Xavier's words did not cause the slightest change to Luke's expression. Luke's grip on his teacup tightened a little. "You can always give it a try. I'd like to see if you've learned anything in your five-year stint in prison." Xavier's expression was extremely unpleasant. He knew that the evidence in the folder was enough to lock him away for a long time. He could not hide the burning anger in his eyes. "Do you think that you're innocent, Luke? T Corporation must have many illicit deals behind the scenes, right? Don't think that I don't know that you've manipulated the stock market and nearly caused an economic crisis in A City from which you've gained a lot. Do you think that you can deceive everyone? Should I guess how you'll end up if I manage to find any evidence of T Corporation's crimes?" Any company would be involved in under-the-table deals, especially a multinational company like T Corporation. There was no need to elaborate on what would happen to Luke if those
"Aunt Shakira, Mom says that my sister was stillborn, and that must be true. Just think about it. Would anyone lie to my Dad and Mom?" Leia said with a sorrowful face. Shakira thought about it and decided that it was the case. Back then, Jack might not be the influential politician he was now, but he was a rising star in the political world who had made a name for himself. No one would dare lie to him or steal his child. However, somehow Shakira felt uneasy about it. "Don't worry, Aunt Shakira, if my sister is still alive, I believe that I will eventually find her someday. My sister is my adopted mother's birth daughter, which means that she is my elder sister. I'll ask other people to look for her too," Leia said, which made Shakira feel comforted. "You're a good girl, Leia. Your mother is lucky to have adopted you, you're so kind and understanding…" Shakira felt emotional when she said that. She had always been satisfied with Leia's intelligence and maturity. "You're joki
Eventually, Leia managed to extricate herself from the mob. When she found Xavier in his room, he was drunk as a fiddler, which gave her a buzzing headache. 'Why is Xavier so useless? Not only he can't manage his marriage with Bianca, but he's here drinking his worries away!' Leia took her sunglasses off and angrily kicked Xavier, who was slumped in a pile. "Get up!" Xavier lifted his head from amid a pile of empty beer bottles. When he saw that Leia was in front of her, his unfocused gaze seemed to have cleared up a little. "Say, aren't you busy all day, you big movie star? Why do you have time to visit me?" He said impatiently. "Don't you know why I'm here? I thought you already have a marriage certificate with Bianca, so why would she appear in front of the media as the birth mother of Luke's twins?" Leia asked exasperatedly. Leia thought that the birth mother of the twins was only a tool for childbirth and was no one important to Luke. However, she did not expect that
Old Mr. Norman wanted to build a new house over the old family house. Bianca had seen the other designs at the company. Some designs were modern mansions, some were classic manors, and some had Eastern influences with zen gardens… Old Mr. Norman had rejected every single one of those designs. Eventually, Old Mr. Norman got impatient and started calling the designers of T Corporation idiots. He was not happy that all the elite designers in a multinational corporation could not produce the design he wanted. The most troublesome thing was not that Old Mr. Norman was picky but that he did not explain what he desired. It was not easy to be a good designer. Not only would a good designer be creative and produce consistent quality work, but they also have to possess incredible aesthetic skills. Bianca had studied architectural design when she was in an overseas university. She knew all the basics, but her brain was still in a muddle. She did not know what Old Mr. Norman's desi
"Stop this nonsense! I'm ashamed of you!" With no other choice, Luke grabbed his mother with both arms, stuffed her into the car, locked the doors, and quickly drove away! Bianca was still trembling after Allison was brought away. Her hands were tightly clenched into fists, and her fingers were ice-cold. Through the window, Bianca could see Allison knocking on the car window and trying to get out. Allison could shed her image of a socialite and act like a savage just so that she could break up Bianca and Luke. Bianca did not understand. She could not rest at ease if she could not get Allison's approval to be with Luke. She remained silent for a long time. The heater was on, but she could not feel any warmth at all! Divorcing with Xavier was the least of her worries now. Even if she could be free of that marriage, there were still multiple obstacles before she could be together with Luke… She sighed, rubbed her temples, and forced herself not to overthink. Sitting
Bianca was like a juicy ripe peach that suited Luke's tastes. No other woman could replace her. In Luke's opinion, he had done a lot so that they need not hide their relationship. However, he was frustrated and helpless that Bianca did not seem to want to move forward together. Luke's words had caused Bianca's heart to wrench. She knew that she was important to him, but she could not shake away the feeling of inferiority. That feeling was like something stored in her chest that would occasionally flare up and explode, making her chest hurt and obliterating her feelings of security. Bianca knew that the fault was at Allison, who was trying to pull them apart, and not with the man who loved and protected her. She looked at Luke's profound and patient eyes and felt guilty. "I'm sorry. Your mother came here to cause trouble, and I couldn't control myself…" "You don't have to say sorry to me. It's not your fault, Bianca. It's all the issues in my family…" Luke took out a cig
