"I'm clearly doing this because…" Renee paused, then grinned mysteriously as she half-joked, "I want your money!"Stefan now looked rather speechless. He could tell that the woman was being dismissive, and her reply basically gave him no information on the situation."I told you that you can ask me for money if you need it. We were husband and wife, so I'll definitely try to satisfy your financial needs as best as I can. You don't have to beat around the bush when it comes to things like this.""Just ask you?" Renee smiled sarcastically. "What if I said I wanted half of the Hunt family's wealth? Would you be willing to give that to me?"Hearing this, Stefan's expression darkened. "That's ridiculous!""Aw, and here I was thinking that my ex-husband was so generous. Looks like you're still going to be stingy when it comes to paying up. You can't even afford this little request…"Although the man looked exceedingly upset, Renee didn't seem to be worried about irritating him further.
Seeing that Renee refused to give up, Stefan didn't try to persuade her anymore. He just turned around and left with a cold expression on his face.When he returned to the very center of the summit forum, he instantly caught everyone's attention. Stefan turned his head slightly, speaking to Elijah who was standing behind him. "Inform Wyatt Haughey to publicly announce that the summit will be blacklisting Azure Group. All companies, and I mean all companies, are banned from partnering with them!"Not only did the annual Global Technology Summit provide the top companies a platform to promote their products, the most important section within the summit was the forum. With big shots from different countries gathered in one place, they would all discuss the future development of the industry, similar to a conference meeting.As the CEO of Hunt Enterprise, Stefan's electronics company accounted for seventy-five percent of the market, so he was definitely considered the most powerful of t
The audience started clapping as soon as the emcee finished speaking.All the bosses and big shots stared at the door in anticipation, wondering who the new director of the Electronics Technology Association would be. This person would be the one guiding the industry of electronics technology for the next four years.The spotlight shone on a figure walking through the door—a professional-looking woman clad in a black power suit with her hair tied up in a high bun."What?!" Elijah exclaimed in disbelief. He was the first person to respond. Rubbing his eyes, he added, "Is there a problem with my eyes? Because I think that's Madam!"Stefan frowned slightly. He stared at Renee's graceful figure, completely caught off guard.Renee walked up to the podium with her head held high, her eyes scanning the audience below. She then introduced herself, "Good afternoon, everyone. My name is Renee Everheart, and I am the new director of the Electronics Technology Association."Renee used to eit
Renee shot up to instant fame after the summit forum despite being completely unknown prior to it. She had become the darling of the electronics technology industry. Many people came to chat with her and wanted to take photos with her, and it was almost as if everything else was forgotten.It was customary for the successful conclusion of the summit forum to be followed by a celebration banquet attended by all of the big players in the industry. Naturally, Stefan and Renee were both expected to join the banquet.The two sat down at the same round table, but there were several people seated between them. Despite having been in a very intimate relationship as husband and wife in the past, not a single word passed between them for the duration of the event. In fact, they did not even make eye contact once.Truthfully, it was Renee who did not spare Stefan a glance. Stefan, on the other hand, kept his eyes fixed on Renee, giving her the legendary 'Hunt Stare' the whole time.With a gla
Like a proud emperor, Stefan sat there and haughtily glanced at the glass in Renee's hand, which was filled to the brim with orange juice."Is that how you show your sincerity towards this industry?" He sneered."Sincerity is measured by what I do," Renee retorted coldly, "not what I drink."She then turned to the top figures in the room and humbly stated, "Gentlemen, please forgive me for drinking orange juice instead of wine. I'm allergic to alcohol so unfortunately, I can't join you for a glass. Nonetheless, please know that I hold all of you in the highest regard.""Orange juice instead of wine?" Stefan scoffed. "Do you think this is child's play? The world of business is a battlefield where people fight to the death. No one here has any time to play with you. If you can't adapt to this world, you'd better just go home now and not waste anyone's time."Hearing this, the crowd immediately sensed a rivalry between them. If they did not pick the right side, their days in the fiel
"If you really are allergic to alcohol," Stefan told Renee snidely, "it's not too late to back out."His sole purpose was to make her realize the difficulty that came with her new position and give up, not to harm her in any way. But Renee kept on pretending to be a pitiful young girl and replied, "It's okay. I just want to prove my sincerity in front of everyone."What a silly and stubborn woman! Now that his patience was exhausted, Stefan held his head high and declared, "Let's begin, then."Everyone held their breath and subconsciously stepped back a little to quietly observe the game.They decided on the simplest iteration of the game. In truth, Stefan, being the serious and austere man that he was, rarely ever played the finger-guessing game. When he did, it was only for fun when he was hanging out with Christopher and Xavier. He knew that his skills in the game were nothing to write home about, but he was sure that he could defeat a naive woman like Renee with ease.To eve
