The Substitute Bride

After handing the document over to Leila, David stayed to observe how she would react.

As soon as she had finished reading, she frowned and flung the file onto the nearby table. "Are you kidding me?" she snapped. "Don't you know all the information listed here?"

"Of course, I do," David said with a smug grin.

It was clear that he found satisfaction in having successfully annoyed Leila. In stark contrast with his self-satisfied smile was Leila's vexation.

"Then why did you ask me to be here?" Leila barked. It was easy to see that David had done it on purpose—a fact he didn't bother to conceal.

"Leila, I'm afraid that you have forgotten your duty. It's your job, not mine, to solve these problems. Isn't that right? Why are you expecting me to do a job that is clearly yours?" David said without emotion. There was a hint of contempt in the way he looked at Leila. The look of amusement that had been on his face moments ago was now gone. His despise for Leila now clearly showed itself.

Hearing this, Leila realized what David had been doing all along. He had been tripping her up during Charles' absence. But he seemed to have forgotten one thing—she wasn't weak. She would not break that easily.

"Fine," Leila said curtly. "Is there anything else you'd like me to do?" Wasting time on David wouldn't benefit her. Since he had asked her to finalize the document, she would do it. Besides, his position was his only leverage against her. He could only cause her trouble through this. As soon as she finished this task, he would be out of her hair.

"No, that's all. You can start enjoying your vacation once you've completed this document," David answered coldly.

Leila picked up the file from the table where she had thrown it. She cast a spiteful glance at David before finally leaving.

The entire hour that followed, Leila enlisted Alice's assistance and immersed herself in work. With Alice's help, Leila was able to finalize the document.

Meanwhile, David had dialed Charles' number the minute Leila walked out.

Charles was on the hotel rooftop overlooking urban Malaysia when he got the call. He answered the call when he saw that it was his assistant calling. "David, what's wrong?" he asked, slightly worried.

"Mr. Lu, everything is fine here. I just thought you should know that Ms. Zhang has asked for leave," David reported diligently.

Charles frowned at the mention of Leila's name. "You take care of it," he instructed.

When David realized that Charles probably didn't want to hear about Leila, he promptly changed the subject. Instead, he continued to update Charles on how other current projects were coming along. Soon, the call ended.

After hanging up the phone, Charles stayed on the rooftop for a while, enjoying the fresh air. He had been relishing the change of pace. Naturally, he wanted to take in as much of it as he could. Once he felt content, he retired to his hotel suite a little after noon.

After Charles had gotten changed, the hotel service assistant called to ask what

together with the nurse, wheeled Melissa into a private room. Then, he headed to the pharmacy.

There was a lot on his mind as he made his way to the pharmacy. It dawned on him that Melissa was old and sick now. There were endless threats to her health. With this in mind, he made a big decision. In the coming days, he would try his best to fulfill his mother's wishes, whatever they might be. Whatever she asked for, he would provide.

Back at Dream Garden, Leila was exhausted.

She had spent the whole morning finishing the task that David had assigned. Afterward, she had gone straight home without notifying him.

Leila went upstairs in a hurry, attracting Nancy's attention. The maid found this behavior suspicious and was afraid that something was wrong.

"Miss Zhang, are you alright?" she asked.

Of course, she didn't care about Leila. She merely checked on the woman because she was afraid that Leila might cause problems in the house. After all, only the two of them were there at the moment. If something happened, the blame might fall on Nancy.

"Why do you ask? Besides, my life is none of your business," Leila answered indifferently and continued to make her way to her room. Unfortunately, when she turned around to close her bedroom door, she noticed that Nancy had followed her up there. Even worse, the maid had looked her up and down in the most brazen manner.

That was the final straw. Leila could no longer hide her irritation. Instead of closing her door, she opened it wide and started charging toward Nancy. She was going to give her a piece of her mind.

She had had enough. Somehow, she felt like the maid was treating her like a common thief. She had never liked Nancy anyway, and Charles wasn't home. She would be able to show Nancy the real her without consequence. After all, Nancy was nothing but a servant in this house.

There was no use pretending to be nice now. Yes, Nancy had been living at Dream Garden with the Lu family for decades now, but that didn't make her important.