Chapter 1711-1720
Selena was beginning to fear now, for she saw that all the news articles rted to Ellen were gone.
This meant that Jared had taken action.
Selena didn’t want to get involved, much less bear the responsibility for it.
Ellen’s reputation was considered ruined at this point, so even if the news articles were gone, it was
enough to force Ellen out of the chessmunity. From today onward, Ellen wouldn’t dare participate
in officialpetitions, and her championship would be the joke of the chessmunity.
Selena was quite satisfied with the oue, feeling that it was worth sacrificing her body in exchange
for such results.
…
In the meeting room, Jared was seated at the front while a group of people sat before him. They were
all concerned about one thing, which was to find the culprit behind the scenes who wanted to defame
Ellen.
At that moment, they had gathered enough information to paint aplete picture.
“Young Master Jared, these are records of Alden Thomas’ financial situation. This is his call history and
duration, as well as the people he met recently at the hotel.”
“Based on the people he’s met in the past few days, we carried out a thorough investigation. These are
all people who have contacted him before.”
“ording to our spection, it’s highly possible that Alden wanted to get revenge on Miss Reiss
because he couldn’t ept the fact that he lost.”
Jared stared at Alden’s photo with an extremely disgusted look in his cold eyes. Back then, this man
had smashed the chess pieces right in front of Ellen during the finals.
“President Presgrave, shall we employ our special methods?”
“For the moment, no. Keep investigating.” Jared shook his head. He had to be a little more careful
since Ellen’s reputation was involved. He wanted to clear Ellen’s name and restore her reputation as
well.
If he just wanted to exact revenge, he had all the methods in the world to do it.
Just then, Jared’s phone rang. He nced at it, gentleness instantly filling his eyes as he took his
phone over to the French windows. He answered the call and said tenderly, “Hey. Are you going to
sleep already?”
“Is the investigation still underway?” On the other end of the line, Ellen asked as her heart ached for
Jared. It was already 9.00PM.
“Don’t worry, we’ll find the truth very soon,” Jaredforted her.
“Just forget it if you can’t find anything. I won’t stoop to their level.” Ellen didn’t want him to work too
hard either.
“I’ve said before that I won’t let anyone bully you anymore. I’m a man of my word.” Jared would never
let those people off the hook.
He would make all of Ellen’s bullies pay the steep price for it. Even if they couldn’t be punished byw,
he could still employ his methods.
Just then, Stanley’s phone rang. He reached out and picked up the call. “Hello. Did you get any
information from eavesdropping?”
“Send it to me.”
Not long after Stanley listened to a portion of the recording, he spoke to Jared, who was still on the
phone. “Young Master Jared, we’ve found something. Listen to this.”
Jared nced at Stanley, then said gently over the phone, “I’ll go home to you as soon as possible.”
“Okay, don’t overwork yourself,” Ellen said in concern. After hanging up, Jared sat down at the table
and listened to the audio recording. Two drunken voices were heard speaking.
“Jay, I helped you this time, so you’d better thank me properly.”
“Of course, I will.”
“That girl is outstanding, though. If I y against her in the future, I’m honestly not sure if I’d be able to
win.”
“I’ll make use of this incident to bar her from enteringpetitions, and you won’t ever see her at any
matches in the future.”
“That’s great. I’ll have hopes of getting first ce next year.”
“You’ve helped me this time, but you’re also helping yourself too!”
“I wouldn’t have helped you so readily otherwise!”
“Thank you, thank you so much.”
After the yback ended, Stanley continued, “President Presgrave, a subordinate recorded this while
sending the two back to the hotel. Looks like Alden was just a pawn, and the real person who wanted
to ruin Miss Reiss’ reputation was the judge named Jay Harris. He probably has a grudge against her.”
Jared frowned a little. The recording was proof that Alden was helping Jay destroy Ellen’s reputation,
so who was the one behind Jay?
“Keep investigating,” Jared said in a low voice.
Meanwhile, at the entrance of the hotel, the two drunk men staggering into the building had no idea that
the driver of the taxi they took wasn’t the real driver at all. The real driver was sitting in the ck car
tailing them.
In the meeting room, they managed to figure out Jay’s connections andworks within ten minutes.
Stanley quickly arranged them, then handed them to Jared.
“Young Master Jared, these are all the people Jay contacted in the past few days at the hotel.
Curiously enough, we didn’t find anything between him and Miss Reiss.”
Jared took the photos and scanned through them. He suddenly caught sight of a photo taken at the
front desk, where a woman was standing next to Jay. Even though it had been more than a year since
hest saw her, Jared recognized the woman right away.
Selena.
She was Connor’s daughter, and Jared had thrown her into jail a year and a half earlier. He didn’t
realize that she had been released.
Why would Selena and Jay appear at the front desk of the hotel?
“Investigate this girl’s contact with Jay.” Jared pointed at them.
With a clear direction, they quicklypleted the investigation of all the surveince cameras in the
hotel. It was three hourster when they saw a recording of Jay carrying clothes with him as he went
into Selena’s room.
