A Graduation Gift

Cassandra could not believe what she heard. She was stunned by what Edith told her. For a moment, she was unable to move
as she looked at her mother with wide eyes.
"An official who is also involved in the case wants your father to take the full responsibility for it. If your father declines, he will get
a heavy sentence. This deeply distresses your father. This was why he wanted to kill himself..." Edith sobbed.
Edith lived a very comfortable and luxurious life earlier. But after everything had been happening in her family, she seemed to
have aged considerably.
"Your father just woke up so the guard allowed me to talk to him. The first thing he told me was to be careful," she continued.
Cassandra frowned as she heard her mother's words.
She wondered, 'That official and father are under investigation together. It is certain that the official had something to do with the
issue. How could he be able to maneuver himself out of the situation?'
She felt strangely uneasy. Something had always felt wrong about the situation, but she could not point her finger to what it was.
"Mom, dad is safe now. I am happy to know that dad is all right. Let's talk about the rest later. I will try to find someone who can
help us deal with the case. Don't worry about the fine. I have already had that taken care of. Moreover, don't tell anyone what
dad has told you," Cassandra emphasized.
Edith nodded and wiped her tears away.
"Cassandra, what about my tuition fee?" Cloris asked hurriedly.
As soon as Cloris heard that Cassandra was able to raise enough money for the fine, she immediately reminded her sister about
her promise to help her with her studies abroad.
Glancing at Cloris, Cassandra's heart was harder than before.
Cloris was clearly accustomed to spending money like water. If she ran out of money, she would clearly lose herself.
Cloris used to be very lively, gentle and considerate. But when she realized that her father could no longer give her what she
wanted, she became unkind and mean.
Maybe this was really what Cloris was like. Vernon's predicament finally exposed her for who she really was.

"For the time being, I can't give you the money. I need to pay off father's fine first, and we will talk about your tuition later,"
Cassandra replied coldly.
She stood firmly against her younger sister's whims.
'Cloris is spoiled terribly by our parents. She takes everyone's efforts for granted. She feels as if I should always give in to her
whims. I will no longer do this, ' she thought.
Upon hearing this, Cloris stamped her feet in anger, turned, and ran away.
Cloris sullenly headed downstairs, her mind filling with grievances. Suddenly, she bumped into a man.
"Cloris? What are you doing here?"
That voice was oddly familiar. When she lifted her head, she found that it was Arthur.
"I... I came to see my sick friend," Cloris lied.
She didn't want to tell him that her father tried to commit suicide in the detention center because of commercial bribery. She
wondered, 'Even if my father were saved, I still don't want others to know about this. How would I show my face if people found
out about this?'
"How is your friend? Is there anything I can do to help? I know the Director of this hospital," Arthur asked gently.
He was as mannered and proper as before. His gentle smile would make anyone feel slightly comfortable.
Looking at Arthur, Cloris felt so happy that her heart thumped unsteadily.
"She is all right. There is nothing seriously wrong with her. She is getting better. How about you, Arthur? What are you doing in
the hospital?" Cloris uttered.
Cloris tried to divert his attention away from this matter to keep him from digging for more details.
"Oh, my father is staying in hospital here. I came to see him," Arthur answered.
There was a knowing glint appearing in his eyes.

'I knew that Vernon was arrested. Moreover, his suicide attempt is already known to almost everyone in the industry. It wasn't a
secret, ' Arthur thought to himself.
'Cloris, though, is a little girl trying to fool me without practical wisdom. She is clearly less smart than her older sister, Cassandra.
She is stupid but not useless. I will use her to get something I want.'
"I heard that the school provides opportunities for students to study abroad. Have you applied for that program yet?" Arthur
asked deliberately.
Cloris, being proud and arrogant, was one that would surely grab this kind of opportunity because of its prestige.
"I applied for it but my application has not been approved yet," Cloris replied.
His concern reminded her own disappointment about the expenses involved.
'Even if the school sponsors my tuition fee, the living expenses will still be too much for me to bear on my own. I can hardly
imagine what it would be like to live a plain life.
It's not something I'm used to. I was raised in luxury. Recently, though, I have had to become more mindful of my expenses. I
have not been able to shop. This is making me very unhappy, ' she thought.
"I will get someone to follow it up for you. I know that you are excellent in your study, so I'm sure they'll consider your application.
If you go abroad, I will help arrange everything for you. I also chose to study abroad when I was your age. After returning home, I
took over the Down Star Group," Arthur shared.
He intentionally credited his overseas study for his position in Down Star Group because he knew that it would only ignite Cloris'
desire to grab the opportunity. He was correct.
"Thank you, Arthur," Cloris replied happily.
She looked up at him and beamed a sweet smile. Anyone who did not know her would easily be fooled by her innocent facade.
After bidding Arthur goodbye, Cloris went to the coffee shop opposite of the hospital to wait for her mother. She did not want to
go back to her father's ward so she decided to wait outside the hospital premises.
After visiting his father, Arthur came out of the hospital and unexpectedly saw Cassandra and Rufus walking out of the inpatient
department together.

