The second Benjamin's hand touched Victoria's, he immediately felt the cold.The summer heat was unbearable, yet Victoria's hand felt like it just came out of a freezer.It was cold and tense.Benjamin felt his heart drop at the touch.Although he had lost his memory, he remembered that her hand had always been warm. Even during the coldest days in winter, her hand would be soft and warm. It shouldn't be ice-cold like this.Benjamin pursed his lips. His eyes were full of shock. He began to feel a strong sense of heartache on Victoria's behalf.Victoria did not want Benjamin to know anything about her health.She frowned and tried to pull her hand back. However, Benjamin's grip only tightened."Get rid of the ice blocks!"Benjamin's voice was cold and harsh.Asher looked at Benjamin and Victoria's hands. Weren't they being too much?Even if they pretended that he and Victoria's subordinates weren't present, Sebastian was still sitting right there.Just as Asher was contempla
Wendy listened to Asher's introduction. She exclaimed, "Horses No. 3 and No. 8 seem to be the best contestants out there."If nothing unexpected happens, the winner will be between them. If everyone bets on them, wouldn't you lose all your money?"Sebastian smiled and said, "Mr. Chadler always loses money whenever he invites people over to bet on horses."Victoria thought she heard wrong and looked at Asher in disbelief. "You suffer a loss every time?"Asher nodded as if there was nothing wrong with it. "Happiness is more important. Ms. Victoria, you can bet on Horse No. 8. My lucky number will definitely bring you some luck.""You—You find joy over losing money?""Money is a materialistic object. We earn money to spend it."Money was meant to be spent, but not in such a way.What was this called? He was basically earning money for other people to spend.Victoria had met people who spent money like water, but she had never seen anyone spend like Asher was doing.Rather than l
Asher continued to ask multiple questions excitedly.He wasn't the one that needed to compensate them.They would be happy after earning their shares. There would be no drawbacks for the Chadler family, either.If they lost … Why did the thought of them losing make him happy?They had earned a lot of coins over the years. It was time for them to return some of it.Compared to those people, he was more willing to let Benjamin win.However, that was impossible.No matter who won, he would not suffer from any drawbacks. In fact, he would even be able to watch a show for free.At the thought of the guaranteed profit, Asher was in a good mood.Victoria looked at Asher, who was smiling idiotically to himself. She asked, "Do you still need to ask? I want to bet on Horse No. 15. I'll bet 1001 gold coins.""1001 gold coins? You're betting one coin more than Ms. Bennett's bet."Are you doing it on purpose? You'll be humiliated if you make it so obvious and end up losing!"Asher seeme
Benjamin watched as Victoria tried hard to control the smile on her lips but still failed.There were a few moments where her smile would stretch to her ear.Benjamin felt an inexplicable sense of familiarity.It was almost as if he had seen Victoria act like that before.At the same time, an uncontrollable sense of jealousy began to form in his heart.He glanced at Sebastian, who was standing beside him. Sebastian was looking at Victoria with a warm smile on his face.Benjamin frowned at the sight.Sebastian's feelings for Victoria seemed much grander than he had expected."Mr. Veron, your calculative reputation exceeds you."Sebastian collected his gaze. "You decided to injure Mr. Hughes without hesitation. Mr. Harper still seems to be as vicious as before."However, you're in the Hughes clan now! You're not in the outside world!""Does where I am make a difference?"No matter where he was, he would not allow himself to be controlled by other people."Mr. Veron, don't fo
"With the sound of the drums, the horse race has officially begun. The horse in the lead is contestant No. 3."Look at No. 3's strong and healthy body. The way it runs looks …"Wait, No. 8 … No. 8 is chasing behind No. 3. It's managed to catch up with No. 3. No. 8 has overtaken No. 3."Without a doubt, No. 8 is the contestant Mr. Chadler believes in! It's amazing!"Contestant No. 15, what are you doing? Why is it just standing there?"Alright, No. 15 has started to move. But based on its speed, it'll definitely take last place!"The horses have already finished their first lap."Aright. I would like to take the time to explain the rules of the competition."In today's competition, the horses need to complete ten laps. Whoever finishes all ten laps and reaches the finish line will be today's winner."Anyone who has placed bets on the winner will win a hefty return."Let us shout to encourage the contestants we support!"To allow everyone to watch and understand today's compet
Roxy stood on the second floor. She watched as Victoria clapped her hands, opened her arms, and shouted. Roxy smiled mockingly.Did Victoria think doing something like that would work? What an idiot!Even if she clapped her hands till they bled, that horse would never overtake No. 8, no matter how fast it could run.Victory was hers!Victoria wanted to step on Roxy's pride. However, Victoria would only fail and be humiliated."Look at how Ms. Victoria's behaving. Doesn't she look like a monkey from the circus? She looks so funny!"Everyone began to mock her and laughed at her.Roxy felt even more smug.Suddenly, there was a loud neigh.The audience was shocked and turned to look at the race tracks.Horse No. 15 had kicked down a hurdle on its track. Onyx raised its upper two legs and neighed loudly.Its voice was loud and clear. Onyx sounded like a commander giving out an order. Its presence was also powerful and commanding.Then, something that shocked everyone present hap
Victoria watched as Onyx jumped past the last hurdle and went past the finish line. Her eyes widened.She stiffly kept her arms spread as her mouth hung open. She held her breath as her eyes followed Onyx's movements.Unexpectedly, Onyx had managed to come in first as it landed firmly on the ground.Victoria could not control her excitement as adrenaline coursed through her.She was happy. She was so ecstatic that she didn't know what to do.She shouted and jumped with her hands in the air. She turned to look at Benjamin brightly."Benjamin, I've won. I've won!"She ran toward Benjamin and jumped at him in front of everybody.Her voice trembled as she said, "Benjamin, Onyx just got first place. I won. We won. I'm so happy."Victoria laughed happily as she wrapped her arms around Benjamin's neck. Her face was red from the excitement.She was rich.She had finally solidified her position in the Hughes clan.Victoria was gleeful at the thought of Roxy's angered expression."I
The competition had already ended. Only a black horse was left running on the field.On the horse's back was a woman in white.The woman had a pair of bright eyes and some light makeup. She was beautiful.She rode on the horse's back. Her slender body was surprisingly strong.Victoria held onto Onyx's reins. Her body leaned forward as the horse jumped past hurdle after hurdle.The wind ruffled her hair. Her dress was also raised slightly. She raised one hand to feel the wind.She looked wild and free.Just like that black horse, she did not have a care in the world. She was beautiful and strong, demanding people's respect.Victoria sat on Onyx's back. She felt like she was flying.She had nearly died. She managed to survive and came to the Hughes clan. She found Benjamin and won the competition.All of these things made Victoria feel lucky and happy.Although it had been a harsh ride, she had managed to overcome it.It had been a long time since Victoria felt so happy. It w
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