Now, the truth was out in the open. The real mastermind behind Ellen’s defamation was Selena, who
had just gotten out of prison.
Jared delivered a forceful punch to the table. Connor’s daughter still hadn’t learned her lesson. She
was just released from prison not too long ago but was already targeting Ellen again.
Apparently, the year-and-a-half sentence was too short for her.
“Collect all the evidence. I’ll deal with it tomorrow.” Now that Jared had an answer, he was no longer
panicking. He would make every single one of them pay.
…
Ellen sat in front of the French windows as she gazed at the neon lights outside, deep in thought.
Just then, she heard some noisesing from the door. She was instantly filled with joy, for he had
returned.
She didn’t care about the fights and chaos going on outside; she just didn’t want him to overwork
himself for her sake.
“You’re home.” Ellen ran up to Jared and threw her arms around him.
Jared embraced her lovingly. She was so kind, but people kept trying to harm her. He was undoubtedly
furious about that.
“We’ve got our answer. The one ndering you behind the scenes is Connor’s daughter, Selena,”
Jared exined honestly.
Ellen looked up in shock. “Selena? Is she out of jail already?”
“She was probably released not too long ago. She seduced the head judge, who then contacted Alden
Thomas so that he would nder you.”
Anger shed across Ellen’s eyes. This morning, Ellen had just learned from Jared over breakfast that
Selena went to jail. She was shocked, but she hoped Selena would turn over a new leaf. However,
reality proved otherwise.
Some people were rotten to the core, and this was something no amount of imprisonment could
change.
Selena would rather sleep with a man of her father’s age and think of all sorts of ways to harm and
nder Ellen. This was unforgivable.
“Don’t worry. She deserves to be in jail for the rest of her life, and I won’t let her off the hook!” Jared
caressed the back of Ellen’s head as heforted her.
“Okay. This time, I want to see her getting jailed in person.” Ellen decided she would not be soft-
hearted anymore, even if it meant cutting off ties with her uncle.
…
Early in the morning, Jay was sleeping soundly inside the hotel when he heard someone knocking on
the door. Feeling a little annoyed, he opened the door to see a few uniformed men standing outside.
“Is… something the matter?”
“Jay Harris, pleasee with us.”
“W-What happened? Did I break thew?”
“We have a warrant for your arrest.”
Before Jay could react, he was handcuffed. He never thought that the police woulde knocking on
his door, and he couldn’t figure out why no matter how much he racked his brains.
Meanwhile, in another room, Alden was arrested as well.
Selena spent the night at her parent’s house that day. She dared not tell her parents about the incident
until the police came knocking at 9.00PM.
Olivia and Connor were so shocked that their faces turned pale. Their daughter had been in jail once,
so they were deathly afraid of the police.
“Is Selena Aguirre home?”
“My… My daughter is home. What happened? Has she done anything wrong?”
“We need her toe with us.”
Shocked, Olivia turned around and ran toward her daughter’s room. When she opened the door,
Selena was still sleeping. Olivia shouted, “Wake up, Lena! What did you do this time, you ingrate?”
“What did I do?” Selena shouted in annoyance.
“The police are here,” Olivia said, her eyes red in anger.
Selena instantly panicked as she thought, What?!
She anxiously gripped her mother’s hand, saying, “Mom, if anything happens to me, ask Dad to look for
Ellen!”
“Why? Did you mess with her again?”
“Don’t ask, Mom. I don’t want to go to jail again. I was just getting a little revenge on her, and it was
supposed to be a harmless joke.”
“What did you do?” Olivia couldn’t believe her daughter had gotten into trouble again, and with Ellen at
that.
Meanwhile, Connor was asking questions at the door. The police said straightforwardly, “Your daughter
is suspected of seducing someone and receiving 15,000 in return. She’s also suspected of threatening
and ndering others.”
“What? Impossible. My daughter will never do such a thing.”
“We have obtained sufficient evidence, and we’re arresting her ording to thew. Please refrain
from obstructing official duties.”
Selena had just stepped out of her room when the police came in to arrest her. She turned around and
looked pleadingly at her father. “Dad, please talk to Ellen. Ask her to forgive me and let me off the
hook! I don’t want to go to jail again, Dad!”
She was regretting it to the core as she didn’t want to go back to prison again.
Connor was so mad that he stepped forward and pped Selena across the face. “Since when have I
raised a useless daughter like you?”
“Lena, my dear Lena! Don’t worry, we’ll definitely beg Ellen for mercy. I won’t let you go to jail again,”
Olivia promised through tears as she went down the stairs after her daughter.
A peaceful morning had turned tense and terrifying simply because her daughter did something wrong
again. Olivia was regretting it now. How could her daughter be so clumsy? She thought Selena would
turn over a new leaf, but the girl was being arrested again.
Meanwhile, Connor had given up all hope on his daughter. He had clearly made the wrong decision by
allowing her to study abroad. Selena never learned anything rted to her studies and absorbed all the
negative habits instead.
