Ch. 1141..1150

Sonia glanced at Grayson coldly as she spoke. “Although you said you were here to apologize, I don’t see you bringing Lynette, let alone some apology gifts. Moreover, you are ill-mannered. Is this how you apologize to someone? If I didn’t know better, I would have thought you were here to ask for a protection racket.”

At this moment, Grayson’s assistant, who stood behind him, subconsciously nodded. That’s right. I knew this would not end well when I saw Mr. Lore coming out empty-handed earlier. I advised him to bring some gifts along, but he just wouldn’t listen, and there was nothing I could do about it. Mr. Lore deserves to be scolded by Miss Reed.

However, despite the fact that Grayson’s assistant sided with Sonia’s words, Grayson himself was unhappy with it. He squinted his eyes at her and said darkly, “Apology gifts? From your perspective, am I asking for a protection racket instead of apologizing to you?”

Sonia smiled faintly and said, “Although you are not, your attitude makes it seems like it. With all due respect, I don’t see how you are apologizing, Mr. Lore. I still stand by my words; apologize like you mean it. You are here because Toby dissociated himself from your family, right?”

As he listened to her words, Grayson gripped his knuckles and didn’t say anything. However, his expression said otherwise.

“I guess so.” Sonia crossed her legs and leaned against the armrest. “It has been forty-eight hours since this matter happened. However, you guys never contacted me to apologize. It was only when Toby kept clear with your family that you decided to come and apologize. This shows that you are here by force. Not only that, your attitude is terrible, and there aren’t any apology gifts. I can see that you are not being sincere.”

When she spoke, her tone was calm as if she was talking about the weather. However, her sarcastic words were like needles piercing into Grayson’s heart, exposing his true thoughts out in the open.

At that moment, Grayson’s expression was ugly, and he gripped the armrest even tighter. If it weren’t that he was still rational and knew that he hadn’t made his point, he would have stood up and left.

To him, even if he was thinking about it, no one should ever say it aloud. Sonia should have pretended not to know and accepted his apology. After all, he was an elder to her! It was so frustrating since she wouldn’t oblige him.

While Grayson was trembling from either frustration or embarrassment, there was a hint of mockery in Sonia’s eyes as she looked at him.

Then, she opened her mouth and said, “I’m only an ordinary person, Mr. Lore. I like to be more realistic. Since you are here to apologize, I would advise you to bring Lynette over and ask her to apologize to me in person while you prepare some gifts that will satisfy me. Lastly, I hope you two can be well-mannered and bow to me. By then, perhaps I’ll look over the part where you guys made a mistake and had not disciplined Lynette well. Simply put, I will not accept your apology this time. Please come by again when you are all set.” Then, she picked up her cup, asking him to leave.

When Grayson heard her request for gifts and bows, he was red from anger. “You’re being greedy, Sonia. Your desire is hideous for asking for gifts, our bows, and wanting Lynette to apologize in person,” he snapped.

“My desire is hideous?” Sonia frowned and sneered. “Don’t get me wrong, Mr. Lore. The Lore Family are the ones who are supposed to apologize to me, not the other way around; I’m not the one begging for your forgiveness. Since it’s an apology, you should make it seem that way. Don’t come here alone, empty-handed, and be arrogant about it. Also, don’t tell me to let you guys off the hook after such a lackluster apology. With that being said, you are causing trouble here rather than apologizing. I haven’t seen anyone apologize in this manner before. If I were you, I would have called the person firsthand and apologized to them for my mistake. If they don’t accept it, I would go to their doorstep with gifts and repeatedly apologize until they forgive me. This is the way to apologize to someone. I cannot say the same for you, though.”

Sonia lifted her chin and looked at him in disdain. “How shameless of you to come here empty-handed and tell me to let go of this matter. I wonder where you got the confidence from, assuming I will forgive you when you have brought nothing and only said sorry.”

When Grayson heard her reprimand him, there was a hint of guilt in his eyes.

Sonia put down her legs and stood up, closing into him. “Tell me, Mr. Lore. Why are you so confident about this matter?” she asked again.

Under these circumstances, Grayson’s ego probably couldn’t take it anymore, and he decided to go all out. The man took a deep breath and stared at her. “What else? I am an elder to you. Given the relationship between the Lore Family and the Fullers, you should forgive Lynette’s behavior and put in a good word for us to Toby.”

“What?” Sonia was startled upon hearing his reply. When she snapped back to her senses, she was furious. “An elder? Your relationship with the Fuller Family?”

“That’s right.” Grayson raised his chin and looked proud of himself.

When Sonia saw his reaction, the smile on her face vanished. “What kind of elder are you to me? Moreover, it’s none of my business about your family’s relationship with the Fullers. Why should I endure this and forgive you guys, even putting in a good word for the Lore Family to Toby?”

“Who says I’m not? Don’t forget that I am the same age as your father, Henry. Of course, I am also your elder. You should call me uncle. Even if you don’t, you should call me your senior as I have been in the business world twenty years earlier than you.” As he spoke, he was getting more proud.

“Secondly, Toby is my father’s student. A teacher for a day is a father for a lifetime. As such, my family can be considered as Toby’s family. If you want to be with him, it’s only fair that you flatter us. Otherwise, we will cause trouble for you, damaging your relationship with Toby.” At that moment, he looked at Sonia with excitement and madness.

Listening to his words, Sonia laughed. In fact, she burst into a fit of laughter while clutching her stomach.

When Grayson saw her laughing, his heart skipped a beat, and he had a bad feeling in his gut.

“Why are you laughing?” he asked while gritting his teeth.

After laughing for a moment, Sonia wiped the tears from her eyes and said, “I see! Just when I was wondering why you were so confident, I finally figured out why. In terms of seniority, you are indeed my elder. However, as long as I refuse to admit it, you are nothing to me. Furthermore, we are not blood-related. Yet, you tried to make me compromise with your age. Have some shame, Mr. Lore.”

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Chapter 1142 By Force0

Sonia’s words were straightforward, making Grayson furious when he heard it. However, Sonia continued, “As for your saying that I should flatter you and your family in order to be together with Toby because of the connections with the Lore Family and the Fullers, I think that is just hilarious.

I mean, Lynette framed me just to make me break up with Toby when we do not have any grudges against each other. I suppose I don’t need to specify why—she likes Toby, so she wants to replace me.” Listening to her words, Grayson turned his face to the side awkwardly as he didn’t expect Sonia to know about this.

Seeing his reaction, Sonia scoffed and continued, “Moreover, even if I were to flatter you and forgive you like a simp, telling Toby how good your family is. Will you guys really let me be with him? My guess is no. Harry, who is also Toby’s teacher, talked sh*t about me to Toby before knowing what Lynette did online.

He told Toby I was incompatible with him and that we should break up. This proves that no matter what I do, you guys will never let me be with him because Lynette would not have a chance. Thus, your words are pointless and ridiculous, Mr. Lore.”

At that moment, Grayson felt that Sonia had exposed him. He felt awkward as he stood on the spot, unable to say anything. Even his assistant wanted to bury himself in a hole.

This was just embarrassing.

However, Sonia seemed to have not noticed his embarrassment as she put down the teacup and smiled, saying, “Moreover, even if Harry doesn’t do anything, you guys can’t replace me with Lynette. Thus, there’s no need for me to flatter you guys.”

“What do you mean by that?” Grayson looked at her angrily.

