"If the police come, I’ll just hand this footage over to them."

"Whether it's jail time or loss of face, you better think carefully, Madam!"

His mother’s breath hitched, her body trembling with rage. Weak as she was, the surge of fury caused her to faint on the spot.

Under the eyes of the crowd, Lucas was pressed and shoved into the foul-smelling sewer by the bodyguards.

He subconsciously held his breath from the stench.

But in the next second, a heavy kick landed on his back.

He tumbled pathetically into the sewage, his hair and skin stained with dirty water, emitting a wretched odor.

Some of the onlookers scoffed aloud.

Julian wrapped his arm around Joanna’s shoulder, pretending to persuade her:

"Joanna, Lucas has lived in luxury since he was a child. Something so humiliating... it’s too hard on him..."

She didn't care, speaking indifferently:

"He’s just a spoiled brat; he needs to have his character tempered properly."

"As he is now, he isn't qualified to be a capable heir. How could he carry the responsibilities of both the Jiang and Landon families?"

Their conversation reached Lucas’s ears clearly.

He turned a deaf ear to it, simply burying his head in the sludge to search for the discarded accessories.

He didn't know how long he searched—long enough for the sky to darken, long enough for his hands to wrinkle from the sewage.

Finally, among a pile of garbage, he found the pieces.

Lucas gripped the items, preparing to climb out of the sewer.

The bodyguards, following Joanna’s strict orders, stood guard at the exit.

He hadn't expected Julian to be there, blocking his way.

"Lucas, Joanna said you aren't allowed up until you find my work."

Lucas let out a mocking sneer:

"Mr. Julian, even in a pile of garbage, your trash looks out of place."

As he spoke, he opened his palm to show them.

But in the next second, a flash of malice crossed Julian’s eyes, and he lashed out with his foot!

All the accessories scattered back into the sewer.

Lucas lost control, falling backward, landing in the filth, and instantly losing consciousness.

When he regained awareness, it was already late at night.

The streets were eerily silent.

With hands covered in blood and grime, his fingernails broken, he finally crawled out of the sewer.

When he returned home, the Landon villa was unexpectedly ablaze with lights.

Seeing him in such a wretched state, Martha’s eyes flashed with surprise, followed by profound heartache.

She hurried to help him bathe and change his clothes.

Only then did Lucas notice something wrong with the house.

Why was Martha the only one left in the entire home?

Under his questioning, Martha finally revealed the truth.

"Young Master! The Landon family is finished!"

"Julian’s work was suspected of plagiarism, and international brands found out. All the luxury brands he copied have united to file a lawsuit against the Landon Group!"

"Because of the negative public opinion, the Landon Group’s cash flow has snapped, and the stock price has collapsed."

"What’s even worse, they have demanded astronomical compensation! Even if we sold the entire Landon Group, it wouldn't be enough to pay it off!"

Martha sobbed, frantic.

"The only thing that can save us now is the Jiang Group. Madam... she went to beg Miss Joanna!"

Lucas’s body jolted, and he rushed out without a second thought.

When he arrived at Joanna’s residence, he saw his mother kneeling outside the gate.

Julian stood to the side, looking triumphant.

"Madam, I told you, you have to kowtow ninety-nine times and say 'I'm sorry' ninety-nine times before I can persuade Joanna to see you."

"Mom!"

Lucas sprinted forward to support her, tears welling in his eyes, "There must be another way, other than the Jiang family!"

His mother patted his hand, smiling bitterly:

"Lucas, the Landon Group is everything to your mother; I cannot be the one to bury it!"

Saying this, she resolutely kowtowed and shouted, "I'm sorry."

Lucas felt a burning heat in his eyes.

The next moment, Julian suddenly laughed out loud.

"I changed my mind."

"The new condition to see Joanna is you—"

He pointed at Lucas.

"Slap yourself nine hundred and ninety-nine times, and for every slap, you must shout, 'I am sorry, Mr. Julian, it was I who offended you!'"

His mother’s face changed dramatically.

"You! You are going too far!"

