After her friends left, Susan immediately called someone. Louis was speeding back home. There was a beautiful gift in his passenger seat for his mom. Today was Susan's birthday, and he, a social butterfly, was returning home early for once.He wanted to give his mother a surprise, so he had not told her in advance that he was coming back. In the last couple of weeks, his mother had been forcing him to marry Yuri. They were in disagreement over this, so he had been reluctant to go home. However, it was a special day, so no matter how unwilling he was, he still wanted to celebrate the day with her as he was his mother’s only son. When he found out that his mother was in Armstrong Manor, Louis rushed over. Armstrong Manor was a small Western-style building with a long history. He stepped onto a pathway through a garden upon entering. The glass door led directly to the sunny backyard. This place was one of the dowries given to Susan by the Armstrong family. S
Hospital. Many people were waiting outside the operating room, including Old Master Crawford, Mr. Doyle, Sue, Nina, and even Allison, who had always been disdainful of Bianca. No matter how much she disliked Bianca, she was still Luke’s wife. Most importantly, she was giving birth to the flesh and blood of her son. A few days ago, because of the loss of her son, Allison had vented her anger on Bianca. When she thought about it now, she regretted it. Of course, she did not regret it because something might happen to Bianca. The woman had nothing to do with her. It was just that if Bianca was hurt, she would not get her grandson. Old Master Crawford was sitting on the seat outside the corridor. His left hand that held his cane trembled slightly, and his right hand fumbled with a rosary. He kept mumbling to himself, asking God to bless Bianca and his great-grandson. Sue and Nina held onto each other and paced in the corridor. They were praying
Bianca was lying on the hospital bed, the pain causing her consciousness to be a little fuzzy. Even though she was in pain, her mood was pleasant because she could hear the baby's loud cry. She saw the baby in the doctor’s arms. It was her and Luke's child, the evidence of their love. He was their flesh and blood. … Bianca gave birth to a boy, so everyone was very happy, especially Old Master Crawford and Allison. Of course, the reasons why the two people were happy were different. Old Master Crawford was just happy that Bianca gave birth to Luke’s son for the Crawford family. Allison was happy that Bianca gave birth to a boy as it would give her an additional edge when the Crawford family distributed their properties. The old man looked at the beautiful baby who was sleeping quietly in the swaddle after being cleaned by the nurse. He looked at the baby’s fair and tender face that looked like his grandson’s and could not stop smiling.
Bianca was shocked by Queenie's words, and her eyes focused on the woman’s angry face. She had never understood why Queenie, who was initially hostile to her, suddenly became so caring toward her. She now understood. It was because Queenie had found out that she was her biological daughter. Was she doing this out of guilt or because she wanted to make things up for her? When she noticed that Bianca was staring straight at her, Queenie suddenly realized what she had just blurted out. Queenie wanted to hide her face. She said, "Bea, don't think too much about it. You should focus on your recovery. Do you want to drink some water? I'll get you a glass of water." After speaking, she got up and walked to the table to pour Bianca a glass of warm water. Although Queenie's face seemed calm, she was actually very nervous. Her hand was shaking as she brought the glass to Bianca. When Bianca saw that Queenie was avoiding the subject, the tension that had ju
T Corporation. Bianca looked at T Corporation’s financial statements sent by Mr. Doyle. She frowned slightly as she went through the reports. During her recovery period, T Corporation had no leader. Even though Mr. Doyle did his best, it was still not enough to turn things around. T Corporation's shares had been falling sharply to the lowest they had ever been. Perhaps due to a lack of motivation, the overall performance of the company had been in decline. As she stared at the thick stack of documents that were filled with bad news, Bianca could not help but rub her tired temples. Everything felt so hard. Now she fully understood how busy Luke had been as the boss of the corporation and how exhausting his work was. She felt helpless. She did not understand why Luke would leave her, someone who had not stepped foot into the corporate world, a multinational company. She was under a lot of pressure, and sometimes, she even wanted to give up on herse
Tina brought Zayne to Bianca and the two had a long conversation in her office. They went on and on. In the end, Bianca decided to go for a site visit the next day to have a look at the promising projects that Zayne had proposed. ... At night. Bianca was exhausted when she arrived home, but the moment she saw Tommy, all the exhaustion disappeared. Tommy looked a lot like Luke. Whether it was his dark eyes, tall nose, and pink mouth, they all looked like his father’s features. The baby got his long and dense eyelashes as well as pale skin from Bianca. "My sweet boy, did you behave today? Did you miss me?" Bianca took off her jacket before gently lifting Tommy out of the cradle while talking to him. At the same time, she asked the caretaker, "How was Tommy today?" "Ga-ga..." Tommy seemed to be responding to Bianca. He grinned at her and then spat out some milk bubbles. "No, no, Madam, your baby was wonderful. He didn’t cry all day long. He loves to
Bianca did not expect to see Jack Norman when their car passed through the town where the project was located. Jack was wearing a casual farming uniform and leading a group of officials to the countryside. He had his sleeves rolled up as he led the way. He was talking to the villagers in a kind voice and had a friendly presence. He even occasionally bent over to help the villagers pick vegetables. Bianca was sitting in the car where she saw him through the window. There was an indescribable warm feeling growing in her heart. It was her father. Only when the car drove far away and Jack was the size of an ant did Bianca turn away. … Bianca took the project managers to the destination proposed by Zayne in his bidding proposal to survey the place. The location that Zayne mentioned was a barren mountain in Bay Town that had not been mined before. The area was about several thousand acres and was about six kilometers away from the famous Deer River, a loca
Bianca's decision annoyed several of the project managers. However, they knew that it was not the right time to refute her. They held in their anger and went on with the so-called field survey. Zayne admired Bianca. Bianca was not afraid of hardships and easily made her way through the mountain. He suddenly smiled when he looked at her thin but strong back. When Mr. Crawford was still around, Zayne had mentioned this project to him. Mr. Crawford thought that the plan was feasible and asked him to prepare a detailed bidding proposal, but before he could even give the proposal to Mr. Crawford, something happened to him.Unexpectedly, his wife shared the same opinion as him. Even though everyone opposed the project, she went forward with it firmly. Luke would be proud of his courageous wife! …Noon. Bianca and the others dined in the folk houses at the foot of the mountain. Although the scenery of Bay Town was beautiful, it was located in a remote
“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