One hundred million and one was a large sum of money to Daisy, but it was only a fraction to Edward. With an elegant stroke of his golden pen on the check, 'A Beauty's Tears of Blood' now belonged to Daisy.
As Daisy's slender fingers stroked the seemingly pulsing crystals of the necklace, she felt her mother's warmth. When her fingertips touched the bloody teardrop-shaped stone, she felt suffocated.
In Daisy's memory, her mother was a gentle beautiful woman with a delicate classical bearing that few modern women possessed. Eyes would follow her at the sight of her striking elegance. Daisy's heart trembled when she touched the sparkling stone. It felt as if she could feel her mother's tears and blood.
"What's wrong?" Seeing the melancholy on Daisy's face, Edward frowned and wondered what triggered her emotions.
This necklace used to belong to a royal family in the Qing Dynasty. In that case, my mother was the offspring of an aristocratic family. That's why she seemed so distinguished, "
Daisy replied offhandedly, without moving her eyes away from the necklace in her hands.
Then it sounds like I married a member of the royal family. My status seems to have been elevated. I'm related to an emperor now. You can't call me a sly businessman anymore."
Unable to see Daisy so sad, Edward made a joke every time she got upset to distract her.
Hey! You're haggling with me again. This is exactly why you're a sly businessman." Daisy laughed at Edward's quip, temporarily forgetting the painful memory about her mother.
"Let's get out of here. Time to go home, honey." Edward smiled affectionately. He didn't mind what she said, as long as she was happy. All businessmen had to be sly to succeed. Edward took Daisy's words as a compliment.
"Okay." Daisy carefully put the necklace back into the case before walking outside with Edward. Everyone around them cast envious looks at her when they passed by.
"Wait!" Jessica shouted behind them just as Edward and Daisy were about to enter the car.
What can I do for you, Miss Lin?" Instead of the indifferent mask she usually wore, Daisy had a happy smile on her face. It seemed the necklace made her very happy. But in Jessica's eyes, Daisy's smile was mocking.
Edward, the Lin Group's stocks keep dropping. Do you have anything to do with it?" Jessica ignored Daisy and fixed her eyes on Edward.
Yes, I do, " Edward said indifferently. Jessica was lucky that he hadn't gotten even with her yet. She was bold enough to come to Edward like this.
"Why?" Hearing Edward's response, Jessica staggered with shock. Reality was so cruel. Edward admitted it so easily, he didn't even care to deny it. Jessica was mortified, she felt like a clown in Daisy's presence.
"Think about what you did! Since you didn't take my warning seriously, prepare for the consequences!"
Edward retorted, ice flashing in his blue eyes. Jessica's last hope shattered.
"I... I don't know what you're talking about." Jessica averted her eyes nervously. What did Edward mean? Had he found out what she and Hank had done to Daisy? No. That was impossible. She had been so careful. Edward couldn't know. But something upset him. What was it?
"Hmph! You don't know? You'll find out soon." Edward smiled coldly. It wasn't time to alert his adversaries yet. Jessica would find out what she had done wrong after Edward dealt with Hank.
Daisy watched Edward and Jessica quietly. She didn't know what was going on between them, so she didn't engage in their conversation. But from Edward's ruthless words, she figured Jessica must've crossed the line. Otherwise, he wouldn't be so pissed.
You... Do you have to destroy the Lin Group? What about me and the unborn baby?" Jessica thought her baby was her last weapon to change the situation. Even if Edward didn't care, the child was real.
"What about you? There's no connection between us. As for the baby, it has nothing to do with me. Luke, give her the medical examination report."
It was a mistake to try to fool Edward.
"Yes, Mr. Mu." Luke was waiting by the car. Edward had asked him to bring back the medical examination report from the hospital a couple of days ago, so he knew exactly which report Edward meant.
"Everything you want to know is in that report. Don't ever mention that your baby is mine again! Honey, let's go."
Edward gave Jessica a cold look and got into the car with Daisy. His indifference made Jessica's face deathly pale. What report? Did Edward have something against her? Jessica got flustered at the thought.
"Miss Lin, this is Mr. Mu's medical examination report. I hope you can stop disturbing Mr. and Mrs. Mu's life. They're very happy together, and that's not going to change."
