"Like you said, it's in the past. People grow up, and it's about time we moved on from it. As for feelings ..."Rebecca forced a faint smile, her eyes icy."All I can say is that he held a special place in my life. In fact, he still does. But I am not the same person as before, and I will no longer compromise and sacrifice whatever is important in my life for him."Moreover, she no longer deemed Daniel as the single most important thing to her. She wasn't going to let go of everything else for his sake.On the contrary, it seemed Daniel was the one she was abandoning instead.Upon letting go of her affection for him, she would go on to discover the marvelous world waiting for her behind the curtains.She had always taken an interest in traditional culinary culture, design, and countless more of the wildest dreams she could weave unscrupulously ... Not to forget the sea of people she loved and respected, as well as those who doted on her.So, why on Earth would she want to cling
Daniel cast a nonchalant glance at her, and the corners of his lips quirked upward. "Sure, go ahead and open the door. I'll get out of your face right this moment."Hearing this, Rebecca began to recall the sound she heard behind her while she was texting Sam.At that time, she wasn't aware that Daniel was in the bathroom. Hence, she hadn't paid much attention to it.If that was true ...Rebecca raised her gaze and met Daniel's gentle smiling eyes. She couldn't help but gnash her teeth.Unconvinced, she stalked toward the door.Sure enough, it was locked.She twisted the doorknob frantically in anger, but it wouldn't budge. Annoyed, she swung a foot at the door.Behind her, Daniel witnessed everything and let out a laugh. He didn't even try to make it subtle."How dare you still laugh!"Rebecca spun around and glared at him, furious.Ever since returning to the country, she had mentally prepared herself for the scheming minds of the Browns, Daniel Winston, and even Ryan Je
The bridal chamber …Had Daniel not mentioned it, Rebecca would have zero recollection of it.She raised her head and scanned the room. The decor didn't seem that different from the room she remembered staying in at the Winstons'. However, upon closer inspection, there were noticeable differences.There was an additional dressing room, probably built by knocking down the wall to the adjacent room.Not only that, but the carpet by the bedside extended directly to a balcony shielded only by curtains. It was only upon prompting that Rebecca noticed this.In her room back then, this spot had been nothing more than a bay window.Clearly, this wasn't the room she used to inhabit; her things had just been moved here."Do you remember now?"Daniel observed her expression, the confidence in his voice unmistakable.Rebecca withdrew her gaze and turned to him casually. "Yes, thanks for reminding me, Mr. Winston. I just remembered. Also, sorry I'll be impinging on the room for you and you
The bathroom plunged into silence that lasted a good minute.It wasn't until a while later did Rebecca find the words to say."Really? You can't find any at all? I don't mind something thicker ..."Although summer was right around the corner, it still wasn't inhumanely warm at night. Moreover, with the Winston residence perched on the top of the hill, they would likely need extra blankets in the night anyway. Logically, wearing something thicker would give her the advantage.Anyhow, she couldn't think of anything that wouldn't beat the two pieces of cloth she held in her hands.Daniel fell silent, too.A few seconds later, he spoke again, "I've checked everywhere I could. How about you wear your old clothes for now and search around for yourself?"With that, he turned on his heel, ready to leave."Wait!" Seeing this through the frosted glass, she called out, "You can give the shirt to me ..."Then, she pulled the door open, leaving just enough space to extend her slender arm t
Rebecca kept silent. She waited momentarily until the sounds of the thunder and lightning had vanished. She spoke once again, "Isn't she afraid of thunder?"It brought back a lot of memories.Back then, they were planning for George's birthday at the Winston Residence as George's birthday was around the corner.George disliked Jessica. He didn't want a grand birthday party either. He just wanted to celebrate his birthday by having a family dinner at the Winston Residence. Rebecca was invited to the dinner, naturally.Daniel and Jessica had almost confirmed their relationship then. It was just that George refused to agree and even declared that his only granddaughter-in-law was Rebecca. It made Daniel even more rebellious.He returned home late that day. The dining table was cleared. George didn't want to see him and went upstairs early.It was Rebecca who kept some food for him. She was waiting for Daniel to return before she heated it.There was a thunderstorm that night. It st
Rebecca did not speak. She only tightened her grip even more. Her grip was so strong that it was like she wanted to drag Daniel to lie down beside her.The sounds of the thunder became softer, but the pounding of the rain grew louder.Daniel looked at Rebecca, who was lying beside him. He pursed his lips. He couldn't bear to look at her scars and wanted to cover them by adjusting her shirt.His warm fingers had hardly touched her shoulder when she opened her eyes suddenly. She sat up immediately."What are you doing?" She stared at him.Daniel's hand was still paused in mid-air. He met her eyes. He didn't know what to do with his hand. He drew his hand back after a moment. He looked away and said, "Your shirt's a mess. You should adjust it."Rebecca sat up too abruptly. Her white shirt fell off her shoulders, exposing her pale skin. Daniel dared not to look at it in the dark.Rebecca looked puzzled. She lowered her head after a while and frowned. She seemed not to understand
