Everyone in the vicinity overheard their conversation, and sure enough, murmurs were exchanged with one another. “So the Divine Bird is that pricey because they used special materials?” “Doesn’t that mean the Hundred Birds’ materials aren’t capable of supporting the medieval-style buildings?” “Will the Hundred Birds be able to find the materials? If they can’t, the entire project would be over, won’t it?” Everyone discussed as they looked at Max. Charmine, meanwhile, languidly looked at him and asked, “President D’Cruz, do you still want to take over the Jordan Group, and the Divine Bird to boot?” Max’s gaze darkened; he never expected the situation to turn out in such a way. He had already used the best materials available, yet they still were not enough? Forget about the Divine Bird. If he could not get those quality materials, the Hundred Birds Project would have to conceal the hundreds of billions he invested that would be wasted. No. That would not happen; not on
It was a pair of red brocade heels that glowed like the surface of a pearl. Not only the front but even the soles were wrapped by brocade fabric. Both heels were like a whole piece of artwork. Between the gap of the sole was a transparent pearl stuck between the gap wrapped by the heel’s brocade fabric. Charmine reached out, took out the pearl, and tossed it to the ground. The material had changed as it was stuck in the gap for some time, though it vanished not long after it was tossed onto the ground. Everyone gaped at the sight. “There’s such a mysterious thing in the world?” “Charmine was telling the truth; she did trip over the pearls!” “How terrifying! I thought Max was merely taking up this opportunity to take over the Jordan Group, that it was merely all a business tactic. Who would’ve thought that tripping her was part of his plan all along?” “Looking at it now, who’d bring all of their antique collection for a celebration? It’s too much.” “So this was al
Was it not enough for Anthony and Charmine to be glued to one another at Violet Villa? How could Anthony become blinded by this kind of woman? McKenzie was almost torn away by hatred. She stood up and stomped toward Max. By then, there was nobody else in the hall—it was so awkwardly empty. “Don’t be discouraged,” said McKenzie to Max. “Think of your sister. She’s still waiting for you to get rid of Charmine!” With that said, she marched away and left. That brought Max out of his silent tantrum. McKenzie was right; Waverly was waiting for him to get revenge for her. Waverly needed him. Materials, right? If Charmine could get them, so could he. Charmine’s little stunt of embarrassing him terribly would not be forgiven! Alas, much to his chagrin... On the same day, not long after Charmine had left, the internet was filled with the following news: [Hundred Birds Project Halted Due To Failed Materials.] [Management Team Impressed By The Materials Of The Divine Bird.]
Charmine walked out of the hotel and entered the car, allowing the driver to drive her. With her head lowered as she used her phone, Charmine did not notice the driver turning back to the hotel’s gate again. Her phone rang incessantly with messages flooding in. People in her family group chat threw words of praise to please her. [Charmine is indeed the heiress of the Jordan. She’s so capable! You’re able to secure such fine materials!] [No wonder you asked us to just focus on our construction… It’s because we have such fine materials!] [We’ve nothing to be afraid of—the Jordown Group will be over soon! Let’s see if they can mock the Divine Bird!] [Congratulations! The data engineers expect all of the Divine Bird units to be sold out within ten days!] Charmine read the messages and clicked out from the group chat. This group chat was like a ghost town on most days, but whenever Charmine did something well, this would become a page of praises and nice words. When she did
Annabel would get nervous looking at Charmine, and she might even feel embarrassed and restrained facing her. She did not want to enter with the thought of affecting Annabel’s mood. Anthony did not insist as he reached out to ruffle her head. “Wait for me here.” After comforting her, he walked inside. Charmine watched on through the glass window, and she grew more nervous. She had sorted out company-related matters… Would her relationship be as successful? If it all went well, she would get to marry Anthony and, once and for all, be his wife, by law and by promise. Charmine somehow accepted that, and she was undeniably excited. She hoped that all would be well. However… Charmine grew antsy as Nial held the examination’s result. He looked at Anthony solemnly. Anthony frowned. “How did it go?” “She’s pregnant, but…” Nial hesitated for a moment, sighed, and continued, “To put it in a simpler term, the embryo is very unstable, and there are signs of a potential mi
Charmine turned and left the top floor when Anthony was not looking at her, silently driving out of Royal Hospital. She then texted Eric, [Prepare for me a house Anthony can’t find.] Half an hour later, her car was parked in Marilyn’s Park that happened to be right next to the Bailey Corporation building. Marilyn’s Park was an upper-class residential area with only garden bungalows. The residents were all renowned people. The park was next to the Bailey Corporation. The more dangerous place was always the safer place to be. Once Charmine entered one of the houses, she texted Kay, [Remove all traces of me.] Eric, present at the house Charmine was in, handed the key to her. “I bought this house ten years ago and never lived here. It’s not under my name either, so you can live here hassle-free. Nobody can find you, but… Why do you need to hide?” “Nothing, I just want to be alone. Go back.” Charmine closed the door behind her. Eric looked at her and frowned. He sensed th