Luke handed Jessica the report and left indifferently. His responsibility was to protect Edward. He wasn't interested in seeing Jessica's embarrassed reaction.
Jessica had an idea what the report might say. Looking at the folded piece of paper, she felt her heart sink. She was afraid her worries would come true.
She opened the paper with trembling hands and felt devastated after reading its contents.
No! This couldn't be true! How could Edward have had this surgery? If this was true, where did that bastard Justin come from? Was this a fake report that Edward fabricated to deceive her?
It had to be. Edward was trying to get rid of her this way so he could live his happy life. But Jessica wasn't stupid enough to believe him.
But if the report was true, then who was the father of her baby?
Scenes from a few months ago flashed into Jessica's mind.
Her thoughts stopped at an extremely vulgar scene. Jessica became light-headed and her body swayed. Had it happened that night? Jessica had no idea about the identity of that man because she had been too wasted to see his face.
The sapphire blue Maybach drove slowly on the street. Its mysterious color seemed even dreamier and more delicate under the street lights.
Edward bit his lip, indifference written all over his face. Through the rear-view mirror, his sharp eyes kept looking at the black BMW that was following them closely.
A classical ringtone filled the car, and Edward picked up his phone immediately.
"Yes. What's wrong?"
"Mr. Mu, we have company, " Luke said urgently in a cold voice.
"Yes, I've noticed, " Edward said, turning to Daisy who was still absorbed in the necklace.
"Mr. Mu, speed up first. I'll stall them, " Luke said coolly.
"No. We don't know how many they are. It could be dangerous if you deal with them alone. Call in reinforcements."
Edward took off the bluetooth earpiece and threw it aside.
"Is something wrong?" Daisy asked. She put the necklace away and looked up at Edward.
Yes, somebody's shadowing us. But we don't know who or how many they are yet." Edward winced in worry. He wouldn't be worried if he were alone in the car. But with Daisy sitting next to him, he couldn't help showing his anxiety. Even though he knew that Daisy was tough, he had to protect her.
There seems to be two cars, one following closely and the other at a near distance." Daisy twitched her mouth. She was able to catch every move through the rear-view mirror. She had to figure out their target. Was it Edward's life or the necklace?
Excellent observation. You deserve the title of the best female colonel in the city. But don't be a hero, safety first." Edward gazed at her affectionately.
"Don't worry. I don't want to die yet. Besides, these jerks are too green to take my life. If they want to kill me, they should wait a few more years." Daisy smiled in self-satisfaction, absolutely arrogant and overbearing. At that moment, she displayed the true qualities of a military hero.
"Don't let your guard down. They're cold-blooded. Here, take this." Edward handed Daisy a gun.
This is a USP pistol produced by the HK Company. It has excellent precision and controllable recoil, better than the Glock in terms of direction and structure. Each magazine has 12 bullets, not many, but it's very powerful and expensive. Where did you get it?"
Daisy listed the weapon's assets as she explored the exquisite handgun. Her strong suit was the rifle, which she used a lot in military school.
"Wow, impressive. I see you learned a lot in military school. Let's see your performance later." Edward gave Daisy the thumbs-up in appreciation.
Don't change the subject. Where did you get the gun?" Daisy rolled her eyes and fixed Edward a look.
"Do you think I'll carry a gun illegally? Relax. I have a permit. Edward smiled. The people following were just a piece of cake in his eyes. Because he'd been in this kind of situation every now and then, he'd gotten used to it. Obscure hooligans had stalked him in the past. Would they encounter big bosses this time? He was actually looking forward to facing them.
Meanwhile in the garrison headquarters of S City, the warden stood in front of the furious commander and Kevin. He keep his head bowed down, too frightened to look at either of them.
When did this happen? Why did you wait so long to report it? This is outrageous! The commander rarely got mad, but he was now burning with anger. His sharp eyes glanced back and forth between the warden and the chief of the Public Security Bureau.
It happened three days ago. We plan to catch them by ourselves, but we failed to track them and had to call in support.
The Chief answered timidly, his head kept low.
How did he break out? Kevin asked with knitted brows. He wasn't afraid that they couldn't find the escaped prisoner, but that he might take revenge on Daisy. After all, she was the reason the prisoner had been caught. With Daisy's recent appearance at the anniversary ceremony of the FX International Group, news about her was everywhere. She could easily become their target.