Sonia flipped her hair and said, “It’s simple. Why should I flatter you guys when we are not blood-related? Will you guys help me strengthen my relationship with Toby if I were to flatter you guys? I don’t think so. Moreover, this is my matter with Toby. What does this have to do with anyone else? Why would I need the help of someone? Lastly, the words I’m about to say are not going to be to your liking, but I’m afraid that I’m more important than the Lore Family in Toby’s heart. Not even Harry, his teacher, can change that. Didn’t you see how he steered away from your family when you guys offended me?”

At that moment, Sonia probably stepped on a nerve as Grayson jumped and roared at her. “So what if Toby prioritizes you? That doesn’t mean that you are more important than us. He is just angry that we have done something wrong. He wouldn’t steer clear of us. Never!”

Seeing that he was still refusing to admit it, Sonia didn’t get mad and just smiled. “If that’s the case, then why are you here? You’re here because you want me to forgive you and say good things about your family to Toby. Unfortunately, you guys are wrong. How do you expect me to forgive you and help you when you are not being sincere with your apology? This is just insane.”

“You…” Grayson pointed at her with trembling fingers as he was too angry to speak.

Sonia waved her hand at him, saying, “Stop stuttering, Mr. Lore. Since you are unwilling to admit the truth, you shouldn’t be here and should be maintaining the pride of your family instead. We’ll see if Toby will pay any attention to it. However, since you are here, this proves that someone in your family knows what is happening. What a pity, though. Even if they know it, it will still be a waste if you don’t apologize sincerely. With that, I still stand my ground—I won’t forgive the Lore Family. To have my forgiveness, you must apologize sincerely. Otherwise, I won’t accept it. Don’t tell me that I should flatter you because of your relationship with The Fullers. Moreover, you and your family should be the ones buttering up to me.”

“What nonsense are you talking about? We, the Lore Family, flatter you?” said Grayson as he looked at Sonia scornfully.

Meanwhile, Sonia remained her expression unchanged and looked at him nonchalantly.

Laugh all you want now. You won’t be able to laugh later on, she thought.

“Nonsense?” Sonia shrugged. “I don’t think I’m speaking nonsense. As I said, I’m more important than the Lore Family in Toby’s heart. After all, he could steer clear of your family because of me. This proves that you and your family are not of much importance to him and can be easily ignored. However, if your family wants to keep in touch with him, you should find the perfect solution for it, and that happens to be me. Thus, the Lore Family should please and flatter me rather than offend me, because if I’m satisfied, I will praise your family in front of Toby. That way, you guys can continue to keep in touch with him.”

As she spoke, she wiggled her fingers. “If you guys offend me, I will be very unhappy. I will then say bad things about your family, giving him a bad impression on the Lore Family. Moreover, I can give him a pillow talk to ruin any chance of the Lore Family ever getting in touch with him again. You know how powerful pillow talk is, don’t you, Mr. Lore?”

At that moment, Grayson’s expression changed. He widened his eyes as he looked at her. After a while, he said, “You… You are such a vicious woman…”

“Vicious?” Sonia huffed. “I’m nothing compared to Lynette. You guys provoked me first. Since you guys want me dead, don’t blame me for my heartlessness. Lastly, I advise you to know your place. Don’t assume that everyone should obey you just because you are in the high-ups for a long time. Alright, that’s enough talking for today. It will be meaningless if I go on. Please leave!” She pointed at the door.

“I’m not leaving!” Grayson gripped his knuckles and said.

How could he leave when he hadn’t accomplished his purpose? Before he came here, he had reassured Harry that he would make her forgive them and promise to flatter them in front of Toby. Now that none of these had been done, he was unwilling to leave.

Seeing that he was persistent, Sonia sneered. “Not leaving? Fine, I’ll make you. Security!”

As her words fell, the door swung open to reveal four security guards.

The lead of the security guards looked at Grayson before back at Sonia. “Miss Reed, are you referring to these two?” he asked.

“Yes. I’ll leave you guys to it.” Sonia nodded.

“Don’t worry, Miss Reed. We will send them out.” The security guard nodded and walked toward Grayson and his assistant.

“How dare you use force, Sonia?” Grayson roared in disbelief.

Chapter 1143 Messed Things Up

Hearing his words, Sonia glanced at him and said, “Why won’t I fight back when you are being arrogant in my territory? Security, take them away!” Then, she waved her hand and ordered impatiently.

The security guards hummed in response and dragged Grayson and his assistant away. While the assistant obliged and followed the security guards quietly, Grayson fought back as this was his first time encountering such a thing. To him, this was a disgrace.

Being born into the Lore Family meant that he was loved and cared for by everyone; he had never known the feeling of being wronged. When Harry became Toby’s teacher and the Lore Family had contact with the Fullers, his family’s status went up. Everyone was fawning over him, and no one dared to disrespect him. Ever since the Lore Family and the Fullers had connections, Grayson could do anything he wanted, and no one would stop him.

Despite that, he was being treated like a clown by Sonia right now. How dare she ask the guards to throw me out? he thought.

As Grayson struggled, he looked back at Sonia angrily while screaming, “How dare you treat me like this, Sonia? Aren’t you scared that I will tell Toby what kind of person you are? I’m going to tell him how you treated me today. By then, he will hate you and break up with you!”

Listening to his words, Sonia rolled her eyes. Why do I think that he is an idiot? He doesn’t seem to understand what I just said. I just told him that he should make up with me and not threaten me if his family wants to earn Toby’s forgiveness since I resent them. However, it seems like he’s ignoring my words while being ignorant, even going as far as threatening me. What else is there to say other than him being a fool? The Lore Family is miserable for having such an heir. To think that Toby would help his family regardless and that he can look down on everyone just because Toby is his father’s student. What a pathetic creature, she thought.

As she heard Grayson’s threatening words, she smiled bravely. “Let’s see if you will be able to do it, then.” With that, she waved him off.188534

The security guards continued to drag Grayson away after receiving Sonia’s order. This time, they were rough with him, making him howl in pain while cursing Sonia. His cursed words were even more awful than women who talked behind others’ backs. At this moment, he didn’t look like someone from a noble family. One would be in disbelief if they saw him in this state.

Along the way, everyone in Paradigm Co. saw how Grayson acted like a madman. They were baffled as they had never seen such a vulgar rich man. Usually, people from the wealthy presented themselves as elegant and poised; even Asher would never do such a thing as he had his ego. However, Grayson was unlike any other wealthy person they had ever met.

While they were in astonishment, they couldn’t help but take out their phones and record the whole part where the security guards dragged Grayson out. Then, someone posted the video online.

Soon, the video of Grayson being unreasonable, cursing Sonia out, and being forcefully dragged away by the security guards quickly went viral online. In an instant, everyone knew about this matter.

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Initially, Sonia and Lynette’s grudges were all over the news. Although it had been clarified, the issue didn’t die down as many netizens were still paying close attention to this matter. They wanted to know how it ended between them and whether Sonia would forgive the Lore Family.0

As the netizens were extremely curious about it, they would click into the accounts of Paradigm Co., Sonia, and the other personal accounts of the six companies. That way, they would get first-hand news.

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That was why the netizens had noticed the video posted by an employee of Paradigm Co. just as they visited the account.

The video went viral as soon as people saw the nasty things that Grayson cursed and the description written by the employee. At that moment, everyone looked at the Lore Family like they were clowns.

After all, this was the first time they had seen an upper-class person like Grayson being kicked out of a place without any image. Thus, they found it interesting and even applauded Sonia for it.

It could be said that most netizens hated the rich. Although some were clueless while some hated to admit it, they were envious of anyone who was rich or of high status. Thus, when anything happened to the rich, they would feel happy and cheered about it.

At this moment, the netizens were cheering for Sonia, saying that she did great. On the other hand, they were saying that Grayson was like a dog being dragged on a leash.