The next day. T Corporation. "This is the design you wanted, Madam. I've sent a digital copy to your mailbox," Bianca said as she handed the printed design to the department lead. The department lead looked at Bianca suspiciously. Her eyes nearly popped out of their sockets when she saw the incredibly beautiful design. "You drew this yourself, Bianca?" She asked incredulously. Bianca nodded calmly, wearing a tranquil smile on her beautiful face. The department lead carefully looked at the design several times. The design in her hands was flawless. Even she could not come up with something like that. The usually arrogant department lead suddenly had a newfound understanding of the rookie design assistant. Did Bianca come up with the design herself? "Bianca, you should know that if we find out that someone else did the design, the consequences are dire," the department lead said sternly. Bianca looked at her calmly. "I stayed up very late to work on it, Madam. I can rem
The design meeting started. Luke was seated in the leading position. He wore a black business suit and sat straight and tall, a formidable presence in the crowd. His gaze was profound, and his lips were tightly pressed together, which gave him a dependable and authoritative air. He made a brief speech, after which he listened attentively to the reports by the leaders of various departments. The main topic of the meeting was "increasing design productivity." The designers discussed the latest trends in design and exchanged their experiences. Everyone might be from a different department, but there were still some things that they could learn from each other. They shared design resources and had a lively discussion about the Finishing Touch Workshop and the Divine Inspiration Showcase, two world-renowned design studios. The two studios had only started a few years ago, but they had gathered a wealth of design talent and started several worldwide trends. T Corporation was a
Sophian realized she had made a mistake and quickly apologized, “I’m sorry, Madam Allison. I saw it was someone familiar, so I didn’t think too much about it.”Allison shot her a furious glare.Sophian knew full well that Allison and Susan did not get along, yet she still opened the door for her. Was she out of her mind?“Oh my, after all that time in Seoul, you didn’t pick up anything good? Still that same fiery temper.” Then came Susan’s mocking voice.Allison froze for a moment and shifted her gaze toward the doorway.“How did you get in here?” demanded Allison. Did she not just ring the bell outside? How did she get in so quickly and without anyone opening the door to the villa?!Susan gave Sophian a smirking glance. “Your helper let me in.”Allison frowned, still confused. Susan continued, “I’m living right next door now.”“Oh, so I heard you got kicked out by Old Master Crawford. Moved right next door, did you? Sticking around like a ghost that won’t go away, living jus
Sophian stood before her. Her face was a picture of hesitation and discomfort. “Madam Allison, how about you order using your phone?”“What? You can’t even handle this small task?” At this point, Allison had completely shifted her view of Sophian, now seeing her as just another maid. Her previous tone vanished, replaced by a much more domineering attitude.Sophian felt helpless and quickly explained, “It’s just that the food from this place is just too expensive. I don’t have that kind of money.”Once she finished speaking, a flush of embarrassment crossed her face.Sophian had come back with Allison to work off the debt she owed from her cosmetic surgery. Therefore, she had no money to spare.Allison paused for a moment, a thought crossing her mind. After a brief moment, she picked up her phone and said, “It's not like I'm having you pay for it. You can't even temporarily cover it?”Sophian smiled awkwardly. “I just transferred money to the hospital.”Allison let out a faint hu
“You don’t like eating outside food, do you?” Luca thought that preparing breakfast and dinner for him was not a big deal.Besides, the main point was that Luke did not like eating out. He always felt the taste was off and lacked nutrition.“Actually, it’s not that I don’t like eating out. It's just that all the food outside tastes the same to me.” Luke gently squeezed her hand.“Hey, focus on driving.” Luca chuckled.Luke withdrew his hand and returned it to the steering wheel. “With that woman around, it wouldn’t be convenient for you to cook. Are you really going to make breakfast for them too?”If that happened, it would defeat the purpose of his plan.Luca thought for a moment. She did not mind ignoring Sophian, but if she cooked for Luke and not for Allison, that might not sit well with her. Allison could easily make a fuss over even the smallest details. “So, should we just eat out for breakfast and dinner from now on?”“Yes.” Luke did not mind.It did not matter where t