It wouldn’t be a problem if they were poor. Selena could just suffer early in life, then get married and
live the rest of her life in security. It would be much better than her life right now.
“Connor, go and talk to Ellen. You have to find her even if your life is at risk,” Olivia said angrily. Last
time, their daughter had been jailed for a year and a half because Connor couldn’t find Ellen. Now, she
didn’t want Selena to go back to jail if they could help it.
He was getting old. It waste at night, so where could he possibly look for Ellen? If he had to run
around looking for people, it would be too taxing for him at his age.
“I’ll talk to her tomorrow morning.” Connor couldn’t be bothered about his daughter anymore.
At that moment, Olivia became so mad that tears began falling from her eyes. Still, she had no choice.
She hated Ellen for being so cruel, but it was also her daughter’s fault for being a loser. She had lived
most of her life in bliss, but she had to worry about her daughter in her old age. She wondered if that
was retribution from the heavens.
At the police station, Alden and Jay stubbornly refused to admit that they had ndered Ellen, and they
only began panicking when evidence was presented to them.
To them, this was just a joke, so how could they get arrested for this?
However, they quickly realized that this wasn’t a joke; they were actually being prosecuted.
Hence, they tried to me it on someone else, wishing they could bepletely free of this
responsibility.
When Selena was taken in, Jay happened to be leaving the interrogation room at the same time. The
moment he saw Selena walking in his direction, he pointed at her and said angrily, “It’s her. She’s the
one who threatened me!”
When she saw him, she knew that the end was inevitable. There was no escaping now, and she even
felt like dying at that moment.
At noon, two apology videos were uploaded online, and they had so many views that they went viral in
an instant. In the videos, Alden and Jay behaved with utmost sincerity while apologizing. No matter
what identities they once held, at that moment, they had only one—sinners.
Theizens had just finished gossiping about Ellen buying her championship, and before they could
even recover themselves, they were already faced with apologies from the people who started the
rumors. The development was so fast that they could barely react in time.
In Alden’s video, two policemen were standing behind him. After Alden revealed the entire process, the
police also announced how the nder started and how it ended.
In an instant, the fans realized that Ellen was the true victim. She deserved every bit of her
championship, and she most certainly did not buy her way through it.
Not only that, several chess professionals voiced their thoughts as they analyzed the game Ellen
yed in the finals. They were amazed at Ellen’s skill in chess, and it was proof that she was a bona
fide champion.
With the professionals backing her up, Ellen’s skills were once again acknowledged. After the ruckus
online, she was now receiving a huge wave of fans and support.
Ellen sat on the couch, donning a casual dress. She was too tiredst night, so she only woke up at
10.00AM this morning. As soon as she got up, she stumbled across articles about herself. When she
saw that her reputation had been restored, she put down her iPad and turned around, running toward
the study.
When she opened the door, the man who was sitting in the chair was startled by the sudden noise.
Without another word, Ellen walked toward him and spread out her slender arms, then wrapped them
tightly around his neck. She nuzzled into his shoulder as she thanked him.
“Thank you!”
Jared enjoyed her most sincere thanks as he reached up and caressed the back of her head. “I’m just
doing my job, aren’t I?”
With that, he kissed her forehead. “I’ve said before that I won’t let anyone hurt you.”
Ellen raised her beautiful eyes to look at him. His words were filled with security and love.
With him around, she did not need to fear anything.
Just then, Ellen heard the phone ringing. She gave him a peck on the cheek, then said, “I’m going to
answer the phone.”
“Alright, go ahead.”
Ellen sat on the couch and answered the call from the team.
“Hello, Nichs.”
“Ellen, someone iming to be your uncle came to us and said he’s looking for you.”
Ellen was stunned. Why was her uncle looking for her? Did he want to beg for mercy on Selena’s
behalf?
Just then, the phone was snatched from Nichs, and Connor’s voice rang out anxiously. “Ellie, it’s
me, your Uncle Connor. Can we meet up? Lena was foolish and made a mistake. Can we talk about
it?”
“Uncle Connor, there’s nothing to talk about. Selena did something wrong, so she should bear the
responsibility. You shouldn’t worry about her.”
“I mean, she was just released from jail, so she can’t go back again! Her life shouldn’t be ruined like
this! I’m your uncle, and she’s your cousin!”
“I only know that she should pay the price for her own actions. That way, she’ll learn to be a
decent person and respect others.” Ellen wouldn’t give in this time, regardless of the person asking her.
Ellen hung up the phone and sighed gently. In the end, her uncle still pressured her.
Just then, a man’s voice rang out gently behind her,forting Ellen as he said, “You did the right
thing. There’s no need forpassion toward people like Selena.”
Startled, Ellen looked at the man who had walked toward her. She nodded. “I know.”
Just then, another phone call came in. When Ellen saw that it was from the producer at the TV station,
she hesitated for a moment before picking up.
“Hello, Miss Lane.”