Of course, some netizens were rational. After reading about what happened based on what the Paradigm Co. employee wrote, they scolded Grayson to a certain extent instead of joking about him without any limitations.

“Damn, it serves him right to be kicked out by Miss Reed. Not only did he not bring the litigant and apology gifts, he even acted arrogantly. This is the first time I have ever seen such a thing.”

“Yeah, I would have done the same as Miss Reed if anyone treated me like this. Moreover, I will beat them with a broom. I must say that Miss Reed is being soft-hearted.”

“Don’t the rich have better education than us? Why don’t they know how to apologize to others? Even we, as normal people, know that we should have a good attitude when apologizing to others while bringing them a token of apology. However, they went empty-handed. Is this because they are more powerful than us?”

“Hey, don’t throw every rich person under the bus. Some of them are well educated, just like our boss. He is very humble and will apologize if he does anything wrong—even when faced with the lowest-ranking employee, there will be a token of apology. So, it’s the Lore Family who have failed to educate their own family members. Otherwise, why are other rich people reputable while they are a laughing stock? Lynette wants to be a third-wheeler, whereas Grayson is arrogant. It seems that the Lore Family is a mess. I advise those who are working with the Lore Family to be cautious of your well-being.”

When this comment was posted, it was agreed upon by many people.

At that moment, the reputation of the Lore Family had fallen again.

The reputation of the Lore Family wasn’t high to begin with. As a young lady from wealth, Lynette actually wanted to become a third-wheeler. To achieve her goal, she used the netizen’s hatred for the third-wheeler to attack Sonia, which angered the netizens.

However, they were not angry because they had attacked an innocent woman but were furious because they had been used. Thus, the netizens had a bad impression of Lynette and the Lore Family. Now that Grayson made another mess, they noticed that the riches’ manners were worse than an ordinary person’s.

Their actions were unforgivable as they were undoubtedly rich and had access to most educational resources in the world. It would be better if they gave these resources to the citizens.

Since the netizens were jealous of them, their hatred for the Lore Family grew. At that moment, the stock market of the Lore Family, which had just stabilized, began to crumble again. This caused the Inventory Control Department employees to curse aloud while smashing their keyboards.

When the department chief saw Grayson being thrown out of Paradigm Co. from the computer, his face darkened. He took his phone out and called Harry as he was ready to file a complaint.

Chapter 1144 Complaint by Employee

How can I not complain about this matter? I knew that Grayson was going to Paradigm Co. as well as the reason why. After all, the three of us—Grayson, Harry, and I—had a meeting. Before he set off to meet her, we discussed how to earn Sonia’s forgiveness and let her talk good things about us in front of Toby.

When Grayson left, he reassured us that he would complete the mission with flying colors. However, Sonia ended up throwing him out because of his ill-mannered and insincere apology! Did he forget everything that we talked about during the meeting? He is going to be the death of me.

The call was picked up just as the department chief was thinking about it. “Hello.” Harry’s old but high-spirited voice came through the phone. “President Lore, there’s something that I need to tell you. It’s about Mr. Lore,” the chief said as he sat straight.

On the other side of the phone, Harry wore white sportswear as he stood in the villa’s garden. There was a sword that was made for exercise beside him. This proved that Harry was exercising before the chief had called.

He took the towel that the housekeeper gave him and wiped the sweat off his face. Then, he walked toward the gazebo and asked, “What’s the matter? Is he back from Paradigm Co. yet?”

The chief shook his head and said, “He’s not back yet, but he will be soon.”

“How did it go? Did Sonia—” Before Harry could finish his words, he was cut off by the chief’s deep sigh. “I’m sorry, President Lore. Mr. Lore failed to complete the mission,” he said.

At that moment, Harry stopped what he was doing abruptly. His face, which was red from exercise, darkened instantly.

“What? He failed?” he asked.

“Yes.”

Listening to the chief’s words, Harry squinted his eyes and wondered how he could’ve possibly failed.

“Is it because Sonia made things difficult for him? Did she request other things as she felt that it was not enough?” Harry gritted his teeth and guessed, his tone gloomy.

The chief didn’t know what to say when Harry accused Sonia of doing all that. Never did he think that the problem lay with Grayson.

To be honest, I believed that Harry knew what type of person Grayson was, but he was brainlessly protecting Grayson. He always blamed others and never realized that perhaps Grayson might be the person at fault. No wonder Grayson has this kind of personality.

Although the chief was thinking about it, he didn’t say it aloud. He lowered his eyes and replied, “Certainly not. The reason why it failed was because of Mr. Lore himself.”

“What do you mean by that?” Harry frowned. “Are you saying that it’s Grayson’s fault?”

“Yes.” The chief nodded. “During the meeting, we talked about letting Grayson apologize to Sonia on Lynette’s behalf. Although Sonia didn’t meet the instigator who caused this matter, she would be soft-hearted and let this matter off the hook if he had apologized sincerely to her and given her a token of apology. However…” the chief trailed off.

Listening to his words, Harry gripped his phone in annoyance and said, “Hurry up and say it.”

“Yes,” the chief replied without hesitation. “Grayson had agreed to it at first and we prepared the gift, but he changed his mind at the last minute. He went to Paradigm Co. with only his assistant and no gifts. Not only that, he was ill-mannered too. Not only did he not apologize, he even aroused the conflict between Miss Reed and himself. In the end, Miss Reed’s security guards kicked him out.”

Bang!

At that moment, Harry swept everything that was on the stone table off. He was fuming in anger while he breathed heavily. “That sc*mbag! How dare he go against my order and mess things up?!”

After he had gone to the Fuller Residence and seen Rose, he also realized that it was inappropriate to be at someone’s doorstep while empty-handed. However, he was excusable as he had visited her on a short notice. Plus, he felt that he had a good relationship with the Fullers, so perhaps it wasn’t that important to bring a gift.

Never did he expect that Rose did not feel that they were on good terms and valued the importance of a door gift. Although he was unhappy about it, it made him realize that the Fullers would only notice those they had kept connections with if they were to prepare door gifts when visiting, which was also the case for Sonia.

Since a gift should be prepared when visiting, it was more appropriate to prepare it when apologizing to someone. Hence, even though he was unwilling to spend his money on it, he would still endure it and prepare a generous gift as he would earn the money back as long as Toby was still willing to keep in contact with them. Thus, he shouldn’t hold a grudge against this matter. However, he never expected Grayson to ruin all his plans, which frustrated him to no end.

“President Lore? Are you there, President Lore?” the chief asked him worriedly.

Hearing his words, Harry took a deep breath to calm himself down. Then, he pinched the bridge of his nose and said, “I’m alright. I will teach Grayson a lesson now that I know about this matter.”

“Yes.” The chief nodded and asked again, “About that matter with Sonia… I assume that she wants Miss Lynette to apologize in person. So…”

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Harry frowned deeply as he cared for Lynette very much, but he suppressed his heartache when he thought about the relationship between the Lore Family and the Fullers.

“I’ll handle Lynette’s part. Once she gets over her jet lag, I will bring her to Sonia,” Harry said as he waved his hand.

When the chief heard that Harry was finally willing to let Lynette apologize, he sighed in relief. “Okay. In that case, I will stop disturbing you now. The video of Grayson being kicked out has been posted online, and everyone is laughing at us. It seems that the stock market has been affected as well. I’ll be going to look at it.”

“Okay.” Harry hummed in response.

