A Graduation Gift

The faint smile on Rufus's handsome face, gave him a more relaxed look.
Michelle didn't leave with the two, and was picked up by a deep green Land Rover.
Cassandra bit her lower lip as she got in the passenger seat, fumbling for the safety belt.
For some inexplicable reasons, she felt so nervous that she couldn't plug the belt in. Sweat was formed on the tip of her nose.
Rufus found it amusing, and the smile on his face widened to a glee. He turned towards Cassandra and lowered his head to help
her with the belt. They were so close that Rufus's warmth made the little woman blush.
When he was upright again, he found the mild redness on Cassandra's face so alluring. Under the dim light of the car, her skin
looked pure white. Her glow attracted him even more.
"Luckily Michelle was there. Or else I wouldn't even know how to deal with them," Cassandra started, breaking the romantic
atmosphere.
As she remembered playing mahjong with the ladies in the high class, Cassandra pitied herself for she realized that she lacked
skills in socializing.
"Michelle is older than you. Surely she is more experienced. She has lots of connections. If you make friend with her, you can
learn from her in the future," Rufus stated.
He had arranged the session, especially for Cassandra. She could remind the ladies of the Tang Group and potentially build up
the profile of the company. This was also a good chance to build her own connections and widen her network, which would most
likely be useful for her career development.
There was no doubt in her technical skills. The four years of studying in Rome had definitely equipped her with the necessary
knowledge to do her job well. The only problem that she had was that she didn't know many people in G City. Cassandra was not
a people person, which was parallel in significance with skills when it came to business.
Now he purposely created the chance for her to establish more connections and associations so that her road to the higher level
would be easier. After all, one more friend meant one more opportunity.
Cassandra's repeated rejections made him more determined to protect her, in a way that she would accept—the independent
woman wouldn't want to rely on him.

Rufus wanted to protect her perseverance, her helplessness, and everything about her.
Abruptly, Cassandra's phone rang. It was from Edith. Curious at the rare call, she asked, "Mom, what happened?"
The person from the other end of the line couldn't stop herself from weeping. In a voice mixed with crying and shouting, she told
Cassandra, "Cassandra! You dad has been whistle-blown! They say he bribed officials! He was taken away by the people from
the prosecution for investigation!"
The words cast a gloomy shadow over Cassandra. She could see nothing except for darkness. With her entire body trembling,
she muttered, "Mom... You... Just wait for me. I... I'm coming back now."
Barely able to control the shaking of her hands, she failed to grip the phone, which dropped onto the car floor with a loud thud.
"What happened?"
Rufus asked with so much worry and concern, as he sensed that something was wrong with Cassandra.
"My mom... My mom said that my dad had been arrested for bribery," Cassandra stuttered in a weak voice.
Her face turned pale and her body was quivering. A surge of hopelessness crept up from the bottom of her heart and diffused
through her entire body.
"Don't panic! Don't be scared!" Rufus affirmed.
Carefully extending his arm to her waist, he scooped the trembling woman and gave her a firm and reassuring hug.
With his hands gently caressing her back up and down, he tried to soothe her.
However, Cassandra even lost the ability to speak now. All she was left with was coldness lingering in her heart.
"Whatever happens, I will be with you. Don't be afraid," the man slowly whispered in her ear to assure her.
As an effort to show his determination, the cuddle became even tighter.
"I...I... I want to go home," the absent-minded woman stammered.
Those few words were literally squeezed from her lungs and the bottom of her throat. When she finished the sentence, her brain
felt like it was being hammered.

"Alright, I'll go with you!" Rufus offered without hesitation.
Having fastened the seat belt for her, Rufus started the engine and speeded towards the Qin family house as fast as he could.
The car drove steadily towards the north. During the few hours of the journey, Cassandra sat up still with her mouth pursed.
In her mind, she envisioned all versions of Vernon—when he was strict and when he was nonchalant.
As a father, he had given all his love to his younger daughter and ignored the elder one.
Cassandra had complained silently in her heart and even had cried alone. However, all these huge sorrowful memories had
shrunken into a tiny speck at this moment when her father was in a huge crisis. They didn't matter anymore.
As far as she could recall, at the age of five, she was sent to a small town by her parents, to live with an old granny. Since that
time, having a dad and a mom had become her almost unattainable wish.
'Why is it that they don't want me? Why did they leave me alone in this small town without coming to see me for so long?'
These were the questions hovering in her mind every day. Cassandra had always wanted to dig out the answer. Yet every time
she saw the unsmiling face of her father, she would bury the burning questions deep inside her heart.
She would sob secretly on her bed, feeling abandoned by the entire world.
The granny who lived with her had no idea of how many times the little girl on the small bed right beside her had wetted her
pillow in sorrow.
Growing up, she became different from her peers. She was mature; she was an introvert; and she refused to talk.
She had drawn all her wishes on paper, which she hid carefully.
In the past, she had thought, that perhaps his father didn't love her. That was why he was so indifferent to her. Only once in a
while, her parents would come to visit her, and take her to the stores in town to buy her favorite snacks for her.
The hands of Vernon were huge as compared to those of Cassandra. Her little hand was only able to grab on his little finger.
Hand in hand, they walked on the narrow paths of the small town. Even though her father was not like other fathers who were
really close to their kids, she still enjoyed his love at that moment.