“Miss Ellen, are you free tomorrow night? We can proceed with the interview, so I’d like to get your
confirmation.”
“Huh? Wasn’t it canceled?” Ellen was surprised.
“It wasn’t canceled, just dyed. Now is the best time to interview you,” Miss Lane said a little
excitedly. Ellen’s poprity was booming right now, after all.
However, Ellen replied determinedly, “I’m sorry, Miss Lane, but I think we should cancel the interview.
I’m feeling a little tired, and I don’t feel like going.”
“Miss Reiss, this is a rare chance for you to be famous! Are you really going to pass it up?” Miss
Lane asked in surprise. After all, once someone became famous, they would be even more well-
known after getting interviewed on TV.
“Yes, I’m giving up.” Ellen nodded. She now realized that fame was exhausting and being herself in her
quiet corner of the world was the better option instead.
“Miss Reiss, did you run into any trouble? It’s okay, we can solve it for you.” Miss Lane persisted. Ellen
was in the spotlight now, and an interview with her would definitely raise their ratings.
“I’m fine, but I personally don’t like interviews. Thank you, and goodbye.” With that, Ellen didn’t give
Miss Lane any more chances to convince her. When she put down the phone, a pair of arms wrapped
around her from behind, and the man gazed at her in approval. He was surprised that despite her
young age, she had resisted the temptation of reputation and poprity. This was considered quite a
feat already.
“Why don’t you want more fame?” he asked.
“I don’t want to live under the attention of others. I just want to stay with you and live the rest of our
lives in peace,” Ellen answered honestly.
She was already exhausted from the fighting and chaos outside. Simple, clean social circles and
connections were the best for her.
Meanwhile, in Connor’s home, they could only sit around restlessly since Ellen refused to help them.
They couldn’t contact Ellen again, and they didn’t even manage to get her number. Moreover, the team
had left Averna as well.
“Why are you so useless?!” Olivia shouted.
Just then, Connor’s phone rang. Connor nced at it but didn’t dare pick it up. Olivia thought it was a
call from Ellen, who decided to have mercy on their daughter. “Why aren’t you picking it up?” she
asked.
Connor gripped his phone in slight nervousness, but he stubbornly refused to answer. Seeing that,
Olivia reached out to grab his phone. Connor didn’t think she would try to snatch it, so he became even
more panicked and started fighting back. Suddenly, a boy’s voice cut through the air.
“Dad? Dad, where are you? Come over and have dinner! Mom and I are waiting for you!”
Olivia immediately froze in her attempt to grab the phone, while a strong look of panic colored Connor’s
face. Connor hastily ended the call, not daring to look at his wife.
“Whose child is it?” Olivia asked through gritted teeth, the fury already raging in her eyes.
“They’ve gotten the wrong number,” Connor said guiltily.
“Connor, are you hiding something from me? Do you have a child with another woman?” Olivia asked
in a shrill voice.
Connor still dared not admit it as he roared at her, “I told you they got the wrong number! Why are you
still pestering me?!”
Olivia’s tears gushed down her face. She covered her face in despair as she said, “Connor, you
b*stard! You got yourself a son with another woman just because I can’t give you one, didn’t you?
You’re inhumane! You’re a jerk!”
Realizing that he couldn’t hide this any longer, Connor sat down on the couch in silence.
Olivia’s heart was filled with pain and regret. She knew that if her husband never had much money all
this while, he wouldn’t have dared to cheat on her. That sum of money made him bold enough to
establish another home outside.
“Who is that woman?” Olivia dashed over to him in a frenzy, shaking him as she interrogated, “Who is
that woman? Tell me, who is she?!”
Connor had to protect his son, so he wouldn’t tell Olivia. He gritted his teeth and stubbornly refused to
say a word.
“Connor, I’m going kill you! You deserve a thousand deaths! No wonder you don’t care about Lena
anymore; you’re already devoted to your illegitimate son!” The more Olivia spoke, the more pitiful she
felt. She began wailing like a crazed woman.
Likewise, Connor knew he had done something wrong. He remained silent as he allowed Olivia to hit
and shout at him.
As for Olivia, she calmed down sometime after her outburst. She was already in her 50s, so she knew
that she had to ept the truth even though it was a tough pill to swallow.
“How old is that child?” she asked.
“Nine,” replied Connor.
Olivia broke down once again. She thought every man in this world would cheat, but her husband was
the only exception. Little did she know his illegitimate child was nine years old already. That meant that
he had already cheated on her ten years ago.
Belonging ? N?velDram/a.Org.
“Who is that woman? Tell me, who is that b*tch?!” Olivia asked in a hoarse voice.
“If you don’t tell me, I’ll kill her as soon as I find out who she is,” Olivia said with reddened eyes.
Connor could onlye clean. “It’s Aida.”
Olivia almost fainted right then and there. Aida was her distant cousin who had divorced more than ten
years ago. She never thought that Aida would seduce her husband and even give birth to his son.
What retribution is this?! she thought.
