I've Been There Before (Grace and Caden)

"Sorry."

The man moved gracefully and put down his tea cup.

But... is that it? The woman standing beside him looked at him in astonishment. It was her cup, and she had not ever seen such a person's behavior before. For such a highly personal item like the mug, was it normal to use these kinds of items back and forth between strangers?

Somewhat annoyed, "Mr. ... Lo, is it? I can lend you the recliner, but it did not seem good for Mr. Lu to use a personal item like a cup without asking. Or was it that Mr. Lo had the habit of drinking from a stranger's cup?"

"Don't be annoyed," Leon chuckled lightly and held his hands up, smiling at her and soothing, "I was just thirsty, and I didn't know that you used this cup. Otherwise, I would have asked for your opinion anyway. Sorry if this made you feel uncomfortable, I didn't mean it." The words at first sounded like they were sincere, but upon listening carefully, one would realize that the man called Leon Lo in front of her had no sincerity to apologize at all.

What did he mean by "will ask for your opinion"? If you know she was the one using the cup, why do you need to ask her opinion? Meaning, even if he knew the cup was used by her, he would still use it as long as he asked for her opinion? "But since I already used the cup, boss, why don't you give me the cup?"

The woman was once again startled, and after a while, she pulled down the expression on her face, looked at Leon, and said indifferently, "No matter how you look at it, you look like a robber. And, with all due respect, Mr. Lo, has anyone ever said that you're actually quite shameless?"

As a boss, it was indeed rare to speak so rudely to a customer, but... she had long since passed the age where she still had to stoop down her level for someone else.

Leon also smiled when she said that, instead looked at the woman in front of her with great interest, "Then has anyone ever said that you're too direct in your words, boss?"

"If you're trying to say I talk too harshly, I'm sorry, it just means you have bad luck. I might have been a little more careful if you'd met me a few years back."

"How so?"

He gazed at her with amusement while chatting with her.

The woman laughed softly, "Maybe, all the stoicism I had to face a few years, I've squandered it all. So, for the next year or two, I only cared about the comfort of my own heart and I don't care about the rest. Especially when it comes to deliberately provocative customers like you, Mr. Lo. Heh~ I blame my anger today for talking to a stranger."

She said she had squandered all the "stoicism", she said she only cared about her happiness in the past few years, and it was easy for her to say this. But Leon was aware of, that in those years, how did this woman came to be, and when he looked at the woman in front of her saying these matters nonchalantly, his heart was actually overflowing with a hint of heartache.

Inevitably, there was a little more pity in his heart when looking at her again.

The woman then looked down, avoiding his gaze, "Mr. Lo, if you like the recliner, I'll let someone go to give you one tomorrow, if you also liked the tea cups, I can also call someone to send you a new set of to. These worthless trinkets, if Mr. Lu likes them, I can give them to you." It was just a pity that it was the tea set she had been using for so long.

She looked up at the lake not too far away, the lake would rise a bit at night, and submerged another small section of the old crooked-necked root that had snapped across its back, into the lake water.

Lifting her foot, very slowly walked to the courtyard. The slate piled bridge which was connected to a thirty-square-foot pavement above the lake. This natural piece of pavement above the lake, was used by her to plant some rhododendron, roses, sunflower, turtle back leaves, and some unknown wildflowers, although they were small flowers, they were colorful.

She also loved to come here when she had nothing to do. Just came to pick some dead leaves or remove some weeds.

She squatted down, picked up a trowel on the side, and loosened the soil again.

Leon stood up, gazing at the land in the lake not far away, the locals wore a plain cotton, loose-fitting dress, covering from the head to the feet, and then put on a loose knitted thin jacket. She squatted there to loosen the soil, the sky was getting dark, the lighting flickered, but Leon's heart beat quickly... When he saw that woman again, she had already turned over a new leaf.

"Hey! Boss!"

A woman crouched not far away, heard an incoming voice and turned back, puzzled, "Anything else, Mr. Lo?"

"Boss, my name is Leon Lo, you still haven't told me, what's your name?"

The woman was slightly startled... is how long has it been since anyone has asked her name?

"I am just a boss, and you can call me a that." My name? Name... she also does not know, what is her name, her laughed at herself in her heart.

Leon heart's heart was moved slightly, then, his dark eyes, relit up, "Okay, boss, I'll address you as boss."

The woman stood up and clapped her hands, not taking Leon's words, to heart.

The peaceful life she had been living for the past year or two, she had already gotten used to it.

A peaceful life often came with boredom, and a peaceful day often came with loneliness, however, this was her choice.

Leon did not observe any further, he turned around and returned to his room.

Looking down as he stood at the window, the woman, was walking back slowly.

It was dark, and it was not easy to see clearly, he only could see the woman who had wrapped herself in an anachronistic way, her figure, disappearing into the courtyard. A hand rose up, slowly touching the chest, clearly feeling his heart pounding vigorousness inside ... was this the feeling of falling in love, right?

It was not just the initial jealousy towards Caden, not just the guilt from later on, it was also not just when she first came to Erhai Lake's that peaked his interest in her... her life, the young mansion, the teenager's first grand appearance, she was alone until the age of eighteen years old. In what should had been her best years, she was thrown into prison, after three years out of prison, she had completely changed everything about her, everyone thought that she was finished... until today, Leon did not expect to be able to see Grace turned over the new leaf.

Her past, was already history... He was falling in love with the Grace now, right?

The man in front of the window openly clenched his five fingers, 'Caden, this time, you have no chance!"

Far away at S City.

Ingemar threw in a flash drive, "Take it to him."

"What is it?" Truman held it up and took a look, not really caring.

"The surveillance image of Grace in that place."

Humbert was shocked, "Wasn't it destroyed in the first place?"

Ingemar smiled coldly, "If someone has the intention to destroy it, there will be someone who has the intention to keep it. In this world, as long as there is money, what can't be bought and sold?" He swept a glance at the flash drive in Truman's hand, with undisguised disgust in his eyes, "Fifty million yuan for these images, you really should see how these images portray human nastiness and bestiality!" "Fifty million? You think it's a trade for something confidential?" Truman called out in his heart, Ingemar was really crazy to spend fifty million to get the flash drive?

"When Caden looked for these images three years ago, the stuff was destroyed before he got his hand on it. But I kept my eyes open and never gave up looking for them, but there's been no news. However, with a heavy reward, people will come for it. So, with the 50 million reward, if someone really has a backup in his hands, he'll be moved. If fifty million is not enough for him to be impressed, then there are two possibilities, one is that there really any backup drive left, and the other one is...the person behind the scenes is someone we can't afford to offend."

Truman nodded, "But fifty million?" He thought that price that Ingemar gave was too high, "Grace has suffered some sins there, these matters, even if there is no evidence, in a few of our hearts, we know it as clear as day, so why spend 50 million? Right now, it's more important to find her, right?"

Upon hearing that, the smile underneath Ingemar's eyes became even colder, "You won't say that after you've seen what's on the flash drive." Just suffered some sins? ... Ha, there is more!

Even he, an outsider, couldn't help but tremble with anger when he saw the images there!