After the call ended, Harry squinted his eyes and cursed before dialing a number.0

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On the other hand, Grayson was on his way back to Lore Communications. At this moment, he was sitting in the car and cursing Sonia with nasty words. His words were so unpleasant that the assistant, who was driving, felt ridiculous.

It is obviously Mr. Lore’s fault and not Miss Reed’s. Yet, he doesn’t think that he’s done anything wrong and is blaming it all on Miss Reed, blistering her. How absurd, he thought.0

At this moment, Grayson’s phone rang, cutting his words off. The car had finally quieted down as he stopped scolding, and the assistant felt like his ears had been saved while being grateful that Grayson’s phone had rung.

Hearing his phone ring, Grayson loosened his tie and took his phone out. “Dad?” When he saw the caller ID, his angered expression turned to shock and nervousness.

For some unknown reason, he had a bad feeling in his gut when he saw the caller. Should I answer it? I’m afraid of picking it up, though. If I don’t, he will surely punish me when I return. It looks like I have to answer the call no matter what, he thought.

Thinking about it, Grayson gripped his phone and hesitated for a moment. Then, he gritted his teeth and picked it up. Putting the phone by his ear, he then called out cautiously, “Dad?”

Chapter 1145 Dumb Son

When Harry heard Grayson’s voice, he put down the elegance in him as he gripped his phone tightly while he roared, “Don’t call me dad! I don’t have such a dumb son!”

At that moment, he was in the same state as Grayson when he was being unreasonable in Sonia’s office. Like father, like son— not only did they look alike, but their behaviors were identical.

Just as Grayson was expecting Harry’s tone to be calm, he was met with a roar when he picked up the phone. It startled him, and he winced while putting the phone away from him.

While covering one of his ears, Grayson mumbled into the phone. “What are you doing, Dad? I’m in the car with my assistant, so don’t embarrass me in front of him. Dumb is such a harsh word, you know.”

Harry sneered upon hearing his words and said, “Why should I avoid embarrassing you when you have done something foolish? Who do you think you are?”

“What foolish thing did I do, Dad?” Grayson retorted.

“What did you do?” Harry sneered. “You’ll know what you’ve done later on. Now, hurry up and get back here. I’ll give you thirty minutes for this. If you are not back by then, I’ll teach you a lesson.” With that, he hung up the phone.

Grayson only noticed the call had been disconnected when he looked at it after hearing no sound when he had been calling Harry. Then, he threw his phone aside and said bitterly, “What’s wrong with him? Why is he so angry?”

When the assistant saw how confused Grayson was, he rolled his eyes in secret. Although my dumb boss might not know why President Lore is furious, I know it has to do with apologizing to Miss Reed. Since he has messed up the apology, it would only be expected for President Lore to be mad.

As the assistant thought about it, he didn’t tell Grayson. After all, it would be a waste of time to say such a thing to a foolish person. I’m better off driving back to the company in silence, he thought calmly while turning the steering wheel.

At the same time, Toby was just done meeting a client in the Fuller Group. When he left the drawing room, he saw Tom walking toward him with a stern face.

“What’s wrong?” Toby stopped walking and asked.

“President Fuller, something happened to Miss Reed,” said Tom as he stood in front of Toby.

“Again?” Toby’s expression changed, and he had an intimidating presence.

Noticing Toby’s change in countenance, Tom quickly pushed his glasses and comforted him. “Calm down, President Fuller. It’s not a big deal. It’s just that the Lore Family went to Paradigm Co. to meet Miss Reed,” he said.

When Toby heard that it was the Lore Family who had gone to find Sonia, his expression became even colder. “Which one of the Lore Family?” he asked.

The Lore Family disliked Sonia and treated her unruly. As such, when he heard that they had met with Sonia, his first reaction was that they would cause trouble for her. That was why he was in a bad mood.

When he saw Toby walking away, Tom quickly trailed behind him while saying, “It’s Grayson.”

“Him?” Toby squinted his eyes. “Did you find out why they are looking for her?”

Tom shook his head and replied, “I didn’t ask. However, Paradigm Co.’s employee recorded a video when he went there and posted it online. Then, they wrote that he was there to apologize to Sonia for what happened yesterday.”

When Toby heard his words, his lips curled into a sneer as if he had listened to a joke. “An apology? I didn’t know that he could apologize,” he said.

“That’s why it didn’t end well,” Tom smiled and replied.

Hearing his words, Toby pursed his lips. “What happened?” he asked.

“I don’t know the details of it as I didn’t see it for myself, but from the video that the employee posted, it seemed like Grayson was insincere with his apology. Not only did he not bring Lynette, he also went there empty-handed and was ill-mannered. As such, Sonia told the security guards to kick him out,” Tom explained.

When Toby heard this, he stopped in his tracks. “What did you just say? He was kicked out of Paradigm Co.?”

“Yes.”

“Did Sonia do this?”

“The employee who posted said that it was Sonia. She ordered four security guards to drag Grayson and his assistant to the company’s door forcefully and throw them out. To that, Grayson even fell by the company’s door. If you want to see it, the video is still online.” With that, Tom took out his phone and pressed a few buttons before showing it to Toby. “Look, President Fuller,” he said.

Toby took over the phone and looked at it. He saw Grayson and his assistant being dragged out of the elevator and thrown out of the door. Seeing this, he smiled. “Sonia did a great job. People like this should be treated this way. However, Grayson has a filthy mouth,” Toby said darkly as he returned the phone.

Listening to his words, Tom took back his phone and looked at him. “Should I send someone to wash his mouth, President Fuller?” he asked.

“What do you think?” Toby glanced at him.

Then, Tom pushed his glasses and smiled, saying, “I understand. Don’t worry, I will clean his mouth thoroughly. I won’t disappoint you.”

Hearing his words, Toby hummed in response and pushed the office’s door open. As he entered the room, he took out his phone and called Sonia.

When Tom entered the room, he closed the door behind him. Then, he stood at the opposite side of Toby’s table without moving as he waited for Toby to finish talking on the phone before he could report other matters to him.

The call was quickly picked up. “Hello?” Sonia’s pleasant voice came through the line.

“Did Grayson do anything to you?” Toby sat down and went straight to the point.

On the other side of the phone, Sonia put down the ballpen she was holding and leaned back against the chair. “No, he didn’t. I knew that you were going to call me. Don’t worry, for he didn’t do anything to me. Moreover, I’m not the type to let people step over me,” she replied while smiling.

Hearing the smile in her voice, Toby knew that she was indeed fine. With that thought, he was slightly at ease. “That’s good. Sorry, I didn’t know they would come to look for you,” he said.

Noticing that he had put the blame on himself, Sonia shook her head and smiled. “Why are you apologizing to me? They have legs on their own. You can’t stop them from going somewhere. To be honest, I didn’t expect them to find me, but I realized that they would need to maintain the honor of their family from you. Since they couldn’t get to you, they had to choose another solution. With that being said, Grandma and I are the best solutions they can find. That’s why they came to me. Furthermore, yesterday’s incident impacted the relationship between you and the Lore Family. To earn your forgiveness, they came to apologize to me.”

“If they meant it, they would have apologized by yesterday. They only came to look for you after confirming that I wanted to steer clear from them, and Grandma refused to accept their apology. This proves that they have yet to realize their wrongdoings and have not considered you. You aren’t their first choice when they want to mend their relationship with me. How hypocritical of them.” As Toby spoke, his face was filled with disdain toward the Lore Family.

Listening to his words, Sonia smiled and said, “Indeed. Didn’t Mary call you yesterday and say that they had gone to find Grandma, wanting to mend their relationship with you through her? However, they didn’t bring anything with them when they visited. How ridiculous. It was also the same thing when they came to me.”188536

“I know. I saw the video.” Toby nodded.