Olivia wanted to die. Getting betrayed in rtionships paled inparison to getting treated like that by
distant rtives. How dare Aida seduce her husband and spend their money?!
“How much did you give her?” Olivia asked furiously.
“I bought an apartment for her. I gave her five million in total,” Connor said truthfully. He lived frugally at
home, but all his money was spent on that homewrecker.
Olivia was so furious that her chest throbbed in pain, and she couldn’t catch her breath. She felt that
her life was already in shambles.
Their daughter was still being detained at the police station, and now, she discovered her husband had
cheated on her and had an illegitimate child with a homewrecker. Her days were spent in poverty, and
she was already 52 years old.
She had enjoyed life for 16 years in the past while living in materialistic luxury, but now, she had
nothing left.
“Connor, save Lena. I don’t care what methods you use—just get Lena out of there!” Olivia roared. Her
daughter was her only hope now.
Connor nodded. “I’ll look for Ellen.”
As for where Ellen had gone, Connor didn’t have a clue. He could only call up Benjamin, who had
contacted Presgrave Group before.
“Hello, who is it?”
“Mr. Stark, it’s me, Connor Aguirre. I was wondering if I could get a hold of Mr. Presgrave’s address.”
“Sorry, I cannot tell you that.” On the other end of the line, Benjamin hung up coldly.
Connor was regretting everything he had done, but regret wasn’t going to help anything. They were
now getting retribution for how they had treated Ellen back then.
They had no right to ask Ellen for forgiveness.
Meanwhile, at the police station, Selena was trembling as she tapped her feet. She was waiting
anxiously and nervously for her father to save her.
If her father didn’t save her, only jail awaited her.
She was truly regretting it now, and she was scared. She shouldn’t have tested Ellen’s patience. She
wanted to live in the beautiful and vibrant world outside instead of going back to that cold, tiny room.
…
Jared arranged a romantic dinner to lift Ellen’s mood. Because of the nder, Ellen had been a little
depressed all this while.
Jared received a message from Benjamin, informing him that Connor was asking about him.
Jared nced at it, then replied, ‘Ignore him.’
The Aguirres had always gone too far.
After dinner, Jared took Ellen to a seaside hotel for a vacation so that she could rx.
The next morning, Ellen received a message on her phone. She opened it to see a short video posted
online where Connor was talking to the camera, asking to contact Ellen.
Connor had tears in his eyes as he begged earnestly to meet Ellen, evoking a lot of sympathy from
netizens. He was trying to force Ellen to meet him by taking it to the inte.
The caption read, ‘I am terminally ill, and I want to see my niece urgently.’
Also, since Ellen was famous, the media was more than willing to share this video. In an instant, the
entire inte was looking for Ellen, hoping that she would meet her terminally ill uncle as soon as
possible.
Ellen watched the video her uncle posted, seeing him wipe his tears in front of the camera. She hadn’t
seen him in a year or so, and he had aged a lot. Ellen sighed lightly as she recalled her past.
After her parents passed away, her uncle had been very caring toward her and her brother, and he
even took care of her brother when thetter was ill. Ellen felt that she had no choice but to have
mercy. Now that she was living worry-free, she hoped that her family could live their lives in peace and
warmth as well. This was probably why she was different from whom Connor and his family used to be!
Also, there was another reason why Ellen didn’t want to turnpletely against her uncle and his
family. She believed in karma, so she wanted to protect the people she loved the most in her way.
Even though she was in the dark about her brother’s heart donation back then, if Connor hadn’t agreed
to it, Jared wouldn’t be where he was today.
Ellen took out her phone and dialed Connor’s number, which was saved on her phone.
“Hello?” On the other end of the line, Connor picked up and spoke in an exhausted tone.
“It’s me, Uncle Connor,” Ellen said.
“Ellie, is it really you? Please don’t hide anymore, I want to meet you!” Connor said in a pleading and
emotional voice.
“Okay, I’ll go to you. Tell me your address,” Ellen said.
“Alright. Ellie, you’re willing toe to my home, yes? Okay, I’ll send you the address right now. I’ll
always be waiting for you at home, Ellie. I’ll be waiting, so you have toe.”
“I’ll probably be there in the afternoon.”
“Of course. I’ll be waiting.” Connor still didn’t want to hang up after saying that, so Ellen ended the call
instead.
Ellen had just let out a sigh when she suddenly sensed someone behind her. Startled, she turned to
see the man standing behind her. She had no idea how long he had been there, but she told him
honestly, “I’m going to meet my uncle.”
Jared had also received a call from Stanley when he was in the living room just now. He had also
watched the video of Connor looking for Ellen all over the inte. He had to admit that Connor’s
method was extremely effective, for it took advantage of Ellen’s kindness and sympathy.
He also predicted that Ellen would soften her heart, but he wasn’t surprised or angry about it. He knew
that Ellen and Connor’s family back then were entirely different beings; Ellen had kindness permeating
from the very core of her being.
“I’ll go with you.”
