At the same time, Gretchen left the Hudson Group building and angrily spat in its direction. She noticed her son eating desserts given by Estelle and scolded him, saying, “Is eating all you can do?!” She reached out and knocked the dessert from her son’s hand. “Don’t eat anything that woman gives you anymore, understood?”
The dessert fell to the ground, covered in dust. The boy looked at Gretchen sadly but didn’t say anything.
“Why are you staring at me like that? What she gave you is dangerous. Don’t eat it if you want to stay safe!” Gretchen said, growling. As she finished speaking, a beggar’s hands suddenly appeared, and he quickly picked up the half-eaten dessert and started eating it. Surprised, Gretchen snapped, “Stay away from us!”
The beggar, with crumbs and dust on his mouth, heard Gretchen’s voice, and he was stunned. He slowly raised his head in disbelief. “Gretchen…”
Hearing the beggar address her by name, Gretchen furrowed her brow and asked, “Who are you?”
“I’m your dad. Don’t you remember me?” the beggar replied.
“My father passed away a long time ago. You…” Gretchen began to speak but stopped abruptly, recognizing a familiar tone in the beggar’s voice. She examined the ragged beggar more closely, his face covered in dirt and almost unrecognizable. With a hesitant expression, she asked, “Are you… York?”
“Yes,” York confirmed as he reached out and grabbed Gretchen’s arm. “Gretchen, I’m relieved that you’re still alive. I thought you would meet the same fate as your mother!”
Gretchen, disgusted, pulled her arm away forcefully, keeping her distance. “Stay away from me, and don’t touch me! Consider yourself warned!”
“I’m starving, Gretchen. I haven’t eaten for days. Do you have more desserts? Can you share some with me?” York pleaded, lunging toward Gretchen again.
“Ah!” Gretchen screamed and frantically dodged. “Don’t touch me! Get away!”
“Gretchen, you once regarded me as your father. Have you forgotten that?” York questioned.
Gretchen responded with a cold, sarcastic tone, “I considered you my father because you were wealthy and the president of the Hudson Group. But you were so foolish that you lost everything to Estelle and her mother. Now you have nothing. How can you have the audacity to expect me to see you as my father?”
York was so hungry that he pounced on Gretchen regardless of anything and said, “Give me some money to buy food. I haven’t eaten anything for three days. I’m starving…”
While dodging him, Gretchen cursed him in disgust, “I hope you will starve to death! My mother said that you were reliable. That’s total bullshit! Why don’t you ask Estelle for money? She’s super rich and powerful now. She’s right here. Go inside and ask her for money!”
Hearing this, York was a little stunned and looked at the building in front of him. Thinking about his luxurious life before, he said with hatred, “This is my company! It’s mine!”
“But you lost everything because of your mistakes. If Estelle hadn’t taken it all from you, you’d be living a good life now,” Gretchen remarked.
With a hunched posture, York glanced toward the Hudson Group’s entrance.
Coincidentally, Estelle, dressed in expensive clothing, exited the building with a laptop and prepared to hail a taxi.
Spotting Estelle, Gretchen whispered in York’s ear, “See? I told you the truth. Estelle is wealthy now. The money she spent on these clothes alone could provide you with a three-year comfortable life. Her earrings, necklace, and wristwatch are also very expensive. If you can take them, you’ll never have to worry about money again.”
York’s eyes grew redder as he listened, and he trembled with emotion.
Gretchen continued with cruelty, “All the luxuries she’s enjoying now should have been yours. But she took them away from you. York, if I were you, I’d strip off her clothes and take her accessories, then sell them so I wouldn’t have to be a beggar anymore.”
“…”
“Look at the laptop in her hand. It’s worth at least twenty thousand dollars. Her high-heeled shoes are worth the price of a nice apartment. If you can get them all, you’ll live comfortably.”
York, overcome with emotion, exclaimed, “These belong to me. They’re mine!”
“Yes, they’re all yours. Go and take them back. Why should she enjoy the best while you live like a stray? It’s unfair. Take back everything that’s rightfully yours! Go!”
The next moment, York rushed towards Estelle like a lunatic. Seeing this, Gretchen took out her mobile phone and turned on the video recording mode, waiting excitedly to record the scene where Estelle was stripped naked. Suddenly, someone slapped the phone off her hand with a snap.
Feeling a sudden surge of anger, Gretchen was about to shout but immediately froze when she saw the man in front of her. Shrinking her neck in fear, she said in a trembling voice, “Victor…”
With a darkened face, the man in front of her stared at her silently.
Frightened by the coldness in his eyes, Gretchen explained in fluster, “It was not me who messed up everything today. We agreed to act together in front of the media to embarrass Estelle, but you suddenly turned against me and said you didn’t know me. I couldn’t help it…”
With his mouth in a thin line, the man still stared at her and said nothing. And the expression in his eyes was so scary, as if he wanted to kill her.
Seeing his expression, Gretchen thought she had said something inappropriate, and her face turned pale. Then she quickly said, “I’m not blaming you. I… I’ll come here again in a few days and let Estelle transfer the shares to you! Is that okay?”
“What do you think?” the man asked in reply.
Hearing this, Gretchen was even more flustered. “How about I come here tomorrow? No, no, no. I’ll help you get what you want right now! Please don’t send me back to prison. Please…”
Nearby, a familiar figure trotted over and reported in a low voice, “We’ve caught York. What are you going to do with him?”
“Send him to the psychiatric hospital,” Cristofer ordered sternly.
“Yes, sir.”
“Where is Star?”
“She took a taxi and left. I’ve arranged for someone to keep her safe. Don’t worry about it,” Vincent answered.
“She didn’t see what you did, right?”
“No, she didn’t.”
“Good. It’s best if she stays unaware of these unethical actions. She’s focused on the project, so let’s not allow anything to divert her attention.”
“Understood.”
‘Star? He called Estelle Star…’ Gretchen suddenly realized that the man in front of her was not Victor, and she said in terror, “You are not Victor. You are…..”