Sonia stretched her neck, which was slightly sore, and said, “Since you have seen it, I won’t elaborate any further. I want to say that it is their attitude that I want, not the gifts.”

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Chapter 1146 It’s Not Your Fault

“Got it,” Toby answered. “Although they were sincere at offering their apology, I wouldn’t have forgiven them because of that. If they were polite, I would have changed my mind about them; if they showed that they were remorseful about what they had done and not blame their faults on me in future, I wouldn’t be bothered by them.

However, they weren’t even able to show basic respect, yet they expected me to forgive them and put in a good word for them. It was just ridiculous!” Sonia rubbed her temples as she spoke.

“I’ve been too forgiving toward them in the past and never really monitored them, subsequently encouraging their arrogant behavior. They assume they’re able to do whatever they want just by using my name. As such, I’m responsible for this,” Toby responded.

After all, he was the one who had brought the Lore Family under his protection. Therefore, he was correspondingly responsible for how the Lore Family would behave in the future.

On top of that, Toby would have to teach them a lesson for the mistakes they had made. However, he wasn’t familiar with the character of the Lore Family and assumed that they were reasonable people and wouldn’t act beyond measure.

Because of this, he rarely questioned nor restricted them with the belief that they wouldn’t cause trouble, so much so that his connivance gave the Lore Family the audacity to cause trouble. They even believed that they didn’t have to pay the price for offending Sonia, the woman Toby loved. This was why he felt sorry toward the woman.

Hearing that, she sighed and uttered, “It’s fine. I know that no matter what I tell you, you would still think that it’s your fault. Since that’s the case, I shall not get involved in the matters that would follow. You’ll be in charge of taking care of the matter regarding the Lore Family, and I hope that you won’t let me down.”

She thought that they would stop coming to see her since she refused to help them out. Moreover, she couldn’t stand to speak to the brainless Lore Family and had decided to pass the task over to Toby, who was the most suitable candidate for the job.

However, Toby knew that Sonia was doing this so that he could have a chance to make it up to her, which warmed his heart. He was determined about it and answered confidently, “Alright, I will not let you down.”

“That’s good. Have you eaten?” Sonia asked after letting out a laugh.

“Not yet. My meeting with one of the foreign investors just ended, so I haven’t had time to have my meal.” He pinched his glabella.

“It’s way past your lunch time.” Sonia frowned and was unhappy about it. “This won’t do. Go and get Tom to prepare something for you to eat now so that you can at least fill your stomach. You shouldn’t let yourself starve.” Toby chucked when he heard how concerned she was. “What are you laughing at? Let’s end the call so that you can get Toby to buy some food for you. We can still talk when we get home tonight.”

“Sure.” Toby nodded and answered with a smile before looking over at Tom. “Did you hear what Sonia said?” he asked.

“Yes, President Fuller. I’ll get it arranged.” Tom nodded.

With that, he immediately took his phone out and sent out a text. Tom admitted that he had overlooked it as he had planned to prepare Toby’s lunch after he was done with his work like how he usually did. He never expected Sonia to check in on them this time round. Given the situation, he decided that regardless of whether Toby was occupied with work, he would still prepare lunch in advance in order to appease Sonia. Toby would definitely be glad if she was happy, and Toby might raise his bonus because of that. Tom’s eyes lit up at the thought of that.

Toby, who was unaware of Tom’s thoughts, ended the call with Sonia. As he was about to say something after putting his phone down, someone knocked on the door.

Hearing that, Tom looked at the door and responded, “I’ll go get it, President Fuller.”

Toby signaled Tom to open the door by waving at him. Tom then carefully kept his phone before walking over to the door and opened it. A well-dressed man in a suit was seen standing outside.

“Mr. Brown, is President Fuller in?” the man asked politely.

“What is it about?” Tom asked the secretary who was standing outside.

The secretary didn’t beat around the bush and immediately flipped open the file that was placed in between his armpits before pulling out a gold and purple invitation card. He handed it over to Tom and said, “This is an invitation for President Fuller from the Lore Family.”

“What?” Tom picked at his ear, thinking that he had misheard the man’s words. “Did you say that it is from the Lore Family?”

“Yes.” The man nodded. “It’s from the Lore Family that you know of.”

Oh, great. Tom rolled his eyes and uttered, “Why are they suddenly sending out invites? What are they up to now?”

Hearing that, the secretary smiled and replied, “This invitation was passed to us by the butler of the Lore Family. We were told that they were hosting a welcoming back party for Miss Lore as she would be returning from overseas. This party is hosted in order to introduce Miss Lore to everyone, which is why they are handing out invites. They’re hoping you’d attend the party with Miss Reed.”

Hearing that, Tom smiled and muttered, “So it’s a debutante for Lynette.” He then patted the invitation card and ridiculed, “Why are they making such a big fuss about her returning to the country? Everyone in the circle was aware that Lynette is from the Lore Family. Do they have to purposely host a debutante for her? It’s obvious they’re just coming up with a reason to meet President Fuller in order to smooth things out with him. Alright, I got it. You can get going. I’ll pass this to the president.”

“Alright, Mr. Brown.” The secretary nodded and left.

After Tom closed the door, he walked toward Toby and passed him the invitation card without saying a word. Although Toby didn’t speak to the secretary, he had heard Tom’s entire conversation moments ago. Toby furrowed his brows after taking a look at it and stuffed it into his drawer, uninterested.

Seeing that, Tom asked, “President Fuller, will you be attending?”

“Nope,” answered Toby as he closed the drawer impassively.

Even so, Tom wasn’t surprised at the way Toby stuffed the card into his drawer, showing that he was uninterested in attending. Thus, he stopped asking about it.

“Go and check when Lynette will be coming back.” Toby suddenly spoke.

“Got it.” Tom nodded and turned around before walking out.

After he left, Toby leaned on his chair with his arms folded while deep in thought as he narrowed his gaze. Meanwhile, Sonia had been busy with work after she ended the call with Toby. Not long later, Charles suddenly turned up at her office.

She was surprised to see him carrying a big basket into her room. “What brings you here?” She stood up and asked.”

“My mom visited my maternal grandmother yesterday and brought back some dried porcini mushrooms. She knows that you love them, so she got me to send some over to you. Here you go.” With that, he passed the basket to her.

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“That’s a lot!” She pointed at the basket and exclaimed.

“Is it?” He looked at it.

“This is a huge basket. I think it weighs almost ten pounds.” She covered her mouth with her hand.

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Chapter 1147 Get Someone to Teach Connor a Lesson

Sonia frowned upon receiving the basket from him as it was so heavy that she was certain it weighed more than ten pounds.

Charles helped her to place the basket on her desk and explained, “This is nothing. Since you like them so much, my mom purposely brought more back and got me to bring them to you since she rarely visits my grandmother. She’s not sure when her next visit will be, which is why she brought more back for you so that these will last you until her next visit.”

“It sounded like your mother went to visit your grandmother just to bring some of the local produce back. It makes me feel bad.” Sonia laughed.

“Don’t be.” Charles reached over and took an apple from the fruit tray on the table and munched on it as he sat on the side of her desk. “Since my mom sees you as her own daughter, she bought a lot of it knowing that they are your favorite. Isn’t it normal? After all, mothers would want their daughters’ to be able to eat their favorite food.”

“Even so, Mrs. Lane has bought me a lot of my favorite food all these while, but I rarely buy her anything. It makes me feel bad,” Sonia said as she patted the basket.