“If you’re busy, I can go by myself.” Ellen didn’t like the idea very much.
“I have time!” Jared insisted.
How could he let her face that family alone? He wanted to be with her and serve as a shield she could
rely on.
At the Aguirre Residence, Olivia had just returned from grocery shopping when Connor told her the
good news. However, there wasn’t even a smile on Olivia’s face, for her heart was filled with pain and
hatred. Whenever she saw Connor, she felt disgusted as if she were looking at a fly.
“We can definitely save Lena.” Connor was still insistent on getting Olivia’s forgiveness, for he still
wanted to spend his life with her.
Aida was treating him worse as time went by, and she even used their son to threaten him for more
money, saying that he wouldn’t get to see him if he didn’t pay up. Soon, Connor’s money had all gone
into Aida’s pocket.
He was getting poorer by the day, and he was already in thousands of debt.
“Hmph! I don’t believe that b*tch would let Lena off the hook that easily.” Olivia wished she could just
use her most vicious insults on Ellen.
“Oli, don’t talk about Ellie like that. She didn’t do anything wrong; Lena’s the one at fault.” Connor
couldn’t help but speak up for Ellen.
“What did Lena do wrong? Ellen ruined our family; does she feel good about that?” Recently, as if
possessed, Olivia kept dreaming of their former days. Back then, they didn’t have to worry about their
necessities and could just enjoy their lives in material wealth.
But now, every time she opened her eyes, a life of poverty greeted her. She felt like she had aged a
dozen years in the span of one year.
All her hatred had to be channeled toward someone, and she believed Ellen was the cause of all this.
“If we had given some money to Ellen and Aunt Jessica back then, she wouldn’t have treated us like
this. Every time I wanted to do so, you’d stop me and start arguing with me. Now, no matter what our
days are like, we were the ones who caused them.” Connor deeply regretted not insisting on his own
ways. He had lost hispassionate self when he became rich.
Even if Olivia regretted anything, she refused to admit it. In truth, she knew that she could’ve won
Ellen’s heart in exchange for a small amount of money, but now that Ellen had gotten independent, it
was toote.
“Connor, if you hadn’t secretly arranged for Ellen to join the Presgrave Group, she wouldn’t have had
the chance to encounter Mr. Presgrave. Then, she would never know about her brother’s heart being
donated.” Olivia was ming it all on Connor now.
Connor closed his eyes. He felt that this was destiny, and the heavens were punishing them for being
selfish and cold-hearted.
Meanwhile, Olivia also realized it was toote for them to realize their mistakes, but even so, she
hadn’t forgotten about her priority of saving her daughter.
Later that afternoon, several cars that came from the shore pulled up outside Connor’s ce, drawing
the attention of all passersby with their conspicuous arrival. Soon, Ellen stepped out of the car and she
was in a white fur coat due to the winter. On top of that, her rosy cheeks seemed like a perfect match
with her outfit.
At the same time, her bodyguards quickly grabbed Jared’s coat and put it on him. While the ck coat
billowed with the blowing wind, Jared didn’t button it. Instead, he wrapped it around thedy to keep
her warm from the chilly breeze.
Soon, Ellen phoned her uncle since she didn’t know how to find him in the building. Not long after that,
a silhouette was seen running toward them as it turned out to be Connor. When he saw Jared there, he
quickly greeted the boy and said, “Mr. Presgrave, I didn’t expect you to visit. Anyway, my house is this
way. Please follow me.”
“Mr. Aguirre, we’ll talk in the car. It’s cold outside.” Jared didn’t want to head to Connor’s ce with
Ellen.
While Connor seemed a little reluctant and embarrassed to talk to his niece in front of Jared, Ellen
decided to visit her uncle’s ce after a brief hesitation. “Where is your home, Uncle Connor?”
“It’s not far up ahead.”
“I’ll go with him. Just wait for me in the car.” Ellen turned around and looked at Jared.
When she insisted, he eventually gave in and nodded in agreement, watching her walk with Connor
into an alley.
In the meantime, Connor seemed relieved without Jared’s presence as he kept criticizing Selena for
what she did. “What Selena did waspletely uneptable! How could she do something like that to
you? I bet she hasn’t learned her lesson despite having spent a year and a half in prison. s, when
will she ever learn from her mistake?”
While Ellen remained silent, Connor went on to praise her, saying, “I’m happy and proud of you for
winning the chesspetition, Ellie. I didn’t think you had such a remarkable talent for ying chess.
Your parents would be so proud of you if they knew about it.”
“How have you beentely, Uncle Connor?” Ellen asked Connor caringly.
“I’m fine, I guess. Nothing much. My life has never really changed much at all, and I have nothing to
comin about.” Connor tried to act tough. However, Ellen knew that was not the case, noticing
several embroidered patches on Connor’s coat. Furthermore, the fact that Connor was living in a low-
end residential area gave him away. “There is no elevator here. Just stairs. My unit is on the fifth floor,”
he said.
