"However, you need to let me finish. Being handsome is important, but it's not the most important thing. You and I both know that."Joseph was still very upset. "Yeah?"Alice continued, "A man's career is also very important. The reason she chose someone else now is probably because your career isn't successful enough. If you became the CEO of a publicly listed company right now and approached her, she'll think she hit the jackpot!"Joseph sneered and replied, "I get it now. When I return, I will do everything I can to build my career. Once I've succeeded, I will find her and tell her about the great man she missed out on!"Alice awkwardly looked away. If he went to find Avery, she would be confused because she never liked him in the first place. However, Alice dared not say that. She merely smiled and said, "Then work hard!"Joseph was still feeling miserable.Alice thought that in this state, Joseph was particularly suited to working for her and helping her make money. "Constan
So, Avery choosing another man was the reason he was so upset. Joseph suddenly stopped in his tracks. However, he remembered that Avery had never actually said she loved him. It was Alice who said it.It was because he saw Avery trying to please him that he naturally assumed Alice was right—that Avery had a crush on him.Joseph had a vague sense of unease. He turned around and went back to Alice's house. He raised his hand and rang the doorbell. "Hello?"Upon hearing this, Alice walked to the gate with a yawn. "What is it?"Joseph stared at Alice as he asked, "I wanted to ask… Avery has never loved me, right?"Alice was stumped by his question. How did he figure it out?She looked away, feeling a little guilty.Joseph's voice rose. "So, you've been lying to me from the very beginning? Why did you do it? Was it for revenge?"Since she had been exposed, Alice had no intention of hiding it anymore. "Yeah, why else? You suddenly found a woman to date and called her my substitute. Y
But when he saw the high prices, he suddenly felt like it wasn't worth it. A regular apartment only cost a few thousand dollars a month. One night in a hotel cost tens of thousands of dollars. It was enough to rent a place for a whole year and even hire a housekeeper to clean up the place.In the end, Joseph booked a hotel for 200 dollars. After checking in, he realized that while it wasn't as luxurious as the expensive ones, there wasn't that big of a difference. It was still inhabitable.…Alice had finally found such a good way to earn money, so she wanted to take full advantage of this opportunity. Even though she was already very frugal with her spending, and her salary and bonuses from the company were quite high, she had to admit that making a lot of money on her own still made her feel really happy.As she lay under the covers, her mind was filled with thoughts of how to expand her and Joseph's business. She also thought of how to make more people aware of them.However, A
"Otherwise, at the slightest disturbance, we'd start worrying about what we'll do in the future if their company goes bankrupt.""That's true." Joseph imagined himself running a major company and becoming number one in the industry, surrounded by people treating him like a star.He couldn't help but smile. "Alright! We'll do as you say!""Then go home and ask your dad how to manage a company. Remember to take detailed notes so you don't forget the most crucial and important points. I'll ask my dad as well. Don't worry. I'll write everything down."We'll have a discussion afterward. For the parts that are the same, we'll follow them. For the differences, we'll combine the best of both," uttered Alice.Joseph responded excitedly, "Alright."He had been troubled emotionally, thinking he shouldn't waver for another woman just because of what Alice said.But now, his mind was entirely focused on business.He believed that once he succeeded, women would naturally come to him and purs
"If they're truly talented, they wouldn't need to take over the company. They might as well go find a job elsewhere. After all, it's more promising than working for us. The only people you can hire are those unqualified yet overconfident ones," Joseph remarked, smiling.Lucas sighed. "Why did you come back? Need something?"Did he suddenly realize how tough it was outside and decide to return home for an easier life?Joseph took out a notebook and said, "Of course! I want to start a company. We already have a project. But we don't know how to manage it, so we wanted to ask you first."As Lucas stared at Joseph, he realized that Joseph had really improved after being away from the family.Before, when he tried to get Joseph to join his company, Joseph always said he wasn't interested.But now, he wanted to start his own business.Lucas sat down and shared all the knowledge he had accumulated over the years.Joseph didn't bother filtering what was good or bad; he just wrote every
"How much is the internship salary for each employee? If they exceed their task requirements, how much of a commission do they get? You have to figure all of this out yourself. Once you have thought through these questions, your company will be ready for official operation," Danny concluded.Alice nodded, somewhat understanding. "Thank you, Dad.""You're welcome." Danny looked at Alice, feeling that the girl he and his wife had always cherished and protected seemed to have finally grown up.The corners of his lips curled up unconsciously. "If you run into problems you can't solve, you can always come to me. I will definitely help you.""You're the best, Dad!" Alice remarked playfully."Of course. You're my only daughter. If I don't treat you well, who else would I treat well?" Danny said proudly.After chatting with Danny a bit, Alice returned to her room. She took out her phone and sent a message to Joseph."I've written a lot of stuff. How about we meet tomorrow to go over eve
