money!" Her voice trembled. She mustered up the courage to walk up to them. "How much does Aston owe you? I'll pay you back.""Can yo
After they left, Yvonne looked away.Gwen asked coldly, "What are you looking at?""Nothing, I just find it strange." In a foreign country far away, there would be a girl whose eyes looked extremely like Stephen's. Yvonne did not think much about that matter. She only felt that it was a coincidence. After all, doppelgangers did exist in the world.She held Gwen's arm and changed the topic while smiling, "Gwen, you were so cool just now!"Gwen glared at Yvonne curtly. "Stop with your flattery. I'm not that easily coaxed.""Come on, I've apologized a thousand times to you already. I promise I won't put myself in danger before giving you a heads-up. I'm serious. Don't you believe me?" Yvonne said.Ever since her talk with Mark, Gwen has been mad at her. Yvonne had tried many ways to coax her. She even followed Gwen along when she found out that Gwen was going to the city to check on the casino. It was too bad that it did nothing much.Gwen was determined that Yvonne learned her l
When the plane landed, it was night in Northerna City. Xavier received Monica's call, saying that Kayla had been recovering well for the past two days and that she'd been constantly asking to see him.Xavier hung up, turned to inform Arthur, and left. Arthur furrowed his brows in displeasure. Caleb looked at Arthur, secretly delighted. Since Arthur had found out about Yvonne being the director of Xenia's Auction, he guessed that the old man would have even more thoughts against Kayla.However, Caleb didn't even think that Arthur was forming a dangerous plan.…At the hospital, Monica immediately got up when she saw that Xavier had arrived. "Xavier, you're here."Seeing Xavier, Kayla's pale face finally looked better. She smiled. "Xav, I missed you."Xavier spoke expressionlessly: "You're much better.""Yes!" Kayla had been on medication for some time. On top of that, Monica had told her that Xavier was going to marry her. The good news had motivated her, and she slowly got bet
The first thing Yvonne did when she returned to the city was to hold a meeting at Miller Jewels. In her absence, Nicole had led the team well. The designs were almost done.During the meeting, Yvonne pointed out the issues with the designs and taught them on the spot how to edit them with improvements. The other colleagues listened to her attentively. On the contrary, Nicole was distracted. Yvonne had to call her twice before she snapped out of it.After the meeting, Yvonne asked Nicole to stay back. She asked Nicole in concern, "Is the year-end show too much pressure on you?"Nicole lowered her gaze and said feebly, "I'm sorry, Ms. Miller. I still think I'm not the right person for it. My colleagues in the other departments were right. I just graduated college …""This wasn't your attitude when I left." Yvonne furrowed her brows. "Tell me, who's gossiping behind your back that they dare to even question their boss' decision so freely?""No." Nicole waved her hands. "They're right
Nicole ran out of the office to a nearby café. She'd just pushed open the door when she heard Dorothy Sanders, her mother, call out to her affectionately, "Nicole, over here!"Her voice attracted many disgruntled looks from other customers. Dorothy was unabashedly proud of it. "My daughter Nicole works at Miller Jewels! She's amazing! Her boss likes her a lot! You all work nearby, right? Please take good care of my daughter—""Mom!" Nicole anxiously yelled and frantically pulled Dorothy to a booth. "What are you talking about? I'm just a newcomer. What have you been telling other people?""That's why you're amazing! You're just a newcomer, yet you've already represented your company in a competition! The other older employees couldn't even compete with you!" Dorothy spoke loudly. Nicole wanted to shut her mouth badly."If you're going to spew any further nonsense, just go!" Nicole warned through gritted teeth.Dorothy stopped and affectionately held Nicole's hand. "Nicole, it took
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