Book 1: She Becomes Glamorous After the Engagement Annulment

Chapter 34

Chapter 100: Has Mr. Hunt Been Narcissistic Today?

Justin’s expression was serious and frosty as he spoke.

There was an unfathomable gleam in his deep, bottomless eyes, and the beauty mark at the corner of his eye exuded a chilly aura.

Farrell was startled by his reaction. He stammered, “D-did Mr. Hunt not say that?”

Was Nora Smith lying?

In the midst of his thoughts, Justin slowly said, “The authorities haven’t announced any national policies yet, so why would I spread rumors like that? You think too highly of me, Mr. Wood!”

He was just an ordinary businessman; how would he possibly be able to predict future economic trends so clearly?

It was then that Farrell realized that he had said something wrong.

What the higher-ups feared the most was merchants being able to determine the economictrends. Justin had been restrained in his actions and behavior all these years, so how would he possibly say such things when national policies hadn’t been announced yet?

What was the matter with him today? He had actually come all the way to the man himself to clarify matters after merely hearing an ambiguous statement!

He immediately stood up and said, “Sorry, I…”

However, before he could finish, the icy look on Justin’s countenance gradually faded and he said calmly, “Don’t worry, Mr. Wood. I reckon the relevant policies will be announced in a few days, probably less than a week.”

Farrell, “!!!”

He stared at Justin in shock. So, was he admitting to it?

Although Farrell managed to keep a straight face on when he left the Hunt Corporation, deep inside, he was actually terribly shaken. Mr. Hunt was actually willing to tell Ms. Smith such important news…

Just what kind of relationship did the two of them share?

No matter what it was though, he had to treat Ms. Smith with more courtesy in the future. Of course, he mustn’t let the news spread for the time being either. He mustn’t tell anyone at all!

Upstairs.

Pete, who had just finished a Mathematical Olympiad worksheet, turned and actually saw the tyrant resting against a chair sloppily.There was a smile on his face, and his eyes were nearly curved all the way into slits.

Pete curled his lip.

He really couldn’t bear to watch that father of his anymore!

Justin was currently holding his cell phone and sending a text message to Nora: ‘Mr. Wood just left my office, Ms. Smith. Do you owe me another meal now?’

She replied immediately after he sent the message: ‘Bring your son. You can decide the time and place.’

Justin’s lip corners curled into a smile. He suddenly asked, “Pete, do you want to eat at an Italian restaurant?”

Pete hated Italian cuisine the most, so without even thinking about it, he immediately replied, “… No, I don’t.”

“Oh.”

Justin found a random Italian restaurant, sent the location to Nora, and then said, “I have a dinner appointment at an Italian restaurant tonight. Since you don’t like the food there, I won’t take you.”

Pete, who was completely unaware that he had fallen into someone’s trap, nodded seriously. “Okay.”

Ever since the tyrant discovered that the home tutors were abusing him, he had turned down a lot of work and had been spending more time with him lately.

It was fine even if he socialized once in a while.

Pete sighed and glanced at his cell phone. When he realized that Cherry had sent him a message, he put on his earphones and tapped the play button.

“Mathematical Olympiad problems are so tough, Pete. Can you save Cherry tonight, pretty please?”

Pete, “…”

He was so clever and quick-witted, and could master anything immediately, so why was his younger sister so bad at her studies?

The little fellow sighed and replied to her message. The five-year-old boy could already spell, so he wrote: “Take a picture of your homework and send it to me. I’ll do it for you.”

“Thanks, Pete! I’ll send you the homework when I get home after school. I also have to live-stream, so I’m super busy, yeah~”

“…”

Nora and Justin’s dinner appointment was at six o’clock in the evening.

Around five o’clock, Nora heard the car.

It was probably Tanya coming back with Cherry.

With that in mind, she pushed the door open and walked out of her room.

However, as soon as she went downstairs, she saw Miranda barging in angrily. She shouted, “Melissa, get out here!”

Melissa was preparing dinner in the kitchen. As she walked out, she untied her apron and handed it to the nanny.

She was a little surprised to see Miranda. She asked, “Miranda? Why are you here?”

Miranda stepped forward, pointed at her, and yelled angrily, “What the hell did you tell Farrell? He’s actually decided not to invest anymore! Don’t stop us from making money just because you’re so pretentious to act as if you’re above money! Is it because you don’t want to see the Wood's do well?!”

