Christopher nodded while wearing a poker face. âI got it, Hal. I wonât stoop to her level. Iâll put up with her for now.â Harold grunted in response. âIf you wish to attain great success, you must be willing to let go of the trivial matters. Donât worry. Iâll definitely compensate you handsomely for your sufferings as you serve her.âWinnie deliberately dawdled for some time before returning.She took two sips of her juice before asking Harold, âSo, have you made up your mind, Mr. Horton? Will you accept my suggestion?âHarold smiled in silence. Then he took the initiative to stand up and refill her glass.He poured the juice into her glass until the content overflowed and stained her clothes.It was obvious that he did that on purpose. Yet, he pretended to have done that accidentally and offered an insincere apology.âOh, Iâm sorry, Ms. Vivian. I accidentally overfilled your glass. I have no doubt this juice tastes good, and everyone is fond of delicious drinks. But one shouldnât be too greedy. Otherwise, not only will they fail to get a taste of the juice, but the juice may even dirty their outfit.âHe took another clean glass and poured the juice into it until it was a third full.As he handed Winnie the fresh glass of juice, he said, âJust like this. This amount is just nice. Iâm willing to split one third of the profit with you, and thatâs the limit.ââIs one third your limit, Mr. Horton? Canât you let me earn a little more?â Winnie asked him without showing any inclination to receive the glass.Harold curled his lips into a smile and forcefully placed the glass in front of her.âThatâs right. One third is the maximum. I cannot make any more compromises. If youâre unsatisfied with my offer, you may walk away now, Ms. Vivian. However, once you leave my sight, I cannot guarantee youâll be unharmed.âWinnie sneered. âLooks like I have no choice but to agree.âHarold chuckled. âItâs fine if you want to put it that way, Ms. Vivian.â He pondered briefly before adding, âActually, one third should be sufficient for you, so why should we turn this situation into an unpleasant one?ââReally?â Winnie arched her brows at him. âIn that case, Iâd like to ask how many factories you have and how expansive your business is, Mr. Horton. You havenât even informed me of these details, so how do you expect me to gauge if one third of the profit will be enough for me?âHarold grimaced slightly. âArenât you being a little too curious, Ms. Vivian?âHarold was not the only one who knew how to rearrange his facial expression as Winnie managed to wear an even more discontented countenance than him.âMr. Horton, how many times do you want me to emphasize this to you? We are in the process of discussing a mutually beneficial collaboration, and I am not your subordinate. Iâll feel insecure if you donât divulge these pieces of information to me, and if I donât have a sense of security, this cooperation cannot proceed.âWith that, she pushed her chair back and got to her feet. âIt seems that weâll never reach a conclusion today. Iâm tired, and I want to go back to rest now. You can come and find me for further discussion after you make your decision, Mr. Horton.âHarold suppressed his anger. The last person who had dared to behave so arrogantly in front of him was already in his afterlife.Nonetheless, he contained his temper as he said, âOkay. Letâs go back, then.âWinnie made a low inarticulate sound in agreement without sparing Harold a glance.However, after taking two steps toward the door, she suddenly turned her head around to look at Christopher in displeasure. âWhat are you still standing there for? Hurry up and get moving.âChristopher remained silent. He clenched his fists as his facial expression stiffened and darkened.Harold immediately shot Christopher a look when he noticed the latter staying still.Only then did Christopher follow her.However, Winnie suddenly changed her mind right after they got into the car. âLetâs not go back. Drive me to Lightspring. I want to find a place to relax.âOf course, the driver would not listen to her order. Just as he was about to retort, she added, âYou can seek permission from Mr. Horton. I donât mind if he wants a few more people to escort me. After all, my safety should be prioritized.âI must have the worst luck for being assigned to be her chauffeur. If I do as she suggests and infuriate Mr. Horton with my question, I wonât be able to leave here alive.Then, the driver suddenly thought of a brilliant solution. He turned to enquire Christopherâs opinion. âChris, what do you think about thisâ¦âChristopher knitted his brows. âStop the car. Iâll go down and ask Mr. Horton.âThe driver brought the car to a halt, and Christopher immediately got out of the vehicle to find Harold.Haroldâs face turned somber after he listened to Christopherâs account.âThat woman is beyond greedy. She must be planning to meet up with the other two because she didnât get her way here. Allow her to go, but make sure to keep an eye on her. Iâll give her the opportunity to leave, but Iâll make her see the fact that no matter what she does, thereâs no way for her to escape my control. Bring a few more men with you and let her experience the feelings of making futile attempts to strike up a deal with the other two. Iâd like to see if sheâs truly so ungrateful.âChristopher nodded.