“If you feel bad, you can visit her often if you have the time. You don’t have to buy her anything since she doesn’t really need anything else. Moreover, you don’t have a hometown that you can go back to, so it would be hard for you to get local produce for her. She’d be happier if you go and visit her.” Charles spoke with his mouth full as he chomped on the apple.

“You’re right. Sure, I’ll go visit her when I’m free.” Sonia then took the basket from the table and placed it on the side. “I shall accept these then. Please thank Mrs. Lane for me.”

“No worries, it’s just some dried mushroom that doesn’t cost much.” Charles waved his hand at her as he spoke. Soon, he suddenly recalled something and pointed at the basket before saying, “Right, my mom also got something for Toby. She wants me to remind you to cook it and let him eat it.”

“She wants me to cook it for Toby?” Sonia paused and looked to the direction of the basket before continuing, “What did Mrs. Lane get for Toby that I have to cook for him?”

Could it be some aphrodisiac food? From her memory, elders would normally prepare such food for their sons or son-in-laws. Sonia was thinking whether Grace was hinting at her and Toby to get married soon and have children. She felt embarrassed by such a thought and blushed at once.

Charles, who was unaware of what she was thinking, didn’t notice the look on her face. After he finished chomping on the apple, he threw the core into the bin and patted his hands. “I’m not exactly sure what it is, but my mom told her that it helps bone to heal faster.”

“It heals the bones?” Sonia was surprised that it wasn’t an aphrodisiac. She blinked while in a daze.

“Sonny, what’s wrong?” Charles noticed the distracted Sonia and waved his hand in front of her.

Noticing that, Sonia snapped out of it and grabbed onto his hand before giving him an awkward smile. “Nothing, I just recalled something.”

“What is it?” Charles asked.

“Nothing much. Just tell me why your mom got Toby food with bone healing properties and stop asking me about anything else,” said Sonia while looking at him.

She would be embarrassed if he probed her about it, and she wouldn’t be able to answer him about what she was thinking since it was something embarrassing. She couldn’t believe that she actually thought that it was some aphrodisiac. She patted her hot, flushed face and was in disbelief that she actually had such thoughts.

It must be Toby. Yeah, it must be him. His head is full of such things, and it has influenced my thoughts, which is why I related it to something like that. That must be it. She pursed her lips and convinced herself.

“Well, the reason is simple. Didn’t Toby break his arm before this when he was trying to save you? My mom wasn’t aware of how it happened, but she knew that he got hurt in order to save you. Thus, she did some research about food that is good for bone healing before visiting my grandmother. It’s her way of thanking Toby for saving your life and helping you lighten your heavy heart.” Charles got down from the table and spoke.

“I see.” Sonia finally understood after listening to his explanation and nodded. She felt warmth in her heart and couldn’t help placing her palm on her chest as she exclaimed, “Mrs. Lane has been really good to me, so much that I don’t know how I should repay her.”

“If you want to repay her, like I said, you could visit her more often when you’re free. She has always wanted to have a daughter all her life, and she constantly grumbled about how she only gave birth to a son whenever she looked at me. This shows that she likes you more than me.” Charles pursed his lips and seemed to have a trace of resentment on his face.

Seeing that, Sonia smiled. “Are you being jealous of me?”

“I’m not. It’s just that it makes me upset when she keeps bringing that up since I’m not the one who decided my gender. She should say those words to my father since his genes were the ones who decided the gender of their children. It’s not my fault that they gave birth to a boy. However, she couldn’t bring herself to complain to my dad and instead directed it at me. I’m innocent!” He sighed resignedly.

“Well, you have no choice since you’re his son. You’ll just have to bear with it.” She beamed and patted his shoulder. Hearing that, he stuck his tongue out and stopped talking.

“Right, Charles—I need your help with something.” She retracted her hand.

“What is it?” He seemed serious when she heard that she needed her help and was all ears.

“Charles, I need you to help me get a few people,” she said solemnly.

“You want me to get a few people?”

“Yes, a few thugs.” She nodded.

“What?” He was startled by her request and raised his voice while looking at her wide-eyed. “Sonny, what are you trying to do? Don’t ever think of messing around.”

Sonia couldn’t help but roll her eyes at him when she saw how worked up he was. “Who said that I’m going to mess around?”

“In that case, why would you want to get associated with thugs?” Charles asked concernedly.

“I’d like to teach someone a lesson,” she said after taking a seat.

“Teach someone a lesson?” Charles was surprised and went up to her before asking, “Who are you going to teach a lesson?”

The next moment, she leaned backward to distance herself from him, for he had leaned in too close to her. “Connor Salzburg,” she answered.

“He’s the head of the Slazburg Family, Anya’s father, as well as the one who holds a grudge against Toby?” Charles blinked his eyes as he asked.

“Yes.”

“Is he back at Westsanshire already?”

“Not yet.” She shook her head. “Which is why I want to look for someone to beat him up. I won’t be able to do so once he’s back at Westsanshire since it’s his territory.”

“You have a point,” said Charles while scratching his chin.

“From what I remember, you were the school bully at one point when you were in high school, and you even hung out with some thugs at that time. You seemed to be able to blend in well, and you were also their leader. It shouldn’t be hard for you to look for a few thugs, right? Even if you have not kept in touch with them in many years, I’m sure that you still have their contact, don’t you?”

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Chapter 1148 Put a Sack Over His Head

“I do keep in touch with them.” Charles touched his nose sheepishly. “Well, you know him too. His name is Lance Walters, and he used to be my subordinate while in high school.”

“I know. He seemed silly, but he was righteous and a pretty strong guy too.” Sonia nodded. “That’s right. After I was reprimanded by my dad, I had to leave the gang and entrusted the gang to Lance. He wasn’t good in his studies, but he was street smart and was able to lead the gang well.

On top of that, he had great strength—that was why all of the members below him didn’t dare to go against him. Although I haven’t asked about how the gang has been doing all these years, I do keep in contact with Lance, so I’m still aware of a thing or two about them. Although they aren’t the biggest gang within Seafield, they are considered notable locally, so it wouldn’t be an issue to ask for their help,” said Charles reassuringly.

Hearing that, Sonia responded, “In that case, it shouldn’t be an issue. I’d like to get a few people to put a sack over his head and beat him up. That would be satisfying.”

“Sonny, I see that you have gone astray,” he said teasingly while staring at her.

“I don’t have a choice; what he did was frustrating.” She coughed embarrassedly when she noticed his gaze.

“I can tell. If not, someone as docile and kind hearted as you wouldn’t have resorted to doing this. It just proves that Connor must have done something unforgivable.” He threw his hands up and continued, “Sonny, what did he actually do to make you want to teach him a lesson in such a way?”

“I won’t reveal to you about what he’s done, but I can tell you that he has done bad things to Toby, which is why I want to teach him a lesson on Toby’s behalf. All this while, Toby has been helping me out a lot, but I never got to do much for him. Since my abilities are limited, there’s only so much I can do for him, so every little thing counts.” Sonia chuckled.

Hearing that, Charles pursed his lips and responded sourly, “So you’re doing this just for Toby? I thought Connor offended you again.”

“Alright, so would you be willing to help me out?” She laughed as she patted his shoulder.

“How could I reject you when you’ve already asked for my help?” He glanced at her before adding, “It’s not a big deal, so Lance would agree to help out if I ask him to.”

“Thank you.” Sonia raised her tea cup at him in place of wine.

Noticing that, he raised his tea cup and clinked it with hers. “There’s no need to thank me.”

