Losing Grandpa's patent triggered a cascade of project losses for Creed Group, and with the lawsuit made public, the company's stock price plummeted.Even the core management team couldn't stand Stuart's personal scandals anymore. They all jumped ship and joined Trevino Group.Stuart worked nonstop to keep the company running, but he still made time to visit the hospital every day. He hoped to regain the patent through Grandpa.However, Grandpa accepted his visits with calm indifference. He never once mentioned anything about the patent.The day Grandpa was discharged, Stuart showed up again.He stood at the door, looking haggard with his bloodshot eyes. He'd clearly been having a rough time."Veronica, let's go home," he said softly.He reached out to take the suitcase, but I moved away and gave him a cold glance. "When are you signing the divorce papers?""Can't you give me another chance?" His voice trembled with desperation.Seeing that I didn't relent in the slightest, he
Madison was sentenced. Of course, she would not be an outstanding graduate of her university following her conviction.As she was being taken away, she cried and clung to Stuart's hand, begging him to save her.But Stuart shoved her away and slapped her so hard that she fell to the ground."Look at what you've done using Creed Group's name. You've disgraced the company! Sponsoring your studies was the worst decision I've ever made!" Stuart bellowed.Seeing that Stuart had abandoned her, Madison snapped, "You promised I'd be Mrs. Creed! You lied to me!"Stuart's face went pale at the mention of that. "If it weren't for you, Veronica wouldn't be so furious. She wouldn't be asking for a divorce! You ruined my marriage. Mrs. Creed? Dream on! The Creed family would never accept a woman with a criminal record!"Madison collapsed on the floor. Her clothes were disheveled, and her hair was all tangled. All the arrogance she showed before was completely gone.She sobbed and pleaded, tryi
"This is the surveillance footage from the scene. Will this suffice?" I asked pointedly.Madison's face blanched right away.On the screen, her face was clearly visible behind the wheel. Her car sped across the crosswalk, sending the elderly man flying through the air and tumbling several times across the ground.But Madison didn't even step out of the car to check on him. She just drove off.I closed my eyes, unable to keep watching the horrifying state Grandpa had been in. My nails dug deep into my palms. How I wished I could strangle Madison then and there."This is impossible!" Madison screamed, jumping to her feet. "This has to be fake! She used AI to swap my face and frame me! I didn't drive that day! I didn't hit anyone!"Stuart stood up too. "I, too, question the authenticity of this evidence."Of course, they didn't believe it. When I first tried to retrieve the footage, I was blocked at every turn. They even handed me a fake video. It didn't show Madison or the car;
Stuart looked stunned. He probably never imagined I would say something like that. After all, we had been married for over ten years, and he could feel just how much I had loved him.His face darkened as he stared at me, clearly incensed. "Veronica, what kind of joke is this? So what if I sided with Maddy a little? Do you really have to go this far? Or have you latched onto another man and thought you got the upper hand? Do you think Max really cares about you?"Stuart still thought I was just being jealous or playing some push-and-pull game with him.But I had long grown tired and didn't want this twisted relationship anymore.I shot back, "Grandpa raised me for over 30 long years. I've only known you for less than 15. What makes you think I'd ever put his life at stake to play games with you?"My words left Stuart speechless, and his expression soured even further.The atmosphere in the hospital room grew heavy and stifling.There was no point in continuing this conversation.
After leaving the conference, Stuart clenched his fists tightly.Madison, the young lady whom he had been sponsoring, had accidentally hit someone while driving a while back. He could have settled it with money like so many times before. But this time, the person who was hit just had to be my grandfather, Alfred.He assumed that since we were husband and wife, I would never question his decision. He never expected me to actually call the police.Stuart didn't want to hurt Veronica, but he couldn't tolerate my stubbornness and defiance either. So, he figured this incident was the perfect opportunity to teach me a lesson.If I wanted to be Mrs. Creed, I needed to learn to obey.But who could've predicted that I would use the patent that was Creed Group's foundation to threaten him?"Stuart, don't be mad at Veronica. She's just upset right now," Madison whispered, hooking her pinky around Stuart's. This cutesy, girlish gesture was her favorite move. Usually, Stuart let her get awa
Madison, who had been trailing behind Stuart, snatched the phone with trembling hands and quickly scrolled through the patent documents sent by Kaylee."Veronica, how can you take back something you've already given away? Where are your manners?" Madison questioned.Stuart was so furious that his eyes became bloodshot. "As long as you re-sign the contract with me, I'll let everything go."He held out the newly revised electronic contract in front of me. I glanced at it and saw that the price was still just a couple of hundred dollars.Stuart was being ridiculous."Sorry. I've already sold the patent," I said calmly.Pin-drop silence ensued.Stuart glanced at Max, who was standing nearby, with a vicious expression.He shouted, "Veronica, how could you sell it to him? Are you insane? Cancel the deal right now!"He glared at me with eyes that looked ready to devour me whole.But I just stared back coldly, feeling nothing. "Why would I give up a one-billion-dollar offer for you?"
That night, I signed the contract with the other party through the legal team Grandpa assigned to me.Once I received the advance payment, I immediately arranged for Grandpa to be transferred to the best hospital in the city for the surgery.The next day, I received Trevino Group's invitation to the bidding conference. I didn't expect to run into Stuart and Madison there."Veronica, what are you doing here?" Madison's eyes flitted between me and the CEO of Trevino Group, Max Trevino. "Even if Stuart was a little harsh with you yesterday, that's no reason to publicly humiliate him by going out with another man."She then looked at me with disdain. "And you even found someone who owns a company inferior to Creed Group. How embarrassing!"Trevino Group had emerged as a rising star in the pharmaceutical industry over the past few years. They were Creed Group's biggest competitor. But because of Grandpa's patent, Creed Group always had an upper hand over them.I watched Madison run he
As Creed Group continued to gain prominence in the industry, Stuart had long forgotten that it was Grandpa's exclusive pharmaceutical patent that helped him claw his way to the top among the big corporations.The man who had once obediently followed Grandpa around doing experiments and brought me candy was gone. All that was left was the powerful CEO of Creed Group.Looking at Grandpa lying in the ICU and covered in tubes, I hated Stuart to the core. How could he so shamelessly protect the person who hit his mentor?I would never let Madison get away with this! They would have to pay the price.The legal team told me that Grandpa had prepared the patent transfer documents for me even before my marriage. Therefore, it was essentially my personal premarital property.Grandpa had made this arrangement in anticipation of such a situation.So, even though I had married Stuart, he wouldn't get Grandpa's patent.By the time I got back to the villa, it was already 3:00 pm. I had gone ba
After failing to make the payment at the hospital, I immediately took a cab to Creed Group."Stuart, did you really freeze all my credit cards because of an outsider? Don't you know that Grandpa urgently needs brain surgery? How could you do this after everything he did for you?" I fumed at Stuart Creed, my husband.Thinking about how cold and indifferent he had been at the hospital, my eyes burned with rage.Stuart turned to glare at me furiously like I were some hysterical woman making a scene.He scolded, "Veronica, look at what you've become! What's the point of throwing a tantrum now? What's done is done!"His cold words made it sound like my grandfather, Alfred Gallagher, was just dealing with a common cold and not waiting for brain surgery.I stared at the man I'd been married to for over a decade, feeling my heart sink drastically."Have you forgotten how Creed Group was built from the ground up? Have you forgotten it was Grandpa who took a knife for you when you were ki