Daniel fell on the ground directly. Fortunately, he wasn't really hurt because of the bedding he had spread on the floor.Yet, he had a shock. He looked very unpleasant as he didn't have a good night's sleep.Rebecca didn't know about it. She accused, "Daniel, how could you do this? You could have just told me earlier if you were not used to the floor! Why did you sneak into my bed at midnight?"Daniel glanced at her and sneered. "I sneaked into your bed? Rebecca, did you black out again?"Daniel was reluctant to continue the conversation with her as he needed to go to the bathroom.Rebecca immediately tried to figure out what had happened.She didn't drink last night, meaning she didn't have a blackout. She remembered some memories from last night, but it was so vague, just like a dream. Yet, she remembered that she told him pitifully that she was afraid and asked him to sleep beside her.Besides, if she wasn't mistaken, she remembered that it was her who was hugging Daniel whe
Rebecca stood frozen in front of the washroom. Her entrance was sudden. Daniel, who was collecting the clothes, was stunned.The pair of thin pajamas seemed surprised at Rebecca's entrance and flipped open to show its pattern clearly.Rebecca almost forgot to breathe. She was wishing for death when she saw them.Daniel looked where her gaze had landed and clearly saw what he was holding. He raised his eyebrows for a bit. Then he figured out why she awkwardly asked for another pair of pajamas last night.He was speechless at his mother's actions. He didn't say a thing and put them into the laundry basket calmly."Let's go."Rebecca stopped looking embarrassed and followed him. Both of them said nothing. The atmosphere wasn't good.Rachel and Cheryl had woken up early and were already downstairs. Breakfast was placed nearly on the table. A couple of dishes were prepared. They looked like they had estimated precisely when they would go downstairs as the breakfast was still steaming
Penny didn't have much free time over the past three years.As she had envisioned, during the first year, she honed her acting skills amidst criticism while also working as a translator.Later on, she felt that acting didn't hold much appeal anymore. Moreover, realizing that there weren't any roles left for her, she gradually gave up and moved toward working behind the scenes.She had some work during this period.It seemed that a daring reality show, not caring about potential risks, decided to capitalize on her controversial popularity and invited her to participate in one of their programs.The reason Penny agreed to participate was because the show's first season had a good reputation, and the payment offered was reasonable.Continuously doing translations could be quite tiring. After discussing with Cecilia and weighing the pros and cons, she eventually signed up for this TV show.Unfortunately, she had underestimated the darker side of human nature.The show's production
"Really?" Zane blurted out, staring incredulously at Sam, who nodded calmly. His unruly and carefree demeanor was restrained, and his composed attitude showed that he wasn't joking.Zane fell silent again, furrowing his brow as he intently observed Sam.It was as if he thought everything through in an instant, giving up without hesitation. He didn't even remind Zane of the request from years ago to take care of Penny. Instead, he said this would be the last time he would help out.Logically speaking, this should be a satisfactory outcome for Zane. After all, from any perspective, the Lowe family's scion would only be a burden to Sam.Looking again at Sam's attitude, it seemed he didn't want Penny to know he was the one quietly spending money to handle things behind the scenes.Since there was no plan to meet her, he didn't need to worry about anything after that. If that was the case, it would be better to just end it early.That way, if Sam saw Penny falling in love, getting mar
All those old scoundrels from the Lowe family undoubtedly ranked the highest. Then there was Jessica, the entertainment industry's national goddess, who also played a significant role.Besides them, there were a few minor celebrities who didn't really make the cut.However, as Sam's partner and someone who watched him grow up, Zane privately hoped Sam could find a better girl.So, he advised, "There are plenty of socialites in Riverwood, and Amdale has no shortage of beautiful young ladies, either, and Rookfort isn't much different."You and the Lowe family's daughter haven't even officially met…""Who said I haven't met her?" Sam interrupted him without a second thought.He had even seen her twice. How could Zane say they hadn't even met yet?The first time, she gave him all the money she had. The second time, he spoke up to help her get that role.After these interactions, they could be considered acquaintances.Zane choked up and couldn't find the words to refute.He was s