“Something I like?” Luca laughed. “What could that be?”“You’ll find out when we get there.” Luke kept it mysterious.“Alright then, I’ll wait for your surprise, Mr. Crawford.” Luca was in good spirits without letting family issues dampen her mood. Therefore, she video-called the kids.Luca dialed Mr. Griffin’s number.After Mr. Griffin answered the call, he handed the phone to Lanie. “Young Master Lanie, Ms. Craw wants to talk to you.”“Thank you, Mr. Griffin.” Lanie took the phone and pressed ‘accept’.Luca positioned the camera to include both her and Luke. She waved at the screen. “Lanie, Rainie, Tommy, what are you all doing?”“Lanie! Lanie, I want to talk to Ms. Luca!” Tommy waved excitedly at the camera, eager to take the phone.Lanie handed it to him. “Go on, tell Daddy and Ms. Luca about your good news.”Luca smiled and asked with curiosity. “Good news?”“Daddy, Ms. Luca, I made it to the next level in the math competition! The finals are this Saturday!” Tommy said e
“Why are you being so slow?” Allison was irritated. She shoved the products into Sophian’s hands.“I told you to use them, so just use them.” Allison ran out of patience. After urging Sophian, she lay back down.Sophian had no choice but to follow her instructions and poured out some product. The texture of the product in her palm made her pause for a moment. It was incredibly moisturizing!She gently patted it onto Allison's face and noticed the area she touched felt just as smooth.Allison let out a content sigh. “This essence is really soothing.”Even though Sophian was still worried about potential side effects, she could not help but admire the instant hydrating effect. She asked in a low voice, “Madam Allison, is this really developed by that woman?”She could not believe that Luca had such skills and wondered if the essence had just been repackaged into another bottle and sold as her own creation.“That's what she says,” replied Allison. “But she's into pharmaceuticals, s
After agreeing to become the maid, Sophian’s excitement gradually turned into anxiety.The villa was so large. Could she really handle all the tasks a maid was supposed to do?As she thought about it, she accidentally left the bread in the toaster for too long. After serving it to Allison, she was scolded.“What’s this? It’s just a slice of toast. How could you burn it like this? How am I supposed to eat it?” Allison was clearly displeased.Sophian awkwardly explained, “Madam Allison, this is my first time using this toaster. I didn’t quite get the temperature right...”Allison was about to keep complaining but paused for a moment, remembering that Sophian was the one she had brought in to be the maid. Now, she was the only one who could make breakfast for her. She disdainfully tore off the burnt part and took a bite. “Where’s the soy milk?”“It’ll bring it out,” replied Sophian, heading back to the kitchen. She brought out two glasses of soy milk and another slice of toast tha
“Are you planning to tell me that Madam Allison brought someone back?” Luca had a feeling she knew what was going on. Luca had been wondering why Allison had taken such a big risk by going out during the day, but it all made sense now.“Yes, she brought someone back and said she'll be taking over my job,” Aunt Neile replied helplessly. She was worried she had lost her competitive edge, which made her feel anxious.“I got it, Aunt Neile.” As soon as Luca spoke, there was a cheer from inside the lab. She glanced back and saw that there seemed to be progress in the research. Rhett gave her a thumbs-up to signal success.She slightly smiled and nodded before hearing Aunt Neile's voice again on the phone. “Ms. Craw, there’s something I’d like to say, though I’m not sure if I should. I’ve thought about it, and I feel like I should. Even though Mr. Crawford isn’t the type to fool around, you have to be careful. He has no interest in that woman, but she’s clearly interested in him. You sh
Allison watched the two of them go upstairs, and instantly, her temper flared.Not allowed, huh?Allison refused to believe it. She would find a way to turn things around and reclaim her position in this family!…The next morning, as Luke and Luca came downstairs, they noticed Aunt Neile looking at them with red, puffy eyes.“Aunt Neile, what happened?” Luca was puzzled. What happened?“Mr. Crawford, Ms. Craw, Madam Allison just told me that I’m fired.” Aunt Neile looked distraught. She thought Allison’s words yesterday were just a joke, but first thing in the morning, she was told to settle her wages and leave. She was completely stunned.“Mr. Crawford, did I do something wrong?”Luke’s brows furrowed. Allison’s behavior was truly astonishing.“You’re not fired,” replied Luke. “Is breakfast ready?”Relieved to hear she still had her job, Aunt Neile quickly wiped away her tears and let out a sigh of relief. “Yes. Mr. Crawford, Ms. Craw, please have a seat. I’ll bring it out.
Luke was driving back home with Luca. It was already 9:00 pm when they arrived at the villa.Just as they reached the foyer and had not taken more than a few steps, Allison's voice rang out.“Oh, so you're finally willing to come back from Crawford Manor?” Her voice was dripping with sarcasm.Luca did not know how to respond to Allison and looked over at Luke.Luke let go of Luca's waist and whispered, “Go upstairs first.”“Okay.” Luca nodded, changed her shoes, and was about to head upstairs when Allison said again, “Stop. Who told you to go upstairs?”“Madam Allison, is there something you need?” Luca's tone was cold, carefully masking the helplessness inside her.Since she learned that Allison would be returning to the country and moving here, Luca had mentally prepared herself to be put in a difficult position. She loved Luke, so she was willing to tolerate whatever troubles came with it.Luca believed that as long as she and Luke faced things together, there was nothing th