“I should be thanking you since there’s a risk for doing this.” Sonia took a sip of tea and placed the cup down before raising her concern, saying, “Since Connor is the head of the Salzburg Family, he is powerful enough to find out who’s behind it. By then, it might complicate Lance …”

“Don’t worry.” Charles knew what she wanted to say and waved his hand nonchalantly. “Lance has proven to be highly capable, for he has managed to stay in the gang up until today. Don’t you think it’s unusual that he hasn’t been removed by the authorities until now?”

“Unusual?” Sonia was surprised, but she soon figured it out. Her eyes lit up as she pointed upward. “Are you saying that Lance is associated with the authorities?”

“That’s right.” He nodded and lightly patted the top of her head. “Sonny, you’re so smart to be able to figure this out in no time.”

“Enough with the flattery.” She slapped his hand away and glared at him.

Charles laughed and responded, “Fine. I’ll stop patting your head, but you’re indeed smart to be able to figure it out that quickly. Although Lance is involved with the gang, he is an ethical person; the gang didn’t end up being vicious like the other gangs under his leadership. Most importantly, he would assist the authorities by reporting other gangs to them. He has been immensely helpful and has saved them a lot of problems. Hence, Lance’s gang is technically associated with the authorities. As long as he doesn’t go overboard with whatever he does, the authorities would typically close a blind eye and even help him clean his mess. It wouldn’t be good news to the authorities if Lance is gone, for no one would be able to manage the gang and it would soon deteriorate.”

“I understand.” Sonia scratched her cheek with her index finger. “Lance’s existence is like a pawn, where he is used to suppress other dark organizations. As long as he lives and doesn’t turn vile, the other organizations will be fearful of him. Since they won’t be arrogant enough to cause trouble, the crime rate will be greatly reduced, and the authorities can also take a break.”

“That’s right.” Charles snapped his fingers. “That’s what I meant. Simply put, there won’t be any problems if we ask Lance to get some men to beat Connor up. Even if the authorities know about it, they won’t care. Even if Connor finds out in the end, he can’t take his revenge that easily. After all, Lance’s gang is backed by the authorities to balance the underground forces, so they won’t allow Connor to be involved and break this balance.”

“If that’s the case, then I’m relieved.” Sonia let out a sigh of relief and smiled.

“When do you want to teach Connor a lesson? Where do you want to do that?” Charles raised his fists and stretched them.

“When?” Sonia lowered her gaze and thought for a while. “Of course, the sooner the better as I don’t know when he will leave Seafield. Well, as for the location, you can let Lance make the arrangements. He must have the most suitable place in mind where his men can easily escape after doing the deed. Anyway, I just want to see the result. ”

“Okay, I’ll contact him in a moment. Is there anything else?”

“No.” Sonia shook her head.

“Alright then, I’ll take my leave. I’ll inform you immediately when it’s done.” Charles stood up.

“Alright.” Sonia smiled and walked him to the door.

When they got to the door, Sonia opened it and wanted to walk him to the elevator, but he pressed on her shoulders and said, “Just stay here. I can go out by myself.”

“Alright then, drive safe.” She paused her footsteps and smiled at him.

“Got it. Okay, I’m leaving.” He yawned.

“Sure.” She nodded and watched him walk out.

After he left, she closed the office door and walked back to the desk. Meanwhile, Charles hummed a song while walking briskly. He had his hands in the pockets of his pink suit trousers. He would dashingly twirl, hop, and dance over to the elevator.

When he passed by the door of the secretary’s office, a sudden exclamation came from the inside. “What? You’re saying that Daphne might be pregnant?”

Charles immediately paused his footsteps and turned to look at the secretary’s office as he narrowed his gaze. What did I just hear? Is Daphne pregnant? That can’t be! The hands in his trouser pockets clenched into fists at this moment, and his expression was grave.

Chapter 1149 Charles Had Found Out About Daphne’s Pregnancy

He couldn’t think straight as his head was muddled. He never expected to hear such shocking news when he walked past. It’s not true, isn’t it? It mustn’t be true. How could Daphne… Be pregnant? Even if she is pregnant, who’s child is it? Is it the child of another man, or…

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The thought of it was unbearable for him.

Just then, another voice rang from inside the room. Another person started talking and was surprised to hear the news. “Is that true? Is Daphne really pregnant?”

“Yeah, how is that possible? Are you lying to us?” asked another person.

Their questions happened to be what Charles was eager to find out about. He held his breath, tiptoed over to the entrance of the office, and stopped by the wall before lowering his gaze as he paid attention to their conversation. He frowned as his gaze darkened.

Meanwhile in the office, a few of the secretaries paused their work and huddled together as if they were having a secret meeting to talk about Daphne’s scandal.0

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The one standing in the middle saw how eager the others were and spoke proudly. “I’m not lying. I’m eighty-percent sure that Daphne is pregnant.”

Eighty-percent? Charles’ expression turned dark as it seemed like the probability of Daphne being pregnant was high.0

“Why are you so sure about that? Tell us, quick! Stop beating around the bush.”

“Yeah, we are getting impatient. Stop making us guess. How did you find out about her pregnancy?”

“That’s right, spill it.”

The person standing in the middle knew that the others would get impatient if she kept beating around the bush. She then signaled them to calm down before saying, “Actually, I just found out about it not long ago—no, I should say that I just confirmed my suspicions recently. Do you all know that Daphne would suddenly go to the washroom and throw up during working hours?”

“Yes, we are aware. We thought that she was ill, but she told us that she wasn’t sick and was just having a bad stomach. That’s why we didn’t give much thought to it. But come to think of it, this could seem to prove that she is pregnant.”

“Well, it seems like it.”

Hearing that, this secretary suddenly smiled and said, “All of you didn’t relate it to her being pregnant because all of you aren’t married and haven’t had children yet. This explains why you aren’t aware of such symptoms during the early stages of her pregnancy. I’m married and have the experience of bearing a child, so I suspected Daphne of being pregnant earlier on. The first time I saw her being unwell, I believed that she was just unwell when she told me so, but after a while, it started to seem off as a normal person would have it treated at a hospital instead of going through the torment of vomiting every few days.”

“She’s definitely pregnant.” Someone blurted out.

“That’s right.” The secretary slapped the handle of the chair. “Pregnant women who feel nauseous from time to time wouldn’t be worried if they vomit every now and then since they know they aren’t sick or anything; they’re just pregnant. It was not until two days ago when I saw her vomiting in the washroom that I couldn’t help but ask whether she was pregnant.”

“Did she admit to it?” Several of them spoke at the same time.

Charles furrowed his brows and gripped onto the wall.

That secretary shook her head and answered, “She didn’t, but she did look nervous and wasn’t calm like she used to be during work. She simply responded to the query and left, which is why I’m sure that she’s pregnant.”

“From what you said, Daphne seems to really be pregnant.”

“I think so too. If not, she wouldn’t have been that nervous.”

“What I don’t understand is why she would try to hide it from everyone. Since all of us are adults, it’s no big deal for her to be pregnant.”

“It’s probably because she became pregnant before getting married. After all, I’ve never heard her talking about being wedded.” One of them guessed.

“I’ve not even heard that she has a boyfriend. How did she get pregnant then? Who is the child’s father?”

All of them looked at each other, but no one was able to answer it. Although they were Daphne’s colleagues, they hadn’t been working together for long, so they didn’t know much about her private matters.

“Could she have been… harassed? Is that why she doesn’t want anyone to know that she’s pregnant?” Just then, one of them bit her lips as she speculated. “This can only explain why Daphne, who is single, got pregnant and is reluctant to let anyone know about it. Getting pregnant after being harassed isn’t something to be proud of, and based on my knowledge, society is malicious toward women. Even if the criminal is at fault, the victim would usually be blamed and suffer from verbal violence. Daphne’s probably choosing to hide it because she’s afraid she would be seen differently and be criticized.”

