In the Hughes Clan’s private club

The man in the black shirt had long since tossed his suit onto the sofa, his tie pulled loose, crooked around his neck. The buttons of his shirt were undone, revealing a broad, muscular, and sexy chest.

Joshua Hughes’s anger surged like an uncontrollable volcanic eruption.

When he pushed open the door to the room and saw her leaning against the window, blowing air softly from her small mouth, a white mist formed on the glass, faintly showing the word "far." At that moment, he almost wanted to tear her apart, to pry open her mind and see what on earth she was thinking. But he couldn’t bring himself to do it.

He had to leave that room immediately, or he might actually kill Avery Jane.

"It’s rare to see the Eldest Young Master Hughes so dejected, isn’t it?" Alexander King pushed open the door to the box, baring his white teeth in a smile as he looked at the man lounging lazily on the sofa, a flavor between his brows that was indescribable, something he’d never shown before. Seems like the charm of that little girl is truly immense.

"Shut up."

Joshua Hughes shot Alexander a cold glance; that blinding smile on his face made him want to slap it off.

"How am I supposed to keep you company for drinks if I shut up?" Alexander didn’t mind the Eldest Young Master Hughes’s indifference in the least and walked over to Joshua’s side with a smile, casually picked up the glass, poured himself a drink, and swallowed it down.

Though his face still bore a smile, in truth, he felt uneasy inside.

Alexander sensed that something seemed to be quietly changing recently. Nora Thompson had often been absent-minded lately, often returning to her room early to sleep. Her contemplative demeanor unsettled him; he couldn’t delve into her thoughts, couldn’t fathom what was occupying her mind.

The two men, each absorbed in their own thoughts, drank glass after glass of gem-like sparkling wine.

Alexander kept reflecting on Nora’s demeanor over the last few days; her faint smile seemed laced with mockery, yet held a touch of aloofness.

Everything seemed to come so suddenly since she returned.

He recalled today, in the office, when Henry Brown looked at him zoned out: "Boss, this is the fifth time you’ve been distracted today. What are you thinking about?"

He glanced at Henry Brown, the fifth time, huh?

Had he really been zoning out during work?

He hadn’t seen her for thirty-something hours now; she had said her father-in-law wasn’t feeling well and she needed to return home for two days.

In the past, she often returned home too but would always come back by evening to cook him a simple dinner.

Though everything seemed straightforward, his natural sharp intuition told him there must be something he didn’t know, something had already happened and was altering the original trajectory of life.

Nora’s attitude towards him had already begun to change.

"Joshua, women are troublesome, let’s celebrate us getting into big trouble."

With a bitter smile, he raised his glass and lightly clinked it against Joshua’s glass, then drained the drink in one go.

Alexander realized he never understood what his wife was thinking, and though he always assumed they were simply courteous to each other, now in his heart, he referred to her as his wife.

These changes seemed too swift, so fast he could barely respond.

———————————— Divider ——————————————————

Thompson Family villa, Isaac Thompson’s bedroom

Isaac Thompson watched his daughter’s obedient and cute face, cautiously saying, "Charlotte, I want to discuss something with you."

This was something he had wanted to tell her for a long time. He wanted to gradually sell off the entire company, then prepare his will and arrange everything.

These things were better done sooner rather than later, fearing his heart wasn’t good, and he wouldn’t have much time left.

Perhaps sick people tend to think more, hoping to be overthinking, but things still needed arranging.

Charlotte peeled an apple, occasionally lifting her head to glance at her father, exhaustion written on his brow.

"Charlotte, Dad wants to let go of the company shares, wouldn’t it be nice to peacefully retire, or if Alexander is interested, let him have them, since they’ll ultimately belong to you anyway, let him help you manage them?" Isaac Thompson pondered for a moment, deciding to voice his thoughts.

Recently, he felt somewhat powerless; truly not like during his youthful days. Now, he wanted to live a little longer, to savor the pleasure of playful grandchildren.

"Dad, why talk about retirement now, you’re only fifty-something, is there something difficult?"

Charlotte had heard Tigeri mention that he wanted to list all subsidiaries and shares for sale.

But what Tigeri said was vague, after all, he’s merely a bodyguard, and doesn’t know much about business matters.

"Dad won’t hide from you, these past two years the company hasn’t had any new profit growth points, in expanding new business we lack a transportation line and are often constrained by others. Hayward is the best choice but Alexander also wants Hayward, last year he acquired several companies and only lacks Hayward to repackage and list as a new subsidiary of the King Clan; one reason is I don’t want to compete with Alexander, and the other is truly feeling a bit tired." Isaac Thompson actually didn’t want to tell his daughter, not intending to make things difficult for her.

Furthermore, having only one daughter, what use are grand enterprises compared to stepping back to enjoy the chance of playful grandchildren?

"Dad, I know you don’t want to make things hard for me, but Hayward is critical to us, it’s your entire new business’s soft spot, it’s stuck at a crucial point, even if we have money, we can’t swiftly establish a transportation line like that, from personnel arrangement to a stable operational foundation we are incapable of achieving it, Dad, let me help you."

Charlotte had long known such a day would come, something she couldn’t shirk, becoming Alexander’s rival might help her extricate herself more rapidly from the whirlpool of emotion.

Being rivals wasn’t scary, after all, it was merely a marketplace struggle, hence, she should bravely face it.