It was the next afternoon when Rebecca was awakened by the dazzling sun. As usual, her stomach churned with hunger.But what was different from last time was that she didn't feel dizzy immediately upon waking. Instead, she actually felt refreshed. The herbal smell she sensed was especially relaxing. If it weren't for the stone-faced man sitting on the couch, Rebecca would have forgotten what she had endured last night. With just one look, her movements became smaller. Then, she laid her head back down on the pillow and stayed silent. She forced herself to endure the hunger she felt.Naturally, David noticed that Rebecca had woken up from where he was on the couch. It was just that he didn't bother with her after seeing her move about without making any noise. He went back to his own affairs.The room was filled with awkward silence. There was only the soft tapping of fingers on a keyboard outside. Even the chirping of the birds beyond the window was too soft to penetrate the gla
Rebecca couldn't wrap her head around what David was thinking, so she figured she might as well give it up.Washing up made her feel very refreshed, so she was gracious as she sat opposite David. She picked up her spoon and started eating the porridge. Since it had cooled a little, it was just the right temperature now.The food was so delectable that it destroyed Rebecca's previous displeasure. It seemed that food would always be the world's best balm.Yet, since David had gotten her this food, Rebecca wasn't so absorbed in happily eating that she forgot about him.After swallowing another mouthful, Rebecca looked up at David, who was frowning because of some trivial matter. "David, aren't you going to have lunch?"Seemingly surprised, David cast his serious gaze on Rebecca. He probably never expected that she would speak to him of her own accord. After staring at her for a while, he looked away and focused on the screen again. "I already ate."So, he'd already eaten. No wonder
Sitting opposite Rebecca on the couch, David suddenly found himself at a loss for words.He really didn't understand how Rebecca could be so caught up with the Johnson family when she'd lost her memories. According to her, she only remembered things up to five years ago. In that case, the members of the Johnson family were only strangers she'd seen a few times.Yet, it was these same strangers who turned all his efforts this past month into nothing. Worse, she had even compromised with him time and time again because of them.And it was only because she missed home.For a moment, David really didn't know what to say. He could only watch as Rebecca sat across from him and cried. She was so bereft that it made it seem as though he had done a great wrong against her while she had been with him.Well, it was true that he had.She was once a bird flying free in the wild. David had caught her, pinioned her, and kept her at home. No matter how large her cage was, how he saved her the tr
Randy was a traitor who had switched sides. David would never tolerate him or let him stay by his side.That guy tried hard to explain himself last night and claimed he did it for David's sake. But David wasn't planning to show him any mercy.He decided to punish him by his rules.He had warned him several times to stop getting involved in Rebecca's matters.But he didn't listen. He didn't take David's verbal warning seriously and continued to act recklessly.He should've known better about the three-strikes law. Yet, he conspired with the Johnson brothers and allowed them to take her away.How could he allow such a person to stay by his side?Randy thought letting the Johnsons in would be good for David. What if he let those reckless people break into his territory in Seardale?What a foolish guy.Of course, David decided to save him some face for the sake of the time they had spent together. He didn't cripple Randy's hands, which were capable of performing surgery.At least
Her body wasn't in good condition, to begin with. The stress of the past few days was taking its toll.Even an ordinary person would need a week to recover from a mild cold, let alone someone like Rebecca, who had gone through so many hardships.Even without the events of the previous night, the exhausting journey would have taken a toll on her.Propped against the car door, she vomited everything in her stomach. She emptied even the meager food she had eaten yesterday.Even a stranger passing by would feel concerned seeing a young woman so ill, not to mention David.But the clock was ticking. The departing ship wouldn't wait for them. The driver removed their luggage from the car and handed it to another suited man on the dock. He turned to David."Mr. Winston, the ship is about to depart. Should we go ahead and get on board? Afterward, we can have a doctor see Ms. Brown."Although they left in a hurry, the people on the ship were all David's men. They had everything prepared
A massive wave splashed up from the water's surface. The black-clad bodyguards on the floating boardwalk quickly walked toward them.Dexter was thrashing about in the water. He desperately struggled to climb onto the floating board.However, the group of black-clad men didn't make it easy for him. Just when he was about to climb up, someone kicked him back into the water.The man who pushed Dexter into the water was looking at him indifferently.Dexter flapped his hands in the water. Enduring the discomfort of choking on the water, he lashed out at David. "Mr. Daniel, you can't be so arrogant. You're young, so I won't argue with you! Quickly have someone pull me up. Let's call it even for my offense today, or else ..."Before he could finish his sentence, David signaled to his men. One of the bodyguards pushed Dexter down into the water again.David kept torturing Dexter until he finally gave in. He begged for mercy."Mr. Daniel, I beg you, please have someone pull me up quickly
The waves splashed.It crashed against the floating boardwalk under the night sky. It was as if a monster was lurking in the boundless sea.The woman who had jumped into the water just a moment ago disappeared swiftly beneath the deep and dark sea.The people on the floating platform were left dumbfounded, especially Dexter.After hearing a loud cry, he opened his eyes. Realizing he was still on the boardwalk, he couldn't regain his senses for a while.The chaos around him grew louder.The sea waves slapped his face and woke him up from his fearful state.He wiped his face with his hand and stood up with the support of his arms. He retreated to the back of the crowd and watched the commotion in disbelief.The once arrogant David was now in a state of panic. Desperate, he almost jumped after Rebecca.However, his black-suited bodyguards blocked his way. They forced him to remain on the platform. Several other men in suits jumped into the water to search for the missing woman
The undercurrents surged.The waves swept the people in the water deeper into the sea.Some were searching for that woman with a pale complexion, while some focused on finding their boss. They feared David might encounter even the slightest trouble in the water.Others were observing the situation on the boardwalk and relaying information to those in the water.Of course, the young lady at the heart of all this was unaware of the chaos unfolding.The salty seawater surrounded her like spider webs.Yet, she dared not swim to the surface as she might expose herself. She plunged deep into the water and swam until her body reached its limits. Then, she emerged for a breath before diving again.People said you would never know your limits until you push yourself to them. Rebecca never believed in such motivational speeches. However, these seemingly cliché words motivated her at this very moment.She kept repeating to herself that she could do it and kept swimming until she was compl
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