"What else should I do?"As Renee looked into Stefan's bleary eyes, she was reminded of the night when he blocked her way domineeringly just as he was doing now, which led to them having sex. But after that night, he pretended that nothing ever happened, and it was precisely this kind of irresponsible behavior, like a tortoise hiding in its shell, that made her furious!"Since it's clear that I'm the winner," she said, "I'm under no obligation to be here with you as you continue to act like a madman. Don't be a sore loser, and stop wasting other people's time!"With her long suppressed anger boiling under the surface, she walked away from the man with an icy expression on her face, not even looking back once as she walked out the door.Stefan stood still in the same spot, feeling like he had just been slapped on the face. For a very long time, he just remained there with an emotionless expression, cold as ice and completely inscrutable.Inside the room, the atmosphere was very str
Elijah could hardly stifle his laughter as soon as he saw the playlist.The first song Stefan had chosen was one called "Love Is Like A Tide," while the second song was "When Our Love Was In The Past." The third song was "Love that Came Too Late,"...In short, he had selected love songs that dealt with heartbreak, failed love, and regrets that came too late.It seemed like Mrs. Hunt had really given Stefan quite a blow today.Typically, Stefan led his life solely on the basis of reason and rationality, but as soon as he got drunk, he would instantly reveal the hidden side of his personality…But the best person to cure his current ailment would be the one who had caused it in the first place, which meant that the only person who could save him from this bad habit of getting drunk and singing lovesick songs in a karaoke bar was Mrs. Hunt herself and no one else!After singing a few songs with Stefan, Elijah excused himself, saying, "You go on and sing, Mr. Hunt. I need to go to th
Livid, Mateo pulled the trigger without hesitation. However, he moved the gun less than an inch. The bullet passed by Liam's ear and hit an orange behind him.The fruit immediately blew up, its juices splashing on Liam's face."Aaaah!" Amber, terrified, trembled. Her eyes turned red, and she hurriedly tried to plead with Mateo. "Matt, cool it! Aren't you and Liam friends? You guys drank and chatted together in the past. You were so close to each other. How could you do this to him? Hurry up and put the gun away! If it goes off accidentally, it'll be over!"However, Mateo ignored her. His eyes were red as he glared at Liam. "Did you see the orange behind you? Let go of her now! If not, I'll blow up your head just like I did to that orange!""Is that all you got?" Liam taunted. He refused to let Amber go. He whispered to Amber, "Watch well. If he shoots me today, promise me not to marry such a man. I can use my life to knock some sense into you.""No!" Amber shook her head. Liam
"What bad timing!" Mateo's indifferent voice came from behind Amber.Amber turned around and saw Mateo with a team of armed soldiers. Terrified, she quickly put some distance between her and Liam. She stammered an explanation. "Matt… It's not what you think. Liam and I came here to look for people. Ms. Everheart and Ms. Osborne are gone. Liam couldn't find them and guessed they might be in the orchard. He wasn't familiar with the orchard and asked me to guide him."Mateo looked livid, but still cracked a gentle smile. "Silly, you don't have to be scared. I know you're prudent. He must have forced you to come here. I don't blame you."He extended his hand and beckoned Amber toward him. "Come here. You're my fiancee. You should stand with me.""I…" Amber bit her lip—Mateo was right. She kept her head low, about to walk to him.But in the next second, Liam firmly grabbed her wrist. "You can't go!" Liam held Amber's wrist tightly and shot Mateo a challenging look."When did Amb
Liam could only see through Amber's true thoughts if she showed her true self to him. "No, I do like you. I love you the most, and I want to marry you. But you neither like me nor want to marry me. You love freedom and Ms. Everheart. You love and yearn for the kind of life ordinary people like. So, I could only choose to give you up and let you get what you want. What else do you want me to do?" Amber was generally shy and reserved, but when Liam drove her anxious, she rambled a lot."Whatever I want is my business. You don't need to sacrifice yourself to grant my wish!" Liam held Amber's shoulders, acting like a kind senior. He tried to persuade her in earnest. "Marriage isn't a joke. Think it through. Do you like and know Mateo well? You won't be happy after marrying him, given the savage culture around here. And can you divorce him easily?""Matt will be nice to me. Even if he changes his mind, he'll still be nice to me because…my father is Benjamin," Amber replied.She chose
