Chapter 618 Time is Money

A huge smile dangled on Lily's lips as she stared at the streets of Hong Kong. Even now, the conversation that she had with Madam He kept echoing in her mind, making her giggle from time to time. She laughed at her own thoughts as she ignored the stare at Yang Mi was giving her since they left the mansion.

Lily felt that her passion lies in making people fight each other. Wait… that statement made her sound evil. At the thought of this, another laughter escaped her lips.

"I remember Jingren will have a photoshoot with the other nominated individuals for the Awards?" Lily asked as she turned towards Yang Mi. "Are we having lunch outside of his office?"

"Yes, President… it is at a restaurant downtown. Go Jichen has already booked a private room for everyone."

"And the shoot?" Lily asked.

"It will be in the same building, so there is no need to travel."

"Alright." Lily smiled. She was actually very excited for this time's awards night. Since The Facci Group did not qualify for these awards, she really wanted Zhou Jingren to win it. 

Of course, the probability of him getting it was very high, as Zhou Capital was already one of the biggest banks in Asia.

While Lily was smiling like she just won the lottery, Madam Liu and Liu Chin had scowls on their beautiful faces. They glared at Madam He as the latter stared at the documents that she had given them.

"I never expected that you would stoop this low, Madam He. Why would you try and ruin someone else's reputation?" Madam Liu questioned. "The fact that you, a married woman, were sleeping with my son is already bad enough. Why would you even try to drag someone who is innocent into this instead of repenting for your sins?"

"Madam He… I understand that you are concerned about our age gap and my current status. But… But Gannon promised that he will marry me once I divorce my husband."

"Gannon told us that he broke up with you last night."

"That was because you threatened him." She reasoned. "I am sure that once I divorce my husband…"

"Your father married you off to Mr. He to seal a business deal." Madam Liu's sharp words made Madam He flinch. The reality seeped through her, reminding her of her current circumstances. "There is no way that your father would allow you to divorce your husband and marry my son."

"But— My mother will surely understand my feelings. I'm sure she will…"

"Madam He… we already know that you and my son will never happen." This time, Madam Liu was calm and collected. "There is no way that I will allow my son to marry a used rag like you."

"Madam Liu!" Madam He widened her eyes. She stared at Madam Liu and then, into her daughter's stern face as the last light of hope inside of her slowly disappeared.

"I know it is harsh but… you brought this upon yourself. This is fate. There is nothing you can do to change it."

Madam He felt tears burn her eyes as her lower lips trembled. She used to consider these two women as her dear friends. At one point she even thought that Liu Chin would support her relationship with her brother. However, the disgust in their gazes was too apparent, they were sending small needles into her heart.

Slowly, Madam He rose from her seat. Since they won't believe her then… there was no other way. She would prove to everyone that Adalind is a scandalous woman. Then these two would regret everything that they said to her. "I hope you won't regret this." She uttered before walking out of the Liu Mansion.

The realization that her relationship with the Liu's started deteriorating because of Adalind was making her infuriated. Not long after she left, she immediately dialed a number on her phone. She had to make sure that Adalind wouldn't have the chance to seduce her man.

Of course, Lily was unaware of this. All she wanted to do was to use a borrowed knife to deal with Adalind. After all, she was a weak, pregnant woman. Lily's best course of action was to let other people fight in her stead.

Lily was still smiling as she looked at Zhou Jingren being photographed with various clothing. Now that she thought about it…. Her husband was truly good looking, ah. She was sure that even most models from the west were nothing compared to her man.

"You seem really happy."

Lily's thoughts were interrupted when she heard the voice next to her. To her surprise, it was none other Adalind. "Why are you here?" she asked.

"What do you mean?" Adalind smirked before she undid her ponytail and shook her hair. An action that reminded Lily of those annoying TV commercials about shampoos. "I am a model… a supermodel." Adalind stressed on the word supermodel. She wanted Lily to remember that she, Adalind Brooke was still revered, as one of the top models in the US.

Lily instantly lifted an eyebrow. She never expected that Adalind would really have the guts to do something like this to get close to her husband. However, instead of worrying, she leaned back on her chair.

This should not be Lily's problem anymore. She eyed Zhou Jingren and two other businessmen who were talking to the director of the shoot. As expected, his face was already dark while the other two men were staring at Adalind with big smiles on their faces.

"So… you will be included in this shoot?" Lily asked.

"No. But… the director is a good friend of mine and he asked me to help him direct the shoot. After all… I am very experienced In this type of thing."

Lily snorted. She folded her arms across her chest and smiled towards Zhou Jingren. "Alright… Good luck with that."

Adalind rolled her eyes at Lily's arrogance. How could Lily be this confident? Clearly, Adalind was younger and more beautiful than her. She was also taller and was confident that she would look good while standing next to Zhou Jingren.

After a few seconds, the director called Adalind and introduced her to the group of men. When they heard that she was a supermodel, almost everyone instantly agreed to have her direct their shoot.

"So… you were hired by the people behind this award to direct the shoot and you asked a friend to help you out?" Zhou Jingren's voice was cold, intimidating enough to make the director flinched.. He looked at the director a few feet away from him. "You accepted the job despite knowing that you are not competent enough to do it?"

A thick silence instantly blanketed the whole studio as they stared at Zhou Jingren's stern face. "This is a photoshoot that was supposed to last an one hour. Nothing more. Do you think I have the time to pose with your model?" he continued. His sharp words were enough to make everyone in the shoot uncomfortable.

These men were all businessmen. To them… time was money. Wasting their time in the photoshoot only meant one thing, wasting their money.

"Mr. Zhou this is only to make sure that you will have a very good— "

"Do you think this is one of the requirements for winning the award?" Zhou Jingren interrupted. His intimidating aura swept through the entire room as he turned towards Adalind. "This is a waste of my time."

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