It turned out that Charles’s fierce determination had not diminished at all. Instead, as time passed, it became even more powerful.Right now, he only wanted to do all he could to ensure Ruth’s happiness.“Still, there will always be some things that are destined to be out of our control. Perhaps our decision was wrong from the beginning,” Reina said meaningfully.Charles regained his senses. “What?”Reina took a deep breath. “Let’s go. It’s time to go to the airport.”Her father had asked her to keep the truth of her sister’s death a secret because he did not want anything to go wrong at this juncture. They had been working behind the scenes for several years. They could not let a moment of impulse ruin everything.Now was not the time to get their revenge.The end to the liveliness of the festivities left Ruth feeling rather depressed. She took a week off to mentally recover.Alas, a work call interrupted her week off.Ouyan had already signed the contract, but they had not
After Ruth hung up, she quickly called Dulcie. “The meeting went well. The wedding won’t have anything to do with the Lovehart family. What did Ouyan say about the publicity plan?”Dulcie paused for a second before she exploded. “I can’t believe you took so long to reply to me! Do you know how worried we were about you? I’ve already told Grandpa that if things don’t work out and the duke doesn’t come back, I’ll ask my uncle to make the wedding arrangements! The Rivas family will always be your maiden home!”The corners of Ruth’s eyes twitched. While she was touched, she still felt a little incredulous. “There’s no need for that.”It was just a simple wedding, but they were making such a big deal out of it.Moreover, she was not very interested in the wedding…Why did everyone want to help her make the wedding arrangements…“That’s not right. Also, why did you reply to me so late? You’re not lying to me, are you? Whatever! I’ll come over to you right away!” Still a little worrie
Stephanie was even more surprised by their plan. “You’re making Miss Ruth’s wedding public? Will the media be invited too?”“Of course,” Dulcie replied confidently.Stephanie hesitated for a moment. “I know this is a good opportunity, but there have been a lot of rumors on the Internet recently, saying that Miss Ruth and Miss Luna will have their weddings on the same day…”She did not finish her sentence, but everyone understood what she meant.A biological daughter and a stepdaughter would definitely not be treated the same.When the time came, Ruth would only be a foil.Even if Ruth’s husband was Abel, they would very much be overshadowed.“Ruth’s wedding is on the same day, but it has nothing to do with the Lovehart family. Luna used to be a public figure, so you should know her character, right? She’s used to manipulating people and then discarding them when they’re no longer of any use to her,” Dulcie explained in a light voice.Stephanie hesitated for a few seconds, still
Abel was dumbfounded.She had already taken the car keys! It was clear that looking for him was an afterthought! However, seeing that she was in a good mood today, he did not argue with her. “There’s no need to go to the bar. Lily doesn’t have time to waste at bars these days.”Ruth looked at him in confusion.“Wait for a while. Ask her yourself when she comes back later.” Abel paused for a moment before continuing, “Also, she’s not as innocent as you think she is.”How could an innocent young woman have such a huge network in a foreign country?If he had not sent someone to follow her, he would not have discovered her secret!Ruth raised her eyebrows slightly. She could not help but recall their conversation after she returned from paying her respects at her mother’s grave.She said, “Lily is very innocent. My aunt sheltered her a lot…”“Wait… Is what he said true?” Ruth thought to herself.Ruth believed Abel’s words and put down her car keys. However, she could not help bu
Ruth’s lips were getting closer and closer. Abel gulped and slowly closed his eyes, preparing to kiss her scarlet lips.Beep!The sound of the combination lock of the door being opened was heard.The next second, a crisp, familiar voice sounded at the doorway.“Did I come back at the wrong time?”Ruth was draped halfway across Abel, and they were in a very compromising position. When Ruth heard the voice, she looked up in shock.The instigator at the door had a playful voice and a smile on her face. She looked like she was watching a trainwreck.It was obvious what that look meant. As long as other people were embarrassed, she would be amused!It was Lily!If Ruth had known earlier, she would have let her stay with Grandpa in the manor!Didn’t Lily say that she wanted to stay with her grandfather?Her face and ears were burning, but Ruth had to pretend to be calm.She naturally got off Abel’s body. “We were just playing a game. Don’t overthink things.”“Oh, is this a game
Lily pursed her lips, and her face fell.She pulled a chair over with her foot and sat down. Her tone was helpless and emotional. “Ruth, you’ve really changed a lot in the six months since you returned to the country!”Ruth’s attitude toward her father had changed. She was no longer as cold and distant as before. It was quite nice.Ruth’s attitude toward her had also changed. She was actually starting to control her. It was very subtle, but it was noticeable.But it was not that annoying.“I know. I’ve become prettier.” Ruth’s expression remained cold and unmoved.Lily was speechless.Was Ruth being serious?Whatever!Lily decided not to discuss this topic and directly brought up what she had learned over the past few days. “Didn’t you ask me to investigate a woman who you thought was Notus’s mysterious lover?”Ruth paused. “Have you been investigating Notus these days?”Lily nodded. “Being here makes it more convenient to conduct the investigations! Besides, I’m bored!”Ru