Because Penny declined his offer, Zane didn't insist. After a bit of small talk, he ended the call.He politely mentioned that if she needed any help, she could call this number again. If he could assist in any way, he certainly would.However, Zanw knew very well that, given Penny's temperament, she would rather give up what she had than actively seek help from a stranger.Yes, to Penny, Zane was just a stranger. He was a person she had met once but didn't really know.This time, Penny didn't respond as coldly as she did when she was 18. Instead, she exchanged a couple of polite pleasantries, mentioned that she would reach out if needed, and then hung up the phone.After that, she let out a long sigh of relief and lay on the lounge chair on the balcony, gazing at the view outside the window.There were fluffy white clouds in the azure sky and the greenery visible in the neighborhood. Sparrows were chirping persistently as they darted through the forest, and the cicadas loudly bu
Although the other person said only one word, Penny could still tell he didn't have any ill intentions.Because of that faint sense of familiarity, Penny didn't hang up the phone immediately. "Hello? May I ask what this is about?"The unfamiliar and distant tone probably made the man on the other end of the phone pause for a moment. It was only after a brief silence that he responded."Young lady, don't you remember me? It's Zane Moran."His voice carried a laugh, with a hint of teasing.Only then did Penny remember who he was, but she wasn't happy at all.Zane meant no harm when that incident happened back then. But despite that, over the years that had passed, he became one of the people and things Penny would rather not recall.Whether it was the exam she missed, the incident where Spencer took her to the hotel against her will, or Zane, who gave her 30 dollars for a taxi ride.She just wanted to hide all of them deep in her memories.The recent events had particularly made
"I'm fine. You all don't have to look so worried. You're making it seem as if something bad is going to happen to me."Penny looked at the two people at the door who were showing a range of expressions, feeling speechless.Cecilia was provoked by her words, and her eyes turned red."We're worried about you. You have no idea what you look like right now. You're almost like one of those disheartened protagonists in novels who hated the world."Penny clicked her tongue twice and said, "Aren't you exaggerating?"She didn't believe it. She was just worried about money. It wasn't like she had become disillusioned with life.Besides, she didn't dislike this world at all. On the contrary, she really liked it.Whenever Penny came across posts online suggesting that all humans should just die, she always felt like rolling her eyes. If they wanted to die, they shouldn't drag others with them.When searching for her own role in movies, TV dramas, and novels, Penny particularly preferred re
Penny's way of clarifying things was to simply tell the truth.Sometimes, trying to cover things up would just lead to needing 100 more lies to continue the cover-up. That would often end up making things worse and more ridiculous.It was better to tell the truth about the situation.To answer the question of why she lashed out at the Lowe family, she briefly explained her experiences over the years.Why didn't she attend the final paper of the college entrance examinations? She personally reopened that old wound.As for that man in the hotel, Penny didn't have much of an impression of him anymore. She only remembered not taking his business card and accepting 30 dollars from him.Why did she show up at that man's hotel room? She wrote it down truthfully—it was her father who personally took her and left her at the hotel, wanting to trade her like a commodity.Every single word was carefully considered and written by Penny.She didn't share much of these things with Cecilia. Th
Once the official statements were released, Penny's career being ruined became a certainty.The only surprising thing was probably that after the film crew issued their statement, the largest investor also requested to withdraw.The film crew was completely shocked, but there was nothing they could do. The scion was willing to lose money just to withdraw his investment, so what could they do?The amount of money in the compensation was nothing compared to the amount that the scion planned to invest. The production team would incur a significant loss.With one less investor, the project's status was essentially downgraded. They had much less room to manipulate their gains now, too.One would understand why the scion was doing this if they used their brain a little.However, the protests from the audience couldn't be ignored, and compared to the investors, it was clearly more important to keep the show going.After all, they could always attract more sponsors, even if the amount o
In addition to the widespread backlash caused by the phone recording, Penny's academic credentials were also scrutinized and exposed.Before the college entrance exam, she had always been the top student in her school and had never ranked anything else.However, in the college entrance exam, she barely passed the minimum mark for key institutions, far below her usual performance.Some people speculated that she had been cheating during regular exams and that her actual abilities were much worse.However, the exam results could be checked online, and the fact that Penny scored zero on the last exam was surprising.It was even more shocking that she was admitted to a top-tier university despite missing an exam. It was truly exceptional.But few people paid attention to this information.After all, the achievements attained through hard work couldn't be faked. Even if the results weren't as expected, it was undeniable that she was stronger than many others.Regarding this topic, t