The old memories waved, roared, and smashed her heart over and over again.
It had always been Vernon who supported the entire Qin family. If he would be gone, how could the company of the Qin family
survive?
Edith had always depended on Vernon for her life. If Vernon would be put into jail, she would be shattered.
Thousands of possible outcomes flashed across her mind as to what would happen to her father. Cassandra now felt that her
soul had separated from her body and drifted away. She felt so light, so unsettled.
Rufus's muscles grew tense as he focused on driving.
Along the way, he stopped at a petrol station to refuel his car. While waiting, he made a call.
"Anyway, I want to know what really happened. I want you to get all the needed information no matter what it takes!" he ordered.
After he hung up the call, his face turned grim. 'The only asset Vernon has is an almost-broke company. Bribery? With what he
possesses, who could he bribe?'
After a few hours of driving, the car finally reached the Qin family house.
From outside, the Qin family appeared perfectly normal with the huge house lighted up all over. However, when they pushed the
front door open, the luxurious house was now a bit messy.
Cassandra walked forward. With every step she took, her heart sank deeper in sorrow.
She could hear that someone was sobbing. The sound was so broken, but the owner of the sound continued anyway.
Probably, it was her mother, who had totally lost her mind by now.
Entering the lobby, what they saw was also a mess.
The clothes hangers were scattered on the floor, and the shoes were all over the place. It was evident that the way they took
Vernon away was not so friendly. He must have fought hard against them.
Cloris was on the couch, absent-minded, and beside her was their mother, Edith, who couldn't stop crying.

When they noticed that somebody arrived, they raised their heads. The moment Edith realized that it was the person she was
yearning to see, a spark of fire lit up in her lifeless eyes.
"Cassandra! Cassandra! Quick! Tell your father-in-law! Ask him to save your dad! I... I called him earlier but he didn't even say
anything! What will I do!" the old woman shouted in desperation.
Edith dashed towards her last hope, and pulled Cassandra's arms, not letting her savior go. Before she could say anything else,
she started to sob again.
Cassandra supported the woman who had lost her strength due to excessive crying, and cheered herself up in heart forcefully
before she started to console the desperate woman.
"It's going to be alright. It's just an investigation. If he is innocent, everything is going to be fine. He will come back after the
investigation!"
These were the only words that she could find to pacify the sorrowful woman.
However, it didn't help. Instead, it intensified her despair.
"You father was too ambitious. He was so head-on to bid for that project. Now the project has gone wrong. Many people
associated with this case are arrested. Even if he didn't bribe anybody, he can't excuse himself from it!" her mother explained in
tears.
Cloris also stood up. Her eyes were already sore.
"Cassandra, ask Uncle Horace to get dad out. We talked to him about it over the phone, and he seemed reluctant to help. But
now, the only solution is the Tang family. Ask a favor from him, please!" the young girl pleaded.
There were still traces of tears on her face, which were left from the time Vernon was taken away. Cloris had witnessed the entire
event.
"I understand. I will ask someone to find out how dad is now. Don't worry. Tidy up our house. Don't panic. We should calm down
first and think carefully of what we are going to do," Cassandra assured the other two women.
In front of her sister and her mother, Cassandra was as calm and composed as she could make herself be. Now in this family,
she was the most powerful woman who could block all the pressure from outside. The strong image portrayed by Cassandra
finally brought temporary peace and assurance to the two women in despair.

After they have recovered a little bit, Cassandra led them to clear the mess inside the house. And when they finally finished, it
was already one o'clock in the morning.
"Have some rest now. I will try to pay a visit to dad. Hopefully, they will allow me in. I think I need to get things clear with him
personally!" Cassandra stated.