“What you said seems possible. After all, in today’s society, having a child out of wedlock is disgraceful, but it will not be prejudiced against like how it used to be back in the day. If Daphne got pregnant after a one night stand or is pregnant with her boyfriend’s child, I don’t think there’s any reason to hide it. As an adult, it’s normal to get pregnant, and she can just admit to it generously. No one will laugh at her since there are many players within our company. Thus, it is reasonable that those who get pregnant after being harassed wouldn’t admit to their pregnancy. It’s normal for Daphne to not admit to it.”

All of them sighed after coming to the conclusion. “If that’s really the case, Daphne is indeed pitiful.”

“Maybe both of you are right.” The secretary who mentioned that Daphne was pregnant earlier on looked at all of them and said. Hearing that, everyone was stunned. “Rita, what do you mean? Is Daphne really pregnant because she was…”

“I’m not sure, but I suspect so. Since I was on duty yesterday, I had to stay back to clean the office after everyone got off work. When I was throwing the trash out, I noticed a document about an appointment for abortion in Daphne’s bin. Because of this, I was sure that she was pregnant. However, I didn’t give much thought to why she decided to get an abortion until I heard you guys said that she might be harassed. That explains why she opted for abortion!”

Before any of them could react to Rita’s remarks, the office door suddenly flung open, startling everyone.

“Who is it?” Rita frowned and glared at the direction of the door.

The next moment, Charles stepped into the office and lifted his gaze while speaking with a grave expression, “It’s me.”

“President Lane?” Everyone was surprised and quickly stood up. “Why are you here? Is there anything we can help you with?”

“Is everything that you said earlier true?” He ignored their question and walked toward them before stopping in front of Rita as he clenched his fists.

Chapter 1150 The Furious Charles

“W-What?” She looked at him puzzledly. However, she shouldn’t be blamed for being confused since Charles was the one who suddenly barged in and questioned her furiously. Meanwhile, the other secretaries looked at each other as they tried to make sense of the situation. They didn’t know why Charles was suddenly mad.

“Is what you said about Daphne’s pregnancy true?” He clenched his fists and questioned her while trying to suppress his anger.

Hearing that, Rita finally understood what he meant and responded, “Oh, you’re referring to that. Yes, it’s true that Daphne is pregnant.”

His gaze darkened upon hearing that. Although he had heard about it from their conversation while he was standing outside the door, he was overwhelmed by emotions when he heard Rita reiterated about Daphne’s pregnancy. Daphne really is pregnant!

“President Lane, what’s wrong?” Rita was confused when she saw Charles’ unusual reaction.

“Was the appointment for abortion that you mentioned about earlier true as well?” He stared at her with bloodshot eyes and asked.

“Of course. How could we joke around about things like these?” She nodded.

The others nodded as well. Indeed, it was no joking matter as making fun about such matters was immoral. Even worse, it would bring trouble and inconvenience to Daphne. Since Daphne was an experienced senior at work, there were a lot of things that they had to refer to her. Besides, she was a kind and lovely person who was generous in sharing her knowledge and helping them when they were in need. Thus, they shouldn’t spread rumors that would hurt Daphne as it would be ungrateful of them to do so.

Even though they were discussing Daphne’s pregnancy among themselves, they weren’t planning to tell anyone else about it as it would be troublesome if others found out about that. When Charles saw how serious Rita and the other secretaries looked, his chest felt tight as if a hand was gripping on it, and he almost couldn’t breathe because of it.

He couldn’t understand why he was experiencing such feelings, but one thing he was sure about was how furious he was at Daphne for not telling him that she was pregnant. He was angry at her for deciding for an abortion all by herself. Since the child could be his as well, she didn’t have the final say on whether to keep the child or not.

The thought of it made his chest feel tight as he experienced shortness of breath. His handsome face was flushed red with anger, and the veins on his temples were popping out as his blood boiled.

Rita and her colleagues were startled when they saw his expression, and they didn’t know what triggered him.

“President Fuller, are you alright?” Rita asked worriedly.

Hearing that, he sluggishly waved his hand and asked in a hoarse voice, “I’m fine. Did you manage to see what time the appointment for the abortion was?” He was dying to know when the procedure would take place!

“Yes. If I’m not mistaken, it’s this afternoon.” Rita recalled as she lowered her gaze.

“This afternoon?” It felt as if something in his head had exploded, for the answer came to him as a surprise.

“That’s right. It’s at 4.00PM.” She nodded.

“Are you sure?” Charles glared at her with bloodshot eyes, and it seemed like he was going to break her neck if she gave the wrong information.

His grave expression was enough to make her tremble, but she remained calm and nodded. “I’m very sure of this. I was surprised to see it in Daphne’s trash bin, so I deliberately took a closer look at it.”

“Which hospital?”198834

“First World Hospital.”

Hearing that, Charles left the office without saying another word. Rita and her colleagues were confused at how he suddenly turned up announced and left without saying a word.

“What was that? What’s with President Fuller’s reaction? The look on his face was so terrifying that it scared me. I’ve met him many times, but this is the first time I’ve seen him so angry. I noticed that there seemed to be another underlying emotion besides anger.”

“I have no idea. It’s my first time seeing him being that mad too. He’s normally happy and cheerful, which gives me a feeling that he has a good temper. He’s normally polite when he speaks to us, but it seems like he can get this scary when he’s furious. Why was he that angry, though?”

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“It seems to be because of Daphne’s pregnancy.”0

“Daphne’s pregnancy?”

0

“Yeah. If you noticed his expression just now, it’s obvious that he overheard our conversation from outside before barging in. When he came in, the first thing that he asked was about Daphne’s pregnancy, and his expression darkened when he heard what we said. So, it’s apparent that he’s mad about this.”

“You have a point, but why would he get so worked up about it?”

“I guess it’s because he felt that she was being ill treated. If you think about it, before Daphne started working at Paradigm Co., she used to be President Lane’s secretary. On top of that, they attended the same university and were very close to each other. He was probably furious after finding out that Daphne got pregnant after being harassed. I would be angry too if my friend was going through the same situation.”

“Sounds reasonable. Rita, do you see it that way too?” A few of them noticed that Rita had been quiet and she was staring at the direction of the door.

Hearing that, she snapped out of her thoughts and smiled as she shook her head. “Probably, but I don’t think it’s as simple as that.”

“Rita, what do you mean by that?”

She merely shook her head as she kept quiet. She didn’t comment further as it was just her speculation, and things would get awkward if it wasn’t like what she had in mind.

Meanwhile, Charles rushed out of the elevator and he hurried over to his car before unlocking his vehicle and getting into his car. He sped out of the parking lot without fastening his seatbelt. He was speeding so quickly that it startled the other drivers, and they had to stop their car. Some of them even wound down their windows and cursed at him. Even though Charles heard them, he couldn’t be bothered by it and stared at the road in front of him as he floored the accelerator.

He had to rush to the hospital as soon as possible and ask Daphne whose child that was. If it was someone else’s, he wanted to know exactly when she had met another man. But if it was his… His grip on the steering wheel tightened, and his expression was grim.

If the child was his, he wanted to know why she kept the pregnancy to herself. Back when he asked whether she had taken contraceptives, she answered that she had been taking them. If she really was on contraceptives, she shouldn’t have gotten pregnant. This was enough to prove that she was lying to him.

He wanted to know what her intention was for doing so. Was she planning to get ahead after being pregnant with his child?