That night, at Crawford Manor.The whole family was having dinner, but Luke Crawford was not there.Allison Tanner put a piece of cucumber into Lanie’s bowl and then one into Rainie’s bowl. “Grandma just wants what’s good for you. You have to eat some even if you don’t like it. You’re growing kids, and you don’t want to stay short forever, do you?”Everyone else at the table was eating.Blanche looked at the cucumber in his bowl and put it into his mouth, eating it obediently. After that, he raised his head and looked at his grandmother. “Grandma, why don’t you eat onions?”There was a platter of stir-fried onions on the table. Blanche and his sister both loved them, as did Great-grandpa. Uncle Louis and Grandma Susan liked onions too. Only Grandma did not like them.She would always push the stir-fried onions far, far away from her. Grandma always said that the stench made her lose her appetite.Before Allison could say anything, Susan Armstrong subtly harrumphed. “That’s a h
There were many things the boy still did not understand, so he stood at the bathroom door and waited for his father to come out after his shower.When Luke emerged from the shower, he only had a towel around his waist. He was completely shirtless, his well-toned chest glistening with sexy water droplets.“Dad, I’m sure Miss Bea has parents too, so why do you have to raise her?” Blanche could not figure that part out.Luke sat down, spreading his legs and wiping his dripping hair with his towel. He asked, “How old are you? How old is she?”“Hmm, I’m five…” Blanche replied. “But I don’t know how old she is.”Luke looked at his son and replied seriously, "You’re five and she’s twenty-four. You two are nineteen years apart. You’ll grow up very soon, and you’ll become a grown man just like me. When that happens, you’ll have a career and a dream you want to pursue. At that time, I’ll be in my fifties, soon to grow old. The same goes for your Miss Bea. One day, we’ll become as old as you
Bianca called Jean.However, Jean’s phone gave her the same message. “Sorry, the number you called is currently unavailable.”All of a sudden, Bianca felt uneasy.She hoped that nothing bad had happened.Next, she gave Nina a call.Nina picked up in a flash, asking, “What’s the matter, babe?”Bianca explained everything to her.However, Nina said, “Maybe someone suddenly called her to play mahjong? You don’t know this, but she keeps her phone in her bag when she’s playing mahjong, so she won’t be able to hear you. As for my brother, he’s probably busy.”Since Nina said that, Bianca did not think too much of it.Putting down her phone, Bianca walked to the bathroom and took a shower. That helped her brighten up a lot more, and as she was drying her hair, she saw her phone ringing on the coffee table in the living room.The caller was Jean.“Hello.” Bianca picked up in an instant.Jean was silent on the other end. After a long time, he seemed to hold something back before ask
The older woman looked at Bianca, whose expression had not changed at all. She thought to herself with full contempt, ‘As expected of a homewrecker, she’s so cold-blooded and heartless! Her own sister has been insulted, but she doesn’t seem to care at all!”Daisy was really regretting it now. If she had known this would happen, she should have used that insult on the b*tch instead!The subway had barely passed the East Gate station when Daisy could not hold it in anymore. She looked at Bianca and said, “How could you be so heartless, girl?”Bianca looked at her.How was she being heartless?At the same time, she was very curious. What else could this old Daisy hag say with her wagging tongue and utter lack of scruples?Daisy glared at her. “When we boarded the subway, you tried to take my seat, didn’t you? Look at me! I’m already over fifty, so why are you trying to fight me for a seat? You’re so young, but you’re not good enough to earn enough money for a car, so you come to th
Jean narrowed his eyes wearily, appraising Bianca from head to toe. “When you were sixteen or seventeen, you were all soft and cuddly. But now you’re covered in thorns, defensive thorns that stuck out when you’re exposed for who you really are.”Bianca listened to Jean’s insults and remembered all of the ridiculous accusations he had hurled at her yesterday. His tone could be so very sharp when he was trying to hurt someone.It pierced thousands of holes into Bianca’s heart, leaving her bloody and bruised.She had completely given up now.“It’s almost time to work now,” Bianca said calmly as she walked past him.However, Jean grabbed her wrist, holding onto her tightly and forcibly pulling her back. His eyes red, he howled, “We haven’t cleared this up yet. How can we go to work?!”Just then, Nina ran out in a hurry. “What are you doing, Jean? Let Bea go!”Bianca was wearing her compulsory high heels to work. Her heels were very low, but that did not mean they were steady. Jean
Bianca returned to the design department.She had managed to throw Jean off downstairs, but she would still see Jean’s face at their workstations.Thankfully, they were seated far away from each other.Sue Carter watched Bianca take her seat and immediately checked her reflection in her mirror, sighing resentfully, “Both of us went outstation and stayed up all night, so why am I covered in black circles while you’re perfectly fine, Bianca?”“What brand do you use to remove your black circles, Bianca?” asked one of her female colleagues asked anxiously.Bianca raised her head and said a little awkwardly, “I never used one…”“Not at all?!” Her colleague was shocked. “Are you a fairy? How could you stay up all night without black circles?! Sooob… We should throw all of the all-nighters here at the department onto you…”Sue put her mirror aside and said teasingly, “Don’t you bully Bianca now. Her boyfriend Jean is right here protecting her!”Everyone felt another wave of envy at Bi