Arthur guessed that Cassandra must have come to see her father, as well. Though, he wondered what Rufus was doing there.
He clenched his fist. The thought of losing his position as Director of the Union of Real Estate to the Tang Group bothered him.
He was determined not to let it happen.
Since the last dance party, Arthur sent someone to contact a columnist of the local newspaper to publish a cryptic gossip
involving Rufus and Cassandra.
Because it was too obscure and not a lot of people seemed to care about Rufus and Cassandra's allegedly intimate relationship,
the gossip did not fly.
This report simply did not exert any bad influences on the Tang Group, which made him very angry.
Now, Vernon was being investigated for commercial bribery, thus giving rise to much discussion within the industry. But still, very
few people knew that Cassandra was his eldest daughter.
Everytime Vernon had his daughter with him, he always brought Cloris. It was possible that most people thought that he only had
one daughter.
Cassandra was barely noticed by anyone, but Arthur believed in the saying 'all roses bloom, sooner or later'. Cassandra was like
the rose. One day, he would let everyone know the secret that the Tang Group had been hiding—Cassandra.
Neon lights started to illuminate the city as the night fell. In a dim corner of a Western restaurant, a man in a cap sat looking
down at the glass of water in front of him.
Shortly after, a woman sat directly across him wearing sunglasses and a hat, thus making it difficult to distinguish her face.
"Why did you come back now? What are you doing here?" the woman asked in an extremely agitated tone.
There was clearly anger in it.
"Don't you know that I am at a very critical moment? What a mess! You shouldn't have come back now," the woman scolded.
The man looked up, wearing an indifferent smile on his young-looking face.
"What are you nervous about, sister? No one knows I'm back. Moreover, it has been such a long time since that thing happened.
So there is nothing to be afraid of," the man replied.

Yes, the man was Joel. He framed Cassandra but he failed in the end. The woman sitting across him was Ivy.
"We must be careful in everything so that we can get what we want. I worked hard to be pregnant and now I am about to have a
baby. I must kick Cassandra out of the Tang family before giving birth. We will not be able to do that if word gets out that you're
my brother," Ivy warned.
A trace of distress appeared gradually on her face. She wondered, 'I once asked my younger brother, Joel, to drug Cassandra
with philter so he could have sex with her. This would have given me evidence that Cassandra was having an affair outside her
marriage. Although this plan was foiled by Rufus, Lionel would drive me out of his house if he knew what I have done, ' she
thought.
"Ah! Ivy, you worry too much. I actually came back to help you," Joel answered.
Then, Joel raised his hand to call the waiter so he could order something.
"You have to be kidding me. I'd be lucky to not be in trouble because of you," Ivy answered sarcastically.
She did not trust her impulsive younger brother because of his failure to execute her plan previously.
"Why did you say that? I asked my friend at home to help you before I came back," Joel said.
With a hint of excitement in his face, Joel got close to her ear and whispered, "I asked my friend to secretly meet with
Cassandra's father, Vernon. He told him that if he didn't take full responsibility for the case, his family would get into trouble.
Haha!"
Joel laughed heartily as he finished speaking. He was waiting for Ivy to compliment him. Instead, Ivy stood stunned before she
managed to respond.
"What? How dare you do such a thing without my knowledge! You're so stupid! You do know that there is no chance for those
two people to be acquitted of the crime. What you did was careless and wasteful!"
Ivy was so pissed. 'Joel, you idiot. I know you are well-intended, but what you did made trouble for me, ' she thought.
"Have you thought about the consequences of your actions? If Vernon were to tell the truth, you would get into trouble," Ivy
added.
She raised her eyebrows as she scolded her disappointed younger brother.

"But he won't tell the truth. In fact, he is so terrified that he tried to kill himself. This is what makes me so happy," Joel explained
as he continued to laugh once again.
His laugh was so flagrant that several diners around them began to look over.
Seeing others' gaze, Ivy started to feel more weary. She pushed her sunglasses higher, lowered her head and dropped her
voice.
"In short, you have to be very careful recently. I have remitted a sum of money into your account, which is enough for your
expenses for half a year. So you don't have to come to me for the next six months," Ivy said in barely a whisper.
Then, she got up and hurried away. Little did she know, a set of eyes were watching them from afar.