Howard felt a sudden headache.
Ah, it hurts.
The feeling of a hangover is just the worst.
Wait a minute.
Hangover?
How did he get drunk?
It was just a box of temper!
Even a pound of vodka wouldn't get him this drunk!
Howard tried to wave his arm forcefully, only to realize he couldn't move his body at all!
A cold sweat broke out on Howard's back as he jolted awake in fright.
All he saw was darkness; he couldn't even see his own hand in front of his face.
Where is this place?
Howard struggled with all his might, but his whole body felt weak and limp, unable to muster any strength!
Howard was terrified; he had no idea what was happening.
Before getting drunk, he seemed to be drinking with a young man.
That young man said he sympathized with him, so he treated him to drinks.
Wait!
That young man!
Howard, slow as ever, finally realized something was off about that young man.
Right, even if people from the Glory Empire are hospitable, that's only between hosts and guests.
And what kind of relationship did he have with that young man?
No relationship at all.
He actually followed him to eat and drink without any precautions?
Was he sold out?
Just as Howard kept guessing, someone walked over.
Thud—a lid was lifted, and a streak of light shone down from above.
Howard squinted up at the light and saw a short, dark-skinned guy in shorts, slippers, and a t-shirt.
He seemed to be sizing something up. When he saw Howard, he immediately muttered to the person next to him, "He's awake."
"What a hassle. We used so much medicine and he still woke up early. Give him another shot!" someone else shouted.
Howard took a long time to figure it out—they were speaking Vietnamese.
How did he end up in Vietnam?
Howard struggled and spoke up, "Who are you people? Why did you kidnap me? Where are you taking me? Let me go, I'll pay you, I have lots and lots of money!"
Howard shouted in several languages, but they ignored him, as if they didn't hear him at all.
Howard was hopeless.
He finally understood—someone wanted him dead.
No matter what terms he offered, they would never let him go!
Who? Who wants him dead?
Was it an old rival?
Was it an enemy?
Or... Mi Xiaoying?
Just thinking about that possibility made cold sweat break out on Howard's back again!
If it's Cherry Miller, then Cassie is definitely in danger!
Cherry Miller really can keep her cool, hiding her intentions for so long before finally making a move!
How could Cassie possibly be a match for Cherry Miller?
Howard slammed his fist against the bedboard, crying out in pain.
He shouldn't have left in a huff; he shouldn't have left Cassie's side!
He should've stayed and protected Cassie!
Cherry Miller, if you have a problem, come at me—just don't hurt Cassie!
Even now, Howard still couldn't let go of Cassie.
Howard didn't know how much time passed before he was finally taken up to the deck.
Seeing daylight again, Howard barely had time to be happy before he realized something was off about his surroundings.
"Welcome to the High Seas, Howard." A man in a British tailcoat and white gloves smiled at him. "This will be your new home."
Meanwhile, with Howard gone, Cassie and Lexi's relationship was growing by leaps and bounds.
In just two days, they were already glued to each other.
This day, Lexi looked troubled, glancing at Cassie as if wanting to say something but holding back.
Cassie couldn't stand seeing Lexi like that. Watching Lexi mope around, she couldn't help but ask, "What's wrong?"
"It's nothing." Lexi forced a smile, refusing to say anything no matter how much Cassie asked.
Cassie grew suspicious, deciding to quietly figure out what was going on with Lexi.
At lunch, Lexi barely ate and went back to the room to rest.
Coincidentally, Lexi's phone was left on the sofa.
Cassie saw it and picked up the phone, about to bring it to Lexi.
At that moment, a WeChat message popped up.
Lexi's phone was set to show messages, so even on the lock screen, the content was visible.
"Lexi, did you get all the money Mom asked you to prepare? If we can't scrape together enough, your brother will kick us out of the house."
Cassie was startled by the message.
Scrape together money?
Kicked out of the house?
What on earth happened?
Cassie hesitated, then tried entering the phone's password.
First, she tried Lexi's birthday—wrong password.
Then Cassie tried her own birthday—still wrong.
Next, she entered the date they first met.
The phone unlocked.
Cassie's heart raced with excitement, then melted with sweetness.
Turns out, Lexi cared about the day they first met even more than she did.
Sigh, why is he so good to her?
