Bowe Group was founded from scratch by Owen Moreland, and its rapid development has made it a heavyweight with a prominent status in today's commercial circles.
Even the opening of one of its unremarkable restaurants attracted many high-profile figures from Capital City to show their support.
Six in the evening.
As Amelia Clarke and the others had just walked in with Mia Moreland, they were dazzled by the opulence of the grand lobby.
"Welcome," came the melodious and joyful greetings from the tall and beautiful greeters in red cheongsams on both sides.
Owen Moreland had arranged for a private room on the third floor.
The group followed the waiter upstairs, where they encountered a group of about a dozen men descending, mostly middle-aged men in suits, obviously corporate executives.
Amelia Clarke inadvertently looked up and her face suddenly turned pale.
But quickly, she looked down and sidled closer to Viola Harris.
Viola Harris asked her, puzzled, "What's wrong?"
When she turned her head, she saw a familiar figure among the men coming down.
She immediately understood what was wrong with Amelia Clarke.
It was Isaac Taylor, who was talking to someone next to him and hadn't noticed them.
Amelia Clarke seemed very afraid of seeing him; she also didn't like to mention him normally.
This puzzled Viola Harris, as she knew that Amelia Clarke's family was struggling and it had always been Isaac Taylor helping them out; Amelia Clarke should be grateful to him.
However, this was Amelia Clarke's private affair and it was not her place to inquire further. She subtly shifted to shield Amelia Clarke a bit more.
Once the group had disappeared downstairs, Viola Harris squeezed Amelia Clarke's hand and said, "It's all right now."
Amelia Clarke raised her head, smiling somewhat forcedly.
When she was ten, the sudden abandonment by her father, the subsequent collapse of her mother from the shock, confined to her sickbed, left the young girl clutching her eight-year-old, intellectually challenged brother. Even though she hardly understood the ways of the world, she knew that her family's sky had fallen.
At that time, the appearance of Isaac Taylor made her feel as though their sky was being propped up once again.
For a long time, she regarded Isaac Taylor as a father, calling him uncle but in her heart, she was calling him dad.
But at some point, she started feeling that something was off with Isaac Taylor.
She couldn't pinpoint what it was; he was still the same, traveling from Capital City to T City to visit them, buying clothes and food for her and her brother, providing money for her mother's medical treatment.
Yet, she just felt something was not right; whenever he approached her, she instinctively wanted to flee, and the way he looked at her made her uncomfortable.
When she grew older and understood more about the matters of men and women, she understood.
Isaac Taylor's gaze upon her was not that of looking at a child, but that of looking at a woman.
Amelia Clarke sat at the window seat of the private room, gazing out at the myriad lights, resplendent and dazzling.
The human heart is like this city, brilliant on the surface, but beneath that brightness lurk untold darkness and filth.
Mia Moreland ordered all the most expensive dishes on the menu, and Viola Harris and Rosy Mone chose some of their favorite dishes as well. Mia Moreland prompted Amelia Clarke to choose, but Amelia Clarke gently shook her head and said, "It's fine, whatever you order."
After ordering the dishes and while waiting for them to be served, Mia Moreland called Owen Moreland to ask when he would come. Owen Moreland must have said something, as Mia Moreland pouted after hanging up the phone.
"What's wrong? Is your cousin not coming anymore?" Viola Harris asked.
"No," Mia Moreland said listlessly, flopping onto the brand-new solid wood round table. "He's busy, asked us to start eating without him."
Viola Harris smiled, "Well, it's normal for the big boss to be a bit busy."
The dishes were served quickly.
Halfway through the meal, Owen Moreland arrived fashionably late.
Dressed in a sharp suit, the man's tall and broad figure, along with his handsome and majestic appearance, exuded a mature and charming allure that commanded attention.
He apologized for being late, although his serious expression hardly conveyed any sense of remorse.
Viola Harris hastily said, "Oh no, it's us who should be sorry for intruding."
Owen Moreland glanced at the girl who spoke, just a brief look, before shifting his gaze away. As he withdrew his eyes, they seemed to unintentionally sweep across Amelia Clarke's face.
The girl had her head slightly lowered, her demeanor serene and obedient-looking. Her delicate features were set in a small, palm-sized face, exquisitely doll-like.
Mia, looking as though she had performed some arduous feat, tilted her head back and scanned her three roommates with a vibe that screamed 'See? I wasn't lying, Owen really is my cousin.'
Suddenly remembering something, she introduced Amelia Clarke, Viola Harris, and Rosy Mone to Owen Moreland.
Both Viola Harris and Rosy Mone greeted him with beaming smiles, but Amelia Clarke seemed somewhat distracted.
In response to the enthusiasm of the two beautiful girls, Owen's expression barely changed as he nodded slightly toward Viola Harris and Rosy Mone.
Soon after, his phone rang.
He took out his phone, looked at it, and then raised his head to say to everyone, "Sorry, I need to take this call."
After speaking, he got up and stepped out of the private room.
As the door closed, the low and mellow sound of his voice could faintly be heard fading into the distance.
Viola Harris was somewhat excited, "Mia, I didn't expect your cousin to be so handsome!" It wasn't just about being handsome—it was his masculine charm that made him so attractive.
In Mia's generation, Owen was the only cousin. Though the praise wasn't for her, she was quite pleased, saying proudly, "Of course, there are no ugly people in the Moreland family—we're all good-looking."
Viola Harris: "..."
There was no chatting that day.
"With prospects like his, he must be married, right?" Rosy Mone asked.
"No," Mia replied, stuffing a shrimp into her mouth and mumbled, "A man in his thirties and not even a girlfriend to speak of. It drives my grandmother crazy. Every time she sees a girl, she imagines her as her granddaughter-in-law."
Viola Harris pursed her red lips, seeming to speak casually, "With your cousin's stature, he must need to find someone of equal standing, right?"
Viola Harris, if compared to a flower, could only be matched by the enchanting beauty of a Blue Enchantress that blossoms at midnight.
Exquisitely beautiful without even trying, she needed only to sit properly to easily capture the attention of men.
But just now, Owen Moreland seemed indifferent, not showing the greedy and disgusting look that other men revealed upon seeing her.
This only made her more interested.
"I'm not sure about my cousin, but my grandmother just wants a granddaughter-in-law who can bear her a hefty great-grandson. She'd be over the moon," Mia said as she took a sip of her juice, beginning to complain, "You have no idea, my grandma is so obsessed with having a great-grandson that she once followed a young mother holding a baby all the way down the street. The poor woman got so scared she called the cops, thinking she'd run into a kidnapper!"
Viola Harris and Rosy Mone listened intently, while Amelia Clarke suddenly stood up, "I'm going to the restroom."