Julian looked down at them from above:

"So what? If you don't want to, you don't have to, but don't even think about seeing Joanna!"

"You—"

His mother’s words were interrupted by Lucas.

"Mom, I'll do it."

Lucas put immense force into every single slap.

Not long after, his cheeks were swollen high, a sight that filled his mother with heartbreaking pity.

Finally, he finished as Julian had demanded.

"Mr. Julian, can we see Miss Joanna now?"

"Hahahaha!"

Julian laughed until he was out of breath.

"Stupid! Truly pathetic!"

"Joanna isn't even here! She knew I wanted to eat matcha raw chocolate from Hokkaido and specifically flew there to buy it for me! Hahahaha—"

His mother realized then that they had both been toyed with by Julian!

She tried to stand up in a fury, but having knelt for too long, a large amount of clotted blood had accumulated in her chest.

The moment she stood up, she coughed up a mouthful of blood and fainted!

Lucas couldn't care about anything else; he scooped her up and rushed to the hospital.

But they were rejected by three hospitals in a row!

It turned out that all hospitals under the Jiang Group had received instructions from Julian not to admit any member of the Landon family!

Just as Lucas was at his most desperate and helpless on the side of the road, a black sedan pulled up in front of him.

A woman in a vibrant red dress stepped out and gently held him:

"Lucas—"

He stared at the woman’s features, as if grabbing the last straw of hope:

"Clara, save my mother, save the Landon Group..."

"Leave it to me."

7

When Joanna returned with the Hokkaido matcha raw chocolate, it was the afternoon of the next day.

Julian had been waiting for her at the airport for a long time.

As she stepped off her private plane, she spotted the person waiting anxiously and curled her lips into a faint smile.

"Julian, why are you here?"

Julian’s eyes brightened when he saw her, and he strode over to wrap his arms around her shoulders:

"Joanna, I wanted to see you as soon as possible."

As he spoke, he took the matcha chocolate she had bought specifically for him, the corners of his mouth curving.

"Thank you, Joanna."

But in the next second, his smile froze.

Inside the gift bag, besides the matcha chocolate prepared for him, there was a box of dark chocolate.

Joanna noticed his reaction and naturally pulled out the box of dark chocolate.

"What’s wrong? Don't you like it?"

No explanation, no panic, just a calm counter-question.

Julian gave a forced smile:

"Joanna, that box of dark chocolate—"

She turned and shoved the dark chocolate into the hands of her assistant standing nearby, giving a casual instruction:

"Send this to Lucas. He loves this."

She then lowered her eyes to look at him, her gaze filled with a touch of bewilderment.

"What’s the matter?"

Julian kept his eyes glued to that box of dark chocolate, his heart feeling as though it were being gnawed by ants:

"You prepared some for Lucas too?"

Joanna reached around his waist, smiling indulgently:

"Are you jealous?"

Before he could speak, she continued:

"Lucas is stubborn, but he’s easy to coax."

"Besides, our families are still engaged; he will be my husband in the future. If he keeps targeting you, I’ll be the one with a headache."

Julian stiffened; he opened his mouth but said nothing.

Because he was preoccupied, he remained exceptionally quiet once inside the car.

Joanna didn't pay it any mind; as soon as she got in, she ordered her assistant to report on all the work that had piled up over the past two days.

In the quiet cabin, there was only the sound of the assistant’s low reporting.

Julian, who had been distracted, suddenly grew alert when he heard the assistant mention the Landon Group.

Joanna, who had had her eyes closed while listening, opened them suddenly, her voice dropping:

"What did you say? The Landon Group is bankrupt?"

His breath caught.

The assistant nodded.

"Miss, the Landon Group has been targeted by international luxury giants."

Joanna frowned, asking what was going on.

The assistant shot a covert glance at Julian before explaining:

"It’s said that the brand entering the Landon Group’s malls committed infringement, and those giants have united to file a lawsuit."

"The Landon Group’s reputation has plummeted, their cash flow has snapped, and their stock has hit the limit down three times."

"The market is dumping Landon Group stocks in massive quantities."