Lily was extremely efficient Had she started investigating even before Reina had left?Ruth looked at her with more admiration. “Since when did you start to investigate this?”Lily was still looking at her phone and did not even look up. “That night, after my parents left, Notus was by the car. The topic of his conversation with Abel was strange.”Her grandfather was also there. The way he stopped her from asking questions was too obvious.He just did not want her to ask.If he did not want her to ask questions, that was fine. She would investigate on her own.“When did you do the DNA test with Aunt Reina?” Ruth asked again.“The next day. I went to send my mother off and stole a few strands of her hair.”Before Ruth could say anything, Lily had already pulled something out. “Look at this woman. Does she look like my mother?”It was an ID photo of a woman in her early twenties. It was quite old, and the image was rather blurry.However, from the faint outline, one could sti
Lily firmly believed in her previous theory.Ruth said nothing. It was as if she had been convinced.She looked at Lily with a scrutinizing gaze, thinking about something else.She thought that perhaps she really was not the daughter Notus had found.After all, she had lived with her mother for a few years. During those few years, her mother had always done whatever she wanted. Her mother did not look like a woman whose lover had abandoned herShe did not even try to avoid the Lovehart family.There was also that token and the pair of earrings. They were also the things that Ruth was sure had something to do with Notus.His mother did not have any special feelings for those things. She had just treated them like they were regular belongings.“Ah, it doesn’t matter. We’re just one step away from the paternity test results. When the results are out, the truth will be revealed.” Lily waved her hand impatiently.Ruth snapped out of her thoughts. “Paternity test? Did you manage to
Galen stood nervously at the side. At first, he wanted to step in and help, but he held himself back.In the end, he gave up and watched the fight.The more he watched, the more startled he was.Despite her delicate frame, her moves were calculated and ruthless.Many of her moves were lethal.She was a young woman who was loved. She was pampered and adored by everyone. How was such a person so ruthless in combat?It was as if she often fought to the death…Mr. Watson was shaken as well. He covered his neck with one hand, while his other hand hung limply by his hand. He looked at Lily in shock. His other hand hung weakly by his side. He looked at Lily in shock.How could such a small and delicate-looking person possess such strength? Was she really the heiress of the Cavendish family?“Do you want to verify it? The wounds match with the one who attacked me. I broke his right wrist on the spot, though. After that, I didn’t wait for reinforcement to come. I moved immediately an
Her hand paused while hefting the silver fork.Ruth’s husband was really very considerate. He loved her sister truly and everyone in her family.She decided to find a boyfriend like him for herself in the future.“I definitely will!” She thought.She stood in the spacious living room and looked at the man beside Galen who wanted to get to the bottom of this investigation. Her fingers tightened on the fork. “Words might not be enough to explain. If you don’t believe me, why don’t you give this a try?”Galen had not reacted when Charles spoke, nor when Abel had talked about switching it to a blunt weapon, but he definitely did now. “Nonsense!” he said sternly and stood up.Lily’s fighting spirit was ignited, but his stern rebuke deflated half of it. “Why not? Is it now allowed? You said attacking a police officer wasn’t allowed, didn’t you?”“He doesn’t count!” Galen said with disdain.Lily’s aggressive stance was completely deflated. “Well… if he doesn’t count, then his skills
The seemingly innocent question was directed at the young police officer.He looked troubled.Her delicate appearance did not help.The young police officer turned to the stern-faced man beside Galen for some help. The man pursed his thin lips and spoke in a deep voice.“Your Excellency… Madam… the nature of this case is severe, but the process of investigation is smooth. If your daughter doesn’t reveal the whole truth, it’ll be difficult for us to reach the crux of the issue. I assume that you don’t just want the result from this investigation but also the truth?”His firm voice was authoritative yet respectful.Charles turned to look at him. His brown eyes were calm, and he was sizing up this person.The police officer’s cold demeanor momentarily faltered. He quickly looked away and did not dare look him in the eye. “We’re just following procedures. To prevent this matter from escalating further, we hope for your cooperation.”He sounded intimidated yet resolute. It seemed