After Ellen followed Connor to the fifth floor, the man opened the door and invited her in. Since Ellen
grew up among the poor, she didn’t find the environment she was in surprising. “Come and sit here,
Ellie.” Connor grabbed a cleaner chair and told her to sit on it.
At that moment, Olivia opened the door roughly and red at Ellen hatefully. When she saw Ellen’s
decent outfit and her fair skin, she couldn’t help but begrudgingly think that Ellen seemed like a
daughter from a rich family indeed. However, the thought of that was what precisely stung her like a
de put through her heart.
How ironic! A few years ago, Ellen was a poor kid who struggled even to feed herself; today, she
presented herself just like a socialite, much to Olivia’s surprise and dismay.
While Ellen continued to stand without taking a seat, Olivia responded with a chuckle. “Oh,e on!
Does she think she is a princess now?! I can’t stop noticing her airs and graces!”
“Keep your mouth shut, Olivia!” Connor told Olivia to pipe down, lest she pissed Ellen off.
“Aunt Olivia,” Ellen greeted Olivia despite Olivia’s sarcastic attitude.
Olivia grunted in response, but Connor spoke gently to Ellen. “Selena might have made a terrible
mistake, and I’d like to apologize on her behalf, Ellie. Can you please let her off this time? I promise I’ll
make her understand her mistake once she is back.”
In truth, Ellen had made up her mind to forgive Selena the moment she agreed to meet up with Connor
at his ce. She replied, “Alright, I’ll let her off this time, but it’ll be thest chance she gets.” Ellen
nodded, her eyes filled with kindness.
“Of course! Of course! I promise to make her learn from her mistake.” Connor was happy, heaving a
sigh of relief when Ellen said she would let his daughter off.
In the meantime, Olivia shared Connor’s feelings, although she didn’t say a single word. However, she
suddenly chuckled coldly at that moment and asked, “Ellen, do you know that your uncle has an
illegitimate son?”
“Olivia, how could you…” Connor was stunned by his wife’s unexpected response.
Nheless, Ellen only responded calmly, “Aunt Olivia, that’s between the two of you, and I wouldn’t
want to be a part of it.”
Olivia was taken aback by Ellen’s response, wondering if she no longer treated them as her family. Isn’t
she going to say something or stand up for me? At the same time, Olivia was not the only one feeling
surprised, for Connor couldn’t believe his eyes either. After all, Ellen’s indifference suggested that she
was probably growing apart from them, indicating that she might not get along with them anymore in
the future.
“Take me back to the car, would you, Uncle Connor?” Ellen asked. Sensing her reluctance to stay any
longer, Connor opened the door for her and walked her downstairs. Then, Ellen took a card out of her
pocket and said, “Here is 145,000. The password is triple six triple six.”
“Ellen…” Connor was touched, feeling guilty about what he did to Ellen back then when she could have
repaid him with retaliation instead of kindness.
“Say no more, Uncle Connor. Take good care of yourself,” Ellen responded. Deep down, she only
decided to help Connor because he was her uncle; she wasn’t concerned about the others. “Alright, I
know my way out from here.” Ellen walked away upon finishing her sentence.
At that moment, tears of regret were rolling in Connor’s eyes, but he didn’t continue to follow Ellen any
further, feeling ashamed of what he did to his own niece. Nevertheless, he was grateful for Ellen’s
kindness when she lent him a helping hand in his desperate moments.
After all, Connor found his back against the wall when he couldn’t find a job due to his age. Although he
tried interviewing for a position as a security guard earlier, he was rejected almost immediately because
he was deemed too old for the role.
Soon, Ellen walked out of the alley and was immediately able to see a tall silhouette waiting for her
amidst the chilly breeze. While the man was standing outside the car, his bodyguards each took a
corner and stood guard. At the sight of that, Ellen felt a stab of pain in her heart and wished Jared had
waited for her in the car instead.
Come on! What’s he doing outside the car? Doesn’t he know how cold it is out here? In fact, the
bodyguards wouldn’t have allowed Jared to wait outside the car and risk catching a cold, but since
Jared insisted, they had no choice but to give in.
Soon, Ellen came running Jared’s way just as the man walked closer to her. However, a cyclist
suddenly appeared on her left, shocking Jared just when she fell in his arms in time. Although she
bumped her face against the man’s firm chest, a delighted smile showed on her face.
“What’s so funny? Do you know how worried I am about you?” Jared pinched Ellen’s nose.
“I’m fine, aren’t I?” Ellen curled her lips upward and seized Jared’s hands, which were freezing cold.
“Why didn’t you wait for me in the car? You shouldn’t have waited for me outside.”
“I knew you wouldn’t stay long.” Knowing Ellen, Jared believed she would be back as soon as she did
what she wanted to, which was why he decided to wait for her outside the car.
Ellen seized the man’s hand and said, “Let’s get in the car before you catch a cold.” After Jared
wrapped his arm around Ellen’s shoulder and entered the car with her, the motorcade disappeared on
the road in the cold winter.