[Didn’t you want to make it up to me? House 6, 33-2, Marilyn’s Park. Waiting for you.] Charmine turned off her phone, encrypted it, and laid back on the sofa. She continued drinking wine from the bottle. Right, she decided at last—she had to cut it off with Anthony. She should not hang to it, lest they would both suffer even more. They had to cut it off so Anthony could take better care of Annabel. Anthony would not easily let her go, not unless she was with another man. For that, Alexander was the most suitable candidate. Charmine even thought of what to say, and she would tell Anthony as so...‘I’ve thought it through. You and Annabel are the perfect match, and I can accept Alexander. I’ve spent many nights dreaming of how he possessed me. He satisfied me, he fits me perfectly. He’s a nice person. ‘President Bailey, let’s break up. I like Alexander’s face; I like his body.’ If she said such vulgar things to Anthony after sleeping with Alexander, a noble man like An
In pain, Charmine grew sleepy unknowingly. She laid on the sofa as she waited for Alexander to come. She would no longer see Anthony after this night. She had to be with Alexander, even though she had to fake it… Charmine was not actually asleep—she was waiting for a knock on the door. Despite that, she fell asleep as she was unable to stay awake. Charmine failed to notice, however, that she typed in [House 3, 33-2], and not [House 6, 33-2]. She typed in the wrong digit… The instant he received her text, Alexander rushed to House 6, 33-2 right away and knocked on the door, only to be met with no response. He frowned with suspicion. Was Charmine antagonizing him, suffocating him with false hope that she needed longer to open the door for him? He could wait forever, though, so long as she forgave him. He waited, and waited... On the next morning…Click! Charmine was woken up by the sound of the door opening. Haphazardly opening her eyes, she saw two figures—on
There was an unnoticeable glint in Sonia's eyes. She nestled herself further into Harry's arms as she added, "Let’s go to Pares. We'll come back after I give birth to the baby.""Alright."Harry stayed by Sonia's side as he watched over her, cared for her, and talked to her until she finally slept in his care.He stood up tiredly and walked out of the room to sit in the living room.Thuck!Something fell out of his pocket.He narrowed his eyes to the source of sound and spotted a USB.Since when did he have a USB in his pocket?With a small frown on his face, Harry curiously picked it up and noticed the front side of the USB glowing. Something was carved onto its surface, too.[Granger].Was it Dior’s USB? Why was her USB inside his pocket?Harry’s clear fingers held on the USB tightly. He thought for a moment before he took out a laptop, turned it on, and plugged in the USB.A moment later, the screen showed what seemed to be peculiar surveillance footage with a descriptio
Dior was still lost in her storm of thoughts when a shadowy figure zipped past her and ran toward Harry.When she spotted this familiar figure, she reacted quickly and held onto him."Let go of me!" growled Guy. "How dare he slap you and misunderstood you? I have to beat some sense into him!"Harry broke free and chased after Harry.Dior, despite having lost all hope and life in her, mustered the last strand of her will to chase after Guy and reeled him back. "Brother, don't," she muttered, "spare your energy…" Her sorrow clouded her eyes as she mumbled, "He’s the man I love. Even though he hates me, I won’t allow you to hurt him. As for the explanation…"Dior smiled ironically. "Whatever. That slap decimated every beautiful daydream I have about him, anyway."She no longer expected anything from him.He had no trust in her, so what would it matter if she finally got him? He did not even love her, and he did not trust her either.Dior smiled elegantly, but her eyes were fille
Dior looked forward to that new shift.She watched as Harry made his way into the restaurant silently, unable to deter her mind from the daydreams she had of him, of the new chapter of their story they would have.He would apologize to her, trying to redeem himself, and kiss her dearly as he embraced her. Later down the line, they would have a child of their own, too.Harry's long legs walked in strides, his dark gaze trained on Dior.The bright light shone on Dior’s delicately stunning face, and she also wore a red dress.He remembered her wearing this back in Mount Village.He could remember how alluring she looked back then, how they stayed in the same room, how she put down her ego to treat him with so much gentleness.Harry’s cold face mellowed down, but recalling a certain memory, the vague wistfulness in him vanished and he sat in front of her.Dior looked at him fondly, like she always would. "Long time no see."Her eyes burned brightly as if she wanted to drink in his