Being a sensitive woman, Amber immediately noticed Liam's displeasure. She kept her head lower and explained carefully, "I want a chance to choose again… I want to choose another person to fall in love with. You know that Matt and I grew up together. We're childhood friends. He likes me and always protects me without asking for anything back. I feel that it's happier to marry a person who loves me instead of marrying someone far beyond my reach."For the first time, she expressed the exhaustion she felt from her relationship with Liam. She no longer wanted to be the one who kept fawning over him. She wanted to give up and relax by being the one who was loved and adored in a relationship."Tsk!" Liam snorted arrogantly. "You don't know Mateo. He's not a nice guy. He's just good at pretending. Maybe it's just his means to get what he wants, but you assume that he loves and wants to protect you."Liam hadn't made that statement to purposely put Mateo down. After standing against Mate
Liam focused on holding Amber's hand and leading her through the orange grove. At the same time, he carefully scanned the ground and trees to find any related clues left by Renee and Leia."I don't care what others say, because I didn't do anything wrong," he said indifferently. "I hope you'll feel the same. I don't think you need to stop being my friend after choosing to marry Mateo. Am I not the friend you like the most?""That's different," Amber said.She followed Liam passively. At first, she couldn't adapt to it. After walking briefly, she felt better and found it easier to do. "Although I'm not good at my studies, I know men and women should keep a polite distance. You can't take my hand and sound righteous at the same time," she mumbled."Why not?" Liam retorted firmly. "When I was young, I always held my sister's hand wherever we went. I'm holding your hand because this fog is thick and the ground is slippery. I'm afraid of being separated from you. Just walk with me. St
Liam walked ahead of Amber, then turned to glance at her. He faked a smile and asked, "What's the matter? Are you worried that I might take advantage of you?" "No, of course not!" Amber quickly shook her head and pushed her scarf up. It had fallen a little. "I just find it improper," she answered softly.She looked like a typical woman from Southeast Aeos, petite and with a small face. Her skin was tanned, and her facial features weren't very distinct. She was charming and reserved, exuding a girlish pureness. She had put on her country's special traditional clothes. The thick clothes, embroidered with various patterns, wrapped around her petite body and gave her an exotic impression. From afar, she appeared like a colorful oil painting. "Hey, it's not improper. If I wanted to do anything to you, I would've done that long ago. I don't have to wait until now." Liam sounded relaxed and prudent to ease Amber's anxiety."Don't worry. I've always regarded you as my younger siste
Amber hurriedly turned Liam down. "You can't help with my affairs. I can handle it.""Well, tell me why I can't help you," Liam pressed. "I… I want to sew a wedding gown. And there are a lot of details that I need to add." Amber became competitive for no reason, and added stubbornly, "Your words aren't absolute. Yes, your business is important, but so is mine!""Oh, you want to sew a wedding gown. I can help you with that…" Liam said, relaxed. "Maybe I didn't get to tell you that I went to a small country in Southeast Aeos when I traveled around the world. I got to know a great sewing master. The pictures he sewed looked real like paintings! I found them interesting, so I learned from him. My sewing skills are probably better than yours. I can help you with that.""Really? You can sew?" Amber was full of surprise and admiration. Her eyes lit up. "I can't sew well. I want to learn from a great master too! If you can do it, can you teach me?""Of course!" Liam promised. "Can you he
"Uh…" Amber looked like she was being put in a difficult position. She found it impudent for a man and a woman to be alone in the dense orchard at night. "What's wrong? Is it inconvenient?" Liam frowned, puzzled. He felt that Amber was purposely avoiding him after expressing her desire not to marry him and making Mateo her groom instead.Before, she would always put on her favorite dress and stand at the entrance of the fort, looking eager no matter how late Liam and Benjamin returned from their work.Usually, she would carry a small bamboo basket containing the tea she brewed and dessert or food she had painstakingly prepared. When Liam returned, she would excitedly welcome him and inquire after him. Lately, she no longer did that. When Liam occasionally ran into her in the fort, she would bow indifferently at him and quickly brush past him as if they were merely acquaintances. They seemed distant.Honestly, Liam found it unfamiliar. He couldn't get used to the fact that Amber
"I don't know. Why don't you ask the guards to get us some fried chicken and French fries? Didn't Mateo say that we can ask the guards for food?" Renee said.Leia's anxiety eased as she relaxed. She turned around and got out of bed, then gestured at the guard and ordered quite a lot of food. Meanwhile, Liam accompanied Benjamin to West River in the morning for a negotiation that yielded a good result. Benjamin's attitude had improved. He didn't demand an explanation from Liam about the affairs between Liam and Amber, and didn't ask about Renee or Leia either. Liam was delighted. He carried the unique desserts he had bought at the local market for Renee and Leia to enjoy. Upon arrival, he found that they were not in the room. "Weird. Where did they go?" Liam looked around, but found no sign of Renee and Leia. He casually asked a servant, but the servant stammered and insisted on not knowing anything. Anxious, Liam kept looking for them in the fort. Coincidentally, he ran into