After Will received Benjamin's call, he went to his room right away.As he opened the door, he felt an overwhelming sense of pressure. Stunned, he became anxious for no reason.Standing at the door, he scanned the room. Just as his gaze landed on the bed, he felt a piercing glare.He immediately withdrew his gaze and walked to Benjamin, standing by the window. He called respectfully, "Benjamin."Benjamin was wearing a dark gray trench coat. He had one hand on the windowsill and the other fiddling with a rosary bracelet. On the back of his hands, his veins bulged slightly.His expression was cold and as unpredictable as before. No one could've guessed his emotions. Will suddenly felt a great sense of danger.Benjamin didn't respond to him. So, he called again tentatively, "Benjamin."Benjamin turned around and looked at him. His soulful eyes tinged with red and were colder than ever.Will felt his scalp muscles tightening under his stare."Will, being a branch leader is truly u
Wendy was unabashed with what she was saying and was getting increasingly outrageous.If Victoria wasn't in such a good mood, she would've lashed out at her and stitched her mouth.Wendy was immersed in the juicy gossip and was unaware.She continued analyzing, "Oh, I know. He couldn't remember you. So, you forced yourself on him out of frustration and tried to bring back his memories."However, you were no match for him. You were alone when I went to the room the first time."But then, why are you so happy? Just because of the small victory you had? Aren't you settling too easily for too little, Victoria?"Victoria didn't know what to say. "It's not a bad idea if you can just keep your mouth shut. Also, it wasn't that he wasn't attracted to me. It was I who refused him."He had forgotten all about me just like that, not to mention he was hanging out with another woman when I first met him here."Now he even has a bride selection going on. I'm here to settle the score. How can
Victoria turned to look at Benjamin, standing beside her. Her smile was pure and sweet, and it was evident that she was elated.She asked in a cheerful tone, "Why are you here?"He was looking at her, too. The street was bustling, yet his eyes were only on her smile. His lips curved into one, too."Chance encounter, love at first sight, and then becoming a candidate at your groom selection."Victoria chuckled out loud, and her eyes were brighter than ever.Benjamin didn't lower his voice, so Wendy and Silas heard him while following behind. Their eyes widened in surprise.So did that mean he not only planned to cancel his bride selection but was also going to compete to be her groom?Victoria guessed correctly. No wonder she was in such a good mood.Wendy looked at Benjamin, whose expression was tender. She recalled how cold he had been with Roxy a few days ago, so much so that none dared to go near him.Victoria totally had him under her charms whether or not he remembered he
It was a wonderful scene of a handsome man and a beautiful woman flirting with each other. But Sebastian found it unsightly.He strolled over to Victoria and Benjamin and greeted, "Hello, Mr. Harper, Ms. Victoria."Wendy walked out of Victoria's shadows.Her gaze went from Sebastian to Benjamin. She couldn't decide who to support.Such a difficult choice to make between two men who were on par with each other.Victoria already knew what Wendy was thinking just by looking at her. She was tempted to kick her.Victoria said, "Fancy meeting you here, Mr. Veron."Sebastian had a gentle look on his face as he replied, "You should just call me Sebastian or Seb, Ms. Victoria. We'd sound like strangers to each other if you called me Mr. Veron."Victoria subconsciously glanced at Benjamin as she said, "I'm just not used to addressing other men by their first name."She cast a warning gaze at Sebastian from the corner of her eyes as she was explaining.Seriously. She was JUST done coaxi
Benjamin's gaze was unwavering as he replied, "She's still my wife regardless of whether I've regained my memories or not!"Sebastian replied, "Your wife? That was in the outside world."This is the Hughes clan, and Ms. Victoria is Milady's only daughter. All the elders value her greatly."She's extremely intelligent, and she would soon be accepted back into the Hughes family. She will then become a part of the Hughes clan and will never leave the Hughes clan anymore."He continued, "Your wife is from the Jameson family, Mr. Harper. She's someone from the outside world. Nothing will go your way unless you also agree to stay in the Hughes clan forever."Benjamin retorted, "You're in no position to negotiate terms with me. Vicky will not agree to it as well!"He wouldn't mind staying if Victoria had agreed to it. But she had made her stance clear—she would be leaving this place!Benjamin's voice was cold and indifferent when he said, "She's my woman regardless of which family she'
Benjamin remained expressionless.His gaze shone in a cold glint as he said, "She's my woman. She wouldn't marry another guy regardless of what it was for."The prerequisite for our cooperation and my keeping of the Hughes clan's secrets is for her safety. I will show you how insane I can get if anything happens to her."Of course Sebastian knew how insane Benjamin could get. He had seen it happen before, after all.Benjamin continued, "Give me 50 of your men. They do not have to be absolutely loyal to me, but they must follow my orders and execute them. If you can't do this, I'll have to get my men to come in."Also, give me a batch of your most advanced firearms."Sebastian rejected his request and replied, "Firearms are forbidden in the Hughes clan."Benjamin replied, "It's not easy to do what you want to do. Since you're planning to achieve your goals, you shouldn't impose so many restrictions and boundaries on yourself."Do you think Jackalyn has a bottom line? All these t