Melissa frowned. The gentle woman’s expression had already darkened. She raised her voice a little and said, “That’s enough, Miranda! Farrell must have his reasons for not investing anymore!”

Miranda had a loose tongue and couldn’t stop herself from telling everyone everything, so they absolutely mustn’t let her know about the crucial information that Justin had revealed.

However, her words displeased Miranda.

Farrell had decided not to invest in the real estate industry anymore after he returned from the Andersons.

The 30 million dollars that the family had prepared went back to the company just like that.

When she asked for a reason, her husband’s answer was also “I have my reasons that I can’t say. In any case, we’re not investing anymore, so don’t ask any further about it.”

‘Don’t ask any further’… Why should she be kept out of the loop?

The siblings had barely met for so many years, yet they still behaved like that the moment they do. The two of them had a secret that she didn’t know about!

The more Miranda thought about it, the angrier she became.

She shouted, “You’re a troublemaker and a jinx! The Andersons fell into decline right after you married into the family! You must be wishing for the Wood's to fall into decline too, right?”

“Well, let me tell you this—the Wood's are headed by your brother, so he has the final say, but that’s not the case for the Sonnet's! Even if the Wood's fall into decline, I will still continue to look down on you when my family gets rich!”

The Wood's might not want the opportunity, but the Sonnet's did! Her elder brother had already gotten funds ready to invest right away!

When the Sonnet's struck gold, she would be able to hold her head high in front of Farrell and show him just how stupid his sister’s suggestion was!!

Melissa clenched her fists and stared at Miranda incredulously. She hadn’t missed the flash of malice in her eyes.

She used to think that her sister-in-law merely had some kind of misunderstanding about her, but at this moment, she realized very clearly that Miranda had never once regarded her as family.

Since that was so, then why bother putting up with her attitude?

Melissa pointed to the door and ordered, “You’re not welcome here, Miranda! Get out!”

Miranda continued to rant and rave. “I’m not welcome here? Do you think I even want to come to a shabby place like this?”

Melissa was a cultivated person, so she couldn’t help but become even angrier at her words.

She was about to say something when Nora, who was standing on the stairs, asked coolly, “Aunt Miranda, is green the Sonnet'd favorite color?”

Miranda was taken aback. “What do you mean?”

Nora’s lips curled up into a smile. “Because greenbacks are all your family cares about.”

“You—!”

Aristocrats and nobles disliked it the most when people said that money was the only thing they cared about.

Miranda was so furious that she suddenly slapped Melissa across her cheek. “Look at the wild child you brought home! How dare she say such things to her elders?!”

No one had expected Miranda to get violent. Melissa held her cheek and stared at her incredulously. “You—”

Miranda, however, raised her chin and said extremely arrogantly, “What? I’m your elder brother’s wife. So what even if I hit you? Do you dare to retaliate?!”

But unexpectedly, she had only just said that when…

Chapter 101: Birthday Present

Smack!

Miranda felt her vision darken and then, a clear and loud sound rang out right after.

Before she knew it, her head had been pushed to the side. It was only when she felt a hot and stinging pain that she realized that someone had hit her.

She turned back abruptly to see Nora standing in front of her.

Nora glanced at her carelessly with her cat-like eyes and said, “Aunt Melissa’s not hitting you because she’s a cultivated lady.”

Then, she raised her eyebrows provocatively and said coldly, “However, I’m a wild child with a bad temper, so I can’t stand anyone behaving wildly in front of me.”

“…”

Her attitude intimidated Miranda. The young woman looked thin and weak, and her fingers slim and slender, yet there was a lot of force in the slap she delivered. It was to the extent thatshe felt like she was still seeing stars.

Miranda took a step back and put some distance between Nora and herself. She held hercheek with her hand and glared at Melissa furiously as she shouted, “Melissa! Are you just going to watch her get violent with her elders?! Make her apologize! Otherwise, I’ll never let this matter rest!”

Melissa’s cheek was still hurting fiercely.

She was a learned person.

She had never liked getting violent so crudely whenever she met with a problem, and she hated arguing with uncultured people even more. The way Miranda always behaved like a shrew in the streets made her feel at a loss the most.