He was already determined to stake everything on his plan.“Right,” Lily said, “What about those bodyguards assigned to protect me? How were they swapped?”“Abel offered them ten times the price and bribed the group of bodyguards hired by Denver. The two poor people were taken down. The rest were replaced by our own people,” said Galen icily.Lily was shocked. She looked at him and then at Abel, who was driving calmly.Ruth looked at her husband with the same shocked face.So, this was how money made the world go round!When Denver had transferred money to that company, Lily had caught wind of it, but it seemed Abel had found out even sooner.He had already made arrangements to take drastic measures.“Don’t they have any morals? I heard that those kinds of organizations have principles. They won’t willingly betray the ones who employed them,” said Ruth.“As long as it’s not a terrorist organization, every organization needs connections. William’s group was already in dire stra
It was mainly because Denver clearly fabricated an alibi. But he had appeared on the scene and had been taken away.It was indeed quite puzzling.At that point, everyone looked at Abel in confusion.Abel looked straight ahead and did not speak. He only spoke when he was asked directly.“The father and son lost because they didn’t know each other’s motivations. It’s easy to bribe their people to send a message to the other and get them to the scene…”Before they set off, Sean received news that Denver was going all out and wanted to go down with Lily in the manor in the suburbs.Sean did not doubt it because Denver had been acting increasingly strange recently.He was transferring his assets and buying and renovating manors. It was as though he was prepared for death.He had even arranged for his funeral.Afraid that his son was taking things too hard, he put down whatever he was doing and rushed over to the scene.Since that was taken care of, it was easy to deceive Denver af
“See what you are doing? What if something happens to your sister?”Charles was not known for showing affection or caring about people outright.However, when his daughter cried and threw a tantrum, he could not stop himself.Charles stood by Lily without hesitation and scolded Abel for his incompetence.Ruth was originally filled with resentment and wanted to vent it out on Abel too, but when she saw that the father and daughter duo had joined forces to attack her husband, half of her resentment dissipated.With four bodyguards that had been arranged to deal with two outsiders, coupled with Lily’s abilities, her life was indeed not in danger…She glanced at Lily hesitantly. At this moment, Galen had cleaned up all the stains on her palm.Other than the redness between her thumb and index finger, she did not seem too badly hurt.All the resentment was gone. In fact, she was even a little protective. “Why did you have to deal with the four bodyguards?” Lily lowered her head an
Everyone was speechless.This discussion was fruitless. Everyone had their own opinions, and no one wanted to give in.In the end, Reina and the old man took a car, while Ruth, Abel, Charles, Galen Barker, and Lily got into another.The fire slowly died down.The cars left one after another.After Mr. Lockton got into the car, his cloudy eyes became shrewd. He asked his daughter, “Do you think that police officer is also interested in Lily?”Otherwise, why would he be so active and rush to the front? Why would he find such a lousy excuse to be the one to drop her home?“I think so, but unfortunately, Lily doesn’t seem to be as interested as before,” Reina said helplessly.Otherwise, why would she reject such a good opportunity to get into his car?Wouldn’t she have acted pitiful enough to earn his sympathy to get into the car?Mr. Lockton frowned. He was in deep thought.The last time he had heard that his granddaughter had fallen in love with another man who happened to be
Also, she was sure that if it was Luna being attacked at that time, he would have helped her without hesitation.This man was just like Notus. He was stupid, stubborn, and hypocritical.The reason why she spoke on his behalf was that she could not stand Luna’s smug face. Even if she wanted to drag someone down, she had to ask first.It was just the truth. She would not die if she made that clear anyway.Luna’s smug look cracked as she stared fixedly at her. Her gaze shifted from doubt to resentment and unwillingness.Aquilo was not surprised when Lily accused him. He knew that he had done something wrong. If not for Abel’s careful consideration, they would have died here today.However, he was quite surprised to hear her defend him.As he was handcuffed and escorted to the police car, he could not help but turn to look at her.“Lily…”Lily was about to walk to her car.She paused for a moment and turned to look at him calmly.Her usually playful eyes were indifferent at that
Aquilo opened his mouth but did not know what to say.Just then, a team of uniformed police officers rushed over to the scene to rescue the hostages.Looking at the people standing before them, they could not tell which ones were the hostages.Galen Barker walked over from behind and glanced at them. “What are you still standing here for? Get out quickly!”This manor had an ancient Sommersetese courtyard.The place where they were gathered was a small open space in the courtyard.After passing through the desolate artificial mountain pavilion, they arrived at the large courtyard outside the manor. There were many people gathered there, with many police cars parked nearby.A fire truck had also arrived.To Lily’s surprise, Sean Lovehart and his father were also there and were being escorted into the police car.When he saw her coming out, Denver’s face filled with hatred. He wanted to rush to her and strangle her. “You’ve got guts! You risked your life to drag us down with you!