Compared to the other noble families, the interpersonal relationships of the Chadler family were considered the simplest.Lucas Chadler did not practice polygamy. He married the daughter of the Sandford family and the both of them had a son and a daughter.Asher was the only heir to the Chadler family.Victoria's eyes glinted as she replied excitedly, "The Cash King is here! Why are you still here? Let him in! We can't let our distinguished guest wait!"Silas slipped the small gold coin into his pocket.He was extra proactive as he replied, "I'll go get him!"Wendy looked at the small gold coin that was slipped into Silas' pocket and reacted quicker than usual.She strode toward Silas and pulled him back to get before him.She said, "I'll go! You've already gotten a small gold coin. It should be my turn now!"Silas was about to run after her when Victoria called him."Enough, don't you already have one? Just let Wendy go."Silas was low-spirited. He soon turned his gaze towa
Victoria was speechless.They could really hold a banquet for any reason.She lowered her gaze to look at the gold-embossed invitation before her. Her heart leaped in excitement when she picked it up nonchalantly.Damn, it was solid!Having such a weighted invitation in her hand felt amazing!Victoria really liked it.She opened it up and looked at the content of the invitation. She was attracted by the carved letters.The craftsmanship of this master engraver was top-notch. It would definitely fetch a good price if she was to auction the invitation.Victoria calmly placed it down as Silas and Wendy walked over.Silas eagerly looked at Asher and asked politely, "Do you still have more of this invitation? Can I have one?"Surely there would be more gold coins to be given away to those who would attend the banquet. Silas wouldn't want to miss out on such a good opportunity.Besides, they would surely be genuine gold coins if they were given out by Asher.Wendy smiled sweetly
Victoria saw that Benjamin wasn't looking like he was kidding at all. She placed both of her hands on his chest and turned her head away when he leaned in to kiss her.She then pushed him away hard and changed the topic by saying, "I heard that Solomon was beaten up in his own house last night."Benjamin chuckled lowly and said, "There's no use changing the topic."As he was talking, he arched his neck and pressed his lips near Victoria's ear.Victoria's ears, especially her helix, were extremely sensitive. She subconsciously pulled her hands back and covered her ears with her palms.Benjamin took the chance to wrap his arms around Victoria's waist and pulled her close to him. His face was close to hers.Victoria could feel Benjamin's burning desire as she was pressed down onto his lap. She now knew better than to struggle.This was just shooting herself in the foot!It wasn't that she didn't know what he was like, but she just had to stir him up.Victoria felt uneasy when she
Victoria used her other hand to support her cheek as she blinked.She said, "How could someone who dislikes wasting words and unnecessary chatter nag endlessly over just a small wound?"Benjamin coldly asked, "Are you complaining that I'm long-winded and annoying now?"He looked aggrieved, as if he would be angry if Victoria were to answer "yes".Victoria laughed out loud again and replied, "I'm not!"She used her finger to poke at Benjamin's cheek.She was smiling when she asked, "Are you madly in love with me, Benjamin?"Benjamin looked at Victoria seriously as he crouched by her legs.If it was before this, he would've nodded and replied "of course" without hesitation. But now …Benjamin couldn't be as confident and sure when he recalled Wendy's previous words.Victoria didn't think much of it and took Benjamin's silence as affirmation.She continued, "I'm thinking that you're definitely madly in love with me. That is why you're so heartbroken and reacted abnormally even
"Where are we heading to now, Ben and Mrs. B? Why are the people here so weird? Why are they dressed up as if they're in a period drama?"What is this place? Why are the both of you here?"Yves was back to his lively self as soon as he got into the carriage. He started asking endless questions."You regained your memories now, Ben? I knew you'd never forget about Mrs. B no matter what. Even if you did, you'd definitely remember everything as soon as you saw Mrs. B!"Yves gushed on. It took him a good while to realize that Benjamin's expression had changed. Even the atmosphere in the carriage became strange.He asked, "Did I say something wrong?"Wendy laughed dryly and replied, "He's not as deeply in love with Victoria as you think he is. He didn't remember anything."Yves laughed awkwardly before pursing his lips.He started to butter Victoria up."How did you know Ben is here, Mrs. B? How did you find—"Victoria pursed her lips and glanced at Gwen who was driving in the fro