Meanwhile, Connor and Olivia were informed that they could pick Selena up and immediately headed
to the police station. The moment Selena walked out of the building, Connor pped her in the face
before Olivia could react. Seeing that, Olivia quickly hugged her daughter and questioned her husband
for his unnecessary action. “What are you doing, Connor?!” she bellowed.
“What did I do in the past to deserve a daughter like you?!” Connor couldn’t ept the fact that Selena
had seduced a man about his age to set Ellen up.
“Says the man who betrayed my mother! Don’t you also have an illegitimate son?” Selena refuted her
father.
“You…” Connor slowly dropped his hand when he realized he had also made a terrible mistake in his
youth.
Selena gazed at Olivia, whose expression told her that her mother had already known everything.
“Have you found out about it, Mom?”
Despite knowing the truth, Olivia couldn’t do anything about it, for she wanted to give her daughter a
complete family. Although she felt tempted to divorce Connor in the past, she couldn’t bring herself to
do it in the end.
Because of that, Olivia would have to bear with her stigmatized marriage for the rest of her life, no
matter how much she hated it. “Let’s go home, Selena.” Olivia decided to do everything she could to
shape her daughter’s future.
Meanwhile, Connor didn’t tell his family about the money he received from Ellen even after they
returned home from the police station. Deep down, he was nning to find a job while keeping the
money until any unforeseen circumstances arose.
On the other hand, Selena eventually learned from her mistake after she was nearly sentenced to jail
twice. Also, she began to realize that she could never retaliate against Ellen of whom she was jealous
for having a good life.
I can only live my life well by forgetting Ellen. Although Selena was still jealous of Ellen, she was
unwilling to risk her future by dragging thetter down anymore.
…
A weekter, the couple spent their vacation on a warm and cozy ind. At the same time, the woman,
who was seizing the man’s arm, wore an elegant outfit with a floral skirt. As the cooling breeze blew,
thedy rested her head on the man’s shoulder lovingly.
While enjoying their vacation, the couple treasured every minute they spent together as if they were in
a world where there were just the two of them. Upon spending half a month on the ind, Jared and
Ellen grew closer to each other than ever before as they indulged in their romantic life despite what the
others thought of them.
After all, Jared had done everything he was supposed to for Ellen, from walking with her by the beach
and arranging private swimming lessons for her to presenting a firework show that was specially meant
for her. In fact, the firework show thatsted for nearly two hours was the most exciting part that got
every tourist spellbound. While the fireworks lit up the whole sky, Ellen rested in Jared’s arms on a
yacht not far away, sipping her red wine and enjoying the show that was prepared for her.
However, their vacation was about toe to an end, and Ellen realized it was time for Jared to get
back to work. Furthermore, she knew it was also a good time for them to return to their country since
spring had arrived after winter. Therefore, they boarded a private jet and flew off the ind. By the time
theynded, it was already in the afternoon. Ellen was d and relieved to see the familiar city view in
front of her.
As soon as she got into the car, she dozed off almost immediately. When she opened her eyes again,
she realized it was already the evening and found herself in the house that Jared had specially readied
for her. She then stretched her back just before the man gently seized her hand.
“Here we are, finally home. Get a good rest.” Jared spoke to Ellen while their bodyguards took their
luggage into the house. When it was dinner time, the two of them made themselves something simple
instead of eating out. After all, they were happy and content as long as they could be together. At
8.00PM, Jared heard his phone ringing and checked it out, whereupon he walked closer to the window
and answered it. “Hello?”
“Mr. Presgrave, the documents for the bid are ready. When would you be free to swing by the office,
Sir?”
“I’ll be there tomorrow morning.”
“Sure. By the way, I have some news for you. The Quins Group from Hond has appeared to show
some interest in this project like never before. For that, we believe they’re going to be a potential rival
sooner orter. Thus, I suggest that we prioritize looking into thispany.”
“Alright, just leave the details about thispany on my desk in my office by tomorrow.” Jared quickly
hung up the call. He didn’t want to talk about work in front of Ellen, refusing to pressure her with it.
At that moment, Ellen suddenly came rushing out of the washroom and looked at Jared anxiously. “H-
Hey, I need to head downstairs.”
“What’s wrong?” Jared asked after sensing Ellen’s panicky expression.
“Nothing. I-I just realized that I’m on my period now, and I didn’t see iting,” Ellen responded
bashfully as she was caught off guard by her unexpected menstrual period. After all, she was usually
prepared for it.
“No worries. I’ll get what you need for you.” Jared could tell how desperate Ellen was from her standing
posture, smiling at her at the same time.
“Alright, I’ll send you the brand and the other details about the product I need.” Ellen reckoned it was
better for her to stay in the apartment due to her menstrual pain, which was starting to kick in.
In the meantime, Jared immediately headed downstairs and made his way to a nearby supermarket.
Since he rarely visited ces like marts and malls, his presence in the women’s department instantly
drew the attention of many other youngdies in the area.