They reached the city center.Jason gripped the steering wheel, asking Charlotte, “Miss Shaw, do you want me to send you to your hotel or the shopping center so you can explore?”“Neither. I invited a friend out for lunch,” said Charlotte as she patched up her make-up and put her lipstick away.Jason understood and asked, “Have you decided on where you’ll eat? If you haven’t made a reservation, we can make you one whenever you want.”If T Corporation was an empire in the business world, Luke would be its emperor and Jason, his trusted aide, its prime minister. Jason obeyed one man and commanded all the rest.Of course Charlotte would feel cocky when a man like that treated her with such respect.“Oh, we’ve made our reservations.” Charlotte told him where she was going to eat.The car headed straight for her destination.About ten minutes later, Jason stopped the car by the curb. “Here we are, Miss Shaw.”“Thank you!” Charlotte grabbed her bag and flipped her wavy brown hair. B
Marie looked stunned. “But… She’s my little sister…”Jennifer had been out and about in society for several decades, and she had long since witnessed all of the nasty things women did to each other. The moment Charlotte looked up, she immediately knew what the girl was planning.Charlotte muttered to Marie coldly, “Stop defending that little b*tch! She’s a tumor that should be removed ASAP. Both you and your mother have already tried helping her. You funded her studies overseas and spent so much money on her. You’ve already done more than enough for her. It’s her own fault for knowing nothing other than seducing other people’s men!“I’m telling you, she is nothing to me, and I have to do this to her to protect my love!” With that, Charlotte went back to her seat.Marie pretended to be conflicted about it for such a long time until Charlotte frowned, on the verge of losing her temper. Only then did Marie make the necessary arrangements.…After Marie left the room, she first glanc
“As long as he stays out of your sight, I won’t make a move,” said Ray.If Gordan were not one of Luke’s pals, he would have been long gone.Anyone who dared to mess with someone Ray cherished would not be let off easily. The only reason Gordan was still breathing was thanks to Luke.“Alright, Ray. Just let it go. I’ve moved on and started a new life. Plus, I’m studying at Capital University. We have mutual friends, so running into him is inevitable. If that happens, we’ll just be strangers. There’s no need to step in for me or act impulsively.” Just as Vivian finished speaking, the doorbell rang.“Is it the clothes delivery?” asked Ray.“No, while you were talking with Mr. Crawford, I asked someone to buy some medicinal cream. The ones here work better than the ones in Russia. A little massage with it should help you heal faster,” Vivian said, grabbing a mask and hat before heading to the door.“Miss, is the boss alright?” asked one of Ray’s subordinates.“He’s fine. Did you ge
When Ray heard that there was a 90% chance of success, he could not help but ask, “Can you walk me through your plan?”“The prison where Kassy is being held actually has an underground passage. I’ve already spoken with the prison officials, and we can use that passage to transport her out. It connects to the sewage system, which leads directly to another detention facility. "The only catch is that this facility’s underground pipes don’t connect to the outside world, so the remaining 10% risk lies in moving Kassy onto the main road and securing her at the new location.“This whole operation can be done without anyone noticing, which is why I’m confident it’ll work.” As Luke explained, he pulled out a detailed map of the sewer system. “Here’s the layout I had someone retrieve. This is the starting point, and this is the destination. If we take this route, we can move Kassy without alerting Abel’s people.”Abel’s men were keeping a constant watch outside the prison now. That was prec
Luke had no idea what kind of mindset the person who poisoned Vivian had. However, he found Gordan’s current behavior quite intriguing.“Luke, what’s with that look?” Gordan felt uneasy under his gaze.“You seem pretty concerned about Vivian,” Luke leaned back on the couch and said thoughtfully.Gordan froze for a moment before laughing it off. “What? No way! Why would I care about her? Come on, Luke, don’t say stuff like that. If she hears it, she might start getting ideas.”Luke could not be bothered to expose his act and got straight to the point. “Why are you here?”“Speaking of that, I almost got sidetracked by that woman.” Gordan quickly pulled out his phone, grimacing. “Man, Ray really didn’t hold back. I need to get some treatment for these bruises later.”Luke took the phone and tried to unlock it. It needed a passcode. He handed it back. “Unlock it.”“All set, boss.” Gordan unlocked the phone and went back to pressing an ice pack against his face.Luke scanned the scr