Moreover, she was family, so she didn’t want to make things too ugly. That was why she had allowed herself to be bullied and suppressed for so many years.

But in the moment that Nora hit Miranda just now, she finally experienced the joy of revenge, especially when she saw how Miranda didn’t dare to say anything despite being so furious.

Melissa gave a wry smile with her eyes reddened. Then, she straightened her back, looked calmly at Miranda, and replied aggressively, “In that case, shouldn’t you apologize to me first?”

Miranda, who was lost for words, stamped her foot angrily after a brief moment. She pointed at Melissa and ranted angrily, “I came here with good intentions to persuade you to invest in real estate, yet you’re hitting me instead? I’m going back to tell Farrell about this right now, so that he’ll know what kind of person you are!”

Miranda left immediately after saying that.

A sarcastic smile appeared on Melissa’s countenance as she stared at her from the back.

Back then, she was well-known for being gentle and intellectual and was no wimp.

She had been so tolerant of Miranda all these years only because she was her

sister-in-law, whereas Melissa herself was just a daughter of the Wood's who had married into another family. She didn’t want to put her elder brother in a spot, so she hadn’t said anything.

Little did she expect that Miranda now thought of her as so much of a wimp that she even dared to hit her.

Melissa cast her eyes down.

Next to her, Nora, who could tell that Melissa seemed rather unhappy, couldn’t help but rub her chin.

Although she wasn’t afraid of the Wood's, they were still her aunt’s family after all. Moreover, her aunt’s elder brother wasn’t a bad person either. Should they really fall out, Aunt Melissa would be sad, right?

The thought had only just formed when Melissa suddenly lifted her head and said, “It’s time that some things are made clear.”

Melissa clenched her fists and said to the chauffeur, “Get the car ready. I’m going to talk to Farrell!”

Nora was rendered speechless.

Why was she suddenly feeling like her aunt had turned into a b***h? Cough. She certainly seemed pretty cute like that, though.

With that in mind, Nora left the Andersons.

Melissa didn’t like the jeep, so Nora was the only one driving it now.

She drove to the hotel where the restaurant that Justin had made a reservation at was.

At the hotel.

Justin was currently seated in the private room. As he adjusted his tie, he looked at Sean and, in a deep voice, slowly asked, “You know what to say later, right?”

Sean replied, “Yes, I’ve taken note of it, Mr. Hunt.”

Seemingly because this was also the first time he was doing something like this,Justin adjusted his tie again in an attempt to conceal his discomfort. He looked at Sean again and said, “Practice your lines a little.”

“…”

Sean fell silent for a moment.

Justin cast a disdainful glance at him.

Had it been Lawrence here instead, he would have known immediately what to do without him even having to explain. Sean was simply too reticent.

Upon sensing his boss disdain, Sean coughed and said, “I’m ready, Mr. Hunt.”

Justin nodded and asked dispassionately, “What is Pete doing?”

Sean straightened his back and replied methodically, “It’s your birthday tomorrow, so he’s making a handmade card for you right now. Heintends to give it to you as a birthday gift, so he refuses to come over for dinner.”

A dissatisfied Justin commented, “You sound too fake.”

Sean, “…”

His boss sure was doing everything he could to let Ms. Smith know that it was his birthday the next day!

But if she really cared about him, how could she possibly not know? As the man in charge of the Hunt Corporation, all his relevant information could be found on Wikipedia!

In the midst of their conversation, the service staff’s voice suddenly came from the door. “Ms. Smith, this is the private room.”

Justin immediately sat up straight and cast a barely discernible glance at the door. The very moment Nora entered, he coughed, looked at Sean, and asked, “What is Pete doing?”

Nora entered the room the moment he said that. Seemingly having heard his question, she also looked at Sean with interest.

A stern-looking Sean replied with a straight face, “It’s your birthday tomorrow, Mr. Hunt, so he’s making a handmade card for you right now. He intends to give it to you as a birthday gift, so he refuses to come over for dinner.”

Justin nodded coldly at Sean and said, “I see.”

Then, he gave Nora a wry look and said, “The child is too spoiled.”

Nora took a seat opposite him. Although she was a little disappointed that she couldn’t see her son again, the exchange nevertheless still caught her attention. She asked, “Is it your birthday tomorrow?”

