Chamine had been thinking about this for a full day. Five years ago, she had already developed a ‘tough as nails’ personality. However, she was actually quite hesitant and confused now. She put her phone on flight mode and laid in bed, quietly pondering. By contrast, after Julian left Violet Villa, he immediately ordered Oliver, his personal assistant, to leak a bunch of photos. All of them were ugly photos of Charmine from five years ago! In the photos, Charmine was most probably in junior high, so her dress sense was very far-out and non-mainstream. She had an edgy, spiky hairstyle and wore heavy eye makeup. In some of them, she appeared to be in high school during her gold-worshipper phase. She exclusively wore shimmery, sparkly, and shiny outfits. Everything she wore during that period looked terrible and unfashionable.Furthermore, the Charmine back then always hung her head down low. She always carried an aura of helplessness wherever she went, her features extremely plain.
“It’s only a bunch of people feeling sorry for that scumbag man so they went a little overboard. As for the photos, there’s no need to worry about them for now.”“No need to worry?” Eric questioned her comment with a scowl.Charmine nodded. “That’s right, allow the keyboard warriors to continue slandering me. The more, the merrier. All this will help with the showdown in two days.”Eric looked pained as he furrowed his brow and said, “I’m sorry but I’m your agent so you better tell me what your plan is. Otherwise, it’ll be hard for me to carry out my duties if the current situation continues to get out of hand.”“You’re not as clever as you appear to be. Ponder on the principle, ‘challenges precede success’. As Tiffany and Julian are the ones responsible for leaking these photos, I promise that I’ll make them regret their actions deeply one day,” Charmine said carelessly with unshakable confidence.Eric was not reassured by that. Of course, he knew about the principle of ‘challeng
As soon as the editorial photos were released, netizens who had long been anticipating the launch swarmed in to have a look. The very instant they saw the photos, they were amazed. [Oh my gosh! Is Charmine’s attractiveness on the rebound? It’s gorgeous, absolutely stunning!][Please OP, have you forgotten that she’s a plastic surgery barbie? Everything you see is just makeup magic. It’s all fake!][Yessssssss, have a look at her previous photos. They’re such basic, subpar, and substandard pieces of work! For her attractiveness to fluctuate so drastically, it must be fake.][Have another look at our idol Tiffany. Even though her star presence isn’t that great, she’s still undeniably beautiful like a goddess!][The Avocado Green collection is the main attraction. Support our Tiffy! I’m going to place an order for ten sets!][Absolutely! Don’t buy the Ruby Red collection. Don’t support Charmine, that plastic surgery hag!][Kick the plastic surgery barbie out of the endorsement wor
Ruby Red could elevate your style in an instant and even make you appear more eye-catching. On the other hand, wearing Avocado Green seemed refreshing but it was a color that best suited a wallflower. It was not captivating enough.Even in people’s daily lives, there were not many who would splurge just to stand out. However, consumers of Guci were all high-end, branded goods fashionistas. These people were either movie stars or high-society wealthy ladies. Some were even tycoons! None of these people would be happy playing second fiddle to anyone!Hence, it only took a moment for the sales trajectory to flip. Avocado Green, with its initial leads in sales, was suddenly overtaken by the surge in Ruby Red sales. The overtake was no measly amount. In fact, more than ten times the volume was sold for Ruby red products!Eric and everyone else was astonished! This included Claire who was waiting for Charmine’s desperate plea for help. Nobody could have guessed that this was Charmine’s pl
Tiffany was understandably upset but was out in public, so it would not be good for her image to lose her temper. She could only respond sweetly, “What’s going on, Veronica? Take your time to tell me.”Feeling all eyes upon them, Veronica understood the reason for Tiffany’s polite front. At that moment, she lost her tongue. One of the socialites must have guessed the news and probed, “It can’t be, did Tiffany lose the showdown?”“How can that be? There’s no way. She practically had it in the bag so how could Tiffany lose?” another heiress wondered aloud. The crowd gathered around and started to pull out their cellphones to take a look.Without warning, the complexion of all the gathered socialites paled. Tiffany sensed something was wrong and snatched Veronica’s cellphone out of her hand. She immediately read the headlines. It seemed that the entire internet was obsessed with Charmine’s tagline and platform. Furthermore, the Avocado Green clothing line which was Charmine’s fashion e
“I promised your mom that I would take good care of you, but I …” As she said this, Veronica’s voice started to catch.Tiffany glanced at the red bruise on the back of her hand before looking up at Veronica. She usually portrayed herself as such a strong woman but now, she seemed to be teary-eyed. Tiffany could not hold it in any longer as she collapsed onto the floor in an embarrassing manner.“Veronica, I didn’t mean to hurt you. I was scared… I’m really scared! I know that the Bailey family will grow tired of me eventually, so I wanted to make a name for myself within the modeling industry before that happens. I want to earn as much as I can so that my future is secure. Why did Charmine have to target me like this? She’s already the Director of Gray Diamond Empire and owns so much. She even has Anthony. Why can she let me be! Why does she have to be against me! She must really want to see the end of me before she’s satisfied!” Tiffany spat out, her tone full of malice and deep p
Veronica had not left for long before Julian arrived. As soon as Tiffany saw him, she ran with chagrin into his embrace. “Sniff, sniff. Julian darling, I’m so upset. I lost and have let you down. I wasn’t able to help you in beating my younger sister. Waah…”“Tiffany my dear, don’t cry. You should be worrying about yourself, not me,” Julian said sadly while drying her tears. Tiffany continued to weep. “I amount to nothing, it’s my sister that’s truly capable. I lost fair and square. However, the higher she climbs, the more Anthony will be attracted to her. When I think about this fact, I feel terrible on your behalf.My sister used to really like you but I don’t think she does anymore. After this win, Anthony will surely like her even more. I’m worried she might even hand over her diamond mines to Anthony. Even though you’ve known her for over fifteen years, you still can’t be compared in her eyes to Anthony who’s met her less than a month ago…”Julian’s face turned stony as soon
Living on her own, she did not need to do a lot. The most convenient go-to meal for her was instant noodles. Because of this, she had even discovered a new way to prepare a self-heating box meal…Chris noticed that she was motionless and walked up to her to tug on her hand and said, “Mommy, mommy, hurry up and eat. It’s so nice to eat barbequed meat when it’s raining outside. Everything’s extremely delicious.” As he spoke, he pulled her toward the table. Charmine saw the heavy rain outside from the corner of her eye and had to give up on her intention of kicking them out as she sat down at the table. Anthony sat across from her, cooking up some pork belly. His hand movements were extremely skillful as he wielded a pair of tongs and flipped the meat over. Anthony quickly brushed on a small amount of oil before sprinkling some salt, pepper, cumin, and other spices. Very quickly, the air was filled with the mouth-watering smell of barbequed meat. Charmine furrowed her brow and though
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