âOkay, Hal. I understand.âA few moments later, he returned to the car, and after glancing at Winnie, he said to the driver, âWeâll follow Ms. Vivianâs instruction and send her wherever she wants to go.âShe took a quick look at Christopher before uttering, âLooks like Mr. Horton is a considerate person, after all. I told you my body was aching and requested you to give me a massage, yet you refused me. Since youâre unwilling to fulfill my wish, letâs find a place with a professional masseur to service me.âInstead of replying to her, Christopher said to the driver, âLetâs go to the usual place on Lightspring Street.ââAll right!â the driver responded and immediately stepped on the accelerator.Winnie did not say anything after that but gently tapped the ring on her left ring finger.She knew Xavier was constantly monitoring her every move. Now that she had confirmed Rileyâs location, they had to devise a plan to rescue him.
The three taps on the ring were a signal to let Xavier know that they should meet up.Christopher has just said the addressâLightspring Street. I believe Xavier will be able to locate the massage place.Meanwhile, Xavier had received the message from Winnie.After doing some research, he quickly zoned in on a spa located on Lightspring Street and led some men to hurry over to that place.Approximately an hour later, Winnie and the others arrived at the spa on Lightspring Street as well.Aside from Winnie, Christopher, and their driver, another two men also tagged along.The five of them entered the spa flamboyantly.The receptionist was very friendly and seemed to be well-
acquainted with Christopher and the others, especially with the driver.The driver took the initiative and said, âChristopher, Ms. Vivian, there are a few masseur here with extraordinary skills. Why donât we just pick them?âWinnie glanced at the driver and sneered. âIâm already escorted by four of you even when Iâm out. Do I need to be assigned with your masseur as well when I want to relax at a spa?âThe driver replied, âThatâs not what I meant, Ms. Vivian.âChristopher furrowed his brows. âArenât you being too paranoid, Ms. Vivian?âWinnie rolled her eyes at Christopher. âI am paranoid. Do you have a problem with that?âWith that, she walked toward the front desk and said to the staff, âPrepare a quiet room and pick a random masseur for me. Whoever is available as long as they are not the ones who usually serve him. Do I make myself clear?âThe receptionist chirped, âAll right, Miss. My colleague will show you to the room.ââGreat!â Winnie wore a pompous look and strode ahead, leaving Christopher and the others behind.When she turned a corner, she saw a familiar face nearby. If Iâm not mistaken, that should be Xavier dressed in a masseurâs uniform.Winnie was thrilled to see him there, but she suppressed her urge to sneak another look at him and simply disregarded his existence.Soon, Winnie entered a private room.Christopher and the driver followed her into the room while the other two men stood outside to guard the door.From the looks of it, it seemed that they werenât going to let even a fly enter the room without their permission.Nonetheless, Winnie had faith in Xavier and was confident he would find a way to get into the private room.As she expected, less than five minutes later, Xavier, pretending to be a masseur, stepped into the room.Winnie glanced at him indifferently and ordered, âBring a tub of water here to wash my feet.ââOkay, Miss.â Xavier had evidently done his homework before coming to that place.He took out a wooden foot tub from underneath the massage table and grabbed a sheet of new single-use plastic cover from the cabinet. Then he covered the wooden tub with that plastic cover.He did all that with great skills as if he was truly a masseur at that place.At that moment, aside from the driver, everyone else inside the room was on the same team. Therefore, their immediate task was to get rid of the driver and for a long period at that.Asking him to go out and buy some drinks would not be practical as he would probably return after a maximum of five minutes.At that thought, Winnie made a decision and pushed Christopher down on the massage table.She straddled his body and caressed him, slowly moving her hands down from his forehead.While touching him, she said, âI gave you so many chances to have me, you jerk, yet you repeatedly rejected my offer. How ungracious of you. Are you going to refuse me again today?