Justin tried his best to suppress the lifting corners of his lips and keep a straight face. He looked at her with his deep, bottomless eyes and replied in a low and soft voice, “Yeah.”

Nora propped her elbows against the table and rested her chin on her hands. Her face was very small, and her cat-like eyes, which always looked so lazy and sloppy, sparkled with interest as she asked, “Does Pete give you gifts for your birthday?”

She was awfully interested in how her son had spent the past five years.

She wanted to know what her son did while she wasn’t around.

For example, how he had grown up and how he had landed in Justin’s hands.

Justin nodded. “Yes, he gives me a gift every year.”

He emphasized the word ‘gift’.

Nora, however, felt a little jealous.

That stinky Cherry had never given her any gifts.On her birthday every year, all she did was give her a huge bout of flattery. She found herself really envious of Justin in this moment.

As expected, her son was more heartwarming indeed.

Nora looked at Justin hostilely and clicked her tongue. Then, she suddenly asked, “Can I attend Mr. Hunt’s birthday party?”

Justin replied, “Of course.”

Nora blinked and said, “I’m very curious about the card that Pete is making for you. Can I have a look at it?”

Justin, “??”

Next to him, Sean tried his best to suppress his laughter as he looked at his boss.

Pete had been mildly autistic since he was a baby. When had he ever given his boss a birthday gift?

However, Justin nevertheless replied without any change in his expression, “Of course. You can come over with your daughter, Ms.Smith.”

Go over together?

Nora’s eyes flickered as she replied, “Sure.”

She wondered if Justin would like it if she gave him Cherry as a birthday gift?

Chapter 102: Your Life Will Be In Danger

The service staff soon started serving the food.

Although they were at an Italian restaurant, the food was surprisingly served to them on small plates like the other time.

The sight of the numerous little plates of food on the table made Nora’s eyes twitch again and again.

What the heck was this?

The bored young woman held her fork idly and took bite after bite.

Opposite her, Justin’s lip corners slowly curled into a smile. He said, “Ms. Smith, you should chew your food well and eat slowly. It’s not good for your health if you eat too fast.”

“…”

Even so, surely one couldn’t eat that slowly either, right?!

Some of the plates had only two cucumber strips on them.

Nora suspected that Justin was doing this on purpose. After all, when she was on her way here just now, the diners in the hall had all been using normal-sized plates.

She twirled the bit of pasta in the bowl with her fork and casually put it into her mouth.

Seeing how bored she was, Justin tried to find something to talk about. He asked, “How did you know that the real estate industry won’t do too well in the future, Ms. Smith?”

Nora swallowed the pasta and speared a piece of vegetable from the salad bowl. Only then did she reply, “Weren’t you the one who told me that, Mr. Hunt?”

Justin raised his brows. Then, he heard her continue. “I heard that the Lowe's approached the Hunt's first, but the Hunt's refused the offer.”

Justin let out a low chuckle and replied, “But outsiders are also saying that I was just in a bad mood because of my son.”

Nora blinked. She rested on the table with one arm and lazily put the vegetable into her mouth with her other hand. “Well, if Mr. Hunt were one to do business based on his mood, the Hunt Corporation wouldn’t be what it is today. You’ve always had a good eye for business.”

“…”

Justin had nearly grown up having praises sung of him. Everyone hailed him as a business genius but he had never cared about what they said.

But when the woman flippantly said that he had always had a good eye for business, he actually found himself in an exceptionally good mood.

He picked up the glass of apple juice next to him without much thought and took a sip to conceal his smile, but when he looked back up, he instead saw Nora staring at him in shock. She said, “That’s my juice you’re drinking, Mr. Hunt.”

Justin, “!!”

His gaze fell onto the glass of juice. There seemed to be remnants of the warmth of the woman’s lips on the rim of the glass, making him feel like his lips had been scalded a little.

However, he pretended to be calm and put the glass down. Then, he immediately said, “Oh. Sorry, I picked up the wrong glass.”

Nora couldn’t help being astonished when she noticed that his earlobes seemed to have turned a little red.

Little did she think that the dignified leader of the number one family and the Imperial League’s ruthless and decisive Eagle would actually have moments where he was shy and innocent?