Julian chuckled. "Not eating breakfast until now is bad for your health.""I don't think I've been working for that long," I said as I picked up my phone to check the time. It was 10:10 am. I instantly felt a bit baffled.Julian's lips curved into a subtle smile. "For the sake of your health, you should eat some breakfast. I made scrambled eggs and some sides. Come downstairs and eat before you continue working.""Alright," I agreed immediately.I knew that skipping breakfast was bad for my health. Besides, as an adult, I should set a good example for the younger ones.Otherwise, if they saw me skipping breakfast, they might not want to eat either. That would be a problem.I walked downstairs alongside Julian."People used to call me a workaholic, saying my mind was always occupied with work. But you seem even more deserving of that title than I am." Julian sighed.I joked, "If I hadn't met you, I probably would never have found a boss as good as you. So, of course, I have to s
Despite the compliment, Julian remained humble, though he couldn't help the smile that appeared on his face. "Really?""Yeah."It was at this moment that I suddenly understood that Shayne and Zach refusing to eat the food I made had little to do with my cooking skills. The real reason was that they hated me, so they also hated the food I made.Just like now, I had a good impression of Julian, so when he was willing to cook for me, I found his food especially delicious.Julian looked at me, finding the way I ate was graceful and refined.He shook his head, silently reminding himself to look at me less.He was already hopelessly in love with me. If he kept watching, he would lose himself in me completely.…When Shayne woke up, his head was pounding—an aftereffect of his hangover. Without opening his eyes, he asked impatiently, "Aralyn, why didn't you make me hangover soup last night? And my head hurts so much right now. Massage my temples later."However, no one answered him.
"I believed it. Kelly even said that if Stephanie really wanted to break up with me, she'd move out of my place."Even though we weren't married and we were just dating, we were already living together. Kelly said if I used moving out as a threat, Stephanie would cave."The more Shayne listened, the more silent he became. How could Spencer be even dumber than he had been back then?But seeing his friend hurting, he didn't have the heart to rub salt in the wound.Shayne asked, "You didn't seriously believe what Kelly said, did you?""Yeah." Tears slid down Spencer's cheeks. "But before I even had the chance to threaten her, Stephanie had already packed up all her stuff and left me."That day I came home, full of confidence, thinking that as soon as I spoke up, she'd make up with me. But… I opened the door and saw that all the photos of us hanging on the wall had been taken down."The woman who used to wait for me at home with dinner ready was gone. Everything that belonged to her
"I didn't say anything before because I thought there was no point," Spencer said.Spencer wasn't stupid. If he couldn't even see through all of that, he had no business running a company. He just never took it seriously before.He figured Stephanie would just throw a small tantrum at most, and that would be it. He never thought it would lead to such serious consequences.He continued, "Did you really think I was that dumb? That I couldn't tell what you were doing?"Kelly stayed silent.Spencer couldn't be bothered to say anything more to her. He got in his car and drove away.He arrived at a bar, ordered a few bottles of liquor, and then called Shayne. "Are you free? Come find me. I'm in a bad mood."Shayne had just gotten home, planning to spend some time with his wife and kids. But hearing Spencer's tone, he immediately said, "Okay."He turned to Luna and said, "Spencer's looking for me. I'm heading out for a bit."Luna, exhausted from a full day of work, didn't feel like d
Kelly froze. "She's really willing to break up with you?"Spencer nodded. "She told me not to go looking for her anymore."As he spoke, it felt like needles were stabbing his heart.He had always been certain that Stephanie loved him. He had been so sure that she would never leave him.So, he had gotten arrogant, thinking no matter what he did, she would always forgive him.But he had forgotten that…Stephanie was human, too.She could get hurt, too.Spencer said, "She wasn't just throwing a tantrum. She thought it over carefully and decided she'd be better off without me."Seeing his pained expression, Kelly moved closer and pulled him into a hug."She really doesn't know how lucky she was," she said. "Meeting a guy as good as you and still letting you go? Isn't she scared someone else will swoop in and steal you away?"To Spencer, her words were like kicking him while he was down. "But I only like her. I don't want anyone else."Kelly knew that if she asked now, "What abo
