“It’s okay. I’m here.”Marcus asked Cordelia to go inside and close the door.The girl followed obediently, but the man did not go in after her. She heard a few dull thuds outside the house before the men’s agonized moans and cries were heard.Cordelia looked out the window. Marcus had beaten those thugs down. They were bruised and swollen as they begged for mercy on their knees.The ground in front of the house was all bloody now.In spite of this, Marcus did not seem satisfied. He picked up the stick that Cordelia had used and hurled it down on one of the men’s legs.“Try to harm my wife again and it won’t just be your leg that gets broken next time!” Marcus’ voice was a deep growl, and each word was oozing with threat.The thugs ran off in terror, and Cordelia hid inside, trying to calm her thumping heart down even though her panting still gave it away.Marcus entered at that moment. When she saw the dried blood on him, her lips moved but she said nothing.“Were you frighte
Both Cordelia and Marcus were startled.Marcus gave Cordelia a look, asking her to wait inside the room while he went to open the door.Outside, Seth looked anxious.“Marcus, I heard that you beat someone up…” Before Seth could finish his sentence, he saw the bloodstains on Marcus and could not help gasping. “Oh my god, it’s true!”“It was just a few thugs,” Marcus replied indifferently. “I didn’t hit them too hard. They won’t die.”“Didn’t hit them too hard?” Seth pulled him aside and whispered harshly, “You crushed their organs! They have to be sent to the hospital now!”Marcus raised a brow but kept a straight face. They had been asking for it. How dare they tease Cordelia? It would not have been too much even if they had been beaten to death.“Right, there’s one more man whose leg you broke, right?” Seth was panicking. “Do you know that the guy’s father is—”“What does his father have to do with me?”“Bro, they’ll come to get revenge for sure!”Marcus took off his bloodst
The morning meeting was incredibly torturous.Cordelia felt Jesse’s suggestive gaze lingering on her, as well as Karine’s hostile gaze stabbing her like a knife.When the meeting ended, before Jesse could talk to her, she smiled politely and left the meeting room by making up an excuse.Before she went far, she heard Karine’s enraged voice coming from inside.“What’s gotten into you? Can’t see anything else once you meet that b*tch? Is that it? You’re incorrigible!”Cordelia felt her heart thump.She told Linda about it at noon, surprising the latter. Linda had not expected such a coincidence either. The company was very big, yet Cordelia had bumped into the two of them.“Be careful now that you ran into them,” Linda said in a lower volume. “Cordelia, I’m not in sales, so it’s hard for me to put in a good word for you. And Karine’s uncle is a shareholder. She’s used to her ways… Basically, life won’t be too easy for you in the future. You’ve got to watch out!”“Mm, don’t worry.
“The sales department is one of the most important departments in the company.” Karine purposely began to mock her during the meeting. “If certain people genuinely are untalented at sales, it’d be best not to hog the seat and leave the opportunity to more capable people!“Our company isn’t a retirement home. All of you know better. People who haven’t closed a single deal and only make the basic salary should really consider a way out soon!”Cordelia kept her head ducked. The frown between her brows remained there the entire afternoon.When she went home after a day’s worth of exhaustion, she was greeted like a boss by Marcus, who was on his phone on the couch, once she entered. The kitchen was empty, and there was not even a glass of drinkable water.The grievances Cordelia had held in for some time finally broke through the dam.“You… didn’t make dinner?”Marcus shifted his gaze away from the phone. The small woman in front of him had a slightly red face as she panted, her chest
Before Cordelia could reject the suggestion, she was pulled out of the house by Marcus. She was silent the whole journey, as she quickly thought about what they could afford to eat on her minuscule salary.She sneaked a peek at Marcus. The man had been broke and impoverished, so he probably had no idea about Jangasas’ hotels and restaurants.Given his budget standard, she might be able to satisfy him with some street food. Some stalls provided limitless staples too, so he would definitely be full.Cordelia smiled with her head lowered.She had been frugal since they had gotten married, picking cheap groceries whenever she shopped. Despite that, she had once heard an old servant of the Jenners say that young married couples feared nothing but the disappearance of passion. It would be helpful to romance each other occasionally.In that case… she thought they could be carefree for once today, so she would buy him a meal outside.When Cordelia looked up again, though, she realized th
Cordelia was visibly fazed, and her heart drummed. Had he discovered something? Or had he heard others saying the Jenners had completed the marriage pact by using an illegitimate daughter? Had they said that he had married an impersonator and not the treasured heiress of the family?Men had pride too and hoped to marry a rich and beautiful girl—not a pauper like her.Cordelia hung her head as her hands clenched the hem of her clothes anxiously. She kept telling herself that she must not admit it. Marcus had been in jail for fighting… The consequences would be unimaginable if he were to kick up a fuss about it!“Hah, what would I have to say?” She looked at him with sparkling eyes and racked her mind for ways to change the topic. “Oh, right, I haven’t made any sales this month, so I’ve got to work harder next month! I… I might not be able to come back and cook as often. You’ll be fine taking care of yourself?”“Mm, I’m not a child. Of course, I’ll be alright.”Marcus smiled and gav
Josiah was actually befuddled.The Bayers were quite influential in Jangasas, but not to the extent that they could dig through small companies. Besides, it would attract attention if he did so by using his status. If it turned out that he had pressured William Jenner and caused a certain someone to misunderstand him again…Josiah coughed and chuckled awkwardly. “Z, there’s no problem, but let me make it clear now that if someone makes things up in the meantime and claims I’m having some kind of affair with your darling dearest and whatnot, you can’t buy it—Ow!”Fredric hit his head before he could finish.…Cordelia worked harder during her second month at work. She now had a basic understanding of some workforce survival rules and knew how to avoid Karine picking on her. She also knew how to protect herself from both Jesse’s direct and implicit harassment by avoiding interacting with him in the office.Unfortunately, this drained her energy so much that she was exhausted every
Linda could not bear to watch Karine pick on Cordelia in the office, so she took her out for some sales, introducing all her clients to her. She also taught her a lot of negotiation techniques.“You’ve got to remember. Business isn’t a one-time deal. You might have to meet and negotiate a deal eight or ten times. It’s all normal.”Cordelia nodded.“You have to keep your engagement with the clients going all the time. They’ll only close the deal once they’re familiar with you!”“Mm, I understand.”“Most importantly...” Linda said with a smile. “You’ve got to be shameless when it comes to sales! Set your pride aside. Then, you’ll be able to feed yourself. Got it?”Cordelia’s pretty eyes crinkled up like crescent moons. The monitor in front of them displayed their order number, so she hurried over to collect their meal from the counter.Lunch was simple fast food. Linda realized that Cordelia’s order was the cheapest option, which only included one entree, and could not help asking