Upon hearing these six words, Maia's cheeks instantly turned red! Hope, the "simple-minded" one, hadn't realized she was fed a mouthful of candy. She was now joyfully applauding like crazy!Meanwhile, a few steps away, the staff member's expression stiffened, feeling embarrassed as they said, "Cedric, the live broadcast is still on..."The live chat room exploded once again."Guard, guard, guard! Only Mr. Cedric can guard Maia's president!""Mr. Cedric is so cool! Mr. Cedric is only gentle to Maia!""Who would have thought... I didn't exit the live broadcast, and I actually witnessed this amazing scene!"Soon, the HL Corporation press conference triggered several hot topics that surged to the top of the trending list. "Mr. Cedric, live broadcast is still on," "Powerful entry of the Warring Couple," "Sugar Baby is Cedric," "Hope appeared at the press conference venue," "The Egoist is a gutter," and more occupied the top ten positions on the trending list. However, the live broadcast
Ever since the whole thing blew up in the Smith family, Victoria’s studio got even more popular. Not only did it attract members of the high society and celebrities, but it also captured the eyes of white-collar workers. Some of them also wanted to collaborate with her studio.However, Victoria’s hotheadedness preceded her. She only sold her designs to the right people, not just anyone with money. It was also entirely up to her if she agreed to proceed with the collaboration, regardless of how much she’d make.On the other hand, Aiken had a month's break before joining the Stygian Nation filming set. Maia and Hope arrived at Victoria’s studio and saw Ava standing by the entrance. The glass door was shut tight.“Ava,” Maia called out.“You’re here, Ms. Maia!” Ava yelled as soon as she saw Maia. “I’m not sure why, but Victoria and Aiken started fighting in her studios upstairs. I was tidying the gowns downstairs when she asked me to go home earlier than usual and to lock up the bou
“What’s Cedric doing here?” Victoria asked.Maia nodded and responded with a smile, “He was here to back up Aiken as well.”“A-Are you sure you’re backing me up, Maia?” Aiken pointed at himself.What kind of a backup was this? On the contrary, he felt like he was being undermined!He looked at Cedric and said with a smile, “Of course, you guys are similar! You’re a couple, after all!He proceeded to sing a verse from Unchained Melody, “Lonely rivers flow. To the sea, to the sea. To the open arms of the sea~”Victoria watched him as he tried to make a case for himself and laughed.“Do you feel better now, Vicky?” Aiken felt that it was worth it when he saw her laughing.Victoria turned her head around and said, “I’m thirsty, and I could use some tea.”“I’ll get it for you.” He patted her waist. “Wait right here, babe.” He just loved her very much.Then, he rushed off to get his babe some tea.Maia smiled sweetly at the sight of this. Then something came to her, and she walked
“The cape coat looks good.” Hope lifted it and gave it to Maia and Victoria.“I’ve given the design to the factory, and they’ve made about thirty samples before I’m satisfied with the one you’re holding. It came in yesterday. You become a noblewoman after you put it on. The buttons are customized, and they’re plated with some gold. It completes the cape coat.”Victoria had always had a unique take on fashion designs. Otherwise, her work wouldn’t be that coveted by high society.“This short fur coat looks good too. You can do anything with your hands, Vicky.” Hope took up a short fur coat.“The dye is custom, and I changed the design several times. It doesn’t look bulky when you put it on. Sometimes, less is more when it comes to fashion designs. Both of the outfits you chose suit Maia very much.”Hope chuckled. “Are there any designs here that don’t suit Maia?”Victoria nodded and smiled. “I guess you’re right. Maia was born to put on exquisite dresses. She has the frame for it.
“D-Do you know who it is, Mr. Hans?” Fernando was shocked. The same went for Maia too.Everyone thought Rita was the one who poisoned Hans several years ago and that he didn’t pursue the matter for the sake of the family. However, Rita was in the mental hospital. There was no way she could’ve done it this time. So, everyone thought this incident wasn’t connected to the last.Who would have guessed the perpetrator of both incidents was the same person? For that matter, who would have guessed that Hans knew about the perpetrator’s identity?Fernando looked at him and said again, “I’ve served you for many years now, but I’ve never heard you talk about the perpetrator. If the same person poisoned you, then this would’ve been the second time he had done so. Are you going to keep covering him, Mr. Hans?”He sighed heavily in response.Cedric’s face grew darker as he monitored his grandpa’s reaction, “Grandpa didn’t want to cover him, but he had no choice.”Hans looked at Cedric and n
“Yeah. It was used to pay his and his sons’s debt,” Cedric said firmly.Maia was dumbfounded. She knew Freddy was incapable, but she didn’t know that he and Ralph were cut from the same cloth.“They’re both gamblers? And they owed the debtors 20 million dollars?”“Including the interests.”Then, it hit Maia. She uttered hastily, “That explains why they went to the Larkin Manor and stole the antique paintings. They must’ve sold it off and used the money to pay the debts! However, it still wouldn’t be enough. Does this mean they got 20 million dollars for poisoning Grandpa?”After that, he gave her another bank statement.“I-Is this from two years ago?” She read the figure and saw a particular transaction circled with a pen. “There were 15 million dollars deposited into his account, and it was after Grandpa was poisoned back then. Are you trying to tell me that Ralph also poisoned Grandpa for the money?”“Do you think I should pursue the matter?”Without hesitation, she nodded,
Lauren’s eyes turned red the moment she saw Cedric. Tears welled up in them as she reached out with a trembling hand. Then, she stopped abruptly. The most powerful man in Prismara standing before her was her own son. She bore him in her body for nine months, and he was the son she had hoped to meet for over two decades.They must’ve been less than a hundred feet between them, but she, his birth mother, lacked the courage to step forward. She didn’t think she had the right. It was as if there was a wide rift between them and she couldn’t cross it.“A-Are you okay? Have you recovered well?” Her voice trembled slightly as she asked with concern. “I saw scars on your back earlier. Were you prone to injuries in the past? I asked my personal doctor to give me some skin salves for you.”She put a bag of salves on the wall cabinet. “You have to take good care of yourself. It would hurt my heart to see you injured. You must have been in so much pain...” Is this what a mother’s love fel
“Mom…” Eddie was a little nervous now. Lauren waved her hand at him calmly and said, “I have to bear the consequences of my actions alone.”Eddie looked at Cedric and said, “Cedric, Mom did do a lot of horrible things, but she did it to avenge her son who she thought had died. She didn’t know you were alive. “It’s only natural for a mother to want to take revenge on her child’s behalf. I know her actions were heartless, but you have to understand how it was for her.”Maia pursed her lips. She clenched her hands tighter as she listened in on the conversation downstairs. She, too, was waiting for Cedric’s answer. She wanted to see if he would take the step toward reconciliation.Lauren might have done countless wicked things, but she did all of it because of the intense hatred she felt from losing her son in the past. It reminded Maia of the moment when Rita pushed her off the building and made her lose her unborn baby.The pain was so crushing that she still remembered it vivi