Dior examined the footage the moment she received it.True enough, it showed Sonia and George talking about their little deal. It also showed how Dior was telling the truth while they both ganged up on her.Dior’s frail heart felt as though it was rejuvenated once more, feeling as though blood was once more pumped into her heart. Her dull eyes devoid of hope regained their lost luster once more.Not thinking twice, she dialed Harry's number with this evidence, though he had to be busy, seeing as he did not pick up even after the phone rang for a long while.Just as she was about to hang up, Harry picked up the phone."What do you want?"On the other end of the call was the voice that she had missed for so long. His low, hoarse voice sounded so cold and emotionless.Hearing his voice brought Dior back to the image of his handsome face, and her heart skipped a beat.She tried her best to restrain her fluttering emotions as she tried to speak calmly, "Do you have time? I’d like to
At Mount Village…Inside the elegant bamboo house was Dior, dressed in a beige dress. She sat in the front yard as she took sips of her wine.The sunlight shone past the leaves and illuminated her, yet she exuded an air of loneliness.She swirled the glass and could not help recalling the moments she spent with Harry.In the beginning, she was attracted by his looks; he looked so gentle and elegant.She gave him money, kept him company, and continuously showed up around him in hopes of conquering him.Alas, she ended up in this state.The time she spent with him in Mount Village was the happiest time she had ever had. They had lived inside the bamboo house together, where he took care of her and claimed her to be his woman.They even laid inside the same room.Everything was so beautiful.Cursed was her luck, however, that it was just an illusion. He had been using her from the start, while he chose to stay with the woman who lied to him and even hurt him!No matter how mu
"Although Susan was unhappy, she should've voiced out her displeasure instead of bottling things. Cheating is wrong, regardless. Furthermore, if she wanted a career, she didn't have to stay home and depend on her husband."Grandma Bailey halted.Was that what Charmine truly thought of?Grandma Bailey thought Charmine would find Susan too aggressive unto herself.Charmine glanced at Susan again and apathetically commented, "She doesn't want to make money on her own, but she wants to be rich while complaining about her man not making time for her and taking care of her? If a woman has no ability of her own and also blames others for her miseries, all she's worth is to sit quietly at home and wait for her husband to come home. She also has no right to cheat! This is how the world works."Charmine patted Grandma Bailey’s shoulder and held Anthony’s hand, her words met with everyone's evidently surprised gazes and their silence.Grandma Bailey was shocked. Sure, Charmine sounded rathe
The colossal cruise started to drift away from the pier.Eric stood on the cruise and let the wind blow at him, loneliness and hatred still oozing from his being.He stared at the blue ocean ahead of him as Charmine's words rang in his mind unceasingly.'Will you really feel good after you've killed them?''You saw Susan suffering from a serious wound; would you still kill the one sibling you have left in the world?'"Forgive them and yourself.'Deliberating everything carefully, his lips curled into a bitter smile.It was true, after all, that Charmine understood him the most.Eric poured himself another drink and downed it with loneliness as he allowed the cruise to bring him wherever it would take him.…Susan was still inside the operating room when Charmine and the rest of the Baileys rushed into the hospital.Darryl stood before the room, his expression blank, his figure lonely and helpless.So many things had happened in half a day.He found out about his wife's inf
"No one's stopping you now. Eat!"Anthony clenched his hands tightly and took another glance at Charmine. He was more determined than before, and he was close to eating the pills in the bottle.Charmine, who was held hostage, gradually opened her eyes at that moment. Her gaze drifted toward Eric before she asked, her tone challenging, "Will you really feel good after you've killed them? You saw Susan suffering from a serious wound; would you still kill the one sibling you have left in the world?"Eric halted, and his eyes darkened.Charmine had just woken up, yet what she said…He cast a cold glance at Charmine. "It's my business, and it has nothing to do with you!"They were his family, and he did not want a family like this!Charmine looked squarely at him. "Eric, I don’t care if you used me or plotted against me all these years; I've treated you like a true friend, nothing more nor less. You were the only person who stayed by my side in the past five years, so I hope that you
Anthony's breath hitched when he saw Charmine.He clenched his fists and, without doubting himself, relented "I can agree to your terms, so let her go right away. This has nothing to do with her; you only hate me after all. As long as you let her go, I'll take the pill. Everything will end right away."Susan shook her head. "We'll die after eating the pill. I’m not taking that!"She had just reunited with Eric, and she did not want to die yet. She looked at Eric and begged, "Please let Anthony be, why don't you? He’s your brother, after all, and he doesn’t even know about your existence. If you’re really angry, just kill Charmine, and I'll make it up to you—"Anthony's expression contorted in sheer fury upon hearing Susan's plea, and he glared at her with murderous intent."This was all your fault, so what right do you have to make Charmine take your blame?!""What on earth are you going on about?" snapped Grandma Bailey. "Charmine has been kidnapped because of you, yet you want