Yves stared at Anna. She started out mumbling, and her voice grew louder toward the end.He looked confused. "Ben, Mrs. B, what is she talking about?"He was sure she was speaking the same language but couldn't, for the life of him, understand what she meant.Upon listening to Anna, Wendy immediately felt she was too quick to agree to Yves' request because of the money. She wanted to push him aside.However, he was in a sorry state with his limp. His face was visibly thinner than before, and his eyes weren't as bright as they used to be. She found herself sympathizing with him.Victoria pressed her lips together, and her brows creased further.Benjamin turned to Silas. "Go and get Asher!"Anna didn't dial back on her arrogance. "Great idea. I'm looking for him, too."There was a horse race today, yet he locked me up in that cabin! I have a score to settle with him!"Victoria recalled Asher leaving the stables urgently during the day and had a hunch about what happened."If yo
Yves looked up with teary eyes and could vaguely make out Benjamin's sour face.He rubbed his eyes with all his might. Benjamin's face slowly became clear to him as his vision cleared."It's really you, Ben! Oh, Ben!"He was pleasantly surprised, as though he finally had someone to rely on. He teared up in excitement.The next moment, he became aggrieved again. He was just like a three-year-old who was bullied by a stray cat.He cried, "You're here, Ben. Why didn't you ask someone to look for me? You've no idea what I've experienced."I've been locked away in that shabby cabin and almost lost it. I miss you so freaking much!"Benjamin looked less sour now. He took out his handkerchief that he brought along wherever he went.He passed it to Yves, who had tears and snot all over his face. "Clean up. You're a grownup man, you know. Look at you."With one hand taking the handkerchief, Yves clung onto Victoria with the other.Benjamin stared at his hand that was holding onto her.
Asher felt his heart shatter. "Why didn't you tell me earlier? I've already gifted it to someone else!"The person in charge felt his heart ache, too. "I wanted to inform you when you arrived, but you told me to talk to you after the race."You've always said that horse has a character and that you like it, no? I never expected you to give it away."Who did you give it to? Could you, perhaps, buy it back from him?"Asher was dispirited. "I can't."He waved it off and continued, "Forget about it. It belongs to someone else now."I'd been obliging to its every wish for all the time it had been here. Still, it never obeyed me."It's intelligent and chooses its own master. I can't tame it. It's no better than an average horse to me."Tell those who witnessed that incident that they shouldn't talk about it to anyone. You may leave."The person in charge glanced at him. Bowing, he acknowledged the instruction he received and left.Asher looked toward Sebastian and sighed dejectedly
Silas and Wendy immediately hurried over in excitement when they heard they were going to split the winnings.Wendy, who wasn't the best in maths, counted gleefully, "We bet one thousand gold coins. As the odds are at one to 246, we'll get … ten thousand, 200 thousand … 244600 gold coins. Am I right?"She surprised herself when she said that out loud. She and Silas exchanged glances and started hopping about in delight.That was a lot of gold coins! They were rich!"Ten percent of 244600 gold coins would amount to roughly 24 thousand gold coins, so 20 percent would make it about 50 thousand. Victoria—"Silas and Wendy were already dizzy. Turning to them, Victoria instructed, "Give us a moment, and take Onyx with you.""You …" Silas looked at her suspiciously. Was she planning to keep all the money to herself?She gave him a warning glare, and he and Wendy obediently led Onyx away.They shouldn't offend their moneybag right now.Victoria looked at Asher. "That's over 240 thousa
Everyone looked in the direction of the sound. It was a teenager who was around 15 years old. Not bothering to keep up his image, he sat on the floor and clung to Sebastian's leg.Besides him, many others were standing around Sebastian. They all looked at Sebastian pitifully.Asher loudly asked the one kneeling, "Just look at you, Troy Lancaster! What happened to your enthusiasm?"It's only a meager sum. Do you really have to react this way?"Troy Lancaster? He was the Lancaster family's youngest son, Sebastian's younger maternal cousin.Victoria had a photographic memory. She saw his name when she skimmed through the log book earlier.He had bet 500 silver coins, which wasn't the least of all. It wasn't a hefty sum either, considering who he was.The Lancasters had very conflicting approaches in his upbringing. His mother pampered him, while his father was very strict toward him because he thought he was spoiled.Judging from his reaction, he must've been greedy and impulsivel
Once Roxy left, several women with ill intentions who criticized Victoria earlier became uneasy. They came up with excuses and left one after another.As the drama ended, everyone calmed down. Some were listless, while some were feeling down.There were also a few who approached Victoria, among whom were mainly men. They earnestly introduced themselves.Benjamin scanned the men who surrounded Victoria and somehow felt betrayed. Glowering, he seemed about to fly off the handle.His glare was too harsh, and many retreated after a short exchange with Victoria. She studied those who resolutely remained beside her.Compared to people from the outside world, the clan members had less desire for material possessions.Those who stood their ground didn't feel displeased at losing a hefty sum in the bet. They also withstood the pressure Benjamin's glare exuded.It was fair to say they were the best among the best.They were from decent families and had been receiving proper education sin