David's frosty tone made Rebecca's anger grow. She raised her eyes to scowl at him. Her tone was prickly as she said, "That's right. I don't want to see you! What about it? Can you get out of my sight now?"David had never been yelled at like this by a woman before. Although Rebecca had previously treated him much worse, she never showed him such a temper after her so-called memory loss. Rebecca was docile as a rabbit these days. She lowered her gaze, agreed with him, and timidly stood aside while calling him Dan. Rebecca had undoubtedly put on a convincing show if all that was an act. Yet, if she wasn't acting, did it mean her true, fiery temper was showing?David gazed down at Rebecca with an unreadable expression that made her uncomfortable. David studied Rebecca like she was a stranger even though Rebecca had convinced herself she liked him.Rebecca's chest tightened with irritation. It intensified after David remained silent and gave her a questioning stare for a long time.
"Did you notice anything different about me, Becca?" David lowered his gaze onto Rebecca's withdrawing hand before looking back at her confused gaze. "Or do you still feel doubtful?"He bent down to meet Rebecca at eye level. His gaze was calm and comforting. "How about this? You can be honest with me. It'll stop me from making more mistakes without knowing what I've done wrong. Hmm?"Rebecca looked up at him in confusion. His voice was gentle and sincere, much like his behavior. Unlike many wealthy people, he bent down to meet her gaze instead of forcing her to look up at him when he apologized."Do you not notice a difference …?" Rebecca still sounded doubtful."What am I supposed to notice?" David chuckled lightly. He had always noticed and picked on others' faults, but nobody had ever said anything was wrong with his actions. After all, no one dared to, even if he knowingly did terrible things and caused many to suffer.Rebecca could've been the only person who dared to unleas
Rebecca couldn't help giggling when she heard that. She wasn't about to ask if he had enough money to afford those things. Then again, she understood why he would ask that. After all, money was a necessity. Having enough on hand would save a lot of trouble.She glanced at the packed clothes and wondered whether Daniel had randomly bought those from a mall. Usually, he would never wear such things. They were short-sleeved polo shirts that mature, wealthy men wore. Rebecca would have thought Daniel had borrowed someone's clothes if he had donned such an outfit and held a metal flask bottle. The clothes just weren't his taste.Regardless, Rebecca's eyes shot to one side as her lips curved into a mischievous grin. "Daniel Winston!"David was silent. He had never found it scary when others called someone by their full name, but now? The hairs on his arms stood straighter, even though Rebecca wasn't calling his name. He peered at her cautiously before seeing her hold up one of the short
Randy felt David's floral shirt looked hideous from behind earlier. Yet, now that he saw David from the front, David's handsome face made the shirt more tolerable. Still, Randy was too afraid to look for long. He only gave David a few glances before looking away and saying, "It looks … pretty good on you, Mr. Winston. It's just …""Just what?" David shot the same neutral expression at him.Randy dared not stare at him in any way. He answered truthfully, "It just seems too thin for the cold season."Although the sun still shined most days, one couldn't ignore that it was late autumn. The temperatures were undeniably colder than the spring and summer months. Anyone who wore a thin shirt outdoors might freeze to death."You must not have a good tolerance for the cold, Dr. Collins," said a sneering David. He didn't find the shirt too thin. In truth, he had grown attached to the shirt and didn't want to take it off. After all, Rebecca's photos proved it looked better on him than his usu
"You're not that guy. How can you guarantee—" Rebecca was doubtful. Yet, her words faltered when she accepted David's phone and read through its contents.Shock overwhelmed her senses because Daniel had dealt with the problem from the root. The email reply confirmed their rented home belonged to an elderly man named Mr. Zabel Senior. It turned out that Mr. Zabel Senior had already passed away. Still, he had a daughter who should've inherited the house instead of the burly man, who was also Mr. Zabel Senior's nephew.On top of that, the email also stated that the burly man had listed a living space for rent in town, too. However, it was a room partitioned by wooden boards. Things were stricter in town. Plus, tenants and landlords must sign a contract before renting a space. Even so, the burly man found sly ways not to refund the tenants' rental fees. All in all, he was a habitual offender of this crime.The bottom half of the email explained the issue with cutting off the rental
The Johnson brothers bore grim expressions at the Winston residence in Riverwood.It had been almost a month since Daniel got hurt from the explosion. During this month, the Johnson brothers didn't receive any news about Rebecca.As for Daniel, who suffered many burn wounds, his life was no longer in danger. Still, his injuries were so severe that he remained unconscious for many days. Even when he awoke, it took about a week before he could communicate with others like usual.Because most of his skin had gotten burnt, his already scarred face was no longer easy on the eyes.The doctors in Riverwood suggested transferring him to another hospital for cosmetic surgery. That way, Daniel could restore his former appearance. Daniel's health was decent. Meanwhile, his face looked scarier than when he was in Rookfort.Darren decided on Daniel's behalf to transfer him to another hospital for cosmetic surgery. He wanted Daniel to succeed the Winston Group in Clarkdale after recovering. By
Alex had just learned about Rebecca's disappearance in the past week.He trained abroad last month for a competition. His team conducted closed training since the finals were approaching. Apart from Alex's weekly calls with his family, he barely had time for himself. He was either reviewing past matches or training all the time. So, he and his teammates didn't even know what was trending online, much less this news that got suppressed.Alex only discovered Rebecca had gone missing after the competition ended. He checked his cousins' group chat and learned what had happened. Alex didn't care that his team secured a brand collaboration after winning the championship. He left the celebration dinner that night and booked an overnight flight home.The photo he had sent to Sam and Albert was what he found after he and Caleb scoured the internet.One had to admit the content of the photo was jarring.Rebecca was in the photo, but she wasn't wearing anything. The photo also had a blac
A group of men exited the private plane like they were investigating the space. Then, they ran toward Mr. Zabel Senior's home.Stanley was dumbstruck.He couldn't figure out why the group had come here. They donned formal suits like those fancy businessmen on television. Why would such people show up here? Not to mention, they had a private plane. Stanley had never seen a plane in his life. Now that he witnessed it, he was in awe of how amazing it looked. Then, he wondered if his four cousins had married some wealthy figures. Could this be the backup the cousins hired? But that didn't make sense. Why would the four want this house back if they had married businessmen with private planes? Then again, it wasn't entirely impossible.After all, the house belonged to Stanley's uncle, who was also the four's dad. It was reasonable that the four were brave enough to take the house back by force. That was because they now had their wealthy husbands' support. At that thought, Stanley f
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