In particular, when he innocently cast his seemingly bottomless eyes down, even the beauty mark at the corner of his eye seemed to be exuding an alluring aura that screamed ‘Please bully me’… It actually made her lick her lips for some inexplicable reason.

The atmosphere suddenly became rather romantic, and even the air seemed to have become somewhat thick and viscous.

After dinner, the two went to the car park together.

When they were walking past the restaurant’s main hall, Nora suddenly sensed a probing gaze. Her head whipped to the side, but what entered her sight was instead a lush green curtain of devil’s ivy that blocked her from the view beyond.

As the plants swayed, behind the dappled light through the gaps, she seemed to see a man in a white suit sitting there quietly and looking at the menu.

It seemed like everything just now was just an illusion.

Nora’s brows knitted together. For some reason, it suddenly gave her the creeps.

She suppressed the feeling and followed Justin to the car park.

Before they separated, Nora asked, “Where is your birthday party going to be held tomorrow, Mr. Hunt?”

Justin gave her an address. It was where he and Pete were currently staying at.

Nora nodded. “I’ll be there at noon tomorrow.”

Justin also nodded. “See you then.”

Justin continued to stand where he was even after Nora started the car and left.

Sean couldn’t help but ask, “What if Ms. Smith doesn’t bring a gift, Mr. Hunt?”

Justin glanced at him coolly and replied confidently, “That’s impossible.”

Why wouldn’t she bring one when she liked him so much?

She wanted to see the birthday card that Pete made for him though… Justin got in the car and said, “Let’s go home.”

When he got back to the villa, Pete was practicing his martial arts after dinner.

Justin stood in front of him and said haughtily, “It’s my birthday tomorrow.”

Pete raised his head. His expressionless face was just like a miniature version of Justin. He said, “… Oh.”

The corners of Justin’s lips spasmed a little and his expression darkened. “Is that all you have to say?”

Pete, who was utterly confused, replied, “…? Uh, happy birthday?”

“…”

Justin took a deep breath and reminded him, “It seems like other kids make birthday cards for their parents during their birthdays.”

Pete curled his lip in disgust and said, “That’s so childish. I’m not going to do it.”

Justin, who was mercilessly rejected by his son, went to the study sullenly after leaving behind the words ‘You little brat’. Then, he took out two pieces of card stock.

After Pete was done with his practice, the sweaty little boy got ready to take a bath. On the way to the bedroom, he passed by the study. Through the gap at the door, he noticed that Justin was doing some craft work with his head down. He walked in curiously to see his mighty and domineering father writing‘Happy Birthday, Daddy’ in crooked and messy handwriting on an ugly card.

Pete, “…”

He looked at the tyrant with a complicated look and asked worriedly, “Have you seen a psychiatrist this month, Daddy?”

“…”

_

When Nora returned home, Melissa was still out.

Afraid that she would be bullied at the Wood's, Nora immediately sent her a text message. It was only when Melissa replied that everything was fine that she finally went upstairs with peace of mind.

Cherry, who had won another live-stream face-off, was now ranked among the top 300 live-streamers. In another five days, she would be in the top ten and facing fierce showdowns with the other nine live-streamers!

However, the little fellow was completely unaware of this. After happily saying goodbye to Sponsor Grandpa, she turned off the live-stream, washed up, and climbed into bed obediently.

After she fell asleep, Nora sat up.

She took out her earphones, stuffed them into her ears, and located an audio recording on her cell phone. When she played it, a clear voice started to speak: “Nora, by the time you’re listening to this, Mom will no longer be around.Remember this—do not expose your capabilities. Before you’re strong enough to protect yourself, be as mediocre as you can. Otherwise, your life will be in danger!”

Nora narrowed her eyes and stared in front of her coldly.

After a while, she finally took off the earphones, laid down, and closed her eyes. For some reason, the man in the white suit whom she had seen today flashed across her mind.

The next day, it was almost noon when Nora finally woke up. After a simple breakfast, she said to Cherry, “Go and get ready. We’re going to celebrate your father’s birthday.”

Cherry was in disbelief. “Are you really taking me there, Mommy?”

Was she planning a showdown?

Nora smiled and replied, “Yes, of course.”

First, it was her father’s birthday after all, so it was better that they celebrated it. Second, she also wanted Cherry to see how sweet her son was to his elders!