âThe driver was dumbfounded when he saw that. I canât believe sheâs so bold and desperate! Is she going to do this in front of so many people?Xavier, who had his back facing Winnie and Christopher while he filled the tub with water, tensed up.He didnât need to turn his head to figure out what Winnie and Christopher were doing.At that instant, Xavier had the overwhelming urge to separate the two, but he knew he couldnât do that. I must endure this!He took a few deep breaths and dug his short, blunt fingernails into the tub, leaving a few scratches on the wooden surface.While Xavier tried his best to calm himself down, Winnie and Christopher continued with their act as they had yet to chase the driver out of the room.âYouâre such a lustful slut, Ms. Vivian. Are you that impatient to offer yourself up to me?âChristopher snickered. Then he got up and pinned Winnie underneath him.The next second, the sound of clothes being torn apart reverberated in the air.Still, Xavier did not look back. He knew if he turned around and lost control of his temper, he might place Winnieâs life in danger, so he kept his emotions in check.The driver, on the other hand, could not stop himself from peeking at Winnieâs figure. However, before he could see anything, she splashed with him a cup of hot tea.âWhat the f*ck are you looking at? Who do you think you are to look at me? Get the hell out of here and guard the door! Iâll gouge your eyeballs if you dare to sneak another look!âUnder such circumstances, her request was entirely reasonable.Moreover, the driver was drenched in tea. Even if Winnie did not kick him out, he would have to find someplace to clean himself.Nonetheless, he felt disgruntled for being chided by her, so he vented his anger at Xavier.âWhy are you still standing there? Are you blind or deaf? Get the hell out of here!âXavier paused for a few moments before he spun on his heels. However, after he took two steps forward, Christopher piped up, âYou, the masseur, stay here and wash her feet.âXavier stopped abruptly.Winnie booted Christopher. âWhat do you mean by that? Are you making fun of me?âChristopher snorted coldly. âHah.
Excuse me. You may not care about your reputation, but I do. Iâll never do it with you so casually in this place. How are we different from beasts if we behave in this manner?ââDid you just call me a beast?â
Winnie picked up an ashtray and chucked it at him. âYou should get lost too!ââIâm sorry. Mr. Horton told me to stay by your side at all times. No one can command me except him.âAfter that, Christopher said to the driver, âYou can leave first to clean yourself.âThe driver nodded. Itâll be sufficient for Chris to guard this woman alone. Besides, there are two more of our men standing outside. My presence here is unnecessary.Following the driverâs departure, the three of them were the only ones left in the room.Winnie was lying on the massage table while Christopher was standing beside her.Xavier was at the limits of his patience. He strode up to Christopher and punched him in the face.Christopher staggered backward and slammed into a cabinet, but he didnât make a sound.When Xavier recalled Winnieâs current appearance, her clothes disheveled and one side of her shoulder exposed, he could not stop himself from raising his arm again.Seeing that Winnie hastily stopped him, âDonât do this, Xavier.âXavier turned to look at her, his eyes bloodshot.Winnie had wanted to persuade him, but after taking in his anguished demeanor, she could not help but feel remorseful.She uttered gently, âIâm sorry.
That was my idea, and I took the initiative. This is how I need to behave to live up to my character. You shouldnât have punched Christopher. Why donât you hit me instead to let out your wrath?âXavier scrunched up his brows. âAre you kidding me? How can I ever hit you?âWith that, he turned around, grasped Christopherâs collar, and said through gritted teeth, âNevertheless, youâre not allowed to rip her clothes. You cannot do that! I would have never let you off the hook if it werenât because of the special circumstances weâre in right now.ââI know.â Christopher wiped the blood off the corner of his mouth.
âThatâs why I didnât retaliate. But I had no choice but to do that. We cannot waste any more time arguing. There are two more men standing guard outside.âOnly then did Xavier loosen his grip around Christopherâs clothes and resume washing Winnieâs feet.Relying on the sound of the water to cover their voices, they began discussing in an undertone.Their topic of discussion at that time was their plan to rescue Riley.Winnie and Christopher had a tacit understanding during the conversation. However, there were times when Xavier could not express his thoughts.Xavier could not even understand the code words used by Christopher and Winnie.Taking in their interaction and imagining the two of them spending so much time together at the Horton residence, Xavier suddenly felt a tightness in his chest.Discontent filled his chest, and he even began to feel jealous of Christopher.