It was the sound of a body slamming onto the ground.Gordan’s furious curses rang out. “Damn it! You're really going all out, huh? Do you think I'm scared of you?”Another loud thud followed.Vivian frowned. What the hell were they doing? Were they really going to fight until one of them won?Both of them were skilled fighters. If they kept this up, neither would walk away unscathed.“Enough!” shouted Vivian.The two men locked in the fight froze for a moment.“Vivian, stay out of this. I’m beating him to a pulp today,” growled Ray, wiping the blood from the corner of his mouth. He was not in great shape, but neither was Gordan.“Ray, I don’t want to see him,” said Vivian. She did not want Ray fighting him. It was not to protect Gordan but because she did not want Ray getting hurt.Also, she definitely did not want Gordan to see her like this. She could already picture his smug face, his sarcastic remarks and his gloating.“Fine. If you don’t want to see him, I’ll just beat
After returning to the hotel from the hospital, Vivian felt much better.To her, the fact that Ray had taken her to the hospital meant there was hope for the future, which lifted her spirits. She picked up an apple from the fruit platter the hotel had provided and took a bite.“Ray, this apple is really good. Want to try one?” asked Vivian.Ray shook his head. “You go ahead. By the way, can I take a look at the luggage you brought from Russia?”Vivian nodded. “I only hung up my clothes. Everything else is still in the suitcase. You can just take the things out.”Ray walked into the bedroom, pulled out her suitcase, and opened it. Inside were just books and a few other small items, nothing unusual.“You didn't bring any food with you?” asked Ray.“I haven’t really been in the mood, but the food here is way better than Russian food, so I didn't feel the need to bring anything.” Vivian’s tone was lighthearted now that she was in a better mood.“That's true.” Ray agreed, then asked
Ray's tone turned serious. “Alright, I'll make the arrangements immediately. Dr. Craw, once the toxicology report is out, we’ll still need your help.”“For toxicology cases like this, I recommend combining both modern medicine and traditional herbal medicine. Don’t worry, if I can help, I definitely will,” Luca assured him.“Alright, thank you.” Ray expressed his gratitude and ended the call before updating Luke on the situation.Luke reassured him, saying, “If Vivian was really poisoned, don’t worry. Previously, Luca discovered that her biological mother had been poisoned with a slow-acting toxin. She prescribed herbal medicine and used purely traditional herbal medicine to detoxify her. It didn’t take long for all the toxins to be expelled, and her health fully recovered. So, rest assured. If it’s something she can fix, she’ll do everything she can.“Besides, once we identify the exact problem, the doctors will be able to step in and help, right?”“Yes. Thank you both in advance
Gerald walked over. “Ms. Sanchez, what's wrong?”He was eager to get back upstairs and stash his cigarettes before someone noticed and took them.Hera yanked open his bag, glanced at the cigarette brand, and scoffed. “I thought it was some expensive brand. But it's just this? And you’re acting all deferential to her over this?”Gerald was rendered speechless. “I knew Ms. Craw was going out, so I asked her to bring these back for me. This is the brand I’m used to. Maybe it’s not expensive to you, but for me, it’s what I can afford.”Realizing she had misspoken, Hera felt a bit awkward. She quickly changed the topic. “Still, is a pack of cigarettes really worth you being so grateful to Luca? How much could it have cost?”“It’s not about the money,” replied Gerald. “It's just a nice surprise. I never expected to get anything out of helping Ms. Craw, and this kind of unexpected gift has nothing to do with the price. Besides, I'm not being overly grateful. I'm just happy.”He was ba
Luca’s lips were already swollen and flushed from Luke's kisses.That deep shade of red, reflected in Luke’s eyes, was utterly captivating. It tugged at his nerves, stirring an uncontrollable desire within him.At that moment, he had only one thought, and it was to completely lose himself in her.…The two of them stepped out of the bedroom.Vivian quickly turned her back and greeted Luke when he saw him coming out, “Hello, Mr. Crawford.”“Vivian, don’t worry. Everything will get better,” replied Luke.Vivian simply hummed in response.Ray gave them a grateful nod as Luke took Luca’s hand and led her away.It was only after hearing the door close that Vivian finally turned back around.Ray glanced at her and said, “Vivian, they’re your friends. You don’t have to act this way around them. They won’t judge you.”“I know they won’t…” Vivian let out a soft sigh. “I just feel like I look terrifying right now. I didn’t want to scare them, so I avoided facing them directly. But it’
“I once treated someone who had been slowly poisoned over a long period of time. Their pulse was similar to Vivian’s. Given that your family has good genetics, yet Vivian is different from the rest of you, and her skin improved after leaving her original environment, all of this confirms my suspicion.“Could it be that someone in your family has been poisoning Vivian? That would explain why her skin ended up like this.”“If she really has been poisoned, then would staying away from that environment or identifying the person responsible help her get better?” asked Ray.Luca shook her head.“The poison I’ve encountered before was a slow-acting toxin that kept the victim’s skin dark. I don’t know exactly what it was, but long-term exposure to any poison has an effect on the body. It's just a suspicion now. I need to consult someone I know. And honestly, I can’t be sure what’s really causing Vivian’s condition.“Is her skin deteriorating so quickly because she was poisoned once more a