Spencer asked, "Just because of one little argument?""In your eyes, maybe it was just a little argument," Stephanie said calmly. "But for me, it was the last straw that broke the camel's back. In this relationship, I was the one who always gave more."No matter what Kelly did, the one who ended up hurt was always me. You only had to take her side and blame me to settle everything. So, to you, it was always just small stuff."She continued, "Nobody wants to spend their whole life being wronged like that. I don't either. So, after that day, I really thought it through…"How much love do I still have left for you? Is it enough to keep tolerating you and her? The answer was no. I even realized at that moment that I didn't love you anymore."Forget tolerating both of you. Even just dealing with one of you felt unbearable. Then, I thought, since it's gotten to this point… We might as well break up."When Stephanie said this, her eyes carried a relaxed smile. "I just haven't figured ou
Shannon shook her head. "That's why I really don't think much of Luna. If it weren't for our son liking her…"Patrick understood how Shannon felt. "Honestly, we did wrong by Luna before. Once she's willing to come back, we should make it up to her as much as we can."Shannon was unwilling, but seeing Patrick insist, she could only mumble, "Fine, we'll do what you say.""Okay."…Hannah noticed that over the past few days, Patrick and Shannon hadn't contacted her at all, and she immediately found it strange.In the past, the two elders were very close to her son, almost seeing him every day. What was going on now?After putting her son to sleep, Hannah took the initiative and called Shannon. "Mrs. Cunningham..."Shannon frowned and glanced at Patrick, speaking in a low voice, "It's a call from Hannah."Patrick's face darkened almost instantly, but he forced himself to hold it in. "Don't tell her we went to see Rowan, and don't let on that we know the truth. If she wants to fool
Rowan shook his head. "If it were really that simple, that would be nice."Patrick didn't understand why Rowan said that.Rowan continued, "Before Luna and I divorced, she had already guessed you were lying, so she made it very clear to Mason…"If I chose to come back and help you, she would divorce me. If I stayed with her, she would continue living the hard life with me."Patrick hadn't expected the truth to be like this. His face turned even uglier. Shannon was also in pain.Rowan tilted his head up, staring at the ceiling. "But in the end, I was too scared the company would fall apart, so I chose to go back. To completely cut ties with me, she went and started dating Shayne."At first, Luna still had hope for him. After all, they had truly loved each other for so long.But over time, through all the back-and-forth, she probably realized he was never going to change, so she finally gave up completely.Recently, the comics she created have been doing very well. Because of tha
Rowan said, "Come on, I'll take you to eat."Patrick followed behind Rowan and asked, "Have you thought about what to do with Mason in the future?"Rowan didn't take the question seriously. "Why would I?""He's your only child. If you don't acknowledge him, you'll end our family line."Rowan didn't know why, but looking at the streetlights and the thinning crowd around him, he felt unusually calm. "Isn't this exactly what you wanted?"When they reached the restaurant, he handed the menu to his mother. "See what you want to eat."Shannon picked a light vegetarian dish and said, "We just didn't expect Hannah to lie to us!"Rowan crossed his legs and repeated her words. "You didn't expect Hannah to lie to you?"Patrick ordered two meat dishes before saying, "Exactly. Who would've thought she would dare lie about something like that?"Rowan stared at his father. "So, just because you said it, even if you had doubts, you really thought I cheated on her with Luna…"Shouldn't you ha
Willow stared at me in shock for a long time before finally asking, "You can really do that?"I nodded. "Yeah. As long as you want to, you can keep in touch with her as much as you want."Willow jumped up excitedly. "That's awesome!"Just then, there was an urgent matter at the company that needed Julian's attention. After taking the call, he happened to overhear my conversation with Willow.He immediately got an idea. "During summer break, if you want to hang out with Pamela every day, she might not have that much free time."Willow's smile disappeared instantly. She asked, "Then, what should I do?"He guided her, "Do you think there's an excuse that could make both of you improve and leave her mom no reason to say no?"She followed his lead and quickly figured it out. "Studying?"He didn't give it away directly. "Oh?""Daddy, how about you hire a tutor for me during summer break? I can get a head start on school! Then, I'll ask Pamela to join me. Her mom will definitely agre
Alice raised her voice and asked, "You two already broke up, and he's still coming around asking you to apologize?"Stephanie shrugged. "What else could it be? You don't think I'd made all that up just now, do you?"Alice had never thought that, but Spencer's behavior still struck her as outrageous. "Do you need me to help you?""No, it's fine." Stephanie had already moved on, so she needed to handle it herself. "I can deal with it."With that, she walked out of the hotel.Spencer saw her come out and quickly stepped in front of her. "Can we talk?"He expected Stephanie would agree, but she gave him a glance and asked, "What do we have to talk about?""I know you're upset because of her, but can you be the bigger person? If you just apologize to her, a lot of things can be smoothed over."She looked at him, confused. "Why should I be the bigger person?""Because you're my girlfriend!" He tried to persuade her.Hearing that, Stephanie couldn't help but laugh out loud. "It look