So gentle, so attentive, so considerate—what is she supposed to do with someone like him?
Cassie carefully opened the messages, and each one appeared before her eyes.
"Son, I'm not trying to pressure you. Even though your brother inherited the family, you're still a part of it. Now your brother says he's kicking us both out. When I married your father, your brother was already grown. It's fine if he doesn't like me, but you're his real brother!"
"I don't know who's been influencing him, making him think you'll fight for the inheritance. But if you really wanted it, would you have waited until now? Your dad died young, before you were born, leaving the two of us alone to be bullied by others. Son, you have to think of your mother."
"I've already contacted a few shareholders and bought some shares from them. I've scraped together eighty million, but I'm still short for the rest. Can you help Mom out with some money?"
"The shareholders said if we can come up with two hundred million, they'll transfer their shares to us. As long as we have the shares, your brother can't do anything to us! Son, I know you have some money—your father left it to you before he died. Can you lend it to me?"
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"Son, did you even get my messages? You haven't answered my calls for days, and I can't find you anywhere. Are you abandoning your mother? Are you trying to drive me to my grave?"
Cassie's brow furrowed at this.
Two hundred million?!
That's a ton!
Cassie couldn't help but clench her fist.
"What are you doing?" Lexi's voice suddenly sounded behind her.
Cassie jumped, dropping the phone onto the sofa. When she turned around and saw Lexi looking pale, she stammered, "Sorry, I—I didn't mean to look at your phone. I, I, I..."
Lexi tiredly pinched the bridge of his nose and said, "I'm not blaming you. There's nothing secret on my phone, you can look if you want. Never mind, you rest, I'm leaving."
With that, Lexi took the phone, grabbed his jacket, and was about to leave.
Seeing this, Cassie couldn't let Lexi go.
In a flash, she rushed over and hugged Lexi from behind. "Lexi, tell me the truth, are you in trouble?"
"It's none of your business," Lexi said calmly.
"How is it none of my business? Your problems are my problems!" Cassie protested.
"It's my family matter, you shouldn't get involved." Lexi didn't pry Cassie's hands away, instead he squeezed her fingers tightly, his voice trembling. "Cassie, if one day I have to leave you..."
"No! I don't want you to leave!" Cassie got even more anxious, hugging Lexi's waist tighter and shrieking, "Lexi, don't leave me!"
"It's not that I want to leave you, I just don't want to drag you down." Lexi sighed. "It's my fault, I shouldn't have fallen for you before things were stable. If I can't give you a stable life, why did I get involved with you? Forget it, I'm leaving."
"Are you short on money? I saw everything!" Cassie cried out. "Lexi, you can talk to me about anything! I'll help you!"
With his back to Cassie, a faint smile appeared on Lexi's lips.
His eyes shone with the pride of a successful plan.
"What nonsense are you talking about?"
"I'm not making things up! Hasn't your mom been asking you to scrape together money to buy shares in the family company? I saw everything!" Cassie said loudly.
"What? You already saw it?" Lexi looked nervous. "You... Well, it's fine. Now you know, I'm not some young master anymore. My brother wants to kick me and my mom out. My mom is the second wife, and when she married in, she didn't ask for anything to prove she wasn't after money. My dad died when she was pregnant with me, left in a hurry, didn't leave her anything—just gave me some money before he passed."
Lexi pulled Cassie's hand away and said earnestly, "I thought my brother wouldn't do anything to us, that I'd always be a rich young master. But a few days ago, my brother suddenly changed his mind, said since Dad's gone, my mom and I have no right to live in that house, and he's forcing us to leave. But that's my mom's home!"
"That's just outrageous!" Cassie said angrily. "How can he do that?"
"What can we do? It's not like I don't want to help Mom, but all my money is tied up in business with friends. I can't pull it out now. Anyway, why am I telling you all this? I should go think of another way." Lexi said, looking troubled.
Seeing Lexi about to leave again, Cassie stopped him once more. "Lexi, don't worry, we'll find a way!"
"I know, I'll figure something out myself." Lexi stood up firmly. "Cassie, I don't want to drag you down. So, let's break up. You're amazing—you'll find someone even better, someone who suits you more."
Cassie was instantly heartbroken.
Cassie blurted out, "Lexi, let's not break up. Let me lend you the money, okay?"